On a recent episode of his “Something to Wrestle With” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer JBL discussed the short-lived and ultimately failed pairing of the Acolytes Protection Agency (APA) with Don Callis, who was then known as “The Jackyl.” This alliance, which took place in 1998, lasted only a few weeks and has since become a largely forgotten footnote in WWE history.
JBL, one half of APA with Ron Simmons, discussed the reasons for the partnership’s collapse. “It wasn’t a very long time. It wasn’t a good fit,” JBL said. “I don’t want to bash Don…He’s had a good career since, but it wasn’t a good fit.”
He blamed the failure mostly on the APA’s lack of need for a manager. JBL and Simmons were both established and adept talkers, with Simmons particularly well-known for his promotional abilities. “Ron could talk. Ron’s one of the best talkers in the history of the business… I didn’t think we needed a mouthpiece,” JBL stated.
Furthermore, JBL said that WWE writer Vince Russo’s dislike for Southern accents limited JBL’s opportunity to speak. “Russo did not want me to talk because Russo did not like Southern accents. He thought people sounded stupid because they had a southern accent.” This directive, combined with the APA’s inherent self-sufficiency at the microphone, made Callis’ function rather redundant.
JBL also stated that Callis’ attitude to promotions added to the rising friction. “We talked to Jackyl and told him, ‘When you’re out there doing promos, put over your tag team, because we’re the ones that are either going to draw money or not draw money. You’re not. You’ve got to get us over.’” Despite this feedback, Callis allegedly continued to focus on self-promotion, neglecting to emphasize the tag team he was supposed to be managing. “He didn’t change, and he kept putting himself over,” JBL said.
The final moment in this brief drama featured an intriguing incident involving Matt Hardy and a broken toothpick. JBL, while conceding a somewhat different version of events than Hardy’s own, explained that he had requested Hardy to break a toothpick in Callis’ car lock as a form of reprimand. This was witnessed by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, who immediately inquired about the matter.
“Vince said, ‘What’s up with that?’ The guy with him… said, ‘He’s got heat with Ron and John’, and Vince goes ‘Get rid of him’,” JBL recalled. This dramatic answer from McMahon marked the end of Callis’ stint with the APA and WWE.
Callis is now doing well for himself in AEW.
You can check out the complete podcast below:
(h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription)
