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This shoot was filmed in 2009.

It runs at one hour and forty-eight minutes long.

The interview is conducted by Rob Feinstein

Buddy is first asked if he was a fan growing up. He said he was and watched the regional territories on Saturday mornings in Memphis. When in high school, Buddy’s sister dated Barry O. (brother of Bob Orton and uncle of Randy, as well as a long-time WWF jobber). Buddy was introduced to him and recalls a time when Barry came over intoxicated and tried to wrestle Buddy, who got the best of him. From that, Buddy got introduced to Boris Malenko.

Now he is asked if he was influenced by “Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers. Landel said that he never even knew who he was until he broke into the business. He also said he was a fan of Ric Flair but says that he primarily saw the Knoxville territory and as a result, never saw the other stars across the country.

Landel said he trained with Malenko for six months. He also said Malenko made you run five miles and do 500 squats and pushups without stopping before he would even teach you how to lockup. He said that everyone quit the first day except for him. Landel also said that it cost him $1,500 to train, which was a lot back in 1979. Buddy was just 17 years old then too. He said that Malenko training him gave him more opportunities because back then, whoever trained you was like your calling card. He notes that his friend, the Dirty White Boy, was training at the same time with Rick Connors, who Landel calls a good worker, but did  not have the same opportunities that he had due to training with Malenko.

He talks about living with Bob Roop as he was starting out. He said it was wild as he had no idea wrestling was a work because at that time, he was with ICW, an outlaw promotion run by Angelo Poffo and the wrestlers were carrying guns and feuding with the CWA (the promotion run by Jarrett and Lawler) then said that Malenko never broke kayfabe or smartened him up to the business.  He also said that the guys all stayed in shape and how Ronnie Garvin would tie his yacht across his waist and swim in order to keep up his physique.

Landel said that the psychology is harder to learn than bumps but adds that when it comes to psychology, you either have it or you do not. He finishes by saying if you do not, you will end up an opening match guy and that all main eventers need to have a good grasp on the psychology aspect.

His first match was against Bob Orton Jr. Landel said he was nervous and that Orton basically stretched him the whole match.

He was first asked to dye his hair blond while in Memphis in 1982. Landel said at the time, he was one of several young, generic babyfaces in the locker room and someone came up to him and asked if he would dye his hair blond and go work in Puerto Rico and he agreed.

While in Puerto Rico, he wrestled El Gran Apolo, who was a big, muscular guy. He said that it was hard to work with him as he wanted to shoot on you and be the star. He also said that Flair and Piper would come out for his matches and laugh because of the situation. When he returned to Memphis, Landel said that was when Lawler saw him and gave him the “Nature Boy” gimmick.

When he first worked in Memphis, Landel said that they had the “A” and the “B” team, which was referred to as the “Buttermilk Route.” Those were the small cities. He called Lawler one of the most talented guys in wrestling and said he could create any angle or gimmick. In regards to Jerry Jarrett, Landel said he was also a creative genius but he did not come around that often.

He talks about the schedule, which was Memphis on Monday, Lousiville on Tuesday, Evansville on Wednesday then spot shows on Thursday and Friday with TV on Saturday. They were off of Sunday’s.

Buddy then tells a crazy road story that took place when he was in Memphis. He was fired by Crockett in 1986 and sent to Memphis to “dry out.” Landel said that he got hooked up with a major cocaine dealer when he got there. He loaned him a gun, because the guy said he got into some trouble, but had no idea that he was a convicted felon and one day, the U.S. Marshals came to his parents home and took him because the dealer got busted with 33 kilos of cocaine and they traced the serial number of the gun and found out that it belonged to Landel. Landel then says that he was sitting in the FBI office along with Jerry Lee Lewis and the town’s sheriff. Landel said he was trying to think of a way to lie to the FBI and he got called in to speak. They asked him how the guy ended up with his gun and Landel said he had no idea because he barely knew the guy. The FBI agent told him he will give him another chance to answer the question then showed Landel footage of him riding with the dealer in his Cadillac snorting coke. The dealer was on surveilance for a long time.

He loves Dutch Mantel and said that he was with him the night that Bruiser Brody got killed in Puerto Rico. When asked about that day, Buddy said that he was having brunch with Brody, who reached his hand over the table and told Landel about how family mattered the most. He said looking back, it was almost like Brody knew he was going to die. He then says how the doctor originally told them that he bumped his head and was bleeding. He then came in a second time and said that a fan stabbed him and finally came in again and said that it was Jose Gonzalez who stabbed him. Landel then said the next morning, he saw Dutch in the hotel and asked how Brody was doing and that was when he found out that he died. That morning, Landel, along with Mantel, Sika, Abdullah the Butcher, and Tony Atlas, all decided to leave the island and head back home. Landel did say that he went back several times after that but it was never the same.

Landel is then asked what he believed caused the murder. He brought up how Brody always use to beat the piss out of Gonzalez in the ring and how Brody owned part of the company and then adds how Gonzalez just lost his kid before that and was probably not in the right state of mind.

Back to Memphis, he is asked about his memories of the “Bill and Buddy” show, with Bill Dundee. He said that he didnt remember it being that great but still to this day, people come up to him and want to talk about that. He calls Lance Russell a gentleman who was smart and never had a bad word to say about anybody.

He says that he had a wonderful relationship with Bill Watts. Landel said that he still talks to him regularly today. He then adds that Watts was very tough to work for and the travel was brutal because there were only a few highways. When asked if he ever got fined by Watts, Landel said that he holds the record. He wasn’t late a lot but did a lot of “stupid shit.” He said that he got fined $2,000 for rear-ending Butch Reed, totaling both of their cars and they ended up missing a show as a result. Watts said that he would then give him bonuses weeks later.

Landel said that the 1984 Mid-South roster was the greatest ever assembled in wrestling. He says it is his strictly his opinion then names all of the guys: DiBiase, Steve Williams, Duggan, JYD, Reed, Rock & Roll Express, Midnight Express.

When asked about JYD leaving in 1984 hurting Mid-South, Landel claimed that Louisiana was 70% black and that JYD was like a god down there, just as big as Hulk Hogan, and when JYD left, they didnt care about anyone else. Landel also added that it crushed Watts when he left.

He speaks about some of the guys he worked with in Mid-South. He said that DiBiase was a machine who really got the business. Landel said that he helped train Steve Williams and also wrestled him in his first match. Landel confirmed that he was really stiff in the ring. When asked about Jake Roberts, he called him one of the most talented guys around and is sad to see what happened to him. He had a lot of respect for Terry Taylor, who he said was one of the few faces that called the matches in the ring.

Landel talks about wrestling Flair in 1985, when he was just 23 years old and he was scared to death. He said that Flair squeezed his arm and he did the same to him but Flair slapped the shit out of him and the match began. He said that his matches against Flair sold-out. Landel said that he got a bit cocky after that. He said the money didn’t go to his head but the fact that he picked up wrestling so easily made him that way. He then said that it wasnt his lack of talent why he did not become more successful, which some people think.

Now, he is asked about ring rats. Landel said it was equal everywhere and there was never a shortage of girls.

When asked about his least favorite person to work with, he said it was Hector Guerrero, because they could never have a good match. He later added how he couldn’t wrestle Mexicans. He also said that Sonny King was the shits. Landel then said he could wrestle a broomstick then tells a story about how one night in Indiana, his opponent no-showed the event. Landel, who was drunk, then went out in front of the crowd and wrestled the “invisible man.” He said that he was backdropping himself and taking all sorts of bumps. His favorites to work with were Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, and Brad Armstrong.

He is then asked about how he developed his promo skills. Landel said that in Mid-South, he would just look at the booking sheet and think about what happened the last time he was in the town. For instance, he said that he was cutting a promo for a match in a town that two weeks ago, he left bleeding from the forehead so he would put a band-aid on his head and go out and cut a promo because this was the first time they would see him on TV since that match. He said that he thought a lot and said that he thought as a fan, as to what he would like to hear and what would piss him off. When he got to the WWF, Landel said that it was all on cue cards and they were told what to say.

Landel said that JJ Dillon always tried really hard to keep him out of trouble. He then goes off on a mini-tangent about how everyone was using dope back then and he is not saying this to get anyone in trouble (he did not mention names). He then tells a story about how he met the winner of “Miss West Virginia.” Every night after the show, JJ would order a Domino’s Pizza and watched a TV preacher. As Buddy and the girl walk by the motel, JJ stood out there naked with the “do not disturb” sign around his pecker calling out for him.

He worked for Ole Anderson in Georgia. Landel said that he was a no-nonsense guy but also had a soft side about him too. Landel said that he was a good guy. Rob then tells Landel the quote from Ole Anderson in which he said that he could have put the belt on anyone and they could have drawn the same as Ric Flair, in an attempt to knock him. Landel said that’s bullshit because no one was a good as Flair. He adds when you saw him on TV, pull up in the car or at the airport, you knew that the champ was here and no matter how strong the television was, they couldnt compare to Flair.

Rob asks him to tell a story about the Iron Sheik. Landel said that he was sharing a room with him in Hawaii. Landel said he left the light on to the bathroom and was laying in bed. He heard the door open and thought he saw Sheik in the bathroom but then the light went out then turned back on immediately afterwards. Landel said that the Sheik brought up some 400lbs woman to the room and he could hear the mattress screaming when she sat down and he fell asleep. The next morning, she was gone and Landel tried to wake up the Sheik and pulled open the curtains and saw blood all over the place, including the ceiling. What happened was that the girl had her period that night and that morning at the airport, Sheik had blood all over his face.

When asked about rumor that he was supposed to win the NWA Title, he said that they were shooting a program in which he paired up with Baby Doll and JJ Dillon was going to be with Tully Blanchard. Landel said that he was told by Dusty Rhodes that Flair was going to take time off so he was going to get the strap. Landel said that he drew a ton of money and it was the most that the NWA had drawn (his feud with Flair) at that time. Landel said that they were scheduled to shoot the angle one morning but Landel partied all night then took a bunch of Valium to get to sleep and ended up missing the shoot. Dusty called him but Landel hung up on him. Crockett then called him up to tell him to get to the TV station but Landel told him not to fucking bother him and he hung up on him too. He finally showed up at noon and when he got to the station, Dusty took away his belt and told him that he didnt work here anymore. He was asked if he had any regrets and Landel said that he had a $100,000 in the bank at the time and Watts told him once if you have that much money, you can do whatever you feel like. He regrets it looking back but said that if it wasnt for the crazy shit that he did, this interview wouldnt be happening. When asked about Flair stating in his book that he never believed that he was getting the belt, Landel said that Flair has selective memory about that.

He is asked about several guys he worked with. He likes Arn Anderson and apologizes for how he acted at a fan convention a few years ago when he was tanked. Landel liked Harley Race and tells a story of how in 1990 while in WCW, he was sitting at the bar with Harley. At that time, everyone was “H Bombing” everyone and as a result, would walk around with their thumb in their beers so they wouldnt be a victim. When he saw Harley, who was not covering his beer at all, if he was afraid of someone doing that to him, Harley told Landel that no one had the balls to do it to him.

Landel talks about a road while working for Crockett. JJ Dillon was riding in the front and Kendo Nagasaki and Ron Bass where in the back. He had a .357 Magnum under the seat and some guys in the convertible did something to him so he threw a gatorade bottle at their car so they retaliated and hit his car. Landel then reached under the seat and pointed the gun at them and fired two shots over their heads. He said that JJ was freaking out during this and the next day, Crockett called him into his office and told Landel to give him his gun.

When asked about Jim Crockett, he compares him to Tully Blanchard in that their dad’s both had good things going but they fucked it all up. He said that Jim and David fucked it all up and bought all sorts of shit but didnt have the money coming in to pay for it all. He also said that the only cared about the top guys and would idolize and worship Flair at the expense of everyone.

He calls Tully a prick (everyone seems to think this) and said that he was the type that would snort cocaine with you all night then rat you out to the office.

He now talks about the guys who are now preachers, like Tully and Ted DiBiase. He said that he will get asked to speak to kids by different organizations and when he tells them he has to think about it, they ask him how much he needs. Landel says that the gospel is not for sale and says that some people found another outlet in life to hustle money from people. He says that he likes Ted but didnt like how he bashed Vince and the WWE then went to go back and work for him. He believes that Ted should give an honest answer in regards to that.

Rob asks him about Billy Jack Haynes and his comment about how Crockett stiffed everyone on their Starrcade ’85 pay. Landel mentions Haynes’s shoot interview and said it is sad to see what happened to him. Landel said that one day, Sid was going to jump on him but Haynes yelled at him to “sit the fuck” down. Back to the payoffs, he gave a breakdown and said that Flair was the champ and would make 10% of the house each night, while the booking committee made 3%. He said that he and Flair broke an attendance record in Raleigh, NC that was previously held by Elvis Presley. When Landel was working with Flair, he said that he was making $3,000 a week while Flair was making close to $70,000. Landel said it was fucked up and they wanted him to be the Nature Boy but he couldnt afford the high-priced clothes that Flair always had. He said that was part of why he rebelled.

When he went back to Memphis, he knew the business was getting bad when they started to push Jeff Jarrett. He said that he helped train Jeff and loves him but the territory was repeating themselves a lot. He also said that Lawler going up to the WWF and doing his goofy shit on TV then trying to be tough in Memphis later that week also hurt the territory a lot.

He went to WCW in 1990 after calling up Ole Anderson and asking for a job. He said that Jim Herd was in control at the time and the guys were telling him that the business was changing completely and they were looking for young, muscular guys. He originally thought that he was going to work with Flair but got there and just did what he was told, nothing more. He also traveled with Tommy Rich and Ricky Morton at the time, which was a wild time.

Landel is asked about Sting. He says that he met him in 1986 while Sting was with the Ultimate Warrior as the Blade Runners and remembers telling someone that the business has changed so much that he wouldnt be surprised if they both became champions in two years.

He is asked why he left WCW. Apparently he had received a few warnings from the company but tells a story about a night in Detroit. He had to get carried out of a bar by Brian Pillman and Butch Reed because he was so shitfaced. They took him back to the hotel and Landel said he remembers Reed pissed him off so he called him a “nigger” and as a result, Reed hit him in the jaw. Landel said that he got hit so hard that he flew out of his shoes and went up in the air and landed in a flower bed. When Landel got up, he told Reed that he was going to call the police. He then proceeded to go into the lobby of the Radisson and took the flowers out of the pot and took a piss. He saw two girls at the desk and said goodnight before putting the flowers back into the pot so they called the police and they all got booted from the hotel.  Landel said that he and Reed were always tight and close. This was his final warning.

Landel that is final straw with the company was at the Safari Club in Baltimore. Some guy asked him to dance with his girl and politely declined. Outside of the club, the girl flipped out on him and swung at him with her shoe and missed. Landel said that he told the manager if she did it again, he was going to drop her and when she did, he blew snot at her but it went all over the manager and a few days later, he got a Fed Ex package that said he was suspended until further notice without any compensation. Rob said that he was actually there that night .

He liked working for Joel Goodheart in TWA. He said that he liked working up North, as the people treated him good and appreciated hard work. He is asked why he thinks he got over in the Northeast and Buddy said that he thinks they appreciate his smart-mouth comments.

When working for Smoky Mountain, he said it was great as he was home and around his family a lot. He was asked about Eddie Gilbert and he said that they were born on the same exact day and is still close to his family.

Buddy said that JYD’s death hit him the hardest then said that he was the only wrestler who went to his funeral, which still bothers him today. Landel said that in wrestling, you have acquaintances and very few friends. Landel said that is friends are Scott Putski, Doug Gilbert, Ricky Morton, and Bill Dundee.

He talks about how he got to wrestle Shawn Michaels in Smoky Mountain. Landel said that Cornette told him one day that he was shutting down the territory and going to bring him to the WWF but not to tell anyone. Shawn agreed to come down to the show, which Landel is forever grateful for, and they wrestled at the “SuperBowl of Wrestling” show.

In the WWF, Landel said that it was a first-class company and liked Vince. He was never told of any plans they had for him. He brings up the fact that he and Steve Austin started with the company on the same day.

Landel said that arrived to the WWF a day early and that was when he arrived to the locker room and overheard Shane Douglas argue with Vince about putting over Ahmed Johnson. He then saw Bruce Prichard walk out and Landel told him that if they needed someone to put over Ahmed that he would do it so Vince came up to him to confirm and after he put over Ahmed, Vince told Landel that he was going to put him over Bob Holly on RAW. Landel said that Bob Holly was pissed about that. The next match he had was against Matt Hardy and he hurt his back. Gerry Brisco went up to him and said that since Bob Backlund refused to put over Bret Hart, would he mind doing that. Landel said he jokingly told Brisco that he would only do it under one condition, that he got pinned in the middle of the ring. After the match, he went back to the hotel with the Bodydonna’s and Sunny then slipped on ice and wrecked his knee. The doctor told him that his career was probably over. Landel said that he only worked a total of two nights in the WWF.

He said that Chris Candido was a great kid and invited him over for dinner with his family. He also said that Sunny would never drink or use drugs while in Smoky Mountain and acted like a prude.

They go back to some other names. Landel said that Robert Gibson should have given half of his paycheck to Ricky Morton and joked that he did a great job holding up a ringpost. He said that Magnum TA was hard to work with. He said that he did 30 days of hour-long broadways with Ronnie Garvin, which he said was hell because he was so stiff.

When asked why other wrestlers have said he was cocky when he was younger, Landel said that he had an overabudance of confidence and perceived himself as being a good wrestler.

He is not surprised that Ric has unretired, because of all the alimony payments he has to receive, saying that he heard that he pays about $22,000 a month.

