Beyond the Mat (1999)

1. I don't know why I like it. I just always have.

2. This is where I first became addicted.

3. I'd spend countless hours planted in front of the TV,

4. mesmerized by these images of these strong guys taking matters into their own hands,

5. watching,

6. fantasizing.

7. No!

8. Thirty years later, I'm a screenwriter with a wife and two kids.

9. I still watch wrestling.

10. I just don't tell a lot of people about it. Can you blame me?

11. Can you imagine the level of a mind that watches wrestling, huh?

12. I don't care.

13. I love the pageantry,

14. the athleticism,

15. even the incredibly cheesy acting.

16. I look at wrestling as theater at its most base.

17. And guess what. So do most of the fans.

18. We know what's going on.

19. Is it sport? Is it entertainment?

20. It's both. It's, um, wrestling.

21. Now let's get something straight.

22. I know wrestling is a show.

23. But it's not as fake as you think.

24. Of course, the winners of the matches are predetermined,

25. and the violence is choreographed.

26. However, the result of the violence is very real.

27. All these years watching wrestling,

28. one thought still swirls in my mind.

29. What sort of human being

30. bashes another man's skull into a ring post for a living?

31. And here they go!

32. Who are these guys?

33. So I got out of my chair and decided to find out.

34. I figured, why not start at the top?

35. The World Wrestling Federation.

36. World Wrestling Federation.

37. One moment.

38. World Wrestling Federation.

39. - One moment.

40. - World Wrestling Federation.

41. - One moment. World Wrestling Federation. The WWF is big. How big?

42. They're worth close to a billion dollars.

43. That's more than the New York Knicks, Rangers and Mets combined.

44. World Wrestling Federation.

45. One moment.

46. World Wrestling Federation.

47. World Wrestling Federation.

48. This empire has been ruled by one family

49. for four generations.

50. The McMahon family.

51. Its current jefe, Vince McMahon.

52. It's going down. After you.

53. When Vince bought the WWF from his father,

54. overnight he changed wrestling from a regional business

55. to an international phenomenon.

56. Some of our success stories... - Okay.

57. A certain amount of respect comes with that.

58. But hopefully that simply will only be used as an entree

59. to encourage someone's interest to then find out what we're really about.

60. We make movies.

61. We're gonna shoot, we're gonna shoot...

62. How we gonna shoot this? Straight down this way.

63. Right. He's gonna walk on. I want to get a background.

64. - You're not dancing. - I know.

65. I'm strutting. That was my strut.

66. Can you see the cables behind him?

67. Can you see the cable behind him? No. I want a nice, clean shot.

68. Like an old-time studio, Vince has writers.

69. That's it. Calm, cool and collected.

70. And by the time you have that out, here she comes.

71. - And it's that simple. - Very good.

72. Okay? And that's where she does a number on you,

73. and I guess it's gonna be the back. Right?

74. And just really, really, really sell the back.

75. Sell the back to the point that we don't think you're gonna be able to compete.

76. Vince has in-house composers.

77. It's, uh... You know, he walks like this. Boom.

78. So the theme's gotta reflect that.

79. The man they call Fever!

80. He even has wardrobe designers.

81. The way I see it, the critics have it all wrong.

82. - The WWF isn't about fighting.

83. It's about spectacle.

84. You know, I could care less who wins. I could care less who loses.

85. As long as we got an ass every 18 inches, I'm a happy man.

86. Oh, yeah. They have wrestlers too,

87. because without them, it would be hard to move the merchandise.

88. Reports from retail, we are still one of the top-two-selling licenses.

89. It's us and South Park fighting it out almost head-to-head

90. at every retailer right now.

91. Way to go. Way to go.

92. There's a... There's a direct similarity between WWF and the Muppets.

93. Family-owned company, uh, based...

94. The whole business based in performance and characters,

95. with real human beings playing characters.

96. In our case, they just don't happen to be using puppets.

97. It's gonna have motion detector eyes.

98. To keep the merchandise fresh,

99. they're always creating new stars.

100. - Sounds good. Thank you. - Make yourself comfortable though.

101. - Okay, thank you. The day I was there,

102. - they were beginning a push for Droz.

103. From an upper-class background, Darren Drozdov was an unlikely candidate.

104. A former Denver Bronco, his career was undistinguished.

105. However, he did have one particular talent.

106. - Golly!

107. Now you puke!

108. In this, Vince saw a potential superstar.

109. - Sorry again for keeping you. - Oh, that's okay.

110. - Have a seat. - Darren.

111. How's it going?

112. Quite frankly, what we've come up with

113. is since you are able to

114. - regurgitate, you know, on command, um...

115. It just seems to me that... That it's pretty logical

116. that you should be "Puke."

117. - Okay... - You know? Um...

118. "Puke" has a nice connotation to it.

119. You know, I mean, it's like you got Animal, you got Hawk, you got Puke.

120. You know? And it shouldn't be just plain Puke.

121. It should be... Puke. You know?

122. So after you've regurgitated on one of your opponents

123. or on the referee itself,

124. then, of course, the ring announcer would,

125. you know, then say your name.

126. Okay.

127. And then again, it's like since you've got the fundamentals and so forth,

128. and I think you're ready to go with it, I think that...

129. You know, Puke is... Puke is good.

130. - I think Puke is nice.

131. - See, I've never heard that. That's great. - No, that's right.

132. Everybody always gives me stuff about it. But that's good.

133. No. It's...

134. It fits the WWF attitude.

135. Okay. Sounds... Sounds good to me.

136. - Think you're ready for it? I'm ready to roll with it. Definitely.

137. Well, I've got one thing I want you to do for me. Okay?

138. And that's gonna be right back over here.

139. Oh, no...

140. Now, I've been waiting for this. Okay. I guess...

141. - You want me to get sick, huh? - You want a little coffee or what? Huh?

142. I think I'll be good. - You need some water?

143. Huh?

144. Try not to get it on the rest of my table here. Huh?

145. I won't do that. - Can you do that? Huh? You gonna get sick?

146. It's a possibility. - Huh?

147. Huh? Oh, my God. He's... He's gonna... He's gonna...

148. He's gonna... He's comin' to puke!

149. He's gonna puke! He's gonna puke!

150. - He's gonna... He's gonna puke!

151. That's it. - Oh, man.

152. Hi, Mama. It's me.

153. Oh, it went well. Um...

154. You'll be real proud of me, Mama.

155. I'm now known as Puke.

156. But what if you weren't born with the skill of projectile vomiting?

157. How do you become a wrestler?

158. The same way you become a doctor. You go to school.

159. That's a good name.

160. Thank you for calling Pacific Coast Sports,

161. home of All Pro Wrestling, Gym Wars and APW Boot Camp,

162. the number one pro wrestling training camp in the country.

163. So I went to All Pro Wrestling,

164. school and independent promotion in Hayward, California.

165. Most wrestling schools are run by wrestlers.

166. This one is run by an accountant, Roland Alexander.

167. I don't guarantee them anything except an education in pro wrestling

168. and make a better person out of them,

169. you know, improve their character.

170. We try to run APW more like a family thing.

171. I don't... I don't want steroids. I mean...

172. If our guys don't have bodies, they don't have bodies. That's it.

173. Roland has had some success. - You gotta get way up there.

174. Two of his graduates have gone on to sign with the WWF.

175. Very good. Very good.

176. - Hi. Can I help you? - I'm looking for a Roland Alexander.

177. - That's me. Your name? - How you doing? I'm Ben Segal.

178. Ben Segal. Good to meet you.

179. I'm gonna tell you something that you might not like.

180. Uh, there's no money in pro wrestling

181. on the independent level. I mean...

182. Yeah, you're gonna make anywhere from 25 bucks

183. to maybe, you know, a hundred and a quarter.

184. Sometimes if you're real good, you can make as much as $300

185. wrestling for an independent promotion.

186. But really where the big money is, is with the major leagues.

187. Not that our product isn't major league.

188. Uh, you can't tell our fans that. You can't tell our wrestlers that.

189. But we're really a minor league feeding system

190. to the WWF, WCW and ECW.

191. Are you aware of the proper way of eating is like...

192. Are you conscious of looking at labels

193. and the back of labels and looking at fat content and...

194. Yeah. - Stay away from the Jack in the Boxes and...

195. I don't care if you got good credit, bad credit, no credit.

196. Everybody applies.

197. We have a rule around here, "You don't pay, you don't play."

198. Okay? Um...

199. So, how soon are you ready to make a commitment?

200. Are you ready to make a $500 deposit in the next couple of weeks?

201. By the way, anybody that needs to make payments tonight,

202. make sure you get 'em out of the way.

203. I'm gonna be out of town tomorrow.

204. One of Roland's most promising students was Tony Jones.

205. Hey, Dad. - Hey, how you doin'?

206. Pretty good. I'm tired. Just got off work.

207. Yeah. I know how work is.

208. What time you get off today?

209. I work at Visa right now.

210. I've been workin' at Visa for about two and a half years.

211. I'm pretty content there. I mean, I make... I make pretty good money.

212. I usually get about $25 to do a gym workshop.

213. I take all the damage for $25,

214. and, um, I use the experience to try to better myself and get out of there.

215. See how I did that?

216. Don't get me wrong. There's times when we don't get paid at all.

217. $25 sometimes is a privilege.

218. He tells you that he doesn't pay you

219. unless he feels that you had a good match and you're worth it.

220. They get paid after every show, and they're loving it.

221. You know, and they're gettin' paid well.

222. I... I really believe that I'm probably the best indie promoter

223. as far as payoffs are concerned.

224. You know, there's no excuse for not paying someone.

225. You have to be a prick in this business.

226. If you don't, the wrestlers will run all over you.

227. Their egos are such and... And their characters such

228. that they will just walk all over you.

229. So if you think you can be a nice guy

230. and be a successful promoter in professional wrestling,

231. you better get out of this business right now.

