Insight with Chris Van Vliet - Torrie Wilson On The WWE Divas Era, Dawn Marie & Al Wilson, Difference Between WCW & WWE

Episode Date: February 1, 2024

Torrie Wilson (@torriewilson) is a retired professional wrestler, fitness model and a member of the WWE Hall Of Famer. She sits down with Chris Van Vliet in Orlando, FL to talk about how a chance encounter with Kevin Nash started her wrestling career, getting signed to WCW, being part of the WWE Divas era, her friendship with Stacy Kiebler, posing for Playboy, her father Al Wilson being part of a storyline with Dawn Marie and much more! Quote I'm thinking about: "You can have anything you want if you are willing to give up the belief that you can't have it." - Dr. Robert Anthony Sponsors: BETTERHELP: Get 10% off your first month with the code INSIGHT at http://betterhelp.com/insight MUDWTR: Get $20 off when you subscribe at http://mudwtr.com/cvv You’ll also get a free frother and a sample of their delicious coconut creamer. MAGIC SPOON: Get $5 off with the code CVV at http://magicspoon.com/cvv ROCKET MONEY: Join Rocket Money today and experience financial freedom: https://rocketmoney.com/cvv FITBOD: Get 25% off when you use the code INSIGHT at http://fitbod.me/INSIGHT MYBOOKIE: Bet on WWE! Get up to $200 cash bonus when you use the code CVV and sign up at http://mybookie.ag BLUECHEW: Use the code CVV to get your first month of BlueChew for FREE at http://bluechew.com GHOSTBED: Get 40% of your purchase with the code CVV at http://ghostbed.com/cvv MIRACLE MADE: Upgrade your sleep with Miracle Made! Go to http://TryMiracle.com/CVV and use the code CVV to claim your FREE 3 PIECE TOWEL SET and SAVE over 40% OFF PLUNGE: Get $150 off your Plunge with the coupon code CVV150 at http://plunge.com BONCHARGE: Go to http://boncharge.com/CVV and use coupon code CVV to save 25% For more information about Chris and INSIGHT go to: https://podcast.chrisvanvliet.com If you enjoyed this episode, could I ask you to please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcast/iTunes? It takes less than a minute and makes a huge difference in helping to spread the word about the show and also to convince some hard-to-get guests.  Follow CVV on social media:  Instagram: instagram.com/ChrisVanVliet Twitter: twitter.com/ChrisVanVliet Facebook: facebook.com/ChrisVanVliet YouTube: youtube.com/ChrisVanVliet TikTok: tiktok.com/@Chris.VanVliet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chris. Hello, my friends. Welcome back to another one here on Insight. I'm CBB, Chris Van Fleet. Thanks for being with us. And thank you for making Insight one of the Top Wrestling Podcasts on the planet. And this is a special one today. Tori Wilson does not do a lot of interviews at all.

And a big thank you to DDP for connecting me and Tori when I was in Orlando in December. This is the same time we did the interviews with Rick Boogs. McKenzie Mitchell and Sammy Kavarra. So when you watch this on YouTube, you'll be like, oh, that, I recognize it. I totally get it. And by the way, DDP is just the best. And yes, that was me sitting next to him at the Royal Rumble Press Conference. I'm going to tell the whole story of how that came together, how we watched the Rumble together. And then he came to the press conference. That's on tomorrow's Ask CVV episode. But today, we've got the legend. We've got the a Hall of Famer, Tori Wilson, and her story is fascinating.

She grew up in a small town in Idaho, had no intentions to wrestle, was not a wrestling fan, and a chance meeting with Kevin Nash changed her entire life, changed her entire career. She tells the story here, but it's just fascinating. You hear me talk about this all the time, but I love that idea that one thing can happen. You can meet this person, you can make this decision, and your entire life changes. and that's what happened here. And when you think of the Divas era,

she's one of the first names that immediately pops into your head. And my goodness, she is so sweet. You'll see that during this interview, but she's so sweet. She came to the house that we were recording. We rented it out on Airbnb to do these interviews. She knocked on the door, I opened the door.

She had cookies for us. She had two bags of cookies, one for me and one for my camera guy, Harry. I mean, how nice is that? I mean, this was a few days before Christmas, so she was like, I don't want to come empty-handed. I baked some Christmas cookies for you guys.

And they were so good, by the way. If you enjoy this, please snap a screenshot and tag us. She's at Tori One on Twitter. She's at Tori Wilson on Instagram. I'm at Chris Van Vleet, and you've heard me say it before. But if you've ever enjoyed any of the interviews we've ever done on the show, please take a second to hit that follow button. If you're feeling extra generous, leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or on Spotify.

Spotify. The reason I bring it up in all of these intros is because it is seriously the most important thing you can do to help the show grow. So thank you in advance for that. Now, please enjoy this conversation with Tori Wilson. Oh my goodness, you came bearing gifts. Thank you. Thank you so much. You're welcome. What do we have? Hard sweat tears. You baked these? These are cookies? I baked those. Yes. I haven't actually looked in here yet. They're Christmas cookies. Look at this. one. It's a little Christmas tree? It's a shortbread? Those are good. And then we got chocolate. Oh, my, oh. That's like a Girl Scout cookie. Thin mints. Oh, my gosh. Hold on. I'm going to eat all these

during our interview. What's this one with the Hershey Kiss on it? Peanut butter. Oh, my gosh. You were too kind. Thank you so much. There's no calories in these, I'm guessing, right? Absolutely not. You're big into fitness, so. All top-notch, low-calorie ingredients. Do you let yourself indulge during the holidays? Absolutely. I woke up and had four cookies this morning. First thing. So, wow, to be in the shape that you're in, all we have to do is wake up and eat cookies.

That's it? That's the secret. Then I was walking the dogs going, oh, I shouldn't have done that. So the secrets just eat what you want? That's the secret. It's moderation, though, right? Absolutely. You can't go through life, like, wishing you could have a cookie because, first of all,

that's miserable. Second of all, the second, get a cookie. You're going to eat the whole damn box. Well, as soon as you leave, I feel like I could eat them all right now, but as soon as you leave, Harry and I were going to eat all these cookies. So thank you. Thank you for coming by. Yes, thanks for having me.

