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00:30Tony Atlas broke barriers as one of the first major black superstars in the sport.
00:35You gotta keep it. Getting it is one thing, but keeping it alive, you gotta a different thing.
00:40I remember seeing black wrestlers get tarred and feathered. A lot of questionable racist behavior.
00:48Tony Atlas made little black kids all over the world feel like, man, I can do that too.
00:54I am gonna whoop on you and get paid for it.
00:57There were very few black wrestlers. There was a lot of time I wrestled in an area where I'm the only black guy.
01:02They saw money. They didn't see color.
01:05Hey, wait a minute.
01:06Holy shit, look at this guy.
01:09Get in the way. Get in the way.
01:11Tony Atlas goes to USA.
01:12Climbing the ladder of success very, very rapidly in the World Wrestling Federation.
01:16Rising to heights few black wrestlers of his era had ever reached, Tony Atlas began to unravel the weight of fame's pressures and pitfalls.
01:25I got trouble here, and I got trouble there, and I got trouble coming your way.
01:31Sex, drugs, and wrestling.
01:32There was a party every night at the hotel room.
01:36There were a lot of temptations, and there were a lot of different choices out there to make.
01:41I never bought drugs in my life. It was always given to me. It was in the dressing room, for God's sake.
01:46There's a lot of things about Tony Atlas I wonder. Whether it's legend or fact, is it true or not?
01:52Tony's battle with addiction cost him significant opportunities, leaving him with no place to call home.
02:01Here's a guy who's making hundreds of thousands of dollars, and he's living on the street.
02:06It's not how much you make, it's how much you save.
02:10I was some homeless guy that smelled like something died.
02:12No place to live, no nothing.
02:15I became a suicide. I didn't want to live no more.
02:18I wanted to die.
02:22All right, so we're going to watch this, and you just tell us whatever you think about it, feel about it.
02:37Mr. USA, Tony Atlas.
02:40And he looks fantastic. Looks like he was chiseled from granite.
02:45Man, he was jacked. What a well-put-together human.
02:48His opponent, weighing 320 pounds, the incredible Hulk Hogan.
02:56Unbelievable size of Hulk Hogan.
03:00So you press-slammed Hulk Hogan at Madison Square Garden?
03:03Yeah.
03:04Oh, look at that. Oh, yes, sir.
03:08Check it out. Check it out, bro. Check it out.
03:11And how do the fans react?
03:14Atlas grinding it out of it.
03:16They came on glue.
03:17Hulk Hogan's, what, 330 pounds at the time, 6'4".
03:26Man, press him over your head.
03:31Hulk Hogan, I can hear him now cussing up a storm.
03:37Damn.
03:38Tony wanted to press the biggest guy in the company
03:41because it was telling everybody in the audience,
03:44look how strong I am.
03:52A main event guy, Madison Square Garden.
03:57To go to, you know, living on a park bench.
04:02Sometimes people have to go through hitting bottom
04:05before they realize how good they really had it.
04:08I was born in Virginia.
04:13My mother was a devoted Christian.
04:16She'd only been with one man her whole life,
04:19and that was my father.
04:20My dad never worked.
04:22My mother worked.
04:23All of her dedication went directly to raising her kids.
04:27One time, we were walking down the street,
04:29and this guy slapped my mother on the butt.
04:32My mom turned around.
04:34She hit him with one punch and knocked him out.
04:36Laid him out right there.
04:38My mother said,
04:39I got to teach you kids how to protect yourself
04:41because I ain't always going to be here for you.
04:42That was something she said all the time
04:45because when I was young,
04:47you had to know how to use your hands.
04:49All through life,
04:50like when you go back to my childhood,
04:51I was in anywhere between 50 to 100 fights.
04:54Anywhere in there, easily.
04:55So I had a reputation
04:56that if you fight me today and I don't win,
04:59you're going to see me again tomorrow.
05:02Most of the influence in the black neighborhood
05:04when I was a child was bad influence.
05:06We looked up to drug dealers.
05:08We looked up to street fighters.
05:09We walked to school.
05:11And there was a fist fight every other day.
05:14I didn't care who you were.
05:15I would fight anybody.
05:17Now, my dad, he was a gambler
05:19who liked to hustle money.
05:20So he took me down to Scrapper Corner
05:22and wait for the railroad men to come in.
05:25And when they get drunk,
05:26he would tell them,
05:27I bet you can't whoop that boy there.
05:29I don't fight these grown men.
05:32And he said,
05:32if you lose this fight, boy,
05:34you're going to get it worse when you get home.
05:37But I grew quick.
05:38By the time I was 12,
05:40I was already over 6 feet at 12.
05:43But I only weighed like 110 pounds.
05:48I was like a stick.
05:51And so one day,
05:51I was walking with this girl.
