STW - Honky Tonk Man [Show Notes] (Patreon)

Honky Tonk Man

Roy Wayne Farris was born January 25, 1953. From Bolivar, Tennessee, he  has one son, Roy, and a daughter Megan, who has her doctorate in veterinary medicine. 

Farris himself said he grew up on a small cotton farm about sixty miles outside of Memphis. Around 11 years old, he began watching the only wrestling he could pick up on TV - Nick Gulas’ Nashville territory. He always wanted to be in entertainment, he has said in shoot interviews. Growing up, he played baseball, basketball and football (no amateur wrestling at his high school). He scored a 15 on his ACT and got into health and physical education in college. That led Farris to coaching high school football for two years at Munford High School in Munford, Tennessee. 

Farris had both friends and family in wrestling. Jerry Lawler’s mother was Farris’s mother’s sister. He said one night, he was coaxed into going along to a wrestling show and soon after thought that he could do this. He gave his resignation mid-school year to go to Mobile, Alabama to wrestle - and the territory closed before he got there.

He was trained by Herb Welch. He described his training as grueling. Around that time, he began a friendship with another one of Welch’s trainees, Koko B. Ware. Koko would drop kick him 20 times in the face, he said. Weightlifters would slam him hard. He said he suffered more injuries during this time than during his actual career.

Farris' wrestling career began in Malden, Missouri, in 1977. In 1978, he moved to Memphis wrestling. He began going by the name Dynamite Wayne Farris and working from Tennessee to Florida territories and in between. Farris and Larry Lathem (the future Moondog Spot) teamed as The Blond Bombers - a team name used before and since by different combinations in different territories. Their signature moment was in 1979: the "Tupelo Concession Stand Brawl" against Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee. As Farris described to HannibalTV, the Fullers had raided Jerry Jarrett’s Memphis territory for most of its talent. With very few players left, the Blond Bombers and Lawler and Dundee were needed to tear the house down. What they did accomplished that and went down in wrestling history as what is argued by some as the birth of modern hardcore wrestling.

After a bloody battle that involved Farris and Lathem cheating at every turn, the Blond Bombers won the match and the championship belts. But Dundee and Lawler weren’t finished and took the fight to the concession stand area. Lance Russell follows with the cameraman and continues to call the action masterfully. Mops, pans, boxes, stools, a table and mustard were all used as weapons. And this was in 1979!

The event was so hot, it turned business around for Jerry Jarrett’s territory. 

https://youtu.be/xTndTO1tqVk

What are your thoughts on the Tupelo incident?

Farris will tell you it’s not the first hardcore match in history, but it is one of the earliest hardcore moments that is still remembered today. It was such a big deal that in 2019, the Tupelo-market television station did a news story celebrating the anniversary. Both Lawler and Dundee received keys to the city in honor of it! (Sorry Honky and Moondog)

https://www.wtva.com/content/news/Dundee-Lawler-look-back-on-the-infamous-Tupelo-concession-stand-brawl-509518581.html

Farris has said in interviews that he didn’t think Jerry Lawler was particularly good to him during his time in Memphis. Farris said he would be booked twice a week and at shows that were huge drives that he couldn’t ride with other wrestlers to. But after Tupelo, Farris said Lawler showed him much more professional courtesy. 

Farris worked for a time in WWC in Peurto Rico. He said every night, you had to fight into and out of the arena. Fans would throw rocks. He spent about ten months there working three or four days a week. 

Farris spent a short time in Mid Atlantic. Then he spent six weeks in Japan for Giant Baba. He wrestled Jack Brisco during this stint. Honky said Jack was the ultimate professional. Honky made $1,000 a week in Japan. He said he was promised $1,200 by Abdullah the Butcher.

For a time, Farris worked in Southeastern Championship Wrestling (Continental). That’s where his most famous persona would be born. He wrestled as Punk Rock Wayne Farris. From that, he transitioned into having black hair, fans gave him a jumpsuit, and Robert Fuller gave him a guitar. Farris says he gave himself the name off of a record by Jimmy Horton. The record was called “Honky Tonk Man.”

