Interview with 'Luscious' Lewis Cooper 1. What got you into wrestling? Well, in my younger years i was something of a street brawler, a ruffian if you will. I used to spend my days beating the hell out of people in exchange for protection money. Not exactly a sound business strategy so i began looking for other work, it was then i saw a poster for a wrestling show and realised that i could put my violent tendencies to use in a legal setting and make good money while i was as it. 2. Who was your favourite wrestler/wrestlers growing up? In all honestly i wasn't a fan of wrestling growing up, i was far too busy being an uncouth street fighting type. When i first started though i'd watch other wrestler's matches through the curtains during shows, I learnt a lot from Harley Race and Dusty Rhodes, they started out a few years before I did and were naturals from the get go. 3. How long have you been wrestling? Longer than you've been alive pal. I was banging heads on ringposts and flying to shows all over the world before your mother and father even knew how to tie their shoes. 4. Who trained you and where? I primarily trained in the legendary Verne Gagne camp in Minnesota alongside the likes of Ric Flair and the Iron Sheik. Interesting story, Ric was going to quit on his second day there but i talked him into staying, lucky i did, he did pretty well for himself in this business. I also travelled over to Calgary to train in the legendary Hart Dungeon, eventually though i had to leave because Stu got tired of me making him tap out all the time. 5. What promotions have you worked for? Name one, i've worked for them. NWA: Mid-Atlantic, AWA, WWWF, NJPW. AJPW, i even popped down to CMLL in Mexico for a bit but i had to leave because the Guerreros got sick of me making more money than them. 6. What venue/place has been your favourite to wrestle in? Budokan Hall was great, myself and Toshiaki Kawada went to a two-hour draw, luckily for him the time limit expired, one more kick and I'd have had that Triple Crown. The Georgia Dome in Atlanta was also a favourite, made some good money there, Dusty and i sold it out a few times. I also wrestled in Madison Square Garden but it didn't quite live up to the hype, i lost to Bob Backlund that night so i guess it was just a sour experience. 7. Who is your biggest influence in the business so far? As I said earlier when i was first starting out Harley Race and Dusty Rhodes. Dusty really took me under his wing and taught me a lot about the business on those long car journeys between towns. I'll always remember when he said to me, "kid, if there's ever a time when the American Dream can't get funky like a monkey no more, i want you to carry on that name". I didn't have the heart to tell him i wasn't an American, i was too choked up by his words. 8. Who do you travel with? Well nobody could ever replace Dusty as my travelling partner, but i learnt from his example and have taken some of the younger ACW kids under my wing and impart my wisdom on them as Dusty did to me on long journeys. They're not quite the student i was but with a teacher like me they'll go far. 9. What is your favourite match to date? When Dusty and myself won the NWA Tag belts from Tully and Arn back in the Georgia Dome, those were good times. Myself and Superstar Billy Graham also had a classic Dog Collar Texas Death Cage Match shortly before he lost the WWF belt to Backlund. Also myself and Mil Mascaras sold out Arena Mexico and had a 87 minute scorcher in front of 99,365 fans. That's beyond capacity for that venue but they managed to squeeze them all in, they were literally hanging off the rafters. 10. Who is your favourite opponent? Obviously Dusty and myself always had a good go-around whenever we squared off. During my WCW days i wrestled "Pistol" Pez Whatley a few times, always a pleasure. Ricky Morton, Junkyard Dog, Big Boss man, the list goes on and on. My favourite opponent to wrestle in ACW however would have to be Brendon O'Shea, he reminds me of a young me. 11. What's your finisher and Why? I've picked up a few wins with the Dusty Elbow over the years but i find the best way to finish somebody off is to wrap a steel chair round their head when the refs not looking, not that i condone such actions of course. 12. What is your favourite promotion in the UK? ACW is the only promotion worthy of a veteran such as myself, so there's your answer. I've been round the country a few times, had some great runs in promotions such as Ed Popham's Roundtable Wrestling Committee, Derek Chancery's Masterfully Good Wrestling and of course Lou Norton's Professional Wrestling Masterpiece Spectacular. None of them compare to ACW though. 13. What is your entrance theme and why? Currently Diamond's From Sierra Leone by Kanye West. Mainly because i promised him i would use it just to get him to leave me alone, he's a nice guy but he does grate on you after a while. For many years i used the original Diamonds are Forever track by Shirley Bassey, although i had to stop when Ric Flair stole my "Diamonds are Forever, and so is Lewis Cooper" line and made it his own. No hard feelings towards Ric, he had to have at least one catchy phrase. 14. Have you won any titles so far & what did it feel like to win? I've had more titles than you've had women (another line Ric stole from me). As i previously mentioned winning the NWA tag belts with Dusty was a highlight. Also when i made my Japanese debut and defeated Masahiro Chono and Yuji Nagata in a Three-Way Lion's Cage Invitational Open Casket Rounds Match for the International Super Golden Television Heavyweight Championship Of Tokyo and The Surrounding Provinces title. It's always a great feeling to win a belt, although after all the belts i've won they start to lose their appeal. There's one belt i haven't won that i want to win, that's the ACW Heavyweight Title. 15. Are there any matches/people you�d like to wrestle in the future? I'd like to have another go around with Dusty of course. Plus i'd like to wrestle Ric again, give him that last great match he's hoping for. I've actually never done a barbed wire match, that's on the list for the future, although i doubt the barbed wire could pierce my leathery hide. 16. What are your plans for the future? Keep going as long as my body holds out and try to win the few titles that have eluded me, including of course the ACW Heavyweight title. Eventually I'd like to retire away with the substantial amount of money i've saved up and myself and Dusty can buy the island we've always talked about. As long as i can look back on my career and say "hot damn, i'm good" i'll die a happy man.
