WWE's "Attitude Era" was known for outrageous characters like Kane and vampires like Gangrel and the Brood, but former pro wrestler Kevin Fertig later tried his hand at the supernatural, with his vampire character, KevinThorn, appearing in 2006 ECW, alongside his valet, Ariel (Shelly Martinez). However, some fans forget that this wasn't Fertig's on-screen debut in WWE, as he previously competed as "Mordecai" for a brief stint before being sent back to OVW for more training.
"Down in OVW and stuff, I was a character called Seven that was kind of based off of Seven Deadly Sins," Fertig recalled during an appearance on the "Talk'N Shop" podcast, citing his background as the son of a former Catholic turned Baptist father, who drilled him on religion. "[Mordecai] was kind of that religious zealot kind of thing that, you know? And I wanted to wear all white."
Fertig joked that keeping his all-white attire clean was a difficult task before recalling that his character was initially introduced right after WrestleMania 20 through vignettes. "The next day when I met with Vince, he was kind of after that he was like: 'Hey, by the way, I don't need tag teams. I don't want tag teams. I want all singles wrestlers right now,'" he said, revealing that he was split from his at-the-time tag team partner, Tyson Tomko.
Upon further recalling his original run in WWE, Fertignoted that he also had a meeting with Vince McMahon, John Laurinaitis, and Stephanie McMahon. "I remember during that time, [they had a] dress code," he recalled. "And [Vince] is literally staring a hole through me, and I'm like: 'Holy f**k. Okay, it's time to put your big boy pants on!' And I was like: I am not going to unlock eyes with this soulless devil!"
Fertigfurther claimed that the meeting was so intense that he wasn't sure if he was getting fired or if they were sizing him up for a push. "It seems like he was really into it, but you don't know!" he noted, further recalling that his character was actually meant to worship McMahon and punish the sins of the wrestlers on screen. Thorn also claimed that it was McMahon's idea for him to go bleached blonde, and that the former WWE Chairman ended up being very into the character.
Unfortunately, the Mordecai character didn't last long after a fateful clash with Bob "Hardcore" Holly. "[WWE] were still giving me the ball 100%," he admitted. "I think Bob kind of changed the mood a little bit. Me and Bob are pretty good friends! ... But I feel in that match, Bob was out for Bob." Fertigexpressed that Holly invertedly ruined the mystique behind his character, but admitted that he was too green to know the difference back then.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the "Talk'N Shop Podcast" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