Landel said that he had a lot of health issues as a child. He also has spina bifida and asthma. He said that he always kept quiet about that.

Now, he is asked about working with Bill Goldberg in his first ever wrestling match. Landel said that he put over a lot of guys and said that he always built up the confidence of his opponent and convinced them that he was here to help him out and if they trusted him, the match will go over well. He came into WCW for that one match to get over. Terry Taylor called him up to come back but that was the day JYD died and Landel said he was a mess and told Terry he would call him back but nothing ever happened.

He said that TNA has never contacted him but he does not have any delusions of grandeur about becoming a full-time wrestler today.

When asked how he wants to be remembered, Landel said that he wants it to be someone who made a lot of bad decisions but was able to pull it together.

Landel said that he was not a ribber and more of a loner so does not have any that sticks out in his mind.

He talks about how he loves Facebook and uses it to talk with guys like the Undertaker and Cody Rhodes.

He does not want to write a book, as he doesnt want to say anything that could jeopardize anyone’s marriage.   

Final Thoughts: I thought Buddy was great in this interview. He did not hold back at all. At times though, he seemed to be making excuses for his behaviors in the past by stating that he was young and had no one to guide him but he has made peace where he is today in life. This was a guy who was washed up by the time he was 25 years old on the National scene and his feud with Flair was something that he was obviously not mature enough to handle.

I know I sound like a broken record but Feinstein did a bad job with the interview. For instance, after Landel told him how Flair was the greatest wrestler even in his opinion, Feinstein asks Landel if he thought Flair was overrated. Even Landel looked at him like he was a fucking idiot for that one. Someone better could have pried a lot more info out of him than Robby F. Even still, Landel was good enough to make this entertaining throughout.

I do recommend this video as it was a tale of a guy who fizzled out at a young age due to immaturity and never got a chance to realize his full potential because of his chronic stupidity.

This interview was filmed in 2012

It runs at two hours and one minute long

The interview is conducted by Rob Feinstein

The interview starts with Feinstein asking Ventura if he wants to be referred as “The Body” or as a “Governor” and he chooses the latter, stating that he has been out of wrestling for 22 years.

Ventura said he was a wrestling fan growing up and oddly enough wound up wrestling some of his favorites when they were in the twilight of their careers, like The Crusher, Larry Hennig, Harley Race, and Mad Dog Vachon. When he got older, he stopped following wrestling until he came home from the Navy and saw Superstar Billy Graham and decided that he wanted to be like him.

While in college, Jesse started in theater and also had some offers to play football. From this, he decided that he wanted to go into pro wrestling as it combined theatrics with athletics. He saw an ad in the paper about wanting to be a pro wrestler and went down and met Ed Sharkey then started with his training.

Jesse calls Sharkey a good, solid wrestler who trained a lot of good guys. He then says at that time, Sharkey and Verne Gagne had a falling out that led to Sharkey not letting his trainees work for him. Jesse then claims that he was the first guy Sharkey trained that went right to Verne in the AWA. Jesse then talks about how Sharkey smartened him up to the business the first day and he did not kayfabe him at all.

In regards to training, Jesse states that the psychology of wrestling was not hard but he hated to bump. He then said that he learned the right psychology so he didnt have to bump much at all. He said that he especially grateful today for that style as he healed quickly after leaving the business and can get around fine today. Jesse said that he used to wear several earrings to the ring so he could take them off, which would kill a lot of time. He then adds that he could work the crowd into a frenzy just by doing that.

His first match was against Omar Atlas in Kansas City. The promoter, Bob Geigel, told Jesse that guys dont win their first matches then turned to Atlas and told him if the match is going good to let Jesse throw him over the top rope for a disqualification and if the match sucks, dropkick him twice then pin him. Jesse said that Omar told him to toss him over the top rope, which Jesse always appreciated. He then said when the WWF brought him Atlas as an enhancement talent, he would always put him over strong on commentary. After his first match, Jesse said that Geigel told him to stay with the business because he would make a lot of money.

He states that Jerry Oates was his mentor as a rookie wrestler while we was in Kansas City.  He then talks about how he liked Geigel as a promoter. When asked if he thought that Geigel was cheap, Jesse did not think so and that the main issue was that Kansas City never drew any money. While he was there in 1975, he never had a payout of more than $90. He also said that he worked as often as he could because he was just starting out and needed the experience as well as the money.

From Kansas City, Jesse went to wrestle for Don Owen in Portland. He said that his first day he got paid $100 and he was only in the second match. He then said after just nine months in the business, Owen put the title on Jesse Ventura, who beat Jimmy Snuka for the title. Jesse said that Jimmy wanted to drop the belt to him because he saw the money in the chase. Jesse said that Jimmy was a business man who cared about the wallet more than the belt. Jesse calls Snuka a phenomenal worker. Jesse said that Owen worked him hard and at one point, he worked 63 days in a row.

Jesse then talks about how he never hung out with other wrestlers outside of the ring as he didnt drink or go to bars and just went home to his wife.

On the subject of Superstar Billy Graham, Jesse said that he first met him at the 7th Street Gym. He said that he was great to him and told him that he needed to go to either the AWA or the then WWWF to make money.

Jesse said that he came up with the Ventura name as he wanted to be a surfer and looked at a map of California and tried to find a city that went with the name Jesse and eventually found Ventura.

On how he joined the AWA, Jesse said that after he left Portland, he felt that he saved enough money to quit the business and decided to go back home and open up a gym. Don Owen called him and asked if he wanted to come work for a few weeks in Portland. Jesse agreed but Don said that he needed him to do promos. At that time, Jesse was in Minneapolis and hesitant to cut a promo with Verne, due to being trained by Sharkey. Owen told Jesse he would smooth things over and he did so Jesse cut a promo with Gene Okerlund on his opponent, Buddy Rose. Jesse said that he and Okerlund clicked immediately. They filmed the promo and Jesse had the tape to give to Owen when he flew to Portland but Verne told him that he wanted the tape back when he was done. After he came back to the office with the tape, Wally Carbo (who worked with Verne) called him in and asked if he wanted to work part-time with the AWA. Jesse thought that if he could work part-time and still run his gym he could make some really decent money and said that he agreed under the condition that he did not job on television, as Jesse said when you got pinned on TV back then, you were cast as a jobber for life. They told Jesse that they would use him for spot shows and Jesse told them he had no problems at all jobbing on house shows. Verne called him the next day and when Jesse told him that Carbo wanted him to work part-time, Verne was pissed and said that he wanted him to work full-time and to come down to the next television taping so he can begin his push.

Jesse credits Verne for coming up with “The Body” nickname. He said that he was a dictator and a harsh man to work with. He also found it ridiculous that he treated complete strangers better than his own talent. He would never compliment his regular workers.

He was teamed with Adrian Adonis to form the East-West Connection. Jesse said that due to the fact that he was from Minnesota, they had to bill him as being from California because the fans would never boo someone from their home state. Jesse also said that when he teamed with Adonis, he was able to keep him in shape and when Adonis left him, he ended up gaining 80 lbs. Jesse said that they made a great team because Adonis was a good worker who took a lot of bumps and he was the better talker.

Feinstein then tells Jesse about a worker (he doesn’t mention the name) that said Jesse was hard to work with and would not sell anything. Jesse takes offense to that and said he was easy to work with and was a night off. He said he took bumps when they meant something, not for the sake of taking him. He said that if you could have a successful match without bumps, that is what you should strive for because bumps destroy your body. He said that he would wrestle Tito Santana and not touch each other for eight minutes and still have the crowd in a frenzy.

Jesse said that he never found Verne to be a good tag team wrestler, as his timing was off and he would even try to call everything while standing on the apron. He said the High Flyers were a good tag team but joked that he and Adonis called them the “High Criers.” When asked, Jesse said that Greg was a good worker but had a horrible looking body and never went to the gym, to which Jesse said that he never had to due to his position.

He said that Verne made Hogan a babyface in the AWA because he was already there as a heel. He said that Hogan accidentally dislocated his jaw in a test-of-strength spot one night but was generally easy to work with. He said that it was just an accident and that will happen occasionally.

In the AWA, Jesse said that you could tell that Curt would be good. He said he liked Larry Hennig and was never stiff with him, despite his reputation. He said that he was glad that he did not have to work against Otto Wanz, stating that he looked terrible at that time.

Jesse is now asked about his thoughts when Vince McMahon started to put other territories out of business in 1983. Jesse said that he hoped that it would stop and he remembers traveling with Big John Studd, who was driving and would grip the steering wheel harder and harder when he heard that Vince put another territory out of business, stating how things were getting bad. This leads to him talking about how wrestling is basically a monopoly today with the WWE but adds that it is no different than what is going on in the rest of the world.

He wound up in the AWA after Vince called him. He called Jesse and had him debut on the June 17th, 1984 show in Minnesota on purpose. Jesse also said that Vince told him to give his notice to Verne Gagne by sending a telegram, who did not want Jesse to do it face-to-face because it would end up in a fight. Jesse said he did what Vince wanted because he was his boss at that time.

Jesse said that Verne had no idea how to fight Vince. He said that he himself could fight a war because he was a Navy Seal but Verne could not protect his own backyard. Jesse then tells a story of how they worked an angle at a show in LaCrosse, WI to come back in a steel cage match. He then said that the house for the cage match was up by $15,000 and his payoff was less. He went up to Carbo and asked him why he was paid less when the show went up and he told him that Verne, who was on vacation with Greg in Aspen, was in charge of the payoffs. After that, it dawned on Jesse that they were all taking less payoffs to pay for the Gagne’s Aspen vacation. Jesse said that was his last straw and it gave no one incentive to work hard or even stay with the company. Jesse then tells a story of how at one of his last shows in the AWA, as a rib, Steve Regal (Mr. Electricity, not the guy currently in the AWA) found out that Jesse was leaving and kept yelling out “Save me Vince” as an inside joke when Jesse was working his arm.

When asked about Bob Backlund, he had no complaints about him and puts over his conditioning. He joked that he always wondered how they could make “Howdy Doody” a champion but adds that he always worked hard.

He loved working with Tony Atlas, saying he was fun to work with and had a heart of gold. Jesse recalls that Tony would play with his son in the locker room when he was a little kid.

Jesse briefly worked for Jerry Lawler in Memphis and liked his time down there. He then said that he beat Lawler for the title but had to forfeit the title when his daughter had complications at birth so he sent him back the belt via Fed-Ex. Jesse said that Lawler was very understanding and wishes him a speedy recovery from his heart attack, which happened the same week as this interview.

On the subject of Andre the Giant, Jesse recalls working with him in Kansas City and he had him in a front facelock and Andre picked him up over his head and placed him on the turnbuckle, without helping him out at all.

Feinstein brings up his relationship with Hogan. Jesse first tells a story of how he tried to unionize wrestling. He says that right before WrestleMania II, when he left to film “Predator,” he stood in the locker room and tried to get the boys to unionize. He said there was no one at all from the office around and all of the momentum from the first WrestleMania was gone. He said the reason for this was because he was on an elevator with Gene Upshaw, head of the NFL Players Union at the time, and told Jesse they needed to unionize. After the locker room speech, Vince called him and threatened to fire him. Jesse also said that Vince would not let him leave to film the movie so Jesse quit the WWF and said he could always come back to wrestling but this was his only chance to star with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Well, at that time, NBC renewed “Saturday Night’ Main Event” for a second season but expected Jesse Ventura to be there and when he wasn’t, they got pissed and Jesse said the ball was in his court as a result. Schwarzenegger told Jesse on the set of “Predator” that he had a great part with him in the “Running Man” and Jesse said he signed without telling Vince, then told Vince that he would not mention unions anymore and when Vince asked why, Jesse said that because he is now a member of the Screens Actor’s Guild and has his union and if everyone else is too stupid to want it, then that is their problem. Then, years later when he was suing Vince, he found out through deposition that Hogan was the one who stooged him off to Vince about forming a union. Jesse said he was floored when he heard this, something Hogan denied, but Vince said this under federal oath and also heard Vince say this on Larry King.

Feinstein then asks Jesse about Hogan’s remarks on the “Howard Stern Show” about him smoking pot and wife swapping. Jesse said that he smoked pot but never swapped wives and asks Hogan what happened with his marriage and that he has been happily married for 37 years. He said that he once went to “Plato’s Retreat” with his wife to see what it was but just bought a t-shirt and wore it no purpose because he knew ot would be controversial.

He came back to work for Vince after filming. He then used his agent, Barry Bloom, negotiate his wrestling deal and if he wanted him back, he could call his agent. Jesse said Vince had one of his minions contact his agent. Jesse said that Vince was always a professional on-camera.

Jesse said that he had a pulmonary embolism the night before he was supposed to start a program with Hulk Hogan in 1984 and was replaced by John Studd. Vince still paid him $1,000 weekly, something Jesse said that Vince did not have to do, then Vince called him and asked if he could be a commentator because he wanted a heel to be on commentary. Jesse said that Vince told him the first time before he went on TV that if you believe it, it would be true. That was the advice that Jesse used to be on commentary. He then said that if they put the decimal point in the right place, he would come back as an announcer today.

When talking about the Pulmonary Embolism, Jesse said that it was life threatening and he was monitored to the nurse’s station and it was nearly fatal.

On the subject on commentary, he said he had chemistry with everyone instead of Jim Ross, who would not put him over at all. Feinstein brings up how Bruno mentioned that he felt pushed out of the announcer’s position, something that Jesse begged Vince not to do because he was perfect foil for him.

His favorite announcer moment was Uncle Elmer’s wedding. Jesse said that Vince came up to him before the show and told him to bury Elmer on commentary. Jesse said that Bill Murray told him that his line about Elmer and his wife kissing looking like “two carp fighting” during the wedding was the greatest live line he heard on television. He also mentions that the Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat match at WrestleMania III was the greatest match he had ever seen.

Jesse said it was Vince’s idea for the “Body Shop” talk show as he wanted a “Piper’s Pit” type of segment on the “B” show, which was “All-Star Wrestling.” Jesse said his greatest line on that show was when he asked the Killer Bees if they “dropped any pollen” while on tour of Australia, which was his way of asking them if they got laid. Jesse said that they both froze and after the interview, told Jesse that they had no idea how to answer that question. When asked, he never saw Roddy Piper as a rival and never sensed any animosity. He says that when they run into each other in Los Angeles, Piper says he misses the business where as Ventura says that he doesnt miss the business at all. He said he didnt become intimate friends with anyone in the business but considers them regular friends and only has animosity towards Hogan.

When he heard first heard about the WrestleMania concept, Jesse said they were all too busy working to pay attention but it did turn heads when Vince brought along Muhammad Ali and Liberace but said that they usually sold out the Garden so that was no big deal.

Jesse goes back and talks about how due to having an agent, Vince could only use him for what he was contractually obliged for and nothing more. Jesse then tells a story of how Freddie Blassie told the locker room that Jesse is the only one in the company that called his own shots.

He mentions that the reason that caused him to leave Vince was that there was  proposed video game for him and Vince would not let that happened and Jesse said that he owned the rights to his name, not Vince.

Jesse talks about how it is not right for the WWE to classify their wrestlers as “independent contractors.” He also cannot figure out how he gets away with it and said that if he became a Senator, he would have launched an investigation. Jesse said if you are an independent contractor, you could work whenever you want but in the WWE, you are told when to work. Jesse said that they could easily prove this but that the government doesnt give a damn about wrestling. He also adds that the independent contractot label is given so the WWE does not have to pay taxes or give any benefits.

He thinks that there might have been some animosity towards him because he had his own dressing room, something his agent worked out, and said that he was never afraid to leave wrestling, unlike a majority of the locker room.

When asked about the 20/20 Episode in which David Schultz slapped reporter John Stossel, Jesse remembers that they had a show in Detroit right after that aired and it was packed, then saw a banner than read “20/20 Sucks,” which Jesse said was put up because the show insulted the wrestling fan, who Jesse calls the most loyal fans on the planet. He also questions as to why someone would insult someone for watching wrestling if it entertains them.

He says that there were a lot of tough guy in the locker room in his day. Jesse said that wrestling wise it was Billy Robinson, who could really stretch someone out.

Jesse said that he got involved with the XFL after he volunteered. He had previously done announcing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Minnesota Vikings. Jesse said that he denied Vince’s initial offer and asked for twice as much and they worked from there. Jesse said you always refuse the initial offer. He said that the NFL killed the XFL after he found out on a golf course from a top ad-executive that the NFL sent out a private memo to all advertisers that if they advertised the XFL,then they would not allow them to advetise their product. Jesse then adds that the XFL would have been a good feeder system for the NFL.

He ended up suing Vince for royalties because he got all sorts of royalties from acting but nothing from wrestling. He said that after some research, he found out that some people, like Hogan, Cyndi Lauper, and Mr. T, were getting royalties after they negotiated their contract and won the case due to “quantum merit.” He then said that he negotiated a royalty clause when he went to work for WCW. He says that he now gets a check every four months and calls it his retirement. Jesse then said that Vince called him up and yelled at him after the trial and said that it was his money and Jesse told Vince that the jury and supreme court said ti was him and then told Vince that he had a minority opinion.

Jesse said his biggest payday was as a referee at SummerSlam when he was a governor and from that, founded a scholarship and charity foundation. He also said that Vince treated him great when he was elected governor where as WCW mocked him. He then said that he worked for Vince to also stick it to Hogan and Bischoff.

On the subject of steroids, Jesse said that they worked them so hard that steroids were a necessity. He adds that the schedule was so brutal that you would go from 260 lbs to 220 lbs due to all the constant work and you would look much smaller on TV. He said he took once cycle of testosterone a year, which he said was healthy.

