Jasmin: Porno No More! (Wrestling World - Febuaray 2001)
by Mike Greenblatt

   Forner porn superstar Jasmin St. Claire is now simply Jasmin, valeting
and wrestling under the watchful eye of Extreme Championship Wrestling. There
are those in the business who say she's so good at what she does that she
might end up in the WWF sonner than anyone could anticipate. Engaged to The
Blue Meanie, Jasmin is not looking back, preferring instead to talk about
the future, not the past. At ECW's New York City debut at the Hammerstein
Ballroom, fans booed the hell out of her and her Meanie, cheering on Balls
Mahoney to a big opening bout win. Jasmin was great in her heel turn. She
looked terrific. Acted mean. Took quite a hard bump or two. And loved every
minute of it. We spoke to Jasmin in New York City. She's much sexier and
prettier close up than in a ring or in one of her old films. Intelligent,
knowledgeable about the sport she's now in, and good on the mic, maybe those
pundits were right.Maybe Jasmin is, indeed, headed for wrestling stardom.
Hey, stranger things have happened.

Wrestling World: How does one make the transition from porno to wrestling?

Jasmin: Well, actually, I treated my other career as a total joke, because
that's what those people in that side of the business are. They're nothing
but a bunch of jokes. Yeah, that's all behind me now. The only thing about
that part of my life that I'm OK with are the fans. My fans were never
a joke to me. But the people in the porn business are very unprofessional,
always doing drugs on the set. Ugh! Bottom line, I'm here to talk about
wrestling. And only wrestling. I always liked wrestling growing up, to be
honest with you. My grandmother's the one who got me into it. I grew up
watching [Superfly Jimmy] Snuka, [Hulk] Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, and I got
started off in ECW appearing at the "Living Dangerously" pay-per-view.
Right after seeing that, I quit everything else I did to pursue wrestling
fulltime.

WW: Tell us about that night.

J: "Living Dangerously" and was I scared! I wasn't sure what to expect. I
mean, l've seen ECW on TV many times, but everyone was realIy really nice.
They had me come in, cut a promo, and then Francine came out and I had heat
with her.

WW: How did you get involved in ECW to begin with?

J: I knew Big Dick Dudley from New York, one of the original Dudley Boyz. He
now wrestles independently. He hooked it up. Big Dick encouraged me to join
after we did some independent shows together. I trained with Sue Sexton, and
still do. She really got me more and more involved in it. I take it very
seriously. I don't care what people think. I know there's a lot of heat out
there about me, but quite frankly, I've been a huge wrestling fan ever since
I was a little kid. I even got in trouble once for going to a Garden card.
My mother thought I was at a friends' house, turned on the television, and
there I was, not too far from the front, with my grandma! I don't know who
she got madder at, me or my grandma. I was always athletic growing up, into
gymnastics and stuff. This is what I really like. I love wrestling.

WW: So you and Francine got into it, eh? Francine's terrific.

J: That first time I had to take a stunner, and face Francine, I was scared.
I wasn't sure if I'd get hurt, and I couldn't really afford to get hurt at
that time. But it went well. I went back to LA and really wanted to learn.
Big Dick kept encouraging me, and he put me on some indie shows with him
across the country, and I got a feel for the business and decided this is
what I wanted to do. I'd be his valet. I'd wrestle a bit. It was very
educational. The lessons from Sue, though, are what really cinched it for me.
She's such a great teacher. My inspirations in this business are Sue, of
course, plus Luna, Madusa, Sherri Martel and Missy Hyatt, who also helped me
quite a bit. Missy's great to work with, a real sweetheart.

WW: How did you hook up with The Blue Meanie?

