Vince McMahon "fought hard" to keep controversial WWE character on TV
The Godfather has opened up about Vince McMahon’s attempts to keep his controversial character on WWE television in the early 2000s.
The WWE Hall of Famer appeared in WWE as Papa Shango (1992-1993) and Kama (1995-1998) before he became The Godfather in 1998. The Godfather’s controversial pimp gimmick received complaints from the Parents Television Council (PTC), so McMahon felt compelled to axe the character in 2000.
The Godfather became known as The Goodfather around that period of time. He also joined the WWE faction Right to Censor (RTC), a conservative group that parodied the PTC.
Speaking on Steve Austin’s "Broken Skull Sessions" show, The Godfather said McMahon was reluctant to change his fun-loving gimmick.
“Hated it [working as The Goodfather], absolutely,” The Godfather said. “This is the only time in wrestling where I did not like what I was doing. It was so hard. First of all, Vince fought for me hard. He used to tell me, ‘Charles [Charles Wright, The Godfather’s real name], I’m trying, man, but they’re coming after you hard. I’m trying.’ If it was up to Vince, he would have kept that gimmick going forever, but he was taking a lot of heat for what I was doing. So he’s like, ‘Well, we’re gonna poke fun at this group for a minute and then try to get back to The Godfather.’”
Right to Censor (Steven Richards, Bull Buchanan, The Goodfather, Val Venis, and Ivory) debuted in July 2000 and disbanded in June 2001. The Godfather revived his former character in 2002 before he was released at the end of the year.
The Godfather explains why he stayed in WWE
After becoming The Goodfather, The Godfather said he made the mistake of telling someone in WWE that he was seriously considering leaving the company.
In an attempt to make him stay, Vince McMahon decided to book The Goodfather and Bull Buchanan as the new WWE Tag Team Champions.
“I think it got to Vince, and you know how Vince is,” The Godfather added. “Me being a loyal person to the company, I’ve always been a loyal person, he dropped the straps [tag titles] on us, so I’m not gonna leave when he dropped the straps on us. So it kept me there longer.”
The Goodfather and Bull Buchanan won the WWE Tag Team Championship from The Hardy Boyz on RAW in November 2000. They held the titles for 34 days before they dropped the gold to Edge and Christian at Armageddon 2000.
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