05:53I helped her carry her books.
05:55I liked her.
05:57Really, I liked her shoes.
05:58She had tennis shoes on.
05:59So I hear this voice behind me say,
06:01I'm going to push you.
06:02All of a sudden, I fell head first.
06:06I got the dent in my head right here.
06:10The whole world turned red
06:12because all the blood was ran down to my face.
06:15My grandmother come running out.
06:17Hold on.
06:18Hold on.
06:18Come here, boy.
06:19My scar was split completely in half.
06:22We had no phone.
06:23She couldn't call the ambulance.
06:25She couldn't call the police.
06:26No way of contacting anybody.
06:28My grandmother said,
06:30I want you to pray.
06:32So I got down on my knees.
06:34And this is what I said.
06:35I want to be strong like Samson.
06:37Built like Hercules.
06:39And have a lot of money.
06:41And everything that I asked for in that prayer,
06:44God gave to me.
06:45And I blew it later.
06:48But still, he gave to me.
06:50Do you think that you suffered brain trauma
06:52from that incident?
06:53Yeah.
06:54Yeah.
06:55Have you been ever medically diagnosed?
06:57No.
06:58No.
06:59But I do know it was something wrong with me.
07:01That I was not like regular kids.
07:04And I think it has something to do with the shoes.
07:06The reason I'm so submissive to women in sneakers
07:09and stuff like that.
07:11Because all that was on at the same time.
07:13I don't understand.
07:14What do you mean?
07:14I buy shoes for the girls to step on them.
07:20Well, they got me into that.
07:22Oh, my goodness.
07:24That one.
07:25Fan one.
07:26Yep.
07:26That's a nice pair of shoes right there.
07:28Now, what makes it good?
07:29Well, if they're family looking,
07:31they look like something should be on a woman's feet.
07:34I got stepped on in malls and gyms and houses,
07:38hotel, elevator.
07:40I got it done everywhere.
07:41A couple dozen times I was with him.
07:44I seen him just buy shoes and have him walk on his face
07:46and never talk to him again.
07:49I was as shocked as the girl was.
07:51People knew nothing about fetishes.
07:53F fetishes, all this stuff was underground.
07:56So they thought because of my wrestling,
07:59they thought it was part of my training.
08:00He'd see a girl to matches and have him walk on his face.
08:03I'd give a woman $50 just to step on me.
08:06Plus, I'd buy the shoes for them.
08:08They didn't have to pay for the shoe.
08:09I thought it was a little bit out of the ordinary.
08:12You know, but then, you know,
08:14everybody has their little quirks, right?
08:18You know, things that make them feel good.
08:21As Popeye said, I am what I am.
08:23You know, he's not the only foot guy in the world.
08:26Well, they say, like, I suck toes, which I don't.
08:30They say I like high heels, which I don't.
08:33They say that I whack off, which I don't.
08:37They try to make it into a sexual thing.
08:40Well, for me, my shoe fetter keeps me calm.
08:44I got more control of it now than I did then.
08:48Get a sniff on it, Tom.
08:50Hey, now we talking.
08:52I was into what's called dominatrix.
08:54So the dominatrix become your master.
08:58You're what you call a slave.
09:00I can't use that term now because I'm black,
09:02and black people get mad, but that's what it was.
09:04So they dominate you.
09:06See, I went to a person once had to explain it to me
09:09that was into all this psychology stuff,
09:11and I had this rage in me.
09:14You know, ever since I was a kid,
09:16I'd fight anybody.
09:17I'd beat up anybody.
09:18I could lift anything.
09:19Nobody could beat me.
09:20So I had to learn more control.
09:25So I ended up going to the YMCA.
09:27I've never been to the gym any day in my life.
09:29I was 15 years old when I first started lifting weights.
09:34Hey, hello.
09:35Welcome.
09:35Come on in, guys.
09:37Well, I know y'all gentlemen noticed
09:38I got a lot of stuff spread out here on the table
09:41because these items here are items for before there was a Tony Atlas.
09:49Now, this is Muscle Development magazine.
09:53I never competed in bodybuilding before,
09:55but what ended up happening,
09:56I did a 350-pound press at age 19.
10:01That was the beginning of my bodybuilding and powerlifting.
10:14I saw Tony the first time at the YMCA.
10:18My name is David Crockett.
10:20I am part of the Crockett Wrestling family
10:22that started Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling,
10:26World Championship Wrestling, TBS.
10:29That's us.
10:29In Charlotte, the only place you had to exercise or lift weights
10:36was the YMCA.
10:37A lot of the wrestlers, George Scott, Sandy Scott, Johnny Heideman,
10:42you name it, they all were down there working out,
10:45and they said,
10:46hey, we've got this young man that we think we can do something with.
10:50They take me to the office.
