#filthy animals

[loop-zooper]

Y Zenigata😌

[venus-in-leather]

My beautificus gorgatious wife who is also filthy animals era/young Rey Mysterio

And old man rey tbh

[blowflyfag]

WOW MAGAZINE : december 2000 vol. 2 Issue 8

PARTY ANIMALS

WCW’s Filthy Animals party as hard as they work in the ring

by Ben Adeline

[Rey Mysterio Jr. Tygress Paul Orndorff (not a Filthy Animal) Konana Juentud Guerrera Disqo Big Vito (not a Filthy Animal)]

The team that parties together wins together - and has the most fun. Seriously. And that’s not just the words of wisdom from The Three Wise Men: Jim, Jack and José. Ok, the New York Yankees don’t have such a motto, and they’re pretty successful, but it definitely has a home in World Championship Wrestling. And not many guesses are needed to know who operates under such a philosophy.

These fun-loving partiers could only be The Filthy Animals: Konnan, Disqo (formerly Disco Inferno), Juventud “The Juive” Guerrera, Rey Mysterio Jr. and Tygress, The crew has picked up - in the after-hours scene, that is - right where Ric Flair, Arn Anderson and the rest of The Four Horsemen left off. 

Flair danced all night, danced a little longer.

The Filthy Animals party all night, party a little longer.

The Horsemen, especially those of the 1980s and early 1990s, were the wild boys of wrestling. What Flair and company preached as their over-the-edge lifestyle was just that. If something wild and crazy was happening away from the ring, it was a good bet that Flair was front and center.

Gettin’ down and dirty

The next generation of night owls - night crawlers is, perhaps , a better term - features thee heavily tattooed. Highly energetic luchadors, a hip-swiveling, hip-hop wanna-be and a bad-to-the-bone babe. Yep, The Filthy Animals are leaving their mark - an exclamation mark, no\ doubt - on WCW these days. Mysterio (real name: Oscar Gutierrez) and Gurrera (real name: Eduardo Anibal Gonzalez) were world tag team champions at the beginning of September 2000. Konnan (real name: Charles Ashenoff) was kicking his lingo with a wordsmith ability that would make Eminem envious. Disqo (real name: Glen Gilbertti) is more Dr Dre. than John Travolta these days, or at least he’s trying to be. And Tygress (real name: Vanessa Sanchez), well, she’s just one get-in-your-face gal.

The Filthy Animals are, without question, a force to be reckoned with - in the ring, and certainly after hours.

“Since we party well together, we mesh together well in the ring,” said Konnan. “The Steiner Brothers had that chemistry because they’re brothers. Same for Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray). Scott Hall and Kevin Nash have it because they hang out everywhere.

“Partying together makes you bond together stronger, because then you're not under the in-ring stress; you can basically do whatever you want, stay out as late as you want, drink what you want … just have fun,” continued Konnan. “Plus, being with friends, you don’t have to worry about being stabbed in the back.

“A lot of other wrestlers seek us out, to see where we’re gonna party. Wrestlers always know, or think, that being seen with us can get them in trouble.”

[‘The Juice’ captured the WCW world tag team title on Aug. 14. 2000, with Rey Mysterio Jr.]

The Filthy Animals clearly are the non-conformists of the business. Rules? What rules? They live by their own code of ethics, which probably is something along the lines of the nastier, the better.” Think Mysertio wears those horns for the heck of it? Think again. Think “Air Juvi” is too cute to cause chaos? Think again.

This bunch takes partying as seriously as Lance Storm takes wrestling.

“A Filthy Animal is … filthy,” said Konnan. “We’re late-, late-, late-night partiers. We ain’t afraid to go to two after-hours clubs after all the other clubs java closed. The one thing about us, though, is we won’t party with just anybody. We have certain people that we party with (away from the ring), like Jeff Jarett, referee Mark Johnson, Nash, Billy Kidman and Hall.

[In September, Disco Inferno changed his name to Disqo.]

Future Filthy animal clique members, according to Konnan, could be Sean O’Haire and the members of 3 Count.

Fun with filth

WCW management this summer implemented a fining system for performers who don't arrive at an arena by a predetermined time. The fines start at $500 and go up for each offense. Naturally, The Filthy Animals were the first ones fined. No worries, Konnan said, that was to be expected. In fact, he added, the fine was sort of a badge of honor.

“I didn’t want to be late, but felt I had to be late, to give honor to the name Filthy Animals,” he said.

“It’s the tightest feeling ever getting to work in the same company with my friends, and also in the ring,” added Mysterio. “We’re throwing down 100 percent, in the ring and out. We’re gonna make this rise all the way to the top, and do it together.

[Rey Mysterio Jr. added devil horns to his look as a member of The Filthy Animals.]

“We go out there and have fun in the ring, being a bit naughty with the people, messing with them in a good way, making them laugh. Seems like it's working,” continued Mysterio. “People don’t hate us; they’re obviously with us. And that’s a good thing.”

