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Former WWE photographer Tom Buchanan recently recalled how Sunny's popularity caught the attention of Vince McMahon.
Sunny, real name Tammy Sytch, performed as a valet for her then-boyfriend Chris Candido (aka Skip) in WWE in the mid-1990s. Frustrated with her limited role in the company, she asked Buchanan if he could take pictures of her for a photo shoot.
On the Cheap Heat Productions Podcast, Buchanan disclosed details of the conversation he had with Sunny before taking the images:
"She was unhappy with that role and really wanted something more, so she talked to me, and we figured out that we could do a shoot together [to] kind of enhance her character or her role as a beauty. It was a role that didn't exist yet. We were just looking for pin-up kinda pictures." [32:14 – 32:33]
Buchanan's photos of Sunny went viral, with America Online naming her the most downloaded celebrity on the internet in 1996. Vince McMahon took notice of the Diva's appeal and invited her to his house to film vignettes for WWE television.
"Huge downloads, huge connect time," Buchanan continued. "We made money when people connected with our product, so Vince McMahon saw that. He saw the downloads, he saw the connect hours, and he decided to promote them a little bit more, so he took Sunny into his house in Greenwich, Connecticut, and did a series of shoots with her, a series of vignettes." [33:09 – 33:28]
Sunny appeared in WWE between 1995 and 1998. She was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011.
Sunny was one of the first Divas in Vince McMahon's WWE
Tom Buchanan joined WWE as a full-time staff photographer in 1987 after previously providing freelance work for the company. During his 17 years in WWE, he witnessed huge changes in the women's division.
Buchanan added that Vince McMahon ushered in WWE's Divas era largely thanks to Sunny:
"Between their television productions, I did some coaching with Sunny and made some still pictures of my own. Vince saw the way I worked with Sunny and had me produce a couple of TV spots down in Miami beach, and that was the start of the Divas." [33:32 – 33:48]
The former WWE photographer also spoke about a prank that Vince McMahon used to play on people who fell asleep on planes.
Were you a fan of Sunny? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit the Cheap Heat Productions Podcast and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
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