232. See, James? You went in like you were gonna give him a blow job.

233. Your face was right in the middle of his pelvis.

234. Mike Modest was Roland's golden boy.

235. Therefore, Mike was given a room above the gym.

236. How long have you been living here?

237. I've been living here for about, uh...

238. For about a year, year and a half.

239. Not making a killing in wrestling,

240. Mike supports himself by working for a local funeral home, picking up bodies.

241. I don't fool myself.

242. I'm very realistic

243. about wrestling in the United States.

244. Japan would be the place for me to go,

245. because in Japan they still appreciate the sport side of it.

246. Whereas, you know, in the US it's become almost completely

247. um, entertainment and Hollywood.

248. All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome APW's Gym Wars!

249. Come on, move it! We gotta move it! Quick!

250. The night I was there,

251. the boys wrestled before a record-breaking crowd of 112 people.

252. Fans are close to the action. Sometimes too close.

253. Like this guy in the, uh, green shirt who spat on a wrestler.

254. I'll send you right over...

255. You spic-ass motherfucker!

256. - Shut up! - He spit in my face, man.

257. Five minutes! Outside, you bitch!

258. A thousand dollars says you don't fuckin' show!

259. This guy here, his real job?

260. Mechanic for United Airlines.

261. - I'm callin' you out right now, motherfucker. Meanwhile...

262. It seems like he's got pretty good timing.

263. I showed footage of Mike and Tony

264. to Jim Ross back at the WWF.

265. He agreed to give them a tryout.

266. Mike Modest has been ready for a year.

267. And it's... It's sad.

268. Mike Modest is 215 pounds.

269. And he's too big to be a flier,

270. and he's too small to be a heavyweight.

271. And for him not to have a contract is a travesty.

272. Tony, Mike and Roland's big day had come.

273. They were about to get their tryout with the WWF.

274. - See that guy. - Okay.

275. Tip it up.

276. Tonight you'll probably go on first or second, early.

277. Don't get nervous, 'cause the people are not gonna know who you are,

278. 'cause you haven't been on TV.

279. So, the most important thing is, you're telling them the story,

280. they're not telling you the story.

281. So even if they don't get with it at first,

282. don't get going too fast.

283. When you go too fast, you start making mistakes.

284. The ring's bigger. The ropes...

285. - Are looser. - Are looser.

286. Can't bounce off the ropes like I usually do. I gotta work it more.

287. It's kind of an amazing sight.

288. You know, you know, uh, when I first walked in today,

289. I said, "Jesus God, this is so big and so complex.

290. "I hope the APW never gets to that point."

291. I always just picture myself just being content with a small

292. regional promotion in Northern California, but who knows?

293. You know. Who knows what will happen to APW?

294. But, you know, this is kind of an amazing sight.

295. Jones, goin' out first.

296. Modest, second with music. Okay? Wait till I send you.

297. I think Roland was even more nervous than Tony and Mike.

298. That's because if the WWF signed his boys,

299. Roland would receive 20% of their contract.

300. What do you guys think so far?

301. I think he's doing good. Both of them.

302. - First time I've seen Tony in person. - That's a nice bridge.

303. - Nice wrestling move for a change. - Yeah.

304. I've never seen Tony either. I've seen Michael.

305. Modest is, uh, Modest is pretty solid.

306. Jesus Christ. I think maybe we need a little work there.

307. - Yeah. - You know.

308. - I gotta run. You give me a videotape? - Yeah.

309. - Okay. - Tony's got a big frame.

310. Needs to work on his upper body a little bit.

311. The people are not crucifying him even though they don't know him, which is good.

312. 'Cause I told him, that always throws guys off.

313. They're giving us what they got.

314. That's all you can ask.

315. Wonder how old Tony is.

316. What is it... Oh, my God! I've never seen that one before.

317. - I have never seen that before! - That's pretty spectacular.

318. Jesus Christ.

319. - I'm stealing it. - Huh? You're gonna steal it?

320. That's right, last one of them...

321. All right. I like the effort. Yeah.

322. Gotta love the effort.

323. I think you did a nice job.

324. - I was very impressed. - Appreciate it very much.

325. - Both of you guys. - Thank you.

326. We will, we will, uh... I'm sure we'll be looking at this tape.

327. - Okay. - And you never know

328. what comes out of it. Hopefully good.

329. Work on your arms. And you might...

330. Get something that's a bit more flattering for you.

331. Little more mass on the, you know, upper arms.

332. - Yeah. - You're gonna be... Then you get in the hunt.

333. - Right when I hit it, I knew that's it... Yeah. - Did you hear me say, "Go home"?

334. A couple of the boys are already saying,

335. "Oh, yeah, I'm gonna steal that move. I'm gonna steal that move."

336. I think the overall reaction was, um...

337. Tony's got a lot of potential, Modest is ready.

338. I think that was the overall reaction.

339. - Good job. Thank you very much.

340. - Kinda nerve-racking out there, isn't it? - Yeah. A little bit.

341. All I'm saying is, that's probably the most

342. nerve-racking couple of minutes of your life.

343. - Yeah. Yeah, it was. It was. - Yeah.

344. Roland and the boys left that night excited,

345. their expectations high that they would soon hear from the WWF.

346. While Tony and Mike were beginning their career,

347. a wrestling legend was nearing the end of his.

348. Terry Funk.

349. My favorite wrestler growing up was Terry Funk.

350. A lot of guys acted crazy,

351. but Terry made you believe it might be true.

352. At age 53, Terry was still going strong.

353. So I went to Texas to meet Terry Funk.

354. I went to his hometown of Amarillo,

355. where he was a bit of a local celebrity.

356. I was excited. I'd never met a legend before.

357. Terry. Time to get up, dear.

358. Rise and shine.

359. Funk comin' up!

360. Mornin'.

361. Your High Country Chevy dealers are so caring.

362. They love nothing more than the shine of happy faces during summer closeout.

363. Number one!

364. Number one! Forever!

365. And ever!

366. Forever!

367. Forever!

368. Forever!

369. Forever! Forever!

370. Forever!

371. You think he'll quit?

372. I think he really is being serious about it lately.

373. He has really confided in us.

374. And Brandee, don't you think?

375. Yeah. I think for once in his lifetime I think he maybe is serious.

376. I mean, he really has started just talking about it a lot,

377. and before he never talked about it.

378. I think he knows we're serious now too,

379. that we're really worried about him,

380. as far as his health and physically and all that, you know.

381. He should not be wrestling at all for probably about...

382. I'd say the last five to 10 years, wouldn't you, Stacy?

383. Yeah. Aren't I pretty?

384. Oh, Papa.

385. Papa is here.

386. One, two, three.

387. The mothers.

388. Okay. Let's go out there.

389. Lord, thank you for life itself

390. and the joys of life.

391. And may Stacy and Kelly have those joys and cherish 'em

392. and always be joyful.

393. - In Christ's name we pray. Amen. Amen.

394. - Thank you.

395. Okay, y'all better haul.

396. - You look great, Stace.

397. How can a man be so tender outside the ring...

398. How am I doing?

399. and so brutal in it?

400. husband and wife... The appeal is, uh, it's fun.

401. - I think that's a lot of it. It's fun.

402. I guess, you know, what it is, you know, is that I've wrestled for 32 years.

403. And they say, "Boy, that's a long career." You know?

404. Maybe I wasn't smart enough to do anything else and make a living at it.

405. I don't know. You know?

406. On your good knee, your left knee,

407. you have moderate to severe degenerative arthritis.

408. You don't have a good joint space in here.

409. You have some narrowing of the space, arthritic spicules, in there,

410. and it's not gonna function very well.

411. It ought to be able to get by

412. the rest of your life just hurting all the time.

413. - All right?

414. On your bad knee, on the right knee, you have no joint space.

415. You have severe degenerative arthritis. You have worn that knee out.

416. It's been hurt too many times.

417. And you are gonna need a new knee.

418. - You need a new knee now. - Let me ask you one thing.

419. - Yeah. - If... If I don't have an operation,

420. or if I don't have a new knee put in there,

421. can I go ahead and live comfortably?

422. Can I get around comfortably?

423. You shouldn't be able to get around comfortably now.

424. This ought to give you pain chronically.

425. It ought to be disabling to you.

426. And that is a problem. There's not a whole lot

427. we can do when we get to that point.

428. And chronic pain for the next 30 or 40 years

429. isn't a real fun thing to think about.

430. Terry wasn't happy with his doctor's prognosis.

431. He told me he wasn't about to retire.

432. In fact, he had agreed to fight in Philadelphia

433. for ECW, Extreme Championship Wrestling,

434. a renegade company that Terry had pledged to get off the ground.

435. They got a few ships over there.

436. Neither his doctor nor his family were thrilled

437. about Terry's bout in Philadelphia.

438. - Are you gonna wear these or pack those up? But Terry kept his promise.

439. Yeah, I'm gonna pack those. Show starts at, uh...

440. I honestly think that my husband's fearless.

441. And that's the truth.

442. He would... I just don't think he's afraid of anything.

443. Okay, don't forget the branding iron is in the trunk. Right?

444. - Yeah. I love you. I wanted him to stop wrestling

445. since probably 1990.

446. I've decided that it's his profession,

447. and it's up to him when he's gonna quit.

448. - Go get 'em, Terry. Okay. How you guys doin'?

449. - Did you get enough sleep last night, chief? - Oh, I did.

450. Had a good time.

451. - Good, good. - I'll walk up this way.

452. - Okay. Terry!

453. ECW! ECW!

454. No wrestling group is more violent than ECW,

455. and no fans scared me more.

456. Fuck WWF! Fuck WCW! Blood, guts and glory!

457. - Fuck 'em all!

