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Corrigan?s Corner: Jim Ross Speaks to Wrestledelphia (Part III)

Posted: Jan 22nd 2015 By: John Corrigan

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross will be performing his one man show on Jan. 25 at the Trocadero Theatre in Philadelphia.

Tickets start at $20, available at www.axs.com.

The VIP meet-and-greet starts at 1 p.m. and includes personalized autographs, photo opps, and a bottle of J.R.?s BBQ Sauce.

RINGSIDE: An Afternoon with Jim Ross runs from 3 p.m. until 5 p.m., leaving you plenty of time to hop on the subway and ride the Broad Street Line down to the Wells Fargo Center for the Royal Rumble that evening.

Here?s Part 3 of my interview with good ol? J.R. Part 1 can be found here and Part 2 can be found here.

While you?ve been reflecting on your career during the writing process, is there anyone that you wish you got the chance to work with that, for some reason, you never did?

Ross: ?Oh man, as a broadcaster??

Just in any aspect of wrestling.

Ross: ?Well, I would have liked to call some Jack Brisco/Dory Funk Jr. matches. After all these years, those matches still hold up today. I really came along in an interesting time. I got to meet Lou Thesz, Sam Muchnick. I would have liked to meet Vincent J. McMahon. I would have loved to learn from him. I got to meet Eddie Graham. I worked for Bill Watts who had such a background on so many guys like McMahon, Roy Shire, and Verne Gagne, who I met. ?74 is when I broke in and I really got to meet a lot of people there thanks to Watts giving me opportunities and responsibilities that allowed me to learn. If it?s calling matches, I would have loved to call those Brisco/Funk NWA title matches. Those one hour matches would have been right down my alley. I would have loved to, because he?s a friend of mine, and I met him his rookie year, both of them actually, called some [Brusier] Brody and [Stan] Hansen matches. I knew them when they were rookies just like me so we were all learning. Stan did most of his work in Japan, but I did get to see him a few times when he came to WCW. Of course, Frank [Brody?s real name] got murdered, which was unfortunate for many reasons, obviously. Left a wife and small son behind, it was a senseless killing and a head scratcher. But I don?t really have many regrets. I?ve heard the tales of some 90-minute draws between Lou Thesz and Danny Hodge, which I would have loved to had been a part of. But really I got no regrets. That?s why I think my book will be hopefully interesting because the territories were going strong in the mid-70s. Then I saw the territories start eroding, then cable TV influenced the pro wrestling presentation, then satellite television came along, then pay-per-view came along, then corporate owners came along, then territories started fading. I?ve seen so many changes in so many different eras, that I think the book will have a lot of compelling material in it.?

And you?ve been involved in so many different aspects of the business.

Ross: ?I?ve been blessed with a really, really great career in a business that I still love. Are there little things along the way that I?d have liked to change? Sure, I?d like to not have had Bell?s palsy three times. I?d like for my mom and dad to have seen the full progression of what I achieved. They both passed before I went in the Hall of Fame, which was a cool day without question. Things like that, that you don?t have control over. You know, sometimes we take for granted how valuable our health is. And that?s a big mistake. I would have liked to have taken better care of myself, but I am now. For sure. And these are stories I like to tell the audience because they can take them with them in their lives.?

And in addition to the one-man-shows and the podcast and the autobiography and Wrestle Kingdom 9, you have your own barbeque business. Do you get asked for BBQ recommendations all the time?

Ross: ?Yeah, people ask how to use our different products on the grill or in the kitchen. Most people think our products are only for the grill, which isn?t true. That?s also been a labor of love between my wife and I to pay homage to my mother. We started off with just one BBQ sauce, then two BBQ sauces, then ketchup, then mustard, and then seasoning. Our online business domestically with WWE Shop has been phenomenal. Then we have two big distributors that ship to Ireland, the U.K., and all other parts of Europe. We?re still waiting on the break to get into grocery stores. We?re in a few grocery stores in Oklahoma, which is good, but we need to get more mass marketing of our product. You find out when you?re an independent and a small group like we are, it?s hard to get shelf space because all the big distributors have paid a lot of money for shelf space. It?s just very, very challenging. But the online business, especially with these past holidays, we killed it. We had a great season. I?m an entrepreneur at heart. Can?t tell you why, just part of my make-up. But I?d like to see, in my lifetime, our products in grocery stores because we make a good product. It?s not a vanity product. You know, we?ve sampled so many things that had ?celebrity endorsements? and they were just horrible, just deplorable. You buy it once and that?s it. And I never wanted that. I?m kind of a foodie at heart. I enjoy the Food Network. So I give advice when I can. I don?t try to act like I?m some trained chef, but I?m an experienced griller and I enjoy cooking for people. You?d be surprised how many food questions I get on the Q/A at my website. Most of the times it?s simple things like ?how do I get my chicken from burning?? Well, you got to turn the heat down or move it to the side of your grill where you don?t have a fire. Little simple things you can help people with.?

(laughs) Sounds like a fun time.

Ross: ?Yeah, I enjoy it. And you being from Philly, it?s known for cheesesteaks, but there?s more than just cheesesteaks in Philadelphia.?

That?s right.

Ross: ?There?s a lot of good pizza, Italian food, and different ethnic dishes. That?s one of the nice things about traveling these days. Okay, where we gonna have lunch? Or breakfast? And dinner? Because you want to take advantage. When I was coming to Philadelphia to work, you?d get to the hotel, go do the show, and a lot of times back when I was living in Connecticut, we?d pop in for the show and then leave. Didn?t even spend the night. The only real estate you saw was the airport and the arena. Then if you did stay, it was the airport, the arena, and the hotel. So on this particular trip, I?m doing a show Friday night in Sayreville and then afterward, we?ll drive into Philly and I?ll have Saturday.?

You can do a little exploring.

Ross: ?That?s exactly right. Maybe I?ll do a little media if folks are available, but other than that, we should be good.?

While you?re in Philly, I know you probably don?t want more BBQ, but I recommend Fat Jack?s on Roosevelt Boulevard.

Ross: ?Okay. And another thing about the BBQ?we?ve been working on a hot sauce for a couple years, but thus far, we haven?t found that magic formula. I don?t know if ?obsession? is the right word, but if I?m going to sell it, it has to be really good.?

Who has the best cheesesteak in Philly?

Ross: ?You know, the only place that I?ve eaten a cheesesteak in Philly, so I may not be the best guy to answer??

(laughs) Okay.

Ross: ?Taz and I drove down to do a show in Philly, I think he and I were on Smackdown together, and he took me to, correct me if I?m wrong, Tony Luke?s.?

That?s the place.

Ross: ?All the ECW guys used to go there because it wasn?t very far from the ECW Arena.?

What did ya think?

Ross: ?Oh, it was great. Yeah, oh yeah, I loved it. As a matter of fact, we had a show the next night in Long Island, which is why I rode with Taz because he lives on Long Island. I remember after having one at Tony Lukes, I got one to go and put it in the microwave in my hotel room and had it the next day.?

That?s what we like to hear.

Ross: ?Oh, it was great. A helluva sandwich. I saw on Food Network that there?s those two famous Philly cheesesteak places across the street from each other??

Pat?s and Geno?s.

Ross: ?Yeah, I?ve never been to either one of those.?

Oh my?you better go on that Saturday.

Ross: ?Yeah, I might check those out. I?m curious, you know? But that Tony Luke?s, we had good food and good laughs. And at least on that ride to Long Island, the car smelled pretty good.?