BRUNO SAMMARTINO - W365 INTERVIEW
Wrestling365 reader Michael Strider has sent along an interview he
recently conducted with the legendary Bruno Sammartino just prior to the
Wrestle Reunion fanfest this past weekend...
"Of all the properties which belong to honorable men, not one is so
highly prized as that of character." - Henry Clay
Bruno Sammartino is indeed a man of great character. He is a shining
example of a person that reached his goals without sacrificing his
integrity and his honor. Bruno was to wrestling what Elvis Presley was
to music. He took the sport to a completely different level. Mr.
Sammartino spoke candidly about his life since his retirement from the
sport of professional wrestling and the sadness that he feels for the
direction it has taken and the lives that have been lost along the way.
M. S. - When did the thought of wrestling first enter your mind?
Bruno Sammartino - Well Michael, I came from Europe and I first came
into this country in 1950 and I was a human skeleton because of the war.
We were hiding in the mountains during the war and all that kind of
stuff and I was very sickly and literally almost died. So when I came to
America I was really the size of a skeleton. When I arrived I started to
get healthier by doing an exercise program and then I was introduced to
amateur wrestling. I got into a program where I was lifting weights on
Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and I was working out on a mat on Monday,
Wednesday and Friday. As I started getting healthier and my appetite
grew and I started getting bigger I became a fanatic. I became so
dedicated that even during the summer while I was working as a
construction laborer I would work out for 3 hours or more afterwards! As
I grew and I was competing in both Olympic style lifting and power
lifting I was approached by a man named Bob Prince who was the voice of
the Pittsburgh Pirates in those days. He was a great guy that had his
own television show and he had seen me work out and invited me to be on
his show when I won the North America Weight Lifting Championship. It
just so happened that a wrestling promoter named Rudy Miller who
represented Capital Wrestling which later became the W.W.W.F. was in
Pittsburgh at the time because they had a live wrestling show. Well,
while on the show Bob asked me if I was still working out on a mat on a
regular basis. I said yes and Rudy was watching the show at the time. He
went to the studio the following day and asked if anyone knew who this
kid, Bruno Sammartino was. It just so happened that a fellow named John
that I went to high school with told him that I lived practically on the
same street and we had went to school together. Bob asked him if he
could contact me to see if I could meet him the following week. I went
down to channel 11 which was the NBC affiliate where they had the live
studio wrestling and met Rudy. He asked me if I would come to Washington
D.C. to meet Vince McMahon (SR.) and his partner. I went to D.C. and
they took me to this place called the old Capital Arena and they had me
go through a workout with some of the veterans they had at the time in
order to see what kind of background and knowledge I had. Afterwards
they asked me if I was interested in becoming a professional wrestler. I
said, "If I wasn't I wouldn't have made the trip to Washington D.C.!"
(Laughing!) I came home and talked to my wife whom I had just married
two months before. I told her I would like to give it a try. I went back
to D.C. and trained for two months and worked out every day over there
and the next thing I knew I was wrestling!
M. S. - I have to tell you that I have interviewed some of the biggest
"Superstars" in this business and most of them tell me that they credit
you for inspiring them to get into the sport!
Bruno Sammartino - Oh my goodness! That's nice! (Laughing!)
Michael Strider - Superstar Billy Graham was telling me about the most
memorable match of his career wrestling you at Madison Square Garden in
May, 1977.
Bruno Sammartino - The crowds in New York were phenomenal and I don't
want to just mention Madison Square Garden because Boston Garden,
Philadelphia and many other places were great too but I use to get
goose-bumps when I would walk out to the ring in the Garden! 22,000
people would start chanting "Bruno, Bruno, Bruno!" But I never knew why
I got that kind of reaction. I only knew it gave me goose-bumps to hear
it! In those days we didn't play music to entice people we simply walked
out to the ring! People were just that explosive! The Garden was the
biggest for me but the same thing would happen at the Boston Garden, the
Philadelphia Spectrum, and the Capital Center in Washington or the Civic
Arena here in Pittsburgh. We had the biggest arenas in the northeast in
those days when there were several different wrestling promotions around
the country! At the time Philadelphia held 21,000 and Madison Square
Garden was 22,000. Later on came places like the Meadowlands and Nassau
Coliseum. These were all really big arenas and it was quite interesting
to be at them all!
M. S. - You were the man who stole the hearts of all the wrestling fans.
Even the people who cheered for the bad guys liked you! Can you explain
how you did that?
