Chappell: Another guy you
butted heads with in the area in
1983 was Jimmy Valiant…the
‘Boogie Woogie Man.’
Slater: Oh…a funny guy!
The Boogie Woogie Man!
Chappell: You saw Jimmy
when he was at the apex of his
popularity in the Mid-Atlantic
area. Few guys have been as over
as he was back then. How do you
explain his extraordinary
popularity?
Slater: He was doin’
really good when I knew him.
Then I left [Crockett]
and went to work for Bill Watts,
so I left Charlotte then and
didn’t see a lot of him after
that.
I worked with him, and had some
great matches with him. He had a
complete different wrestling
style than I was used to…
Chappell: I’m sure!
Slater: Yeah! So…I’d have
to work around him, you
understand?
Chappell: Right.
Slater: I never got in
the ring, and ever had anybody
have to work around me, you know
what I mean?
Chappell: Was working
with Valiant a different sort of
challenge, because of his
wrestling style?
Slater: No…not really. I
mean, I did all I could to have
a great wrestling match with
him. But he had a different
style, than say Wahoo McDaniel.
He had a different style than
Ric Flair or Roddy
Piper…somebody like that.
Chappell: There were
certainly a lot of different
styles you encountered, but you
seemed to have good matches with
pretty much all of them…
Slater: That’s what I’m
saying…I can work around
anything. You know, if you could
just stand there, I could have a
good wrestling match! (laughs)
Chappell: (laughs) Of
course, as the Boogie Man, Jimmy
never stood still!
Slater: I had some good
matches with him…
Chappell: And the people
loved him!
Slater: Well…they liked
the Boogie Man gimmick…
Chappell: Yep.
Slater: I mean those
people up there in Virginia in
the mountains…
Chappell: Couldn’t get
enough of him!
Slater: He reminded
them…of what they really are,
you know? That kind of a man.
Chappell: I wanted to get
your thoughts on a long running
angle that was playing out soon
after you arrived in the
Carolinas in 1983. Ricky
Steamboat and Jay Youngblood
against Sergeant Slaughter and
Don Kernodle. Even though you
weren’t involved in the angle,
I’m sure you remember how
red-hot that feud was?
Slater: That was a long,
long deal. They did great
business…
Chappell: They sure did.
Slater: And they were all
good workers, to keep it alive
that long. I haven’t seen Don in
years…I heard he was working for
a stock car driver or something?
Chappell: Actually, I
believe he is a Correctional
Officer now.
Slater: Really? But…those
four had a real long going solid
angle…for a long, long time. I
was there in the territory at
the time, and enjoyed seeing
that angle played out.
Chappell: You also did
some booking at some point,
right?
Slater: Remember when
Jimmy Crockett went to Atlanta?
Chappell: Yes.
Slater: Actually, I was
helping at the booking office
there…I don’t know if you knew
that or not. I was put there
with one girl, as my secretary,
when Dusty was the booker, you
understand?
Chappell: Right…
Slater: I had the second
hour on the TV show, plus I was
working. Then Jimmy Crockett
came down, and Dusty and I
collaborated with the TV people.
It was SO hard trying to run two
places at one time…one in
Georgia and one in the
Carolinas.
Chappell: That had to be
a grind.
Slater: I had a bunch of
guys like Buzz Sawyer that I had
to take out of the Charlotte
territory down to Atlanta when
Jimmy first went down there. I
had my own TV show there, and
plus every Saturday I had to go
Fred Ward’s Columbus, Georgia
tapings.
Chappell: Wow…
Slater: That was a real
tough job.
Chappell: That was a time
the business was really starting
to change in a lot of ways.
Slater: It was tough…I
got so burned out from having to
work the Charlotte territory and
go down…I was doing both places.
I was working Charlotte, booking
Atlanta and booking for
Columbus, Georgia. Runnin’
around back and forth to
Charlotte…finally I was so
burned out that I went to work
for Bill Watts.
Chappell: This would have
been late in 1985 and into 1986.
I remember your stint in Watts’
Mid-South well…I was living out
in western Arkansas during those
years.
Slater: Out there, I had
to book three places!
Chappell: (laughs) So,
you didn’t exactly have a
relaxing stay out there either,
did you?
Slater: From one extreme
to the other!
