Goldust Talks About Early Days of Attitude Era, Developing His Character

WWE Monday Night Raw Superstar Dustin "Goldust" Rhodes recently appeared on Edge & Christian's Pod of Awesomeness Podcast.

On helping kick off the Attitude Era: “Well, I would like to think that [the debut of Goldust in WWE sparked the Attitude Era] too. Everybody else thinks that it was DX and all those other groups and things,” Goldust said. “If anything, I was the definite edge of the spear into the Attitude Era, I believe, so it was way before its time, the stuff I was doing, and it kind of set the tone for what was to come.

Being pitched the Goldust character by Vince McMahon and Bruce Prichard: “Me and my dad, we were kind of not on the best of terms at that point,” Goldust noted. “And I had just gotten released from WCW, so it’s like I’m sitting at home and Vince [McMahon] calls and he presents this idea, and then, Bruce Prichard on the phone, he presents this idea. He kept saying, ‘this is an androgynous character’ and I’m just agreeing with him, but I have no idea what the hell that means, so I’m like, ‘yeah, sure.

“I’ll give this a try’ because I really wanted to try to do something on my own other than the Dustin Rhodes name, try to accomplish something that is fresh and new and then go from there and see if I could do that.” Goldust added, “opened up the dictionary and looked to see what ‘androgynous’ was and I just shook my head. I’m like, ‘well, I can’t back out now – let’s go and just give it my all.’”

Savio Vega helping him evolve: “Savio Vega kept pushing me, pushing me as he was teaching me too, how to be a heel and things. And how to… ‘let’s just try this tonight: just, we’ll lock up, you’ll go behind me, rub up and down my chest.’ And I’m just like, ‘no, man, no,’ so finally one night, in The Garden, the first time I did it, and Vince was there. This is when he used to go hang out and watch the shows, the live events, with the boys. He’s one of the boys.

“It was fun for him. And I decided to do it in The Garden and I went behind Savio and I rubbed up his chest and down with both of my hands. And he brushed it away from me and he looked at me and I just ran. I scooted out of the ring and the place just erupted, man. And I was like, ‘holy s–t! That was easy!’”

Scott Hall opposing his character: “Yeah, yeah, Razor wasn’t keen on it, man, and he fought it. I’m just trying to get a character over and do what’s best for the company, best for business, best for me, and I’m young, so I’m not in other people’s point of view sometimes. And even though this business is a work, people take it too seriously.

“For me, it’s probably when I had the most passion for the business and where I did not let the little things get to me, and not care so much about what they’re thinking of me, man, just go out there and do what I can do to perform and put on a great performance, whatever. And to have him kind of, to have Razor be kind of a speed bump, it was frustrating, but we got through it and it ended with a Roddy Piper special because Razor left.”