Tony Chimel released from WWE

[cjh]

www.pwinsider.com/article/141179/more-wwe-departures-including-beloved-former-ring-announcer.html?p=1

There have been additional staff let go from World Wrestling Entertainment on Friday, PWInsider.com has confirmed, mostly logistical and behind the scenes staff working out of Stamford, CT. One source believed it was 10-15 staffers in total.

The most well known name who has been let go is former ring announcer Tony Chimel, who has been with the company officially since 1991 and was the first announcer for the Smackdown brand. A friend of Gino "Gorilla Monsoon" Marella's family, Chimel got his first break announcing local WWF events in the Northeast and helping at events dating back to 1983.

In 1991, Chimel was brought into the company on a full-time basis working behind the scenes as a technician. He was soon tapped to become a ring announcer full-time. Although most connected to the Smackdown brand, Chimel moved onto the WWE version of ECW in 2007 when Justin Roberts took on the Smackdown announcing duties. He would return to Smackdown and may be best celebrated for his announcements for Edge and Christian. Chimel also took part in storylines where he was "fired" by then-Smackdown General Manager Kurt Angle, an ongoing interaction with Mr. Kennedy and even being on the wrong side of a Boogeyman feeding frenzy. In recent years, Chimel had moved behind the scenes, working as a production manager and helping to oversee the WWE ring crew. He would still make various cameos on the air, usually related to Edge or the WWE Network's Edge & Christian Show.

The other name that seemed most shocking to those we spoke with was Derek Casselman, who had been the Director of Venue Merchandise, Remote Operations for WWE and had been with the company since 1993, so he had worked there over 27 years and was well liked by many.

EDIT: Changed thread title

[TWERKIN' MAGGLE]

Leave implies he wanted to go...

[Deleted]

I can honestly say I didn't know he was still with them.

[Final Countdown Jones]

We should be coming up on another quarterly report blowing last year's numbers out of the water, shouldn't we?

[Captain Stud Muffin (BLM)]

I honestly didn't know he was still there

Edge isn't going to like this

[Legion]

Nov 9, 2020 14:49:52 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

We should be coming up on another quarterly report blowing last year's numbers out of the water, shouldn't we?

Came out on the 29th October:

Revenue was $221.6 million, an increase of 19% or $35.3 million
Operating income was $63.4 million, an increase of nearly 9x or $57.0 million
Adjusted OIBDA1 was $84.3 million, an increase of more than 2x or $58.9 million
WWE ThunderDome debuted at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. It provides an interactive virtual experience for WWE fans and recreates the in-arena atmosphere (WWE has not performed an event with ticketed fans since mid-March 2020)
WWE Network average paid subscribers2 were 1.6 million, an increase of 6%
Digital video views were 9.2 billion, an increase of 3%, and hours consumed were 342 million, an increase of 3%, across digital and social media platforms3
eCommerce revenue was $9.1 million, an increase of 60%, offsetting the loss of venue merchandise sales due to 74 fewer events in the quarter

They appear to actually lose money or at least not make as much profit when they tour. Which begs the question why they bother, which in turn supports why live event related staff are the ones being let go. Back during the last call they queried if they would return to having as many live events even when the world get back to 'normal' so it may be those jobs just aren't there now, and wont be there in the future, so there isnt a need to keep people around.

Sure, that sucks if you are the one cut, but businesses restructure all the time, and making a profit doesn't mean you keep people around if their jobs are surplus to requirements.

[Fundertaker]

No more Rated R Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooopataaaaaaaaaaar!

[Final Countdown Jones]

Nov 9, 2020 14:57:57 GMT -5 Legion said:

Nov 9, 2020 14:49:52 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

We should be coming up on another quarterly report blowing last year's numbers out of the water, shouldn't we?

