When Don Callis signed with WWE in 1997, the original plan was much different than what ended up taking place.
All Elite Wrestling‘s Don Callis recently sat down with Ben McCully of Rock 95 to discuss a wide variety of subjects. When asked about his run as part of The Truth Commission in WWE, Callis said he did his best to turn lemons into margaritas.
“I’m going to separate the personal from the professional,” Don Callis began. “All the guys you mentioned are great guys. I love those guys; loved [John] Tenta. He was an excellent guy to be around. I loved Kurrgan and still like Kurrgan a lot; a good friend of mine, Robert [Maillet], here’s the thing. Sometimes you get, as they say, lemons, and you have to make lemonade.
“Some people get lemons and make the best goddamn margarita you’ve ever had, and that’s what Don Callis has done his whole career. You saddled me with The Truth Commission, one of the worst ideas, quote-unquote, in the history of professional wrestling; you know what I did? I made it relevant. I got Kurrgan out of the outfit. I put Kurrgan into the black tights. We made Kurrgan into a giant [but] then things happen that are outside your control.”
While Callis noted that there were Canadian roots with The Truth Commission, the original idea WWE had for him when they brought him in was to pair him with The Hart Foundation.
“But I don’t think there was a ‘Canadian’ idea here. I think it was just like, ‘Oh, these guys aren’t over. Put Don with them, he’ll get them over,’ which I did,” Don Callis continued. “And then we happened to be Canadian. Now, If you wanted to do a Canadian thing, you could have done what they originally were supposed to do when I went to WWF in 1997, and that was put me with The Hart Foundation. That would have been Canadian but a lot better. I’d probably be owning an island in Tahiti and retired for 20 years already if I’d done that. But fate deals us the hand we get.”
READ MORE: Don Callis: No One Understands The Business Like Chris Jericho, He Brings Extra Interest To ROH
What do you make of Don Callis’ comments? Do you think that The Truth Commission is one of the worst ideas in wrestling history? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit Rock 95 with a link back to this article for the transcription.