What is a Honky-Tonk?

A honky-tonk is both a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons AND the style of music played in such establishments. The term originally referred to risqué variety shows in areas of the old West and to the actual theaters showing them. 

As a style of music, honky-tonk was roaring in the 50s. And in March, 1956, country singer and writer Jimmy Horton released a hit song Honky-Tonk Man. It peaked at number 9 on the country charts. 

From Wikipedia, “The lyrics of the song are narrated in the first-person ("I'm a honky-tonk man"), describing a life of drinking and dancing with young women in honky-tonk bars; the account suggests a compulsive or addictive quality to the protagonist's lifestyle ("I can’t seem to stop").

Honky made his debut for Stampede Wrestling in Calgary in 1982 - as Honky Tonk Wayne - a name the Harts came up with that he didn’t like. He already had gear that said Honky Tonk Man, having had the character on his way in. He said travel in Stampede was brutal. Honky said Stu stretched him on the front porch the first time they met.

What might that have sounded like?

Honky says he had a dispute with Stu and went to work for Al Tomko for almost a year - again as The Honky Tonk Man. Then, he buried the hatchet with Stu, and went back there for a while. Around then, Honky Tonk Man was put on a WWF show in the Calgary Saddledome that Stu was involved in. At that show, Hulk took Honky in the bathroom and asked why he hasn’t joined up with them yet. The two had known each other much earlier in their careers but hadn’t met up in sometime, until that event. Honky said he didn’t think he was good enough but Hulk disagreed, saying he was as good as anyone. He said the next morning, he would get a call from Vince and Honky said the next morning, the phone rang as prepared for his next step - the World Wrestling Federation. Honky said he was a nervous wreck during the call with Vince.

Would Vince have made that call, personally?

Honky said seeing the huge crowd the Federation drew in Calgary really made him want to go to the big-time. Plus, hearing about the big paydays from the occasionally-returning Bulldogs and Bret made him want to do it even more. He said Vince called Stu, made sure his obligations weren’t broken in Stu’s mind, and that week, he goes to meet with Vince and brings a tape. He gets the job. 

When Vince takes a wrestler from a territory, what does he do to make the promoter (in this case, a friendly one; Stu) feel content?

Here’s where history gets really fun, and a little weird: In early 1986, a young Dwight Yoakam released his version of Jimmy Horton’s “Honky Tonk Man.” Yoakam’s rendition was a bigger hit than the original. It debuted at number 74 on the country chart dated March 1, 1986. It charted for 24 weeks on that chart, and peaked at number 3 on the chart dated June 14, 1986. This was Yoakam’s debut single on his debut album that he self-financed! In other words, this song put him on the map.

Three months after the song hit its peak, The Honky Tonk Man joined the WWE.

Honky made his televised WWE debut on the September 28, 1986 episode of Wrestling Challenge, beating Terry Gibbs. And for folks who don’t know - Honky was a baby face! He debuted as a good guy with suspenders - which seems really strange, looking back. In interviews, Honky said Vince envisioned kids wearing little sideburns and buying merchandise with Honky’s likeness. 

“It was a total flop,” Honky said 

Why bring him in as a baby face?

CLIP: Superstars, October 4, 1986; Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura on commentary

https://youtu.be/aNSeefpelXw

CLIP: Honky Tonk’s first WWF theme, “That’s All Right, Honky Tonk Mama” by Jim Johnston.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJdxMwgab0A

Honky had no real angles during his first several months as a baby face. He said his early matches would be against the likes of Lanny Poffo or SD Jones, to test his ability to work. 

Honky soon cut a series of promos with Jesse Ventura asking fans for a "vote of confidence.” He said this was Jesse Ventura’s idea. Honky’s promos actually insulted fans. The poll results came back overwhelmingly negative. That was his heel turn. 

Honky re-embraced his cocky persona while being paired with The Mouth of the South, Jimmy Hart. But Hart was billed as "Colonel Jimmy Hart" for Honky's matches, a reference to Elvis' manager Col. Tom Parker. He would also come out with Peggy Sue - who would either be Sherri or Jimmy Hart in drag. In 1988, Meltzer wrote that he loved the Honky Tonk/Peggy Sue duo.

