Posted on by bdamage1
Brian Damage
At Survivor Series 1994, Jerry ‘the King’ Lawler challenged Doink the Clown to a traditional Survivor Series match. It would be the ‘Royal Family’ captained by Lawler with his partners “midget” wrestlers Cheesy, Queasy and Sleazy versus ‘Clowns R Us’ Captained by Doink teaming with Dink, Pink and our guest today…the yellow haired Wink. We talk with the wrestler who portrayed Wink aka Roger Calvert and find out how he got the gig in the WWF, Jerry Lawler, Vince McMahon and what he’s up to today.
BD: First of all thank you for agreeing to be interviewed. How did you get your start in professional wrestling?
Wink: Phil Watson an ex wrestler ran a midget basketball show, he came to my school when I was in 11th grade. He told another wrestling promoter Dale Mann about me…that’s pretty much how I got started.
BD: The term “midget” is now obsolete…but back when you started, how were midget wrestlers treated behind the scenes?
Wink: The term midget doesn’t bother me at all. I was treated good every where I went. In WWE, I had worked with a lot of them before in Memphis or other places and Jeff Jarrett I knew for years.
BD: How did you end up with the Wink gimmick in the WWF?
Wink: Jerry Lawler got me the Wink job. I worked for the USWA a lot.
BD: Were you able to use the Wink gimmick outside of the WWF?
Wink: I did the Wink gimmick a few times, but I just hated doing the makeup. I went overseas with Matt Borne (The Original Doink) but neither of us did the clown gimmick
BD: Pink (Red Hair) recently passed away. Any memories of working with him and Dink and Doink in the WWF?
Wink: He (Pink) was young and wiry. Not wild, just a silly nuisance.
BD: Any funny WWF stories?
Wink: Owen Hart padlocking another midget’s clown bag to a pipe on the ceiling. Owen was the king of ribs. Pink was the midget that had his bag padlocked on the ceiling.
BD: Have you met Vince McMahon and if so, how was he like to work for?
Wink: I met Vince, he was a nice guy…good to work for.
BD: You were active during a crazy time in pro wrestling where drugs and alcohol abuse was the norm. Were you a part of that culture? Who were some of the worst you’ve seen battling addictions?
Wink: I drank some, nothing crazy, but I seen a lot of drinking. Only drug I ever did was smoke some pot.
BD: Who was the craziest wrestler you ever encountered?
Wink: Gypsy Joe was the craziest wrestler I met. We became good friends. He was a brawler fought anywhere and he had some age on him. He wrestled for Nick Gulas when I was a kid…wrestled till he was in his 70s.
BD: What was your fondest memory of your pro career?
Wink: The overseas trips and seeing things most people don’t. I’ve wrestled in South Africa, Malaysia Singapore and Brunei.
BD: When did your career end and why?
Wink: I stopped full time in 1998 settled down had a son and got married.
BD: I want to sincerely thank you for you taking the time to chat with me. Thank you for sacrificing your body for the entertainment of us fans for so many years.
Wink: No problem. I tried to entertain and sacrificed my body to do it. I have had 3 back surgeries to prove it.