10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (Nov 30)
8. Jim Cornette's Cringeworthy 'Genetic Defects' Story
Jim Cornette's Drive-Thru podcast is a great source for old-school wrasslin' stories and deep insight into the territory days. There's a lot of humour laced through each episode too, because that's just Corny's style. He wasn't laughing following one promo flub in Smoky Mountain Wrestling however.
Cornette, accidentally, insulted a disabled member of the audience.
On a roll and spewing out lines aplenty, the iconic manager called the crowd that night a bunch of "genetic defects". They booed the remark, but it wasn't until Cornette watched the show back that he realised something horrible. The producers, stupidly, had cut to a shot of a fan sitting in a wheelchair.
That left Jim feeling like he'd crossed a line, and he felt remorseful for the mix of heel quip and production error. The wheelchair-bound victim of Cornette's barb was prominently featured in the shot, and it looked (to fans at home) like he was specifically targeting that person.