10:52There were some mats there,
10:54and they said, you know, put him through the paces
10:56just to see, you know, if he knew anything.
10:59Which he didn't.
11:00But he definitely had potential.
11:04They said, we're going to pay you $150 a week to trade.
11:10We took an investment in Tony.
11:13Other people, we did not see it worth buying stock in them.
11:18So was there jealousy?
11:19Oh, yes.
11:21And it was very hard for him, very hard.
11:24But he was like a sponge.
11:26You know, he'd learn.
11:28Now, George Scott said, well, Tony,
11:30I guess tomorrow we have to teach you how to work.
11:34I said, George, I don't want to work.
11:36I want to be a wrestler.
11:37He said, no, Tony, you don't.
11:38I said, I don't want to work.
11:39I said, I don't want to be a worker.
11:41I want to be a wrestler.
11:43I learned it ain't up to me to win or lose.
11:45It's up to some promoter.
11:47It was hard to swallow.
11:49Me being for so many years as a weightlifter,
11:53a bodybuilder, I was in legitimate sports.
11:56Now I'm in a sport where I got to let people whoop me
11:58that can't whoop me.
12:01It was the most disappointing day of my life.
12:09I was 20 years old when I finished high school.
12:13A lot of kids could not afford to do senior pitching.
12:16So this here became my senior pitcher.
12:19And then look at my arms.
12:21Tony Atlas was one of the biggest and one of the strongest.
12:25So I completely identified with it.
12:28I'm Mark Henry.
12:29Some might say the strongest man that ever lived.
12:33And Tony Atlas was my manager.
12:36Ever-present Tony Atlas.
12:38Tony was a heavyweight that didn't look like a heavyweight.
12:43You could see every vein and muscle.
12:46He wasn't just a guy that had show muscles.
12:49Tony had go muscles.
12:50Down to the ground.
12:52I was a champion in three sports simultaneously.
12:56I was a champion in bodybuilding.
12:58I was a champion in powerlifting.
13:00I was a champion in weightlifting.
13:02You know, 22-inch arms, 24-inch waist,
13:0528-inch thighs, lats.
13:08Traps, shoulders.
13:10He was built.
13:12And it just wasn't cosmetics because he had the strength to back it.
13:16Elbows locked and he did it.
13:18505 pounds.
13:19Hi, I'm Ricky the Dragon Steamboat.
13:212009 WWE Hall of Famer.
13:24NWA World Champion.
13:26Weighing 237 pounds, Ricky Steamboat.
13:32There will only be one winner.
13:34Thanks for being here.
13:35So maybe people don't know this, but at some point you and Tony were both competing in bodybuilding competitions, right?
13:41We have competed on the same stage, but I won Mr. Southern States and he won Mr. USA.
13:50Mr. USA.
13:52Mr. USA.
13:54Mr. USA.
13:54Tony Atlas.
13:59My 50-some-odd-plus years in this business, I've seen bodybuilders come and go.
14:08You're big, you're strong, and all this stuff, that doesn't make you a great wrestler.
14:12Hey, I'm Gerald Briscoe, WWE Hall of Famer, but you might know me better as Jerry Briscoe.
14:20Gerald Briscoe!
14:24Tony was a bodybuilder that was a wrestler.
14:28Look at the agility of this man, Tony Atlas.
14:31They wanted me to be a main event.
14:32They didn't want me on bottom.
14:33They wanted me on top because, you know, by then I had best body in wrestling.
14:38The first year of my career, I was a champion.
14:40With his chiseled physique and natural talent in the ring, Georgia Championship Wrestling
14:46wastes little time crowning Tony their television champion.
14:51You know, when you got this belt, you gotta keep it.
14:55Yeah, I mean, big guy, good looking.
14:59I mean, he was a freak of nature.
15:02Hello, my name's Tommy Wildfire Rich, former NWA World Heavyweight Champion when wrestling
15:08was wrestling.
15:09If you see Tommy, you're gonna see me.
15:12If you want to fight Tommy, you gotta fight me.
15:14If you want to make love to Tommy, you gotta love me, too.
15:17A few months, they started pushing us as a tag team.
15:21Yeah, that's me and Wildfire Tommy Rich.
15:23That's when we were young whippersnappers right there.
15:25Me and Tommy enjoyed the championship wrestling.
15:28Black and white would fight all night.
15:31And the people just loved it.
15:33I mean, it was, you know, salt and pepper.
15:35And I'm talking about back in 78, I think, when I started in there.
15:40It's the black and white thing.
15:42You know, it was a different world back then.
15:45You know, some of them little towns didn't like black folks there.
15:49Today, it would be called racism.
15:53My day, it was called average.
16:02You gotta realize that the territory only kept one black in every territory.
