ROH Ring Announcer Discusses Getting Into Wrestling, Losing His Accent
Ring of Honor announcer Bobby Cruise was recently interviewed by Wrestling Epicenter's Interactive Wrestling Radio. You can see highlights below, and the full interview above.
How he got involved in wrestling:
"All of us involved in wrestling and who cover wrestling, like yourself, were always a fan of it as a kid. I used to watch it every Saturday morning. When I was a little older, I got more into the production of it, the music. My favorite superstar was Howard Finkel! For most, it was (Hulk) Hogan or (Ultimate) Warrior or somebody like that. I was like, "That is something I'd really like to try." Fast forward to my senior year in high school, baseball was really my thing. I was one of our wo captains my senior year. I played basketball. I'd come off the bench for five or ten minutes, throw up a couple three's and hoped they'd go in. My English teacher, he was the girl's basketball coach, he knew of my desire to be a public address announcer. Their announcer had retired. He said, "If you give up playing basketball. Why don't you give being a Public Address announcer a shot?" I said, "Why not?" I gave up all those practices – They (the basketball team) certainly weren't going to miss me! (laughs) I became the PA announcer, mixed in a little play by play for the local public access. It was in 1994 I sent out feelers to New England independent companies near me. There was one about twenty minutes from me and they were looking for an announcer. I went and did a tryout and that was the start of my ring announcing career in the spring of 1994!"
If he purposely loses his accent when announcing:
"Not consciously. Maybe sub-consciously. So many people have said that to me, talent I'm meeting for the first time or fans. They'd hear me talk and they'd say, "Oh, you have that Boston accent!" (laughs) I think it is just the way I use my voice when announcing – It kind of just disappears. I've never thought, "Ah, I can't announce with that accent." It has never come to my mind."
