Jesse "The Body" Ventura Pt1 - SAS CLASSIC

Summary

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The Steve Austin Show: Jesse "The Body" Ventura Pt1 – SAS Classic

Host: Steve Austin
Guest: Jesse Ventura
Date: April 21, 2026
Location: Hollywood, CA (316 Gimmick Street, Steve Austin’s home studio)
Episode Focus: A deep dive into Jesse Ventura’s wrestling journey, post-wrestling life, philosophies on health, career pivots, and principles of success—plus stories from the business and beyond.

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Episode Overview

This classic episode features a candid, wide-ranging conversation between wrestling legends Steve Austin and Jesse "The Body" Ventura. The discussion primarily centers on Ventura’s wrestling career, transition to commentary, legal battle for intellectual property, life off the grid, and his approach to health and longevity. Along the way, both men reflect on the evolution of pro wrestling as entertainment, philosophical shifts in aging and fitness, and how their ring experience prepared them for new stages in life.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Ventura’s Health & Fitness Routine

• Hip Surgery and Recovery: Jesse discusses recovering from hip resurfacing in 2008, a procedure that kept his femur intact and used carbon titanium steel.
  • "They just cover your ball and socket with carbon titanium steel and put you back together like a new asphalt road." (18:36)
• High-Rep Training Approach: Focuses on lighter weights and higher reps (20 per set) to maintain health rather than maximum strength.
  • "Increase your repetitions and go lighter." (20:18, Jesse)
• Use of Magnetic Therapy on Dogs and Himself: Shares anecdotal results with battery-powered magnetic hoops for dog arthritis.

Living Off the Grid in Mexico

• Jesse spends four months per year living off the grid in Baja, Mexico—an hour from pavement and electricity.
• He recounts profound wildlife experiences, including touching and playing with wild gray whales, leading to a renewed sense of purpose and deep appreciation for nature.
  • "The silence is deafening, it's loud... the mother and baby spend 50 minutes with us where we actually babysat the mom's baby.” (25:01–28:00)
• Strong feelings on cross-border relations, reaffirming his affection for Mexican culture and people.
  • "If they do build the wall, I've already dedicated that I will cross it the other way, into Mexico... a wall works both ways." (31:18)

Marriage, Partnership, and Adapting to Life’s Stages

• Ventura reflects on his decades-long marriage and credits his wife as his indispensable partner in life and business.
  • "If I lose her, I've lost half of me. I couldn't do what I do without her." (33:50)
• Importance of independence, mutual support, and avoiding the pitfalls of nightlife in the wrestling road life.

Origins & Evolution of the Jesse Ventura Persona

• Inspired by Superstar Billy Graham; developed “Surfer Jesse Ventura” gimmick in the Central States territory.
• Early understanding that wrestling was both sport and theater, combining athleticism and performance.
  • "This is theater and athleticism combined, and I can create." (38:38, Jesse)
• He copyrighted “Jesse 'The Body' Ventura” in the early 1980s and refused to sell the trademark to WWE, leading to a pivotal legal battle.
  • "I own Jesse the Body Ventura. I own the copyright... Vince could never own my name." (45:04)

Commentary Career & Philosophies on Promo/Performance

• Shift to commentary was prompted by a health crisis (blood clots); Vince McMahon offered Ventura the opportunity while he was sidelined.
• Commentary style rooted in authentic belief and improvisation rather than scripts.
  • "If you believe it, it's true." (55:33, McMahon’s advice per Jesse)
• No prep—he responded in real time at the desk.
  • "I react to what happens in front of my eyes. Nobody can write and tell me how I would respond to it." (57:07)
• Ventura’s emphasis on mic work over in-ring action as the main draw in wrestling.
  • "The key is what you say on the mic. The ring work is actually secondary. You have to be able to back it up." (66:38)

Intellectual Property, Royalties & Legal Victories

• Ventura recounts how his refusal to sell his persona to WWE afforded him financial independence and quarterly royalties ("wrestling retirement").
• Won a pivotal lawsuit against Vince McMahon due to false claims about royalty payments, setting a precedent for other talent.

Wrestling as Preparation for Later Life

• Wrestling provided the skills for acting and politics: improvisation, commanding presence, and ability to connect.
  • "The wrestling game teaches you a lot of things, but it doesn’t qualify you for anything [else]." (49:17, Austin)
• Navy SEAL training instilled discipline, punctuality, and resilience that informed Ventura’s approach to wrestling and beyond.
  • "Going through BUD/S, the thing that it really instills in you is the will never to quit." (51:38)

Reflections on Iconic Matches & Wrestling Psychology

• Highlights chemistry with Tito Santana and technique for crowd engagement—sometimes wrestling 10 minutes “without touching” and still captivating the audience.
  • "The minute you involve the crowd, you got ‘em." (67:38)
• On authenticity and crowd connection: finding a mark in the crowd, making every moment count, marrying theater and personal presence.

Notable Anecdotes & Candid Moments

• Ribs and friendly rivalries with colleagues—including early support from Omar Atlas, respect for Tito Santana, and on-air banter with McMahon.
• Behind-the-scenes in Hollywood: why Ventura didn’t move to LA (valuing family and public education), his son’s career with Sean Penn, and missed opportunities due to geographical choices.
  • "You gotta be here, you gotta do the dinners, do the behind-the-scenes... I didn’t because of my children, and I don’t regret it." (60:34)
• The "Buckwheat" controversy: Explains a situation where Ventura pushed boundaries with commentary, and how cultural context and double standards played into it.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Jesse on protecting his intellectual property:
  "I own me. I was Jesse the Body before I ever came here [to WWE]." (44:28)
• On transitioning to commentary:
  "If you believe it, it’s true." (55:33, channeling Vince’s advice)
• On marriage and partnership:
  "If I lose her, I’ve lost half of me. I couldn’t do what I do without her." (33:50)
• On crowd psychology:
  "The minute you involve the crowd, you got 'em." (67:38)
• On wrestling’s biggest lesson:
  "The wrestling game teaches you a lot of things, but it doesn’t qualify you for anything [else]." (49:17, Austin)
• On Navy SEAL training’s impact:
  "The will never to quit. That no matter how tough it gets...you pick yourself up." (51:38)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [17:29] Dog health, arthritis, and magnetic therapy
• [18:36] Jesse’s hip resurfacing surgery & current fitness
• [24:12] Living off-grid in Mexico, life philosophy
• [26:33] Gray whale lagoon story—’bucket list’ adventure
• [33:50] The key to a successful marriage/partnership
• [36:31] Wrestling influences and the “Surfer” Ventura gimmick
• [44:26] Copyright battle: protecting the “Jesse Ventura” persona
• [55:33] Transition into commentary and Vince’s advice
• [66:38] Philosophy on ring psychology and crowd interaction
• [67:38] Favorite matches and strategy for connecting with fans

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Tone & Language

True to Steve Austin’s laid-back, candid conversational style—full of good-natured ribbing, deep respect for the craft, and plenty of personal philosophy—this episode reads as a lesson in life from two of wrestling’s most colorful personalities. Ventura is open, thoughtful, and opinionated, weaving humor, wisdom, and a touch of renegade spirit throughout.

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For Next Episode

Part two promises deeper dives into Ventura’s Marijuana Manifesto and political perspectives, building on the strong chemistry and storytelling from this first installment.

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This episode is a must-listen for both wrestling fans and anyone interested in stories of resilience, creative self-ownership, and reinvention after the spotlight.