In interviews, Honky Tonk Man puts over working with Jimmy Hart. Honky said he owes a lot of his success to Jimmy Hart for pushing him in times Honky would want to slow down. 

His first major feud was a big one...with Jake the Snake Roberts. This was as Snake was turning babyface. The first feud would set the tone for his run as a fan favorite. 

The Snake Pit - 2/21/1987

The most remembered moment of their rivalry is one in which Jake says Honky nearly killed him. On the cave-like set (Stone Mountain) of The Snake Pit, Honky attacked Roberts with a guitar that didn’t shatter like, say, a Jeff Jarrett guitar from 1998. Instead, Jake appeared to take a very stiff shot and after staggering, he collapsed. Jake told HannibalTV that Pat Patterson’s significant other went out, bought the best guitar he could find for the segment, and didn’t gimmick it enough. Jake says two discs in his neck “exploded” when he got hit. It looks brutal and knocks Jake out on his feet. He said his wife was pulling fiberglass pieces out of his back for weeks. For years, Jake would blame this moment as the beginning of his dependency on prescription painkillers. This has been disputed. Roberts was said to have his “demons” before this. 

Honky specifically disputed it, saying the guitar was so gimmicked, he almost broke it with his thumb. 

Was there any heat (on anyone) for Jake being injured?

The feud culminated at Wrestlemania 3 in a match with Jake accompanied by Alice Cooper. Beforehand, Honky was interviewed by Mary Hart. Honky said there were so many people, they all looked like ants. But he said they were on the road 50 days straight and couldn’t enjoy it as much as he would have liked. Honky said it was Jake’s idea to have Alice Cooper. He said Cooper was nervous about holding Jake’s big snake. Honky said he was talking trash to Cooper during the match so much, that Cooper almost jumped into the ring. Honky won their Mania 3 match by grabbing the ring ropes to score the tainted pin.

On the June 13, 1987 episode of Superstars, Honky defeated Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat for the WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship; Honky reversed Steamboat's inside cradle and grabbed onto the bottom ropes for extra leverage to get the pin. He said they only had three or four return matches.

According to rumors on the internet, Honky was originally meant to be a transitional champion to only hold on to the title for a short period of time - until Jake Roberts failed drug tests following WrestleMania. Because of that, Honky was booked to remain champion for what would be a record-setting run. 

Do you know if that’s what happened?

Were there plans for Butch Reed that were dropped in favor of Honky Tonk Man, here?

In interviews, Honky has said that Hulk Hogan suggested he win the IC belt during a chance-encounter between Honky, Hulk, and Vince McMahon. 

Did you see or hear about this? 

Do you know who else was considered to win the IC belt at this time?

On September 21, 1987, Piledriver: The Wrestling Album II was released on vinyl, with a Coliseum Video VHS also being released. That’s the one with Hulk Hogan wearing a hardhat and doing construction work. It’s the only WWF/WWE album that didn’t have a CD release. And track number three was The Honky Tonk Man by The Honky Tonk Man. It is “Cool, Cocky, Bad.”. It was his most famous theme song and the one he would use again in his last run with the WWE. (Demolition, Slick, The Young Stallions, KoKo B. Ware, and Strike Force all had themes that were from this album; Also, the “If You Only Knew,” song used during the 2002 Hollywood Hulk Hogan return promos)

https://youtu.be/k3xtczqUVY0

Also in September 1987, Honky began to work with Macho Man Randy Savage. Honky said he clicked with Savage and enjoyed working with him. He said Savage trusted him enough to interject Elizabeth into the match. 

The first Savage-Honky match to air on national television was on October 3, 1987. It was Saturday Night's Main Event 12, which was taped on September 23 in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Savage almost defeated Honky until Jimmy Hart's Hart Foundation ran into the ring and attacked Savage, getting Honky disqualified. Miss Elizabeth attempted to stop the attack on Savage, but Honky actually shoved her down! She fled to the locker room as Honky smashed the guitar on Savage’s skull. But Miss Elizabeth returned with an ally - Hulk Hogan, who aided Savage in running off the heels. This led to the formation of The Mega Powers.

