Show:Wrestling Epicenter
Guest: Pat Rose
Date: 09/13/2024
Your Host: James Walsh
A great interview with a great guy and we even hear from his son who is entering the wrestling world at the age of 19 in spite of success in country music already! Camden Smith steps in and also chats with us as we interview the man who has been everywhere and even trained The Undertaker! Mr. Pat Rose! Pat even discusses the “Pig Man” character that Jim Cornette has referenced him doing several times during his podcast.
Pat’s new book is available now. It is self-published so to get it, you would message Pat Rose or his son Camden Smith to their Facebook pages to get a copy. They are $20 for a copy or $40 for one personalized. Check it out!
Pat Rose’s facebook: https://www.facebook.com/patroseinc
Camden Smith’s facebook https://www.facebook.com/camden.smith.1800
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PAT ROSE:
On how his book came to be:
“I was sitting here and I got a call from a guy named Brian Boney. He said, “Pat, lets write a book!” I said, “Ok! About what?” (laughs) He said, “About you and your career!” So, he had me sit and I’d record stories about wrestling, stories about Texas, Puerto Rico, Memphis… And, I’d record myself telling all of these stories about my life and my experiences in wrestling and beyond and I’d send them to him. ANd, he went and he wrote those stories out and put it all together and it turned out great! It is an interesting read and has a lot of wonderful classic pictures from the glory days of wrestling and some stories that I’ve never told before. You can get it now and all you have to do is message me or my son Camden Smith on Facebook and I’ll sell you a copy!”
On Nick Gulas’ reputation and his impact on his career:
“You’ll hear all kind of things about Nick like he didn’t pay and all that. All I know is he must have liked me because he was always good to me! He told me I didn’t look like a Pat Smith because I’ve got more of an Native American look. So, he gave me the name Pat Rose. So, the rest is history with the name. He also had confidence in me. He gave us the NWA Mid America Tag Titles, me and Rocky Brewer when we beat the Blond Bombers who was Wayne Ferris and Larry Latham. Wayne would later be the Honky Tonk Man!”
On if having the real f replica belts of titles he’s won means something to him:
“You know, it does to me. For me, to have them to have and to hold as a reminder of where I’ve been and what I’ve done is very cool. And, when I’m gone, if it is something I can leave to my son and he can have it as a momento of me, that’ is very special also.”
On the experience working for the recently late Ole Anderson:
“I loved Ole Anderson! He was a hard ass! (laughs) He really was a hard ass! But, if you worked hard for him, he’d do you right. And, I worked hard. So, he was always good to me.”
On working Georgia Championship Wrestling and the Georgia Superstars Shows:
“Listen to this. In the early 1980’s, I was a kid from Chatanooga, Tennessee going down to Atlanta Georgia for Georgia Championship Wrestling at the start. It later became World Championship Wrestling… I’m sitting there next to Paul “Mr. Wonderful” Orndorff, Ric Flair, Mr. Wrestling III….. And, Ole Anderson always took care of me. He always treated me good. He gave me good matches… But, he did give me the Road Warriors! (laughs) But, he knew I knew how to protect myself and bump for them. And, I wouldn’t take that over the shoulder bump… The Doomsday Device. I wouldn’t do that because I was scared of it. But, everything else, I’d do. And, I grew a friendship with Hawk. Animal, I was OK with. But, I really got to get along with Hawk.”
On Ric Flair and Ole Anderson offering him a push:
“Let me tell you a story. I was working Georgia and they gave me a win over Dale Veasey. He was one of the top enhancement guys in the world at the time. I got the win and when I came back through the curtain and I walk by Ric Flair and Ole Anderson in the control room. They say, “Hey Pat, come here.” So, i go over and they say, “What do you do? Do you have a job outside of wrestling?” I said, “Yeah, i work a regular job.” They said, “How would you like to go full time?” And, I told ’em “no.” My daughter Erica was just born at the time and I wanted to be around for her to help her build her Strawberry Shortcake house and all that. I do sometimes wonder if I had said “yes”, if I’d be around now or if I’d be dead like Buzz Sawyer and some of those guys. I think I made the right decision.”
On if he ever regrets not seeing what kind of a push he may have gotten:
“I don’t think about it a lot. I had a good career anyway. I got to wrestle anybody whow as anybody in the 80’s. I’m happy.”
