I really think, Charlotte Flair, come on, her legacy is going to be cemented throughout the years. That's just a given!
— Booker T
You can become a star overnight, guys. You can be on the street walking one day, and you're on your way to the corner diner, and you had to hitch a ride to get there. And the next day, you can be a huge star, money coming at you from right and left. And you've got to know how to handle that situation.
Unions are something wrestlers have been talking about for many years. We would probably wish there was a union, but you have to understand wrestling is not a regulated sport.
Pro wrestling is a different animal than pro football and pro soccer. There is going to be a lot of money going out before the bulk of the money can come back in.
This can be the best job in the world, being a WWE superstar, but it can be the hardest job in the world at the same time.
A guy who I always said was my favorite wrestler is Rey Mysterio.
Actually, a person asked me if I was ever going to come back to WWE. I told them that if I came back, it probably wouldn't be as WWE Superstar, because the young guys are really what it's all about. Bringing me back as an announcer is a great position for me to actually go out and make the young guys bigger stars.
My dream was to make it in life. I didn't know how it was going to be. My brother guided me toward a wrestling ring, and I gravitated to it very quickly. It seemed like deja vu for me, and I said, 'Wow, I think this might be it.'
From the beginning of my career, when I first started on the independent circuit, when I went to Global Wrestling Federation in Dallas and then to WCW, all the way through it seems like titles have been around my waist for some reason, and I always give credit to the fans.
I actually met Donald Trump and shook his hand and looked him in the eye, and it tells me a lot when you look a person in the eye. He's a man's man first and foremost; you know, you can't pretty much, you know, put him to the side and expect anything less than a good fight.
People see me smiling all the time... they see me pretty much happy all the time. I never carry a frown around.
I talk about Hulk Hogan being in my corner back in the day... Back in the day, if it wasn't for Hulk Hogan, I don't know if Booker T and Stevie Ray would've gotten the push that we got.
People don't want to see Hulk Hogan as the bad guy. Hulk Hogan is the ultimate good guy.
Just being a commentator is not as easy as people think with going out there and talking for three hours. So, I don't call myself a commentator: I call myself an analyst.
Everybody is not born with a silver spoon in their mouth. There are only a very small percentage of those types of people, you know what I mean?
Just because I wasn't with my brother in the WWE, that doesn't mean I wasn't in the business.
WCW and WWE were two totally different environments. A lot of guys in WCW were making a lot of money, and the work schedule wasn't that hard. You had to earn it in WWE.
Me personally, I know I've made mistakes.
I consider myself an official scout for not just WWE, but the Reality of Wrestling.
Of course I've always wanted to make a decent pay like everybody else.
People ask me, 'Man, are we gonna see one more match?' And I've always said, 'Hey, never say never, because you never know what you're gonna do.'
When I left WWE, TNA offered me a deal. It was a sweet deal: ya sit at home the majority of the year. Just show up every now and then and make some money. That was a sweet deal for me; that was like a vacation.
I trained with a guy by the name of Scott Casey. He actually worked with WWE back in the day, but he didn't become a big star. What I want to teach is what he taught me: that the smallest things are what people are really looking for.
I don't think it's up to you to say you belong in The Hall of Fame. That's up to someone else.
Tell your kids you love them as much as you possibly can, because you're not promised one second to the next.
A lot of those young folks look up to me in the city of Houston. I give hope and inspiration and try to change people's lives for the better in the city of Houston.
I really do like seeing Bobby Lashley get the torch and exactly seeing what he can do with it.
I didn't run into racism until I got into the wrestling business.
Everyone deserves a second chance. That's just the way I am.
The nWo almost singlehandedly ruined the business as far as good guys, bad guys, cowboys, and Indians.
That's what my specialty's always been in the wrestling business - going out there and making my opponent look better than he can make himself look.
I'll tell you right now, man, if WWE was to call me and say, 'Hey, Book, we want you to do a match with 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin,' I'd do it!
You cannot mention Harlem Heat without mentioning Sherri Martel at the same time.
The NWO was one of a kind. It was led by three mega-superstars. They knew how to work the business, especially Kevin Nash. He was literally the brains behind that machine.
We, as a people, we gotta know when it's time to speak up and when it's time to shut up.
I love what I'm seeing out there with Pro Wrestling Syndicate, Northeast Wrestling, Big Time Wrestling, and WildKat in New Orleans. There is a lot of good stuff out there.
Pro wrestling is entertainment, but people get hurt all of the time.
I never said that I was retired. I never said that I was never gonna put the boots on ever again.
I do not see Dean Ambrose leaving WWE to go somewhere else.
People really don't understand how hard it is and what it takes to be a WWE Superstar.
After I've sat back and looked at my body of work, thought about it, I go, 'Wow, I guess I am a Hall of Famer.'
I make sure I'm smiling every day, I'm laughing every day, no matter how sore or achy I am or whatever.
I know I'm not going to be working with the WWE forever. That's why I'm going to be the Mayor of the city of Houston, so I can move on to the next stage of my life.
Anything worth having is worth working really, really hard for.
I never had to deal with racism as a kid, by the grace of God somehow.
Kevin Nash came to me; he goes, 'Book, hey, Book, man, you know, this nWo thing is getting real hot, bro. And, man, we need some color, man.' I swear to God, that's how he said it! 'We need some color, bro.' He goes, 'We want to bring you in.' I go, 'Man, thanks, but no thanks. No way.' I said, 'I'm a solo act, man.'
That's been the story of my life - obstacles: trying to figure a way over them, around them, under them; sometimes you have to go straight through them.
The thing is you never know what you can do until you try it. Even if you try, you still may fail, but that's when you have to go and prepare because if you're not prepared, you're preparing to fail.
I look at a guy like Chris Jericho. This guy, man, he's one of the hardest workers.
It was a hell of a ride in WCW. Still, to this day, I will be WCW until the day I die.