I mean, congratulations on everything. Thank you. And as you sit here right now, I feel like you could still wrestle. The shape that you're in right now, I feel like you could still go. Yeah, I'm a better shape probably, but when I get up, my back doesn't think so. Really? Is it from the surgery you had? Yeah.

It's crazy because, you know, people talk so much crap and they're like, she never, you know, she's not arrested or whatever. It's a different era. And they're like, what do you mean your back hurts? And I'm like, my back hurts. I had back surgery. Some people, you know, their body is just, I guess, not cut out for that kind of craziness. At what point did you realize, like, oh, I've got a real issue here. This isn't just like something that hurts for a day.

Well, it was like 2008. I had a few matches where in between, like, moments, my back would really lock up. And then I started having, like, ongoing issues. I'd pick up my little dog, and I would literally, like, freeze and have to lay down on the floor for, like, 45 minutes in pain. I just couldn't move. And then I went to see a chiropractor, and they did this, like, pulling thing every single day. And I had to take Vicodin and I would cry and the whole entire time. And then it's almost like that made it worse.

And then finally I had a match that I was supposed to do on, I think, Rar's Macdown. And I finally had to tell them, like, look, my back is, I'm nervous. It's going to lock up out there and I'm just going to be laying there and I won't be able to move in front of the crowd. So I ended up getting surgery. And then that was it. And then I, yeah. Yeah, I was kind of at this chapter in my life where I was just kind of ready to be not traveling all the time. Yeah.

And the person that I was dating had been fired. So it was nice to be home. I had opened up a clothing store in Texas. I was like, okay, I can do this. I don't need to travel anymore. So I just basically asked if I could have my release because I wanted to be home. And then also the thought of going back and trying to wrestle. Like, at that point in my career, I was wrestling more and I felt like I was getting better.

And I didn't want to go back to not doing that. Yeah. Was there a certain relief when you're like, oh, I don't have to do this anymore. Yeah. I think anyone that goes on the road for that amount of time, it's that part, really. Sure. It's the hardest. Yeah.

I've heard a lot of people say that. Like, the bumps in the ring, sure, they hurt. But it's the fact that you're away. I mean, it's upwards of 300 days a year. Yeah. Wow. I mean, that's your tribe that you travel with. Yeah.

Let's take it back. Let's take a way back because your life wasn't set up. You weren't going to be a pro wrestler. This all happened by accident, which I love stories like this. We're like, if it wasn't for you being in this exact place at this exact time and Kevin Nash recognizing who you are, none of this happens. Yeah. What path were you on before that story, which you were.

we'll get to. So I grew up in Idaho. I was going to college. I was in my third year and I was like, I don't even know why I'm going to college. I don't want to be a dietitian. I want to be in the entertainment industry. I wanted to do something fun every day. And I had started competing in fitness competitions and got a couple under my belt, met a few photographers, got in the back of a few magazines. and then I finally shot for the cover of a magazine with this guy named Frank Seppi, which was a big deal to me. And I finally just kind of had the guts to like, I told my boyfriend at the time, I was like, I'm moving to L.A. You can come with me if you want to. Otherwise, I'm going by myself. And I just got to go for it. Like, I don't know what I'm going to do out there, but I want to be in the entertainment industry.

I've got some ins. I'm going to work out at Gold's Venice. I'm going to shoot for magazines. Hopefully I'll do acting. and so I moved down there with hardly anything with my boyfriend. What city were you in? Boise at that time. And then what city in L.A. were you on? And then I moved to Venice Beach. Are you right where all the bodies?

Okay. Nice. And it was so fun going to Gold's Gym and like literally there's an opportunity every time you go there. And I've never know who you're going to see. Exactly. Arnold still works out there every morning. That's amazing. Yeah.

And then so what happened when you were in L.A.? So when I got there. I got a few modeling jobs through fitness, like fitness equipment and stuff like that. And my boyfriend was the huge wrestling fan. And I would tease him for watching wrestling. I'd never seen wrestling growing up. We didn't have cable. I didn't really know anything about it.

But I teased him for watching it. And he wanted to go to a WCW show that was in L.A. And we had a friend that worked at Gold's Gym that was friends with a lot of the wrestlers. So he gave us free tickets that were, like, way up in the rafters. And back then, you know, you don't really have cell phones to, like, connect. So, like, we were up in our seats. And I remember our friend came up and I was like, hey, do you guys want to go backstage? And my boyfriend was like, hell yeah.

And so we went backstage. And I met a bunch of wrestlers, took pictures with, like, Goldberg and Ray Mysterio. Didn't know who they were. But I was like, these guys are impressive, right? Yeah. And my boyfriend was freaking out. And then I met Kevin Nash, and he had remembered seeing me in a green bikini in a fitness magazine. And, you know, had asked me if I'd be interested in doing this little, like three-month storyline that they had this idea for Rick Flair and his son, David Flair.

And I was like, sure. And I actually started working with an agent that was also Hulk Hogan's agent. So there was like a little bit of a tie-in right there. So he kind of like knew the ropes. And, you know, at first I was kind of like, well, I don't really know what I want to do in the entertainment industry, which is why you have to be very specific with your dream, right? Or not. Worked out well. Vague goals get vague results, right?

Yeah, exactly. So, you know, at first I was kind of like, I don't know, I want to be an actress. And then this, you know, I was broke and this opportunity came and I was like, shoot, I could like travel a little bit. That's all I really wanted to do growing up, see the world. And it just, that thing just kind of snowballed so fast. I had no idea. And at that time, like, you know, people at the airports, they could just, there was no really security. Remember, like, you could walk up to the gates.

And I remember walking, like, getting off a flight to go to a show that I was just doing backstage stuff at the time. And, like, all these guys were, like, waiting when I walked off the thing. And I was like, this is crazy. And it just, it snowballed. And then they offered me a contract. And I was like, yeah, I dig this. I could do this. It was such easy money.