Transcript

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Give me a Hell yeah. Hell yeah. Now here's Steve Austin. All right everybody. Welcome to Steve Austin Show. I'm coming to you from the mean streets of Los Angeles, California today, sitting here in my office at 316 Gimmick street where it's 7:30pm on a Sunday night. Hershey the Wonder Dog is on my right flank. She just came in, she was scratching at the door and Kristen let her in. So I am joined by Hershey the Wonder Dog over here. How are you, Hershey? She says she's doing just fine. I wish I could say I was doing just fine, but I can't. I came here to start this illustrious podcast and started opening my windows up because there's a nice breeze going over here in LA. It's probably 68 degrees outside breeze to come on in here and freshen the brother up. But there's some unruly people out there throwing a party a couple houses down. They're out there drinking beer and raising hell. I can't even hear myself think, much less talk. Yeah, I can't stand when these neighbors have these loud ass parties on a Saturday or Sunday night. This used to be a Quiet neighborhood. It's quickly changing. At least ain't no sirens. Much other stuff messing this podcast up, but nonetheless. Hey, man, I'm sitting here at my desk with Hershey right here behind me. I got a book. The name of the book is Jesse Ventura's Marijuana Manifesto. It's sitting right by my Zoom H4N recorder and my cold steel broken skull pocket knife. Now you ask me, why is the Marijuana Manifesto sitting by your cold steel broken skull pocket knife? Well, no reason in particular, just because I put them both there and I thought I'd put a plug in for the cold steel broken skull pocket knife. Anyway, hey man, I got a great podcast for you today. Jesse Ventura came by my house, 316 Gimmick street last Thursday, and we were originally supposed to have two hours to record a podcast. He was going to come and we were going to Talk from about 9am till 11am Because Jesse's making all the rounds and he's been making them trying to promote his new book. And so anyway, I hadn't even taken a shower yet. I'm in the bathroom, about to brush my teeth, and my doorbell goes off on my security fence outside, and I'm thinking, holy smokes, what is going on? And I was thinking, Maybe it's a FedEx or UPS delivery or something like that. And Kristen couldn't get the door because she had already went out to visit her mother. So, man, I throw on a pair of shorts and I go out and check the gate and it's a limousine driver. And I said, can I help you? And they said, yeah, we're looking to find 316 Gimmick Street. I substituted in that address for my address. I said, yeah, you're here, this is me. So anyway, she gives the signal and here comes Jesse Ventura stepping out the back of a black Mercedes Benz. He stood up, he was still about 6 foot 4. His assistant was there and I went over to shake his hand and said, damn, Jesse, it sure is good to see you. Because I can't remember the last time I saw Jesse. It was. It might have been in 99, 98. Whatever it was, we'll talk about here in the podcast when he refereed a triple threat match between myself, Triple H and Mick Foley, and I got hung upside down in the ropes. And you'll hear us tell that story about me trying to get his attention. But I tell you what, I'm a big Jesse Ventura fan and I always have been back from his work in the ring and really is the voice behind the microphone when he's calling matches and some of the classic matches that he called in the old WWF and the chemistry that he had with Vince McMahon, Bobby Heen and Gorilla Monsoon. Those two together were just Gold Jesse and Gorilla, in my opinion. But anyway, Jesse's out pushing his new book, Marijuana Manifesto. I tried to finish the book before Jesse got here. I got it through three chapters and was able to converse mostly with him. What you're going to hear this is a two part podcast, first hour, 45 minutes, whatever. It's pretty much all wrestling and then the second part is pretty much all wrestling and then we got to cover the book a little bit. I wish I could have been a little bit more armed with information when people start talking about marijuana. I'm not a real know it all on that subject matter. I'm going to continue to read this book and when I finish, maybe Jesse and I can talk about some more of the book on the podcast when I get a chance to read the whole thing. But nonetheless, he's out there promoting it. The forward is fascinating. I've only got the first three chapters in. They're fascinating as well. When he's dropping the 411, the information on what could be gained from taxes, what you can do with your money that the government approves of, buy boatloads of and they'll still harm you. So I've got my research cut out for me. I'm looking forward to talking to Jesse again over the phone or on Skype. And it was a pleasure for him to roll up here at 316 Gimmick street and it was a pleasure to see him doing so well in his life. And ever since he's left the business of pro wrestling, man, he's just done tremendous with acting. His conspiracy theory show, his new show that he's working on, that you'll hear him Dr. Drop information on the second part of the podcast to writing all the best selling books that he's authored. Anyway, I'm a big fan of Jesse Ventura. Your thoughts on marijuana are what they are. I'm not here to change your thoughts or influence you, but reading this book has opened up my eyes to a whole different thing than I thought. So check out the book if you get a chance. I'm almost finished with it. I'll give you a report when I do finish it, but Jesse Ventura is my guest today. Before I get to Jesse, I got a quick story for you, man. Living out here in Los Angeles, I always like to go target shooting when I can, but I haven't shot in a while because I've been a little bit busy. It's a little bit of drive to the shooting range and I just hadn't made the time, quite frankly. That's on me. So I'll tell you what, I got together with the Cold Steel people down there in Ventura, California, Lynn Thompson. And I shot Lynn an email and said, hey man, you want to go shooting? Well, it turns out the guys at Cold Steel have their own shooting range out about 30 miles outside of Ventura, California. So man, I got in my car, I took my Glock 9 and my Glock 45 and I was going to take a bunch of other stuff, but this is the first time I'd ever been shooting with those guys. So I figured I'd just take the bare basics. I knew that Lynn would have a plethora of guns, some wheel guns and some other things and he's a big lock guy as well. So man, I tell you what, I rolled over to Cold Steel, met everybody, said hello to everybody, and then we loaded up and head down to the shooting range. And I want to thank Robert and Lock and also Lynn for providing everything. But Robert and Lock were out there setting up the targets, taking photos, shooting videos. They did all the work for us, man. It was just me and Lynn out there and, and we were just shooting targets and loading guns and Robert and Locke took care of everything else. So thank you guys very much. I'll tell you what, man, I didn't know how I was going to do. Basically we were shooting steel targets at anywhere between 20 and 30 yards, silhouette targets. And then up the range, up a hill was a 10 inch steel plate at 50 yards. And we were dialing in on that thing and shooting just a regular pistol open sight at 50 yards. Trying to hit a 10 inch plate is pretty challenging. Anyway, we started off and I started off with that 45 and got a couple of clips through that thing, it started heating up. So I turned on that 9mm that Taren Butler from Taran Tactical built for me, a good friend of mine, he's a national three gun shooting champion. And I'll tell you what, man, I lit up at 9mm and I just started hitting everything in sight. Got pretty confident with it and had a lot of fun and we got really dialed in. I got a chance to try some of Len's wheel guns, revolver guns, double action and I basically shoot, you know, semi automatic, I got some Kimbers single action. The Glock is a double action. And it was my first time really shooting a lot of Wheel guns. But man, I had a blast out there, no pun intended. And I was surprisingly, I shot really well for not shooting as much as I would have liked. And after we went through both, I don't know, we probably went through about 400 rounds apiece. My two thumbs were wore out from loading clips. And Lynn said, hey man, you ready for some shotgun action? And I said, man, I ain't worth a damn with a shotgun. I'd been supposed to go dove hunting with my buddy Ted Violet361 down there in South Texas. And it takes me about a half season to get dialed in. But yeah, I'll go. So anyway, Robert and Lock busted out the skeet thrower and they had a double thrower that you sit on and just hit the tabs and it throws those skeets out there. I stepped out there and bam, bam. First two skeets, I dusted them off. I said, man, this is going to be good. I'm on fire. Then I proceeded to miss. I promise you this is not a lie. The next 25 skeet. And I didn't know what I was doing wrong and I just could not get dialed in. And Lynn would step to the line and he'd knock every single target out of the air. Shooting, I guess we're shooting Benelli. I don't know if It's a Super 90 or whatever. It was a tactical gun. The guns were fine. We were shooting improved cylinder, they were awesome. And finally, I don't know how many rounds later, but I got dialed in. And what I was doing wrong, I wasn't down. Didn't have my face down on that gun. Looking at the skeet, at the sight. I had to put that sight right on that skeet. And I was just kind of looking at a big picture. Just kind of just shooting. And the thing is, I'm a really decent shot with a rifle and I'm a decent shot with a pistol. I'm not going to brag, I'm okay. But with the shotgun, I've always been terrible. And I finally, the light went on in my head when they kept throwing out advice. I was like, oh, okay. I was trying to lead these things and do all kinds of stuff. I tell you what, I started hitting every God dang skeet they threw. And you talk about exciting. We were able to put about 10 rounds in those guns because, you know, we weren't shooting game birds. When you're in Texas, you can only have a three shot maximum in your shotgun and they put a plug in there to block them off so you don't have any more shots than that, so you can make it fair for the game at hand. But, man, I want to say thank you to Lynn, Robert and Lock. I had a blast out there at shooting range with you, and it was cool to get out there and get dialed in on shotgun and just cool to throw some lead down range. It was a great time. It was a safe time. Before we started shooting, we held a safety meeting and Len took the floor. It was his shooting range. He laid down the rules. Always had the firearm pointed down range. If the firearm leaves the line, then you've got a slide back or your revolver open. Place everything on the table, in the open position, faced downrange, and always stand beside the guy if he's at the line, never behind him, never in front of him. So we all ran by the rules. It was all a very safe time. And you always have to respect a firearm because you can't take a bullet back. I'm not gonna preach at you. Just wanna say thanks to Cole Steele, all the guys that had a great time sitting here at my desk. Man, just hell of a college football Saturday. I've been watching pro football all day today. Got the top 10 rankings right here in front of me. Boy, Alabama went down to Tennessee or wherever they was at and just totally cleaned out. So I don't think that was 41 to 9. Alabama sitting at number one. Ohio State sits at number two. Michigan there at number three. Boy, it's gonna be interesting to see what Jim Harbaugh can get the Wolverines to do this year. Oh, man, it's exciting to see the Big Ten at the two and three spot on the top ten. Clemson. Holy smokes. They were extremely lucky to get away with that win that they had this past Saturday. Holy smokes. Clemson is in at number four. Washington. How about these Huskies? Six, zero. I remember cheering for the Washington Huskies back when Don James was coaching them eons ago. A and M coming in at number six, Louisville. The Cardinal number seven, Nebraska up to eight. See how Nebraska finishes out the year. Hopefully they don't implode like they've been doing in past and kind of having these 50, 50 seasons. Baylor University breaks in, comes into the number nine spot. And in Wisconsin, holy smokes, they had Ohio State right where they wanted them. Couldn't seal the deal, and they round out the top and they round out the top 10. But, man, you talk about a great week for college football. Man, about halfway through the season, it's really starting to get good and these top four, five, six teams gonna be hell when we get into the playoff system. But anyway, enough about all that. Let me get back to the podcast. I was talking to Jesse Ventura, Jesse the Body, about everything under the sun. Of course, I had to get some wrestling questions in there. I didn't want to go. Too much politics. You know, Jesse's very political and he loves his politics. But we wanted to cover the book. But I would talk about some wrestling first. And before I get to the one and only former governor of Minnesota, Jesse the Body Ventura and the Marijuana manifesto, I got to give you guys a little bit of business.

