Hebners Talk "Evil Twin" Angle, Kayfabe, Montreal Screwjob & More
Arda Ocal and Jimmy Korderas recently caught up with Earl & Brian Hebner in part two of Right After Wrestling's "Referee Series". Here are some highlights:
Brian on Earl's debut with WWE in 1988 on The Main Event during the legendary 'Twin referee' angle: "I was actually confused when I saw dad on TV. I was actually convincing myself that it was my uncle (Dave). He called me earlier in the day and said, 'Do me a favor, watch WWE tonight.'"
Earl on kayfabe: "I was always a secretive man. I never gave away nothing. Never told anybody nothing. And if I didn't tell my son, then you knew I wasn't going to tell anybody anything. Kayfabe is long-gone! It doesn't even exist anymore. Years ago (when I first started) kayfabe was a 'golden word' in this business ? and it no longer means anything anymore... When Vince (McMahon) announced that wrestling was entertainment, that sort of thing took the business down. He (Vince) made it a soap-opera instead of it being the wrestling business."
Earl on the Montreal Screwjob: "When people ask if I 'screwed Bret', I say 'you damn right I did'! When I was walking to that ring, I was thinking Bret wasn't screwing Vince, he was screwing everybody in that dressing room. I didn't do it for Vince (McMahon) I did it for all the boys in the locker room ? for everybody that ever put him over in that ring."
Brian on the Montreal Screwjob: "My dad did what he did because he wanted to protect the company and the people he worked with/for."
Earl Hebner on reconciling with Bret years later: "He saw me and said I know you did what you had to do and I'm no longer mad at you. I said 'thank you' to him and that was that."
You can check out the full 30 minute interview at this link.