Bronco

Wrestling Legend “Cowboy� Bill Watts Joined Wrestling Weekly February 23 to
talk about breaking into the business, how wrestling has changed, and his
grateful relationship with God:::

On Thursday, February 23, Wrestling Weekly with hosts Doc Young and Les
Thatcher welcomed legendary wrestler and promoter “Cowboy� Bill Watts to the
show.

Legendary “Cowboy� Bill Watts has become part of pro wrestling’s storied
history since his debut in 1963. A former American Football League player,
Bill notoriously feuded with Bruno Sammartino, Verne Gagne (AWA) and Gene
Kiniski (NWA) in the early part of his wrestling career. The second part of
his career found him running Mid-South Wrestling and the Universal Wrestling
Federation with Jim Ross as a promoter. But it was the time he spent as Vice
President of Wrestling for Turner Broadcasting for WCW and the subsequent
three-month stint at WWF right after in the early 1990s that led him to
leave wrestling behind for good.

Bill talked about the late Wahoo McDaniel, also a pro football player,
getting him into the pro wrestling business. They played football together
at OSU and Bill described one night sitting around drinking “Colorado
Kool-Aid� (Coors beer) and seeing Wahoo with a huge paycheck in his hands.
Wahoo told Bill he would be great as a wrestler and said, “I’ll get you in,
I’ll get you booked� and after a few false starts, the rest is wrestling
history. Bill said, “Wahoo was a free spirit� and a “great guy, great
friend� as well as “one tough linebacker.�

Bill said he was playing for the Indianapolis Warlords while he was breaking
into the business and was offered a contract from the Houston Oilers for
$8,000. He soon realized that this is considerably less than he could make
in wrestling, which he said could be as high as $25,000 per year�pretty good
money for the early 1960s.

Bill talked about his stint at WCW when Sting offered him a caveat that the
wrestling business had changed. Bill said in the early days wrestlers were
paid based on how much they drew, not regardless of the size of the house.
He said about kayfabe, “If you take the mystery out of it, to me you’ve lost
something.� He cited the “Titanic� movie as an example, “It sinks!�

Bill says he believes there are still a lot of great guys working out there
but it is decidedly very different now. The kids, he said, are “bigger,
stronger, faster� and he’s certain “it will never go back to the way it
was.� He was surprised when he worked a short stint at the WWF in the 90s
that the moves are now so choreographed that the guys had trouble working up
a last-minute match on their own.

As a promoter he believed in “running it like a business� and would often
fine wrestlers for indiscretions because he is a firm believer in “personal
responsibility.� He said many workers left his company angry at him but
would thank him later. He says fines “are just a way to wake them up.�
Still, his strict style and reputation he believes precedes him because it
is often taken out of context and passed on from an outsider’s point of
view. He was asked about a comment by the Ultimate Warrior that Bill was
unfairly tough�reportedly kicking guys in the ribs for no reason. Bill
admitted, “We did some tough things� but “the Ultimate Warrior is such a
pussy.� He said he couldn’t believe a guy with that physique could be such a
sissy. Bill said, “I have no respect for him.�

Bill became a Christian in 1984 and with the help of fellow Christian Scott
Williams, he recently penned his autobiography called The Cowboy and the
Cross: The Bill Watts Story: Rebellion, Wrestling, and Redemption. The book
chronicles his vast career in the territories as a wrestler, his work as a
promoter, and how his life has changed with the help of Jesus Christ among
other topics.

He said it was hard to write the book but felt that if he could help at
least one person, it was worth reliving what he calls “the mind, the blood
and the beer� of a “hedonistic, amoral business.� Since he had no interest
in feeding his own ego, Bill said he initially “had no desire to do it.� He
calls his life “a snapshot of rebellion� and said he used anger and temper
to protect himself from the pain of feelings of inadequacy and a difficult
childhood. He admittedly “ran on temper� for many years only to find solace
in God by understanding his relationship with Him. So he hopes that his
story will ultimately help at least one person.

Bill talked about his special relationship with Jim Ross who he calls “a
master of commentary� and his experience at Ring of Honor at Jim Cornette’s
insistence. He said at ROH, “They treated me like a million bucks.� And he
talked about the current product being offered on television, stating that
“it’s gone beyond the pale� and it disrespects women and promotes drugs
among other things.

“Cowboy� Bill Watts’ book, The Cowboy and the Cross: The Bill Watts Story:
Rebellion, Wrestling, and Redemption can be ordered on Amazon.com or by any
local book retailer. For more about Bill, check out his Web site at

To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 20 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
.

Listen to the entire show at
To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 20 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Next week on Thursday, March 2 Doc Young will joined by a special guest
co-host TBA. Wrestling Weekly can be heard every Thursday from 8:00-10:00 pm
EST at
To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 20 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
.