458. You're lookin' at hard-core, chair-swingin' freaks!

459. And we're too damn ugly to be in any cartoon!

460. ECW!

461. And this incredibly violent product?

462. It's produced out of this peaceful house in a New York suburb.

463. It's ECW! Extreme Championship Wrestling!

464. Wrestlepalooza '98! Tickets on sale at Ticket... Fuck!

465. It's time that we play a game of truth or consequences.

466. ECW is run like a commune.

467. Its spiritual leader and owner, Paul Heyman.

468. Truth or consequences.

469. - Pass me that? Everybody pitches in.

470. And we would have to find new opponents...

471. Promos are done downstairs while Mom irons.

472. Here, it's a simple philosophy.

473. Everybody wants the other guy to get better

474. so that they have someone else to work with.

475. ECW is the Ellis Island of wrestling

476. where old wrestlers go to be reborn

477. and young wrestlers go to be discovered.

478. The best part of my job is watching people

479. who never knew that they could,

480. who never dreamt that they could,

481. but wanted it, but didn't really believe it.

482. And when they start to believe it,

483. it's better than anything in the world that you can have

484. because it's... It's like watching your children make it. You know?

485. It's just... It's there.

486. Let us in! Let us in! Let us in!

487. You lean back, you hold him for all you're worth!

488. This wasn't an ordinary show for Paul and Terry.

489. It was ECW's first pay-per-view.

490. If it didn't succeed, neither would ECW.

491. Pay-per-view! Pay-per-view!

492. - Pay-per-view! Pay-per-view!

493. Seven minutes till show time.

494. There's 17 million homes that have availability for this show tonight.

495. They will pay $20, hopefully,

496. for the privilege to see you guys do

497. what you have done for three and a half years.

498. Thank Terry Funk for all he's done for this company,

499. for help putting us on the map,

500. for being unselfish in selfish times,

501. for taking the young guys and showing them a better way.

502. Tonight we have a chance to say, "Yeah, you're right.

503. "We're too extreme. We're too wild.

504. "We're too out of control.

505. "We're too full of our own shit."

506. Or we have a chance to say, "Hey, fuck you. You're wrong.

507. "Fuck you, we're right."

508. Because you have all made it to the dance.

509. 'Cause believe me, this is the dance!

510. Start the show!

511. You're gonna be fine. I promise you, you're gonna be fine.

512. - You earned this. You earned this. - You'll make me cry!

513. All right.

514. From the Double Cross Ranch, Amarillo, Texas,

515. weighing in at 251 pounds,

516. - wrestling's living legend...

517. ladies and gentlemen,

518. Terry Funk!

519. He has knee injuries and back injuries.

520. And I have confidence that he knows what he's doing.

521. But, uh, it's still hard after all these years.

522. Just him getting hurt, mainly.

523. He's in control, but...

524. It's pretty scary.

525. Go to Stevey

526. and tell him that I said

527. to get word to them they need to go home in 30 seconds.

528. They know this is it, this is it. They're going now.

529. They need to go home within 30 seconds. We need them out.

530. Terry! Terry! Terry! Terry!

531. Terry Funk!

532. Not good.

533. With a full head of steam!

534. Two count only! Two count only!

535. It's not a full package.

536. Terry Funk!

537. Do you believe in miracles?

538. ECW! ECW! ECW!

539. ECW! ECW!

540. We did it!

541. - We did it! Hey, Terry!

542. Hey, kids, we did it!

543. We did it, honey! We did it, baby.

544. Fifty-three years old, and he's still kicking ass!

545. Think you have any blood in your lungs?

546. Any stethoscope at all, Terry?

547. You feel like you have anything in your lungs?

548. - Are you coughing up anything? - I think it just went down.

549. - The blood went down. - Okay.

550. Is there water or anything?

551. Let me get this. I need a stethoscope. I want to listen to his lungs.

552. How'd it go for me? I'm just glad it's over.

553. If they liked it, I liked it. I...

554. If the crew liked it, I liked it.

555. How'd it go? I'm just happy it's over. I don't know.

556. I'm proud of my guys.

557. What a life, huh, Tommy? - Well, we did it.

558. I'd never trade it for anything.

559. You don't have to clean my face. Just the nose.

560. There's a man out there, Terry Funk,

561. who's done more in this sport than I'll ever do,

562. who's more of a role model than I'll ever be.

563. And I've got a match April 15, and I've got serious doubts!

564. He burned me, Mommy. He burned me bad.

565. And then he pile-drove your little boy on a flaming branding iron.

566. I could never get over the fact

567. that guys could beat the crap out of each other in the ring

568. and be friendly outside of it.

569. Some of Terry's most famous matches were against a man 20 years his junior,

570. Mick Foley.

571. Over the years, Mick and Terry have traveled the world,

572. - setting each other on fire... Oh, my God!

573. Tossing each other into barbed wire...

574. Yet outside the ring they were truly at peace with one another.

575. You know what's so stupid about it is that the worse you hurt each other,

576. the better... The more money you make,

577. and the more money you make, the better friends you are.

578. Wrestling under the name Mankind,

579. Mick is one of the biggest stars in the WWF,

580. earning in the high six figures.

581. He even has his own ravioli commercial.

582. It's the perfect ravioli for all mankind.

583. Known for battering and brutalizing his body

584. to unprecedented heights,

585. Mick's behavior could be explained if he were crazy.

586. But of any wrestler I ever met, Mick was the most normal.

587. And in a strange way, the one I had the most in common with.

588. Mick grew up in a small Long Island town about 20 miles from where I did.

589. Like me, he loved wrestling and making movies.

590. Oh!

591. Whoa! Unbelievable!

592. - Dropping the big elbow.

593. Dad?

594. When I caught up with Mick he was with his kids,

595. visiting his father.

596. Hold on.

597. Yes?

598. - Can I wrestle with the kids downstairs? What?

599. - Can I wrestle with the kids downstairs? - For what?

600. - It's for the camera. Yeah. - ... down anything?

601. They're not taping this now, are they?

602. Well, yeah.

603. It doesn't matter if our basement's messed up, does it?

604. How... No. There's no way.

605. No way, Mick.

606. You can't get in through the garage. You can't get in through my office.

607. No way. No.

608. All right, we won't do it if you don't want to.

609. - This is not on camera, I hope. - No.

610. Uh, Mick is a very honest,

611. uh, sincere person.

612. I'm not talking as his father now,

613. I'm just talking as I see him as a person.

614. And, uh, really, what you see is what you get.

615. He's always been very, very polite.

616. He's been like that since, uh, grade school.

617. I want to be referred to as the world's most polite wrestler.

618. Give me a big drop kick. Cover him, cover him or something.

619. You know how most kids have no idea what they want to do when you...

620. You know, eighth graders, 14 years old. What do you know?

621. One! Two!

622. Did Mick know he wanted to be a wrestler from the time

623. he was 14 when I met him? Yes.

624. He feels terribly, terribly bad if he doesn't put his body on the line

625. in some serious fashion at least half a dozen times in a match.

626. If he doesn't, he thinks he's cheated the fan out of the price of admission.

627. They come to see Mick Foley or Cactus Jack or Dude Love or Mankind

628. put his body at risk.

629. I don't... I don't think that Mick Foley has a death wish at all.

630. I think that he has a very clear idea

631. of what he wants to be and how he wants to be remembered.

632. Several times a year I look at something,

633. and I say this is going to be dangerous and it could turn out real bad.

634. But it's got to be done for the sake of history.

635. I don't know if Mick enjoys the pain,

636. but I don't think he hates it.

637. Come on, baby Let the good times roll

638. Once I'm done with, with wrestling,

639. I'm certainly not gonna miss the pain.

640. I'll miss the reaction to the pain.

641. I don't have a whole lot of room in my life for pain.

642. It just so happens that I can absorb more than most people,

643. and that has made me marketable.

644. Come on, baby Let the good times roll

645. I can tell them you know, um,

646. till the cows come home that Daddy is just playing,

647. but sometimes they don't buy it.

648. But then I tell the kids, you know,

649. "Daddy rehearsed that four or five times. You know, Daddy was fine."

650. I just want to set their little hearts at ease. You know?

651. Think there's nothing wrong. They'll grow up quick enough, you know.

652. Let them believe their dad's all right.

653. You wish he'd stop wrestling? No.

654. - And it's going to be? - Great nipples.

655. - Every child needs a favorite word, right? - Nipple.

656. What's a funny joke your dad tells?

657. He puts his finger in his nose.

658. I don't think it's the fans that demand too much.

659. I think it would probably be I demand a lot more of myself.

660. I don't want to be remembered as the guy

661. who pulled the sock out of his tights.

662. We got trouble. Mr. Socko is out!

663. "His mother called him wild thing..."

664. I'm very sensitive.

665. I've seen deterioration of my wit and my speaking skills.

666. I want to die an old man, you know, with all my mental...

667. My mental faculties.

668. You know, people feel like I have a death wish

669. or that I'm a masochist.

670. But really, I feel like I'm taking my risks now,

671. that I'll have the ability to retire at 35 or 36

672. and spend more time with my kids.

673. It's not like I'm gonna sit at home and miss being hit in the head with chairs.

674. It's just something I feel like I do very well.

675. Insane. I've never seen it.

676. Every time I turned the TV on,

677. Mick was taking more and more risks.

678. He assured me he knew what he was doing.

679. Then I got this call.

680. Hello, Barry. This is, uh,

681. Cactus Jack, calling from the emergency room.

682. I just, uh...

683. For the first time,

684. Mick was incoherent and rambling. I was worried.

685. saw the spectacle. Wondered if you saw it.

686. If you didn't, they tell me it was good. I don't remember that much about it.

687. Look out!

688. - God Almighty, they've killed him.

689. There was two big, big falls during the match.

690. - And, uh, wrestling fans...

691. I guess, uh, unanimously praised the first one,

692. where I was thrown off the cage...