He talks about how huge the drug use was in the 1980’s. He did not partake in that and never took pills but wonders how Hogan got out of having to testify in the drug trials and felt that the doctor was a scapegoat of sorts. Jesse then said that he bought testosterone from Hogan, noting how Hogan was in fact dealing them.

In WCW, Jesse said he got paid a lot of money. He said their best talent at that time was Steve Austin but they did not using him right. When asked about people saying Jesse was “phoning it in” while in WCW, Jesse takes great offense again as when asked that Meltzer might have criticized him for that, Jesse asks what the hell does he know and calls him a puke. Jesse said that WCW had Jim Ross to play off of and he would always ignore him. Feinstein then reads a quote from JR saying that he was at fault for their failure as a commentary team and Jesse says that he is an honest man and now has a new outlook on JR just from that quote. Feinstein reads some more and JR said he was bitter that Jesse was getting more than him when he was working twice as much. Jesse said blame management for that, not himself. Jesse adds that he gets the best deal for himself and expects that others would do the same.

Jesse said that Bill Watts had no idea that the business was now based on TV, not house shows and calls Watts a nightmare and always insulted him. Watts wanted to buy him out or 30% of his contract and Jesse laughed and said that he would for 90%.

He said that he got Bischoff into a top position in the company by putting him over with Turner,who ended up backstabbing him. Once Hogan came aboard, Bischoff put him on the sidelines. Jesse calls him a sleaze.

He talks about coming back to RAW, which was to promote his show “Conspiracy Theories.” He said he had a great time announcing with Vince. He also says that it was great to work with Vince because you could insult him on commentary and he would take it, because he knows that it sells. Jesse said it was great because you could diss the boss and he respects him for that.

Jesse talks about the interviews today and how they are all in the ring, so no one waits for the confrontation and thought it worked a lot better when a guy like Mean Gene does them backstage or in the studio. He also said that they never had writers and question what writer could ever write for him. He says that he showed Dick Ebersol a script they gave him and told him that a year prior, NBC did not give a rat’s ass about wrestling and how it was ridiculous to think they could write for him now. Ebersol then told him to forget the script and ad-lib. Jesse says all he needs are a few bullet points about what to get over. He says that he hates that today, the wrestlers are not allowed to create their own characters.

Jesse said that the new wrestlers today are wonderful and respectful and work very hard and do great at what they are allowed to do.

He also thinks it is sad and pathetic that Hogan is still in wrestling today with the amount of money he made but said that now, he might have to due to his divorce. He said Hogan became what they hated, which was older guys who were so far over the hill that you had to put over. He also said that he would never put his family out there on a reality show and talks about how Hogan will basically prostitute himself for anything.

Jesse thinks Ric Flair is one of the greatest of all-time and joked to Flair that he should not have been in the Hall of Fame before him but says that Flair has to due to his financial situations. Jesse said that he told Ric, who was considering running for office, that politics is a lot dirtier than wrestling and you have to let all of our skeletons out of the closet before the press finds out and Flair told him that he had amassed over 143 speeding tickets to which Jesse told him not to run.

He then says that if Vince gave him the money he put up for Linda’s campaign that he would be the President.

Jesse talks about his show “Conspiracy Theories” and how his son is going to be an investigator on the show. He said that the network will not allow them to air their show about the TSA. He then plugs his book “Democrips and Rebloodicans” which is how both parties are destroying the country and how there should be no parties and quotes how forefathers and how they said if we allow political parties to run the country, then it will be all over. He compares the parties to gangs and how the politicians are loyal to their own party, not the people of the country.

His proudest moments in wrestling were selling out Madison Square Garden, having the first agent in wrestling, and being the face of “Saturday Night’s Main Event.”

He said that he was a professor at Harvard despite only having a high school education was another proud accomplishment.

Jesse calls the Chris Benoit tragedy sad and said he was a good performer. He said he does not have a theory on what happened.

When asked, he was bothered that they took out his voice out of some broadcasts but that the fans were upset he was missing so Vince put him back in the releases.

He talks about going through TSA and how we are not protected by the U.S. Constitution or the Bill of Rights. He said he will never fly again unless he is allowed to fly with dignity and not get treated like a criminal, because he has metal in his body and gets frisked whenever he steps through the detectors. Jesse tells a story of how when he was governor, he was searched. He then asked the kid frisking him why they were doing this as he had two bodyguards carrying 9mm handguns that will give him a gun if he asks. Jesse says the whole thing is ridiculous.

Jesse said he will run for President in 2016 as long as the people wanted it by running a grass-roots campaign and if they let him on the ballot in all 50 states and let him take part in the debates. He said he needs the people to show that it’s worth it to put his ass on the line again.

Final Thoughts: I thought this was a great interview. If you are looking for road stories and gossip, you will not find that here so this might not be the shoot interview for you. What Jesse does do is give insight into the business from a whole other perspective. He was not going to stand there and let wrestling take advantage of him, like it has from just about every other performer in history. He saw the big picture (getting the most money, protecting his name, knowing his rights, not destroying his body) in a way that very, very few guys did.

Jesse also has a very strong personality which might turn some people off. He can come off as smug at times. I will say this though, and commenters here have said the same thing, that whenever he is talking, he has such a presence that you cant help but listen and be drawn in to what he says, whether you agree or disagree with him.

It is also nice to hear how Jesse got the best of Vince McMahon and was never afraid to lose his job, as he felt that he could always go wrestle somewhere else and get more film roles or do whatever else he wanted. I give this a strong recommendation as Jesse sheds light on just how much the wrestlers are screwed over and how he was not going to stand for that.

Sherri is first asked if she played any sports growing up. She played basketball and did track and field. Then she is asked if she was a fan of wrestling growing up as a child and she said that she when she was a kid in Mississippi, her mother gave her and her younger sister the option of either going ice skating or watching the wrestling matches with her. After a while, Sherri and her sister opted to watch wrestling with her mother as they used to fight with each other all the time while ice skating.

The interview takes place in Watts’ home. It was filmed in 1999.

Rob Feinstein conducted the interviewer.

It runs for one-hour and fifty-four minutes long.

The interview starts with Watts talking about how he got a scholarship to Oklahoma for football. He then talks about how he got into a severe accident and how he took him several months before he could start training again.

He talks about how a majority of colleges forbid weight training, because they did not understand how to use them properly, and after several months on a weight-lifting regime, he went from  240 lbs to 315 lbs. However, the team felt he was too big as at that time the were looking for smaller guys and he didnt fit.

Watts went pro to the Indianapolis Warriors. but ended up knocking out one of his coaches and left to start in pro wrestling as Wahoo McDaniel helped get him into the business.

He said he was never a fan of wrestling growing up as most of them were horrible and unathletic. He said that Danny Hodge was there and great but wondered why he bothered with “fake” wrestling.

Watts said that he was trained by several wrestlers. He said his first promotion was run by Bob Estes and it was horrible and only used for ten matches. He said that Jim Barnett was involved but chasing around Rock Hudson then says he knew that Hudson was a “fag” before everybody else due to that reason.

Watts then said that he became a referee, as he hurt his hand in a street fight, for Leroy McGuirk’s promotion. From there, he started to wrestle then got into trouble in Los Angeles and had to leave the country so he snuck up to Canada. There, he met Gene Kiniski and wrestled but was upset over his payoff and left, stating that the promotion was part of the NWA and word got out about him so he left and went back to work for McGuirk.

He then talks about wrestling in Houston and jobbed for Sailor Art Thomas, who he said was the nicest guy in the world but really “dumb” and forget the spots. One day, he took Thomas down but he did not know how to mat wrestle and as a result, he got to win the match and the title. He didnt last long as the promoter’s ugly daughter wanted to date him but he declined then he slapped around the promoter after a show and left.

Watts goes into a story about how he told the office that he was not going to lose a 2-out-of-3 falls match in two straight falls. He said the office was scared of him due to his temper but he told his opponent, Cowboy Bob Ellis, that he was going to put him over but just did not want the office to know. Watts puts over Ellis for being nice to him when he was starting out. He talks about how he tossed the ref to the floor and “scared the shit” out of him.

Verne Gagne got him a tryout with the Minnesota Vikings but he did not sign as they would not allow him to wrestle in the off-season.

During a match in Missouri, the police took Watts away and said that he had a phone call. It was from Vince McMahon Sr. and Toots Mondt, who wanted him in the WWWF. He said that his first match against Killer Kowalski made him a star. He then tagged with Bruno and set box office records. He did leave the territory shortly after that, as he believed that you leave when you are on top.

Watts then worked for Ray Shire in San Francisco. He calls him a genius but said that he was unable to delegate. He teamed with Chief Jay Strongbow then became a champion. He also said he was born as the trips were short. Shortly after that, he went to Japan then quit the business and worked for a networking company. He always believed in furthering his education and wanted a job outside of the business.

He then returned to the business and worked for Verne Gagne. He said that Leroy called him crying and drunk about returning and Watts said only if could be partner. Initially, he was offered 5% and said fuck you to them but he said they were desperate and he ended up getting 19% and Watts left the AWA.

Watts said he learned a lot and that they built up the territory and brought in guys like the Spoiler and Gary Hart and started to make some money but McGuirk was always drunk and whining so he went to Eddie Graham, who told him to go to Georgia and gave him stock as there was a promotional war as the owner of Georgia had a heart attack and died and there was a lot of double-crossing going on between his partners.

In 1974, Watts went up to Florida and booked the territory. He said they had a ton of talent. Watts said that he fired Dusty Rhodes after two weeks, stating he was pulling his usual bullshit and going behind his back to Eddie Graham. Then Dusty begged and Watts said he could as long as he stopped his bullshit. At that point, he came up with the “American Dream” idea for him.

At this point, Watts said the promotion had so many main-event talents that he struggled to put together a card. He even said that scalpers were selling tickets to the show. Watts said that Graham told him never to all of his eggs in one basket. Graham told Watts that he was a high school dropout and asked Watts why he was there, since he was a college graduate. Watts said he was there for a PhD.

He talks about the problems he had with McGurik, who sued him for embezzlement. Watts said McGuirk was so dumb because he never had his name on the money and Watts threatened to sue them for slander so they came up with a deal where Watts got Louisiana and Mississippi.

The Mid-South territory first started around this time in 1978. He talks about creating the Fabulous Freebirds when he wanted Terry Gordy as part of the roster but thought Hayes was shit in the ring but could talk and had a lot of drive. Buck Robley, who was in teh office, wanted to send Hayes to Florida for some ohter talent but Watts said no and that Hayes would be a mouthpiece and they could get someone to team with Gordy and found Buddy Roberts.

Watts now talks about the Junkyard Dog. He saw him in Canada when he wrestled as Sylvester Ritter and knew he was very charismatic but awful in the ring. He then talks about Ernie Ladd and how he was great man who taught him about “black.” Watts says white people do not understand “black” as they can observe it but Ladd was determined to not let JYD fail. He then talks about how they had a bad parting when he went to the WWF but that his drug problems got the best of him. Watts said that Buddy Landell asked him to write a eulogy for him when he passed and he cried.

He then talks about guys in his life that were special like Eddie Graham and Ole Anderson, who Watts claimed that he fought with a lot then told the Road Warriors to cut their hair and paint their faces, which is how they became starts.

When asked about the goals for Mid-South when he started, Watts said that he just wanted to stay afloat at the beginning but wanted to go national. He said that the Northeast had all of the population to draw from and as a result, could bore the shit out of the crowd and still draw people. Watts said that he had to make an exciting show. He also wanted respect for the business and if the wrestler made bad debts or checks with him, he took it out of his money. Watts said that he liked athletes and tough guys, because they are not like whining pussies. He talks about Paul Orndorff, who was a friend of Mike Graham, and how he trained him and stretched him out. Watts said Orndorff was tough and would fight back against him and he respected that. Watts then tells a story of how Orndorff and Ted DiBiase were told to do an hour broadway, despite being faces. They though it would kill their careers so Watts told them not to act like pussies and that he would give them a finish and swore at them some more and as a result, they got mad and tore the house down with a fabulous match. Watts said Orndorff called him years later when he was in the WWF and how Watts taught him a lot more than he knew.

He talks about splitting up Stan Hansen and Bruiser Brody, telling them they could be bigger stars as singles wrestlers. He liked Brody but said his word was no good and he would hold up promoters all of the time, which was probably how he got killed in Puerto Rico.

Watts is asked about his first time he drew $100,000 in Louisiana. He flew in Ray Candy at the request of Ernie Ladd and he ended up drawing, despite others telling him that would not be the case. After the show, Watts was sitting backstage with Ladd, Grizzly Smith, and Leroy McGuirk. They were talking about the show and Smith asked McGuirk what he thought. They expected him to be happy at the packed house they drew but McGuirk said that he thought there was too many “niggers” on the card and in the audience, with Ladd right there. Smith then told McGuirk that money was green.

After that, he talks about how he is pissed at that reporter in Pittsburgh (Mark Madden) who brought up an article in which he praised a business owner who refused to serve African-Americans, because he stood up for his beliefs, to Hank Aaron, who was working in for Turner at the time. The article was older but Watts said that he was always a fan of the black athlete and put them in prominent positions, not for their color but becaused they deserved the push. Feinstein says he will discuss this later on in the interview.

He now tells the story of how Jim Cornette and the Midnight Express came to Mid-South. He brought in Jerry Lawler and Jerry Jarrett to come to a TV and see what he was doing wrong. After the show, they asked Watts where are the “blow jobs.” Watts did not understand what they meant then they told him he had the toughest athletes and a hardcore fanbase but needed to draw some young girls, which in turn drew the young guys. He then went to Memphis and they asked Watts to take Jim Cornette. He also said that he wanted the Fabulous Ones but they said no so he got to take the Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Dennis Condrey) and then also took Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson, as they were doing nothing with them either. In return, Memphis took Rick Rude from Watts along with a few other rookies.

Watts said that they made the videos for the Midnight Express and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express and that took off. He also took Bill Dundee over as a booker but didnt let him wrestle because he was short with a huge ego. He puts over his mind for the business. Watts said that they drew the teeny boppers and puts over Ricky and Eaton for being great. They also created Magnum TA around this time too.

He talks about various guys. He said that Ted DiBiase couldnt draw a ton of money but could work any type of match. He said Duggan could draw and had a lot of heart but was not the greatest worker. He said one day he hit is head against the post and had blood poisoning and still didnt want to miss a show.

Watts then tells a story of how if his guy got into a fight in public, he would get fired if he lost. He did not give the name but said he looked at the star’s hands and saw he did not throw a punch and told him that he was catching, not pitching, and Watts fired him on the spot.

When Mid-South became UWF around 1986, they started to lose money due to the “oil crunch” and started to lose $50,000 a week.

He talks about how Sting had something about him but said the Ultimate Warrior was a piece of shit. When they walked out, he told Grizzly Smith to go get Sting back because he had potential. Watts then wrestled him and afterwards, Sting said he was scared he was going to get beat up in the match because he walked out but Watts told him he wanted him back because he saw potential. Watts still respects Sting to this day.

Now, Watts is asked about several other guys. He said that Eddie Gilbert was talented and was going to bring him into WCW but Eddie kept running his mouth. Watts said he needed someone to lead him because he could not overcome his self-destruction. About Missy Hyatt, he said that the only thing she added was problems and did not add anything. He liked Scott Irwin because he would give you everything he had. Watts said that Bill Irwin did too but never found his niche. In regards to the Von Erich’s, he said that Fritz could never come to the realization that his children were drug addicts. Watts said that a friend of Fritz told him that his kids were addicts and that Fritz didnt speak to them for a few years as a result. He then said how Fritz called him about the problem and that he told them to confront them but you have to love them too. He then told him how he couldnt give them everything and tells stories of the kids coming in fucked up all of the time and he told Fritz he no longer wanted to do business with him as a result then talks about how the business tolerated this behavior at the time.

Watts talks about Jim Ross. He said that he was first a referee then left to work in the electronic business. He talked to him again and Ross wanted to be a commentator. Watts said that he was the commentator because he wanted to tell the audience what to feel and did not want the commentator to put himself over the wrestlers. He said Ross could do anything, including the syndication deals.

In regards to his favorite angles, he said the Best Dressed Man between DiBiase and Duggan and the Cornette diaper angle.

He then says that Jerry Jarrett started to use the music videos before him. He said he had a good mind but was very insecure. Watts also said that in an interview, Jarrett claimed that Watts stole the Midnight and Rock ‘n’ Roll Express from him, then later called Watts to apologize as it was false.

When asked about all of the things they did on his TV shows, Watts said that he always thought the fan should get more than their money’s worth out of the TV and house shows.

He tells a story of how when he was briefly in the WWF, he convinced Vince to do a title change at the MSG House show but the star (Shawn Michaels) got put into the hospital, along with two other guys. Watts said that he would have fired all of them because they lost to nine guys while being all fucked up on drugs. He said in his territory, a whole town couldnt beat three of their guys. He said that Vince lost control and that the inmates are running the asylum today and that is the problem.

Watts said his strength as a booker was to carry out an angle. He thinks you need to keep some continuity because the fans want to see what happens next and not wonder why something was dropped out of the blue. He thought a booking committee was a good way to run as it challenges you.

He said that Dutch Mantell did a bad job booking and calls him a thief. He thought that Ernie Ladd and Bill Dundee were the best he had. Watts thought a booker would last for a year then hit the wall so he would bring someone else in and change things up. He said that it was a tough thing to do to get rid of people.

Now, he is asked about Vince raiding his talent in 1986. Watts said that Vince did things different than his father and in hindsight, thinks he would have done things differently. Watts said he likes Vince but that he does not know how to delegate and wants to do everything himself. Watts also said he got along with him for the three months he was there.

