Rick Boogs Reveals Crazy Gimmick Pitched to WWE

Rick Boogs, who was previously known as Eric Bugenhagen, made his debut on Friday Night Smackdown back in May and immediately started being paired with Shinsuke Nakamura.

The two have undeniable chemistry together and Boogs’ skills with the electric guitar are certainly a treat for fans. Boogs also revealed he had almost no time to learn Shinsuke Nakamura’s entrance theme.

While speaking on WWE After The Bell, Rick Boogs revealed how he pitched a character to WWE named Art Von Boogs, who was a crazy painter and was also similar to NXT’s Dexter Lumis.

“I think that’s what it was, just taking the chains off,” Boogs said. “I’m just going to be wild. I was new with it all and I didn’t know how to approach it at first. Once I lost everything and had surgery and couldn’t train, it was like, maybe I’ll get released if I don’t become a character. What else can you do at that point? I figured I would go as big as I can with the character stuff. I was cutting wild promos, man. Art Von Boogs I pitched. I threw everything against the wall, every week I was coming up with something different.

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“I was a painter, the overalls and the jean overalls all stems from Art Von Boogs. A French beret, I was really about my doodles. Kind of like Dexter Lumis, he does a sketch but I was kind of the same idea. When I’d cut promos, I would draw the promos, I would draw the opponents, I would draw anything. And it was crazy drawings. That’s the thing, anyone can draw. I would connect the dots, draw half man, half chicken. I would have it all come full circle and I would explain it. I loved the Art Von Boogs gimmick, but I think they thought it was a little too out there.”

Rick Boogs also revealed that he had never met Shinsuke Nakamura prior to his entrance with Nakamura and their pairing remains one of the highlights of Friday Night Smackdown.

h/t to Wrestling Inc for the quotes.

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