693. Probably the more spectacular of the two.

694. But it's the wrestlers who appreciate the second one,

695. because they've been body-slammed and back-dropped on our WWF mat,

696. which doesn't have a whole lot of give to it.

697. On the other side there's...

698. - Oh!

699. Good God! Good God!

700. That's it. He's dead.

701. Will somebody stop the damn match?

702. When the cage started to break, I mean, you could...

703. You could see it breaking.

704. And when the Undertaker choke-slammed Mick,

705. I knew for sure the cage was gonna break. There was no way...

706. There was no way out without getting hurt.

707. I thought he was dead.

708. Usually after a physical match, I'll call home and tell the kids,

709. "Daddy's all right. No need to worry."

710. And in this case, I was paged.

711. Uh, one of the agents had to tell me, "Call home. Your wife's really upset."

712. And she was cry... You know, in tears.

713. And screaming at me saying, "You can't do this to us anymore."

714. And I guess it was very traumatic for the kids.

715. Um, since that point, my daughter does feel like

716. I'm being hurt every time I go out there.

717. And my daughter, she loves her dad.

718. I worry... Yeah, I worry about it a lot. I have a lot of guilt about it.

719. And that's one of the reasons we thought maybe...

720. Maybe it's best if Dad,

721. - you know, did something else.

722. What would be that something else?

723. That's the problem.

724. He's the toughest SOB...

725. that I have ever... I've ever seen.

726. It was a scary moment.

727. It was... It was one of the worst

728. you know, worst moments of my life, certainly.

729. It's just a really horrible feeling,

730. and I know there's more to come,

731. which is the scary part.

732. While visiting Mick, I got the call I was waiting for.

733. I was finally able to locate the whereabouts

734. of the one wrestler I always wanted to meet,

735. Jake "The Snake" Roberts.

736. I'm going to make you beg!

737. You are going to get down on your hands and knees.

738. You will be the one that grovels for the money.

739. And how appropriate...

740. that the money you grovel for is your very own,

741. wallowing in the muck of avarice.

742. Longfellow couldn't have said it better.

743. Ladies and gentlemen,

744. Jake "The Snake" Roberts!

745. There he goes... Look at that...

746. At one time one of the biggest wrestling stars in the world,

747. Jake had dropped out of sight in the early '90s.

748. with Damien and Alice Cooper!

749. But his legend lived on.

750. Jake Roberts is one of the most phenomenal performers

751. this industry has ever seen.

752. Now, there's a guy with "it."

753. There's a guy that has that intangible.

754. There's a guy that truly comes through the camera

755. and captivates your attention.

756. Jake Roberts had a, uh...

757. Had great gifts and great skills in our business

758. 'cause he had a tremendous, tremendous aptitude

759. for the performance side

760. of this business.

761. He never had a good body.

762. He never was a great athlete.

763. But he had... His gift was his brain.

764. He's probably one of also, when it comes to the actual,

765. um, the actual psychology of how to control the audience,

766. one of the most ingenious performers the industry has ever seen.

767. I don't know that you can separate Jake Roberts the performer

768. from Jake Roberts the person

769. because, quite frankly, I never knew which one I was talking to.

770. I don't know that they're not the same.

771. Unfortunately, he has had a lot of encounters

772. with demons over his lifetime that have been very destructive.

773. He called us about two days before the show.

774. And, of course, you know, he wanted his retainer. We sent him his retainer.

775. And then he called us up, and Jake told us straight up,

776. if we didn't get him some crack, then he wasn't gonna come to our show.

777. If Jake Roberts could control the demons,

778. Jake Roberts could be one of the most influential

779. creative forces in our industry.

780. That's how talented he is.

781. But for some reason it just, uh...

782. It doesn't seem like it's meant to be at this time.

783. Sometimes I, uh, realize...

784. The person that I hate most in this life

785. is the person I'm looking at in the mirror.

786. That's a scary thought.

787. But, uh...

788. Diary of a madman, huh?

789. I was told that on February 3rd,

790. Jake would be wrestling in North Platte, Nebraska,

791. home of Buffalo Bob's Trading Post.

792. Howdy. My name is Cody.

793. Welcome to North Platte, Nebraska.

794. Why do you like Jake?

795. - I like his snakes. His style. - Do ya?

796. The way he does his thing.

797. I like him. I like what he does. And one day, I wouldn't mind meeting him.

798. You wouldn't mind meeting him.

799. What would you do if you met him?

800. - I would faint, most likely. Really?

801. And how about you?

802. I just want to hold the snakes.

803. - You just wanna hold the snake.

804. Okay. You'll find it.

805. The only guy that hasn't heard

806. about Jake "The Snake" Roberts is probably Santa Claus.

807. God Almighty.

808. These people been watching you for years.

809. You wonder what connected them with you

810. or why they want to see you or why they wanna be a part of it.

811. I'm a lucky man.

812. Backstage, there were wrestlers I'd never heard of

813. and wrestlers I hadn't seen in years.

814. For a guy who once wrestled before 80,000 people in the Pontiac Silverdome...

815. Filmed me pissin', huh? Excellent.

816. this was about as far down as you could go in wrestling

817. without starting over.

818. Hello, sound man!

819. I think somebody pulled your plug, buddy.

820. It was depressing seeing Jake in such bad shape.

821. But when it came time to perform...

822. Ladies and gentlemen, Jake "The Snake" Roberts!

823. He could still turn it on.

824. My match starts when I come through that curtain.

825. The character is there. The coldness is there.

826. The walk is there. Everything that I do helps create that character.

827. My breathing, the way I get into the ring, the way I get out of the ring.

828. The way I look at people. The way I use my hair.

829. The way I use my hands. Everything.

830. The ring psychology is something that's so beautiful, man,

831. such a joy to be a part of.

832. But by having ring psychology, you gotta be able to look at people in the eye

833. and convince them that you believe what you're doing.

834. You look at one person and just literally melt them into that seat.

835. Make 'em cry.

836. Make 'em smile.

837. And it's like a ripple effect. It goes right through the whole crowd.

838. Put me on the card. Let me bring some asses to the seats.

839. Pay me. I don't care if I'm the champ.

840. I don't care if I'm the water boy.

841. Just let me be a part of the show, and I'll do my share.

842. She was just such a kind little thing. You know?

843. Right there probably, you know,

844. she's gonna live here the rest of her life, probably,

845. and have seven kids and seven husbands and whatever,

846. and wind up bein' a male... A lady truck driver that cross-dresses or something.

847. But she'll always remember tonight, man. You know?

848. That's why I enjoy the small towns, because they really dig it, they really appreciate it.

849. You come to a place like this, my God,

850. I could be mayor here next week if I wanted to be.

851. They'd execute the one they've got and just put me in power.

852. I'd be like a dictator mayor. You know? And they'd love it.

853. That's what really scares ya.

854. Jake, can we get your autograph real quick?

855. - I gotta go. Right now. Hey, Jake. Good to see ya.

856. In the arena, nothing hurts. Everybody's glad to see ya.

857. You come back to all the glamour of a Ramada Limited.

858. And this is the real world.

859. Just take your shower and get dressed and go on to the next one, I guess.

860. The next day, I spent eight hours in a van with Jake.

861. Look at those ducks.

862. Things would just come out of my head, man, I don't know where they come from.

863. The more we traveled, the more he confided in me.

864. And I still don't think... My mother was 13 years old when I was born.

865. Why? Because my dad raped a little girl that was in a room asleep.

866. My dad was going out with my mother's mother.

867. There you go. There's some bones for Jake the Snake.

868. Jake's father was also a wrestler, Grizzly Smith.

869. Though he was well-known, he never reached the heights his son did.

870. My dad was never there for me.

871. I never lived with my father. For a very short time.

872. In the hour they spent together, the two could barely look at each other.

873. I would do anything to gain my father's love.

874. And I reached a point...

875. I came out of high school, I was gonna go to college.

876. And I said, "Dad, I'm gonna go to college." He said, "Good luck."

877. Gee, Dad, thanks. You know?

878. And right then something inside me said, you know,

879. "If you're ever gonna get him to love you,

880. "you're gonna have to be better than he is at what he does."

881. So I went out to the ring and I jumped in there and got the crap beat out of me.

882. And when I walked back into that locker room, he looked at me and said,

883. "I'm ashamed of you. You'll never amount to anything."

884. And walked away.

885. And that's when I gave up my dreams

886. and said, "Okay, by God, if it's the last thing I do,

887. "I'm gonna shove this business up his rear."

888. And guess what. I did it.

889. And guess what. It didn't matter.

890. Well, he's got, uh, he's got a lot of good qualities.

891. And, uh...

892. It's, uh...

893. He was born out of love, and I still love him.

894. My stepmother was very, uh, jealous

895. of the time that my dad spent with me and my sister.

896. And, uh, he drove my sister to the point

897. that she wound up marrying a 50-year-old man

898. and then a year later being kidnapped and murdered by his ex-wife.

899. And we've never got her body.

900. We know that she was dead,

901. 'cause there was enough blood in the car to know that she was dead.

902. The woman went to prison for kidnapping. Ten years.

903. Got out, and I said, "Please tell us where the body is."

904. "Fuck you guys. We're not telling you shit."

905. You know?

906. And it's always seemed like, all my life,

907. it's like there's one

908. gruesome, horrible thing happen after another.

909. So, my stepdad, who I felt very close to,

910. he winds up getting electrocuted in the attic of our house.

911. My mother goes up and finds him.

912. The road really screwed up my sex life at home, man.

913. You go on the road, you get some type of fame or whatever,

914. and all of a sudden you can have it every day.

915. But then all of a sudden you want to get selective and...

916. Then all of a sudden one a day's not enough.

917. Then you do two a day. Then three a day.

918. Then two at a time.

919. Then two at a time with toys.

920. Then two at a time... "I'll just watch."

921. And it just gets more bizarre and more bizarre.

922. And it finally gets to a point that when you go home

923. and try to make love to your wife,

924. ain't no way.