[A]

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[B]

Are they still prone to the hip dysplasia?

[A]

No.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Not at all. Because they're only 75 pounds.

[B]

Gotcha.

[A]

Those are usually the dogs that are 90 to 100 will get the hip trouble. Although my dog is. Got some arthritis. You know, he's got it.

[B]

Are you giving it the glucosamine or any of the other stuff?

[A]

Plus we're giving them the. This magnetic. Have you seen those magnetic hoops?

[B]

No. Is it like the bands they advertise on television?

[A]

You push a button, it's battery, it's a hoop. And you put. We can use two at once. And you put it. You have the dog lie down and you put it where his hurt spots are and by God, it works. I don't know what this magnetism does, but when my wife treats him twice a day and when he's getting it good, all of a sudden he's walking better, he's feeling better, he's doing all. And it's just these magnetic coupe things that apparently they work good with arthritis and joints and all that stuff.

[B]

Okay, what about the human being? Will it work on a human being? Because I need one of those hoops.

[A]

I don't know.

[B]

How are you feeling?

[A]

Me? Yeah, I'm all right. Why?

[B]

No, I mean.

[A]

Oh, I had my hip done. Yeah, you know, I had.

[B]

You come back from that. I mean.

[A]

Yeah, well, I had that in 08 and I got the new technique at the time called hip resurfacing. Familiar with that? Where they cut you, but they don't cut your femur. They just cover your ball and socket with carbon titanium steel and put you back together like a new asphalt road. I do anywhere right now from 24 to 40 miles a week on the elliptic machine. Right now.

[B]

What kind of pace you setting? I mean, are you breathing?

[A]

I do a pace where I get in between six and three quarter miles and seven. So I'm doing sub, you know, nine minute miles on an elliptic machine, which is going pretty good. I'm running it at about 73, 74 on the.

[B]

You do that every day?

[A]

I try to, and then I do 100 repetitions per body part of weights. But I do them now where Every set is 20 reps.

[B]

I was reading that because you lightened up your training at the time. I watched so many of your interviews and I'm working my way through Marijuana Manifesto and obviously going to talk about that. That's why you're in LA doing around.

[A]

Sure, sure.

[B]

But I read that you for a while is about a four month period, you stop lifting weights. But then you said no, you're doing the high rep stuff.

[A]

Yeah, no, I just.

[B]

I just came back from rotator cuff surgery. I got the. I got this big idea, Jesse, that I needed to be strong again at 51.

[A]

So I get this heavy and at 51 it's okay.

[B]

But. Well, it was. I ended up doing my rotator cuff again, then went to mania, did it further detached my bicep. So now my. My mindset on where I need to be is I don't care how strong I am, neither does anybody else. So I just want to look good, I want to feel good in the story.

[A]

Increase your repetitions and go lighter.

[B]

How long did it take you to figure that out because you were heavy into the bodybuilding scene?

[A]

Oh, yeah, it took me. Well, it really took me when my body started to fall apart, when The Hip went 2008. The Hip. And I also discovered through wrestling that my pelvis had been out of alignment for over 20 years and that was causing me back trouble. So I went to a physical therapist in Mexico who discovered it. He said, your back problems because your pelvis has been out of alignment. And I remember when I took the bump and did it really, I really remember it. I took some crazy backdrop and I remember I thought it was weird. It was one of them. You've done it where you take that bump and it didn't seem like it should have seemed. And lo and behold, I think that's what caught. He said because I play a ton of golf and I'd have to go to the chiropractor every other week. He said, we get your pelvis aligned, you're not going to have this back trouble. So now I do stretches and I've got my pelvis back in alignment. Plus, believe it or not. Do you ever see on TV the teeter hanger?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Upside down. I have one of them in Mexico, one of them in Minnesota, and I can't tell you, they are phenomenal.

[B]

So you believe in it?

[A]

I do it every day for five to 10 minutes, I hang completely upside down to where you actually go into a state like upside down. I call it my Dracula position. You know, like a bath.

[B]

Does it decompress you because you're you

[A]

gravitational and you actually feel your spine's alignment again? I do it every day without fail at the end of my workout for 10 to 15 minutes. 10 minutes or I'll hang upside down. I haven't seen a chiropractor now in over two years.

[B]

All right, based on that endorsement, I'm going to try one, because anything to me.

[A]

And that being said, but you got to do it gradual, Steve.

[B]

Oh, really?

[A]

Yeah. Don't go there the first day and hang upside down.

[B]

See, I'm that guy.

[A]

It's got no. It's got straps on it. So for the first week or so, just go to the first strap level. Then when you're comfortable with that, go to the second one. Then it'll take you about three weeks till you're completely inverted. And then the key is, like, I relax with my mind. I'll say, okay, because you're naturally tense, because you're upside down. I'll say to my feet, relax, my calves, ankles, relax. And I'll go. I'll go literally down my whole body, telling it to relax. And pretty soon you almost go into a subconscious sleep upside down, and you just hang there. And then when you come off it, the cool thing about coming off it, you feel like you're three inches taller again. You walk perfectly upright, your posture is perfect, and you feel like, God, I'm still 6 4, and I've seen so

[B]

many guys when we walked up and you walked up on the sidewalk and you came early. This is the earliest podcast I've ever done, and it's great to see you. But you're still 6 4. You see a lot of guys. I think.

[A]

So I'm probably 6:3, and they're just

[B]

so much shorter than they were in their prime.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And going back to the. The back machine, you know, hanging upside down, I'm one of those all or nothing types. So I would get one.

[A]

I just go, no, don't do that, because you could hurt yourself. You could hurt. No, do it gradual. Do it for a month. Do it each phase. Do for about 10 days till you're real comfortable with it. And then when you finally do, then you get so comfortable. Like I said, you almost go into a subconscious sleep when you hang upside down. And when you come off it, you feel great. And I haven't Been to chiropractor in over two years now.

