10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (April 1)
5. Jimmy Hart Pushed The Honky Tonk Man Personally
The Honky Tonk Man is still the longest-reigning WWF/WWE Intercontinental Champion in history. On an episode of WWF Superstars in June, 1987, the Elvis impersonator bagged the gold and managed to hold onto it for some 454 days.
Naturally, lengthy title reigns such as that aren't commonplace in today's WWE, but it's still quite notable.
For most of his WWF run, Honky was accompanied by 'The Mouth Of The South' Jimmy Hart, who acted as the man's on screen manager. Interestingly, The Honky Tonk Man told Sports Illustrated's Extra Mustard during an interview that his relationship with Hart didn't cease once the cameras stopped rolling.
On the contrary, in fact, as apparently Jimmy acted like Honky's real-life manager out on the road.
Not content to sit still and simply work shows, Jimmy Hart constantly pushed his peer to be the best he could be. As one example, the diminutive man with the megaphone would routinely encourage the wrestler to get up out of bed and attend radio and television interviews.
To this day, Honky Tonk Man credits Hart for doing so, because it helped maintain his aura and star status for longer.