925. Ain't no way.

926. Because the mental stimulation is not there.

927. That's bad.

928. That's bad.

929. It's like a joke I seen in a book one time.

930. A guy... Man and woman are laying next to each other.

931. He says, "What's wrong? You can't think of anybody else either?"

932. Traveling around the country, I met all kinds of wrestlers.

933. The Ninth Wonder of the World...

934. Appearances can be deceiving, especially hanging around wrestlers.

935. For example, Chyna.

936. Looking at her in the ring,

937. I would never have guessed she was a UN scholar

938. and had served in the Peace Corps.

939. But then again, everything about Chyna surprised me.

940. Well, Kathy, we have an item up for sale here today.

941. That would be item J-24073.

942. - J-24073. Oh, do we have a caller?

943. My mother was all buttons and bows and teatime.

944. And she always tried to dress me up in long skirts,

945. and I always wanted to show my body.

946. And when I started lifting weights, she...

947. I really think that she thought I was a lesbian.

948. I remember her saying to my dad, listening to the conversation,

949. saying, "Joey, I... I think she's a lesbian or something.

950. "Girls don't lift weights like that."

951. Not that anything's wrong with that, let me interject...

952. For all you lesbians out there.

953. To me, I'm just as feminine as any other woman.

954. Uh, maybe even more so

955. in my attitude, because I have, um,

956. a certain confidence about myself that most other women don't have.

957. I just happen to be a very feminine woman

958. with an incredibly fit, muscular body.

959. One year later, Chyna got her jaw restructured,

960. in order to enhance her femininity.

961. Matt Hyson had an intriguing early career change.

962. Four years ago, you were teaching third grade.

963. - Yeah. - Now you're mutilating yourself every night.

964. How do you explain that?

965. It's what I love to do.

966. What do you love about it, Matt?

967. Um, I love the drama, I love the physical...

968. I love takin' bumps.

969. I love poppin' a crowd.

970. I love makin' a crowd go, "Oh! Ooh!"

971. - What did you study in college? - English.

972. - English literature. Shakespeare. - Shakespeare?

973. - Yes. - What was your favorite work of Shakespeare?

974. Henry IV, Part 2.

975. Can you quote anything from that?

976. Uh... What? I'm sorry? Wipe it?

977. I'm sorry. Uh... Oh, I can't think of that.

978. I would have to explain the whole situation.

979. Do you have any Shakespearean quotes?

980. "I shall, I do."

981. Falstaff, the drunk.

982. I'm gonna just have to be just a normal person.

983. I'm gonna have to take my wig off,

984. take the feathers off of Frankie.

985. Take him and let him go on his own.

986. Say, "Frankie,

987. "God bless you."

988. Some wrestlers have trouble leaving the spotlight,

989. always trying to recapture their glory days.

990. Koko B. Ware and Frankie!

991. Like Koko B. Ware, who was once a headliner.

992. Other guys? Well, they do a little better job of adjusting.

993. And the American dream lives on in Minnesota,

994. - 'cause we shocked the world!

995. I really didn't know what to do with myself,

996. but I knew that I would do something with myself.

997. Uh, you know, my career didn't come to as an abrupt an end

998. because I quit while I was on top.

999. I just knew it was over, and it was time to move on.

1000. Politics is way more cutthroat, I think, than wrestling is.

1001. - Deep down, I'm a softy inside.

1002. I put on an outer appearance of being very hard and calloused,

1003. but deep down inside, I think that I have a big heart and that I...

1004. That I'm a sucker for a good sob story.

1005. You know, that I can be vulnerable that way.

1006. You know, with... Let me categorize that, "With certain people."

1007. Other people could tell me any story they wanted

1008. and I wouldn't be vulnerable to them.

1009. I didn't think wrestling could surprise me anymore.

1010. And now, introducing...

1011. That is, until Vince McMahon became a performer in the ring.

1012. Look at him! Look at that!

1013. With a shortage of "heels," that's wrestling jargon for bad guys,

1014. Vince decided, "Who was more hateable than Vince McMahon?"

1015. As usual, Vince guessed right.

1016. After all, who wouldn't want to punch out their boss?

1017. You know, it's real easy to be Mr. McMahon the performer.

1018. Um, that's a hoot.

1019. Um, that's not really who I am, although I guess maybe that...

1020. That I'm a part of that character.

1021. What other head of a billion-dollar company

1022. does this for a living?

1023. I think everything has its own little life, you know.

1024. I don't know what this one is.

1025. It's... It's all about giving the audience what they want,

1026. whatever it is.

1027. - I got crutches, this guitar. I got... And then there was New Jack.

1028. - What did you do before this? - A bounty hunter. And I was good.

1029. - A toaster. A toaster?

1030. That was four justifiable homicides.

1031. Four. You know? I wasn't proud of it, but it happened.

1032. It was either me or them, so I'm still here.

1033. Jerome Young created New Jack. You know what I'm saying?

1034. I get paid for what I'm doing. It's like any entertainer.

1035. You know what I'm saying?

1036. You come up with a gimmick or a character that's marketable.

1037. You know what I mean? So I created New Jack.

1038. And that's what I get paid to do.

1039. I'm not like these other guys you see that might be kind of iffy or questionable.

1040. I'm a very violent person, and I'll hurt you, and it's no secret.

1041. I talk shit and back it up. I ain't like a rapper. You know what I mean?

1042. I don't go in the studio and talk all that violent shit and ain't never lived it.

1043. I done lived it. I get a kick from gettin' pain, man.

1044. See my knuckles?

1045. You don't, 'cause there ain't none.

1046. See these two?

1047. That's from hittin' a bitch in the eye.

1048. I'm violent by nature, man.

1049. And I don't care.

1050. I ain't... I ain't a 40-hour motherfucker, man. Never have, never will be.

1051. I like my shit quick.

1052. Hey, Barry.

1053. This is your favorite Negro. Give me a call.

1054. Of all the wrestlers I met,

1055. the last one I expected to bond with was New Jack.

1056. New Jack was coming to LA to visit.

1057. Truth be told, I was happy to see him.

1058. None of my friends had any justifiable homicides, let alone four.

1059. - I hope not.

1060. We were quickly becoming chums.

1061. He wanted to see if he could make it as an actor.

1062. I've been captured by three white people!

1063. So I got New Jack an appointment with a casting agent.

1064. Rolling.

1065. Looks like your man did pretty good.

1066. Here you go. Your share.

1067. $219.

1068. You telling me there was only one person in each car?

1069. That's right.

1070. And cut. That's good.

1071. Okay. The audition's over.

1072. - It's goodbye.

1073. Good to meet you. Good work.

1074. Should I go out the window or take the stairs?

1075. - You got an extra-long audition. - Uh, stairs. Stairs.

1076. - Thank you. - Thanks so much.

1077. I could see real possibilities with him. I think he could be a leading man.

1078. You do? Really? - Absolutely. Absolutely.

1079. I think he's got a great face. I think he's got sexuality, charm.

1080. I think there's a lot of potential there. I really do.

1081. But, I mean, as far as the leading man thing... It's just that this is...

1082. - He's a little character-y. I think he'll be the best friend.

1083. I think he'll be Denzel's pal. I don't think he'll be Denzel.

1084. I think they were pretty impressed.

1085. While New Jack was auditioning, I got a call from Terry Funk.

1086. Maybe I'll be the next Denzel.

1087. No, I do. I love my family very much,

1088. and that's what's gonna bring me to this next announcement.

1089. The next announcement is that 1997 is my last year.

1090. I will not be wrestling anymore after the end of this year.

1091. - It's over. After 32 years. That's it.

1092. No, I'm serious. And I've loved every minute of it.

1093. But it's time to go home.

1094. - It's time to say goodbye.

1095. Thank you!

1096. Terry! Terry! Terry!

1097. We come back now on KGNC.

1098. And let us go now to Terry Funk as he prepares now for...

1099. - Is James here? He is.

1100. the final matches of his career,

1101. including one Thursday night here in Amarillo.

1102. James, Terry's back to see you.

1103. We got about 30 or 40 seconds here.

1104. Tell the audience again the when and where of the big event Thursday night.

1105. Well, it's gonna be at the Tri-State Fairgrounds.

1106. And it's gonna be at the Tri-State Fairgrounds, Maxor Coliseum.

1107. And it's gonna be a great card you're gonna have from the WWF.

1108. Bret Hart, the world's heavyweight champion. I'll be going up against him.

1109. It'll be a non-title match. Mankind will also be here.

1110. Where'd you guys come from?

1111. - Come over from England, in Britain. - Yeah.

1112. About a 5,000-mile trip just to see this show.

1113. Terry wasn't the only wrestler who lived in Amarillo.

1114. The other one was unfortunately not as successful.

1115. Dennis Stamp had over 800 matches, none of them main events.

1116. Now an exterminator,

1117. he was the self-proclaimed "King of the Cockroaches."

1118. Are you coming to the show Thursday night?

1119. - Uh, no. No, I won't be. - Why not?

1120. I'm not booked, for one thing.

1121. And what really... What really bothers me is Dory Funk Jr.

1122. You know, I have nothing against the man he's wrestling,

1123. but I could swear to you... I could guarantee to you

1124. that nobody, no one could have a better match with Dory than I would have.

1125. So that part hurts. So...

1126. But I really wanted to be on as a referee,

1127. but, um, the people who make the decision,

1128. whoever that would be, didn't... Didn't offer me any position.

1129. So, I'm not booked, I won't be here.

1130. My biggest fear is that he's gonna be disappointed.

1131. If he doesn't make any money, that's not the big deal.

1132. - If he's disappointed... I don't think I will be.