[B]

Well, that you talking about that just begs this question because I've watched so many of your interviews. You've been so busy since you left the business through Hollywood, your Navy Seals career.

[A]

Yes and no. Yes and no, Steve, for 10 straight years now, I've gone and lived off the grid for four months a year down in Mexico.

[B]

Yeah, but you keep cranking out these books.

[A]

That's why I write, that's why. Right?

[B]

Yeah. So do you. Hanging upside down. Is there any other time where you can turn your brain off? Because you always seem. You're so engaged, you are just totally committed to it and I just don't see a whole lot of relaxation time Mexico.

[A]

That's why I live two separate lives. I live a life up here right now where it's go, go, go and do the things I do. And then when winter comes, I don't even fly there, I drive there. It's a five day trip. And I live off the grid. I live an hour from pavement and an hour from electricity.

[B]

Is it a safe drive?

[A]

I've driven the Baja nine times now from top to bottom. And I would tell you this, it's something everyone needs to put on their bucket list because it's a drive where every time I do the drive it's a new adventure, not meaning of being scared or safety. I see and do things down there that nowhere else can you do them. There's places when I'll drive there where I'll pull the car over and we'll get out of the car, my wife and I and the dog. And the silence is deafening, it's loud. You can't describe when silence is loud, but it's loud. And the only way I know humans exist, I can do a360 is the road because there's nothing else there. And I've actually here's something I tell people. They've said, well, what can you do in Mexico you can't do here? And I'll state this. I had an experience down there. I rate in my top five. I went to a small lagoon, my wife and I and we were taken out by Mexican guides in 19 foot banca boats. And I touched gray whales in the wild and I stuck my hands in their mouths and rubbed their gums. And we had a mother and baby spend 50 minutes with us where we actually babysat the mom's baby and she went off to the side.

[B]

I heard you tell that story. My deal is how big is the gray whale?

[A]

40ft. And they're just twice the length.

[B]

Are they just out there and they don't.

[A]

This started from an old Mexican man in this lagoon who developed a rapport with them. He passed it on to other Mexicans. Now it's protected. The government protects this lagoon. The mother gray whales bring their babies there to train them before they go to Alaska because the killer whale is their predator. And the killer whale's like a bike club. They hunt in packs and so.

[B]

Reminds me of your days with the Mongols.

[A]

Yeah. Well, anyway, that aside. And the killers won't come into this lagoon. Well, clearly the whales can communicate because how would they know it's safe to interact with man after what we've done to them? And yet what you do, they take you to a place in the lagoon and you splash water and you have fun. And the whales that want to interact with you will come to you. There were probably 50 of them in the lagoon. I probably saw 50 whales in this lagoon. And pretty soon, this big mother whale and her baby swim right to us. Stop. There they are. They come out of the water. I'm in a boat, I'm touching them. The whale's eye is here and the whale's looking at me, studying me like, what are these things that live in this world that I'm required to breathe in? Because they're mammals, so they have to be in our world. It's the opposite of us diving in the ocean. We can hold our breath and swim around, but we have to come back. Well, they go into our world and. And then go back into theirs. And the mother actually got underneath her baby and raised it up so we could touch it more. She was showing off. Look at my beautiful child. Then she left us and left the baby with us. We were babysitters. She sat off to the side. She was happy. And I actually had the baby whale squirting me with water as I'd squirt him. And then playing hide and seek with me, going back and forth in the boat. And he'd come out and he'd laugh, he'd make sounds. And I'm going, this is unbelievable. And I left there, changed, and I left there and I turned to my wife, driving. It was a 500 mile trip to go to this place. And I turned to my wife and I said, you know, when you get my age, you need to only concentrate on a few things. I said, I'm so inspired. I'd like to take my underwater demolition training of blowing things up and start operating against these fishing boats that kill Whales and stuff. I could be pretty good at taking them out of commission. I'm well trained at that.

[B]

How'd you end up in Mexico? Why Mexico of all places?

[A]

When I got out of office, Steve, I was young enough when I finished governor that I wanted to go on an adventure. I was still young enough, and I thought, now is the time. I finished office. I taught at Harvard, and I actually vacationed in Cabo getting out of office. Then I taught at Harvard. Then I went back and vacationed again because I originally wanted to live in Hawaii to retire. And then I thought, but you can't. You gotta fly to Hawaii or take a boat. Mexico. You don't. You got another option. And I fell in love. There's a. Where I live, down there, as the crow flies, there's a city called Todo Santos. Well, that's the home of the infamous Hotel California, where, allegedly, the song was written because it fits it perfect. And whether it's true or not, I don't know, but it's still cool. It's unique. If it's not true, it's a hell of a myth.

[B]

Well, then, how did you go?

[A]

Well, what happened? Well, my second trip, I rented a Jeep. And here's what I'm getting to. If you go to the Baja where I go, just as in the lyrics to Hotel California, when you go there, if you get bit by Baja fever, which my wife and I were both bitten by it, you can check out, but you can never leave, really, right out of the lyrics. You can check out, but you'll never leave it. You may leave it, but you never will. And I fell in love with it so much. My second trip down, I rented a Jeep And I put 1800 kilometers on that Jeep. Driving. I was searching and looking for what I wanted, and I found it off the grid. An hour from pavement, but an hour from town. And there's an old saying in Mexico, the rougher the roads, the better the people. Well, where I live, I broke down an H2 Hummer, so the roads are pretty rough. And so using that as the cause, I have a Hummer down there. Using that as the. As you'd say, the bar or whatever. I live amongst phenomenal people. That's why if you twist it over to the presidential race right now, I personally get offended because I'm biased when they start talking about building a wall at Mexico. I love the Mexican people, I love the lifestyle. And if they do build the wall, I've already dedicated that I will cross it the other way, really into Mexico. Yeah, I'll go over it. Because people need to realize that a wall works both ways. It keeps you in as well as keeping things out. And I personally don't want to live in East Berlin. This is a paid message from GoFundMe.

[B]

Meet Juan Naula.

[A]

When his son was hospitalized for a viral infection, Juan started a GoFundMe to pay for medical expenses. It was 5k to pay the bill for my son and I need only 22 hours.

[B]

It was amazing.

[A]

People really trust on GoFundMe. How did Juan raise $5,000 in less than a day? He posted a short video on GoFundMe telling his story in 30 seconds. 30 seconds. Be specific.

[B]

Be quick and tell.

[A]

What are you going to be using the funds for? I was nervous to do it because it doesn't feel okay to ask money. But you shouldn't be nervous. Sometimes you just have to do it and see the results. We were able to save my son's life thanks to gofundme that we still have my son with us. Start your GoFundMe today at gofundme.com that's gofundme.com gofundme.com this message reflects one person's experience.

[B]

How do people take you over there?

[A]

Where? In Mexico.

[B]

Just in Mexico in general. You've been down there for so long now.

[A]

I'm just a big gringo, right? In fact, I went to a thing.

[B]

No issues, no fears. I mean, you have a guard dog.

[A]

Yeah. Never have used him.

[B]

But was your wife on board with you when you went down there?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

How have you been married since 1975. How to be a successful pro wrestler, a successful politician, a best selling author through all the trials and tribulations of all those three lives.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What is the key? What is the key?

[A]

The first key is love your wife and realize that she's part of you and you can't get along without her. And my wife is my partner. And if I lose her, I've lost half of me. I couldn't do what I do without her. I don't have an entourage. I don't have all that. My wife does the computer, my wife books me. My wife is my assistant as well as my lover as well as my partner. And she's been that way. You remember, in my world of wrestling, I was a loner. I didn't hang out, I didn't go to the bars. You know, I was a loner and I did that for many reasons. I learned early on that, you know, generally anytime something happens after midnight, it's not going to be good.

[B]

Well, Drew, when did you meet your wife?

[A]

I met her.

[B]

You got into pro wrestling, what, 75. Started with Sharkey. You got on the road, went down to Kansas City.

[A]

Yeah, well, I.

[B]

This is coming out of the Navy SEALs.

