Interview with Man Mountain Dean (Professional Wrestler).
by JSM80 (http://thejsmcafe.blogstream.com/.)
I recently had an opportunity to have an online one-on-one interview with fellow blogstream member and former professional wrestler, "Man Mountain" Dean. In it, he allowed me a glimpse into the world of pro wrestling from the perspective of a man who spent 35 years inside of the business. I supplied the questions and these are his words...
JSM: First Question I've got to ask, were you the “good guy” or the “heel”?
Dean: I was the "good-guy."
JSM: Tell us a little bit about your first experiences in the ring. How did it feel?
Dean: Before becoming a "pro" I had a lot of non-pro matches. This was "a learning ground for me."
JSM: How long have you been in the wrestling business and how did you get started?
Dean: I have been in Pro Wrestling for around thirty five years. I grew up watching the sport. I was around when men like
Buddy Rogers, "Antonio Rocca, Bruno Samartino, and "Killer Kowalski,”among others were around.
JSM: What made you want to become a professional wrestler? Did you watch it growing up?
Dean: I did watch wrestling growing up. My size was a factor, I am 6 foot 7 inches and I weighed in at over 550lbs. My shoe is a size 17!
JSM: Who were your favorite wrestlers and why?
Dean: The one I liked most, was "Haystacks” Calhone. We had a very similar style in the ring. I had many matches like his, and I also did the Big Splash.
JSM: Who was the toughest opponent you were ever in the ring with? Tell us about it.
Dean: I have wrestled many men over the years. I don't remember all of the names but some just stick out. The Meanest of them all has to be a man named "The Cuban Assassin," there was one match that sticks out between him and myself, It was a championship match held in the mountains of Kentucky. The crowd was quite angry at him, because of some things he had done to me in other "Fights" we had. They really wanted to get at him. The referee would not let the match go on, until everyone calmed down. I took the mic and said," Please folks let me have at him, that's what you are paying for.” We had our match and it was a great one that ended up in a draw. We met more times than I care to recall, but he was a tough little guy! I never did get that belt, but then again I never lost! It was always a DQ or time running out or some reason like that.
JSM: Did you enjoy your experience as a promoter? How did that compare to being in the ring?
Dean: I tried to promote for a little while, but it was a very difficult thing to do when you had large outfits, like the WWF etc...at the time to compete with.
JSM: What was your favorite or best experience in the business?
Dean: I would have to say the fans, and the young ones who would buy the photos of me that I would sign for them. It gave me great pleasure to do this. The other thing I enjoyed was doing interviews and appearing in magazines and T.V.
JSM: Were there any bad experiences you had? Did you suffer any major injuries during your career?
Dean: There were more broken bones and sprains in and out of the ring, because of my size, I was very lucky, though. I suffered back and leg injuries, blows to the head with chairs, choked with chains, double drop kicks, back body drops, four or five guys trying to take me down, and all the other moves you see today. I can say that this is a sport that requires the speed and ability to jump from 15 feet and still go on. I think we all have "bad experiences" sometimes, but the best thing to do is to forget and move on.
JSM: You mention that you have wrestled legends, such as Randy Savage, tell us about that, any stories there?
Dean: I fought Randy in many matches in the States and all over Canada. We fought handicapped, mixed tag and one-on-one matches. I, myself have wrestled against Randy for over 45 minutes in knock down fights. Randy and I fought all over Canada, and we took our fights from Nova Scotia to the Bay of Fundi. From Hazard to Paddua, Kentucky and many towns in between. We fought in some fearsome battles, you are asking me to remember one battle, but there were so many! We were Pros in and out of the ring. He had his life and I had mine, but in the ring we went in to win!
I believe we had some great matches-- too many to think about and you must remember this was in the 80's (I hope this helps a little}I must mention this, I was "special referee" to matches that he had and he didn't like that very much. He had a habit of trying to get in the ref's face, so that's when they appointed me as the special referee. I believe he had a championship match against Angleo Poffo in Paduga, I had to maintain this match, because it also was a knock down drag out fight for the belt. I believe it was a disqualification and Randy kept his belt, but that was so long ago I can't swear to it.
JSM: Are there any other “well known” wrestlers you have been in the ring with in your career?
Dean: It is very difficult to remember all the names, Angleo Poffo and Leaping Lanny, are among the ones I can recall. Do you remember a manger named “Classie Freddie Blassie?" The fans hated him, but he was a real gentleman outside the ring, but inside the ring-- forget it, he was as dirty as can be. I had the pleasure of meeting him in my life time when I was first getting started. Believe it or not, he was a really nice man.
JSM: What was the best venue that you ever performed in and why?
Dean: The best venue? There were several, for the fans... I would say those in Kentucky and Tennessee, also Canada. For the biggest, I would have to say Japan when I wrestled there. I met the champs and they were two of the toughest men I ever fought, besides the Cuban.
JSM: Have you had any interesting run-ins with fans over the years?
Dean: I have been very lucky, in that most of the time fans liked me and sought my autograph, however, I have seen and heard stories of guys that have been knifed, had things thrown at them and been injured by crazed fans.
JSM: In your own opinion, as someone who has been in the business, what has been the biggest change in the wrestling industry since the time you started?
Dean: There are two things that I have seen change over the years. Fans are demanding more and more blood! I think that they want to see injuries. Many think it is 'fake," but believe me until you get in that ring and experience it, you just don't know! The men now a days are taking chances of serious injury every time they enter that ring! Doing a back flip or a standing suplex in the ring is very hard (on the body). Then let's talk about the Cage Matches. That is a 15 foot drop, and believe me, you can feel a lot of pain. The men in that ring have to be in great shape, or they will end up in the hospital.
-You can find the 2nd half of this interview over at: http://jsmcafesports.blogstream.com. Go and check it out.
Joe: EXCLAMATION POINT! Out of no where, J-Cool just nailed Booze with his patented move...this one's over!
Joe: Well Boozemaster has recovered and is banging J-Cool with his beer cans, J-Cool is gagging on the beer.
Dave: Oh! He just smacked Booze with his dreaded coffee thermos, Joe! I suppose nothing wakes you up better than a good old 
Dave: What a grueling back and forth fight, this one certainly lived up to it's billing, Joe. Boozemaster gingerly celebrates in the ring, and now he must face his own brother in the next round, that's going to be very interesting!
EXCLAMATION POINT!!! J-Cool just laid the 