1133. I hope not. I mean, it's up to me.

1134. It's not a downhill side of my career.

1135. I've tried to pick out a time where I can go out and still be somebody, that's important.

1136. Look at it. I mean, you have WWF people here,

1137. ECW people, people from other places.

1138. I mean, it's... Terry has been able to do what the promoters couldn't.

1139. I don't do any tricks. But I just jump.

1140. I stay fit, I watch what I eat

1141. because I never know when my next match is gonna be.

1142. You know, I had my last match, I think it was 1991.

1143. So it gets to be a lot longer between matches.

1144. But, uh, I never know when I'm gonna have my next match.

1145. So I've gotta stay in shape for that. I've gotta be ready.

1146. You know, I'm only 50 now, and the phone could ring at any time, you know.

1147. How's everything going?

1148. - I'm not gonna be here, but... - Why aren't you?

1149. Because I'm not booked.

1150. You're not gonna be here. Why aren't you gonna be here?

1151. - Please be here. - I'm not gonna be here, Terry,

1152. 'cause I'm not booked. That's an old rule...

1153. - That's an old rule I've had for a long time. - But I want you here.

1154. Because I'm not involved.

1155. I want you to come, please.

1156. - I'm asking you, please come. - Well, I... I...

1157. I already have other arrangements.

1158. And don't take it personally,

1159. because I used to be in the dressing room, and I used to see the old guys.

1160. And that's where I am now. I used to see the old guys that came in the dressing room

1161. that come round, and they'd look like old dogs

1162. just hoping somebody would recognize them. "Here, Spot!"

1163. - Why don't you come and see us? - I really have to be involved, and I'm not.

1164. - I want you to be there. - You know, and I did...

1165. And I did ask you in April if I could referee some matches on the card.

1166. - You're refereeing tonight then. - Which would have been...

1167. - You're refereeing tonight. - But I'm not on the card. I'm not booked.

1168. You're refereeing. You wanna referee me and Bret? Referee me and Bret.

1169. - I... I already have arrangements made. - I want you to referee us.

1170. Terry.

1171. I want you referee me and Bret. I'm just telling you...

1172. I guess... Okay. So what happened? I guess you...

1173. And I'm running 900 miles an hour is what I'm doing.

1174. I guess I was just so far down... I guess you just didn't hear me

1175. - or something when I asked you before. - I don't...

1176. - Didn't think... - Dennis, I didn't even know about it.

1177. - But I want you to. I want you to. - I appreciate that.

1178. - Okay. I want you to. Will you please do it? - Okay.

1179. - Appreciate that. - And it's my last match. It's my last match.

1180. - Call me if you can, 'cause I would love it. - Okay.

1181. I would love it. I'd love to have you there as part of it.

1182. - I appreciate that, Terry. - I want you to be there.

1183. I appreciate that.

1184. I'll be seeing you

1185. In all the old

1186. Familiar places

1187. That this heart of mine

1188. Embraces

1189. All day through

1190. I've gotta head over to Coors right now. I'll be right back.

1191. - Were you serious? - Yeah, I'm serious.

1192. It's costing me $134 to change my ticket.

1193. - Will I make that much?

1194. - I was gonna pay you $50. - Close. I'll get half of it back, right?

1195. I was gonna pay you $50, Dennis. Thank you.

1196. You mean you're gonna double pay me?

1197. My wife says, "Do you really want to do it?" I almost broke down and said,

1198. "It's the main event. It's the main event.

1199. "You think I'm not gonna be in a main event?"

1200. - Thank you, Dennis. - I'd rather be in the main event than breathe.

1201. This is it. This is it. This is the final one.

1202. This is the final one, so...

1203. Vicki, uh, she'll be there whenever it's all over with.

1204. She always has been, and I think she always will be.

1205. I'll be seeing you...

1206. There's supposed to be 10 chairs up there for them.

1207. I don't know, but I want him sitting up here because he's the head of the Chevy dealers.

1208. - Okay. - But I just want him taken care of.

1209. And he's supposed to have those seats in between the two, but he's not there.

1210. - Okay, I'll find him. Just lay it on your lap. - Okay. All right.

1211. You'll probably get 180 over 110.

1212. I'll find you

1213. In the morning sun

1214. And when the night is new

1215. I'll be looking at the moon

1216. Slow down.

1217. But I'll be seeing

1218. You

1219. From the Double Cross Ranch in Amarillo, Texas,

1220. weighing in at 251 pounds,

1221. wrestling's living legend,

1222. ladies and gentlemen,

1223. Terry Funk!

1224. Terry! Terry! Terry! Terry! Terry!

1225. Congrats, Terry!

1226. I give to you the lifetime heavyweight

1227. champion of the world, his final match,

1228. the living legend,

1229. Terry Funk!

1230. That night, Bret beat up Terry for a while.

1231. Then Terry beat up Bret for a while.

1232. Terry told me he was going to lose.

1233. He didn't think the fans would believe an old man could beat the champ.

1234. Plus, every wrestler knows,

1235. it's always better going out on your back.

1236. The winner of the match,

1237. Bret "The Hitman" Hart.

1238. Ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for Terry Funk.

1239. No complaints about the match tonight.

1240. No complaints

1241. about the Funk family's life of wrestling.

1242. It's been wonderful, and it's been a great trip.

1243. We love you, Terry! - And... Hey, I love you guys too.

1244. Ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for Terry Funk!

1245. Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for coming out tonight

1246. and spending your night with us and the Funk family.

1247. Drive home carefully. Thank you. Good night.

1248. Thanks for having me here, Terry. - I loved having you.

1249. Thank you. Appreciate it.

1250. But I'll be seeing

1251. You

1252. I hope I did a good job.

1253. Very good.

1254. When I caught up again with Jake the Snake,

1255. he was appearing in Kearney, Nebraska.

1256. Ladies and gentlemen,

1257. Jake "The Snake" Roberts!

1258. Ahh!

1259. So where are you going next? My daughter's.

1260. She's, uh, doing her master's in psychology.

1261. So she's a real freak.

1262. So the next day we traveled 300 miles

1263. to see Jake's oldest daughter Brandy.

1264. My first marriage was over when she was, like,

1265. seven, eight years old.

1266. And I was on the road.

1267. I'd see her a couple times a year. Not much of a relationship with her.

1268. It's not that I don't love my children. I do love my children very much.

1269. I don't know how to be close to them.

1270. I don't know how to, uh... How to have that...

1271. That melting of together.

1272. I really feel gypped, you know, by the whole situation,

1273. so I made this book. And, um,

1274. this is kind of the screen

1275. that my father hides behind.

1276. And these are actual picture, uh,

1277. letters that he wrote me, that I tore up and I pasted in here.

1278. And this one actually says, "Love, Dad." I mean,

1279. they were very few and far between, but I saved all of 'em.

1280. You know?

1281. And this is a card.

1282. Um... This was when he had gone straight.

1283. And it says, "A daughter is a treasure."

1284. This is me and my mom at my prom.

1285. And it says, "All of my life, I wanted Daddy's love,

1286. "but now I'll hold on to what is really important,

1287. "unconditional love and support from my mom."

1288. And the back of it is by a really wonderful poet named Sylvia Plath.

1289. And it says, "In the words of Sylvia Plath, 'Fuck you, Daddy.'"

1290. And that's how I felt.

1291. And that's still how I feel a lot of the times.

1292. We're at the lovely Ramada in lovely Emporia.

1293. At the Ramada? - Yeah.

1294. Okay, well, is it okay if I bring my friends... Two of my friends with me?

1295. - Absolutely. - Okay.

1296. 'Cause I would... I'm...

1297. I would really like to bring them with me.

1298. - Okay. - I mean, I just feel kind of nervous.

1299. - I mean... I don't know. - About what?

1300. It's just been a long time, Dad. You know?

1301. - Oh, okay. - I haven't seen you in a long time.

1302. - I haven't... I haven't been around you. - All right.

1303. - I mean, I'm not scared of you. I know... - Okay.

1304. I don't want that to be the way it's coming across at all.

1305. That's all right.

1306. - I feel very comfortable with you. - Mmm-hmm.

1307. And you and I have a pretty good understanding together.

1308. - Okay. - You know. It's not that.

1309. It's just I feel really...

1310. I feel really, like, inspected or something. You know what I'm saying?

1311. - Like...

1312. Okay. Well, just come on out.

1313. I'll be in the, um... That restaurant.

1314. Mmm.

1315. That wasn't much fun.

1316. I don't know, man.

1317. I don't know. She's just acting real funky.

1318. What the hell is this shit?

1319. Is that chocolate or something off...

1320. What's your biggest fear when she walks in here?

1321. Rejection.

1322. Always rejection.

1323. I'm not sure if he's ready to be a father now.

1324. - You okay? - Hi.

1325. - You look good. - Thanks.

1326. I don't know if now he's ready or not.

1327. I can't say that, 'cause I've only... I've only been around him a little bit.

1328. Jake hadn't seen his daughter in four years.

1329. I was amazed. Five minutes after meeting her,

1330. he went to his room for the night.

1331. He needs to step away from the cameras and get the glitz out of it.

1332. Wrestling, you have a camera on you.

1333. You know, all the things he's done in his life, he's had a camera on him.

1334. I wish he would step away from that and he would say,

1335. you know, "Hey, I wanna be with my family. I wanna be real

1336. "and I wanna be there without cameras and try to work some of this stuff out."

1337. - Hello. Hello.

1338. Maybe he really honestly believes this is gonna help heal things.

1339. - How are you this morning? It would be wonderful

1340. if I could know him on a level that other kids know their fathers.

1341. Me too. I wonder how she got that number. Well, let me guess.

1342. - Not from me. - Really?

1343. No. I did not give her the number at all.

1344. He makes me nervous, and I make him nervous

1345. 'cause we don't really know how to act around each other.

1346. Because he knows that I'm gonna be very straightforward with him,

1347. and he doesn't always like that.

1348. A lot of people don't understand.

1349. "Gosh, if you were making that good of money,

1350. "why didn't you just take three months off and go stay with your kids?"

