Surprising Name Came Up With AEW’s Gordon Solie-Inspired Promo

AEW fans got a serious dose of retro nostalgia last week when Tony Schiavone appeared in a Gordon Solie-inspired promo to hype Dynamite’s 6th anniversary show. With a turtleneck, old-school mic, and vintage filter, it looked straight out of 1983. But the idea didn’t come from Schiavone — it came from AEW President Tony Khan himself.

On What Happened When, Schiavone revealed that Khan was the mastermind behind the promo, going as far as sending an extremely detailed text laying out everything he wanted for the throwback.

“It was an idea of Tony Khan’s. He sent us a very long text and came up with this idea, and so we immediately went to work on it.”

Khan didn’t just suggest a retro segment — he had a full vision. According to Schiavone, the AEW boss told him to find glasses like Solie’s, a boutonnière, a green screen, and even a turtleneck to seal the look.

“Tony Khan said, ‘Why don’t you even wear a turtleneck?’ And I said, ‘I can do that.’ Then I also got the old-school mic that I saw Gordon Solie had, put that up, and we rolled on it.”

It only took about 20 minutes to actually record the segment — but getting everything ready was a serious grind.

“It actually only took me probably 20 minutes to record, but it took me four hours to find all my equipment, get it all set up, and frame it right.”

Despite the effort, the payoff was worth it. Schiavone said the segment was extremely well received, and he gave props to the Nashville production team for pulling off the VHS-style aesthetic perfectly.

“A pat on the back to the boss for coming up with this idea. And another big pat on the back to Phil and all the guys in Nashville for making it work and making it look old school. They made it look like an old VHS. It was really cool.”

Tony Khan’s vision helped AEW tap into the nostalgia that longtime fans still crave, while pushing the brand’s identity forward in a creative way. With Dynamite’s anniversary show in Florida now in the books, fans are already hoping for more throwback content like this.

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