And at that time, my agent had gotten me this crazy deal that got me a lot of heat also. Sure. unknowingly. You know, and I just, I never, I never even thought about wrestling at the time. They just wanted, like, valets and characters on the show. show. And this is also the time of the Nitro Girls. So it wasn't like, you know, it wasn't far-fetched to do that.

Right, right. To be on the show, but not wrestling. Yeah. There were very, almost very few girls that were wrestling at that time. Right. Do you remember what your first, like, how you felt the first time you were on WCW television? Oh. Yeah.

It still pains you. I can go right back to those, like, that fear. The first many weeks that I did, that I was on the show, they would find. me in and I would just do these little skits that were like really bad acting by the way. But, and then they would air them. And the first time I went live, it was like, I mean, I was kicked in the gut, like just so nervous. Like, I'm not a natural performer or like, I'm not the girl that walks into the room like, hey, guys, it's me. So it was definitely a learning curve. So was it just a character that you could just turn on? Yeah. It's, I don't know, like, I feel

like there's a version of ourselves in every character. But the biggest thing that I was just trying to dig for was like pushing past that fear and like looking like I know what I'm doing and like just trying to be bold and fearless. I need to tell you about mudwater. If you're a coffee drinker, listen up. Mudwater is a coffee alternative made with four functional mushrooms. It has only a fraction of the caffeine of a cup of coffee, but you get natural energy. without the jitters or without the crash of coffee. This is all day energy. And yeah, it's called mud water.

No mud is not one of the ingredients. It kind of tastes like cacao and chai had a baby. I love the taste of it, and it's something that I drink every single day. And because it's that sustained energy throughout the day, you don't find yourself reaching for that second cup of coffee like you do when you drink coffee all the time. Go check it out right now.

You'll get $20 off when you subscribe at mudwater.com slash CVV. You'll also get a free frother and a sample of their delicious coconut creamer that I love. Go to mudwater.com slash CVV. That's M-U-D-W-TR.com slash CVV to get $20 off your subscription and your free frother. That's mudwater.com slash CVV. So we've got a lot in common. Obviously, we both love wrestling and evidently we love great conversation. about wrestling, but I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that if you're like me,

you also like to save a dollar or two or maybe 10. And that's been the case since I signed out for Rocket Money. Rocket Money is a personal finance app that finds and cancels your unwanted subscriptions. It also monitors your spending and helps to lower your bills. Rocket Money has over 5 million users, myself included, and they've helped save its members an average of $720 a year, with over $500 million in canceled subscriptions. So yeah, they'll go in and they'll find those subscriptions

that you completely forgot that you signed up for, and they'll do the hard work of canceling those subscriptions for you and saving you that money. So stop wasting money on things that you don't use. Cancel your unwanted subscriptions by going to rocketmoney.com slash CVV. That's rocketmoney.com slash CVV, rocketmoney.com, slash CVV.

For not knowing anything about wrestling, what was the thing that surprised you the most about that world? Oh, man, that was a lot. One of the scariest things for me was being backstage when you don't know that industry

and you're walking through the hallways and it's just all these, like, it's super intimidating. Sure. And, you know, like, I remember seeing Scott Steiner and he was like just yelling. And, I mean, it was just weird.

It was just, And then on top of that, I didn't, I had no idea that you were, you know, the etiquette was like to walk up to everybody as the new person and shake their hand and look in their eye. Introduce yourself. Yeah. But I was so shy that I literally just wanted to slink away and hide. So I was getting heat for not being friendly, but I was just really wanted to hide under a rock. And you're like, I don't even know what heat is, you know, I don't know this world. It was much later.

I realized. When did you start to get comfortable? Never. Not even like at the Hall of Fame speech. Oh, God, no. No, I got more comfortable me when I was in WWE. Like, I think when I probably was around like 2003, when I had storylines, and I still wasn't comfortable.

It was just, it became a little more fun. And backstage, like when you know everybody, it's just easy and fun. But it never felt comfortable. So how does it go from we're just going to have you here for a few months to we need you to train to be a pro wrestler? There was a time in WCW where they were like, we want some of you girls to go down to the power plant just for like two days and learn how to take bumps. Not to wrestle, but just how to take bumps. And I remember it was Stacy, myself, Molly Holly was there to help us, Medusa, Charmel. and it was the most brutal two days.

Like I, we were crying. We were crying. We felt like we were in car wrecks. Like they filmed something for E, I think it was. And we literally were like, what is going on? Why do we have to do this? And like I remember Medusa like dropped me on my head on purpose to like, like, I understand how frustrating it probably was for them.

Yeah. And we have this opportunity and we don't even, like, we didn't know, right? We just needed to learn how to take bumps. So that was like a little smidgen taste. But it wasn't until years into WWE when they would basically, it was never like we want to send you to a wrestling school or anything like that. Like they didn't even have their wrestling NXT or anything like that. It was kind of like, okay, you're going to be a part of this match tonight. So we want you to learn a couple of things to do.

in your match tonight. It was always like, okay, you're preparing for what you're going to do tonight. So you can see how like, if someone has years of experience, that's great. But like when you're just learning a couple moves

to do in a match that night and you're like, I better not fuck this up because I don't know what's going to happen. Like literally if you forgot one spot, you're screwed. Like deer in a headlight. Yeah.

And it was, so that was really scary. But it was also like it pushed us to try to learn more to put more into the repertoire. Yeah. And then we'd do like, you know, mixed tag matches. So we'd get a little bit more time in the ring. Sure.

But, you know, it was just, it, I was thinking this morning when I was thinking about coming here. And I was like, it's just interesting because back then, there was no, like, blueprint for women in wrestling. We didn't really know what exactly we were there for, like, the entertainment, the TNA aspect, like, cute, bring the femininity into it. But you didn't have like these women that you saw wrestling every week. Yeah. And here and there, you saw some that were kind of paving the way, Victoria. Trish began that too. Lita.

But it was such a different era. And it's so funny watching clips back 20, 25 years later where it's like all the announcers are doing is, look how hot she is. She's so sexy. That would not fly now. When did that start to shift? Not when I was there. Yeah, like you were so, I mean, how many bikini events were you part of?