1351. Well, because if I took three months off, I'd have been fired.

1352. - I know that, but you... - When I was working for Vince McMahon,

1353. I was obligated to wrestle every day.

1354. I know that. But...

1355. And... And it wasn't fair, and it wasn't right.

1356. But I do know I love my children.

1357. In whatever twisted...

1358. Twisted way there is.

1359. Then you need to learn a different way.

1360. I quit learning.

1361. That doesn't stop though. You can start learning again.

1362. Maybe. Maybe. If there's time.

1363. Why wouldn't there be time?

1364. I don't know.

1365. I just don't wanna hurt no more.

1366. I don't wanna hurt you no more.

1367. That would hurt me. That would be the ultimate hurt, Dad.

1368. That would be the ultimate pain that you could bestow on anyone.

1369. - Sometimes I... - I don't think that's fair.

1370. I think that's selfish. I think that's a cop-out.

1371. I think that's bullshit.

1372. - I don't know. Just tired. - You cannot do that.

1373. That is not fair to anybody. That is just your way out.

1374. You know, but sometimes you don't understand. See, it's like...

1375. When I was growing up, I swore up and down I would never treat my kids

1376. the way my father treated me.

1377. And 24 years later, I look back and say,

1378. "My God, you've done the exact stinkin' same thing."

1379. But it's not the way I wanted it to go.

1380. How did you want it to go?

1381. I guess I wanted that Walt Disney ending, you know.

1382. - Not the Old Yeller one either.

1383. Dad, we've never had a Walt Disney ending.

1384. I know. I certainly haven't.

1385. I'm sorry.

1386. I don't know where to go.

1387. Uh...

1388. I'm just getting really, uh...

1389. Really fucked-up inside.

1390. I don't know. I wish he could be real more often.

1391. That would really help him, and I think it would help us.

1392. He, you know, he stayed here and hurt, you know.

1393. Before, he would have just walked out and left.

1394. It's part of an act, and part of it's real.

1395. I mean, his hurt is very real, I think.

1396. After seeing his daughter, Jake was quiet for the first time.

1397. After checking into a hotel, he disappeared.

1398. When I caught up with him a few hours later,

1399. he was doing crack.

1400. I never use a needle.

1401. Thank you, Lord.

1402. But, um...

1403. I used to tell myself, "I'll never ever do drugs.

1404. "Never. No way.

1405. "It's for losers."

1406. And we were wrestling 26, 27 days a month.

1407. Twice on Saturday, twice on Sunday.

1408. Catchin' eight, nine airplanes a week.

1409. It was basically a necessity just to continue.

1410. And you took pills to go to sleep.

1411. You took pills because of your pain.

1412. You took cocaine to wake up, so you could perform.

1413. You drank... You go to sleep, you took sleeping pills.

1414. It's a trap, you know.

1415. It's a trap. Cocaine.

1416. It speeds me up so fast, I can't think about my past.

1417. It speeds me up so fast that...

1418. I don't have to be responsible.

1419. It is really tough for me to sit here and tell you guys this.

1420. You got no idea how tough it was today with my daughter.

1421. There is not an addict that's happy. Okay?

1422. You ever met a drug addict

1423. or a homeless person that said, "When I was a child, this was my dream"?

1424. No self-pity. No. Absolutely not.

1425. I do not feel sorry for myself.

1426. Okay? That's wrong.

1427. Totally wrong.

1428. And, you know, if that's what you're getting on that camera, it's wrong.

1429. I do not feel sorry for myself. I asked for every damn thing I got, okay?

1430. Come on, baby Let the good times roll

1431. It had been six months since I last saw Mick

1432. when he called me up and told me they were giving him the championship belt.

1433. But he was going to lose it

1434. at one of the WWF's biggest pay-per-view events of the year,

1435. the Royal Rumble.

1436. Come on, baby Yes, this is it

1437. This year, the Rumble was taking place in Anaheim.

1438. Mick told me he was gonna bring his family.

1439. Come on, baby Let the good times roll

1440. Roll all night long

1441. Uh-oh. Uh-oh. Injury time-out.

1442. You okay there, buddy? Let me see.

1443. Mix it with your saliva so it looks a lot worse than it really is, all right?

1444. - Ah, there you go!

1445. Oh, there you go. All right!

1446. Twenty lashes.

1447. - Are you scared? No.

1448. No? Are you sure?

1449. I'm hoping when they get on that plane in about 4 hours after the show

1450. that I'll be fine.

1451. There's a chance that I won't be, and that's...

1452. - Then we won't be on that plane. - Yeah.

1453. Come on, baby Let the good times roll

1454. Roll all night long

1455. The WWF championship's on the line.

1456. An "I quit" match, Mankind versus The Rock.

1457. I accept. You and I

1458. at the Royal Rumble in an "I quit" match.

1459. You stop me, drop me with something.

1460. Then you start climbing like anything.

1461. Get right the hell out of the...

1462. - Out of the arena, okay? - Uh-huh.

1463. I will not say them here nor there.

1464. I will not say them anywhere!

1465. I will not say those words, you twit. I will not, will not say, "I quit!"

1466. - Up on the ladder and whammo. - Sure. Yeah. That's fine.

1467. But if that's the case, we can get out of that, we'll climb on up there.

1468. - Okay. - And have the announcer go

1469. as soon as I'm up there.

1470. - Yeah. - And you don't see me. Do this.

1471. - Come on. And you come up. Wham. - Bam.

1472. I think we might as well hit the heavy stuff quick.

1473. Mister... You know, Mr. Socko,

1474. which leaves you down, but...

1475. But not able to say it because you're out.

1476. Put Socko on right away? First couple of minutes.

1477. Which one would you like? White, white or white?

1478. Mick Foley we love because he can take anything.

1479. This guy could fall down,

1480. slam himself from, like, a two-story building and fall on spikes

1481. and get hit by a chair and still stand right up and everything.

1482. This guy kicks ass.

1483. The pain advantage. It's all about Mankind.

1484. Mankind don't hurt. You can throw him off the top of the cage onto a table.

1485. - That man know. - What The Rock gonna do?

1486. - Rock bottom, man. - That man know.

1487. When you go out there and you improvise, you ad-lib,

1488. we have an idea of what we're gonna do, a couple of things, but the rest is just...

1489. We go out there and do our thing. You know, a lot of it's on feel.

1490. I'm banking on there'll be a ton of heat on me tonight,

1491. being the piece of shit that The Rock is, so it should be fine.

1492. You know The Rock is Daddy's friend, right?

1493. He's not gonna do anything to really hurt Daddy, right?

1494. Okay. Peanut, you know that?

1495. You do, right?

1496. You're not gonna be scared, right?

1497. Daddy's gonna be okay.

1498. If you can go on Back to the Future, you can do anything.

1499. - Right? - Yeah.

1500. Can I have a hug for good luck, please?

1501. Did you guys have a good time at Disneyland?

1502. - Yeah. - Did you?

1503. Yeah.

1504. - What did you ride? - Everything.

1505. You went on everything?

1506. - You look very pretty today. - Oh, they had a great time.

1507. - Did they? - I hope I have energy left for the match.

1508. Hey, gang. Hi, how are you?

1509. - Hi, Steve. How are you? - Nice to see you again.

1510. - Dewey, you remember Stone Cold? - Hi, Dewey. Nice to see you.

1511. - How are you feeling, Steve? Ready to go? - What?

1512. - How are you feeling? - I'm not feeling very good at all,

1513. but I'll be ready to go.

1514. - My little girl's out there. - Oh, is she really?

1515. - Yeah. Maybe we'll see you after the show. - Okay. That'd be great.

1516. - Good stuff. - Nice to see you again.

1517. Okay. See you, Steve.

1518. Bye-bye. Oh, Daddy's gotta go, okay?

1519. - Okay? - Give me a hug, buddy.

1520. I love you guys. Bye, hon.

1521. I love you too. I gotta get ready.

1522. Get ready? You're not ready? - I'm not ready. I'm not mentally prepared.

1523. I had never seen Mick this nervous before.

1524. - Have fun. - You too.

1525. He clearly was preoccupied with what was going to happen that night.

1526. You play it by ear out there. Whatever feels right, do it.

1527. But in other words, if they got a real tight close-up,

1528. and it's obvious that his lips aren't moving,

1529. then you can just say, "I don't see him saying that."

1530. "How do they do that?"

1531. You're the one befuddled because you've never seen anything like this.

1532. - You might have an explanation. - Okay.

1533. A lot of dignitaries here to see the action...

1534. Where the hell's The Rock? Hey, Bruce, when you gonna send The Rock?

1535. He agreed with my analogy

1536. that the "I quit" match will be the most physical...

1537. - Befuddled. - Befuddled?

1538. - You're befuddled. - The Rock wouldn't be befuddled about this.

1539. All of a sudden The Rock is just like some roody-poo candy-ass...

1540. standing on the corner, and Mick Foley is just gonna have his way with him?

1541. No, no. Piss on that. The Rock is the great one.

1542. The Rock is the most electrifying man in sports entertainment.

1543. The Rock is the great one. And tonight,

1544. after The Rock makes that son of a bitch scream, "I quit,"

1545. he's gonna be the best damn WWF champ there ever was...

1546. Once again.

1547. - If you smell what The Rock is cookin'. - There you go.

1548. We're just afraid we might miss the shot.

1549. Make sure you're facing the announcers on the last move.

1550. All right. I'll count you down. Thirty, 20, 15.

1551. - All the way, all right? Yeah.

1552. Good.

1553. And, Mick, please be careful.

1554. Well, here we go, Rock. It is showtime.

1555. The table is set, and the big question is simply this,

1556. will you be able to do

1557. what no one has ever done

1558. and make Mankind utter the words "I quit"?

1559. I tell you what, Mankind. There's something about this whole situation

1560. that really befuddles The Rock.

