Former WCW Boss Eric Bischoff Discusses Deceased Stars Ole Anderson And Virgil

Last week, the wrestling world lost two legends: Michael "Virgil" Jones and Ole Anderson. On his "Strictly Business" podcast, former WCW executive Eric Bischoff commented on Virgil and Anderson's deaths.

"Look, Ole was Ole," Bischoff said. "I have some great memories of Ole. I have some memories that I try and put out of my mind when it comes to Ole, but I enjoyed them. As much of an honorary cantankerous, negative [son of a] b***h he was, he was kind of fun to be around. And he had a good sense of humor if he was comfortable around you. And he had a lot of knowledge. Unfortunately, Ole liked guys of his era, Bill Watts, Verne Gagne. He was so firmly entrenched in the way business was done back in the '70s and in the '80s that he refused to consider doing things differently."

Bischoff described Anderson as a "square peg in a round hole," although a loveable one, because of his views on the business. The former on-screen "WWE Raw" general manager added that Anderson, who won various championships in the AWA, Georgia Championship Wrestling, and Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling/Jim Crockett Promotions/WCW, was one of the more outspoken stars of his era. Anderson, a founding member of the legendary Four Horsemen stable, was 81 at the time of his passing. Ricky Morton announced Anderson had died in a social media post last Monday. The cause of his death has yet to be disclosed.

The news of Michael "Virgil" Jones' death was shared two days after Anderson's death. Virgil was 20 years younger than Anderson when he died. The former personal assistant of Ted DiBiase struggled with his health, having suffered two strokes and being diagnosed with dementia and stage two colon cancer in recent years.

"I was going to post something yesterday [about Virgil], and there's only so much you can convey in a social media post," Bischoff explained. "Look, I didn't get to know Mike real well on a personal basis, so I can't speak to who he really was away from the business." 

Nevertheless, Bischoff told a story about the last time he saw Virgil at a convention in Albany, New York. He said Virgil excitedly ran up to him and handed over a picture of them both. Bischoff had been cropped from another image, but the former Million Dollar Champion signed the photo and thanked Bischoff. The WWE Hall of Famer added that Virgil was always happy and smiling then briefly touched upon Virgil's run in the business.

"People can say what they want about his career, and certainly he was quite the character in the last five or 10 years, but I found him to be entertaining as hell and a positive, fun, loving guy who enjoyed life, and that's how I choose to remember him. That's how I do remember him, and that's the memory that I'll hold on to."

If you use quotes in this article, please credit "Strictly Business with Eric Bischoff" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.