16:07So, if I walk in a dress room and a black guy is sitting in that dress room, he was
16:12all the matter to my enemy.
16:13But that was life for people of color.
16:16Well, I got called nigger so many times in professional wrestling that one time a guy
16:21walked up and said, hey, Tony, I didn't know who he was talking to.
16:24There were very few wrestlers that didn't use the term nigger.
16:27Tommy Rich didn't.
16:29It was just in the world at that time.
16:31It was not, you know, they all used the term.
16:34They all did it.
16:36And you never said stop her.
16:39No.
16:40Why not?
16:40I was making money.
16:43My mom helped me with this.
16:44She said, you pick your battles.
16:47As long as I was making money, I didn't care.
16:51I made $100,000 my first year.
16:53And that was my smallest year.
16:55I didn't know what it was like to work your way from the bottom.
16:58I didn't know what that was like.
16:59It was given to me too quickly.
17:02Too much, too soon.
17:04I was not supposed to be in that position that soon because mentally I was not ready for it.
17:10What did you start spending the money on?
17:12I gave it away.
17:14I gave my friends money.
17:16In fact, when I took a girl out on a date, I would take her shopping first.
17:20I said, you've got to get something to wear.
17:22I said, well, you've got to have a piece of jewelry.
17:25And the boys was all big spending.
17:27They told me when I first started, there's two ways of being.
17:30Live like a king or be rich.
17:33You choose.
17:34I live like a king.
17:37He'd never seen that much money before.
17:39And it happens to a lot of athletes.
17:42They don't know how to deal with it.
17:44And they spend it like there's no tomorrow.
17:47You know, he goes to the bar, starts buying drinks.
17:50Man, it's like piranhas when they come in.
17:53You know, everybody's his friend then.
17:54He was like a Ric Flair with his money where he'd make five grand and the next day he'd be broke.
18:02You find a lot of guys that all of a sudden start to make it big and the next thing you know, they're buying watches and cars.
18:09He went out and bought 1976 Lincoln Continental.
18:12He said, you got to party with these big guys, you got to spend the money.
18:17And unfortunately, the parasites in our business jumped on to Tony.
18:22And now they're becoming Tony's friends because he's got all this money.
18:26And he's going to these bars.
18:28And he's spending all this money.
18:30Hey, Tony, buy me a drink.
18:32You know, buy me dinner tonight.
18:34Let's go out and have some fun, right?
18:36And you go to a club and the next thing you know, you got a $300 bar tab.
18:40And guess what?
18:40The friend that was with you is gone.
18:46The girls would come up to you.
18:49You didn't have to go to them.
18:51And they'd say, you want to go to the room?
18:53Most of the time I would take three women up to the room.
18:56Party, drink, smoke.
18:58Every night was an orgy.
19:00I wanted to fit in.
19:02And drugs was in the dressing room, for God's sake.
19:04I didn't go out looking for it.
19:06It was in the dressing room.
19:08You know, whether it was a pain pill, Valium, or Xanax, or a little Coke, whatever it was, you know, we all participated a little bit.
19:16They called our group the bad boys, because we was in trouble every week.
19:21I'm referee Nick Patrick.
19:22You probably remember me as the NWO ref.
19:25I also was a referee for WWE.
19:27Nick Patrick McClane, I'm loud!
19:29We were just, every week, somebody doing something stupid, just drinking, and doctors writing out whatever we wanted, and smoking, and just snorting, and whatever.
19:38We were just, as why, it's a miracle we survived.
19:42But anyway, we got tired of Tommy never driving, and then just finally said, we are not your chauffeur any longer, which was a horrible mistake.
19:51Nick Patrick McClane, I've been drinking, and I was driving, I just rented Lincoln, got on the interstate, and went down the road, probably two miles.
20:01We were, like, really close back to our hotel, and the car started flipping.
20:10The car flipped upside down three times.
20:14So, I'm in the car unconscious.
20:17I don't know what's going on.
20:18I was almost dead.
20:28An intoxicated journey down the freeway ends in disaster, leaving Tony Atlas and his fellow wrestlers wrecked in a horrifying accident.
20:37The roof of the car was crunched down on my side, but I guess it come down and hit me and drove my head down and knocked me out.
20:44And I had a broken neck.
20:45Tony, you know, I mean, he was in the hospital for about three or four days, and then come out and still couldn't wrestle.
20:53Was that accident a wake-up call for the lifestyle?
20:57It was a business.
20:59We went on as normal.
21:01Nothing ever stopped.
21:03I feel bad for Tony.
21:04I wish that he did have people around him that was like, hey, man, you had enough.
21:09Come on, go get some rest.
21:11You don't know if we'll get in the car.
21:13Though he struggles with life on the road, Tony shines brighter than ever in the ring, stepping into the spotlight of the famed World Wrestling Federation.
