WWE star 'The Miz' talks about making a legacy

The stars of the WWE are big characters, in and out of the ring. When a WWE Raw event comes to Cape Girardeau, crowds of Southeast Missourians pour into the Show Me Center to cheer and boo and yell and clap for their favorites.

Before the match Friday, WWE character Mike "The Miz" Mizanin talked about the sport and his quest to make sure his legacy lasts through the myriad of stars that take to the mat.

"I've always loved the talkers, ever since I was a kid. Guys like the Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin; if you remember anything about them, it's not their matches," Mizanin said. "You remember, 'Can you smell what the Rock is cookin'?' and catch phrases like that, and I always enjoyed the storied characters in WWE.

"I've brought that into what I want to do. I want to parlay my character to the world, so when they see me, they think, 'I know a guy exactly like that, and I love/hate him.' I feel like a lot of wrestlers do the same stuff, so the better the people know me, the better I am set apart," he said. "As far as the wrestling is concerned, I think now I'm at a point where people are really getting to know me, and I need to prove myself in the ring. I like having longer matches now to show that I am an athlete and not just a big mouth."

In the few years he's been in wrestling, Mizanin has achieved tag team greatness with John Morrison, attaining the WWE Tag Team Championship and the World Tag Team Championship. Last October, he defeated Kofi Kingston to take the WWE US Singles Championship.

"I set a new major goal every new year," Mizanin said. "So far, I've been able to reach those goals, even if they seem a little lofty, and my goal for 2010 is to be a main event, so that's what I am striving for now."

Mizanin has been working to get his image out there. He and his tag team partner John Morrison started their own web show "The Dirt Sheet." For more than a year and a half, they gave a no-holds-barred interpretation of all things WWE. Mizanin said the show ruffled some feathers with his wrestling counterparts, but it helped to give him more face time with the WWE Universe.

Last week, wrestling in Knoxville, Tenn., Mizanin, as The Miz, partnered with The Big Show for a tag team match. Their third partner was guest host and actor Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite, School for Scoundrels).

"The guest hosts we've had have been great," Mizanin said, "but Jon and Don [Johnson, Miami Vice] have been in the top tier of guys to work with. Jon did a great job. He even got in the ring and got to kick Hornswoggle."

Mizanin has been a fan of wrestling since he was young, and said he identifies with the fans of today's WWE.

"It's been around for so long," he said. "It's passing from generation to generation, and I think that families watch it together. I can remember all of my friends coming over and watching WrestleMania. There's an emotional attachment that you get from watching these events, and it really brings people together."