The three-way alliance of Konnan, Mysterio and Gurrera is a natural. Each honed his skills south of the border, with Konnan hitting the highest peak in the ring and out. Konnan and Mysterio were tag team champions in mMexico. Guerrera and Mysterio were longtime rivals - in the United States and Mexico - and they clearly complement each other’s style. Then there’s Disqo, arguably one of the sport’s least-respected, yet most-talented performers. Disqo knows the business, loves the business and studies the business. His fervor for wrestling landed him a spot this summer on WCW’s creative team. Disqo mind for the business is as keen as anyone’s. His ideas have helped the others, even though they actually have more mat experience. Disqo is a past champion and a proven partyer. Wrapping up the unit is ex-Nitro Girl Tygress, the ain’t-afraid-of-no-one business manager. She’s the brains of the bunch - and clearly the beauty, too.

[Mysterio flies in with a legdrop (above) while ‘The Juice gets two feet up on his opponent (right).]

Innovating, not imitating

What D-Generation X has done in the World Wrestling Federation, THe Filthy Animals hope to match in WCW.

The Filthy Animals concept came to television life last year, with Kidman, Konnan, Eddy Guerrero and Mysterio. Guerrero soon bolted to the WWF while Kidman skipped into singles action. Konnan was sidelined for three months at the start of the year after the ouster of then-WCW President Bill Busch. And this fall, he’s slowly recovering from a torn right triceps, suffered at the hands of Van Hammer.

[Konnan is the unspoken leader of The Filthy Animals.]

“Things are getting better; that’s how I’m looking at it” said Konnan. “Vince Russo’s presence has been a blessing for this bunch. I think he sees our talent; he doesn’t let personal feelings get in the way. Being opinionated in this business gets you in trouble; people just want to be told what they want to hear. But I can't be like that. Nash is a lot like that. Hall is a lot like that. I guess that’s why we always seem to be in trouble. I’d rather have you hate me for what I am than love me for what I;m not. I;m not gonna put up some fronts, some masks.”

None of The Filthy Animals is an impostor. What you see is what you get.

[Tygress and Mysterio show Filthy Animalunity with matching outfits.]

“Everyone knows Rey is a great wrestler. Everyone knows Juvi is a great wrestler. Everyone knows Disqo is underrated. Now we’re gonna parlay out ability into success,” said Konnan. “We’re respected by the fans and the wrestlers; they know who’s good; they know who has charisma.”

'I'd rather have you hate me for what I am than love me for what I'm not.’ - Konnan

Konnan’s Top 5 Party Cities: 

1. Toronto

2. Las Vegas

3. Miami

4. San Francisco

5. Tijuana, Mexico

Top 5 Least Like to Join The FIlthy Animals:

1. Doug Dellinger

2. Kronik

3. Randay Savage

4. Wildcat Willie

5. Lance Storm

[prettyboysdontlookatexplosions]

prev post inspired by reading brandon taylor's filthy animals, which is, like, fine i guess, which is kind of simultaneously not surprising bc i've never read a collection of allegedly well observed stories focused on the minutiae of human interaction that i actually liked and also disappointing because i like his writing in his newsletter so much lol. (and to be fair i also really liked his story "prophets" which is not in the collection.) and actually for the most part the dialogue feels more or less human which stood out to me because of how much i fuckin hated severance (novel, not currently buzzy apple TV show i have also complained about lmao). but then you get an exchange like this:

"I do like him," Sophie said after a moment, and it startled Charles.

"How? You don't know him. I don't know him."

"There's something good and wounded about him. Like you."

and it just instantly pings my bullshit-dar. i'm like, she would not fucking say that, where "she" is "any human ever to live, ever." and for whatever reason when it comes to this kind of thing (literary short stories invested in the minutiae of human interaction) my instinct is then to be like, well i guess i am a dummy. i guess i am being stupid and unfair to read this and be like, girl what? and maybe i am, i don't know. maybe when on the next page charles says "So I cleaned it, swept the glass, you know? And it was the weirdest thing. I don't think I've ever seen a person more exposed." i am also being stupid to be like, you've never seen a what? what? who talks like this? i don't know. a lot of people love this writing, according to goodreads, which as we all know is an unfiltered and objective accounting of human opinion. maybe lots of people talk like this and i just happen not to know any of them. or maybe, again, i'm totally missing the point of literary fiction and there's some kind of reason i'm just not sophisticated enough to understand for why you would write texts as naturalistically as "u there?" and also have this emotionally repressed dancer say "i don't think i've ever seen a person more exposed" like that is a normal, not weird thing to say, a thing that would just come out of your mouth naturally. like obviously i am not so stupid as to believe literary dialogue ever actually is "naturalistic" or should be... but perhaps i am barking up the wrong tree if i want it to convincing? if i want my disbelief to be suspended?