I can't, I would never be able to count. Bikini contest, bikini matches. Yeah, and they were all like mortifying. People don't realize. Like, yeah, I went out there and owned it the best I could and pushed through the fear. You owned it. But it was mortifying. Like I, there were times when we, I remember specifically a house show that I was in this like bikini showdown with like Don Marie and Sable and someone else.

And I was standing in the corner watching one of the girls dance in the middle and literally fighting back tears. Like, I cannot believe I'm doing this right now. Like, because it was just like it got to like a raunchy point, you know, and I'm like, I don't want to be a part of this. but that was also my job like my job yeah and it's well and you knew at that time this is what you'd signed up yeah but it's changed and it shifted i feel like so much that was also the playboy era right like it wasn't unheard of for so many of you to be part of that world as well with all of this stuff that you were doing did you ever feel like you could say no no really no um there was like twice that i could remember that i like

First of all, like the major people pleaser. So to say no to people is really hard, even if it's someone, you know, recovering from that. But like, you're recovering people pleaser? Covering, kind of. Well, with these cookies here, you have proved us. So thank you. There was one time when I had a thing with Sable where like he wanted, Vince wanted me to come out

with the paint on my boobs like she did. Yeah. And I was like hard. No, I can't do that. Which we, I mean, it ended up being nearly nothing anyways. And another time was when I did Playboy, Vince wanted me to do like a pay-per-view also, a video. Oh, wow. And I was like, oh, like, and that was, that one was very hardcore pressed. And it was really hard for me to say no, but I, like, absolutely didn't want that.

Was it difficult for you to agree to doing Playboy? That part was no, because I thought, like, it's photos. It's like, I know it's going to look good. And it's Playboy. And, like, I have, hadn't, to be honest, this is going to sound real dumb, but I hadn't really even thought about the fact that I was kind of going to be nude because Playboy was so, such a popular magazine, and I was like, this is going to be awesome, right? Playboy parties, all that. Like, literally it wasn't until I was landing on the plane to go to the shoot that I was like, oh, shit. Like, there's going to actually be other people in the room, not just being the photographer. And it was, like, I'm like, it was, It was kind of a closed set, so there wasn't more than like maybe six people.

And I always had a robe, but in between shots, I was always like, this is so weird. And you did two of them, right? Yeah. So there was the one where it was just you, and then one with you and Sable. Which one was the most best-selling one of all time? Probably probably. Evidently, when you're a cover with two women, never sells as much as one. What's the thinking behind that?

I don't know. We thought it would be, you know. Of course. Then we learned later. Oh, huge mistake. We were fine with it because it was just an opportunity for us to do it again and get another great payday. And I think also it introduces you to a whole new audience too. Like, I'm sure you have people that are fans of all the stuff you've done outside of wrestling. Yeah. Because Playboy is just this huge global brand.

It is. And I also feel like, you know, talking about the era of wrestling. That just all fit in with what was going on at that time. Do you still keep in touch with Sable? No. I haven't talked to her since she left WWE. Do you keep in touch with anybody since leaving? Yes, I keep in touch with Stacy.

Stacey has this beautiful family. She does. Wow. I don't feel like she does anything in wrestling anymore. No, she does. No, every once in a while I get a text from her like, hey, have you ever done this signing? And I'm like, I don't do that many myself, but no.

And do you know who this person is? Like, she says she's going to think about doing signings, but she hasn't done. Michelle McCool, Candice, Victoria, Charmel, Trish. I mean, there's a Barbie. There's a lot of girls that I just, like, they're like sisters. Do you do a, like, you do a few signings a year, right? A few. Like, I feel like I've seen you at a few.

What makes you want to agree? to do one. You know, have this weird thing with wrestling. I feel like there's a lot that I love

and appreciate. I so appreciate the opportunity and how I got to like be a part of something so cool and global.

But there's also something about wrestling that has always felt super dark to me. And, um, like I'm just really

sensitive to it. So like, I say no to a lot of signings. because I feel like, like that darkness and it doesn't feel good. And it brings it back when you're around. Yeah.

Yeah. So I go, you know, I go through long periods where I'm like, I don't need to do anymore. And then I kind of miss it. You know, I miss seeing people. It's kind of like a reunion. Yeah. And so I pop into a few. Do you think about what your life would look like?

Had you not gone to that WCW show on that day, bump into Kevin Nash. Like, what do you think you would end up? I don't know. I don't know. Isn't that wild? How that works? It's really wild, yeah. Maybe wrestling was meant to find you.

Absolutely, it was. I used to say it all the time. It was like a little angel was looking out for me. When I moved to L.A., I was so green and naive and innocent. And I went on numerous auditions where there was, like, looking back, I'm like, that was so inappropriate and weird. got a couple little commercial jobs. Like, I never know, like, what would have happened down that road.

But just knowing how innocent I was, like, I feel like that world is a lot worse. With the way wrestling is now, if you were 20 years old living in L.A. And you had an opportunity to be part of wrestling now. Do you think you'd pursue it? I think so. Like, now that I see, now that it's easier to see what it could be, for me, right? Sure, sure.

Like back then, right, yeah, hindsight. Like, I took the opportunity then, why wouldn't I, now? Sure. But, yeah, I don't know. Like, it's hard to say, because I, I know how I feel right now, too. So, like, I also know what those girls do to go to NXT and spend years and years there before they even get their shot. Yeah.

So the old me, the old lady me is like, I don't know. Old lady, oh, come on. But there's always these criticisms of you of like she didn't do enough matches. She didn't take enough bumps. How do you feel when people say that about you? Well, it's just dumb because it's like I wasn't writing the show. Yeah. I wasn't putting the matches together.

Like, I definitely know that when I was, Fit Finley was amazing putting matches together and just trying to make us look the best he could. Yeah. And I often would ask him if I could please get thrown into the stairs or like crazy, not crazy things, but like, you know, I just really wanted to get hurt. There's just like baseball slide into a chair. Like it's part of your Hall of Fame reel. And I'm like, oh my gosh.