Bruno Sammartino - A lot of "newspaper guys" would always ask me when I
was at the Garden, "What is it that makes these people explode when they
see you walk out?" I wish I was smart enough to know the answer to that
but I still don't know! I think they appreciated the fact that I was a
regular guy and a big guy. In those days I was 270 and I looked like a
local guy, no big deal. I guess they felt like I was just one of them,
which I really was! One time a "newspaper man" in Boston wrote that a
thief could have a field day on the north end of Boston when Sammartino
was in town because everyone was at the Boston Garden! It was the same
kind of explosion there when I walked into the arena! I was a guy that
just went into the ring in a pair of tights and my boots and it wasn't
like I had a robe or any kind of flamboyant look about me. I was just a
plain guy but a big guy because of the training that I did. For a guy
that came from that era I trained like a horse and never touched any
chemicals which tragically came into play in the business. I'm proud of
that!
M. S. - Which venue would you say was your favorite? Was there a venue
that was "your baby" so to speak?
Bruno Sammartino - I'd have to say the Garden! One of the reasons was
because when you stepped into the ring you'd always have photographers
all around the ring. A lot of them were from Japan. When I went to Japan
the first time in 1966 I was very puzzled when I got off the plain
because there was what looked like a couple hundred guys snapping
pictures. I remember thinking, "My gosh, who's on this plane?" "Who did
I miss?" Because I was in first class and I didn't see anybody famous! I
was flabbergasted to find out that they were taking photos of me! The
photographers that would come to the Garden had been running pictures of
me for a couple years before I went there. I didn't know that I was
getting tremendous publicity over there!
M. S. - It seems like Japanese fans are more likely to remain loyal for
a longer period of time than fans in America.
Bruno Sammartino - Not in the old days, Mike! The one thing that I argue
about with some of the new people is that I would be at the Garden every
three weeks and I would see familiar places all the time! They were
very, very loyal fans! I think it all changed back in '83-84 when all
the drastic changes took place in the sport. It became more appealing to
the younger generation who wanted to see beautiful women just about
naked and hear the profanity which they thought was cool or whatever.
That kind of stuff does not have the longevity that we had. That's why
they don't go to Madison Square Garden more than four times a year. They
come to Pittsburgh maybe twice a year. People say that it is bigger now!
It may be big on TV. but not in the arenas! They're not getting the
people like we did!
M. S. - I like the "old school" wrestling from your day much better than
today's style! Today is more M.T.V. than wrestling! You guys didn't have
to use the profanity and boobs and beer drinking in front of kids to be
successful! No wrestler in the history of the sport has sold out Madison
Square Garden more times than you did in your career. Sure there were
wrestlers appearing with you but you were the main attraction! The
change in the way the sport is presented is a travesty. I feel lucky to
have experienced a small part of your era and it's sometimes
heartbreaking to see where the business has drifted to today.
Bruno Sammartino - It bothers me so much and I can't watch it now. I
loved the business and respected it and to see what has happened to it
since those days hurts me, embarrasses me and angers me! Rather than put
myself through all that I just refuse to watch it and I have not watched
it for many, many years. I just refuse to watch it!
M. S. - Most anyone that is a fan of yours share the same feeling about
it!
Bruno Sammartino - I hear it all the time whether I'm out at a
restaurant or a banquet or whatever, people will come up to me and tell
me they were such a big fan and they will mention other guys from that
era but they'll say, "My gosh, what did they do to it today?" These
people are usually adults but I guess kids like it today, I don't know.
M. S. - Hopefully more of the younger fans will learn more about the
heritage of the sport if they have more of the WrestleReunions! There's
still hope for them!
Bruno Sammartino - Yes!
M. S. - You were an advocate for being completely chemical free. Did you
feel as if you were alone in that department?
Bruno Sammartino - In the late 1980s I started being very outspoken
about it because I saw guys like "Quick Draw McGraw" were dying and I
knew that drugs were involved so I started complaining about it. I knew
it was happening with this business and I went on television shows like
Geraldo Rivera, Donohue and Larry King Live to talk about these things.
Unfortunately I was a lonely voice and it didn't bring on a drastic
changes. Because of this I became the "bad guy" to others in the
business. I didn't care and I hoped that some kind of action would be
taken by the state athletic commission to start testing but because I
was by myself nothing happened. Some of the wrestlers say that I turned
my back on the sport because I never go around anymore. I'm offended
when they say that because if they loved this business where were they
at a time when they all knew what was going on in the early days and
could have made a difference but refused to? If more people would have
come forward something could have been done but nobody did!
M. S. - Taking a stand in times like that is something to be proud of!
If one person that saw you on those shows chose not to use chemicals it
was all worth it.
Bruno Sammartino - I still speak at schools and places like that because
there are a lot of young athletes that are using chemicals. I've never
charged anything to go and talk to them because I want to tell them that
you can succeed by working hard and dedicating yourself! You do not need
the chemicals and you will pay a heavy price for using them! There were
a lot of natural athletes in my days. You're 34 years old so you may not
even remember names like Don Leo Jonathan or Big Bill Miller or Bobo
Brazil or Ernie Ladd. I was big but these guys were giants of the day!