On getting to team with Mr. Wrestling II shortly before he passed:
“Thank you for asking about that. Right now, I’m looking at a Mr. Wrestling II masked that I wore when I got to team with him. Mr. Wrestling II was my hero. When I was a kid in high school and I was on the wrestling team, Mr. Wrestling II was my hero. We had the Field House was a little building that had a hell of a heater in it. And, you had to make weight… I was in the 138 to 155 weight class. We were the studs. And, I would be challenged for my starting position on the team by five different guys. Well, on the bottom of my gym bag, I taped a picture of Mr. Wrestling II. And, when I’d be working to make weight or to keep my spot, I’d put that bag on its side and to me, it was like Mr. Wrestling II was looking back at me. It was like he was giving me special power! You know what I mean? Well, my son Camden plays country music. And, we were in Rome, Georgia when I got a call from Robert Walker. He said, “Let me put Dad on the phone.” Dad was II. And, I looked at him, he looked back at me, and I told him I love him. A couple weeks later, he passed away. I really, really cherish that phone call and my son being with me. That was special, man.”
On his favorite territory to work:
“Golly! It would have to be a few I’d say. For one, Memphis. Bill Dundee put myself, Tom Prichard, and Sherri Martel together. We got to work with the Fabs, The Fantastics, and the Rock and Roll Express. But, then again, I worked in Mid South Wrestling when I got a call from Arn Anderson who asked me to come down to Pensicola, Florida. That is where I got to team with II. And, when there with II, just as he was leaving to go to WWE, I was unmasked with II still there and was paired with Randy Rhodes and we won the Tag Team Titles. So, that was very special too. That is also where I got to train the Armstrong boys. Scott and Steve and all the Armstrongs. That was great, man. That was great! So, to answer your question, it would have to be my time in Memphis and Southeastern Championship Wrestling with the Fullers.”
On Jim Cornette calling him “vertically challenged” on a fairly recent podcast:
“(laughs) I love Jim Cornette! But, I was surprised when he said that. He called me a good worker which I appreciate but he said I was short! What? (laughs) I was in there with everybody and I didn’t feel too short. I think I’m taller than Mike Pappas, my favorite wrestler! Look him up! He teamed with everyybody, Andre the Giant and them. Maybe compared to my son Camden who is 19 and starting to wrestle. But, I didn’t think of myself as too vertically challenged.”
On the “Pig Man” character that Jim Cornette said was hysterical:
“(laughs) All right. Picture this. Dennis Condrey is driving, Bobby Eaton is in the passenger seat. Jimmy is sitting behind Dennis, and me behind Bobby. And, me and Jimmy were sitting back there talking and I just put my finger up and pulled my nose up and started talking that way and Jimmy just started laughing. He thought that was the funniest thing, man. So, I’d do it to him all the time. And, whenever I’d do it, he’d bust a gut. We had fun with that, man! (laughs)”
On if he realized The Undertaker would be a huge star when he trained him:
“You know what? Yes! I could see that he had the size and the ability to be something special. I’m not sure I realized he’d go on to be that big. I mean, look what he became? But, I knew Mark had all of the ability to be a huge star in pro wrestling. And, he did just that.”
On working for Vince McMahon in the WWF:
“I didn’t have a lot of exchanges with Vince McMahon. But, when I got there, I shook his hand and he said it was nice to meet me. I think he knew who I was from having worked in the business. He treated me well. I really don’t have any complaints.”
On losing to the Undertaker in WWE:
“I just didn’t like the bodybag! (laughs) I’m claustrophobic so I didn’t really like being in that thing. But, other than that, it was easy!”
On his later run with WCW:
“I owe Gordon Solie a few thank you’s. Because, they were going to put me with El Gigante. And, Gordon knew what that would be for me. So, he said, “No, Pat Rose. You’re going to wrestle Tommy Rich.” And, he put me with him for that loop. And, I got to travel with Dutch Mantell and Kevin Nash. Man, you talk about a funny guy! We had fun on that tour. And, that tour, I worked with Tommy Rich almost the whole tour and somewhere along the way, somehow, “The Z Man” Tom Zenk came into play. I’m not sure how. But, WCW at that time? It was good… I remember we would go by the headquarters and they would let us take all kinds of merchandise and T shirts… It was like they were going out of business. We took all kinds of T shirts and stuff… Me and Bob Cook.”