Listen Up, Sucka: All Hail King Booker T

In this edition of The Wrestling Estate roundtable, we celebrate the hall of fame career of Booker T.

Did you watch the A&E biography on Booker T?

Chad Gelfand: Yes, and it was a mixed a bag for me. I enjoyed the parts covering Booker’s upbringing and his rise in wrestling, but it is egregious to skip over his WrestleMania XIX world title match because there’s no way to cover it without exposing the company’s racism. The documentary showed the racism Booker T dealt with in GWF and WCW, but once it got to the WWE portion, it was “He did the spinaroonie and wore a crown! Let’s just skip over the portion where he was involved in one of the most blatantly racist storylines in wrestling history during a WrestleMania world title feud.”

John Corrigan: Aside from the Roddy Piper episode, it’s the best one they’ve done so far. Booker T has such a fascinating, inspirational story and I learned a lot.

Steven Jackson: I haven’t had the chance to watch yet, but I’m excited to see it. Booker T is one of my all-time favorite wrestlers so I’m always excited to learn more about him.

Juan Bautista: It was fine and went in depth on his personal life. The biggest controversy was that his feud with Triple H was pulled from the program.

James Klonowski: I didn’t, but that’s only because with these kind of documentaries and Dark Side Of The Ring, they come across too depressing, and it’s just not for me. I’ve heard and read good things about it, though, so I’m guessing it was well done. They didn’t tackle the WrestleMania XIX angle with Triple H for obvious reasons which may have disappointed a few, but WWE was never going to greenlight something that would’ve put it in a bad light.

Where would you rank King Booker on the list of wrestling kings?

Gelfand: Booker has to be at or near the top. Nobody got mileage or used the King of the Ring gimmick as Booker T did.

Corrigan: Right below Jerry Lawler.

Jackson: King Booker was a great king! He completely reinvented himself and brought his court along for the ride. Loved his promos and matches around that time. Definitely in my fave five!

Bautista: He is in the top 10.

Klonowski: He’s gotta be right up there, hasn’t he? He turned a rather ridiculous gimmick into the biggest push of his career that culminated with a run as World Heavyweight Champion. I’ve never been a huge fan of his in-ring work – it’s just too slow and paint by numbers – but his character work has always been on point. I’d say King Kurt is a close second.

What’s Booker T’s greatest match?

Gelfand: I don’t know if it was his greatest, but my favorite Booker T match is with The Rock at SummerSlam 2001. The match was fun and historic in that it was the first time two Black wrestlers were the main event of a WWE PPV in a singles match. In fact, until Sasha Banks vs. Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 37, it was the only time that happened.

Corrigan: He and Scott Steiner had a short, but fast-paced match on the last Nitro that culminated their months-long storyline in tremendous fashion as Booker T won back the World Heavyweight Championship.

Jackson: Although I don’t like to praise him, the matches Booker T had with Chris Benoit in WCW were awesome, especially their best of seven series. The match at Great American Bash 1998 will always be his best outing.

Klonowski: As stated above, he’s not one for classics, but a few good matches spring to mind when thinking of his career. His bout with The Rock from SummerSlam 2001 is my favorite and arguably the best of the entire fumbled Invasion angle. It was full throttle action from bell-to-bell, with the crowd in the palm of their hands throughout.

What’s your favorite Booker T moment/angle?

Gelfand: The Supermarket Brawl can’t be topped and is one of the most entertaining segments in wrestling history. One little part I love is at the beginning of the segment with Booker just going down the cereal aisle, opening up boxes and eating from them.

Corrigan: While the supermarket brawl is fun, nothing is funnier than “Hulk Hogan, we comin’ for you …”

Jackson: Booker T returning at the Royal Rumble in 2011 literally made me jump up and down more than I have in my entire life.

Bautista: King Booker. After all, he was World Heavyweight Champion. Queen Sharmell would yell “All hail King Booker!” and would just keep going and going.

Klonowski: The supermarket brawl with Stone Cold Steve Austin from Smackdown in 2001 is my all-time favorite Booker T moment. Never fails to entertain me. Booker’s facial expressions have always been underrated, and he delivers some of his best here. The whole segment is just hilarious and well worth watching for anyone who hasn’t seen it.

Where did Booker T have the more memorable run: WCW or WWE?

Gelfand: While Booker’s career in WWE is still remembered fondly for the most part, WCW fans there saw him go from being in one of the greatest tag teams of all time to a mid-card champion to World Heavyweight Champion. You went along for Booker’s entire journey to the top.

Corrigan: WWE. On his first night, he put the biggest star in WWE through the announce table. Then, you’ve got his feud with The Rock, the supermarket brawl, his hilarious team with Goldust, King Booker, etc. While WCW put him on the path to stardom, he didn’t reach it until entering McMahonland.

Jackson: I have to go with the fanboy in me and say WCW. It made Booker T what he became in WWE. He had unmatched charisma, helped revolutionize tag team wrestling in Harlem Heat and became a 5-time, 5-time, 5-time, 5-time, 5-time WCW Champion! NOW CAN YOU DIG THAT…SUCKA!!! *Followed by obligatory spinarooni*

Bautista: It’s probably a draw.

Klonowski: He was a five-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, so it’s easy to argue that he had his most productive years in the Atlanta-based promotion. But his WWE run has been overall better. The longevity, the character changes, battling the biggest names and helping drive ratings up as a cornerstone on SmackDown. A two-time WWE Hall Of Famer tells you all you need to know about what a fabulous career he has had