Eric Bischoff (May 27, 1955), is a former professional wrestling promoter and on-screen personality, most known for serving as President of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and later "on-air" General Manager of World Wrestling Entertainment's RAW brand. He is currently employed with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a backstage producer
Life Before Wrestling
Bischoff was a wrestling fan growing up in a rough Detroit neighborhood. He and his family relocated to Pittsburgh just before high school, where he began competing in amateur wrestling for his school. Bischoff moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, for his senior year of high school, where he continued his amateur wrestling career until sustaining a knee injury. It is now subject to false rumor that he had attended the University of Minnesota. A short while after leaving school to pursue his interests in business, he became interested in taekwondo, eventually earning a black belt, and competing across the country in small karate tournaments. Before getting into professional wrestling Bischoff had a number of occupations. He owned a successful construction company, worked as a veterinary assistant, and, for a time, ran a butcher's shop where he would sell the meat by van delivery. Hulk Hogan would famously refer to this time in his life during a promo at the end of the 1996 WCW pay-per-view event "Bash At The Beach" in Daytona Beach, Florida, saying: If it wasn't for Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff would still be selling meat from a truck in Minneapolis
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2009-present)
In October 2009, Bischoff was in charge of negotiating a deal among Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), Hulk Hogan, and himself. He premiered alongside Hogan on the January 4, 2010, edition of TNA Impact! in an alliance to take over and rebuild the franchise. He currently makes regular appearances on the weekly TNA Impact! program. He was also appointed TNA executive producer and has authority to book matches. Despite being a heel when dealing with the likes of Jeff Jarrett, Mick Foley and Abyss, Bischoff refereed his first TNA match at Against All Odds, favoring the face challenger Samoa Joe over the heel champion A.J. Styles in a match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. During the match Bischoff punched out Styles' manager Ric Flair, after he interfered in the match, but the distraction led to Styles retaining his belt. On the March 15 edition of Impact! Bischoff attempted to shave Mick Foley bald as a punishment for trying to help Jeff Jarrett in a handicap match the previous week, but was shaved bald himself, when Foley turned the tables on him. At Lockdown Bischoff turned face by helping Team Hogan defeat Team Flair in the Lethal Lockdown match