(tw in the next paragraph for suicide & ED stuff discussed in the book)

the thing that compelled me to post mid-book comes from a story later on that also concerns these characters (sophie, charles, and lionel, who is the "him" they have met the previous night and that charles has slept with and sophie is... befriending? ish?) lionel is the POV character in the first story, and i liked that one actually partly because it's about a guy trying to have a normal time at a campus party at the school where he is proctoring while on leave of absence which he has been taking since his suicide attempt last year. none of these exact biographical particulars apply to me but the general vibe has some overlap with my college years for sure lol and so i was like, well true. anyway. so in a later story we're back with lionel and sophie is like, are you with someone, and he said no, god no, and she asks why not, and he............. rolls up his sleeve to show his suicide attempt scars? and she asks what happened and he tells her, and then he gives this little monologue essentially describing what it's like to be depressed which is fine and they talk about that and his recent self-hospitalization, and then she's like... ok i'm actually going to type this one out too:

"My parents died. And then my sister, a few years ago, died. Overdose. And sometimes, I think, Fuck. Enough. Or sometimes, it's like, Why not make it a full set?"

"Yeah," he said.

"I used to purge. Everybody thinks it's about being skinny and being light for ballet. They think it's to look a certain way. But I think most of us purge because of the control. Like, there's a moment when you go from feeling full and awful to feeling clean and clear and bright. There's just a moment, right before you get it all out, before you're burning up and convulsing, when you feel something go ping and you know it'll be all right. Thats what it's about. That little ping of clarity. Anyway, I used to purge. When I lived with my grandma. All the other girls in ballet did, too. It's not special or anything, but I did. And then I got these awful ulcers. And I couldn't dance because I had no energy and my vision started to get weird? I felt like my body was betraying me."

Lionel sat up then. Sophie's thumb traced his knuckles.

"Then my sister died, and I thought, I can keep doing this or I can try to fucking live. Really live. Dance is awful, don't get me wrong--if your foot is too big or your shoulder doesn't bend a certain way. There are fewer than zero jobs. And everyone is on coke or a serial rapist. But when I'm dancing, sometimes, I feel that little ping. I know where I am in the world. I can feel myself. And, like, yeah, my technique is not classical. Come on. I learned to dance in Arkansas. But as long as I can dance, I'll be okay. I don't need ABT. Or Royal Ballet or anything. I just want to dance for as long as I can."

"It's your something," Lionel said.

"Everybody deserves a something, right?"

Lionel nodded, and Sophie blotted the corners of her eyes with a sleeve.

and i........ uh.............. fucking hated this lol??? i fucking hated this entire scene. like it really activated my "oh fuck OFF" instinct." and i hated it in a way that felt unusual and unexpected because i think of my problem with literary fiction, when i have a problem with literary fiction, is that it is too, like, withholding or afraid of emotion or afraid of seeming sentimental or whatever, but this..... is....... fucking sentimental. this feels really actually quite fucking cheap to me? i DON'T UNDERSTAND why this collection of short stories is giving me an EATING DISORDERS 101 POST FROM HEALTHLINE.COM???? like i... ok. not everyone in the world has spent as many hours of their lives reading about eating disorders as i have "lol." but this literally feels like Very Special Episode dialogue. including the part where the connection between these two people feels too easy. which, again, up this point i was like, well this is just a mode of developing relationships i don't understand because of my intellectual deficiencies... but now i'm like, actually maybe it's just bullshit, because this degrassi ass monologue is bullshit. the scars thing, also bullshit - bullshit in a specific way i found irritating because, lmao, back when i was drafting a certain wildly self-indulgent fanfiction of mine, there was a period of time in which i entertained the concept of a character dropping the same kind of reveal with the same scar-revealing gesture, and then i opted not to do that, because i was like, "on reflection, this feels like a bullshit." like this feels stupid! it feels actually stupid! hollow and melodramatic and unearned! not, like, not to my taste or too sophisticated for me to get or too subtle for me (an idiot) to be into... and actually not even just "not that good." like this is actively bad, to me. maudlin! distasteful! cliché! cheap!!!

anyway. idk. i guess i was just startled by this because it seemed so obviously self-indulgent and unserious that i was really unprepared to find it in a book by, like, a serious author, that people take seriously. i want there to be a lesson here but i'm not sure that there is one except maybe that i gotta get more comfortable with embracing being a hater even if i'm worried it will make me look dumb. but, like, having a character say out loud, in dialogue, "i know everybody thinks it's about being skinny, but it's actually about control," in a book published in 2021? flowers for spring... groundbreaking....

[th3b1gd1ck]

Rey Mysterio unmasked with his girlfriend Tygress along with the rest of the Filthy Animals group Konnan and Juventud Guerrera "The juice"

WCW Monday Nitro 10/19/2000

[spaceshipsandpurpledrank]

[dose-of-bri]

[fornashbynash]

Wrestlers in FUBU: Rey Mysterio