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Teddy Long has had a long journey in the wrestling business. While you may know him for his tenure as the General Manager of SmackDown, he spent years as a referee and even as a manager for other superstars. He revealed the shockingly low amount he was paid back in the day.
The 75-year-old WWE Hall of Famer appeared on the latest episode of The Wrestling Time Machine alongside co-host Mac Davis and journalist Bill Apter. He was asked about his days as a referee in NWA. He worked for Jim Crockett Promotions for a good part of a decade, being an errand boy at first before becoming a referee and eventually a manager.
The pay for referees was not great, and Teddy Long revealed that he only made $75 to set up the ring, take it down, and referee on TV.
"I was making $75 a set-up for putting up the ring, taking the ring down, and refereeing on TV." (2:45-2:50)
Mac Davis admitted that the amount didn't sound like much, so he asked him if the money ever got better. Long said that in Jim Crockett Promotions, his pay never improved and revealed a sad story about driving 245 miles from Atlanta to Charlotte, NC just to collect a cheque:
"I never did get to that point, because my money never got that good. I remember one time I think I had a $600 cheque that they [Jim Crockett] were supposed to send me in the mail. I never got it in the mail and all my bills were due and stuff. I had to drive all the way from Atlanta to Charlotte, North Carolina, and wait in Jim Crockett's office for two hours and collect a $600 cheque and then get in my car and drive all the way back to Atlanta. They never gave me gas money, nothing. But that's just how it was. Like I said, my money never did get that good. Like they said back in the day, 'you ought to be glad to be here' - and I was glad to be there." (3:09-3:53)
You can watch the full video below:
Things changed for Teddy Long in WWE
It goes without saying that once he joined WWE in 1998, things turned for the better. Even as a referee, Teddy Long revealed that he was making much better money.
"In WWE I was making good money as a referee. I was happy doing that. I didn't care if I got back to being a manager or not. It didn't bother me. But that was what god wanted me to do and that's how it all happened." (4:11-4:27)
It's perhaps no surprise that Teddy Long has been so loyal to WWE.
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