Chappell: Unbelievable…
Slater: Then I took Dark
Journey with me down there…
Chappell: (laughs) I know
you have more than a few stories
about her!
But I want to get back into the
Mid-Atlantic area right now, and
ask you about the months leading
into Starrcade 1983. A lot of
people remember Harley Race
putting the bounty on Ric Flair,
and you and Bob Orton, Jr.
collecting it. You were a big
part of that first Starrcade.
Slater: That was
great…that was a great era.
Starrcade was probably one of
the biggest wrestling shows
there was ever produced…
Chappell: Certainly at
that time.
Slater: (Vince) McMahon
never produced a big show like
that…at that time.
I did work for Vince McMahon
after that, and he produced a
bigger show later…
Chappell: But Starrcade
started it all!
Slater: Jim Crockett’s
Starrcade was the biggest event
I wrestled on, you know? I was
very proud of the fact that I
was part of that.
Chappell: You were a huge
part of that whole Race-Flair
angle.
Slater: We had an ongoing
thing there with Flair for a
long time, and then they did the
thing with Piper and
Valentine…it was a really hot
deal.
Chappell: Oh man!
Slater: That was a major
television network type
production…and we did great
ratings.
Chappell: Yeah, the
closed circuit telecasting
really turned out to be the
precursor of the Pay Per View
format that really defines the
business today.
I remember well when you and
Orton collected the bounty on
Flair, and he miraculously comes
back and teamed with Wahoo
against you and Orton. They were
some GREAT matches leading up to
Starrcade ’83!
Slater: Oh yeah…they were
some great matches!
Chappell: Tell us a
little bit about Bob Orton, Jr.
You two really made a terrific
team.
Slater: Bobby was a great
performer. I never had a partner
in the wrestling business at
all, point blank, that I enjoyed
working with more than Bob
Orton, Jr.
Chappell: You could see
that watching you two.
Slater: He knew my style.
I could change my style just
about better than anybody ever
did.
That’s what I was so good at…I
could change my style in a New
York minute---from one thing to
another. And Bobby and I knew
each others style, and we knew
how to create chaos wherever we
went…
Chappell: Boy, was that
ever the truth!
Slater: Whatever it took
to get the crowd into a
wrestling match…Bobby Orton, Jr.
and I could do it.
Chappell: What about
Starrcade ’83 itself, the big
show. You and Orton wrestled
Wahoo and Mark Youngblood.
Slater: I tell you what
led up to that David. I had
worked a lot of matches in
Houston, Texas with Wahoo
McDaniel. He would go down to
Houston, Texas…Paul Boesch was
there.
I tell you, the first time I
ever met Wahoo McDaniel was in
Houston Texas. I never had the
chance to wrestle him, but I
always heard that he was one of
the greatest all-time wrestlers.
You know who the legends are in
the wrestling business…but I
never had the opportunity to get
in the ring with him until then.
You know when I broke in, Johnny
Valentine was a legend…you know?
Chappell: And he was in
the Carolinas, without a doubt.
So, you and Wahoo developed some
chemistry down in Texas?
Slater: Wahoo and I had
an ongoing fight before I even
went to Charlotte. He liked
working with me, for some
reason. You know, I always gave
him a good match…
Chappell: You would hang
in there with him.
Slater: Yeah, and we were
a big part of Starrcade…with
Bobby and he was with
Youngblood.
Chappell: It’s
interesting to learn that you
had that prior history with
Wahoo.
Slater: I fought Wahoo
all the time, you know? He beat
me up so many times…but I beat
him up too! (laughs)
Chappell: (laughing) And
he shot you, too!
Slater: (laughs) Tough
guy to fight. I tell you, a lot
of guys were scared to get in
the ring with Wahoo!
Chappell: I don’t doubt
that for a second!
Slater: No, that’s why
the Chief didn’t mind gettin’ in
the ring with me…he knew I was
gonna fight him back. Otherwise,
he’d just beat you up…and that
was it!
Chappell: After Starrcade
’83, Vince McMahon started to go
after talent in other areas, and
the business was beginning to
change…
Slater: You know, the
whole thing shouldn’t have
gotten into a great big war…they
should have just left each other
alone.