Watts discusses selling his company to Crockett. He was going to file an anti-trust suit against Vince but that would have taken a few years but he was losing $50,000 a week and couldnt wait so Ross called Crockett and he ended up selling. When asked, Watts said that he never would have worked with Crockett and Dusty because their egos were too big and at that time, he wanted out of the business.

In 1984, he became involved with religion and realized that he was promoting violence and sex and that was against his beliefs. He then said when you do not drug test and promote guys using drugs, you also promote drug use.

Watts also thought that NWA dropped the ball on an inter-promotional war. He said that creating your own competition is great from business, which is what he learned from the “Georgia War.” Watts said Dusty’s ego could not handle it all and talks about if you own both companies, why worry about their guys looking stronger as they owned both sides.

From the time he sold to 1992, he got into business and it failed then needed something exciting in his life and WCW came up but said Turner office did not give him control and everyone had a different agenda. Watts also realized that he was going back into the violence and sex that he was trying to get away from.

He turned the company around from an $8 million dollar loss and says that WCW was a complete clusterfuck. He also said Turner’s lawyers were incompetent and offered insanely high contracts to the wrestlers. Watts said there were ways to get out of the contracts and thought they should be held accountable for their work.

He is asked about several other guys. Watts likes Rick Steiner but said that Scott Steiner is a problem. Watts said Scott is a star in his own mind and hurt people but wanted to turn him heel as he made a horrible face. He put the belt on Ron Simmons because all other sports had dominate black athletes and wrestling did not have that, which told people that wrestling is fake. He liked Simmons. Watts then says that Jake Roberts was an aptly-named piece of shit who was constantly on drugs. He also called him a coward.

In regards to changing titles at house shows, Watts said that those fans pay and you do not want them coming to a show knowing exactly what is going to happen.

On his reputation of being tough to deal with, Watts said that he speaks his mind and that he was trying to make the business and that anyone with  brain could figure that out. He makes the athlete accountable for their actions and says that he cannot fine their airlines or rent-a-car company.

Watts calls Paul Heyman one of the most talented guys but in WCW, he needed him to fit into his parameters at the time and thinks that now he has a different perspective from owning ECW. He credits Paul for surviving and appealing to people.

Now, he is asked about his son, Erik Watts, and the criticism over the push his son received. Watts calls that “stupid shit” and said that Erik had the ability and says it was becase he was there and then goes off on the dirt sheets, saying that if you did things that did not please them, they went against you. He then says his son paid a price for being his son in this business and tells him to get out but that Erik loves it and sees the business great, like anyone else who grew up in it.

He loves Cactus Jack and said he rode with him on purpose to see what was in his mind. He was amazed and said that he has a great mind and appreciates how he gives his all for the business, unlike Kevin Nash, who thinks he is greatest manipulator. Watts said he missed on Dallas Page and he busted his ass andmade it because he wanted it so badly. Watts then says that he can admit his mistakes, unlike others.

On the subject of intimidating wrestlers in the locker room, he said that he was 55 when he was in WCW so who was he going to intimidate? Watts said he might have grabbed someone aside and showed them how to sell or throw a punch after a match but that was all.

He puts over the talents of Shawn Michaels. He then said that Sid Vicious gave 100% effort as did Kevin Nash, who he calls Vinnie Vegas, but then stopped once he got a big ego. Watts said that he gave Orndorff a job in WCW when he was broke.

Watts left WCW as he couldnt handle all of the guys who were crying behind his back to Bill Shaw. He says they would rather do that than work hard. At that point, he realized that he didnt need to deal with this anymore. He said he quit and was not fired.

He is asked about his article with Wade Keller about agreeing with Lester Maddox, the business owner who did not want to serve black people. Watts said it was taken out of context. He said that he agrees in free enterprise and does not want legislature to tell us how to act and at least Maddox was upfront about his beliefs. He calls Madden a chickenshit who hides behind a paper and can file lawsuit so you can no longer “slap the shit” out of somebody.

Watts goes off on Turner Broadcasting for treating wrestling like a “bastard child.” He wanted them to show Ron Simmons in the stands during a baseball game and they refused.

He talks about how Vince is one guy who can single-handedly kicked Turner’s ass, despite all of their resources.

He went to the WWF and parted under good terms with Vince but realize that he no longer wanted part of the business. He said that he never had a disagreement over who was the boss and just wanted to ease some of his problems. He did want Shawn to get the belt off of Bret at MSG. Watts says that he wanted to make the creative department stand on his own and did not like how Vince would come in the next day and tear down the ideas. He claims to have never told off Vince and that they approached him to enter the company.

Watts goes on to say how Vince surrounds himself with talented people, like Jim Ross, and also says they both run companies the same way, just that Vince is more diplomatic.

He said that he doesnt follow the business today but knows that it hasnt changed, stating you can get back up to speed quickly. Watts says he has a gift to see someone and bring out their talents in a way that makes sense.

Today, he is at peace with himself and does not see himself getting back into wrestling.

Personally, Watts does not see the Steve Austin character as being good for children. He talks about faith and says that he is a horrible example of a person that follows Jesus Christ because everything he has done was based on him being aggressive. At one point in his life, Watts said he prided himself on being an asshole but does not anymore.

If WCW was going to change, they would need to give someone who knows what they are doing total control. He likes Kevin Sullivan but he was never a good booker and says that it shows when you have a lot of people booking who do not know what they are doing and the company blames the business as a whole as a result. He says that WCW still has a lot of talent.

He never thought much of Bischoff and says he must be good in the corporate world.

Watts now works in the pharmaceutical world and loves what he does and says that he sold a product to George Steele which really helped him deal with Chron’s disease. He talks about this for a bit.

He closes by saying these are his personal opinions and if he said something that offended someone, if the shoes fits, wear it.

Final Thoughts: This was alright I guess. It really slowed down the last half-hour though and I lost a lot of interest. Watts, if you like him or not, is a straight-shooter. That is always a good thing for a shoot interview. He also does not want a job in wrestling so he wont kiss ass to get one.

He did have a great mind for the business and he would probably make for a good consultant if he wanted to get back in to wrestling.

The best parts were when he discussed Mid-South and add that to the fact that Watts was a great storyteller. I thought Feinstein did a bad job with questions though. It could have been a lot more in-depth than it was. Watts had a long career spanning many different places as a booker and wrestler.

On the subject of racism, Bill did seem to want to get out the fact that he was not racist. Then again, there have been some African-Americans wrestlers who have said Watts told them he was racist so who knows.

I recommend this if you are a fan of Watts or want to learn a bit more about him. It is not a bad interview at all but I found it disappointing as it could have been better

This interview was conducted in 2007.

It is a two-disc set that totals at two hours and forty minutes long.

DISC ONE




This runs at one hour and fifty-minutes

Hall said he always wanted to be a wrestler since he was eight years old. His dad took him and a friend to see a show that included a hair vs. hair match. Hall said that he still has a piece of hair from that match.

When asked if he was discovered by Barry Windham, Hall said he went to Tampa, knowing that the Florida Championship Wrestling offices were there but he didnt know exactly the location and joined every gym he could in the hopes of being discovered. Anyway, Windham saw Hall in a Publix supermarket and thought he was a football player. They talked and Hall told him he was trying to break into wrestling and get trained by Hiro Matsuda, to which Windham replied “fuck him” and told Hall all that would happen if he went with Matsuda was doing hindu squats all over the place. Windham then told Hall to meet him at the Sportatorium the following morning.

Hall arrived and said that he “bumped” Windham and Mike Rotunda for two hours, not taking any bumps himself. Hall said that Windham would perform a move on Rotunda then have Hall try the same thing, critiquing him along the way.

When asked about the hardest thing about training, Hall said when you are green, everything is hard. He then said how television was getting to be more important when he broke into wrestling, meaning guys who looked the part where getting the attention, thus changing the business and that caused friction as Hall had the look but no ability at that point.

He teamed up with Dan Spivey at the beginning. He said the Road Warriors were hot at the time so Dusty took two big muscular guys and teamed them up, despite having no experience. Hall liked Spivey but said they were completely different and also wanted to believe singles wrestler. He said if they stayed in Florida and been groomed by Dusty in Florida, they could have been a success but they went to Charlotte.

In Charlotte, Hall said they were too green to be put over but also too muscular and young to job so they sat on the sidelines. He also said that Jim Crockett owned a minor league baseball team and they basically worked with the grounds crew, sometimes sitting in the dugouts.

After that, they went to Kansas to work for Bob Geigel. Hall said it was a smaller territory and he thought that if he embarrassed himself their instead of a National promotion, less people would see it and he could benefit from the experience. Hall said he was making between $800-1,000 a night working opening matches in Charlotte, which was awesome, but the problem was that they were so green they only worked about once a month. Spivey left to go back to Charlotte after a few months and Hall stayed in Kansas City.

He talks about beating the shit out of Marty Jannetty in the locker room. The night before, a hotel called Hall after a room was trashed and it turned out that DJ Peterson and Marty checked in using his name. Hall came to the show dressed in crappy clothes, because he was going to fight and didnt care if he got any blood on them. He sees Marty sleeping on a table then beats the shit out of him. After it happened, he thought for sure he was going to be fired. Anyway, he was walking backstage and heard Harley Race yell for him, calling him “Steve.” Hall, who figured that he was fired anyway and had nothing to lose, turned around and angrily told Harley that his name was Scott and that he had been their for six months. Anyway, Harley told him to calm down and said that next time, do what he did to Marty after the show because he was unable to work the night after the attack.

Hall wound up in the AWA after he saw Blackjack Lanza at a show in St. Louis. About once a month, stars from different territories would wrestle in St. Louis. Lanza was with the AWA at the time and asked him about moving up. Hall said that he didn’t know if he was ready then Lanza told him that everyone is shit when they are first starting out. He went up to Winnipeg and wrestled in front of 15,000 people. He said that he beat Rick Steiner, to which Hall said he still teases him about to this day, then wrestled against Larry Zbyszko. Hall puts over Larry a ton, saying that he walked him through the match. Hall said that after the show, the people cheered for him during a nearfall due to a spot that Larry came up with on the fly and also said Larry gave him a lot of offense in the match. He didnt know if he was getting hired right away though, because Verne was ice fishing in Alaska at the time.

They then skip ahead to WCW, when Hall said he used to flick his toothpick at Larry before commercial breaks and the fans dug it so he went to Bischoff and told him they should work an angle, saying that Larry was over enough with the fans that it could work.

From that, he talks about facing Shawn Michaels at Madison Square Garden, when Shawn was the champ and they were both heels. At the time, Hall was getting face reactions from the crowd so Vince told him that the people are turning him face and that they needed to change him up. So, during the match, the fans chanted for Razor, who remembered what Curt Hennig told him about not pandering to the crowd and just glance at them briefly. As the match went on, the crowd was about 70/30 in favor of Razor, who asked Shawn what to do. Shawn said to look at them and act surprised that he was getting cheers and when they did, they started to cheer even louder.

He then tells the story of how Vince told him he was going to turn face. He told Scott that they had a kid who was “120lbs soaking wet” and showed him a tape of Sean Waltman, who Hall immediately recognized as the Lightning Kid from GWF. That shocked Vince that Hall knew of him. Hall said that he looked like he was 11 years old but could go in the ring and puts over intelligent he was from watching him on TV. Vince then lays out the plans for their feud, which Hall said was months before it took place. Waltman was going to beat him then each week then as he would offer more money to others to beat Waltman, his money would get stolen by him. Hall said the whole thing was Vince’s idea and it was the best thing to happen to his career.

Back to the AWA, Hall puts over for being a cool, eccentric guy. He said that Verne was big on having his faces go to events with him and Hall would be with him as he was groomed for a top spot. Verne told him that it is important to have the wrestler be remembered whenever they were at a function. Verne told him you are “working” the minute you leave your house, not just in the ring. He said they wanted to make him the champ but Hall said it was too cold up there and that they never knew how to create any gimmicks and his was “Big” Scott Hall and wanted to wrestle in Florida, with cool gimmicks and angles that he grew up with. Verne was shocked by this and told Hall he could make him a star but Hall said he is in it for the money. Verne said that comes later but Hall joked that his bills come every month. From there, they just started to talk like friends, instead of a boss/employee relationship and Hall asked Verne how it was to have money and he replied that it was “pretty damn good.” Hall then said that he would do jobs on the way out. He puts over Verne for being a good guy.

Hall is asked about Curt Hennig pulling ribs. He puts over Curt as the first guy that got reactions for his bumps and how he would pick him up when he was in the AWA and not used to driving in the Winter weather. He learned from Curt that you had to have fun in this business and you can either have a shitty attitude or a good one and Curt was always upbeat.

He learned a lot from Curt when they teamed. He said that Curt would always start off then tag him in what Hall refers to as “featuring the big guy.” Hall said he did the same when he teamed with Nash and tells a story of how he would sometimes spit at guys after they were beating on him then tag out to Nash. He also never told guys about this before hand so it would look better. This instance, they were working against Harlem Heat and he spit at Stevie Ray, who Hall puts over as being a tough guy, then tagged out immediately. Stevie then worked on Nash and went over and spit on Hall, who was on the apron and then tried to go after him and ended up falling over the ropes, in a planned spot. Hall then apologized to Stevie after the match.

In the AWA, he and Hennig faced off against Bill & Scott Irwin. Hall said Scott was cool and put him over but that Bill had a problem with him and Hall thinks it was because he was getting a push so young his career and never really put him over in their matches at all. Hall felt that Bill was never doing his job and he felt like punching him in the face but knew that it would be a horrible business decision.

He is asked about memories of several workers in AWA. He said that Nick Bockwinkle was an “absolute pro” but would walk around the locker room with a t-shirt and loafers without pants and his junk hanging out. Hall thought that John Nord should have been a huge star in the business but thinks he had other priorities, like his car dealership. He first knew Shawn Michaels from Kansas City and said that back then in a car ride, Shawn “explained the business” to him. He told Hall that you let the face shine then get heat on him then let him make a comeback then go to the finish. Anyway, the office asked Hall about bringing in Shawn and Marty, specifically if there was still a problem between him and Jannetty. Hall said that he and Jannetty buried the hatchet the night after he attacked him in Kansas City. Hall said that Jannetty was the star of the team then. Hall puts over the Freebirds a lot and said that he was a “mark” for them then says it was his idea for the nWo Wolfpac because he wanted to have them be just like the Freebirds. He puts over Buddy Rose as a good athlete and a heel. He said that Doug Somers was a smooth worker. Overall, he said that just about everyone helped him out in the AWA.

He went to Europe and wrestled as “Texas” Scott Hall after Vader called up CWA promoter Otto Wanz. Hall said at that time, Europeans looked at Americans as those who wore cowboy hats and they billed him from Texas.

Hall then went to WCW for a bit. He said he first had a verbal deal for $1,000 a week. He then said in WCW, your push was determined when you got there as it was based on the amount of your contract. He said that making what he did, there was no way that he was going to beat a guy making $750,000 a year, let alone be in the same match as them. Hall barely wrestled when he first got there.

In between tours of Europe, Hall found out that his wife at the time was pregnant. He was not making much money at the time and on the verge of quitting the business in order to get a regular job. He called Diamond Dallas Page in the hopes that he could land him a job in WCW. Page told him to shave his mustache and dye his hair black. He then told Hall to grow stubble, like Rob Lowe popularized at that time. Page then said that he would be his manager, so Hall could still look big standing next to him and they called him the “Diamond Studd.” Before their first TV taping together, they ate at the Waffle House and both grabbed the toothpicks that came with the bill. They get to the match and Page was talking with his toothpick in his mouth on the way to the ring and it fell out so Hall, who still had his, flicked it right into the camera and that was how he came up with the toothpick gimmick.

Hall said that when he first did the Studd gimmick on TV, Pat Patterson called him up and told him that Vince loved the new look. Pat asked him if he signed a contract and Hall told him that he just sign a one-year deal and Pat told him that not tot worry, as you can tell them you have a deal in place when the contract is up.

He is then asked about DDP and how he was getting ribbed all of the time. Hall said that he was an announcer but desperately wanted to be a wrestler. Hall said that he loves Page like a brother but that he could drive you nuts with his quirks. Hall said that he was always an upbeat guy though. Anyway, Firebreaker Chip started to give DDP shit one day and as a result, got punched in the face in the locker room and at that moment, guys started to give DDP some respect.

Hall tells a story of a battle royal in West Virginia in which everyone played a rib on DDP. The Steiner Brothers were going to strip him in the ring during the match and everyone but DDP knew that. Everyone goes after DDP and knock him down then the Steiners run over to him. DDP was known to wear layers of spandex when he wrestled and Rick Steiner pulled on him so hard that he completely snapped off his tights and he was naked, causing Oliver Humperdink to take off his shirt and throw it on DDP so he could cover himself up.

After WCW, he wound up in the WWF. Hall said they filmed the Razor Ramon vignettes and he was thrilled to be getting a push right off of the bat. Once again, Hall said that Hennig helped him out and told him to never waste a motion in the ring and not to hit a bunch of devastating moves in a TV squash match because you will kill them all off. He told Hall that whenever you are on TV, treat it like an advertisement for yourself and when you do hit a move, make it look explosive. You always have to act as you know what you are doing.

