3. Jake Roberts Carried Snake To Distract From His Real Life
It's clear from listening to Jake Roberts speak about his career that he was never the most comfortable person in his own skin. A fractious relationship with his father during childhood is often cited a one reason why, but Roberts admits he had his own personal demons on top of that. One of those problems was that Jake felt other people were always judging him. Due to that fact, Jake cultivated a new persona that he could use. Thus, Jake 'The Snake' Roberts was born. In the man's own words, the character was perfect for him, because it meant he could hide behind the massive reptiles that he brought to the ring. Instantly, people would be scared of the slithering snakes, enabling Jake to get on with business inside the ring. For Roberts, it was all about making that first impression on those who weren't familiar with him. Snakes fed into that idea, because many folks are immediately frightened by their presence. In Jake's mind, that would cover up his own deficiencies, and people would view him differently that they would if he was by himself.