Bill Miller was not only a wrestling champion but also an All American
from Ohio State! These guys were natural athletes! They were not
chemical athletes like so many that followed. Unfortunately, some of
these chemical guys look good but they're a bad influence on young
people who want to look like them. They find out that there are
chemicals that can make you look like that. It's such a tragedy! There
was an article recently that stated that in the past 15 years there have
been around 70 wrestlers that have died from some kind of chemical use
and they were all 40 or younger! Now that's a travesty!
M. S. - You would think that people would learn from seeing this happen!
Bruno Sammartino - I know it!
M. S. - Name some of your favorite feuds over the years.
Bruno Sammartino - I wouldn't call this one a feud just because of the
way it happened. When I broke my back with Stan Hansen it became a
really, really big deal. The one with Zybysko was great! We did 46,000
people in Shea Stadium! We sold out every arena we went to. According to
the police department in places like the Garden they had to turn
5,000-6,000 people away. A place called the Felt Forum had an extra
4,500 people and still they had to turn people away! In the sixties I
had a feud with Bill Watts that was extremely successful and another
with Spiros Arion that was also great! We did huge business with that!
We had success not necessarily because of the feud but because we went
into the arena and gave great matches and that brought the matches back.
Guys like Ken Patera and several others did great business in those
days! The people really appreciated that kind of wrestling that was
happening at the time!
M. S. - What was the deciding factor that told you we had taken the
wrong turn in the sport?
Bruno Sammartino - It's my opinion that it happened when Vince McMahon
JR. took over after his father passed on. Then the WCW started hiring
what I call "non-wrestling people" and trying to follow McMahon's way
thinking it was the way to go. They really weren't knowledgeable about
the business or its history. These changes all came about at that time!
M. S. - What did you think when McMahon came out and said the sport was
fake?
Bruno Sammartino - It made me feel bad and I'll tell you why. He was
ridiculous in saying that. He had no business saying that because he
didn't know the history of the sport. If he went back to the days of
wrestlers like Stanislaus Zybysko and guys from his time he would see
that it was completely real. They may not have been the most exciting
matches to watch but it was very real. Another thing is this, I didn't
consider it quite like that because we wrestled in the same rings that
they had boxing in. Those things were like concrete! When you took the
slams there was nothing fake about any of that stuff! I had many
injuries with my back, knees and broke my neck in 1976. I had back
surgeries and I don't mean just a little disc surgery but I had spurs
that had grown all over my back from the trauma. They were very, very
serious operations. I also had a complete hip replacement! But you know,
I never went to any rehab because I always did my own and today I still
power walk seven miles a day and work out with my weights at home. Since
I retired I'm down to 215-218. I think I'm in good shape!
M. S. - Tell me about the incident with Stan "The Lariet" Hansen when
your neck was broken.
Bruno Sammartino - They tried to say that he did it with the lariet but
that was not true. A film called, "The Greatest Sports Legend" did a
film on me. They did all sports figures but I'm the only wrestler they
ever did. The film shows it as it happened. I came off the ropes and I
gave him a tackle. We had been going about 18-20 minutes and we were
sweating. As I came off the ropes he tried to pick me up for a slam he
dropped me straight on my head! The promoter tried to make it look more
marketable by saying he did it by the lariat but that's not how it
happened! The lariat became very famous after that!
M. S. - What kind of hobbies do you have?
Bruno Sammartino - I was always an opera lover so I love to listen to
the music. I do all of my lawn and garden work. My wife and I do things
together. I'm very fortunate to have the greatest wife in the world! We
just celebrated our 45th wedding anniversary and we went to Italy for a
couple of weeks.
M. S. - 45 years! God bless!
Bruno Sammartino - I've been very lucky! She's been both mom and dad to
three sons that we have. Once a year we go back to the old country or
take a cruise and the rest of the time we meet with friends for dinner.
I find life so enjoyable to wake up in the morning and do my workout and
if I feel like doing something I can do it but if not I just lie around
and relax! I love the freedom to just do as I feel.
M. S. - That's everyone's goal in life!
Bruno Sammartino - Well, after you get to a certain age you're not to
ambitious to do too many things! (Laughing!)
M. S. - Bad thing is that so many guys in that sport are not able to do
simple things like that now. People much younger than you are not able
to get around very well.
Bruno Sammartino - Many guys refuse to have surgery to help themselves.
My feeling is like this.if you have something that can't be fixed you're
stuck with it but if the doctors can improve your situation you'd have
to be foolish not to go for it!
M. S. - That's true! What are a few weeks of pain from surgery if it
will get better?