Came out on the 29th October:

Revenue was $221.6 million, an increase of 19% or $35.3 million
Operating income was $63.4 million, an increase of nearly 9x or $57.0 million
Adjusted OIBDA1 was $84.3 million, an increase of more than 2x or $58.9 million
WWE ThunderDome debuted at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. It provides an interactive virtual experience for WWE fans and recreates the in-arena atmosphere (WWE has not performed an event with ticketed fans since mid-March 2020)
WWE Network average paid subscribers2 were 1.6 million, an increase of 6%
Digital video views were 9.2 billion, an increase of 3%, and hours consumed were 342 million, an increase of 3%, across digital and social media platforms3
eCommerce revenue was $9.1 million, an increase of 60%, offsetting the loss of venue merchandise sales due to 74 fewer events in the quarter

They appear to actually lose money or at least not make as much profit when they tour. Which begs the question why they bother, which in turn supports why live event related staff are the ones being let go. Back during the last call they queried if they would return to having as many live events even when the world get back to 'normal' so it may be those jobs just aren't there now, and wont be there in the future, so there isnt a need to keep people around.

Sure, that sucks if you are the one cut, but businesses restructure all the time, and making a profit doesn't mean you keep people around if their jobs are surplus to requirements.

Even if they reduce their live events they still need someone in charge of venue merchandise. Vince has actively paid people to sit at home and do nothing before. Vince has, even before these financial windfalls, actively extended the contracts of people who should have been allowed to leave and decided to not let them leave, and instead pay out their downside even longer to actively do nothing, provide no benefit to the company, and not return in the future to resume a role that just couldn't be filled at this moment. So trying to rationalize this with business sense is, just like it was in the last thread, really not something that tracks with WWE as a reasonable decision reasonable companies make in reasonable conditions. Vince picks and chooses when it's convenient to keep wasting money and when it's convenient to shore up any dime he can. That's ghoul shit.

[Hypnosis]

It's going to feel SOOOOOPER weird without him.

[Deleted]

Damn. Chimmel was a trooper and a veteran. From what I've understood over the years, he was a behind the scenes everyman who did all sorts of things for them.

Nov 9, 2020 14:30:15 GMT -5 cjh said:

A friend of Gino "Gorilla Monsoon" Marella's family

This part.

......if you think the WWF of old is still there.... it is not. It is gone.

Oh, this part speaks volumes to me.

[fw91]

Never like to see like to see long time employees be let go. I was pretty upset they released Mike Chioda in April

[XIII]

Nov 9, 2020 15:17:58 GMT -5 @knapp said:

Damn. Chimmel was a trooper and a veteran. From what I've understood over the years, he was a behind the scenes everyman who did all sorts of things for them.

Nov 9, 2020 14:30:15 GMT -5 cjh said:

A friend of Gino "Gorilla Monsoon" Marella's family

This part.

......if you think the WWF of old is still there.... it is not. It is gone.

Oh, this part speaks volumes to me.

Don’t worry, Road Dogg is the new James Dudley.

[ThereIsNoAbsurdistOnlyZuul]

Nov 9, 2020 14:49:52 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

We should be coming up on another quarterly report blowing last year's numbers out of the water, shouldn't we?

Activision tactics, hm?

["Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay]

Edge is going to tell them you book Chimmel for the nights I show up or I don't f***ing show up.

To be honest I had assumed he does that anyway, I didn't know Chimmel still worked there.

[Legion]

Nov 9, 2020 15:08:44 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

Nov 9, 2020 14:57:57 GMT -5 Legion said:

Came out on the 29th October:

Revenue was $221.6 million, an increase of 19% or $35.3 million
Operating income was $63.4 million, an increase of nearly 9x or $57.0 million
Adjusted OIBDA1 was $84.3 million, an increase of more than 2x or $58.9 million
WWE ThunderDome debuted at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. It provides an interactive virtual experience for WWE fans and recreates the in-arena atmosphere (WWE has not performed an event with ticketed fans since mid-March 2020)
WWE Network average paid subscribers2 were 1.6 million, an increase of 6%
Digital video views were 9.2 billion, an increase of 3%, and hours consumed were 342 million, an increase of 3%, across digital and social media platforms3
eCommerce revenue was $9.1 million, an increase of 60%, offsetting the loss of venue merchandise sales due to 74 fewer events in the quarter

They appear to actually lose money or at least not make as much profit when they tour. Which begs the question why they bother, which in turn supports why live event related staff are the ones being let go. Back during the last call they queried if they would return to having as many live events even when the world get back to 'normal' so it may be those jobs just aren't there now, and wont be there in the future, so there isnt a need to keep people around.

Sure, that sucks if you are the one cut, but businesses restructure all the time, and making a profit doesn't mean you keep people around if their jobs are surplus to requirements.