[A]

Well, I met her in between. I had come out of the Navy, and I rode with the Mongols for a while, and then I went back home and I went to junior college for a year, not knowing what I was gonna do. I was on the GI Bill, and I thought about pro football, because it was actually at the time when the NFL had that first strike back in the 70s, so they were hiring scabs. And I thought about it. I thought, God, I should just try out for the Vikings. What the hell? But I knew the Gold guys would be back, and once they came back, then I'd lose my eligibility. I wouldn't be able to play in college because I'd be a pro at that time. So I went to junior college with the intent of playing JC football and then getting a college scholarship to a big school. Well, it was while I was in college in the weight room, all the guys were wrestling fans, and they would go to the matches. And it was a little before that I was introduced to an infamous character by the name of Superstar Billy Graham. And I don't care what anybody says, Superstar Graham had more influence on young wrestlers at that time than anyone. Hulk Hogan, me. Graham was the first bodybuilder type that came in, kissing biceps and doing all. All I did was steal Billy's gimmick. And, in fact, Vern Gagne had me do it. When I came to the awa, the first thing he said to me is, can you do Superstar Graham? I said, I can do it better than he can. And Vern goes, that's what I want. Because he had just lost Graham and he needed a replacement for him.

[B]

But speaking of Superstar Billy Graham, you know, his style in the ring, your style in the ring when it comes to promos. He had that kind of list along the lines of a Dusty Rhodes type thing. But you had your voice, and it was kind of still an evolution. As I watched your early promos from AWA until it ended up with your commentary with WWF and what it is now, but just going through the paces. Have you always had the gift of gab?

[A]

I think so. And I think I got it from my dad.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Yeah. Because I dedicated my previous book to my mother and father and I.

[B]

They both served in World War II.

[A]

Yeah. They're both WWII family members.

[B]

What kind of parents were they?

[A]

Great parents. They were working parents, though I was a latchkey kid.

[B]

But what values do they instill in you?

[A]

Independence.

[B]

Independence.

[A]

Being able to take care of yourself, that nobody's gonna look out for you, but you. And my parents were very independent. I left every. Well, getting back. Let's finish the wife story. It was in that transition that I took a second job working as a bouncer. And I had just. I was in wrestling training, and I had gone so boldly. I had already bleached my hair blonde just as a lark with my buddies at college, because we'd go and cheer for Graham, and everyone hated us. You know, we'd be down there cheering for the heels. And so I was bouncing in the bar, and this girl came in, and I was still. I'll say timid, because I had spent 17 months in Southeast Asia. And when you come back to America, there's certain things frighten you. And one of the things that I had a hard time relating to was women in the United States. It was just difficult. And so I remember when my wife walked in, I was there with about four cops. We worked this thing, and she walked in, and our eyes locked on each other, and I told myself, God, you've got to say something. You've got to get the courage. You've got to find it here. There was just something. Well, she got ID'd. So when she got to me, I just said, what? And so I said, excuse me, can I see some id, please? And she goes, but I just showed him. And so she dug around, handed me her license, and I saw the name, and it was Teresa. And I handed it back. I said, thank you, Teresa. And I said, I didn't really want to know how old you were. I just wanted to know your name. And that was my pickup line. She came up later in the night, and we started talking. And what really hooked me was, was I found out her father used to watch wrestling every night, every week on tv. And she remembered when the crusher was a bad guy, a villain. And I thought, this woman has something here. She knows wrestling. She's a fan. And by that time, I was now focused. I thought wrestling's for me because, number one, it gives me the athleticism of football. But even bigger, when I was in college, I got interested in theater, and I did Aristophanes, the Birds. And I loved theater. This combination. And I thought, this is it, okay? This is theater and athleticism combined, and I can create.

[B]

But then comes the road. So you got the best of both worlds.

[A]

Well, I went down to Kansas City single.

[B]

Those were central states, right? Is that Bob Geigel?

[A]

Bob Geigel, Pat o' Connor, working with him. He was great. I like Bob.

[B]

Pat o'.

[A]

Connor, he was a shit shooter.

[B]

Was he?

[A]

Well, Pat made me go to the ring with him because I was new. He made me go to the ring with him in the afternoon. And he basically stretched me, you know, And I, you know, what would I need that for? I'd already trained for nine months. What at this point in time? Why do I need to be stretched? You know why? I understand, but. And the way they stretched you also got me because you gave yourself to them. It's a completely different thing if they tell you, heads up, defend yourself. Well, I might have did some different things then, other than a wrestling move of locking up the way you're trained to do it, and then the guy takes you down and stretches you.

[B]

Well, it's like the stories I heard from Stu Hart. I mean, you know, the legendary Stuart.

[A]

Right.

[B]

I mean, the dungeon. You're basically giving yourself to him and, you know, hey, how's that kid? How's that? So you're being stretched by the guy, but you're there. And then you're gonna go to AWA later. But what were you working as in down there with Pat o', Connor, working for Geigel.

[A]

Heel. You were working.

[B]

Heel. What was your name?

[A]

Surfer Jesse Ventura. Because I wanted to be from California and I surfed when I was younger, in the Navy and all that. And I thought, who do they hate more than a beach bum? Which is what they classify a surfer, even though they're not. Surfing's like a religion. And that you wouldn't call a religious bum, you know, But. But so I thought, surfer Jesse Ventura is a great. From San Diego, California. Bleach, blonde hair, just sits on the beach with women all day. He's this guy that can kick everybody's butt, but yet when the going gets tough, he's a coward.

[B]

But you were already thinking about this at the formative years, man.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

I was riding down the road in Tennessee and, you know, Dutch had already. Dutch Mantel had already called me Stunning Steve Austin. I was a cocky, arrogant hill. That was end of it. I didn't put anything behind the gimmick. You were already thinking about the show business of it, you know, before you were probably even mechanically inclined. I mean, to me, I mean, because you just came out of wrestling school.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So you're not going to Be the greatest yet, right? But you're forward thinking because you're already thinking about the gimmick.

[A]

Do you know what made me feel good? I had my first match in Wichita, Kansas, and I'll never forget it with Omar Atlas. Do you know him?

[B]

No.

[A]

Hell of a good little worker, you know. Stocky, built Latino guy. Omar Atlas and Geico come up to me that night and he says, well, kid, you know, nobody wins their first match. I said, I know. He turns to Omar, said, omar, this is this kid's first match. He said, take care of him out there. And he gave Omar the option. He said, if the gygo says, if the match is the, hit him with two drop kicks and cover him. 1, 2, 3. He said, if the match is good, have him throw you out over the top rope. Because in those days that was a disqualification. So he left it to Omar. Omar could have put himself over. We got through at the match or during the match came time. Omar whispers to me, over the top, kid. And so I tossed him over the top. Kept my heat. Of course you lose, but you don't really lose because he's on the floor, you're prancing around. But I always respected Omar for that. I thought, here's a guy who saw my potential and he didn't put himself in front of it. So years later, when I was broadcasting for Vince, Omar used to come in as one of the job guys. I would put him over on the mic. Unbelievable. No matter if he lost, I still made him look good on the mic. And I thought, here's payback Omar for you taking care of me. I'm taking care of you now.

[B]

I remember. I want to jump ahead just with a quick story. In 92, when you came to WCW, one of the things I was so thankful for was maybe you were just doing your job, but you always took care of me down there.

[A]

Because I liked you.

[B]

I know.

[A]

I saw talent in you I never forgot. Got it? Well, no, I, I saw a talent when I, I went to wcw. And I'll tell you honestly, I went there just for the money, right? They gave me big money to come down because I was a steal from Vince, you know, and Vince booted me out. You know, why, don't you? Because I wouldn't sell my copyrighted likeness to him.

[B]

I didn't know that was the final straw.

[A]

Yeah, the final straw was I, I own Jesse the Body Ventura. I own the copyright of it. And I refused to let him have it without him giving me some type of royalties for It. And that was. And I had a video game at the time that was interested in using me. And Vince wouldn't let me do it. And so that's when I quit and left him. Because I said, vince, you don't own me. I own me. I was Jesse the Body before I ever came here.

[B]

I have that in my notes. When did you copyright Jesse the Body Ventura? Because nobody at that time had the wherewithal to a trademark. Something that was probably the first time ever.