Bruno Sammartino - You're in pain anyway! Make yourself feel better! My
back was so bad that I couldn't stand up for five minutes at a time
because my legs would get no circulation. If I didn't sit I'd fall down
almost! I'm a lot better off for being aggressive in going after these
surgeries!
M. S. - Tell me a memory from a night in the Garden.
Bruno Sammartino - I can tell you two great memories. The first is when
I was a young guy and I was trying to get a break. I wasn't really
making any money at that time and wasn't very happy because of being
away from home. A wrestler named Haystacks Calhoun came in to the
territory. They were publicizing him as 601 lbs and that no one had ever
taken him off his feet. I was very young but very strong with the
lifting and that kind of stuff. So I thought to myself, "Man, if I could
get in the ring with Calhoun and pick him up that might give me some
recognition with the fans!" The promoters wouldn't even hear of it
because I was a nobody at the time. I was on a radio show in New York
and I told him to ask me about Calhoun. So he did and I told him that I
wish I could get a match with him because I knew that I could get him
up! Little did I know how much reaction I would get! The promoters gave
me hell from it! I said, "I think I can pick him up!" They said, "Do you
think you're stronger than Paul Anderson?" He was an Olympic lifter. I
told them that he was shorter than I was and was too bulky to get a good
grip on him to lift him up. They made the match. When I picked him up I
thought the roof in Madison Square Garden was going to come off! I'm
telling you that place was an explosion that you would have to hear to
believe! No exaggeration! I've never heard a pop that loud in my career!
The other instance was when I beat Buddy Rogers for the title. When I
got him up in the back breaker for the finale and the referee signaled
it was also incredibly loud. Those were the two biggest explosions I
ever experienced in the Garden!
M. S. - When you dropped Calhoun the ring actually collapsed, right?
Bruno Sammartino - Yes. Well, you know what happened, I was a young guy
and had just turned 23 and these people gave me more strength with their
reaction. I started walking around with him! There's a difference in a
600 lb barbell and a 600 lb Calhoun and what happened was that I started
losing my balance when his weight started shifting. So I thought, "My
gosh! If I collapse with this guy on top of me I'm going to be dead!" So
I just dumped him! When he came crashing down he smashed the ring and it
broke! They weighed him afterwards and he actually weighed 624.5 lbs in
stead of 601!
M. S. - Was that event filmed?
Bruno Sammartino - Unfortunately not! Even in those days when they had
live TV. they would tape the matches and then tape over them! It's
ashamed!
M. S. - You were recently offered a seat in the Hall of Fame and you
turned it down. What were your reasons for it?
Bruno Sammartino - It was my understanding that when McMahon first
started that he intentionally did not want me in it because he and I
were not on good terms. I understand that he received an overwhelming
amount of mail about not having me in there since I was a champion for
12 years. So it backfired on him! After a couple years of this happening
his people contacted me and I refused to do it. I was so upset with
everything that he had done with wrestling. I was upset with all the
ugliness and I just didn't want no part of it! The fans use to talk to
me as if I were hurt by the fact that they did not put me in it and I
would always assure them that it doesn't upset me because it isn't a
Hall of Fame, it's a "Hall of Shame!" McMahon decides every year, "Let's
see, who do I want in here this year?" And that's a Hall of Fame????
Last year he put in Pete Rose!!!!
M. S. - How can Pete Rose be in the wrestling Hall of Fame? I understand
he was the first "Celebrity Hall of Famer!" I personally think Andy
Kaufman should have been inducted way before Pete!
Bruno Sammartino - So, what does that really mean? Do you see what I
mean?
M. S. - Someone at WWE is a baseball fan. That's what it means!
Bruno Sammartino - Isn't that a joke! Here's a guy that's banned from
baseball because of what he did! Whether you agree with it or not isn't
the point! The point is that he's banned from baseball and McMahon
inducts him into the wrestling Hall of Fame! How can anybody take things
seriously? I'd be embarrassed to be in it! The fact of who is behind it
and what it's all about.I don't want no part of it! I belong to several
Hall of Fames that I am proud of. One of which I am especially proud of
is being built in Chicago called the "National Italian American Sports
Hall of Fame."
M. S. - It will never be a true Hall of Fame until you are in it! I have
to respect your stand on it because it has turned into something that
goes totally against everything that you worked so hard to make it.
M. S. - What do you think about meeting all the fans at WrestleReunion?
Bruno Sammartino - That's the part I enjoy the most! I was around for a
pretty long time and unfortunately in those days we were on a 7 day a
week schedule. We signed autographs and talked to the fans but there
wasn't a lot of time to do things like that. I take great pleasure in
having a chance to sit down and talk to the fans and listen to their
stories. I have always felt very, very lucky and very fortunate because
the fans always treated me so well. They were always so kind to me and I
am very grateful for that! Any opportunity that I have to talk with them
I welcome it and enjoy it.
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