Rena Mero Interview
September 12, 1999
Page 4
by RichInKC

RichInKC: Who knows, maybe some day we will see credits roll at the end of a show that says, "The role of The Rock was played by Duane Johnson."

Rena Mero: That's why I had such a hard time doing some of the things I was asked to do.  We weren't given any credit for playing a character.  There were no credits rolled at the end of the show.  That's why now I have the opportunity to say I'm Rena Mero, the actress who played the role of Sable.  That's all I wanted to do and I finally get the opportunity to be able to say that.  It took me three years to get it and I had to go to court, file a lawsuit, and have litigation, but now I absolutely have that right to say that.  I was truly an actress and I played that role.  It took a long time to get there, but I succeeded.

RichInKC: Sometimes I think the reason hat some fans have difficulty separating the character from the actual person is that they never get to see the person behind the character.  In this business, because kayfabe is so strong, there are many wrestlers who will not even respond to their real names in public.  Do you agree and can your site help people understand Rena, instead of the character she has played?

Rena Mero: Well, I think that my fans definitely understand Rena better now.  I think that what you are speaking of is "old school".  I think the "marks", for lack of a better term, are so much smarter to the business now, that they know the inside.  Some of them probably know it better than us.  Still, some of the old-timers still play the role continuously.  I think it is changing and I think it needs to change because that is one of the reasons you are locked into a career in wrestling.  When you leave wrestling, you leave your persona behind and nobody knows who you really are.  So when you go out into the world as Joe Blow, people are going to say, "Who's that?"  They kind of lock you up and they give you no choice but to stay in the wrestling industry or be a nobody.  I felt it was my good fortune that I was able to get my name known while I was still in the business and it definitely has served me well outside of the wrestling world. 

RichInKC: When you were in the WWF, or when you were watching WCW when you husband performed there, were there any wrestlers you particularly enjoyed watching in the ring?

Rena Mero: I think the same ones I have always been a fan of.  I have always been a huge fan of Diamond Dallas Page, Marcus Bagwell, Alex Wright, and StingÖthese are the guys I knew very well and I have always enjoyed them in and out of the ring.  I think they are extremely talented and they will always be my favorites.

RichInKC: How do you see the business as it has changed over the past three years, from the time you first appeared at ringside when Mero and HHH fought over you to where it is today?

Rena Mero: I can't really go too much in depth on that subject other than to say wrestling has definitely changed and it has changed tremendously.  I think it is very important that people, especially children, realize that wrestling is sports entertainment and the entertainers on television are skilled athletes and they're trained properly on how to execute the moves they use.  I think it is very important that parents are responsible enough to make sure their children know that and that they don't try to simulate what they see.