[A]

I don't know, I just did it in the mid. I did it in the early 80s when I took the name because I thought, you know, I don't want anybody having this but me. I want to own. I'm Jesse Ventura. I made the name up. I love the name Jesse. I wanted to be from California, so I matched it up to a map and when I saw Ventura, it had the ring. So I created it. And so I felt I deserved of being the creator the copyright of it. So I don't know why, but I had enough sense to know copyright this with the federal government. And so Vince could never own my name. He had to license it through me.

[B]

But was it the video game that was a tipping point and the fact that you wouldn't sell the name?

[A]

Yep.

[B]

God dang it.

[A]

And that's what he let me go. He couldn't allow anyone out of the circle. And then the reason I beat him in court was he could have won because he's not required to pay royalties. But it came out in court. Certain people were getting royalties. It's called Quantum Merit. Hogan got royalties, Cyndi Lauper got royalties, Mr. T got royalties.

[B]

But they were Kay, Fab and everybody else.

[A]

Yep. And they lied and they lied in negotiations. Because if you'll recall, the night I went into the hall of Fame, I said, the thing I'm most proud of is the fact that I was the first wrestler that introduced Vince to an agent. And, oh, God, you should have seen Vince out in the crowd. He was ready to punch me, you know, if that's the thing he wants to be remembered for. But it worked because my agent protected me.

[B]

But you only got the agent because of predators, right?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

A predator.

[A]

Yeah, but I had to quit Vince.

[B]

Right? You told him, hey, man, it's too good of a gig.

[A]

Well, did you hear the story?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

About how Vince wasn't going to let me do it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. And I had to quit. I said, I quit. I said, who's going to get a chance to co star with Arnold? I said, I can always come back to wrestling. I said, I quit. So I left. And then it was during then that Arnold approached me about the Running Man. And so I inked that before Vince sent word he wanted to talk to me because NBC main event was hitting on him. Where's Jesse Ventura?

[B]

Because they bought it with you.

[A]

With me. And I wasn't there. And so I waited till I signed the Running man and had it in my pocket for the fall. Then I went to Vince and I told him, well, Vince, I'm not going to talk to you unless you talk to my agent. He handles my career completely and you're the only one that he doesn't. And Vince argued and I said, well, it ain't good enough. Here's his number. So Vince, of course, got. He didn't do it. He got somebody else to act as his agent, but they lied because every year I'd negotiate, we would ask, what about videotape royalties? We, we don't pay them. Well, you're not allowed to do that. You're not allowed to lie during a negotiation. And that's how I won the case. And I call it, Steve, My wrestling retirement, because I've gotten quarterly checks since 1990, whatever it was, and some of them are pretty healthy. They're not so big today because years have gone by, but I've gotten checks that are upwards of six figures in royalty payments, and I call it my book. I said, I'm the only wrestler that has a retirement going to the. That's why Vince won't bring me back, like to the Manias, like, he'll bring you back and all this. He won't bring me back because then by law he's required to pay me royalties if he produces it.

[B]

Right. I want to go back. We're going to end up talking about. About the 2009 RAW that you returned to and the guest GM. But when I left the business and I didn't know what I was going to do, and when I left the business, I wasn't ready to. My neck was telling me, hey, you need to get out of here. Yeah, for three years I just kind of did nothing in San Antonio. A lot of hunting, fishing, and like I said, quite frankly.

[A]

Fortunately, you made a lot of money, though.

[B]

Yes, sir.

[A]

So you're in good shape there.

[B]

And I was in good shape, but I figured, hey, man, it's time to get off your ass and get out to la, do something. Because before, you know, I was in the wrestling business, I was driving a forklift and the wrestling game Teaches you a lot of things, but it doesn't qualify you for anything.

[A]

Nothing. You know when I faced that Steve, when I had the blood clots.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

The night before Hogan.

[B]

Right.

[A]

I laid in bed going, I had two children and I'm going, if I can't wrestle again, what do I do? You know, 3M's not going to hire me, you know, and I'm not qualified to do anything.

[B]

But when I came out to Los Angeles, I started taking some meetings and I would get this time after time, you know, we were trying to get ahold of you back when you were with the WWF because we wanted you in this or that or whatever. And I'm like, are you kidding me?

[A]

They didn't tell you?

[B]

You're right. I was so hot, I was pulling the wagon. So if you got a lead horse pulling the wagon, you don't want your lead horse going off and doing what you were able to do. So missed opportunities.

[A]

But you know what? Finally got it for me. I let Vince in when I did the first episode of Hunter, the TV show with Freddie Dreier. And I got my royalty or my check for it. And Vince took 40% commission, producer's fee. And I said, that's ridiculous. Nobody takes more than 10. Well, how the hell does this guy take? Because I found out. Barry, my agent called me and said, did you get your check from Hunter? I said, yeah, I got mine. Said what I got and he went dead silent on the other end. I said, why, Barry? What was the payment supposed to be? He said, well, you better call the WWF and have him say, I can talk money. So I called Ed Cohen. I said, yeah, I threatened him. I said, ed, you call Barry Bloom and tell him he can talk money with me or I'm going to beat the shit out of you next time I see you. And so he called Barry and says, yeah, you can. And then I found out I had a fifteen hundred dollar payoff and Vince paid me seven hundred. That's what it was. Barry Bloom got his ten percent cut and Vince, my check was for seven hundred dollars. When the payoff was fifteen, Barry Bloom got 150. Vince took the rest. And I thought, I'm eliminating him. He didn't do nothing. I got this part. He had nothing to do with it whatsoever.

[B]

When you first got out, you've always said that pro wrestling got you ready for politics, got you ready for acting because of being behind the stick and just on, on the gig.

[A]

Yep.

[B]

Did being in the Navy Seals help you for professional wrestling? Because I would think you were a physical specimen.

[A]

Not only did it make me physically prepared for, made me mentally prepared for it. Because the thing that going through buds or Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL when you graduate, because only about 25 to 20% of the people make it. The thing that that really instills in you is the will never to quit. That no matter how tough it going or how sad you're feeling for yourself, most of the time it's your own sadness that's doing it. Pick yourself up. You've been. Whenever I would get in a situation, way of wrestling or anything, where the going got tough, God, I'd think back to buds and going, this ain't nothing compared to lifting telephone poles in the mud when you haven't slept for two days. You know, what the hell, this is a piece of cake compared to what I was trained and prepared, but fortunately I was 18, 19 years old when I did it. And your body can do all that then. But no, I've used my Navy training. It's also made me punctual. I'm the type of person that I do not like arriving not on time. And that comes right from the military. Because in the military if you're told to be there at 8:00', clock, you're there at 7:55. 8:00 don't mean 8:02. And if that happens to you in the military, you're gonna pay a dear price for being late. Late is not accepted in the military.

[B]

Listen to you talk. Go back to promos for just a second. I'm jumping all over the place with you. Who did you like listening to in the business? I know Billy Graham. Graham.

[A]

Wait. You know how much I liked Graham? My buddy taped all his interviews on a cassette and we used to drive around at night and I'd listen to them over and over and over again.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Oh yeah. We had nothing but superstar Graham interviews. Probably a dozen of them, all on a cassette player. And as I drive, I would listen to Graham and listen to his rap and listen to, you know, the way he did it.

[B]

Well, with that comes and a lot of things I like about, you know, his promos. Your promos, your commentary or speakers that are running for politics is cadence, delivery, pacing. You know, when I watch some of the GOP stuff. We'll get into politics in a minute if you want to. But man, it's speech patterns to me it's natural now. Well, right, but don't you think that's a key thing is to try to rope someone in or to command their attention or to keep them riveted. Sure, you want to have some good content, but if you're not, you're very convicted in everything you say. I think that's a big part of a great promo. If you don't, if you don't believe it, even though it could be totally out of left field or from a heel perspective, who else is going to believe it?

[A]

I'll give Vince credit for that in

[B]

a way, saying you could have carte blanche at the gig.

[A]

Vince, I'll never forget.

[B]

Well, let's pick us up from the blood clots.

[A]

Yeah, Pre Hogan round. Okay. When I went down with the blood clots, I was due to go around with Hogan in a three match program. God knows how much money that cost me, right? I mean, you know, you're talking major league money with the Champ three match program and I lose it. My dear old. The late John Stud replaced me, bless him. He would have been probably my first choice if I said, give him the money, you know, Big John, because I love Big John. We travel together. One of the few guys I would travel with was John Stud. Well, while I was laying in bed, I went through the dilemma of, what am I going to do if I can't wrestle again? If this is the end of my career, what the hell am I going to do? Go back in the Navy?