Chappell: I sure wish
things had played out that way…
Slater: It’s a shame
things happened like that, but
you know, you can’t blame that
on us. What happened was with
the TV people…that was the whole
key. If some people didn’t have
such a big ego…we’d all be in
great shape
Chappell: Soon after
Starrcade ’83, you got into it
with one of your former allies,
Greg Valentine and took the U.S.
Title from him. In the process,
the promotion tried to turn Greg
into a babyface! I talked to
Greg about eight months ago, and
he told me that trying to play
the role of a babyface was
pretty uncomfortable for him!
Slater: (laughs) That
wasn’t even his style at all!
Chappell: No…no way! And
he left for New York pretty soon
after that!
Slater: His style was not
anywhere close to being that. He
couldn’t portray that at all,
you know what I mean? In that
role, nobody’s gonna feel sorry
for him!
Chappell: (laughing)
Yeah, it was kinda hard rooting
for Greg…even against you!
Slater: He’d been doin’
bad stuff for years on TV there,
and all of a sudden now
everybody was supposed to feel
sorry for him?
Chappell: That’s exactly
right. Well, you had a good run
with the United States Title
until you left the area in the
spring of 1984.
What stood out for me during
those early months of 1984, was
when Flair was in as the World
Champ, and you went and made
your own NWA World Heavyweight
Title belt! I believe you had
beaten Ric in a non-title bout,
but you were going around
calling yourself the real
World’s Heavyweight
Champion…that was a great
program there in early 1984!
Slater: I remember that
well. I tell you what, I put
down in my book the reason I did
that. We were talking a long
time ago in this interview about
politics, you know?
Chappell: We sure
did…about the politics involved
in becoming the NWA World
Heavyweight Champion.
Slater: (laughs) Well, in
’84, I just went ahead and made
myself World’s Heavyweight
Champion!
Chappell: (laughing) Talk
about taking matters into your
own hands!
Slater: (laughs) Yeah…I
just did it myself!
Chappell: That was a
beautiful belt you had made, and
you definitely looked the part!
That was your major program in
the Mid-Atlantic area with Ric
Flair. What are your thoughts on
Ric Flair?
Slater: Flair and I…we
had some sensational wrestling
matches. It all goes back to the
time that he became World
Heavyweight Champion…and the
reason why. I didn’t think I was
World Heavyweight Champion…then
I was going a different
direction.
I received a lot more than I
should have, you know what I
mean? But, I can’t look back at
it and say anything negative
about it…it has nothing to do
with Ric Flair at all. It has to
do with the National Wrestling
Alliance. It was the Board of
Directors at the time…they made
the decision. All I needed was
one vote, you know! (laughs)
Chappell: Unbelievable…so
close. That had to be hard to
take.
Slater: But that’s okay
Chappell: Dick, it sounds
that Flair had the extra vote at
the time, but you’re not being
critical of him because of it.
Slater: Oh no, I’m not
critical of Flair at all…
Chappell: It was the
system in place that you all had
to live with, I guess.
Slater: It had nothing to
do with Ric Flair at all…or
myself. It had nothing to do
with either one of us.
Chappell: Did you enjoy
working with Ric Flair in the
ring?
Slater: Yeah, I loved
working with Ric Flair…he’s a
good friend of mine. I have no
complaints against Ric Flair
whatsoever.
Chappell: Are there those
in the wrestling business that
you do have complaints against?
Slater: I really don’t
have any ill regards for anybody
in the wrestling business at
all. I understand that you are
what you are, and you make
yourself what you make yourself.
And I can’t look back, and blame
anybody for doing anything bad
to me.
I’ve enjoyed my life, and I
would not change it in a million
years. If I could do it all over
again, I'd do it in a New York
minute! You know I would, David.
Chappell: (laughs) You’ve
had quite a ride…quite a ride!
Slater: I mean, I look
back on what I used to do and
what I did…and where I’ve gone
and the people I’ve known…
Chappell: Through
wrestling, you’ve gone places
and seen the world more so than
99.9% of the rest of us.
Slater: That’s right.
It’s hard to try and get all
that out, but through my book
I’m trying to get the big
picture out to people. I’ve
lived a different life than a
lot of people would think.
The name of my book is ‘A
Thousand Lives.’
Chappell: Really? That’s
the title of your book?
Slater: Yeah…
Chappell: I think that’s
a perfect fit, Dick!
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