21:23Tony Atlas!
21:25You signed to face a number of individuals, and I can tell you one thing, the fans are certainly delighted about it.
21:31If y'all don't mind, I'd like to show y'all a few of my sketches.
21:33That's gorgeous.
21:34Yeah, I'm working on that.
21:36His arms are almost as big as yours, Tony.
21:40I believe so.
21:41If there was ever a talent that was built for New York, it was Tony Atlas.
21:48Take a look at that.
21:50Tony wasn't getting booked mid-card.
21:53Tony was getting booked main event.
21:58You know, and when they did, what happened, man, the business started exploding, and the chance and reaction that Tony was getting was second to none.
22:07Tony Atlas, undefeated.
22:09In the World Wrestling Federation.
22:12As one of the WWF's biggest stars, Tony joins forces with future Hall of Famer Rocky Johnson to form a history-making tag team.
22:23It was brand new where you had two African-Americans getting that rocket ship attached to both of these young men.
22:33Rocky was already the established star, and Tony was still the up-and-coming star.
22:39The two of them together with the power and the look that they had.
22:43It was magic for both of them.
22:45You see, back then, all this stuff was new for black athletes.
22:51Watch here, buddy!
22:52Here's our new champion!
22:53But we are the first black tag team champions of the world, ever!
23:00Now, that was great.
23:02My problem was, me and Rocky didn't get along, because Rocky was a top wrestler.
23:07I was a top wrestler.
23:08I'm the only one who could take his spot.
23:10Tony, I'm sure you're so happy.
23:12You've got tears in your eyes.
23:13It wasn't that he hated me or disliked me.
23:17As you know, Rocky's older than me.
23:19And this was Rocky's first break in the WWF.
23:24Think about it.
23:26I made, in one week, what took Rocky Johnson 10 years to make.
23:31There was a lot of jealousy that came into play with that.
23:33So, after a while, it started souring, and it turned into a bitter relationship.
23:38And that's sad, because those two guys in the beginning, they were equal.
23:42And then, all of a sudden, Rocky noticed that Tony was getting the bigger push.
23:47You did it, Tony!
23:48You did it, Tony!
23:50Rocky Johnson tried to get me far a thousand a time.
23:53They were kind of toxic together.
23:56You know, Rocky would play Tony and get him in trouble.
24:01They would have very vocal arguments in the dressing room,
24:04to the point where you'd get a little concerned, how far is this going to go?
24:08And a lot of times, you had road agents stepping in to kind of calm them down.
24:13Then they'd go out, and they'd have one of the best matches you've ever seen.
24:17Trouble, Piper, now.
24:18Just come to the top.
24:19What was really concerning was one that would follow over.
24:23I mean, you want to clear a bar out, but in a hurry, you get these two gigantic men arguing with each other, cussing each other out.
24:30You're going to clear a spot for them.
24:32The new World Stag Team champion, Rocky Johnson and Tony Atlas.
24:36Yes, but here's the kick in the britching.
24:39After we won the belt, they did very little with us.
24:42Look at this!
24:43Five months later, we lost the belt.
24:46God, let's get three!
24:48I didn't know we were going to lose that night.
24:51Vince never told me nothing about it.
24:52Only Anderson.
24:54Only you said that the world is not ready for a black champion.
24:58I think Tony dealt with a lot of racism, not only through the fan, but backstage, too, with the guys.
25:07The foundation of the business was owned by whites.
25:09You know, like, your representation was based off biases, and some of them were based off ignorance.
25:18You had guys that was mumming the KKK, like Dick Murdoch.
25:21He opened his bag and said, KKK, freaking suit in his bag.
25:25I didn't know this then.
25:27Well, one time, Dick Murdoch was in a dress room, and he was giving out these flowers, and they said,
25:34Tony, I got some friends that want to meet you.
25:36I said, oh, thank you, Mr. Murdoch.
25:38You know, I'm trying to be respectful.
25:40So, I said, yeah.
25:42I said, can Tommy go?
25:43Oh, yeah, Tommy go.
25:44So, we pulled up into this dirt road.
25:47And up on the hill was a guy in the hood, the clang outfit, with a shotgun.
25:53Tommy said, get down, T.
26:05People don't realize this, but I have trouble with reading.
26:08Well, I got deluxe, whatever you call it.
26:11My mother said I was a slow learner.
26:13And she said, it happened ever since I got brain damage as a kid.
26:18So, anyway, Dick Murdoch gave me this flyer.
26:21So, me and Tommy, we drive it, and Tommy had not looked at the paper yet.
26:26She said, let me see that down flyer you got there, Tony.
26:30Hot damn team, this is for the KKK.
26:34So, I lay down in the seat.
26:36Tommy's on the car around him.
26:38Oh, you should be.
