Mark Calaway spent the summer of 1990 losing wrestling matches. He suffered defeat all across the country during World Championship Wrestling’s Great American Bash tour, falling to Paul Orndorff in Oklahoma City and in Atlanta to Tommy Rich. Lex Luger pinned him in Baltimore. Brian Pillman got him in Miami, St. Petersburg, and Richmond.
Six months earlier, Calaway had debuted in a prestigious spot as one-half of the Skyscrapers. Alongside “Dangerous” Dan Spivey, Calaway, billed as “Mean” Mark Callous, went toe-to-toe with the Road Warriors in a marquee feud throughout early 1990. Spivey, however, departed for Japan, leaving Calaway floundering in solo action. Not even the addition of manager Paul Heyman, then known as Paul E. Dangerously, could save this act.