Hall talks about his tryout with the WWF and how he got hired. After the match, Hennig took him to Vince. They are talking and Vince said that he needed a gimmick and brought up how his dad was in the military. Hall told Vince that if he wanted him to be G.I. Joe, he would be the best one he could be as at that point, Hall told Hennig that he would even settle as a job guy in the WWF as they were the top company and said guys like Barry Horowitz could lose all of the time and be stars, complete with their own baseball cards. Back to the story as Hall then told Vince that he needed a bad guy and started to play the Tony Montana character from “Scarface,” which is what he and Curt did all of the time in the car when they worked for the AWA. He was using direct lines from the film. Vince thought that Hall was a genius and had no clue that Hall was doing as he had never seen or apparently heard of the movie. Vince then asked him for a name. He said Razor but Vince told him about Razor Riddick and Hall said in the Tony Montana voice that he could “squash him like a cockroach.” Vince said he needed a last name that began with an “R” so he went to the bathroom and saw Tito Santana. He asked Tito for a name that began with “R” and he said “Ramon” and he told it to Vince, who loved the idea.

They filmed the promos in South Beach and Vince still had no clue that they were doing stuff that was basically out of “Scarface.” He did say that during his vignettes. Vince told him to speak very,very slow and Hall said that it worked out well.

He talks about his feud against Savage. Hall said that in Pennsylvania, he was to kick Savage in the leg that Ric Flair had been working on all match long then toss him back inside so Flair could put on the figure-four and win the title after Savage passed out. Backstage, Vince yelled at Heenan to go get Savage and Flair for him then Vince flipped out on Savage and Flair for not working on the leg and for looking like jabronis, which had Hall nervous as he just started out and Vince was flipping out on two major stars. They go back out and work the leg and Hall kicks Savage and Flair rolls him inside but works on Savage for five more minutes before putting on the figure four. That five minutes was clipped from the airing. Hall said that he never liked Flair because he controlled his career when he was in WCW. After that they had a meeting with Vince and he asked at the end if there were any questions and Hall wanted to ask him if he could trust Flair with the belt after what he did in WCW but Hennig told him not to say anything.

Hall said that he might have stolen the Razor’s Edge move from Danny Spivey. He started to use that as a finisher in Puerto Rico. Hall said that in wrestling if you want to be a top guy, you need a good look, to be good on the mic, have a few signature moves and a cool finisher.

He then talks about how he WWF was going through a transitional phase as Vince was under trial and everyone had to be clean. Hall said that he used steroids prior to the WWF. He was down to about 260 lbs at that point in the WWF but liked that weight and stayed there as he could work with the big and small guys. He said that he never wanted to be a bodybuilder, just a wrestler with a good body then jokes how he never shaved his chest or anything as he felt that “Tarzan gets more pussy than Mr. Universe.” He said that the traveled with Shawn in the WWF and they would party at night then eat breakfast in the morning, lay in the tanning bed as the food digested then work out for a half-hour on the stairmaster then a quick session with weights and some dips before heading off. He calls that the “Tarzan” workout and said it was enough to pump you up.

He tells a story about Bill Watts in the WWF. They were in the Garden and Watts was with Patterson and Vince. After Nash faced Mabel, Shawn made the save when Mo interfered and Hall ran out and got beat up too as they were putting the Men on a Mission strong. Hall grabs the belt and hands it to Nash but Shawn wanted it so Hall went to hand it to him then dropped it purposely, making Shawn look like a fool. As he walks backstage, he gets shoved in the back hard and saw that it was Shawn, who Hall says does not like to be made to look foolish. Anyway, Watts saw that and went up to Hall and told him that he was over and should be used better then joked about how he was expecting that push in the back. Hall said Watts lasted about a week in the WWF and left as he wanted full control and Vince would not let that happen.

When asked about the video being shopped by Man Mountain Rock that features the locker room using drugs in Europe and Louie Spiccoli banging a prostitute, Hall said that it is a shame that someone is so talentless that selling it is the only way they can make money. He then said that he would probably be sued if he tried to sell that.

Hall then talks about how he changed a finish at a show in Philadelphia against Chris Jericho, who was using the Lionheart gimmick. Hall said that the gimmick would not get over in Philly so he thought that Jericho should win and afterwards, he can beat him up and then Larry Zbyszko would run in and that would start their feud. Hall said he told Jericho to come up with a finish and not to tell anyone at all. Jericho came up with a finish that had him escape the Razor’s Edge and pin Hall with a small package. Backstage, Bischoff was mad that he changed the finish and Hall kept asking him if it was exciting and he couldnt get past the fact that he did not listen to him.

When asked about his matches against Jeff Jarrett, he said at first thy had bad matches but grew to work well with each other.

He now talks about his WrestleMania ladder match against Shawn. Hall said there chemistry and timing were excellent and they were always on the same page. He also said that it was Shawn’s idea for Razor to climb up the ladder with both belts and that he had Earl Hebner tell him that. Back in the locker room, Savage told him they had a great match but were selfish, as they went a lot longer than the time they were allotted.

Now, Hall is asked about the political power that the Kliq had in the WWF. Hall said that it was Bam Bam Bigelow who came up with the name. Hall then said how they were friends who all shared the same ideas as to how the business should be run. When they all reached the main event level, they started to kick around ideas all of the time then go pitch them to Vince.

He is now asked about a myth in which the Kliq went on strike one weekend. Hall forgets where they were (it was Indianapolis) but Hall was supposed to lose to Sid after 1-2-3 Kid interfered as the special guest referee then Ted DiBiase stuck a $100 bill in his mouth. Hall was fine with that but then when they changed it to include him losing the IC Title, he was against it. Hall told Vince he had no problem putting over Sid clean in the middle of the ring. This is the incident in which Pat and Vince flew to Indianapolis and met with the Kliq.

The interviewer brings up how Shane Douglas said in his shoot how Hall wanted to work the same match every night. Hall said that he and Shane get along a lot better now then when they were in the WWF. Hall also said that he was going to work with Douglas to get him ready to face Shawn, as the WWF saw money in a program between HBK and Douglas. Hall recalls a time when they were in London, England and they were tired from partying on the plane. Douglas told him to go home and Hall asked him if he was okay and told Hall said that he was just tired. Hall was irate and told him he didnt give a fuck if he was tired as this is how he fed his family. He told Douglas to drink coffee or take pills if he was tired, which he said was wrong. Hall said that in the ring, you always give it your all.

When asked if they were too hard on Chris Candido, Hall said they were. He said that between the stupid gimmick and his girlfriend Sunny, they were hard on him. Hall talks about the locker room and how it was a vicious shark tank and that he crossed paths with him in TNA years later and he had no hard feelings towards him. Back then, Hall said there was no guaranteed money and that Vince and everyone else perpetuated that environment in wrestling and that they had a bunch of jocks away from their families and that was how they coped.

DISC TWO




This disc runs forty-nine minutes long



It starts with Hall in the middle of a story about Waltman, which led to him stating that he rejected an angle with Goldust because he thought that a feud with Waltman could have been money but that did not happen and he got Goldust upset in the process.

On how he jumped over to WCW, Hall said that he was moving a lot of merchandise and wanted more money. He then said that he asked Vince if he needed to improve on anything so he could earn more money, which is also what he learned from Hennig on how to ask for more money. He then went up to Stamford to the office and when he walked in, he saw all of his pictures in the hallway, which he said were turned around and had another wrestler on the other side. He met with Vince and JJ Dillon and brought in a secretary who dumped a pile of fan mail on the desk to show his popularity. Vince then put a check on the table for him and said he had a three-year contract. Hall said he couldnt do this schedule for three more years then asked if he could move over the decimal point on his merchandise check and Vince said that he couldnt because he was getting the same as guys like Diesel and the Undertaker. Hall then asked if he could go over to New Japan for a month a year to get their money and that was shot down as Vince said he needed him in the WWF. Waltman was in contact with Jesse Ventura’s agent, Barry Bloom, and Hall found out how much they offered him and realized that there was a want for him. Hall said that Vince ‘s contract rolled over yearly unless you gave a 90 day notice. Hall sent a telegram to Vince then went to a house show. While there, Tony Garea told him to call the doctor about the drug test results, he called and the doc wasnt there so he got ready for his match but Garea told him he had to leave and at that point Hall realized that they got his notice. He said that the piss test he took was six weeks old too. Hall said he was never a mark like Bret Hart and didnt care about the belt as he would rather job for a million dollars a year than make half as much as the champ. After that, he took the money and went to WCW.

When asked about the nWo idea being the plan all along, Hall said that is was Larry Zbyszko’s idea to come out from the crowd and grab the mic. He said Bischoff wanted him to walk down the aisle. Hall said the reason it worked is because people still thought he worked for Vince. Hogan had creative control and was in the air before the Bash at the Beach and they were not sure that he wanted to be a heel when they arrived to the show. Hall said Hogan was smart enough to turn at the right time and that if people thought Hall & Nash still worked for Vince, there was no better guy to align with them than Hogan. Hall said that the nWo idea was Bischoff’s and that the finish that night was thought up by Nash.

He goes back and talks about his last night in the WWF when he faced HHH at the Garden. Hall said that the fans chanted “please don’t go” then some chanted that he sold out. After that, Hall picked up the mic ad said “say goodbye to the bad guy,” which the crowd ate up, and said if Vince gave him the money there, he would have stayed. He said that Patterson came up with the finish to his match. When talking about the “curtain call” incident, Hall said that Shawn came up with the idea.

Hall now talks about the incident he had with Jerry Sags in a match at WCW. Hall said that he and Nash went in with fat contracts but some guys had to take a paycut because they weren’t drawing and couldn’t even run house shows. The Nasty Boys took a paycut then Terry Taylor told them how He and Nash received huge contracts. Hall said he broke in with them at Brad Rheingans camp in AWA and still considers them friends to this day. Anyway, during their run-in spot, Hall and Nash came in and Hall waffled Sags with a chairshot. Hall said that when he swung a chair with force and took it the same way too. He also had no idea he potatoed him and thought he was feeding him and almost went to hit him more times. In the locker room, he found out that he potatoed him and was happy that he didnt hit him again and said that with a nervous laugh to Nash but at that moment, Sags walked in and saw him laugh and Hall thought he was not only taking his money but also taking his liberties with him in the ring. A few nights later, the Nasty Boys started to throw chairs and stuff into the ring in the match during a six-man that included Meng and Barbarian. Hall said that Sags was stiff to begin with and started to hit him hard, even knocking out one of his teeth as Meng was hitting him from behind. As they won the match, Hall asked Nash if his face was alright and it was all swollen and fucked up. Nash then went into the locker room and grabbed Sting’s bat and told Hall just say the word and he would go fuck up Sags and Hall told him not to as Nash had the bat above the head of Sags.

Later that night, Hall said that he was with some of the Mexican wrestlers like Rey Mysterio, Juventud Guerrera, and Konnan in his hotel room as he was holding an ice pack to his face when Bischoff called his room and told Hall he would fire Sags but Hall said no as he knew him and he had a family so Bischoff kept him at home for a while as he got paid. Hall said if you were mad at him, he should have confronted him in the locker room instead of the ring.

He denied that Roddy Piper ever tried to fight him in the locker room but told a story about convincing Hogan to put over Piper at Starcade after he was seeing them put over people without getting hurt or seem like less of a star. They also told Hogan to take the finisher instead of a cheap school-boy or something. He did say that when it was Piper’s turn to put over Savage, he refused to take the elbow and would only lose to Savage cheaply. That pissed off Hall so he fucked with Piper all night long, saying that he refused to job for Savage after Hogan put him over clean then joked if they were too close to Portland for him to job clean. He then said he laid into Piper that night and if he ever tried to fight he and Nash, Piper would have got his ass kicked.

Hall did think that the Horsemen took the nWo parody too seriously, especially Arn Anderson, who thought they made him look like a drunk. Hall said that Nash took the cooler from Arn’s rent-a-car, were Pee Wee Anderson would get him beers. Hall then said that night, Arn complained to him at the bar with a beer in each hand, which was common among wrestlers as they got to the bar right before it closed most nights.

The interviewer asks Hall point blank about his own substance abuse issues and the stuff that Bischoff did on screen. Hall said that he tries to look at everything positively and says that if he can tell someone that drinking and drugging is not the answer, despite it being fun. Hall also doesnt care about what everyone thinks about him either.

Hall did think that the watering down of the nWo was bad. He originally thought that  “WCW Saturday Night” would be an nWo show and let the fans choose if they liked WCW or nWo better. He said the beneift of the nWo expanded was that they didnt have to work that many house shows.

He did not think that WCW mismanaged Bret Hart as his strong suit was wrestling and not live interviews. he then said that WWF did a lot of taped interviews that helped him out and did not really fit into what WCW was doing with live Nitro’s.

Hall agreed that WCW pulled the plug too quick on Bischoff when they went with Russo and Ferrara. He says Russo is a nice guy but a small cog in the WWF machine before he came over to WCW.

When discussing how he was let go by the WCW, Hall was at a bar in Germany with his girlfriend and broke up with her. He then talked to another girl who had a gift to him, which was a sock puppet doll. She gave it to him in his room but his now ex-girlfriend, who was a WCW representative, got a key and walked into the room and saw him with the girl. Hall insists that nothing happened between them and they argued while he was drunk. He said that they were at the airport the next day bickering, which you cannot do on an International fight, and he ended up flying out the next day and that was the beginning of the end.

He said that he stopped following when he left and had no idea that Goldberg was talking about him on TV as he stopped following the product when he left. He also has no idea why Goldberg dislikes him as Hall said he helped him out and introduced him to Barry Bloom, who became his agent.

He said that his  current goal is to get back in shape and possibly go to Japan. He believes that he has another run left in him and that his work is good enough as long as he behaves outside of the ring.

When asked about returning to the WWE as the nWo, Hall said that Nash went to Vince and discussed the idea with him. Vince then called up Hall and told him how he was talking with both Hogan and Nash about returning and said that they needed him to return. Hall was raising his kids by himself at the time and Vince said they worked something out taht he could work ten days a month and in his first month, he ended up working twenty-two. They all thought that Vince was not going to push something that he did not create and Vince killed it off the next PPV. Hall said he was not having fun and having bad matches plus he had to watch his kids and self-destructed. He decided to call Jim Ross and tell him that he was going to leave. Hall thought that Vince could have made the nWo even bigger.

He said that a day before his PPV match in Toronto against Austin, he was told that the finished changed and at that point, he knew he was out and was surprised that he even made it to Mania to face him. Hall said that he and Austin just did not click but thought his match against him at Mania was “okay” and he laid it out. He also said that Austin treated him like gold.

They now talk about TNA and how he was on the first few shows. He said he signed a three-show deal as he did not know if he wanted to be locked into the company at the beginning.

When asked about the Chris Benoit tragedy, Hall said he knew Chris for a long time then starts to break down and cry for a little bit. He said that a producer from HBO “Real Sports” called him up if he wanted to comment on drugs and steroids in wrestling. Hall said it is ridiculous for the media to attack wrestling promoters for what independent contractors do then adds that no one ever made him take drugs. He also thinks it is insane for people to only focus on deaths in wrestling when there are many more wrestlers who are alive. He brings up how no one blames the NFL for Pacman Jones or Michael Vick.

In regards to doing conventions, he feels weird charging people for autographs but loves to meet fans. He then thanks the interviewer for discussing wrestling with him and having knowledge and being respectful. He rather likes to hear from fans than guys who sit at home and criticize guys without going to the matches.

The interview closes with Hall thanking his fans for all of their support over the years and that he is getting things together and has one more run left.

Final Thoughts: An excellent shoot interview. One of the best, quite frankly. Hall is a great story-teller who also offers loads of insight into the business. He was sober during the interview and seemed to be enjoying just about every minute of it, except for the discussion about Benoit I guess. There was no agenda at all here, which is always a good thing. He never seemed bitter, either.

I really came away liking Scott Hall as a person from this. He is a likable guy who sometimes cannot keep his demons in check and that is when he gets into trouble. Even when discussing instances that made him look bad, he would take responsibility. He did not look to pass the blame onto others.

Hall has such a great mind for the business. Too bad he might not get another chance to show that off again. It is great that he is sober today but sadly is run that he talked about in this interview never really went anywhere and he fell deeper into his substance abuse issue, which were very evident in his follow up to this shoot, in which he was notably impaired.

I highly recommend this interview. You will hear some great stories, get some valuable insight, and learn a lot about what happened during his runs with the Kliq and the nWo. For those interested in the shoot, you can download the interview to own from Highspots for $9.99. I will provide the link below for you.

http://www.highspots.com/p/25364.html

The last thread on training made me run and find this 11-minute video of Triple H lecturing the Tough Enough contestants and burying Goldberg in the process.

When he talks about not seeing the wife and leaving the kids at home you could just see the wheels turning in his brain.

For those who’ve never seen it, this is a very famous home video shot by Jimmy Garvin backstage during the Bash 88 tour with the Crockett crew fucking around and performing while being on what can only be charitably described as a very concerning amount of blow.  It’s a far cry from the video games and script rehearsals of today’s shows.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dP3qYOyH8JE

Hey Scott,

Episode #50 of the Funtime Arcade drops this Friday, but we have a special week of bonus content, including a podcast, audio commentaries, and this video, a look at what wrestler has appeared in the most games (spoiler: it’s not Hulk Hogan).  Thanks for the support!

Yep, here’s the 2012 Royal Rumble. Forget the shitty video quality for a second and think about the match. Not sure exactly what the deal was with the talent roster but with Daniel Bryan, John Cena, Big Show, Kane, Mark Henry, CM Punk and Dolph Ziggler all participating in the undercard there was absolutely NO star power for the Rumble (although two of these guys would do double duty).

Rather than worry too much about the lack of stars the bookers seemed to embrace it and went over the top with the comedy booking and while I’ll never place it in the pantheon of Rumbles, I really enjoyed the silliness of it and the fact that it was a little unpredictable until the few big names got in and you knew it was going to be one of them. They doubled up on the legends booking as well.