26:39He said, oh, that clue clunk clang.
26:41Didn't you read the thing, T?
26:43I looked at him.
26:44Yeah, hot damn Murdoch, this is the damn clang meeting.
26:48So, we get by the dressing room, and the guys are having a blackness, and we didn't really
26:53think you were in gold.
26:54Yeah, he was definitely taking advantage of it.
26:57Tony never looked for the bad in someone, you know, even after the first couple of stabs
27:03in his back.
27:04Didn't quite understand it.
27:05Maybe didn't quite feel it.
27:07But then, you know, you get stuck enough times, you go, what in the hell's going on here?
27:12Years of racism, exploitation, and locker room jealousy pushed Tony to numb the pain with
27:21his vices.
27:22He told me he would go do drugs, or he would go get so sloppy drunk that he couldn't even
27:28think about nothing but him being intoxicated.
27:33That's a horrible existence.
27:35Then I started going to the locker room to intimidate.
27:40And that's where everything started spiraling down.
27:44And the success, and the money, and the fame started going to my head.
27:48I had a Coke .357 Magnet, and I started shooting at the ceiling with it.
27:56I destroyed my own career by wanting revenge.
27:59I figured I would hurt others as much as I was hurt when I was a kid.
28:03He became a different person.
28:05He was not Tony Atlas then.
28:08He got the Tony Atlas I first saw at the YMCA.
28:11He's going to be in trouble now.
28:14All these wrestlers that he's beating, he's on top of the world and self-destructs.
28:19I mean, it was like sex, drugs, and rock and roll, but it's sex, drugs, and wrestling.
28:25Of course, back then we was all doing it.
28:27I was stupid.
28:29I was stupid.
28:30Even though I had all this fame and everything, I was not a happy person.
28:35I walked out over a pair of shoes.
28:37I threw away the championship for a pair of sneakers.
28:40What do you mean?
28:41Well, one day I'm at the airport, and this girl was telling me, she can't wait to see
28:45you got some new shoes, and I'm going to walk all over you.
28:48I said, shit.
28:49I could go do this and come back to the wrestling, and Chief J Strongboat tried to save me.
28:57He said, this match is going to be one of the most important matches of your life.
29:01I said, oh, and I'm going to L.A. to be my girl.
29:04Wait, hold on a second.
29:05You would have had an opportunity to become the first black world champion, but instead
29:11you decided to get on a plane to go get walked on?
29:14Yeah.
29:15I had to lose everything to learn to appreciate what I had.
29:21What?
29:22What the hell's going on?
29:25Merry Christmas.
29:27If you miss one show and you got a good excuse, that's one thing, but if you start missing
29:32one here and there and here and there, you lose your dependability, and that's what they
29:37do.
29:38They depend on us to do what we're supposed to do.
29:41I can't think of nothing worse.
29:45Everybody there that paid money because, oh, I want to see Tony Atlas.
29:49Now look at that.
29:50Yes, sir.
29:51And then you go, I ain't coming.
29:54Come on, man.
29:56You can't do that.
29:58When I came back, Vince let me go.
30:02I was fired.
30:03He told me himself, I have to make an example out of you.
30:08In fact, it was a compliment in a way.
30:12See, all the wrestlers were screwing up.
30:14He said, I have to make an example out of you because if I fired Tony Atlas, then anybody
30:19would know I would fire anyone.
30:21Think about it.
30:22Think about it.
30:23You taking out your biggest star you got on your car on your roster.
30:26That says a lot about the promoter because he's sacrificing crowds and houses to try to
30:31bring you back to reality.
30:33You know, sometimes you got to be protected from yourself.
30:37Tony's addiction and release from the WWF land him in a small New England based promotion under
30:44the control of promoter Mario Savoldi.
30:46Mario told me, I know you used to making more money, but I could guarantee you 50 to 75,000
30:55a year.
30:56He said, it's not much, but here in Maine, it's libra-ba-ba.
31:01Then all of a sudden, Mario would book a show on a Saturday, Vince would book a show in
31:08Maine on a Friday, trying to put Mario on a business.
31:13Mario attended Saturday, drop, drop, drop, drop, drop.
31:17All of a sudden, I had no money, no place to go.
31:20I became homeless.
31:21I lost everything.
31:23I'm not very well educated.
31:25The only way that I knew how to make a living was in that ring.
31:29I don't come to the park no more.
31:3220 years since I've been in this park.
31:35This here was my home, right here.
31:38It's where I slept.
31:44I was here for a year and a half, almost.
31:48The same people that give you something, they can also take it away.
31:53And you could lose everything you ever owned in a matter of suckers.
31:58Got in fights down here on Knox Street.
32:02He said that once he woke up and had rolled off a bench, he said, Mark, I woke up and I
32:09was laying in a mud puddle.
