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Vince McMahon oversaw WWE's creative direction for four decades before announcing his initial retirement in July 2022. In a recent interview, former WWE wrestler Duke 'The Dumpster' Droese recalled how he came up with a unique way to get McMahon's attention.
Droese worked for WWE between 1994 and 1996. Before joining the company, the 55-year-old found out McMahon was going to attend a convention in his hometown. On the day of the event, he borrowed a television executive's credentials to get into the building in the hopes of meeting the former WWE boss.
Speaking on the Cheap Heat Productions Podcast, Droese revealed what happened when he approached McMahon with a fake identification:
"He [television executive] let me borrow his credentials. I wore a suit and put his nametag around my neck, and I walked right in the damn front door, and I walked right up to Vince McMahon at the WWF [WWE] booth, and I shook his hand, and I told him I wanted to wrestle for him. I gave him a promotional package with the tape and everything, and he was pretty impressed that I had the balls to do that." [15:59 – 16:26]
Droese is best remembered for his garbage man gimmick. He shared the ring with several high-profile names during his WWE career, including Mick Foley, Owen Hart, and Triple H.
How Vince McMahon reacted to Duke 'The Dumpster' Droese
Nowadays, new WWE stars usually report to the Performance Center before working their way through the NXT developmental system to get to the main roster. Duke 'The Dumpster' Droese, by contrast, appeared on RAW shortly after signing with the company.
Droese, real name Mike Droese, added that Vince McMahon had no problem with being approached at the convention:
"When I walked up, he looked at me, he looked at the credentials, and he smiled. As I walked up and I reached out my hand, and shook his hand, I said, 'My name is Mike Droese. I live here locally in Miami, Florida, and I've been wrestling for about nine years, and I would like to work for you and the World Wrestling Federation.'" [16:45 – 17:06]
Although Droese impressed Vince McMahon at first, he sometimes struggled to receive regular television time once he joined WWE. Five years after leaving the company, he made a one-off return in 2001 as a participant in the Gimmick Battle Royal at WrestleMania 17.
Did you enjoy Duke 'The Dumpster' Droese's WWE gimmick? Let us know in the comments section.
Please credit the Cheap Heat Productions Podcast and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
