Bill Apter Recalls Meeting Vince McMahon

Bill Apter was interviewed by Wrestling Inc. and discussed a few Vince McMahon encounters.

"Vince was working for Bob Arum at Top Rank. They were running the Evel Knievel Snake Canyon jump, and I asked Bob Arum, because we also did boxing magazines, how I can get to see that on closed circuit without paying for it, of course, to cover it. We weren't going to cover it. He said, 'well, talk to my new right-hand guy.' I said, 'who's that? He says, 'Vince McMahon Jr. Ever heard of him?' So I called Vince. (Apter does a Vince McMahon impression) 'Well, what can I do for you Bill? Can I get you free tickets to the the PPV?' I said, 'yeah,' and he took care of it for me."

Apter also mentioned that his magazine once had heat with WWE, which made it awkward when he met Vince at a hotel.

"Well one one of them was when I was in Chicago, your hometown, and the WWF was in Chicago, and all the magazines, at that point, the Newsstand magazines had been banned. And I understood it. It was a decision by Vince McMahon that they had a magazine. They offered me a job. I didn't want to be part of it. I was loyal to the company.

"When they were first doing it, it was called 'Victory Magazine.' Now I'm in Chicago during the height of the ban, and I'm working for 'WOW Magazine.' So we figured Tim Towe, who was one of the other editors said, 'let's go hang out at the hotel.' So we go hang out at the hotel. All the wrestlers are in the dining room there, and somebody said Vince is in the banquet room with Linda, his wife, and a couple of other people just hanging out. So I think, don't come with me. Just leave me alone. So I waited outside the banquet room, and I didn't want to knock on the door or anything. Vince comes out. Looked huge.

"I said, 'hello Vince, Bill Apter.' He said, 'oh Bill, what the hell are you doing here?' I said, 'well, I don't have a camera,' and he looked at me very seriously. He said, 'what are you doing here?' I said, 'well, I work for a magazine company here in Chicago, even though I'm still living in New York. 'What, what, why are you here?' [I said,] 'I heard you in the ballroom here, and I wanted to say hello.' [He said,] 'OK, hello, have a nice evening,' and strutted away. That was it."