The last high-profile Savage-Honky match was on the undercard on 1988 The Main Event I (Hulk vs Andre). It saw Honky lose by countout after Savage rammed him into the ring post. 

Honky talked in interviews about wanting to quit before this match, saying he thought the original plans would have buried his character. He said he refused to do the job. Do you recall pushback from Honky around this event?

Honky said he talked to Jim Barnett during this time and even considered jumping ship. He said Vince was furious learning this.

Honky said he got a vibe from the office after this that he couldn’t be trusted anymore. Any merit to that?

Their feud was blown off in the weeks before Wrestlemania 4.

At Mania 4, Honky’s next feud began. It was with BRUTUS...THE FUCKING BARBER...BEEFCAKE. Beefcake had him in a sleeper when Colonel Jimmy Hart caused a disqualification to save the title. The feud would continue until Summerslam, which was supposed to be Beefcake’s last shot at the title. Then a twist happened. The late Outlaw Ron Bass attacked Beefcake with one of his spurs on TV, causing a bloody scene that was censored by a big X in replays. 

Summerslam 88

For 1 year, two months and 27 days, Honky Tonk Man has been the Intercontinental Champion. But with Beefcake out of action, Honky had no idea who his opponent would be. It was a mystery. So Honky says bring out anyone - he doesn’t care who. And Jim Johnston’s famed music hits. Honky loses in a squash to the Ultimate Warrior - who is going absolutely nuts, along with the crowd. Huge crowd pop. Good payday, he told Sean Oliver. Payday was more than he expected because WM3 was less than expected.

Honky does return matches with Warrior. He said he was happy with these matches. He felt like he had a lot of creative input.

“I accomplished what needed to be accomplished. I got him over right away. He was an automatic star right away. It was good for the company because they needed someone fast to get over with the company.” He also told Sean Oliver, “It didn’t hurt me to lose to the Warrior.”

On July 18, 1989, Honky Tonk Man worked three matches at television tapings. Two of those were against Hulk Hogan. One was for an episode of Superstars of Wrestling and the other aired on Saturday Night’s Main Event July 29, 1989, on NBC.

In 1989, Honky also worked with The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes. They faced off in a one on one match during Summerslam that year, in which Dusty Rhodes won by pinfall. In shoot interviews, Honky has called him “lazy,” usually with some even harsher words attached. This was around the time that Dusty was giving his notice to go back to WCW.

POSSIBLE: Was there any feeling outside of Honky Tonk Man that Dusty was lazy during this time?

Honky Tonk Man appeared on Arsenio Hall with Jimmy Hart around this period, as well.

Then one day at the arena, Honky said he pitched jobbing to Snuka to get him over, and Vince said “Really?” in an intrigued tone. Honky thought he was done and was going to be jobbed out - so he said he pitched this idea to work his way back up to better money while keeping a job. He said he enjoyed these matches, too, because he and Snuka worked their way up from a preliminary position on the card to a higher spot that paid more. Snuka pinned him on September 30, 1989 at Madison Square Garden. He also defeated him by DQ at a Superstars taping on October 31. 

At Survivor Series 89, Honky was on the losing team with Rick Martel, Big Boss Man, and Bad News Brown. They were defeated by Brutus Beefcake, Dusty Rhodes, the Red Rooster, and Tito Santana. 

Then came Rhythm and Blues. 

Greg The Hammer Valentine was also being managed at the time by Jimmy Hart, who had previously managed tag-teams of the Harts and the Fabulous Rougeaus. Once the Rougeaus left, it seemed to create a need for a Jimmy Hart-managed tag-team. Valentine and Honky were teamed up and not long after their first pairing, Valentine donned jet black hair, Roy Orbison-style glasses, a gaudy jacket and a guitar, which he obviously didn’t know how to play. Honky Tonk Man told World Wrestling Insanity in an interview that Rick Rude came up with the name for the team, Rhythm and Blues. 