Even if they reduce their live events they still need someone in charge of venue merchandise. Vince has actively paid people to sit at home and do nothing before. Vince has, even before these financial windfalls, actively extended the contracts of people who should have been allowed to leave and decided to not let them leave, and instead pay out their downside even longer to actively do nothing, provide no benefit to the company, and not return in the future to resume a role that just couldn't be filled at this moment. So trying to rationalize this with business sense is, just like it was in the last thread, really not something that tracks with WWE as a reasonable decision reasonable companies make in reasonable conditions. Vince picks and chooses when it's convenient to keep wasting money and when it's convenient to shore up any dime he can. That's ghoul shit.

Talent, who could go off and make money for competition is not the same as back office staff no one has ever heard of. That is how Vince would justify your example.

Chimel and the merchandise manager are unlikely to go and make AEW, Impact/TNA or the NWA or whoever money.

From the point of view of trying to stifle competition, there is the chance he makes more money from the share of people willing to spend money on the product than potentially lose some of that money from people being interested in someone he's paying to sit at home just because he can't or wont figure out how to use them.

[Final Countdown Jones]

Nov 9, 2020 15:51:06 GMT -5 Legion said:

Nov 9, 2020 15:08:44 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

Even if they reduce their live events they still need someone in charge of venue merchandise. Vince has actively paid people to sit at home and do nothing before. Vince has, even before these financial windfalls, actively extended the contracts of people who should have been allowed to leave and decided to not let them leave, and instead pay out their downside even longer to actively do nothing, provide no benefit to the company, and not return in the future to resume a role that just couldn't be filled at this moment. So trying to rationalize this with business sense is, just like it was in the last thread, really not something that tracks with WWE as a reasonable decision reasonable companies make in reasonable conditions. Vince picks and chooses when it's convenient to keep wasting money and when it's convenient to shore up any dime he can. That's ghoul shit.

Talent, who could go off and make money for competition is not the same as back office staff no one has ever heard of. That is how Vince would justify your example.

Chimel and the merchandise manager are unlikely to go and make AEW, Impact/TNA or the NWA or whoever money.

From the point of view of trying to stifle competition, there is the chance he makes more money from the share of people willing to spend money on the product than potentially lose some of that money from people being interested in someone he's paying to sit at home just because he can't or wont figure out how to use them.

You're right. That is how Vince McMahon would justify why he can manage to be a ghoul by forcing people to stay in a job, and be a ghoul by cutting other people from a job. I didn't need to understand his reasoning for it, I know his reasonings for it. My post is a condemnation of the demented double standard that it enables.

[TOK Hehe'd Around & Found Out]

Nov 9, 2020 15:51:06 GMT -5 Legion said:

Nov 9, 2020 15:08:44 GMT -5 Final Countdown Jones said:

Even if they reduce their live events they still need someone in charge of venue merchandise. Vince has actively paid people to sit at home and do nothing before. Vince has, even before these financial windfalls, actively extended the contracts of people who should have been allowed to leave and decided to not let them leave, and instead pay out their downside even longer to actively do nothing, provide no benefit to the company, and not return in the future to resume a role that just couldn't be filled at this moment. So trying to rationalize this with business sense is, just like it was in the last thread, really not something that tracks with WWE as a reasonable decision reasonable companies make in reasonable conditions. Vince picks and chooses when it's convenient to keep wasting money and when it's convenient to shore up any dime he can. That's ghoul shit.

Talent, who could go off and make money for competition is not the same as back office staff no one has ever heard of. That is how Vince would justify your example.

Chimel and the merchandise manager are unlikely to go and make AEW, Impact/TNA or the NWA or whoever money.

From the point of view of trying to stifle competition, there is the chance he makes more money from the share of people willing to spend money on the product than potentially lose some of that money from people being interested in someone he's paying to sit at home just because he can't or wont figure out how to use them.

But these are things that wouldn't stand if WWE was truly a public company, and not a McMahon Family trust that the public can buy into.

[Push R Truth]

Tony only being 53 blows my freakin' mind


He's been around so long I was expecting him to be between 60-70

[Cyno]

Thread title is deceptive. It implies Tony Chimel left WWE voluntarily. He was let go.

[agent817]

No more "Jeeeehhhh-Aaaahnnnn Ceeeeenaaaa!"?