[B]

Well, yeah, because you blow stuff up.

[A]

What am I going to do? Well, then, when I was convalescing, and I'll give Vince credit, he paid me while I was out.

[B]

Oh, wow.

[A]

Not a lot, but he gave me a thousand a week. Wow, that's unheard of. Yeah, he paid me.

[B]

I got fused up in 2000, he

[A]

paid me a thousand dollars a week. Well, I knew he wasn't going to keep doing that without getting something out of the skin or the hide. So he called me one day and it was his idea. He said, jesse, I got an idea, an explosive one. No one's ever put a heel on the mic. He said, do you think you could do color commentating while you recoup? I said, sure, I can do that. And so he came up to me and I'll never forget the first night I was going out with Monsoon and Vince comes over to me and I give him credit. He said, jesse, here's how I want you to broadcast. This is your mental position. If you believe it, it's true. That's all he said to me. If you believe it, it's true. And he sent me out with that to where I could do anything I wanted, and I really had for a time, the greatest job in the world. Because there was a point. I worked one day every three weeks. I made unbelievably good money, and I got to insult my boss on a regular basis on nationwide television, and he loved it. You couldn't get in trouble for me insulting the boss.

[B]

What was your preparation? Well, first of all, about talking?

[A]

Nothing.

[B]

Okay. Before that, no preparation on commentary then?

[A]

No.

[B]

You just show up and react.

[A]

I react. I remember when I went to the first Saturday night main event. NBC. Here we are now with Dick Ebersole. Seven cameras, nine cameras. NBC's come in. Holy, what is this? And I remember going up to the broadcast thing and there was this big spiral notebook up there. And I opened it and it was, vince says this, Jesse says this, Vince says this, Jesse says this. And I read it. And Dick Ebersol walked by, said, dick, come here. I said, what's this? That's your script. I looked at Dick, I says, dick, I said, two years ago, you didn't give a rat's ass about wrestling. I said, now we're the hottest thing out there, and I'm happy you're here. We're all on board. But I said, who in your staff of writers is qualified to write for Jesse the Body Ventura? I know wrestling. They don't. I said, no one. You have no one who can write for me. No one can do it. Only I can. Dick Ebersol was so good and so professional. He sat there a moment and he kind of furrowed his brow a little. He said, you're right. Push that to the side. Don't even worry about it. I went, thank you, Dick. See, he got it. That I respond to what happens in front of my eyes. I can't go on something that's pre written to do wrestling. And nobody can write and tell me how I would respond to it. Nobody.

[B]

But also you said, like in your debates, no notes.

[A]

No.

[B]

In your speeches, other than.

[A]

Or governor other than the state of the state.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

The state of the state. You have to be exact. And you do that off a teleprompter and you go in and practice it,

[B]

but otherwise you were just straight up ad lib.

[A]

Always. I never used a prepared speech.

[B]

Have a photographic memory?

[A]

No.

[B]

You obviously have a great memory.

[A]

I don't. I have a hard time doing scripts sometimes.

[B]

Right.

[A]

But no, if somebody writes me a script, I have. I have some difficulty in taking those words into memory.

[B]

Okay. Because I love Predator so much. I mean, you're lying heavy there, but okay, so then, what with anything, I don't like memorizing stuff.

[A]

The most difficult script I ever did, and I don't know if you've ever seen my episode of the X Files. Oh, you need to see my X Files episode where I play a man in black. And the X Files. Oh, boy, is that. They wrote stuff there, Steve. I didn't even know what I was talking about. You know that. Who's the guy that does X Files? I forget his name. He's real famous now. Well, anyway.

[B]

But you memorized it, all right.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You just didn't know what you were saying.

[A]

Yeah, I just didn't know what I was saying because it was so X File ish. It was like I was a man in black. And it's a great story. It's called Jose Chung something something or other. And the guy who was in it was Charles Nelson Riley, remember him? Yeah. He's got one of the lead roles in it and it's a great episode. It got rated one of the top 10X file episodes in history.

[B]

Okay, well, let me ask you a question. You do Predator, you got Running Man, I can list a slew of movies. You did some of the television stuff. What said to you or how did you just say, I'm done with acting, it's time to go do this?

[A]

No, I know. I never said it. I didn't make the right choice.

[B]

How?

[A]

Well, when I was down in Mexico, Arnold said to me one day, jesse, when are you going to move to LA and become one of the boys? And I turned to Arnold and I had two small children then. My kids were young then. This was 80s, late 80s. And I said, well, Arnold, I said, how are the schools? And he thought he gave me the best answer, but he gave me the worst one. He looked at me and said, oh, you don't worry about that. You send your kids to private school. Well, to me, I sat and thought, do I want my children growing up in a city where they're required to go to private school, where the public school system is so bad and living there is so bad? In Minnesota, our public school system is award winning. And I thought, I'm not taking my kids and raising them in la. So I didn't move out here. I stayed in Minnesota. And Steve, it hurt me because like anything, you know, it out here, out of sight, out of mind, you gotta be here, you gotta do the negotiating, you gotta do the dinners, you gotta do all the behind the scenes lack of better term bullshit, you know, you gotta do that. I Didn't because of my children. And I don't regret it today at all. I felt my kids were better raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, than they would ever be raised out here. And my son learned quick enough because when he turned 19, guess what his first job was? He was assistant to Sean Penn. Now, if that don't teach you Hollywood, nothing will. No. My son developed a. And Sean Penn had him as his assistant for three years. He was with him when he won the Academy Award for Mystic river, when he directed Jack Nicholson in the Pledge. My son was right with him. And Sean taught him the ropes of Hollywood. And today, my son got nominated for an Emmy and he does his own show on Russian TV called the Hawks.

[B]

I know when you wrestled, you had a passion for the business because you grew up watching it. And then it was the best of both worlds, athletically and theatrically. So you got into the business. There was a passion there. Did you have the same passion for acting that you did for the wrestling business, or was it just something to do because you weren't wrestling anymore? I'm part of the evolution.

[A]

No, I had the passion for it, but I didn't have the passion for the networking. I had the passion to do. I loved it. There isn't a more fun thing to do than a movie. I mean.

[B]

Oh, I disagree. I just. I don't

[A]

think well. And I like it. I'll tell you what, I like it when you go to location, because then you become a family. You're all, I hate doing movies in LA because everybody goes home at the end of the day. And you. You don't. If you don't live here, you go to a hotel. That's why when we did Predator, we were on location in Puerto Vallarta, staying all in one hotel. Then you become a family. Then you. To me, there's more camaraderie in the finished product of knowing we did this all together, from the prop master to the whatever and da, da, da, da. It required us all to do it.

[B]

How was working on Predator? Because I know you had fun. I know you were Ribbon Arnold. The gym stories.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

With him and Sven, or whoever's bodyguard Sven was.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So you get to the gym early, but John McTiernan says, Man, when Jesse first came on and it looked like you were full of piss and vinegar at that time, but he had to dial you down a little bit.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Was it because you were so big because you're used to playing the wrestling audience?

[A]

No. Oh, no.

[B]

What was the story?

[A]

It was because I went Back?

[B]

What do you mean?

[A]

I went back. I actually. I actually had a few dreams down there.

[B]

So you went back to Vietnam, huh? Oh.

[A]

Huh? That's where it came from. I was back. The smell, the weapons, the shooting.

[B]

Amazing.

[A]

I went back. No, no. Wrestling had nothing to do with it.

[B]

Did you have time to say, guys, I could compose myself or what?

[A]

I never had to get to that point. But I remember my wife came down and told me that at one point, I bolted straight up in the middle of the night, and I exclaimed, don't worry, the area's all secure. And then rolled over and went back to sleep again. And she was startled because in our life together, I had never had any type of thing like that happen before. But when I went to do Predator, old things came out. Old. Old. And see, for me, it was an easy movie to do because I just went back to what I was trained to do.

[B]

Well, you knew how to do everything.

