Den officiella wrestlingtråden

ESPN.com: How did you become a wrestling fan?

Tony Schiavone: I started watching it in the mid-1970s when I was in Virginia. My father passed away in the summer of 1974, so it was just my mom and I. My aunt and uncle lived three doors down from us. My Uncle John loved Championship Wrestling from Florida and he got me into watching that show. He would always tell me, "One of these days I'm going to see you on TV." Sadly, he died only a month before my first appearance on television, so Uncle John never did get to see me on the air.

I then became a gigantic fan of Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling. I not only watched it on television but also spent a lot of money going to events. I used to sometimes say, "Hey Mom, I'm going to go out, I'll be late, don't wait up for me, go to bed." She thought I was just going to town or run around Craigsville or something -- and I would drive to Greensboro, which is three hours away, and see an event.