Stuff like that. So like I wanted to do more of that. But it was like, I was like laughed, kind of laughed at. Yeah, you're never, I'm never going to win over the naysayers. And I don't need to. My ego doesn't need to be stroked to be told that I was like the greatest wrestler of all time. I know I wasn't. I did my best.

You are a Hall of Famer though. I can't believe there's actually any naysayers of you. It's like the sweetest person and your career speaks for itself. I feel like I saw this online. Is it true that you had a hand in designing the WWDivas championship? No. Oh, someone started this rumor online. Do you feel like you could have won championships in WWA?

Absolutely, yeah. Does it, you know, bother you that you didn't? It's never bothered me, no. The only thing that bothers me is that it's bothered other people. Oh, sure, sure. They're like, you should have. And I'm like, that title that someone determines outside of the match doesn't define who I am.

Yeah. Right. And the fact of the matter is, like, there are people that won titles that people don't remember. There's a lot of that. And there's also a lot of people that people think that they won titles and they don't remember that. And you're right. None of this really seems to matter. When the transition was happening from WCW to WWF at the time, were you worried, like, what's going to happen to me?

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I try not to worry too much. try to like trust that like whatever is meant for me is going to be for me. I love that. I had started dating Billy Kidman when I was in WCW. So when, you know, everything kind of went down. Like I still had that connection to him. And I had actually moved to Tampa to move in with him. And he had a meeting with Jim Ross. And I remember if Jim Ross asked him or if he said, you know, do you want to meet Tori? and so I ended up going to that meeting and meeting him after.

And he immediately asked if I was interested. But like I was kind of thinking that maybe the wrestling thing was over because WCW had started, you know, had fallen apart and I didn't really consider that WWE would want me. And you were so like a tried and true WCW personality. And there was there was this like struggle at first. and you know exactly what I'm talking about when the invasion angle happened and WCW talent were being featured

on WWF, there were a lot of people that were like, I don't, I didn't watch Nature so I'm not familiar with these characters. You somehow won people over so quickly. Yeah, I don't, I think it was a combination with Stacy. I don't know what it was. Maybe it was just the fact that we were like

these two bopsie twin girls that didn't know you know, maybe that was part of the allure. We didn't really know. We were kind of, I feel like we were a little bit of a breath of fresh air. And I, there's something about just the way that you were presented on TV. Like, and it truly is who you are. Like the girl next door, you're so kind and you're so nice.

I feel like they were able to present that well on WWE as well. Yeah, I guess. I think there's a awkwardness that I presented a lot. Like, I just always felt awkward. Like, they always put me in this position to be, like, sexy. And I never felt that I was sexy. Like, sounds stupid. But, like, I mean, Billy, my ex-husband Pete, like, would make fun of me.

Like, you're the hottest dork I've ever met. Like, you're literally, like, I couldn't dance. I was offered them all the time. They would ask me to dance in the ring in my bikini. And I just always felt awkward. And when I see things back, I'm like, There is definitely an awkwardness that you can't deny. And I can't help but wonder if maybe that's the part that won people over.

I feel like that's endearing. Like, I don't know, it's like shyness about you. I feel like that would, like, it was really endearing for fans. How awkward was the stuff with, with your father? It was weird, but I was just really grateful to have that opportunity for him. How did that even come about? You know, I was actually home visiting my family over the holidays. I got this weird call from Paul Heyman, and he had this storyline idea.

I was just happy to have a storyline because I hadn't really up into this point, right? And he told me the storyline, and he's like, at the end, he said, we can use your dad or we can use an actor. And I was like, oh, we have to use my dad. Had your dad done any acting? When he was younger, he dabbled in, like, stage acting in San Diego and, like, you know. Okay. Because, so I knew it would be down. I knew it would be like an opportunity of a lifetime for him to just kind of like see my world and travel.

And then once he got in, I was like, oh, my God, what did I do? People were like, you know, it was tough for him. But I'm just so grateful because he passed away a few years ago. And now I'm really grateful to have that opportunity with him. But he did, you know, a lot of crazy things. one time he actually was at the TV hotel and Vince went out to his limo and he asked Vince for a ride in his limo to the arena. And Vince did it? I wanted to die.

Yeah, he did. That's fantastic. But he didn't know, right? He's just. What was that was, was what we saw the storyline that was originally pitched? Because that, I feel like it went down some interesting twists and turns with the whole thing with Al Wilson and you and Don Marie. Yeah. I mean, it was in a nutshell that we didn't go into like nitty gritty details.

So it turned into something that was a little more raunchy than I anticipated. Like the hotel room thing that I did with her. But, you know, it was basically. Did you know this was going to end in a wedding? Yeah, no. I think a lot of. Wrestling loves weddings. They do.

And a lot of it like. They never go well. They never go well. I feel like a lot of times storylines aren't always complete when they start it too. You know, it involves. I'm sure that they don't know how the crowd's going to react to it either. So they're like, oh, well, that's not doing the thing we thought it was going to do. Let's quickly turn and change and make this something else.

But the fact that you got to work with your dad, I mean, your dad is part of wrestling lore now. It's pretty incredible. He's hilarious. I remember we would go when we went back to Idaho, which was rare for shows, he would definitely want to go and he wanted to be like front row.

Like he wanted to be recognized. Dad, I love you. What are you most proud of in your time in wrestling? I'm proud. I'm really proud of the fact that like I stayed true to my values.

Even though like on screen, it got a little raunchy. Like I was never that girl that politiced my way. I never slept my way to the top, trying to get a little extra attention. And to me, that goes a long way. I was never a backstabber.

I was, you know, on the up and up. And to me, that's something that most proud of. We hear a lot of stories about, like, the men's locker room at that time. What was the way? women's locker room like at that time? Mostly good, but there's, you know, there's always, I think in a situation like that, like there's always going to be jealousy or people that think they should have a push over you

or they don't understand why you are getting a push because you're not the best wrestler. I had a few instances where, like, I had an issue with Don Marie where, you know, which would like really kick me hard in the matches. And I didn't realize you're not supposed to say anything. You're just supposed to do something. So I would say something and then it would continue. And then my ex-husband was like, you got a kicker really hard back. And then it stopped after I did that.

