During the latest edition of his “Hall of Fame” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Booker T commented on his Reality of Wrestling promotion almost shutting down last year, wrestling companies opening and closing, and more. You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On WWE keeping any potential sales talks quiet: “I’m going to tell you something: if they were selling the company, they are going to keep it quiet. And the thing is, that’s not something you want to go promoting to the world or anything like that or even your employees. You don’t want to bring morale down no more than perhaps it already is or anything like that. As well, it might be one of those things where the sale might not go through.”
On Reality of Wrestling almost shutting down: “Last year, about this time, we were actually having a show and we didn’t know if Reality of Wrestling was going to come out of the other side. Because the pandemic was kicking our butts. The rent was needing to be paid. We were like, ‘We don’t know if this is going to happen.’ I didn’t tell anyone. The first time Reality Of Wrestling was going to go out of business, I didn’t tell anyone that time either. We got a reprieve as well by my guy Hilton Koch down there at Hilton Furniture, came through and helped us out. And boom, he gave us that little burst that we needed. But I didn’t tell anyone that the company was going to shut down that night. Everything changed for Reality Of Wrestling that night, but I didn’t tell a soul. I was so disappointed in myself, as someone who put so much into Reality Of Wrestling and knowing it was going to be lost. Knowing that all of my young guys weren’t going to have a place to actually fulfill their dreams and live those dreams out. I felt so bad, I didn’t know how to tell anyone anything.”
On wrestling companies opening and closing: “This entity is different than any entity that you’re ever going to be a part of. It really is. You’re going to have to have people that really know what they’re doing. I have seen so many wrestling organizations open and close, so many of them. Open and close, independents open and close, because it’s not easy to last 18 years like Reality Of Wrestling.”