1561. Because, you see, The Rock isn't just some roody-poo candy-ass

1562. on the corner of Know Your Role Boulevard and Jabroni Drive.

1563. That you're just gonna have your way with The Rock?

1564. Well, uh-uh, because tonight, in front of the thousands of Rock's fans here tonight,

1565. all chanting his name, and the millions...

1566. And millions of The Rock's fans watching live,

1567. The Rock guaran-damn-tees to prove to you

1568. that The Rock is the most electrifying man

1569. in sports entertainment today.

1570. And after you utter the words, "I quit,"

1571. The Rock will go down as being

1572. the best damn WWF champ there ever was,

1573. if you smell

1574. what The Rock is cookin'.

1575. Here we go, guys. It is showtime.

1576. Over here. Mick, Mick, Mick.

1577. Foley! Foley! Foley!

1578. Foley! Foley! Foley! Foley! Foley!

1579. This is gonna be the ultimate slobber-knocker.

1580. Mankind, perhaps the most unlikely champion in the history of the WWF,

1581. but perhaps... Well, no perhaps, he is the most deserving champion ever.

1582. And take a look at this! And here we go!

1583. - And the "I quit" match is under way.

1584. Folks, there are no pin falls, there are no count-outs,

1585. there are no disqualifications.

1586. Yeah!

1587. Oh! Mankind clotheslined Rock out by the barricade.

1588. - He's been thrown.

1589. And The Rock's in trouble here.

1590. Reversal!

1591. The Rock!

1592. We got trouble! Mr. Socko is out!

1593. And the claw is on The Rock!

1594. Oh, no.

1595. I can't see a thing.

1596. Rock up the ladder now and into the crowd here at the Arrowhead Pond.

1597. Mankind's after him.

1598. - Excuse me. Mom!

1599. I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going anywhere.

1600. I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going anywhere.

1601. Rock is taunting Mick Foley.

1602. A right hand! Oh, my God! Oh, my God!

1603. - Mick Foley!

1604. We've lost the lights in the arena! Mick Foley...

1605. When the night has come

1606. - And the land is dark

1607. And the moon is the only

1608. Light we'll see

1609. No, I won't be afraid

1610. No, I won't be afraid

1611. Just as long

1612. Oh, Jesus! He's a freaking nut!

1613. Stand by me

1614. Oh, come on.

1615. No! No!

1616. Oh, no!

1617. No, no, no!

1618. Not the chair.

1619. Close your eyes.

1620. What is he... Oh, come on!

1621. Don't do it!

1622. He can't do that. Electrify!

1623. Oh!

1624. - He may have shattered Mick Foley's skull!

1625. He's really busted open now.

1626. And he's really busted open now!

1627. Oh, no. Not this.

1628. - It's gonna break! - Come on. Stop this damn thing!

1629. - Turn around! Don't!

1630. No!

1631. - No!

1632. Back off!

1633. Wanna go upstairs? You wanna go upstairs?

1634. - Come on. - No, no, no!

1635. I want Daddy! - I know, I know. Excuse me.

1636. - Oh! Oh, my! Please, do something!

1637. The new World Wrestling Federation champion,

1638. The Rock!

1639. - He's okay. He's okay. - I'm all right.

1640. - Just some boo-boos. It's no big deal.

1641. - Just a boo-boo. He's okay.

1642. This is not a boo-boo. It's water. It's a lot of water.

1643. Daddy's okay. He's okay.

1644. Where's Dewey? - He's in the bathroom.

1645. It's okay. He's right... He's right there.

1646. Daddy's gonna be okay.

1647. Don't you worry about Daddy, all right?

1648. They said they got a plastic surgeon here. This thing is probably a mess.

1649. Get in there, big guy. Get with your dad.

1650. Are you guys okay? Daddy's all right, okay?

1651. - Were you worried about Dadas? Yeah.

1652. Okay. Well, don't worry no more, okay?

1653. They can't hurt Dadas.

1654. - Daddy, you have blood. - I know. I have a little boo-boo.

1655. - It's a big boo-boo. - It's a big boo-boo.

1656. Oh, God.

1657. - Oh.

1658. It's okay.

1659. I hope everyone feels like they got their money's worth out there.

1660. But, you know, it's okay. It's fake, so...

1661. Here, drink some water. Oh, you have some here. Some fresh water.

1662. Peanut, you okay? - What are you doing?

1663. He's okay. It's just some... - They're sewing up his boo-boo.

1664. They're putting Daddy's head...

1665. It's a big boo-boo, you know, when you fall down. Just a boo-boo like this.

1666. You know how you fell down Disney a couple years ago, right on your nose?

1667. - Kind of like that. - I fell on my knees a couple of times.

1668. And your knee bled a little bit, right?

1669. Mick, what time's our flight?

1670. - 12:00. - 12:00 what?

1671. 12:05.

1672. You want a charter flight? - No, I was testing his mind.

1673. Oh, okay.

1674. Mick, that was unbelievable, brother. Thank you, guys.

1675. Good shit. It looked un... Brother.

1676. You are the fuckin' man.

1677. Half of you is saying, "Why the hell am I doing this?"

1678. And the other half is saying, "This is exactly why I do it," you know.

1679. Just that these... You can't have these matches very often or you'd be dead.

1680. You know, when you have someone as good as Rocky, you trust his judgment.

1681. If I saw him now, I'd probably strangle him, he hit me so damn many times.

1682. But it was probably, in retrospect,

1683. you look at that tape and say that's what made it,

1684. it was those last couple of extra ones.

1685. Mick, I don't know if I can take much more of this. I'm gonna let you know that.

1686. We reached a lot of people. We can't reach everybody.

1687. You can't even reach a majority. But, I mean...

1688. I know, but you have to stop trying.

1689. Can you hold... Yeah. - We are entertainers, but I think it...

1690. - Don't move. - I'll hold him. Okay?

1691. I think we reached...

1692. I think we touched a lot of people, if you don't mind me saying.

1693. I might touch you later, if you know what I mean.

1694. - Ow, have mercy. - Dad looks cute.

1695. - He is cute. Thank you. I am cute.

1696. In a rugged type of way.

1697. Daddy.

1698. You okay?

1699. Yeah. Are you sure?

1700. Well, I feel pretty bad.

1701. It wasn't too gratuitously bloody, was it?

1702. My thing tonight?

1703. It was fabulous.

1704. - I'll let you know when I get the feedback. - Hold on.

1705. - Thanks, Vince. - Thank you very, very much.

1706. - Do you feel okay? - I feel all right.

1707. I'll take care of you tomorrow maybe. - Okay, I'm hoping...

1708. I mean, if someone was offended by that, I think it was a hell of a contest.

1709. I think, you know, for every one person who was offended and thought it was too violent,

1710. there's probably 10 or 20 who thought that it was a dramatic...

1711. That character just won't... Won't die, you know.

1712. And then when they get the story about how you were screwed...

1713. You know? I mean, I just think that, you know, that's show business.

1714. - Did you have fun? Oh, yes, we had so much fun.

1715. Are you kidding?

1716. I was glad to see Mick was okay,

1717. and was happy that he could walk out of the arena with his family that night.

1718. But the sight of Noelle and Dewey watching their father being beaten up

1719. haunted me for weeks.

1720. I decided to go to Florida

1721. to show Mick the footage.

1722. - Oh.

1723. That right there is where that picture was taken.

1724. That was even before things got...

1725. Oh.

1726. Oh, God. I...

1727. - No!

1728. - Aw. - I don't feel like such a good dad anymore.

1729. I felt very guilty all of a sudden, like a real...

1730. Really like my, uh, you know, my priorities were out of order.

1731. I can't... I mean, I feel like a bad dad, and I've never felt like that ever before.

1732. Right then I just felt like... Like I was a bad person.

1733. I don't... I don't ever want to see my children like that again.

1734. I'll... Maybe I will be the guy

1735. who pulls a sock out of his tights for the next couple of years.

1736. - That's, uh... - Reading. E, E, E, E.

1737. For the, uh...

1738. Yeah, nothing's worth that. Nothing.

1739. I don't... I will never do that again.

1740. I don't... I don't want my children, um,

1741. involved in something like that.

1742. You know, I want our family to have the last laugh.

1743. That's very good, Dew.

1744. - I'm very proud of you. That came in the mail.

1745. Tony Jones and Michael Modest never heard from the WWF.

1746. Tony still works at Visa.

1747. Michael left his job at the funeral home

1748. and now delivers furniture for a living.

1749. They both still hope to make it as wrestlers.

1750. As far as Roland, his wrestling school is still open.

1751. However, his monthly Gym Wars shows

1752. were closed down because of building code violations.

1753. Terry Funk's retirement lasted all of three months.

1754. He continued wrestling on a regular basis until finally retiring on June 7, 1999.

1755. That is, until the next offer comes along.

1756. Since I last saw Jake, he has spent considerable time in jail

1757. for nonpayment of child support.

1758. He has not spoken to or seen his daughter since I filmed their reunion.

1759. The Droz never made it as Puke.

1760. He did go on to become a regular in the WWF.

1761. Paul Heyman and ECW, they're still hanging in there,

1762. recently signing a deal with The Nashville Network

1763. to produce a weekly wrestling show.

1764. Vince and the WWF,

1765. they're stronger than ever.

1766. They just issued an IPO on the stock market.

1767. The family business has finally gone public.

1768. Oh, you mean the golden showers? Yes, yes!

1769. As far as me, after three years on the road,

1770. I still feel the same way about wrestling that I did when I was eight years old.

1771. What kind of person does this for a living?

1772. They're showmen. They're carnies.

1773. They're fathers.

1774. They're sons.

1775. They're artists.

1776. They're toys.

1777. They're people with families,

1778. with the same concerns and fears we all share.

1779. They're just like you and me.

1780. Except they're really different.