Ken Patera On Not Being In the WWE Hall of Fame, Says He Doesn’t Want To Be Inducted

Ken Patera is a notable omission from the WWE Hall of Fame, but it’s something he says he’s not interested in. The WWE lagend spoke with Wrestling Epicenter for a new interview, and the show sent along some highlights you can check out below:

On writing his autobiography: “Well, I’m almost 80 years old. So, do the math on that one! But, I’ve had friends bitching and complaining at me for 40 years, and that is not an exaggeration, wanting me to put pen to paper! So, I decided it was time…. I quit drinking. That was the worst thing that I ever did. Oh God! I’ve been drinking all of my life. But, that’s not a bad thing, that’s a good thing. I’ve always had control of all of my faculties… Never hurt anybody, never bothered anybody. I was a good drunk! (laughs)”

On Ric Flair writing the forward: “Ric and I lived together for a wile there when we were in Vern Gagne’s AWA training camp. A lot of people don’t realize that was a very successful training camp. Most of us ended up being main eventers somewhere sooner or later. It was Ric Flair, The Iron Sheik who is really from Iran. A lot of people think he was a fake Arab from 5th Avenue in New York City or something but he was really from Iran. He was a sweetheart of a guy. I really liked him! So, anyway. It was Ric Flair, Iron Sheik, myself, “Jumpin'” Jimmy Brunzell, Greg Gagne – Vern’s son, and a friend of Wahoo McDaniel’s Bob Bruggers. Bob was an amazing athlete and he ended up being a teammate of Wahoo’s in the Miami Dolphins.”

On wrestling Hulk Hogan in that time: “I had seen Hulk Hogan’s first match in the WWF in 1980. I’ll never forget it. Allentown Fairgrounds. He had come up to me and said, “Hi, you’re Ken Patera.” I said, “Yes I am!” He told me he had wrestled in Florida and I watched his match. It was horrible! Just horrible! I was like, “God! Where did this f***ing bum come from!” But, he was just green. He had only been wrestling for maybe not even a year at that point. But, after a while, a short while, he started to get it… And, he followed the process! Everything you do in life, I don’t care if it is selling cars or being a brain surgeon, there is a process! If you don’t follow the process, you don’t make it! That is what life is all about. You don’t go off doing a bunch of hair-brained stuff or else you end up being a dumb f***! (laughs) You’ll never amount to shit! Look, I’m 80 years old. If I see someone that has potential, I’ll give them my advice. If I see someone who doesn’t have any potential, I’ll say “f*** them!” I won’t even waste my time! But, anyone who ever asks me for advice, 99% of the time, I’ll give it. But, life is a process. Follow the process and you’ll succeed at whatever you’re going to do in life.”

On if he ever wanted to return to pro wrestling during the Monday Night Wars: “No. I had opened a gym and was very successful doing that. I still did tours. I did shows all over the world and had matches. But, I had other business interests so I didn’t want to wrestle anywhere full time.”

On not being in the WWE Hall of Fame: “You said I was in the WWE Hall of Fame. I never said that. I’m actually not in there. Do I want to be in there? f*** no! Vince McMahon put that whole thing together. It doesn’t even have a building. Everyone knows who I am and what I’ve done. But, for him (Vince McMahon) to create a Hall of Fame and go, “Look what I created! Like what I did!” (laughs) It doesn’t matter to me. I’m in the Weight Lifting Hall of Fame. I’m in the St. Louis Hall of Fame. That means more to me than the WWE Hall of Fame because it was a part of the NWA which started back in the 1930’s. They inducted me 8 or 9 years ago. There’s not even 100 guys in that Hall of Fame.”