Aron Stevens is getting camera (and wedding) ready.
WrestleZone recently spoke with Aron Stevens, who will be getting married to May Valentine on the live episode of NWA Powerrr on January 31. Stevens is greatly anticipating the ceremony and he said he’s doing everything he can to make sure it’s a special evening.
“This upcoming NWA Powerrr live, January 31, going from Knoxville, Tennessee, all kinds of things are gonna happen. I’m getting married to, of course, the lovely talented May Valentine. And you know what? I’m just feeling ready I’m getting myself in the best shape, I’m tanning as you can see, I’m going through an extensive — it’s like Rocky when he went to the USSR and trained in Siberia and everything [in Rocky IV]. I am here in Canada up in the Georgian Bay, just doing it like I do, and getting ready for the 31st.”
Stevens was part of another infamous wrestling wedding before, as he (as Aron Rex) participated in the Braxton Sutter and Laurel Van Ness wedding in IMPACT Wrestling. Asked about his memories of that affair, Stevens spoke about how flamboyant his Rex character was and why it was good television.
“I was heavily involved because at that point in my career, I was spending a lot of time in the makeup chair. Having to mat down, because I was doing a gimmick that was very much inspired by, of course, one of the greatest entertainers of our time, or any time for that matter, Liberace,” Stevens explained. “And so again, the whole Mr. Showmanship thing, and I was there and I had my assistant Spud, and we just got caught up in the moment. I’m a very emotional person, and as a performer sometimes that line gets blurred quite a bit, and I just lost it. I was overcome with emotion, and yes, I cried, okay? I was crying uncontrollably for those that did not see the wedding.
“But like you said, it’s one of the best weddings in wrestling history. And there’s a reason for it, it’s because everyone did their part. In wrestling, it’s such a…like IMPACT, it’s so weird, right? So my time at IMPACT was nothing but positive. And it’s very interesting, there was just people on the same page wanting to make good TV. And I think everyone involved in that segment, it’s been just great,” he said. “Like it’s been amazing to see where their careers have gone. And again, collectively just being on the same page and working for the best segment was great. And I think that’s just a testament to all those performers in there.”
Stevens spoke about how Aron Rex was inspired by Liberace, the legendary performer that once appeared at WrestleMania. Stevens noted how Liberace’s rise coincided with the advent of television and the persona was a great fit for pro wrestling.
“[You had] the news and wrestling. So wrestlers are one of the first TV stars ever, there’s a little tidbit of information. But then all of a sudden, here comes Liberace, right? And he plays the piano. And he’s got the rings and he’s got the candelabra, but then he would talk to the camera and he would wait,” Stevens noted. “And then he would wink at the camera. Women used to write them saying, ‘Oh my god, Liberace winked at me.’ Because it was literally, they’ve never been used to this form of media consumption to where you’re engaging in this little box thing, right? Like, we can go to plays and things like that. But, you know, this is crazy. And then the wink…he was such a showman, and really was one of the first people to use television as just a form of advertising for himself. And that’s what he did. So, again, I think that kind of a persona goes so well with pro wrestling, to where you just take it to the top so much that you become you know, your own thing, your own planet, more or less. That’s something that in wrestling, it’s a can’t go wrong situation.”
Asked how he plans on making sure his wedding with May doesn’t end up going wrong like the IMPACT one (or others in wrestling history), Stevens said he’s bringing back up.
“Well listen, this is a monumental event, okay? This is one of the biggest events not only in my life, but in my friends and family. This is in Knoxville, Tennessee. NWA, don’t get no bigger than that. We are going to have…I’ve reached out to people, several politicians, haven’t heard back from them. But that’s okay. But I wanted security, I wanted the police, to have security. Well, I don’t think we’re gonna have that. I wanted an escort, but look — I am the manager of, in my opinion, the most devastating high-impact tag team in pro wrestling today, and I’m talking about BFT, Blunt Force Trauma. And if you don’t know, now you do, so look them up and see what’s up because Blunt Force Trauma, this is a combination of experience, of youth, and it’s the prime of their careers. And it’s just like steering a runaway freight train, like you know what? It’s going in the right direction, and so if anything goes wrong at the wedding, I have my friends to back it up.”
Stevens also noted that the ceremony will be officiated by “Sam Timo”, whose name sounds an awful lot like the ring name of someone else he happened to name drop during the interview.
“The honorable Sam Timo will be coming. Dear friend of mine, a dear, dear friend of mine, that’s all I’m saying. I stay at his house all the time. By the way, did I mention, I am at Anthony Carelli, otherwise known as Santino Marella, otherwise known as whoever, I am at his personal gym right now,” Stevens pointed out. “So again, I’m here working out, getting ready for this wedding. And all I’m saying is, hey, the Honorable Sam Timo, the man is licensed, the man is legally able to perform the ceremony and, and it’s going to be something so you know what, watch it. It’s on YouTube. It’s live and you never know what’s going to happen.”
NWA Powerrr will air live on Tuesday, January 31 on YouTube. Check out our full video interview with Aron Stevens at the top of this post.