I think I might be, I think I might know the exact moment you're talking about. There's a, there's a, it was during the thing with your dad. There's a scene where you're like, or there's a. segment where you're tossing her around the ring and you're like legitimately kicking her and punching her. Are these just receipts at this point? At that point, there was a lot of built up anger because it was just, it almost part of it felt real. Like, I know, I feel like they love that when it feels a little real, right? And like, I just felt like there was a little bit, like she just didn't really like me and it never did anything to her. Um,

So, like, all those little extra kicks that she would give me in the house shows kind of just had some pent up anger. Yeah, it looked like you were unleashing it all in this one segment. How did your dog become a character? Honestly, I just wanted to have a dog on the road with me. And I thought if I suggested I bring her on the show, they would let me bring her on the road. This is Chloe, right? Yeah. Yeah.

And, yeah, it worked for a little while. And then she started getting, like, weird because the pyro. Oh, yeah. So I stopped. And I saw a post, Chloe lived to be 17? Yeah. That's incredible. What a life.

What a life. How long was that, that stint with you and Chloe? It wasn't that long, maybe a year or two. I feel like it's something that people definitely remember. Yeah. She's got her own doll. She's part of my little action pack. She was the first dog to have their own superstar page.

Wow. On www.com. Wow. How did the call come to get inducted in the W.W.E. Hall of Fame? I was in Sedona, Arizona with my husband for Valentine's Day, and I got a call from Mark Carrano, W.W.E. Talent Relations at the time. And I was like, do I answer this? I don't know. I didn't answer a lot of his call. And so I answered it, and he was like, hey, you know, how are you doing? a little small talk and then he said that they wanted to induct me and I was just honestly I was

shocked like I never considered that I would ever be in the Hall of Fame like I just I feel like I was just so removed from that world like I wasn't thinking about like do I need to be in the Hall of Fame. So for me I was just more I didn't realize how much I would appreciate that gesture from them until they called me. Like it didn't really matter. It's probably probably similar to what it would feel like if I won the belt. Like I didn't, I don't care about the belt, right? But maybe if I wanted, I would be like, this is cool. I just, to me, it was more about like them saying thank you. Like an acknowledgement. Yes. Yeah. Because I did feel like I gave a lot of years to that business that were, um, I was gone a lot. And I just gave a lot of years

to the business and my body to the business. And, you know, even though I wasn't the greatest wrestler and my back still hurts every day. And I never got like a great exit. It was kind of like I went home to fix my back and then I got surgery and then I called and said, I don't really want to come back. So there was no like farewell. It feels like the Hall of Fame induction should have happened sooner. Like you left in 2008 and then it happened 11 years later. I don't know. What happened? I don't know. Maybe there's some of those phone calls that I didn't answer from Mark Carrono. Where calls that about that? You think, maybe?

I don't know. How hard was it putting together a speech and like putting all of that together just, you know, in just those words? It was hard. It was, well, because I had been so, I think being removed from the wrestling industry and growing up, like just growing more as a person helped me look at it in a different way so that even when I went back for like, you know, the Royal Rumble, there was a sense of confidence and fearlessness and like not worrying about judgment as much

that I didn't have then like I saw it differently. I just feel like I'm a better athlete too. But so I wanted, but then at the same time, I had never really gotten on the mic that much when I was in wrestling. And so I felt like this was my chance to like prove to myself and prove to the powers that be that I can talk on the mic and I can, you know, get my shit together. And I really wanted to, I really just wanted to have a great speech and I wanted it to be an ode to the fans and my journey.

Did they let you choose who inducts you? They did. That was a special moment. Yeah, yeah. And I feel like maybe because it was 11 years later that you're able to like encapsulate your career better, like you're able to zoom out. a little bit and go, oh, yeah, these, these are the moments, these are the highlights. These are the things that made me me.

It's taken a long time. I didn't watch wrestling. I didn't want anything to do with wrestling for many years after I left. Mostly because I just had like a certain amount of like PTSD from like being so vulnerable out there and feeling like I was put in this kind of like raunchy, that wasn't me. And I felt like judgment from people. Like, I felt like people looked down on me for like just stuff that I did, the bra and

panty matches and all that. So, like, I just wanted to shut that door. And for many years, I didn't watch. And it wasn't until they called me to do, like, the Royal Rumble that I started to kind to kind of catch up. And then I got, like, really into it, like, more into it than I ever was when I was wrestling. When they called you for the Royal Rumble return, where you're like, absolutely yes. Absolutely yes.

Yeah, it was like a no-brainer. But my first question was, can I please? I want to train. I want to go do something awesome. And it was like, yeah, yeah, yeah. And then it was then it was like we trained like right before we put something together. But it was some people are really good at like just making sure. that when they go back, like, it's laid out perfectly, right?

Yeah. And they get their big moments. Like, I don't know if I just don't fight for myself enough. And I'm just like, okay, well, all right, I won't. So it wasn't what I thought it would be, but I was really just happy to get out there and be and be remembered. I was so scared that people wouldn't remember me when they came out. No.

That was my biggest fear. Really? Did you get to train at all before? Well, we did. Yeah, we had like a day before. A day. I know. Well, yeah.

Were you scared there would be some ring rust? I mean, it wasn't like, you know, because I feel like I'm a better athlete now. And it wasn't like I was taking bump after bump and like feeding and all that stuff. It was like a mess of girls in the middle of the ring and it was more about the entrance and the exit. and a few moves in between. Yeah. Would you do another rumble? I think so.

I don't know. I feel like, I don't know. I mean, you look like you could go. Well, thanks. Yeah, I don't know. I feel like you stopped aging several years ago. How did this happen? It's happening at a rapid rate.

No, it's not. You've got a big birthday coming up and a little, we don't need to say the number. Yeah. But how do you feel about that? You know, I don't. It's less about the number and more about, like, how I feel. How do you feel? And look, right?