32:12Yeah.
32:16Making hundreds of thousands of dollars is like you're making a million dollars back
32:20in the 70s and 80s, yo.
32:23And I went from that life to living on Knox Street and eating out of a dumpster.
32:29Here I am standing on the frickin' corner and everybody knows me.
32:34That's what made it so hard.
32:35I was poor before, but nobody knew me.
32:38But to be poor and famous.
32:42I was more hooked on cocaine here in Maine than I have been in my whole life.
32:46I became a suicider.
32:48I tried to die by police shooting.
32:51I used to go to the police station to try to get them to come out of the parking lot to
32:53shoot me.
32:55I used to walk in front of cars and everything trying to die.
32:59Though he's ready to give up, a local woman comes to Tony's aid, saving him from his darkest
33:05struggles.
33:06So, Monica was walking right down this street here.
33:10She said, what you doing here?
33:12I said, I sleep here.
33:13She said, you can't stay here.
33:15It's 20 below zero.
33:16She said, you will freeze to death.
33:18I said, I don't give a .
33:20I want to die.
33:21So, she left.
33:22Next day she came back to check on me again.
33:25I cursed her out again.
33:27Fatty got so dadgum cold and my legs went numb.
33:32Monica called the ambulance.
33:34And they tried to ask Monica all these questions about me.
33:37Monica can't tell them nothing.
33:39She don't even know my name.
33:41I went into a coma.
33:50That picture there, this is when I first met my wife Monica.
33:55That's when we first met.
33:58I didn't have a pot to piss in and I wanted to throw it out of.
34:02I had nothing to eat.
34:04All I had were the clothes on my back.
34:06And my trophy.
34:08That's all I had.
34:09I had nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing.
34:12And this woman took me in.
34:15She said, if you need a place to stay, you can stay with me.
34:19You understand?
34:20She took me home to her house.
34:23So, I started going back to the gym, working out.
34:26I got a little pot-tad job here.
34:28I work as a bouncer to pay the rent.
34:31All of a sudden, Vince saw me a contract.
34:34With Mario Savoldi's promotion struggling, Vince McMahon reaches out, offering Tony another opportunity for glory.
34:42Monica started crying.
34:44She said, now that you're back doing what you do, I'll probably never see you again.
34:49And I said, Monica, yes you will.
34:53I bought these cheap rings.
34:58I bought these rings.
34:59This ring right here.
35:00I still got it.
35:02And I said, Monica, now we are married.
35:05For Vince to do that, that's a good, you know, because it's easy for him to just say, get the hell on.
35:10And then, of course, I'm sure Tony had enough time to know that he'd done wrong and love the opportunity to get to come back.
35:19He said, well, that's Burry the Hatchet.
35:22He said, I got a great idea for you.
35:24What have we got here?
35:25Take a look at this with Yosama Simba.
35:29Proud of his heritage indeed.
35:31We have not seen this man for years and legally changing his name to Saba Simba.
35:36Now, here's the kick in the teeth.
35:38My first night at Saba Simba, Ronnie Piper said this.
35:42That's Tony Atlas.
35:44That ain't no Saba Simba.
35:45That's Tony Atlas.
35:47Piper's right.
35:48You know, everybody, he says, everybody knows that's Tony Atlas.
35:53I thought it was love.
35:55And he ain't the only one.
35:57There's a lot of people that have played roles and characters that they felt like were belittling.
36:04Tony Atlas was a respected superstar.
36:09All of a sudden, he said, who?
36:14Vince, what were you thinking?
36:17Why would Vince have me to come out and do a gimmick and then tell people who I am?
36:21I couldn't understand why he did that.
36:23Why walk around looking like that? You look like a fool.
36:26From behind there, don't.
36:30I think it was a way of making fun of him.
36:32And what, was it just because?
36:35It's because Vince can.
36:39You know?
36:40I think Ricky the Dragon's Steamboat worked great.
36:44But then when they turned me into the costume wearing, fire breathing dragon, it was more like a caricature.
36:51And of course, with Tony, the same thing.
36:53Look at Atlas, wow!
36:55Just 180 degree turn.
36:57If that was the intent, then it was a success.
37:01Because that was embarrassing.
37:05Oh, God.
37:07Salva, see you, give me a break.
37:09My third grade son at that time could promote a better ideal than that.
37:14So how did you feel about the gimmicks?
37:16I mean, right before Salva Simba, I was eating out of dumpster, sleeping on a park bench.
37:26And you're gonna ask me how you like the gimmicks.
37:27Brother, he could have put me in a freaking pink gorilla suit at that time.
37:33I would have loved it.
37:36Tony's return to the WWF doesn't last long.
37:40And despite stints and other promotions, he never regains his former glory.
