During the latest Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Raven talks on his health, how he came up with his name, the chair shot heard around the world and the controversial crucifixion angle.
On what sleep disorder he has:
“They don’t have a name for it, but I know another person that has the same thing. The gist is that as you wake up so many times in the night that when you wake up in the morning, you’re still exhausted. So I have to wear a special CPAP that makes me breathe the air. I’m sure, from years of drug abuse and chair shots to the head and stuff like that, and abusing my body, I’m sure this is the price I’m paying. So I go to bed, I can fall asleep, no problem. But then I start waking up. After about two hours, I’ll wake up, and I’ll wake up like every 20 minutes for the next six to eight hours. So when I wake up for good, I’m exhausted, so I’m waking up like 15-20 times a night.”
On his overall health:
“It’s good. I mean, I got the early onset Parkinson’s, which I’m of the mind to say that I don’t have it. But it’s why I have the tremor, and that’s what they think it is. There’s no 100% proof tests, so I didn’t [get tested]. The test they give to prove it only proves it like 90% and there’s a lot of false positives and negatives in it. So there’s no reason, because he said he would treat me the same way, which is nothing as of now, because nothing’s bad enough, although my tremor is really bad right now.”
If he is taking any medication:
“No, no. So there’s no reason. So I’m just going to declare that I’m not, that I don’t have early onset Parkinson’s and then and convince myself that I don’t, because I’ve had it for like 8 to 10 years, and all this is a tremor so far.”
If the doctors know what causes the tremor:
“They don’t know. I haven’t put enough study into the diagnosis. Usually I figure out, read the doctor’s notes and all that. But I’d rather just play along. I say I have it, but I’m convinced I don’t. That it’s just a tremor, and I figure mind over matter. Hopefully it’ll stay just a tremor, as it has all these years.”
If he thinks the the tremor is tied to the way he wrestled:
“Yeah, as I’m saying, I think it’s chair shots to the head. It’s like Ali swore that he didn’t have Parkinson’s, and it was just all the shots he took to the head. That’s what I like to think it is, that and all the drugs. I’m not proud. I used to be proud of my drug abuse, my ability to handle drugs. Now, I’m just embarrassed by it....I’ve been sober for years.”
The story behind the chair shot heard around the world:
“I had beaten up Dreamer so many times that they needed to get some revenge on me, and to give the people something. You had to give them something to hope in their babyface and give them something to look like it was over the feud. I forget exactly what led up to the chair shot, but when we got there, Paul is like, ‘I’m gonna have Tommy hit you 10 times with the chair.’ I’m like, ‘No, you gotta hit me once. It’ll mean so much more.’ He goes, ‘No, 10 times. You got to take it 10 times.’ I’m like, ‘No, I’m not going to do it, Paul.’ He goes, ‘What are you scared?’ And I’m like, ‘No, I’ll take nine chair shots back here, but I’m only taking one out there, because it’ll mean more if you hit me with a bunch of them.’ He goes, ‘Yeah, but Axl Rotten is hitting three chair shots in his match, and New Jack’s hitting five in his.’ I’m like, it doesn’t matter. This is something Roddy Piper taught me, doesn’t matter what happens in anybody else’s match, as long as they believe in your stuff. So I said, ‘I’m just taking one.’ He finally goes, ‘All right, I trust you.’ So if Dreamer gave me the one shot and it’s remembered. Imagine if there was five more coming after it, it wouldn’t have meant anything.”
If he thought the crucifixion angle in ECW was too controversial:
“I didn’t think it was pushing the envelope. I didn’t think so. I understand why Paul E made me cut an apology afterwards, but partly it’s because my family’s Jewish. I don’t follow the religion, but my family’s Jewish, and my last name is Levy, so people just assume I’m Jewish, and Paul E is Jewish, and Todd’s Jewish. Todd Gordon, the owner. So they thought it was a mockery of Christianity, but had nothing to do with that. I mean, Madonna masturbated with a crucifix on MTV., I’m thinking this is tame compared to that. To me, it was just a metaphor. It was a metaphor. The Crucifix with Sandman was just for him to feel my pain. Because Raven was always. I considered him a martyr for society’s dysfunction.”
Raven also answers the question if he still watches pro wrestling, how he came up his in-ring name, his documentary, his time in WWE, WCW, TNA – plus nearly knocking out the power at WrestleMania 17.
You can watch the full interview below:
All quotes are courtesy of Insight with Chris Van Vliet.