In the latest edition of Wrestling with History, Bill Apter and Ken Resnick covered a variety of topics, including whether the sleeper hold is dangerous and the relationship between Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan. Here are highlights:
On the famous promo where Bockwinkle put Ken in the sleeper hold being Bobby Heenan’s idea: “It was not rehearsed, I had no idea it was coming…the whole purpose of the interview (was to highlight the) Gagne sleeper vs the Bockwinkle sleeper. Nick and Bobby were claiming that Verne’s (was) just a glorified chokehold where as Nick’s was putting pressure on the carotid artery… Bobby (then said) ‘give me the mic for a second, Nick why don’t you show him!’… I’m 99% sure it was all Bobby (Heenan’s) idea.”