Their first televised match was at a Wrestling Challenge taping on December 12, 1989, defeating Mark Young and Reno Riggins. From December, 1989 until November, 1990, Honky worked almost exclusively with Valentine in tag-team encounters. One exception was at the Royal Rumble 1990, as Honky worked the 30-man-battle royal won by Hulk Hogan. 

At Wrestlemania VI, Rhythm and Blues would reveal their new hit single - Hunka Hunka Hunka Honky Love. It’s comically bad, with the exception of the guitar, which is somehow terrific. The pairing began using that as their theme song, too. They famously were driven to the ring in a pink Cadillac, driven by then-unknown Diamond Dallas Page. Honky was deliberately off key and did such a horrible job, the backup singers didn’t know whether to sing with him or the music. The segment was busted up by the Bushwackers who were dressed in fan apparel and handing out merchandise in the front row.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znn7UvT-9Jw

That summer, the two teams would feud. Then, Rhythm and Blues challenged for the tag team championship against the Hart Foundation, coming up short on each occasion. Rhythm & Blues were left off Summerslam in August. On September 18, 1990, at Saturday Night’s Main Event 28, Hulk Hogan and Tugboat defeated Rhythm & Blues by disqualification. That’s the SNME with the Oktoberfest theme and the big food fight. 

At the Survivor Series Showdown, Bret Hart pinned Honky in a one on one match. At the 1990 Survivor Series, Rhythm and Blues partnered with Ted DiBiase on his "Million Dollar Team" along with the debuting Undertaker, taking on Dusty Rhodes' "Dream Team" of the Hart Foundation and Koko B. Ware. DiBiase was the only survivor for his team.

At the end of 1990, Greg Valentine began kayfabe arguing with Honky about Jimmy Hart interfering in their matches. Rumor and innuendo was that this was supposed to lead to a feud between Honky Tonk Man and Greg Valentine - but this never happened on WWE TV.

Do you remember this being in the plans? 

Instead, Honky Tonk briefly joined the commentary table with Vince McMahon and Rowdy Roddy Piper. Honky said he couldn’t get a word in edgewise when Piper was talking. Honky left the company in December, 1990.

Any memories of this or what led to Honky leaving?

Ironically, Valentine and Honky would be wrestling each other by February, 1991, but on the independent show for United Wrestling Alliance. For the next several years, Honky remained on the indies, working with Don Muraco in 1992 and Jeff Jarrett in 1993.

In 1994, Honky Tonk Man made his way to WCW.

He wrestled on an August 5, 1994 edition of WCW Worldwide, defeating Terry Taylor by pinfall. And that was his only win in the company. At the October 23 Halloween Havoc PPV, he wrestled to a draw with Johnny B. Badd. Rumor is that he was asked to lose and did not want to, which soured an already strained relationship he had with management.. At the November 16 Clash of the Champions 29, Johnny B. Badd defeated Honky by DQ. As the story goes, Honky was asked to lose to Badd at Starrcade 1994 - and refused unless he was given a contract. Eric Bischoff told him he wouldn’t get a contract, for sure, if he refused to do the job. Honky didn’t budge and Eric fired him. And the two have hated each other since - including to this very day, on AdFreeShows.com, where Eric tore him a new one last week. 

Even though Honky never had a contract, he did have a really horrible WCW theme song!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VMsS7o1jJc

It was back to the indys for Honky from 1995 to 1997. Honky Tonk Man wrestled several past WWE stars including with the Ultimate Warrior, July, 1995: National Wrestling Conference, Las Vegas. Honky said by then, Warrior had worked with Hogan, Rude, and others, meaning he had much more experience. Honky said Warrior was pissed at the promoter, barely talked to HTM, and they did something quick to get out and be done.

In 1997, Honky Tonk Man returned to the Federation - but not as an active competitor. During this time, he was on a search for the next greatest Intercontinental champion. During that time, he worked as a commentator for WWF Superstars, Shotgun Saturday Night, and Raw is War. Finally, after months, he found his prospect: Billy Gunn. And Billy Gunn became Rockabilly. 

Who thought this was a good idea?

Honky said Savio Vega was considered to be his protege at one point. Do you know if that was ever talked about or how it might have worked?