J: Last July I was at the Milwaukee Metalfest. Meanie was on the show. I
liked him, hut he didn't know it. I don't think he liked me at all. I didn't
think I was his type. I was signing autographs and when I went off to
wrestle, he was on the card. I was like, "Good!" So I put on some more
perume, and extra lotion, just for him, hoping he'd take note of me and maybe
ask me out, which he never bid because some local indie jabonie coldcocked
him and told him not to mess with me. But I really liked him, and I really
wanted to get to know him. Milwaukee ended and we never hooked up. Then came
March [Metal Meltdownl in Pennsauken, New Jersey. Meanie's on the card and
I'm on it too working with Missy Hyatt. So we're all in the back, and Meanie
and I start talking. Finally, I figured I'd make the first move so I grabbed
him by the hand and pulled him over to me. He still didn't get the hint! So
I went to the bathroom and I'm sprucing myself up more, and I'm thinking,
"What the hell do I have to do to get this guy's attention?" I really liked
him, he looked good, he lost all that weight, and he was just so cute and
quiet. I wanted him bad. So we were hanging out in catering, and I left this
outgoing message on his voicemail. Then we hung out as I signed autographs,
and I accidently leaned over, on purpose, I mean accidentally, and I was
trying to flirt with him, so I sat on his lap, just on his leg. I thought,
"Maybe he has a girlfriend," but I found out later he didn't, and we kept
hanging out. We had drinks. We talked. We had dinner. He was definitely what
I didn't expect. I mean, he really liked me, from what I gathered, which
totally surprised me, so we exchanged phone numbers and stayed in touch, but
you know what really shocked me? He stayed in my room with me that night and
he didn't try a thing, it was so awesome! He's such a gentleman. He slept on
the other bed, God's honest truth. I was shocked. After that we started
visiting each other. I went to Memphis and I started working down there with
him. He moved back to Philly because of the misfortune with his grandma, so
I'm gonna move back East to be with him.

WW: I hear you're into kickboxing too.

J: I've always liked physical activities. That's why I want to prove to all
those who doubt my credibility that I'm in this for the long haul. And I'm
honored to do this interview for Wrestling World magazine 'cause everyone's
been taking me as nothing more than a joke with this, and I can't understand
why. If it's my background, that's one thing, but I went out there and did
what I had to do. I see a lot of girls working at the WCW, and those girls
probably weren't even wrestling fans before they got into it, you know what
I mean? And I think with wrestling, you really have to enjoy it and
understand it to be a part of it. I was always a fan! How I got mixed up
with that other stuff, that was one big accident, but I made it work to my
advantage. I used it as a stepping stone to move on to other things.

WW: Well, you made a lot of money and became a star because of it. You can't
complain there!

J: No, I certainly can't complain about that, true. I'm just ready to move
on to the next phase of my life, wrestling. I like the fact that I could
actually invite my mother to finally come and see me work! She's a New York
lawyer, and this is great. She came to the Hammerstein Ballroom shows. I'm
proud of that. As far as anyone else making these types of transitions from
the old thing, I don't think it could be done. I think it takes a certain
type of drive and a certain type of person, and I don't think that that's
what that business is filled up with. I'm just very fortunate.

WW: It's certainly a big step. Not many people get to go on to second careers
and have great success.

J: I think also the fact that I'm still learning to work, that also helps.
That in itself says I'm serious. And [ECW president] Paul [E. Heyman] saw
that. I went somewhere else looking for a job and they were just like, "Well,
no, we can't use you because of your past," and I'm like, everyone has a
past. Is that the worst thing anyone could do? You have ex-criminals on TV!
You have people who have done serious things succeeding, and I have nothing
against them, ever, hell, half of 'em are my friends! [laughing]

WW: Well, the porn industry has a habit of chewing you up and spitting you
out.

J: Right. I left it. I just felt there was something better out there for
me and I found it. I found something I really really like to do, and this is
it! I didn't like the other things I did. I did, though, like making public
appearances and meeting my fans.

WW: You didn't like all those movies you made? You didn't like appearing in
them?

J: Only a couple of them I did. The other ones I just didn't like dealing
with the mentality, most of all. Being associated with those people, people
of that caliber. I just have a problem being associated with drug addicts,
with people who have a lot of psychological issues. Leaving that was a big
challenge but I love challenges. There was a lot of jealousy, a lot of the
girls were jealous. I didn't like that. I do still have some friends in that
business, people who were tired and quit, but they're some of the people who
have a better head on their shoulders.

WW: Well, there's a lot of Jasmin St. Claire fans out there who wish you'd
make another movie. I guess they're just not going to get that movie, are
they?

J: It's never gonna happen. Go ahead and buy the old stuff.