Like, we all want to look good. I feel good. My back doesn't not always feel good. But I'm not, yeah, I'm not super stressed over it. Do you do DDPY? I feel like that's. I don't, I do hot yoga. Okay.

But I have not, I haven't tried DDP's yoga. It's embarrassing to say. It's fantastic. Yeah, I've done it with him at his house. It's, I mean, It's a heck of a workout. And it's, I do a decent amount of yoga, but his style of yoga is something else. Really?

And then he's there, like, he has phrasing names for everything. Like, I'm trying to think of like, like, the Hulk up and the touchdown. And, yeah, since you should definitely give it a try. Next time you talk to Dallas, you should, you should give it a try. I think people would love to see you at the Rumble. I mean, it's just around the corner now. Yeah, I don't know. I don't know if they're bringing old people back now.

Stop calling yourself. I mean old, like old back in like previous. Oh, like a veteran. Yeah. Yeah, no, there's always a spot for like a surprise. There's always one or two or three surprises. So I don't know, you know, January 25th. I don't know if you have plans.

I feel like, or 27th, whenever it is. 27th, yes. That's funny. Yeah, I'm not planning on it. That's just down the road, right? There are people that deserve to go that haven't been. That's true. That is true.

I saw in another interview you said how fitness saved your life. How much has fitness impacted your life? It has led me through life. Like, it led me to wrestling. When I was in high school, I was anorexic. And then in college, I went from being anorexic to bulimic, trying to be bulimic. It was really hard for me to make myself throw up. And then I started gaining a little bit of weight during college, and my self-esteem was extremely low.

And what saved me was opening up a fitness magazine and seeing fitness girls, not bodybuilders, and thinking, like, I want to look like that. I want to be strong. And I tore out a page that had a girl's diet and her workout regimen, and I copied it. And after a few months, I started to see like baby muscles. And I'm like, oh my gosh, this actually works. Like if you're consistent, it works. And it was so cool to me to see the progress. So I signed up for a fitness competition that was like six months away to make make myself have a goal.

And I was like, you can either embarrass yourself or show up like ready, right? Yeah. And at that first fitness competition, I met some photography. photographers and got, you know, in a couple of magazines. And if it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have been in a magazine that Kevin Nash saw me in and I wouldn't have been led to wrestling. What do you say to someone who wants to work out? And I think there's, I mean, I think there's a lot of people that get very scared about the idea of going to a gym. Oh my gosh. I've got to do this for an hour, five days a week. What do you say to someone who's just dipping their toe in and we'd just like to

get into a little bit of better shape? I think the worst thing we can do. do is put the pressure on ourselves to be perfect at something because then we never start, even if it's wrestling, right? You just do it. And even if it means like 10 or 20 minutes, there are so many workouts online now that you can literally figure out what you're going to do before you go in there and copy something when you go to the gym. It's not about like hours and hours at the gym. It's just about just showing up for yourself a few minutes a day. And that's really what life's about showing up for yourself. Yeah, I think there's a lot of people that are intimidated and don't realize that like going for a walk today would be a huge step in the right

direction, pun intended, but like just doing something, moving your body around. Yeah, and the benefits for mental health. I mean, that's really my why now. It's a, I can't imagine a life, a sedentary life where I don't get outside and see the trees and breathe the fresh air and get my endorphins up. What's like I work out look like for you right now? Um, I, I do yoga twice a week, hot yoga. Okay. I lift weights, uh, three to four times a week, about 45 minutes to an hour, ish. And I love stairs.

So I just mix it up. Running stairs? Not running stairs, like just like a stair master. Yeah. Okay. I remember J.R. telling a story about you would run stairs at the arenas. This would be like, was it, like, was it just, it's just cardio? I love it.

always loved doing stairs. So, yeah, I would do an hour of stairs. An hour? Yeah. So you'd get to the arena on TV day and just hit the stairs? Yeah. I mean, on TV days, there's a lot of like lull time. Yeah. You could go crazy, like wondering, like, what do I do with myself? And so, yeah, I'd just lace up and be an example, right? Would you run the whole arena, a whole stadium? Oh, yeah. All the way around, up and down. Wow. And that would take about an hour? Yeah. That's impressive. I don't think there was probably anybody else in the roster doing it. Would you recruit people?

Would you be like, hey, Stacy? I definitely would try. Yeah, yeah. And they would say, you're crazy. I'm not doing it. Yeah. And so I think sometimes I would get people to come out there for a little bit. But usually they thought I was crazy.

At that time, I was like training for a marathon too. So people really thought I was crazy, I'm sure. How many marathons have you run? Just one. One and done? Many half, just one full. I know there's like a, I, I've only done a half. I haven't done a full. But my friends that have, they're like, there's a

moment at like mile 20 where you're like, what am I doing? I don't want to do this. What was your experience with it? That was it. Like, during the practice run, like, I loved running and I had a whole regimen. I got marathon for dummies, like, followed it to the tea. And then when I got to the practice run of like 20 miles, I was like, this shit is, I think I did the most I did was 18. And I was like, I got 26, but I'm not. I can't. It's so boring. Yeah.

But I think I over prepared because during the race, I'd like literally, I was so worried about hitting that wall that I had my strongest last two miles were the strongest of the marathon. That's funny. When was this? When did you run it? Oh, gosh. Years. It was in Miami.

It was when I was 30 because I was like. I'm so old, 30, I got to run a marathon. Do you think there's like an overarching life lesson that you have taken from wrestling that you still apply to your life now? Oh, absolutely. And that is just pushing through the fear. I think everyone has a certain amount of fear in their lives, fear of failing, fear of looking stupid, fear of like just sucking, right?

and we're all going to fail it to some degree, but you can't do anything unless you push past that fear. And in wrestling, I was so fearful. Every time I would go out there, I would be like, especially if I had a match, I'd be like, why the hell am I doing this to myself? Like, I can't, like, this is too much. And I'd go through the curtain, I'd finish, I'd come back,

and I'd be like, oh my God, that's the best high ever. That was so fun. But like, literally, if I would have listened to the person before the match, saying, why are you doing this? You need to quit. I never would have experienced that. And, like, there's just something to be said about anything in life. Like, I just think it's okay to look stupid. Like, that's part of the reason why, like, people want to talk crap about me being a wrestler.