Honky has said he hated the pairing (but has no issues with Billy Gunn). The failed gimmick would lead to Billy joining up with Road Dogg later that year and making history as the New Age Outlaws.

In 1998, Honky wrestled his first match in the Federation since 90 - in the Royal Rumble. He was eliminated by Vader. 

It was back to the independent scene for a few years until Royal Rumble 2001 arrived. Honky Tonk once again entered the 30-man-over-the-top-rope match - and was eliminated by Kane after being hit on the head with the guitar. A bit surprisingly, Honky was NOT in the Gimmick Battle Royale at Wrestlemania X-Seven.

It was back to the independent scene from 2001 until 2008. 

On July 27, 2008, Honky almost had the index finger of his right hand severed during a public appearance in Canada before an Ultimate Championship Wrestling show in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. He was making an appearance several hours before the show when someone wanted to take a photo with him with both men clashing guitars. When the guitars collided, the neck of Honky's guitar turned and sliced into Honky's finger, almost severing it. Honky was immediately taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital where doctors stitched the finger and bandaged it. Honky made his appearance at the Ultimate Championship Wrestling show several hours later. He was unable to wrestle his scheduled match due to the injury. But he still sang his theme song twice in the ring.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXGUkhJYt0g

In 2008, Santino Marella, playing the comedy gimmick hard, said he intended to break Honky’s record for the longest IC championship reign. Santino would show the Honk-A-Meter, comparing his reign (barely in double digits) to Honky’s 64-week reign. 

Cyber Sunday, October 26, 2008 was the Honky Tonk Man’s last WWE match. Fans voted for Honky over Roddy Piper by one percent, and Goldust by much more. Honky won this match by DQ after Beth Phoenix tripped him. Then, Roddy and Goldust come out, hit signature moves on Santino, and Honky hit the Shake Rattle and Roll! 

Fun Fact: Honky Tonk Man’s first and last matches in WWE were wrestled as a baby face. 

Honky would return to do commentary at Raw on October 27. After being attacked by Santino, Honky busted a guitar over his head. 

In 2010, Honky was offered a spot in the WWE Hall of Fame but famously turned it down. He said in shoot interviews that he had a prior booking he couldn’t skimp on. 

On October 11, 2010, Honky appeared in an episode of the court based show Judge Jeanine Pirro as a witness to the defendant; the episode was the highest rated show for Judge Jeanine Pirro of all time.

On March 4, 2013, Honky appeared on Old School Raw and following a match between Brodus Clay and Tensai against 3 Man Band, Honky smashed Heath Slater with a guitar. He then danced with Clay and Tensai to his theme song. 

He would continue to wrestle independent shows into 2019. 

On February 26, 2019, WWE confirmed that the Honky Tonk Man would join the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2019. He was inducted on April 7, 2019 by his former manager Jimmy Hart. Hart said he first met him in 1979 as Farris was part of the First Family of Wrestling. Hart went to New York as Farris went to Pensacola. After a short introduction, Hart welcomed The Honky Tonk Man, complete in his famous blue jumpsuit.

Honky began the speech thanking Jimmy Hart for all he did for him. Then he said many people never expected his induction.

He said he had a vision of the character in his mind. Black hair, side burns...ie a greaseball. He hoped it would catch on and give him a boost. He said he needed a name and while driving along on the gulf coast, when a song came on the radio: I’m a Honky Tonk Man. He asked a local promoter to give it a try and it began. 

He thanked Hulk Hogan for his chance in the Federation. He said WWE did something Honky could not do with the character: they gave it life. No promises, no guarantees, just opportunity. 

“They presented this character to millions of people on every corner of the globe. They made this character a household name. Because of WWE, this character will never die. This character will live forever. That is the power of WWE. For all this, I will be forever grateful to WWE. It really is truly an honor to be part of such an incredible family.”