[A]

And I actually, me and Gary Goldman, we were there a week ahead of time, and we were the ones that told. Taught them how. Gary's an old Green Beret, and we taught the patrolling. He would always put me at rear security so I could watch everybody else and then critique at the end. And I feel proud because I've had many military people come up to me and say that the patrolling in Predator is the most authentic they've ever seen because we kept our spacing. I used to fight with McTiernan on that. I'd go, you got everyone cramped up. One round in the middle, you lose your whole platoon. What the hell? And I had to learn. We're shooting a movie. We're not doing a documentary. This isn't Navy SEAL training film. This is. You're doing a movie for entertainment.

[B]

But to that point, you wanted to be authentic. If you're gonna represent.

[A]

Well, that just came out in me because I sat. You've got us two crowded together. We're in daylight. We would have 10 meters between us all. You don't want it to where one guy could take out half the platoon.

[B]

I have no tactical training whatsoever. But obviously that makes sense. Had you not had the blood clots, had you done the run with Hogan, had you remained physically healthy enough to stay in the ring. Speculation. How much longer would you have stayed in the business?

[A]

Who knows? Who knows?

[B]

Who knows if you'd ever got to broadcasting? Because to me, as good as you were in the ring, you were 10 times as good on the mic.

[A]

Yeah, well, it's a compliment. Oh, yes. No, it's a Compliment. Because in my day of wrestling, I remember old timers would tell me, they'd say, you don't draw. The match doesn't draw for what happens in the ring. The match draws for what's said on the mic. And I took that to heart right away. It's the key is what you say on the mic. The ring work is actually secondary. You have to be able to back it up.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

But look at how many guys were phenomenal on the mic and couldn't work a lick right.

[B]

Charisma or crowd psychology? Because one of the things I want to ask you, because you're so good at explaining things and just passion and many people can understand, what do you think is the key to getting over and let's just say the business of wrestling, it could almost be a parallel of getting an acting business.

[A]

But let's talk and getting elected.

[B]

Yes. Because like you said. I know you said you're selling yourself.

[A]

Yeah. Well, the key, the key to talent, charisma.

[B]

What is it?

[A]

Well, it's talent, it's charisma, it's focused. And it's also. You have to. Immediately, I would go to the ring and find the first mark I could that would interact with me. And I draw him out, he or she. And the minute you involve the crowd, you got him. You got it. I remember people ask me, who is your favorite person to wrestle? And I'd always go, tito Santana. Because for some reason, Tito and I style blended perfect. And Tito knew me, knew how I needed to work. And he was so wonderful. He and I, we had cases where the announcer would say, 10 minutes gone, and we hadn't touched. And the match was. And yet the people had been up and down out of their seats three times, and we hadn't touched. And Tito would allow me to be me. And then his timing was phenomenal. When it was time for him, he trusted me and knew I'd give it to him. Because I knew that you got to give the baby face their due. You know, they got to beat you up at some point so you can be a coward.

[B]

But when you called him Chico, the way you said it and you compared him to Chico and a man. But I figured, man, he's got to be tight with Tito because on one hand, it angers the people so much that is getting him over. His name is Tito. But I just figured you guys were tight.

[A]

Oh, yeah. And I did that with everybody because they were all so insignificant to me. That's why. Because I remember the one time Vince backed down, I Got involved. Coco beware. And I sat in the Bee, right? And my mind started going. I thought, oh, I got this. So I went to Coco ahead of time because I knew it was going to be borderline. And I said, coco. I told him what I wanted to do, and Coco was great. He looked at me. You know what he said to me? He goes, body. Because that's what they call. He'd go, body. You say anything you want about me. Because he said, when you talk about me, I make money. And so I got Coco's complete blessing when I told him. So I get out there that night And I tell McMahon, McMahon. I says, you know, cocoa beware. You know what the B stands for, don't you? Vince goes, what? I said, buckwheat. I said, that's Buckwheat's grandson Coco Buckwheat Ware. And I went through the whole spiel on, right, Vince. Then the NAACP comes down on him, and he won't fight them. He gives in and censors me. And I thought, how can you do this? When Coco said it was okay. And here was my argument, Steve. At that very time on Saturday Night Live, Eddie Murphy was doing Buckwheat. So it's okay for Eddie to do buckwheat, but it's not okay for me? Excuse me. That's discrimination. That is discrimination. How come Eddie can do buckwheat and I can't? And when they say buckwheat is this weird black. Well, all the kids in our gang were weird. Was Alfalfa the normal white kid? Look at it this way. The Our gang was the first integrated neighborhood on tv. That in itself is monumental. That Buckwheat was an equal to all these other little kids and Coco didn't have. But Vince backed down. He wouldn't take on the fight. And I lost a little respect for him because I thought I was right. I said, how come Eddie can do it and I can't?

[B]

All right, everybody give me the go home Cuest. I'm gonna wrap up his podcast and ride off into the sunset. Before I do that, give you guys something to watch on YouTube. All you got to do is go to YouTube and type in Jesse Ventura or Jesse the Body Ventura. You can find him wrestling Hulk Hogan from AWA in 1982. I believe that was on Christmas night. You can find some of his interactions with Vince McMahon doing color commentary, anything you want. Just go to YouTube and check out the guy. If you've never seen him or never heard from him. Amen. Jesse Ventura is a very special, smart guy. He's had a hell of a damn interesting life. It was wonderful to finally hook back up with Jesse. He came by the house. He was here early, caught me completely off guard. I think it's the earliest podcast I ever did. I'm proud of the podcast because I had a great conversation with him and I did a lot of research on Jesse and I knew all of his stories, I knew his loops and he gets a couple in on me. But we tried to just talk a lot about wrestling and everything else. We'll talk more about the book on part two this coming Tuesday. Remember, Thursday is part two of my conversation with the whole f' ing show, Rob Van Dam. We wrap everything up, put the finishing touches on our conversation. It was good talking to Rob Van Dam and he is my guest coming up again this Thursday. Anyway, hey man, let me get a couple of plugs here. I've got some new t [e-mail] SteveAustin all my new designs from Broken Skull Challenge are going to be available soon [e-mail] and if you're looking for the best IPA available, get the Broken Skull IPA from El Segundo Brewing Company. Stop into the brewery if you're in LA 140 Main street in El Segundo. Pick it up at Whole Foods and Total Wines if you live in Cali or order from insidethecellar.com or brokenskullranch.com if you live in a state that they ship to. And you can find everything that Steve Austin related at Broken Skull Ranch, including the Broken Skull Cold Steel pocket knife. Use Amazon link. That's the place you can find that knife at the cheapest price for $75. Hey, I appreciate all the word of mouth advertising y' all been doing on behalf of this podcast. I don't have an advertising budget. I appreciate y' all supporting the sponsor of the Steve Austin podcast because they're the ones. Let me do this for you free twice a week. So big thanks to Dollar Shave Club. Sign [e-mail] Steve and get your first month of razors for free. Just pay shipping to ddpyoga.com Austin get 15% off the DDP Yoga DVDs and 3 months of full access to the DDP Yoga now app for a limited time. To DraftKings use my promo code Steve to play for free this weekend. And of course a big thank you to Amazon. They've been supporting this podcast since day one. If you use my Amazon links. Whenever you're doing any online shopping, Amazon will kick back a couple couple of bucks to the podcast. It don't cost you nothing extra. There ain't no hidden fees. There ain't no extra charges. You can buy whatever you was planning on buying and help out the podcast in the process. You can find my Amazon links by going to podcastone.com clicking on that killer Deals button in the top right corner of the page, and then hitting the Steve Austin show button. Hey, I got Amazon links for Amazon usa, Amazon UK and Amazon Canada. So once again, if you missed it the first time, go to podcast1.com click the killer Deals button in the top right corner, then click on the Steve Austin Show. Bookmark it so you can find it easier. And again, coming up on Thursday's Unleashed show, it's Part two of my conversation with Rob Van Dam. We're going to talk about his most recent departure from WWE and what it was like working at ecw. He's also doing stand up comedy now, so we'll hear how he got started doing that and where you can see his act. Part two with Rob Van Dam this Thursday. Hey, the 62nd AP news headlines are coming up next. Until then, my name is Steve Austin and I will catch your ass down the road.

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