And I'm like, I actually went out there and did it. Did you? Like, I wasn't going to let people tell me, like, you can't do this because you're not a good wrestler or a good athlete. And, you know, I share some of my yoga journey on social media. and it's like me sucking at yoga. But like I'm hoping that by doing that, I'm inspiring people to kind of like suck at something and be okay with it and then to see the journey of like getting better.

What was it that made you push through that fear? It would have been really easy to sit there backstage and go, I'm not doing it. I'm going to believe that voice that says I can't do it. I just wanted to do. I just wanted to do something cool and exciting and big. Like wrestling was big. Like this was for me,

my little town of 2,500 people in Idaho, like, I just wanted to be something big. Like, I just wanted to get out into the world and, like, be a part of something, right? I didn't know what that was, but, like, I just knew this was a huge opportunity. And it scared the crap out of me all the time. But when you go out there in front of a crowd, like, you got two choices. You can go out. You're going out there, right? You're already there. You're going off. You can look really stupid by like acting like you don't belong there. That's even worse. So you just got to push and go. Or you can own it, right? Or you can own it. And even if it sucks, like, own it. The interesting thing about coming from a small town and then moving to L.A.

is there's a lot of people, I live in L.A. now. A lot of people that move to L.A. just to get out of the small town. And then that's it. They don't like take the steps of like, okay, now I'm in L.A. now it's time to get to work. The fact that you did, you put in the work, it wasn't just like, I got to move to L.A., I got to escape my small town. You put in the work, which then led to the opportunities,

which I think is a huge lesson for people to learn from. Yeah, I think very often, I feel like more than ever, we want to be the best at something, but we don't want to show people that were like on our way up. And for me, like,

I didn't know what my end goal was, but I knew that like, I loved fitness. I love doing photo shoots and I love, I knew that there was an opportunity in there for me to like get my name out there. And I had no idea what that would lead to, but it was a great stepping stone. And I think people just need to remember that. I think people need to remember that like, it's not always the finished product, right? Or sometimes you're seeing the finish product. Sometimes you're seeing Tom Brady with six Super Bowl rings, but you're not seeing all the

struggles along the way. The fact that you're opening up now about these struggles along the way, I think makes people go, oh, wow, if Tori could do that, I could do it too. If I can do it, you definitely can. And what are you doing these days? Just baking cookies? That's a minute, I'm going to bite into one of these. I can't just have them and talk about it. Would you like to have one?

I'm good. Can I start with this one? Oh, yeah, those are good. So the thin mint one? Mm-hmm. Oh, my God. That's amazing. They're good.

I made cookie boxes for my family this year. And about eight hours in, I was like, like, I don't know what I started, but this, this, I'm over it. Let's go with the Christmas tree. They're so soft. Oh, man. That's really good. Wow.

First of all, thank you for the cookies. You're welcome. Thank you for coming by and sharing some incredible stories with us. Off camera before we started, I was telling you how important gratitude is to me. And I start every day with gratitude. I end every day with gratitude, and I end every interview with that. So what are three things in your life that you're grateful for as we sit here right now? I am grateful for the morning walk I had with my three little doggies.

What are their names? Pepper, Daisy, and Bella. What kind of dogs are there? They're all chihuahuas. Oh. I am grateful for, this is another dog thing. I almost lost my dog, Pepper, a couple weeks ago. So I'm so grateful that she is alive with me.

She's 14. She's got congestive heart failure and she's on medication now, but she's like... Pepper. Oh. And I am so grateful for the amazing husband that I have that's just so grounded and nice and wonderful. You guys sound like a perfect pair because you are so nice and so wonderful and you are everything that all of these fans, I'm sure every signing, every fan comes up to you and says, you were my crush when I was a kid. What's the reaction when you say that? Or when someone says like to you.

I mean, it's nice. It's a nice compliment. Like, you know, it's crazy to me that people still have their playboys, too, pristine condition. Like, it is nuts. Is that nice or is that weird? I think it's nice. Like, it's a huge compliment. Yeah.

Well, like, I said it to Tristratus when I met her recently. I was like, well, you know, I was at WrestleMania 18. You were my teenage crush. She's like, I've never heard that before. Oh, I'm sure you haven't. You must hear it for every second person at every signing. I hear it a lot, yeah. There's strange requests at the signings, too.

Not, I mean, I don't get weirded out by much. Not anymore. Like, I've been in wrestling long enough. Well, thank you. You're awesome. By the way, we have a Chiaweeney. We have a Chihuahua mixed with a weiner dog. That sounds cute.

I need to see pictures. I will show you a picture of Luna. She's 13. She's almost as old as Pepper. Yeah. Our elderly little Luna. Oh, I got to see pictures. But thank you so much.

Thanks for having me. You're the best, and these cookies are incredible. Enjoy it. Ah, how fantastic is Tori Wilson. Huge thank you to her for coming by, for making the time to do this during Christmas week. And a big thank you to DDP for connecting us and making this happen. Congrats to Tori on an incredible career.

And if you want to go check her out, she's at Tori One on Twitter. She's at Tori Wilson on Instagram. You can see what she's been up to. Snap a screenshot and tag us so we can share it out as well. I'm at Chris Van Vleet, and I'll leave you with the words of Dr. Robert Anthony, which I think is very fitting for the whole conversation we had here. You can have anything you want if you're willing to give up the belief that you can't have it. Be great, be grateful.

We will see you on the next one. We'll see you tomorrow for an Ask CVV episode and some more insight. The Hammer Alley podcast, an 80s flashback mockumentary. Back in the 80s, there were a thousand bands trying to make it in the world of rock, but there was one band that had it all. Hammer Alley. Whatever happened to Hammer Alley? How did they go from top of the rock?

I'm looking for a music video. They're a band from 1987. Hammer Alley. Ever heard of then? To Rock Bottom. Dude, I was born in 1987. I can't believe he's doing this. Hammer Alley.

Follow and listen on your favorite. platform.