Fan Questions:

AndyABC717 asks...Everyone mentions Vince being a body guy but Honkey Tonk Man wasn’t a bodybuilder by any means. Was he ever put on any weight loss program or because Elvis was overweight it was better for the character to not have too much muscle

J.R. Sanchez asks...Why did @OfficialHTM job to the Ultimate Warrior in 30 seconds? Was Honky ever discussed as getting a second IC Title run or a WWF world title run? #AskBruce

BillyGunnFact asks...Why wasn’t Rockabilly booked to win the Intercontinental Title in 1997 from that coward Rocky Maivia? Honky Tonk Man passing the mantle for the greatest intercontinental champion of all time would have been $$$$$

Todd Adams asks….Why was Honky Tonk Man in the 2001 Royal Rumble but not the gimmick battle royal two months later at WrestleMania X-Seven?

Smile Alzado asks...#AskBruce is it true that if you say honkey tonk man 3x he appears out of nowhere and steal your trademarks?

Nobobby has an idea….the wwe could use a “son of Honky”. Have a new Elvis gimmick come in, maybe even have Honky introduce him. Then have him shit all over today’s music and talk about how everything was better in the 50’s or something. Agree or disagree?

Matt asks...HTM seems to have been the least likely wrestler to make a face turn during his era. How crippling is that to a wrestlers career over a long period?

Kieronaldo asks...Who did you prefer with a guitar shot; Honky Tonk or Double J? #askbruce

Denbigh Cherry asks..Theoretically, if Ricky Steamboat never asks for time off, how long does he hold the IC title and who does he eventually drop it to? Dragon seemed primed for a long run, so I wonder if he had held it til ‘88 if Honky still gets it. #AskBruce

Steve Hates Wrestling asks...#askbruce we’ve seen on numerous occasions that Vince will go out of his way to get previous records broken from out of favour stars ie Orton breaking Lesnars youngest champion record and the new day breaking demolitions title reign. Then Why is HTM IC record still in tact?

Adam asks...HTM Has said Vince wanted to repackage him in 1988. Did you hear anything about this? What would the repackage have been?

J Marsh asks...There was a PPV where Honky Tonk came to the ring singing his Honky Tonk Man song. He was really far behind the beat. Was it a work to have him be way off like that, unable to keep the beat? #AskBruce

J Marsh asks...In a shoot interview, King Kong Bundy mentioned HTM "dined and dashed" at restaurants without paying, which HTM denied. Could Bruce confirm or deny this rumor? #AskBruce

NSPhotos asks….#askBruce Honky v Valentine at WM7 would have been a decent match with a storyline rather than Valentine jobbing to Quake. Was it ever planned? What were the plans for Honky had he not left in 91?

Pretty White For a Fly Guy asks...#askbruce What's your take on Honky's claims that Austin only outsold Hulk, because of the availability of Austin merch in the 90's vs Hulk merch in the 80's?

Fernum asks...What was the deal with Honky buying up wrestlers trademarks a few years back. I think he trademarked Jake the Snake among many others... #AskBruce

Sterling Pingree asks….#AskBruce What would it sound like if Honky Tonk Man sang "With My Baby Tonight"? What would it sound like if Double J sang Hunka Hunka Honky Love?

Gary Mabes asks...Did u guys just purchase gimmick guitars in bulk and if u did what was the price and on average how many would u go through in a year

Seb asks...Hey Bruce....How horrendous on a scale of 1-10 did it look when honky had to reposition himself in the correct spot for warrior to do the running splash on him?

Willie asks...Has there ever big a bigger “star-making” moment than when Honky put over Warrior at Summerslam? I struggle to think of anything on that level. Maybe Kane’s debut.

Anthony asks...When warrior hit the ropes at SS88 and knocked the fink off the ring, was that planned? #askbruce

Kent asks...What would it sound like if Paul Bearer was singing the Honky Tonk Man's theme? #AskBruce

Fernum asks… What would it sound like if Jim Cornette were to sing Honky’s theme song? #AskBruce

Fat Guy from Fargo asks...#AskBruce  @EBischoff has stated on 83 Weeks that he took great pleasure in firing HTM.  Bruce, how was it dealing with HTM in WWF?

Brent asks...Was Bruce there the night dynamite kid apparently slapped honkey tonk man off his chair in front of everyone for insulting Harley race? AskBruce