The Rock "Duane Johnson" grew up in Miami, FL, after awhile he moved to Pennsylvania. Then when he went back ito Miami as a Hurrincane. On full ride scholarship with a degree in exercise physiology and criminology. His resume also including a few years playing canadian ball for Calgary. He played defensive line. While at Miami The Rock ruptered 2 disks in his back. Instead of waiting it out he played and it cost him a shot at the NFL. In high school he was presented with player of the year. His father Rocky Johnson and his grandfather Peter Maivia had both been great wrestlers already in the world wrestling federation. The Rock had his first pro match with the world wrestling federation against the Brooklyn Brawler in Corpus Christi, TX, in early 1996, he defeated the Brooklyn Brawler in a tryout match. The WWF liked what they saw, but they said he still needed more experience, he went to a smaller federation and joined the USWA he made hsi debut in May of 1996. He joined along with Bart Sawyer. His name was Flex Kavana. He captured the tag titles from Reggie B. Fine and Brickhouse Brown in June. Then he was back to the WWF. Owen Hart took him through the paces. The WWF signed him to a contract and gave him the name Rocky Maivia. He did not like this however, but the WWF didn't want to give him the name of Duane Johnson. And he didn't want to continue the use of Flex Kavana. " I rather be refered to as Joey Smith" The Rock says. But after a cooling of period and discussing it with his wife (Dany) and friends and the WWF. Rocky Maivia it was. Rocky Maivia had gained to much fame and fortune and did it too fast. The people didn't like how this happened, Rocky Maivia turned to his other side. The Rock. He had joined the nation and overthrew the leader, Faarooq. Time went on and The Rock got better. He had a shot at the WWF title, he just like Stone Cold had a fued with Mr. McMahon (owner of the WWF). But Survivor Series of 1998 had shown The Rock turned his back on a side that was a fan favorite to a corporate sell-out as he joined the side of Mr. McMahon. He captured the WWF title at the survivor series. The Rock lost the title on RAW is WAR to Mankind. Then The Rock regained the title, and lost it again during half time heat due to that scrubbie piece of monkey crap Mankind. The Rock and Mankind tied in a last man standing match on V-day. The next night on RAW is WAR The Rock defeated Mankind with a tincy bit of help from Paul Wright (The Giant) and got the belt back!!!!!

An Interview with The Rock:

With your dad, Rocky Johnson, being a great professional wrestler - how was it growing up in that environment and being surrounded by the wrestling world?

Rock: Obviously it was great to The Rock because I love this business and I love what I do. Having grown up in this business was a fantastic experience.

Who influenced you the most in wrestling, obviously besides your father?

Rock: Yes, my first thought is my dad. He's a great man. Other than him, Magnificent Morrocco was one of the all time great heels. Magnificant Morrocco and Flair really just epitomized what a heel should be. Their promos were great. The Rock took that to another level.

So you like being a heel?

Rock: Oh, there's no other way. Again, the way things are nowadays, we all know the timebomb is ticking - so to speak on the heel situation, because like last time - I can only be a heel for so long. Today, the people dictate who they want to be the heel and who they want to be babyface. The front office can no longer just book situations to make someone into a heel or a babyface, that's just the way it is. You know The Rock is very aware of his time left as the heel. Of course, I've got to go one-on-one with StoneCold. Anytime you see The Rock and StoneCold, it generates sparks and a lot of interest. It's like a magnet drawing more people to StoneCold, their babyface - which is fine because we have that battle to look forward to: The Rock vs. StoneCold - The Heel vs. BabyFace! The beauty of it is The Rock will remain the same. The Rock will still remain the piece of shit in the ring and out of the ring and do the things a piece of shit will do. Sometimes it's cool to take liberty with your persona like that and get away with doing things a heel would do. It's fun! I enjoy it.

Who came up with the People's Eyebrow or the Corporate Eyebrow?

Rock: The People's Eyebrow was something I used to do years ago in college at the University of Miami. At that time I used to call it the 'Heat Brow.' Obviously, the word 'heat' and it's expression generates from the Miami terminology - like you got heat and stuff like that. Noone would understand what I was talking about when I called it the 'Heat Brow.' I used to do that all the time and it would piss everyone off. I just tried it out again a few years ago when I turned heel and walked out in front of the audience. I started doing it in all the venues and on T.V., man, and it just stuck.

The People's Elbow was not premeditated. I never thought I needed to do something that would take people out of their seats or anything; it just evolved that way. When I turned heel, I started dropping a little elbow and started lifting my leg and I thought, "Well, let me jump all over the guy.", one night. I did that and, before you knew it, I was getting a pretty damn good reaction out of it. Being the People's Champ, it was only fitting.

Everything just came natural? You just did it like that?

Rock: Yeah, everything evolved as with any character who's trying to be creative nightly. Anyone who's close to The Rock knows I keep a notepad with me all the time and I write down every new idea, just the whole deal.

Since you've played football and wrestled on a higher level - what have been the major differences between the two sports for you?

Rock: Basically, in football you have ten other guys working with you; it's not like it's a one-man game out there. It's physical, obviously, but wrestling is very physical too. Having done both now on major levels, by far wrestling is harder. I knew that anyway going into it because I grew up in the business. I have passion for what I do now, a never-ending passion. I used to love playing football, but wrestling is where it's at. There's a lot of creative freedom that The Rock has in wrestling. I pride myself in being able to go out there and be a great entertainer and sportsman.

What made you decide to go Corporate?

Rock: I talked about it with Vince, first and foremost, and we decided it was the best thing for now. In becoming Corporate and the World Champ, there's a lot more freedom in doing what I'm doing now. It wasn't an issue of money or anything else like that. It was the best move for The Rock. The Rock might not always do the right thing, but I damn sure always do the best thing.

What is 1999 going to bring for The Rock?

Rock: 1999 is going to be, without a doubt, the Year of The Rock. 1998 was the year of StoneCold and The Rock took a back seat for awhile. Now it's The Rock's turn and StoneCold will have to sit in the back. I'm going to continue to go out and prove why The Rock is the most electrifying man in sports entertainment.

Do you have anything to say to Hawk and Animal?

Rock: Speaking of Hawk and Animal, they are definitely the greatest tag team there ever was in this business. They were the first big powerhouse tag team. I remember watching them as a kid, I don't mean to age them or anything like that - I thought even then they were extremely impressive. It was a privelege for The Rock to meet them for the first time a couple of years ago. Not only that, but to work with them has been a great pleasure. We've had some pretty damn good matches. It's a rarity that The Rock puts other wrestlers up on a pedestal like this. They're hell of a guys!