Jimmy "Boogie Woogie Man" Valiant Interview

Courtesy of Adam Samons:

Between The Ropes
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
ESPN Florida AM 1080 and AM 1060
Simulcast online at BetweenTheRopes.com

On Tuesday night, October 14, wrestling legend Jimmy "Boogie Woogie Man" Valiant joined hosts Brian Fritz, Vito DeNucci, and special guest host Chris Nelson live on Between The Ropes on ESPN Florida AM 1080 and AM 1060 to discuss what he's up to today, the transition from Hansom Jimmy Valiant to the Boogie Woogie Man, and much more.

Jimmy started out talking about what he's been up to since his retirement. He said that most of his time is spent training young wrestlers at his wrestling camp and tending to his wrestling hall of fame and museum, both of which are situated on the 2 acre compound where he lives. Jimmy let it be known that every Sunday from 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm he opens up the gates and the hall of fame is free to the public for those four hours a week.

Jimmy went on to discuss the kinds of items you can expect to see in the museum "I've got thousands and thousands of pictures I've collaged and put under glass. I've got pictures everywhere…I've got pairs of tights from Bobo Brazil, Superstar Eddie Graham, and Gorilla Monsoon…and of course I've got my own stuff too. I've got a couple pairs of boots and jackets up in showcases..I've also got the 1974 stretch limo that Lucious Johnny and I drove around New York City with Captain Lou when we were the WWWF Champions. I have the Boogie-Wagon that was in a lot of the videos back in the 1980s with the Crockets…It's something that I gave back to the wrestling fans around the world." Jimmy also added that the museum is well established and has been going strong for 17 years free of charge.

When asked what his favorite feud of all time was Jimmy couldn't settle on just one but named many of his greatest feuds including names like Samartino, Gagne, all the NWA Champions from Funks, to Briscos, to Harley Race. He also noted his over 5 year long fued with Paul Jones and his army and his perpetual feud with Jerry Lawler. He then plugged his autobiography which can be bought at www.JimmyValiant.com saying that in his career he's had over 10,000 pro wrestling matches and traveled over 4 million miles on US highways, and has put all the great stories he found along the way into the book.

Next Jimmy was asked how he made the transition from the character he played early in his career, Hansome Jimmy Valiant, to the character he played later in his career the Boogie Woogie Man? "I was Hansom Jimmy in the 60s and the 70s, I was a bad cat man. I strutted around and was one of the first blonds with a good body…When I went into the Carolinas in the 80s I looked around and saw all the pretty boy blonds. You know Flair was there just getting going and Buddy Landel was just getting going, so there was a lot of those kids that already did that. So I reinvented myself, and you have to continue and have a long career like I did. So I threw away my razor and grew a long beard and started coming out to music…dancing down the aisles…hugging people, kissing people. I kissed everybody, men, women, children, grandpa, grandma, green, black, blue, it didn't matter, I kissed everybody. Nobody did that, so this was different…I just reinvented myself and took me until I retired 20 years latter.

The interview wrapped up with Jimmy having a "Boogie-Off" against host Vito DeNucci, who has a great Boogie Woogie man impersonation. Words can't quite describe this epic "Boogie-Off," it must be heard.

To listen to the entire Jimmy Valiant interview as well as the entire October 14th edition of Between The Ropes in streaming audio, visit the show online at http://www.BetweenTheRopes.com. In addition to listening to this week's show you can become a site member and access hundreds of previous Between The Ropes shows and interviews. Join us for Between The Ropes for two hours every Tuesday night at 6:00pm ET on ESPN Florida AM 1080 and AM 1060 and worldwide on BetweenTheRopes.com.