Interview: Brimstone (Will Kaye), professional wrestler

Media Man Australia continues to cover the world of professional wrestling.

What's your background?

That is a vast question, where do I start?  I grew up in Uniondale, New York -home of the famous Nassau Coliseum- where I grew up sneaking into concerts and wrestling matches.  After Elementary School, I was sent off to a private “Jewish” school, which was a major culture shock… I was the minority in Uniondale being Caucasian and Jewish!!!  LOL, then I show up at my new school and almost everyone there was Caucasian, and wealthy… I walked into the Twilight Zone, and I felt more comfortable being the minority.  Regardless, had I not went to that school I probably never would have wanted to become a wrestler.  I hung out with a crowd that was heavily into the WWF, and we would ceremoniously congregate at one of my friend’s homes to watch every pay-per-view.  During each event we would have our own matches, and I would have to honestly say that I won 99% of the time!  Rewind, and then fast forward a bit… I had always played the drums ever since I was a little kid.  It was a great way to get out built up frustrations, especially coming from a divorced household.  I began my true entertaining at an earlier age when I appeared on an episode of Sesame Street, and Romper Room.  I followed it up with my drumming throughout my private school years, right into my college years.  I went to thirteenth grade, Nassau Community College, where I majored in music.  I literally loved entertaining… I can tell you that when you have people screaming and applauding for you, there is no better adrenaline rush known to man!  After playing in my last official band Bugsy, I decided I had enough of the five-way marriage of a band, and ventured into the world of professional wrestling.  I trained with one of my best friends, Chris Hostile at the now defunct LIWF out of Queens, New York.  We were under the watchful eyes of Laithon (The Tower of Torture), Homicide 187, Low-Ki, and my mentor “The Original” Gino Carusso.  Fast forward another 11 years and here we are!  What a crazy ride huh?

What are your stats?

6’ 2”,  275lbs, dirty blonde hair, and green eyes.

What are the personal and professional highlights of your life?

There are so many that it is very difficult to choose!  I’ll keep it short and sweet… Personal highlight would be the births of my two children.  Professionally, I will pick the most recent highlight of making my return to public eye in February against up and coming worker Jesta.

 
How, when and why did you get into the professional wrestling business?

In late 1996, I was looking through a wrestling publication and saw that the Long Island Wrestling Federation would be opening a professional wrestling school in Queens, New York called “The Doghouse.” It had always been a dream of mine to be like The Undertaker, or Shawn Michaels when I was younger, so it was a no-brainer for me to take the leap.  I was a drummer in a band at the time, and close friends of Chris Hostile of another band, “Hostile Intent.” Hostile was just as big of a wrestling fan as I was, and we had spoken at length about trying to find a place to train.  When I let him know about the school, he agreed to check it out with me. We carpooled out to the original location of the Doghouse, a small hole-in-the-wall that would eventually become our “home away from home.” There was a huge line of potentials waiting to obtain information about signing up. We actually waited about an hour to get up to the two guys behind the table who had all the paperwork… Bobby Lombardi (a former worker, and owner of the LIWF/Doghouse), and Laithon “The Tower of Torture” (the head trainer). We were asked by Bobby, “So, you THINK you can be a wrestler huh?!” We signed on the dotted line, paid our tuition, and were told we would be starting in a couple of weeks.  I began my training under Laithon, Homicide 187, and Low-Ki at the original location of the Doghouse.  About a year into training we moved into the new location of The Doghouse, which was awesome!  We had very high ceilings, two rings up at all times, and a small locker room… all in all, a major upgrade.  “The Original” Gino Carusso (formally of WCW, now backstage at TNA) made a few appearances taking the training reigns at the original Doghouse.  He eventually began training regularly at the newer location of the Doghouse. After beginning my training with Gino, I was hooked… he has been a trainer, a mentor, and a great friend over the years. When I left the Doghouse to pursue other avenues of my wrestling career I continued to train under the tutelage of Gino. Other notable guys who came down to assist in training were Dances with Dudley, Sir Christopher Michaels, Monsta Mack, Crazy Clown, Magic, and Low Life Louie. The rest is history!

What media exposure have you received?

Well this is my second coming here on my favorite wrestling hot-spot Media Man with you (shameless plug).  I have run the gambit of the Internet, radio, print, public access shows, and mainstream television.

What are you best well known for?