In hindsight the problem with this match is the problem with the promotion in general. It was a perfect time to try to get some momentum for a few of the mid-carders and in that sense it was a failed opportunity. Miz went 45 minutes and failed to impress. Cody went 41 minutes and actually did a decent job. That was it for the long bookings. Why didn’t Santino (Entrant 9) last more than two minutes? Fans would have eaten up him surviving 30+ minutes and making it to crunch time (see: 2012 Elimination Chamber). Why didn’t Wade Barrett (entrant 26) last more than three minutes? Give him a number in the top 15 and have him go 25 minutes and try to gain some steam. And don’t tell me people wouldn’t have enjoyed a longer run from Ricardo. Eh whatever…it’s their money.

The up side is that it was a free flowing match, guys came in, got their stuff in and got out. It worked for what it was, I remember laughing for much of this and Kofi’s escape from elimination was incredible. Scott loved the match and gave it five stars on first glance and ****1/2 on rewatch. I couldn’t give it more than ***1/2 FWIW. The link to his review is here. Take it away Justin Roberts!

Happy Thanksgiving to the US folks at the BoD! Here is a collection of Thanksgiving wrestling memories.

 http://placetobenation.com/ptbn-thanksgiving-wrestling-bounty-of-awesome/

We also have a collection of TV’s best Thanksgiving specials…

http://placetobenation.com/televisions-thanksgiving-memories/

…and what we are thankful for in the world of comics!

http://placetobenation.com/a-place-to-be-nation-comic-cornucopia-of-thanksgiving/

And thanks to Scott for all the support!

This was filmed in 2005. I runs just under two hours long.

Rob Feinstein is not the interviewer for this and I have no idea as to who the replacement was either. Dustin is wearing a hoodie and has is actually wearing the hood throughout the interview.

This starts with Dustin being asked about Vince buying WCW. Dustin said that he was under contract for WCW at that time and thought he would get paid but was called the day before the deadline by the WWE and told that they were cancelling it and he ended up only getting paid for the rest of the year.

When asked, Dustin didn’t think that WCW failed but rather it was Vince’s ego wanting complete control that lead to the buyout.

He is then asked if his father gave him any advice about the business and Dustin snapped at the interviewer before saying he told him to stay away from drugs and politics. He said that Dusty was anti-drug and once kicked his ass as a kid when he got caught smoking a joint.

They talk about Dusty’s promotion, Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling, as Dustin talks about how a majority of the independent promotions fail due to no financial backers, saying you need money to make money. Their goal was to get the company to be as big as possible.

After that, he got hired back by the WWE when Jim Ross contacted him before the Royal Rumble and asked him if he was in shape. After the show, Dustin went to TV the following day and worked out a contract with Ross.

He was asked how the locker room changed since his first run and Dustin’s response was that it is happy when business is good but when it is down, Vince is pissed off and everyone else is frustrated. Dustin then said that he always tried to keep morale up by being funny.

Dustin said that he got in shape for this WWE run by running on the treadmill daily and eating a no carb diet a month and a half before his return, resulting in a 30lbs weight loss.

He is now asked about his team with Booker T. Dustin said there was an instant connection between the two and that it was originally supposed to be a one-shot deal but the company saw the chemistry and decided to go with it as a team. He also brings up that the quarter ratings would go up during their segments.

Dustin said that he always got along with Johnny Ace but that he and Jim Ross never saw eye-to-eye. They had some “personal issues” but Dustin does not want to say anything bad about him.

Dustin puts over Brian Gewirtz as a writer and said that he and Booker worked with him on their skits.

When asked about HHH, Dustin said that he saw less of him in his second run. Dustin then says that he was cordial with him and calls HH a good worker but also mentions that played politics and kissed ass too.

He is now asked about scripted promos. When referencing his skits with Booker, he said that they had a lot of fun and at most, their pre-taped stuff would require two takes. He also mentioned that they ad-libbed on occasion.

Dustin is asked if he had any interactions with his ex-wife, Terri. He said that they saw each other at TV and would make small talk but that she spent most of her time in the women’s locker room.

At this time, he usually traveled by himself but would sometimes ride with guys like Booker, Kane, Christian,  and William Regal.

He was not surprised to see Eric Bischoff appear on WWE TV and puts over Eric for giving him a contract in WCW.

Dustin is asked about his involvement in the nWo angle. He said that it was very brief but that he liked the Darth Vader skit. He then calls his Crocodile Hunter skit his favorite one of all-time.

He is now asked if it was difficult to stay clean on the road. Dustin said that he only took prescription pills at that time and would have a few beers after the show but that was all.

They talk about Kevin Nash for a minute. Dustin said that he was a friendly guy and was right near him when he tore his quad. The interviewer then brings up a quote from Nash in a recent interviewer about Dusty, saying that he was using “rural wrestling” instead of “urban wrestling” and that at age 46, Nash said he was the hippest guy in the room. Dustin’s response was that Kevin was a creative guy and not everyone agrees with his dad.

He says that the Undertaker is Vince’s guy then comments about how he was the only one to ever beat him in a casket match. He puts over Taker as a great guy with a good sense for business. He recalls a story of the night before Brock Lesnar got his big push, Taker asked Dustin backstage if he felt that he was ready and Dustin said that he was, then Taker agreed. Dustin also puts over Brock as a friend.

The writers are discussed next and Dustin’s asks if they were approachable. He said that some of them were but that most of them only talked with the top guys. He said that they were good to him until they wanted to give Booker a singles push, then he became an afterthought. Once again, he puts over the fact that he does not engage in backstage politics. Dustin also mentions that the writers were all young and usually in their 20’s.

On the subject of the wrestlers today, Dustin said that a lot of the guys being pushed can’t even lace their own boots. He puts over that he is not able to watch the show today due to him no longer being able to afford cable, but hears that they are not doing a good job and that the product itself is bad. He puts over Stephanie McMahon for having a great head on her shoulders then says that they only need a few writers instead of fifteen, as there are way too many ideas being floated around.

He is asked about competiveness. He brings up Stevie Richards, who he felt never got the push her deserved, and how he always busted his ass constantly on “Sunday Night Heat” then ended up getting his face caved in by a guy who barely knew how to work (Chris Masters).

Dustin is asked about his Tourettes gimmick, He said the whole thing started around 1997-98 when he was at the airport while in the WWE. He saw the “Jerry Springer Show” on TV and they had a panel comprised of people suffering from Tourettes so he started to act like that and the other guys started to laugh. He then brings up how he used to do that on the plane rides and some of the other wrestlers would get in on the act. He brings up how Val Venis would play along and when Dustin was acting like that on the plane in front of regular passengers, Val would ask him if he took his medication and even tell the other passengers that he had Tourettes.

He is asked about the guys today, like Randy Orton and Batista. He puts them both over, saying that few guys are able to catch on right away like Orton as then says that while he still needs to learn, Batista continues to improve. He also puts over John Cena as a guy who caught on quickly.

Dustin said that he is going to open a wrestling school in Oklahoma. He says that there are a lot of people out there who want to be wrestlers, citing the amount who tried out for “Tough Enough” as an example, and hopes that one day, he could be a developmental territory for the WWE.

Dustin then is asked about performing the Tourettes gimmick on the “Howard Stern Show.” He said that they still play the clips today and had no idea why the WWE did not promote his appearance on TV.

He ended up hurting his elbow in a match teaming with Lance Storm against Christian & Chris Jericho while touring Australia. He was told that he needed four weeks off to heal. After that, he came back and noticed that he was not ready and asked for an additional two weeks. He said that he did the match anyway and landed on his injured elbow after taking a slam from Mark Henry. After that, he was out for six more weeks and after that, he got released. Dustin said that you cannot work with a bad elbow. He also said that he was told that if he could come up with any ideas, he could stay. Dustin claimed that he submitted eight ideas within 24 hours but got cut immediately.

He is asked about drugs again and Dustin said that he has been prescribed pain pills since 1993 and that he only takes them as prescribed. He mentions that he can barely get out of bed if he does not take them.

Now, he discusses the “plane ride from hell.” Dustin discusses how there are a lot of rumors as to what happened and brings up a lawsuit filed by a stewardess that was dropped due to a lack of evidence. He claims that he was sleeping for most of the flight but does mention a few things that occurred, such as a stewardess wearing nothing except for Ric Flair’s robe (with Flair yelling “woo!!!” as she walked down the stairs), Bradshaw punching out Michael Hayes, and Brock Lesnar and Curt Hennig wrestling in the aisle. Dustin said that he was accused of groping the stewardess who filed suit. He then said that he spilled the cup that he spit his dip into and that Jim Ross fined him $5,000, which was used to clean up the plane. Dustin says that he dips 4 tins daily. He then closes this out by saying you cannot believe everything on the internet.

Dustin then puts himself over as a worker today, saying that while he cannot do flips, he is in the top ten in terms of in-ring psychology.

He currently says that he is applying for a job installing cable. He says that wrestling is all he knows though. He also says that he is not going do take a job in which you cannot make a living, like a fast-food worker.

Dustin talks about his younger brother, Cody, and how he is living in California trying to make it as an actor. He says that while Cody claims he does not want to be a wrestler, he can see it in his eyes and wants to help break him into the business.

He is asked if there was any heat on him in TNA for being the booker’s son. He said that he was well respected by the other wrestlers but also saw others kissing ass backstage and talks about that is a common occurrence.

When asked about teaming with his dad in Japan at a show for the Hustle promotion, he said that it was tough because he put the whole match together and was nervous about wrestling a Japanese style. He then notes how the more nervous you get, the easier you blow up in the ring and that his dad told him how he looked like he was going to have a heart attack. He then blames himself for the match sucking.

He talks about wrestling Raven in TNA. He said that during their straight-jacket match, he had a legit panic attack and after the match, he ended up kneeling down backstage and started to cry. He later apologized to Raven for the match being awful and Raven told him how very few guys would have the balls to do what he did. Dustin then puts over Raven as a wrestler.

They now move on to Chris Candido, who passed away shortly before this interview. Dustin becomes tearful when discussing Candido, noting how he finally got clean then died due to a freak accident. He recalls how they taped a match that was supposed to air after his death but instead, they put up a graphic of the Naturals and Candido with the Tag-Team Titles as the last shot.

Dustin puts over Dixie Carter as a “sweet” person then says that TNA will thrive on Spike then move on to Monday Night. He also puts over the Jarrett’s for bringing in the Carter family to TNA.

The interviewer brings up Vince Russo and a quote from Jerry Jarrett’s book in which he referred to Russo as a “fraud.” Dustin said that while Russo wrote a lot of scripts for his Goldust vignettes, he was the one who performed them. He also said that Russo “shunned” him at the end of WCW but states that he will not say anything bad about him.

Dustin is asked if the Southern-style of wrestling can get over today. He said that it can but you have to realize that it is a new generation of fans and that the storylines need to reflect that. He also says that he believes that he can cater to the new generation of fans, claiming that he knows what they want to see.

He then talks about going five years without speaking to his dad. He said that they eventually met up and hugged, crying for a half hour. He also said them splitting up will never happen again.

Next is how he left TNA. He said that he was with his girlfriend at the time, who had been drinking and drugging all day long, while his 11 year old daughter was with her. He said that at the hotel, she was getting belligerent with him and after noting that his daughter was almost asleep, he told his girlfriend to leave. She started to scream and yell some more so Dustin picked her up by the waist and brought her outside, where she called the police and Dustin got arrested for assault. He spent 72 hours in jail and his dad covered for him with TNA, telling Dixie that he got sick. When Dustin got out of jail, he checked his cell phone and the girlfriend had left some death threats. He was found not guilty after a trial but states that his ex-wife will now only allow supervised visits with her daughter until his anger management courses are complete. At this point, he is crying and states that someone should have slapped him before meeting this girl. He stays angry for a few more minutes, replying to the next few answers about “One Night Stand” shows as he didn’t give a fuck about them.

Dustin is now asked if he could have cut it in “Tough Enough.” He said probably not but that he paid his dues by driving around making $20 a night while getting the shit kicked out of him. He said that “Tough Enough” is a Marine Corps. type of deal before saying “fuck that.”

On the subject of steroids, he said that he was never pressured to take them but did once in 1990 and just ended up getting fat as he drank on them. He also said that he became mean as hell.

When asked if he is prepared for life after wrestling, he said no and that he needs to figure that out soon.

He says that he is not making any money on the indies and that his truck will most likely be repossessed in a few days and his house will probably be foreclosed on shortly after that.

Dustin says that in terms of getting color,” you should only do that at the top of the card and use it based on the crowd reactions.

About guys in TNA that he likes, he puts over Bobby Roode, saying that he has “it,” and Kid Kash. He also loves America’s Most Wanted and thinks that they should become heels. He calls Cassidy Reilly a good worker who deserves a bit of a push. He is also a fan of the X Division, noting that it is different from everything else.

He closes by saying not all of the rumors on the internet are true and that he loves the business.

Final Thoughts: I thought this shoot interview was okay. Dustin, who even though looked like he did not want to be here at all, was still willing to talk. However, this interviewer was the absolute worst I have ever heard from a shoot interview. He kept on trying to get Dustin to talk about drug use and his ex-wife Terri but used questions that were just awful. He didn’t even ask him about the rumor of approaching Terri on the “plane ride from hell” and would instead just flat-out ask him about his drug use, almost as if he was an addict.

The other part of this interview I will address is how it came across. Dustin seemed like he was on the verge of losing everything. It was harrowing, actually, and the whole interview had a depressed tone, right down to the fact that it was filmed in a dark hotel room. Talking about his truck getting repossessed and losing his house was sad, as he left the WWE and TNA not that long before this interview. You can also tell that he was really shaken up by his arrest too as his whole mood changed as a result of bringing that up. Luckily for Dusitn, he was able to turn his life around and eight years later is in the middle of an incredible comeback.

Overall, I give this a very mild recommendation but if you want to watch a shoot interview, you can find a much better one somewhere else.

This interview was filmed on 10/17/04, shortly after an independent show in Philadelphia, PA. It lasted for one hour and twenty-three minutes.

Too Cold is asked if he was a fan of wrestling growing up. He said that he was and watched wrestling in Texas while growing up then the AWA when he moved to Colorado. He said that his first love was football though.

He got into wrestling in 1984. He was at home smoking weed when he ran into the building mnager of his apartment, who told him that he was a pro wrestler. Scorpio didnt believe him, describing him as a 185lbs soaking wet with a brick in his pocket. One day, he claimed that he got “high and drunk” enough to go down and check him out. He went to a house that had a ring in the backyard and he got in and did some flips. From there, he got into wrestling.

Scorpio broke in with two guys, “Magic” Michael Starr and Jeff Gold, and they would watch moves that they saw on TV and perform them on each other inside of the apartment buildings that they were supposed to be working on or would wrestle on the grass.

The first promotion he worked for was Rocky Mountain Wrestling. Scorpio said that he also drove the ring truck and would help set it up too. He would make between $20-30 per show. He said that Colonel DeBeers and Buddy Rose took him under their wing and taught him how to do things right in the ring.

After working for a while in Colorado, he went over to the dojo in New Japan. He got there when Vader came to a show in Colorado while he was the European Champion. Vader thought that he would be great as a junior heavyweight in New Japan. They became friends and worked on a tape to send to New Japan and six months later, Scorpio was over there training.

Scorpio goes through a typical day at the dojo. They would wake up around 6am then clean the dojo before they began training. They would start by doing anywhere from 500-1,000 squats, 500 pushups, 300 situpts, then get a water break before wrestling for an hour, then another water break before taking 100 bumps. After that they would spar then get a fifteen minute break before taking a five mile hike around Tokyo. They would break that up into teams, with the losing team having to do pushups. He said the day finished around 4:00pm and all you wanted to do after that was to crawl into bed.

Scorpio said that he was the only American in his class. He said that Chris Benoit finished training before he arrived and stayed for a few weeks after that but went back home. Scorpio puts over Benoit for helping him while he was there as he was the only other person who spoke English. Other notables in Scorpio’s class include Yuji Nagata, Tenzan, and Nishimura.

Scorpio said that his first few matches over there he got the shit kicked out of him and learned that you had to fight to get in your offense. He then worked in the Junior Heavyweight Tournament, which featured Jushin Liger, Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, and Fit Finlay among others. Scorpio puts over their wrestling ability. He said that Guerrero could work with anyone and that Finlay taught him a “ring lesson” by kicking his ass. Scorpio said that he deserved that after he approached Finlay, a veteran, about what he was going to do in their match.

From Japan, he went over to work in Mexico. Scorpio said it was fun, putting over how cheap it was to get marijuana. He said he was there with Kokina Maximus (Yokozuna) who taught him how to roll the best blunts. While there, he said that he disliked Mil Mascaras, calling him an “arrogant ass.” He had no problems with El Canek or El Santo. His favorite opponents were Negro Casas, Silver King, and the Villanos. He also put over Andre the Giant, stating that despite being old and broken down, was as stiff as could be in the ring. He puts over his overhand punch, stating it was like a redwood tree falling on top of your head.

In comparing the differences between Japan and Mexico, Scopio said that Japanese style is a lot stiffer but that Mexico’s travel is brutal and they worked more days. They always traveled by bus and at times, would have to use a city bus to get to the venues and they were overcrowded and had no place to sit.

Scorpio is then asked how he got into WCW. He said that Vader helped get him in when they WCW was looking for a partner for Ron Simmons when Butch Reed left after getting into trouble and Ron’s other partner wasn’t working out so Vader showed Scorpio’s tape to Bill Watts and that led to him getting an offer.

When asked about Watts, Scorpio stated that Watts told him that he was racist. Scorpio actually appreciated that Watts told him that upfront, as now he knew where he was coming from. he does state that Watts let the N-word slip out once in front of him. Scorpio calls Watts a good businessman and that he always did right by him but he was still an asshole.

