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Wrestling legend Jake Roberts recently revealed he was afraid of snakes the entire time he worked for WWE.
Roberts, aka Jake The Snake, used to carry his pet snake Damien with him to the ring before his matches. The WWE Hall of Famer sometimes placed the snake on top of his opponents if he defeated them.
In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling Senior Editor Bill Apter, Roberts recalled how he had reservations about the gimmick despite creating it himself:
"It was a great gimmick, but there was only one problem: I was terrified of snakes. My wife will tell you, that's probably the reason I started doing drugs! [laughs] Yeah, it [the snake] had nothing to do with it [taking drugs]." [2:20 – 2:36]
Watch the video above to hear more from Roberts about the logic behind his unique persona. The former WWE star also opened up about his experiences wrestling The Undertaker.
Not everyone liked Jake Roberts' idea
In the mid-1980s, Jake Roberts told Mid-South Wrestling booker Bill Watts he wanted a snake to accompany him to the ring. Watts disliked the idea and gave him a hockey mask to wear instead.
Almost four decades on, Roberts admits he never overcame his fear of snakes:
"No, it [fear of snakes] did not [improve]. It surely didn't. I was terrified of it, man. I tried to get Bill Watts to let me carry a snake into the ring, but he didn't do that. He thought the best thing to do was for me to wear a hockey mask too. Well, that was really original, Bill! Way to go, Mr. Watts!" [2:46 – 3:14]
Roberts joined WWE in 1986. He presented his snake idea to Vince McMahon, who immediately approved it.
"WWF [WWE] were all about it," Roberts continued. "They came to me and told me that I'd be carrying a snake. I'm like, 'Yeah, sure.' Vince McMahon had wrote some numbers down on a piece of paper and slid them over to me. I looked at them, I went, 'Oh my God. Oh my God. Yeah, I'll carry a snake! Damn right!'" [3:19 – 3:47]
Roberts is widely viewed as one of the greatest WWE stars of the 1980s and early 1990s. The 68-year-old was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014.
What are your thoughts on Jake Roberts' snake gimmick? Let us know in the comments section below.
Jake Roberts tells wrestling stories every week on his podcast, The Snake Pit. Full episodes can be found here.
Please credit Sportskeeda WrestleBinge and embed the video if you use quotes from this article.
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