People still remember me from MTV’s Total Request Live, and The Ricki Lake Show.  I am best well known for being the innovator of my finishing move XiBalba – The Entrance to Hell (which is thankfully a fan favorite), and for creating my former companies “Critical Mass Pro Wrestling Corp.” / “New York Wrestling Connection.” 
What are the most serious injuries you suffered, and perpetrated on others?
I had a chipped elbow bone, and a bruised right kneecap.  I’ve been quite lucky, someone must be watching over me!  I have taken hard chair shots that have slapped me silly… but who hasn’t… Lumps, bumps and bruises… however, I’ve been pretty lucky enough to stay safe for the larger part of my career!

Who are your mentors?

“The Original” Gino Carusso is my trainer, my mentor, and most importantly my friend.  He has been there for me throughout the good, the bad, and the just plain ugly!  He’s driven the wild ride of this business for well over twenty years, and gives me knowledge that very few still can.  I am forever in his debt, and I am humbled in his presence.  Gino has recently retired from being in action, however he is currently working backstage at TNA Impact.

 
What do you do to keep busy these days?

I am an assistant trainer for Pro Wrestling Revolution, and I am there two days a week.  It is nice to be hands on without the actual pressure of owning the place.  I love interacting with the students and passing down my knowledge, whether wrestling related or not. I train "old school," which I believe is so important. Most workers today want to jump off the top rope and call themselves wrestlers.  I also run two companies that revolve around employment, as well as staffing.  I have a comic book in the works right now entitled The Borderhounds, in which revolves around the Brimstone gimmick.  I’m also a family man, and I try to spend as much time with them as humanly possible.

 
What's your motto?

“Never judge a man by how many times he’s fallen, but by how many times he’s picked himself back up.”

What inspires you?

My family inspires me… My fiancé is my rock, literally!  When we initially got together, I had just recently ended an awful marriage that produced nothing except my two beautiful children.  I did not realize it at the time, but I was in a downward spiral.  She loved me regardless of all the bureaucratic bull that surrounded me, and supported me through some bad times.  Since being with her, my life has been in a constant upswing.  I’ve won full custody of my children, and we purchased a home together in September 2006.  My children are also a huge part of me returning to wrestle full time… my son asked me almost every day when I was going to wrestle again.  Along with Gino’s constant pushing, he obviously inspired me enough to get his wish!

What are some of the biggest challenges you have ever overcome?

I’ve endured a lot over the years.  Walking away from my Critical Mass Pro Wrestling School, and New York Wrestling Connection without too much of a fight took much out of me.  I have realized though that everything comes full circle, and the true bad people of the world will get what’s coming to them in due time… you know who you are.  When things went down, my tag partner Mayhem and I also had a bit of a strained relationship.  Mayhem was not the person who tried to hurt me; he actually just stayed out of the whole ordeal. Although, in certain situations doing nothing is far worse or just as bad as committing the offense.  It took a long period of healing time to salvage our friendship, but we eventually did.  The two of us have always been a force to be reckoned with… and we will be again by re-uniting as Critical Mass in the near future.  I’ve also reconciled with many of my former students who eventually saw what the real deal was.  Going through the whole ordeal is actually the biggest hurdle I have ever dealt with.  The best part about it is the fact that I came out of everything better than when I went in!

 
Who have been your biggest supporters?

My friends and family have supported me through every step of my career.

 
What are your business interests?

Everything Brimstone!  I work like a dog with my publicity team to push the Brimstone Empire.  As I mentioned before, I have the Borderhounds comic book in the works.  I’m working on some lucrative sponsorship deals for the comic, and the wrestling.  I also have a few potential deals in the works for character branding utilizing Brimstone, and the other Borderhounds. 

What do you think of the current WWE product?

I personally do not watch the WWE on any regular basis except for when one of my former students, “Mikey” was in the Spirit Squad.  I’m not really married to many of the storylines that I’ve seen, but I think the fact that McMahon convinced Trump to get involved in an angle was pure genius.  It is a bit too adult oriented for my kids to watch… kind of a major difference from when I was a kid.  I think that WWE needs to get back to old school.  If you really think about it, the most “over” workers there are the ones with the real gimmicks.

What other important information would like to share with our audience?

Please check out my upcoming comic’s website!  I’ll be appearing live on www.trashtalkingradio.com on April 17th for anyone interested in tuning in.  Make sure to look out for upcoming Pro Wrestling Revolution events as well, always a great show!  Lastly, never let anyone stand in the way of your hopes, and dreams. Be fair and honest with everyone because the people you step on while on the way up, are the same people you will see on your way down. Quite simply, the toes you step on today may be attached to the ass you will have to kiss tomorrow!  Thanks again for the interview… Long live the Media Man!!!

Editors note: something tells me that we will see Brimstone get to the very top of the business.

Websites

www.entrancetohell.com
www.TheBorderhounds.com
www.criticalmasswrestling.com