Scorpio is now asked about the WCW “cocaine” party that took place in St. Thomas. He said that Flair opened a Gold’s Gym down there and Flair invited some guys to do a show. Scorpio said he was the only black guy there. He said that Buddy Lee Parker was there, who we calls a snake in the grass. He also had a problem with Brian Pillman, who he said called himself “Flyin'” yet couldnt fly and might have been racist. Anyway, Scorpio said that he was walking along Flair’s side of the island wearing his g-string, with his dick hanging out while some of the wrestlers wives and girlfriends were looking at him. Anyway, at an autograph session, Steamboat and Flair’s sginificant others were pushing on him and Scorpio told them to back off, as he didnt want married women, before they wound up with some “dick in their mouth.”

After that session, Scopio was with the Nasty Boys, who loved to party and who he also called “brothers from the hood stuck in a white man’s body” always knew where to get stuff and wound up getting some “snowflakes.” Scorpio said that he was an idiot and had the boy party in his room were everyone was blowing lines. Scorpio also said that it was potent stuff that would have you standing on the walls then chewing your gums. Anyway, Parker and Pillman were there and talking about how they were going on Flair’s boat in the morning with Arn Anderson. Scorpio said that they went down to the boat, half-drunk and high on cocaine, and that was how rumors got started. Scorpio said that everyone in the room was using cocaine and thinks that Pillman and Parker started running their mouths. Scorpio also said that he was the most over guy on the island as he was the only black guy on the card. He and Marcus Bagwell wrestled against the Nasty Boys, who hated Bagwell and beat the shit out of him.

After the tour, Scorpio went to CNN to cut promos. Once there, they told him to take a drug test. Scorpio said that he would take it later as he was here for interviews. He also knew that after 72 hours, the cocaine would be out of his system. He tested positive for marijuana and ended up having to take classes on that with Booker T, who also smoked a ton of pot then. While in the program, he tested positive twice for pot and was told one more failure he would be fired. Scorpio said he got the “gold seal” box and knew if he drank that, he would pass everything but they told him not to worry about the other test now and put it off. He went back to work on the road and was tested then and he was found to be positive then fired. Scorpio says that Flair was slandering his name by stating he was fired for being a cokehead.

Scorpio is asked about teaming with Bagwell. Scorpio said that it was like teaming with a bitch and calls him a punk. He shits on Bagwell some more before telling a story. He said that while on a tour in Europe, they had rooms next to each other and while Scorpio claims he was fucking his girl’s brains out, Bagwell was in the room next to hi arguing with his lady because he couldnt fuck. The next day, Bagwell was pissed that he couldnt get his girl bumped up to a business class on the flight and went over to him and wanted him to get up and leave. Scorpio said that he cussed out Bagwell and that the stewardess had to calm him down. He threatened Bagwell then touched his lady on the shoulder and told her that she would find out why the call him “Too Cold.”  After that, Scorpio said that he had no respect for Bagwell as you stick up for your girl, no matter what situation.

He is asked if he ever had any problems with Sting over the scorpion gimmick. He said that Sting had a problem with him but he didnt have one with Sting. Scorpio mentioned that one day, Sting told him that the gimmick was his but Scorpio mentioned that he was using it first. Scorpio then puts over Sting as being a good worker and after a while, they hashed it out and he removed the scorpion from his tights and replaced it with “Too Cold.”

Now, Scorpio is asked about several workers from WCW. He put over Muta as a guy who taught him a lot about technique and selling. He also said that he was a great guy. He liked Scotty Flamingo but said that he had the shittiest crossbody. He said that after a few months, Pillman finally said hi to him but he usually worked with Steve Austin in their tag matches. He then said that he did not want to say anything else bad about him as he was deceased. When he first met Paul Heyman in WCW, he said he was a “motherfucking bitch” who would fight with women. He liked working with Barry Windham and said that Tom Zenk could work but that he had some issues.

Onto the next WCW incident, this time the fight between Arn Anderson and Sid Vicious. Scorpio starts by stating that you should never book a match and a flight on the same day as everyone at the time was rushing around and taking pills and drinking to cope. He said he was smoking hash in his room on the second floor when he heard fighting downstairs. He thought that Vader was fighting someone so he rushed downstairs and saw blood all over the place then saw Sid stabbing Arn with scissors so he went over and pushed them apart. He then looked at Arn and said that his nose was almost turned upside down. He said that Sid then looked at him before putting his foot through a glass door that led to the lobby. Vader was in there talking on the phone with his wife then Vader tackled Sid. Scorpio said that the cops came and he ended up going to the hospital to fill out the paperwork for Sid. He also calls Flair and Steamboat pussies for not helping to break up the fight, especially since their friend was involved and it happened on the same floor as their rooms.

Scorpio is now asked about Mick Foley’s ear. Scorpio said that it was not his fault, as Foley claims in his book. Scorpio loves Foley but says that he wrestled before his match and Scorpio had the ropes tightened for him, because he was a high-flyer. He forgot to remind the ring crew and when Foley did his hangman spot, Vader took off anf hit him and you could see his ear fly off and land on the ground. Ring announcer Gary Cappetta went over and picked it up with a tissue and they put in on ice. Scorpio said that if he immediately went to the hospital, they could have put it back on but Foley wrestled for another fifteen minutes then after that spent another fifteen cutting promos and taking pictures then after waiting an hour and a half, decided to go to the hospital but it was unable to get sewn up.

He is now asked about the incident between him and Hawk in North Korea. Scorpio said that because of that, Flair and Eric Bischoff tried to blackball him from New Japan. Scorpio starts by saying that he hates to kick dirt on someone who is dead. He said that when the tour started, he had problems with Flair and was gonig to kick his ass. The promoters pleaded with him not to do anything and he gave them his word. Anyway, Scorpio saw Hawk sucking up to Flair and called him out for that, which caused Hawk to mutter ” fuck you nigger” under his breath. The next day, Flair, who was traveling by himself in a Mercedes instead of on the bus with the boys. Anyway, Hawk was with Flair and looking around, almost acting as a bodyguard, which prompted Too Cold to say “let the pussy ride by himself.” Hawk came over and took a few swings but Scorpio said that he landed three shots for every punch that Hawk threw. Scorpio in the beginning of teh interview said that he learned to box from his father. Anyway, Scorpio said that he told Hawk that this was not the place for this then Hawk landed the hardest punch he could throw, which Too Cold stated he no-sold and then proceeded to kick his ass. After it went down, they neded up hashing things out a Scorpio claimed that he even made a shank after the fight.

After getting fired from WCW, he wound up in ECW. His first match was at a farmer’s market against Sabu. That was the same night as the O.J. Simpson chase and the ring broke. They had a second match later on and the top rope broke then.

He is now asked about Heyman in ECW. Scorpio said that he was smart, stupid, and an asshole all wrapped up into one package. He said that he had great stories and angles but lied to the boys and was unable to handle the business end of the operation. He also still wants his PPV money.

Scorpio is asked if he had any problems with New Jack. He said at the time, he felt New Jack and Mustafa were using the racist stuff to get cheap heat in Smoky Mountain but that they could brawl. After that, Jack confornted him and they ended up hanging out and partying together. Scorpio calls Jack a “thug” and a “nigga for life.”

He thought that his heel turn in ECW was awful. The idea was brought up to him by Tod Gordon, who told him to finish smoking before considering the idea.

Scorpio thought that his pairing with the Sandman was a good idea due to the contrast of styles. He says that Sandman has more balls than anyone he knows and that he could drink a case and work like he was straight.

He is asked about several other workers in ECW. He liked working with Chris Jericho and thought they had excellent chemistry together. He loved the Steiner Brothers, calling them old school and that they did not take shit from anyone. He said that he watched them from ringside while he was training in Japan and that was how he learned to deliver a suplex. He loved working with RVD and they would smoke 4-5 jonits before their matches then forget what they had talked about doing before the match but RVD would end up remembering everything and they had fun. He said that Taz had a Napolean complex and was all bark and no bite. He was also obssessive over the his colors. He said that his broken neck was a lesson learned in respecting the guys you work with and a reminder that you could get injured at any time. He called Mr. Hughes a “chickeshit asshole” who would complain about getting hit. He said that Tommy Dreamer has no skills or talent and shouldnt be wrestling but that he would be great in the office and did appreciate that he would always help to get the money issues straightened out.

Scorpio was asked about the drug scene in ECW. He said that it was nice and heavy but that it got to the point in which it was way too heavy and when they decided to clean up, it was too late.

He then went to the WWF. He said that when he was there, he was constantly fighting with his wife and smoked a ton of weed. His wife was jealous of the Funkettes and Scorpio states that he never did anything with them.

He is then asked if he felt that his WWF run was a failure. He said no but that it was not as big as it could have been.

He is asked about Shawn Michaels. He said he was great in the ring but that he was too chickenshit to work with him then calls him a “kiss-ass motherfucker.” He said that the Montreal incident was cutthroat stuff then calls Michaels a chickenshit for pretending that he had nothing to do with it until later on.

He ended up leaving the WWF after getting addicted to crack and needing to clean-up. He said that Vince would not pay for his rehab.

Scorpio is asked about Missy Hyatt. He calls her a freak and that her plastic surgeries made her llok terrible. He then says that she fell into the wrong crowd.

When asked about Johnny Ace, he calls him a snake in the grass and is not surprised at all that he has an office job.

He thought that the “Heroes of Wrestling” PPV was a complete joke but he ended up getting a nice payday.

When asked how to get the wrestling business stronger, Scorpio said that they need to get away from T&A and make it more realistic.

On the subject of his drug use, Scorpio says that he smokes weed daily but that is all. If you sho up to his party with crack or cocaine, keep it and go somewhere else.

He is asked about the guys he just worked with prior to the shoot, AJ Styles and Chris Sabin. He calls them talented and that they were a pleasure to work with. They still need to improve but need to work with ohter talented guys for that to happen.

When asked if it is bes to learn from the dojo, Scorpio said yes but today you can get into a good school like Pro Wrestling Iron that is affiliated with NOAH. He puts over the school’s trainers, Mike Modest and Donovan Morgan.

Scorpio says that he has no interest in shoot fighting as you could kill off your name in one fight but adds that money talks.

He said that New Japan is hurting as the paycuts give the guys less incentive to work hard and they become lazy.

Scorpio thinks that Pride and K1 are fads but he likes the stiffness.

He is asked about Jake Roberts in the “Beyond the Mat” documentary. Scorpio says that was a straight shoot and a message to not get caught up with drugs.

Scorpio says that the high flyers today need to start from ground zero and learn how to work and lockup.

He thinks that a good worker is someone with heart who is able to take criticism.

He states that he is in talks with TNA right now and that it is tough to make a living as there are only a few companies to work for at the moment.

He is asked about racism and says that it is everywhere but not as bad as before. He is then asked about the lawsuit filed by Hardbody Harrison and Sonny Onoo by WCW and he says it’s bullshit.

Scorpio is asked about his opinion on dirt sheets. He says that it helps him keep in touch with the business whenever he grabs one. He currently lives in Germany.

His favorite matches were with Guerrero, Benoit, Finlay and the Pitbulls. His least favorite were with Mr. Hughes.

Final Thoughts: I enjoyed this interview a lot. It breezed right by and was less than ninety minutes too. Reading this, you would think that Scorpio sounded bitter but that was not the case. He did seem like he was on the “green tea” as he calls it and he did not have any regrets. They did not talk much about his WWF run at all but basically revealed that he was strung out on crack during most of his stint with the company. It certainly seemed like he had his enemies in WCW too and certainly didnt help himself over in North Korea. I would seek this out if you can, as Scorpio can tell a pretty good story.

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This interview was filmed in the beginning of 2007. It runs at two hours and twenty seven minutes long. This was the first installment of the “Face Off” series.

The interview starts with a graphic honoring Doug Gentry, who passed away prior to this filming. Gentry worked for RF Video and was responsible for filming the ECW FanCam footage

The interview starts with the food delivery arriving and the first few minutes are disorganized as the give the delivery guy instructions.

Raven asks Honky about him refusing to drop the Intercontinental Title and everything else that happened afterwards as a result. Honky said that Vince was worried because he already spoke with Jim Barnett of the NWA, who told him to not drop the belt on TV. He said he and Randy never had a problem over what happened, as he understood it was business, then said that Randy actually thanked him at one point due to receiving the World Heavyweight Title as a result. Honky goes through what was told to him after he got word from the office they wanted him to drop the belt, stating that he was told he was getting “rebuilt,” which he believed was back to the opening matches against guys like Lanny Poffo, S.D. Jones, and Pedro Morales and how that would greatly lower his income as he was just starting to make money when he was selling out the “B” shows. He confirms that DiBiase was promised the World Heavyweight Title and a feud with Hogan. He then says how he went to Vince and asked him to keep him strong on TV for a while and give him a chance to get over and make a little bit of money and if he failed, he would gladly do whatever Vince wanted.

Still on this topic, Raven goes into how back then, they had job guys to put over the stars and that the stars never did the job clean on TV and would wrestle the other stars at house shows and make money that way, which is not the case today. Honky adds that the contracts were not guaranteed then like they are today. He also says that back then, there were other places to go work unlike today. Honky also states that Vince respected him for standing up for himself.

Honky is asked by Raven about his costumes. He tells him that the ones he uses for independents is $3,500 and the one for special occasions and signings was $10,000. Honky talks about how the guys today all look cookie-cutter but that people recognize him due to his costume. He brings up how he talked to Jimmy Hart a few days ago and how the red and yellow color scheme always draws attention and was first used by Barnum and Bailey Circus before Hulk Hogan, adding that those colors always works. Raven talks about young guys not wanting to spend money on their look yet wait around for the office to give them a push. They both say how you will not make it if you do not try to set yourself apart from everyone else.

Honky talks about going to the WCW Powerplant when that was running and how all the young guys were sleeping on the floor instead of watching matches ot listening to advice. He goes on about how he drove 400 miles in a small car with other guys when he first started and did not get guaranteed money or even get plane fare to a training school. Raven says that Steve Keirn gave him the best advice when he first started and that was watch as much wrestling as you can. He then adds that you can do as many moves as you want but it doesnt mean shit if you cant sell tickets. Honky said that he asked Johnny Rodz if any of he guys he trained ever come back to train and he said no one does as soon as they get their first booking. Honky said when he first started, he would book himself on the weekends and go back and train twice a week for about nine months. Raven said you have to eat, sleep, and breath wrestling to make it and if you want to be a star or do flips, join the Cirque de Soleil. They then laugh at guys who think Hogan and Lawler cannot work because they do not use highspots in their matches.

They now talk about working the crowd. Honky said that Col. DeBeers told him if they yell boring, take it down a notch as if they are responding, they are paying attention.

Honky is asked about the hardcore stuff they did in Memphis. He said that it was controlled hardcore back then and he worked with guys that he had good chemistry with. Raven said when he got to ECW, Heyman thought that faces and heels were a thing of the past but he said it made it difficult to build a match so he decided to be a heel anway. He told other wrestlers in the company that he was only doing one chair shot in his match and some of them would complain about how others were doing ten at a time and Raven’s response was that it doesnt matter what they did as in his match, he can sell one fine. Honky recalls watching a RVD/Sabu match once that contained at least 25 chairshots. Raven also compares to the cruiser matches of today and how they do not sell. He says that today, many guys either no sell or act like they are dead, with nothing in between. Honky goes back to the ECW match he saw and said that he likes both guys and that was how ECW was structured. Raven said that he did less than others, partly due to laziness and drug addiction, but also because he wanted to build drama. Honky says that he tells the guys breaking in today that if you lose control, then the crowd and the match is lost.

Still on the subject, Honky hates table spots due to the lack of control as you have no idea if the table will cut you. Raven said you can have a feel of what you are doing after a while and that is why he uses an elbow drop, instead of a flippy-move that you have no control over. Honky said that a powerbomb through a table is something he hates as when you are taking the move, you have no idea where you are going. He then says that wrestling is entertainment and athletics, not stuntman routines. Raven says that he tells the young guys that he wants to wrestle until he is 50 years old and that the guys he was with in TNA four years ago who did all highspots are now starting to take it down a few notches as they are already beat up. Honky brings up Mick Foley and how after falling off the top of the cage, there was nothing left to do. Raven adds that the fact he was a good talker is what kept him relevant after that.

Raven talks about the Japanese style of working stiff and says that he showed one of his friends a tape of the work and wasn’t impressed at all, stating that he could it a guy for real if he wanted to and that there was no skill in working stiff. Raven adds that the real skill is making it look realistic while not hurting yourself or your opponent. Honky says that he cannot sell an actual punch the same as a worked punch.

They now talk about facial expressions and body movement and how the guys today really lack those skills. Honky said that he learned to use body movement to sell when he worked under a mask at the beginning of his career and when his hair grew out, he could jerk his head and have his hair move around. Honky adds that Bret Hart was able to overcome his complete lack of facial expression because his body movement was excellent. Honky talks about three guys who completely lacked animation: Lex Luger, Ultimate Warrior, and Tom Magee. Honky talks about Magee and how he was supposed to be the next Hogan and was 6’7 300lbs and do backflips off the top rope. Raven asks how come they didnt stick with him and Honky said that he had no lateral movement at all and couldnt even sell anything. Raven then tells a story about how he had to work with Bill Goldberg in WCW and that Goldberg told him he wasnt going to sell anything.

The above discussion about Goldberg leads into a rant on Bret Hart by Honky. He brings up how Hart said in an interview that he didnt like working with him because he was “too soft” in the ring. Honky then tells Bret who would he rather work with for the next five years, him or Goldberg, who kicked him in the head and put him out of the business. For a more profane and animated version of this rant, check out Honky’s First YouShoot DVD. Honky adds that Hart and Flair worked the same match every night then Raven laughs about the fact that Hart accused Flair of working the same match every night when he did the exact same thing.

