Greg Valentine Joins the Jay Leno Club

I have been told many times that I resemble Jay Leno.  While I don't really see it myself, I hear it often.  A while back, I started the Jay Leno Club, which consists of celebrities who have made the Jay Leno connection.
For some reason, wrestlers dominate the club, with 8 of the 10 members being in the wrestling world.  I have no idea why wrestlers make the connection at a much higher rate than the rest of the celebrities I meet.  Maybe wrestlers are just more talkative and thus they mention the Leno thing, where other celebs simply are quieter.
At the Motor City Comic Con, Greg "the Hammer" Valentine became the latest member of the club.  While casually talking about the convention and  wrestling, Valentine brought up the topic.  I laughed and told him he wasn't the first.  In fact, some of his friends (or at least colleagues) had made the Leno reference to me over the years.
The Jay Leno Club now stands at 10 members.  As always, I never know when the club will grow, but as always, when it does, I will report it right here!

Rhythm and Blues and Hass and Johngy

As Hass and I walked by this booth, the Honky Tonk Man called out a "Jay Leno" to me. As I have previously written, Honky Tonk is a member of the Jay Leno Club and has jokingly debated about Terri Runnels calling me "Jay" before or after him.
I wasn't surprised by the Jay Leno remark, but I was surprised to see Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine sharing the booth. I met Valentine before, but never the former tag-team known as Rhythm and Blues together.
Valentine is a WWE Hall of Famer, while HTM is the longest reigning WWE Intercontinental champ. Unfortunately, Rhythm and Blues was not exactly a high point for either of them. Valentine was a great, but dying his hair black and adopting the guitar playing gimmick went against his traditional wrestling background.
HTM and Valentine actually wrestled together (sometimes called Double Trouble) a while before they reunited as Rhythm and Blues. Although they never won tag-team gold in the WWE, they did win the titles in the Northern States Wrestling Alliance. Also, Diamond Dallas Page's first appearance in the WWE was driving them to the ring in a pink Cadillac for Wrestlemania VI.
Honky Tonk was his usual fun self and Valentine was his usual quiet self, but both were definitely willing to talk a bit about wrestling. Honky let me hold the IC title belt. In the lower left, one of Johnny Valentine's (Greg's dad) is sitting on the table.

Greg Valentine, Hass, me and Honky Tonk Man in Rosemont, IL-August 2010.

(Greg) Valentine's Day

Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine has been a wrestler for over 35 years. His father Johnny was also a wrestler.
Valentine has enjoyed a lot of success in the ring over the years. He has held many titles (as a solo and as part of a tagteam) in many organizations like WWE, NWA, AWA and WCW.
Valentine is a throwback. He's like an old-school wrestler. While he has wrestled through the cartoon era of the 80's and the attitude era of the 90's, I think Valentine would have been more comfortable with traditional wrestling of the 60's and 70's. He could work great, long matches with men like Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes and Roddy Piper.
He wasn't great on the mic and he wasn't hugely marketable. That's unfortunate, because he has the mat skills and the knowledge advantage over most wrestlers.
That's not to diminish his accomplishments. Valentine is in the WWE Hall of Fame and deservedly so. I just think in an earlier era, he would have been even more successful.
Whenever I meet him, I am always amazed at how thick and solid Valentine is. He's not ripped and cut like others, but I bet Valentine is one of the strongest men in the business.

Greg Valentine and me in Kokomo, IN-October 2007.

It's Hammer Time

In Las Vegas, when I stumbled upon the Cauliflower Alley Club reunion event, Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine was one of the first wrestlers I saw. We came from different directions, but met in the reception area.
Semi-retired now, Valentine is a second-generation wrestler who had been active for about 25 years. Valentine has held many titles over the years and was involved in some great feuds. His title matches with Ric Flair are considered classics. His dog collar matches with Roddy Piper were certainly some of the bloodiest.
Valentine is pretty quiet, but pleasant. He is one thick man, though! He's not huge, but he is solid like a tree.

Greg Valentine and me in Las Vegas, NV-early 00's.