37:46But in 2006, Tony is inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, giving him one last moment in the spotlight.
37:54Well, and of course, this is my Hall of Fame introduction here, WWE Hall of Famer.
38:00I'd like to thank the wrestling fans.
38:05Tony was a role model for a little black kid that watched wrestling and had somebody that identified and looked like him.
38:15And I requested Tony as my manager.
38:19I wanted Tony.
38:20Yes, sir.
38:21I heard you need to do that for a payday.
38:24Next I know, they're telling me I'm gonna abandon Mark Henry.
38:31Over 15 years after leaving WWE, Tony's new role as a mentor sees him guiding Mark Henry on the road, hoping he won't repeat Tony's mistakes.
38:43It was just a childhood dream.
38:46Wanting to be in the same room with Tony Atlas.
38:50And Tony and I would go to the gym.
38:54He used to amuse him, the stuff that I could do.
38:57And I got in really good shape, though, riding with Tony.
39:01Tony Atlas and the world's strong.
39:03And then I went into a different level of, you know, Hall of Fame stuff.
39:08Anybody call the police?
39:10That was awesome.
39:11So how and when did Vince fire you for good?
39:14The last time I worked for him, I was with Mark Henry.
39:17Tony Atlas is rolling into the fabric of our craft.
39:20I had to catch a flight.
39:21That red eye, leave out at like 12, 30 or something out of Las Vegas.
39:25Vince said, Tony, you just as much a part of this company as anybody here.
39:31I get home, I get a phone call, we have to terminate your contract.
39:35I said, what did, I just talked to him yesterday.
39:38That's Vince.
39:39What come out of Vince's mouth, don't trust him.
39:41Are you ready? One more.
39:52Years after his historic time in WWE, Tony Atlas keeps his legacy alive,
39:59offering fans another glimpse of Mr. USA.
40:03Mr. USA, Tony Atlas.
40:06The legend of Tony Atlas won't die.
40:08Because it still lives because people see him.
40:11They go to autograph signings.
40:13So he'll go up and say hi and hug people.
40:17I was in Boston a couple of years back and I'm doing meet and greets, you know, and Tony's there.
40:22All of a sudden I see Tony take off his jacket.
40:26Then all of a sudden I see Tony bending over, lacing up a pair of boots.
40:31Holy cow.
40:33I said, Tony, what the hell are you doing?
40:35Briscoe, I'm working tonight.
40:40Man got to make a living.
40:42I'm not financially secure.
40:45I'm not that well educated.
40:47The only thing I got left is my health and strength.
40:50I met three women in my whole life that cared about me.
40:54Three.
40:56My mother, my grandmother, and my wife Monica.
40:59Well, right now when people say how is she doing, not good.
41:042019, my wife Monica had a stroke.
41:08And she's been hospitalized since.
41:11This is my home away from home.
41:14My wife is here.
41:16If I'm not at the gym, I'm here.
41:18I thought I lost my wife.
41:20I sure did.
41:22This is my wife Monica.
41:24Monica.
41:26Yeah, come on baby.
41:28Well, this is the woman that found me in the park.
41:31She took me in.
41:33Went through hell and high water with me.
41:35Say hi baby.
41:37Hi baby.
41:42So how's your day going baby?
41:43Compassion is the biggest thing.
41:47When somebody is bedridden sick, he have to cook for her, clean for her, bathe her.
41:56I got my little kit here.
41:58This is my Monica kit.
42:00It's a special person that does that.
42:04I wash her face.
42:06I put chopstick on her.
42:08And then I help her to go to bed.
42:11I could never do enough for this woman.
42:16Like I said, I would not be here right now if it wasn't for Monica.
42:23I'm sure Tony has reflected back to those days with Rocky Johnson, Madison Greergard,
42:29getting those $5,000 or nine payoffs.
42:32And I'm sure he reflects back at being homeless after having all that money
42:37and having nothing that's not in place where you lay your head.
42:39But you can't do it all over again.
42:43I'm going to say this.
42:45Tony had his moments in the business.
42:47And those are the moments that he should be recognized for.
42:49No, this can't be done.
42:51Mr. USA clears the ring.
42:53The winner, Tony Hopkins.
42:56If I had been a little bit more humble, I would have been the first black world champion.
43:00But I'm more happy now with no career, no money.
43:06And when I was a miserable when I had all that money and glory, I was not happy.
43:11The only thing that made me happy was getting some girl to stomp on my face.
43:15Other than that.
43:16The moral story is it's never too late to say I'm sorry.
43:21It's very stiff.
43:23It's never too late to wash all the mud off and act like you got some damn sins.
43:29Because other people are depending on you too.
43:34And I do this every day.
43:35And you're willing to live for them rather than die for them.
43:47You getting prettier.
43:49From you.