They now talk about Flair. Raven said that Flair dissed him while he was in WCW. Honky brings up Flair’s book and how he said that he wouldnt have been a main event talent if it wasn’t for Hogan. Honky adds that he was in main events before going to the WWF and added that Arn Anderson wouldn’t have amounted to “dog shit” if it wasn’t for Flair and that his head was shoved so far up his ass that he was surprised he could even breath.

They now talk about friends in the business as Honky adds that all the stars had their own versions of Brutus Beefcake. Raven says that you want to get your friends jobs but only build them up to their skill level and not to promote them further than that. Honky said that was how you got to get jobs in other territories back in the day. He said guys like the Bushwhackers and Joe LeDuc would help him out. Raven said that he always tries to get his friends like Sandman, Disco Inferno, and Johnny Swinger jobs but that no one else wants to do that today. He recalls a story about Edge, who he was very close with in the WWF, asked him to go to the office and help him out for a program or to take a look at as he was getting jobbed out, but he refused. Raven also brings up that Edge did the same thing to Johnny Swinger, who was the best man at his first wedding during his time in the WWE. Raven doesnt get why people do not want to help there friends and asks how fucking selfish can you be. Honky believes the friendships died when the territories did as you would go to the WWF and guys you worked with for years wouldnt talk to you anymore. Then after that, the greed really started to set in and everyone stopped looking out for each other. Raven jokes about how Disco never thanked him for creating his gimmick and he is one of his best friends.

Honky talks about getting into the ring with younger guys on the independents and that most of them are a bit nervous and some of them do not realize who he is but a lot of them screw up in the ring. Honky recalls that when he first started out, he wrestled against Lou Thesz and got the shit kicked out of him and that he deserved it as he kept screwing up but that was how you learned. He then adds how guys with nine total matches will approach him about wanting to do certain spots and how hat boggles his mind. Raven talks about how guys on the indies will say that they have been working for three years but when you ask them ho wmany matches they have had they say ten. This leads to a discussion about Taz, who yells at guys for not paying their dues constantly, yet Raven says that Taz spent one day in Memphis and quit and worked just a few matches in a four-year span. Honky adds that Taz used to tote around Kevin Sullivan’s bags then Raven tells a story of how Taz had an orgasm in the ring after being on the receiving end of a German suplex by Sullivan. Honky finishes by saying you no longer ask someone how long they have been in the business but rather how many matches they have had.

Raven talks about when he was relegated to “Sunday Night Heat” that the jobbers he would work with who claim that they could do all sorts of stuff and he would have them punch and kick each other in the ring and 9-out-of-10 could not do anything. Honky said that when he first started, he would get the VHS tapes of his matches and watch them all night to improve on what he was doing incorrectly.

They now talk about wrestling schools and how they are no being run by guys with very little experience. Raven said that he trained at Larry Sharpe’s school, who was a nobody in wrestling, but was mostly trained by Charlie Fulton, who was a solid worker for many years. Raven said that they guys who train the students there now are those who wrestled several TV squashes in the WWF and that is their qualification.

Raven brings up the Disco Inferno again and how he always wanted to be the Honky Tonk Man. Honky said that he met Disco once then again a few years later and Disco did not recall meeting him that first time. Raven talks about how he got Disco his first break when he was in Memphis and Jerry Lawler asked him what his gimmick was and he said that it was the Disco Inferno. Raven said that he took it from a guy in Calgary who wrestled with a disco gimmick. Raven asks Honky if it means something to him that he was a reason that a wrestler got into the business. Honky said that it does because you impacted the life of someone. Honky then said that people want to be the next Rock but that he did not last in the business long enough as he found another way to make millions of dollars.

Back from a break, Raven asks Honky about the Hall of Fame. He says that it is an honor in the sense that there are a lot of great names associated with the award but that he does not want to sign over all of his rights with to the WWE (control of his character), which will not let him continue to earn on the independents. Honky adds that if they are going to let Mike Rotundo be an agent and have Barry Windham on payroll, at least let him sweep the floors.

Now, Raven has the list of the 101 dirtiest rumors in wrestling, a popular list. He and Honky go through some of the rumors. I will list the rumors and post their thoughts:

Kevin Sullivan spends his vacations at a nudist colony. Take that image through
the day.

Honky thinks it could be true then recalls how he teamed with him in Atlanta before Ole Anderson fired him.

Tommy Rich did some favors for Jim Barnett in exchange for the NWA World Title

Honky believes that is false, as he knows Rich. He then recalls how he was one of the most recognizable wrestlers on television before Hulk Hogan came around. This then leads to Honky talking about the Fuller’s who gave him some payoffs in pot. Raven said that he heard rumors about them giving the boys “powder payoffs.” Now, Raven, asks Honky about Robert Fuller having a huge cock, which Honky confirms and jokes that they called it the “gutwrench” and doesnt understand why he didnt go into porn.

NWA World Champion Gene Kiniski bought Kevin Von Erich a hooker in Las Vegas,
when Kevin was TWELVE.

Honky thinks it could be true as he was Canadian and they are not as uptight about sex as American’s.

A coked up Kerry and Kevin were once playing with a saw blade in the back
hallways at the sportatorium. Kerry saw a cat, so he threw the saw blade at the
cat, killing it.

Honky said it could be true then praises Kerry for being a great guy but that he was unable to read the cue cards for the house show promos in the WWF.

R&R Express walk in on Jimmy Valiant laying on the floor jerking off under a
glass table that a hooker is shitting on. Ricky throws up and leaves, while
Robert stays to watch.

Raven says that it sounds entirely plausible but Honky can’t see Ricky leaving the room in that situation.

Dusty Rhodes got Baby Doll fired (or something) because he was pissed that she
married near-jobber Sam Houston instead of him.

This leads to a discussion of how the business has changed with the women as they used to get in the business to be with the boys and now they get in to wrestle. Raven also adds how back then, the women used to get with the main eventers but now they are with the undercard guys.

Manny Fernandez took a dump in “Number One” Paul Jones brand-new Stetson hat,
put it back in the hat box on the airplane, like nothing happened, and went to
sit back by Jones for the remainder of the flight.

Honky said it sounds true as Manny would do just about anything.

Raven got caught in a hotel room with Becky Bayless at age 14, and Becky slept
with Joel Gertner and his wife.

Raven said that she was in the room but nothing happened because he knew she was underaged and he was interrogated by the police and let go as they even knew that nothing happened. What went on was that he was two other adult woman and they slept together and they left in the morning and when the cops came into the room, Raven was naked in the bed and Becky was in the room. Raven then added that Mikey Whipwreck told Heyman that Raven got arrested. Honky joked that Raven really did work for Lawler.

Rip Rogers pulled Barry Windham’s keys out of a commode filled with shit and
Jack Daniels after a particularly hard night of partying with his bare hands.

Raven said that sounds true and that Windham was known for having the spray shits. Honky said that Rip would do just about anything for money. Rip said that he never drank or did drugs but would do stuff for money.

Johnny Valentine would take a dump and strategically place it where it couldn’t
be found easily like the inside of bed posts.

Both guys talk about the stories they heard of Valentine being vicious in his pranks. Honky then tells a story of his son Greg and how one day he saw Greg piss in the ice machine at a hotel and to this day, he will never use or even allow his kids to use those machines.

Shawn Michaels supposedly invited three hot girls back to his hotel room. He
told them to all get naked and get on their knees. He whips out his ding dong
and the girls figure it’s going to be a suck-fest, but instead he proceeds to
take a piss in each of their mouths.

Honky said that sounded like something that Marty Jannetty would have done. This leads to the guys telling a few stories about Marty. Raven tells one of how a girl moved into his house and started to get her mail sent there and when Marty tried to kick her out but the judge ruled that since her mail was being sent there, she had a right to stay and Marty basically got kicked out of his own house. Honky then tells a story of how he was with Marty in Scotland a few years ago, just a few days after he was baptized by Shawn Michaels. Honky got a bottle of Bell’s Whiskey and Marty was telling him how he was clean and getting back in the WWE. Honky had the bottle and asked Marty if he wanted a hit and he declined. At 3am, Honky heard a knock on the door and it was Marty, asking for a taste of the whiskey. Honky gave him a good sized glass and Marty left then came back five minutes later. The next day, Marty asked for something for his back and Honky gave him some codeine. Marty asked him how many to take, Honky told him if you are not drinking, you can take 2-3. Marty asked him a few hours later if he should take more and Honky said as long as you are not drinking then Marty took four more. Marty then asked for some whiskey and Honky said that it was not a good idea but Marty drank it anyway. They get to the show and Marty is puking out of the car then goes in the arena and has the match. That night, Honky heard another knock on the door and it was Marty and again he was asking for some whiskey. Honky says that he loves Marty and that we all have our problems.

Raven asks Honky if he thinks people have really found religion. Raven said that Terry Taylor has but Honky is weary of that, stating that he is still stabbing people in the back. Honky said that Greg Valentine told him he has found religion and has stopped lying and double-booking himself. Honky talks about Ted DiBiase and how he was full of shit for calling Vince McMahon the devil then going back to work for him. Honky then jokes about Ted fucking a preacher’s wife.

Apparently after Lawler first arrived in the good old WWF a lot of people
disliked him for his general arrogant attitude. Hall, Nash, and Michaels didn’t
take to this too well, so at one of the Royal Rumbles, Lawler left his crown in
the dressing room to do the Rumble. So the Kliq decided to shit in his crown.
But apparently this wasn’t like a couple of turds in the crown. They apparently
filled King’s precious crown to the brim with a nice, hearty Kilq shit.

Honky said that he heard a rumor that is was someone who is now an agent in the WWE and got fucked over on payoffs from Lawler in Memphis. He didnt want to say who it was as he didnt know it to be 100%. He said it was not someone from the Kliq.

The guys now talk about Bam Bam Bigelow, who passed away shortly before this interview. Honky said he was agile and could work like a big man, unlike Vader who wanted to work like a cruiserweight. Raven also talks about Kamala and the One Man Gang being great big men too, as they could sway back and forth and not fall down.

TAKA fucked Sunny while Candido watched.

Both guys praise Chris for being a great guy. Honky said he was the most forgiving person and Raven adds how he was very caring and how it was a shame that he died of a ring injury after he got his life back in order. Honky then adds that sometimes, nice guys die first and that Jake Roberts, Jim Neidhart, and Kevin Von Erich will probably live forever.

Jushin Liger likes to loan out his wife to folks like Sasuke, TAKA, and
Hayabusa. He may also like to watch.

Neither guy has a clue but Honky tells a story of how he saw a Japanese Porn of a guy tied up and a bunch of girls lined up in a row to kick him in the nuts. He said that he sent it to Dory Funk as a joke. He then says that the Bushwhackers send him a lot of porn. Raven talks about how Japan censors penetration in their films.

Mike Rapada paid $25,000 to win the NWA belt.

Neither guy has a clue if this is true or not but it leads into a discussion about how others were rumored to have done this sort of stuff in the past. Raven brings up the rumor that Magnum TA’s other took a mortage out on their home for him to get the NWA belt in the 1980’s. Honky then says he would give Vince money today to be the world champ as long as he got half of what he made. Honky then talks about the money Hogan made in the 1980’s saying that he wrestled nine times a week and usually made about $20,000 plus more for the big shows and for his merchandise sales and says that adds up to over $200,000 a week. He says that people do not believe him when he talks about the money Hogan made but it was true and that gys like Austin and Rock do not even compare. Raven asks if Hogan should have gone to bat for the other wrestlers to unionize and get healthcare but Honky said there was no reason to risk his payday. Honky said that there should have been a profit sharing system if you have been there for a certain amount of time then Raven joked that Vince  would probably fire you a month before that was to happen.

Curt Hennig was supposedly one of those that shit in Lawler’s crown.

Honky said no but that Hennig did shit in the bag of Chief Jay Strongbow’s son (Mark Young). Raven tells a story of how Hennig was a puppet master and when the 1-2-3 Kid came in, Hennig saved his eyebrows and blamed it on the Smoking Gunns so the Kid put super glue in their cowboy hats then the Gunns gave him a receipt.

Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissey describes seeing Andre screwing – “like a lion raping a
rabbit”.

Raven said that Buddy Rose was proud of the fact that Andre once shoved his thumb up his ass.

Raven did not wear clothes backstage in TNA until someone complained that Dixie Carter would see his horsecock.

Raven said that was true. Honky then goes on and says that the locker room should be the sanctuary for the boys. He then says in the WWF, when Sable and Sunny would have their catfights, they would get separate locker rooms and they would all have to dress in the hallway if there were only two locker rooms in the arena and they couldnt change when they were out in the hallway. They both talk about how they hate when people bring their friends and family into the locker room when they are trying to get dressed. Raven says that he was working for 3PW and Jasmin St. Claire would complain that he would walk around naked. Honky tells a story about how Virgil was their with Jasmin in the locker room and told Honky he couldnt get dressed as she was in the room. Honky told him that she got gang-banged on film and Virgil started to take off his clothes. Raven tells a story of how Colonel DeBeers would pretend he was gay in the locker room towards Rex King, who was very homphobic and would chase him around naked.

Raven talks about locker rooms in ECW and how women and men shared the rooms and they didnt have any showers so he would just wash himself in the sink. Honky said that they treated the women wrestlers like their sisters back then and would turn around when they got dressed.

According to a referee who was released from the WWF, Bradshaw tied up a
wrestler in the shower while he was naked and rubbed baby oil all over him
threatening to rape him until he cried while the lockerroom looked on and
laughed. I think the victim might have date-raped a girl, or may have just not
been well-liked. It was never specified who the victim was other than this
happened in like ’98 or ’99 and the guy was a fairly well known wrestler, I also
heard it might have been Brian Christopher aka Grandmaster Sexay.

Raven said this was true and it was in fact, Brian Christopher. Raven also said that Christopher was screaming that “Guys don’t do this to other guys” as Honky wants to know how come Bradshaw hasnt done that to Jerry Lawler.

Remember when David Flair quit IWA Puerto Rico due to unfit living conditions?
And everybody ragged on him when they found out IWA had put him up in a nice
house? Well, that nice house belonged to Victor Quiones. I shouldn’t have to say
anymore, but I will. David was sleeping one night and was woken up by Quiones
standing over him about to blow a load on his face. David quit the next day.

Neither guy has a clue but they are reminded that Ric Flair tried to go after Quiones and this prompts Honky to talk about going after someone in front of a bunch of people is not the way to go and that you should take the person aside and try to work out the problem. Raven asks about Koko B. Ware going after someone once and Honky talks about he came after Hacksaw Duggan with a nip once as Duggan slapped it away from him and said get the fuck away from him. Raven tells a story of how Billy Jack Haynes almost killed him once in Portland after Art Barr blamed him for a rib that he pulled. They talk about Jericho taking down Goldberg as Raven says that Jericho has that “Canadian retard strength.” Honky again stresses that you do no to this in front of everyone and work it out on the side.

They now talk about the Dynamite Kid/Jacques Rougeau incident. Honky says that Dynamite broke Jacques jaw after punching him while he was sitting down playing cards. He said that when Dynamite got hit, everyone was saying how he was holding two cups of coffee and couldnt defend himself but they add how neither could Jacques when he was sitting down holding cards. Honky then goes on about how Dynamite claimed in his book that he slapped him and Honky cried. Honky tells the story about they had a confrontation one night and he approached him the next night and asked Dynamite if they had a problem and he said no and that was the end of that. What happened was that Heenan made a joke about Harley Race not being able to take an ass bump due to a colostomy bag then someone spread a rumor that after a sold out show at the Boston Garden, Honky said that he paid the boys’ rent. Honky actually told Jimmy Hart that at least they paid their rent tonight and that Dynamite would mention that to him for the next two weeks. Honky then talks about Dynamite weighing about 130 lbs when he first started and that he got bigger because of steroids. He then says that he terrorized Terry Taylor and would cut up his clothes, which is not a rib but just destroyin someone’s property. Raven says that when that happens, its a lose/lose situation as if you fight back, it means that you cannot take a rib. Anyway, Dynamite flipped out on him after drinking all day long and asked him why he said that about Harley and Honky told him that he didnt say the joke, Bobby Heenan did. Honky says that Dynamite might have been a tough guy all jacked up on roids and drunk but if there was any crying, it would have been Dynamite after he stuck his foot up his ass. Honky says that he pissed off all the European guys after saying that Dynamite deserves everything he got after the way he treated people. Apparently, Finlay was irate over this and threatened to fly over there and kick his ass. Honky then mentions how Diana Smith called Dynamite the biggest liar he has ever met.

Honky closes by saying that he has done a lot of bad things and some good things but he doesnt care what people say when he is gone as he can’t hear them. He doesnt even care what they say about him when he is alive.

Final Thoughts: A fantastic shoot. Both guys were insightful and hilarious, especially the Honky Tonk Man who stood out a lot more than Raven did here. The interview had a little bit of everything from gossip, gross stories, hilarious stories and even some heartfelt moments. The first hour contained a lot of knowledge and how it is lost on a majority of the wrestlers today, which is still a glaring problem today. Having the guys go through the list of rumors was a fun segment, even if it did drag a bit but the side-stories that they told were usually better than their own insight on the rumors. As the debut of the “Face Off” series, I dont think that any of the fifteen other volumes that have followed can compare to this one. I give this a high recommendation. You can download the video for $9.99 at Highspots.com. I did and it is well worth the price, IMO. Here is the link:

http://www.highspots.com/p/VD_faceoff1_raven_HTM.html