Jake 'The Snake' Roberts' Tragic Real-Life Story

Life as Grizzly Smith's kid wasn't easy, but the man only made it worse when it came to how he made his living: professional wrestling. As Jake recounted in an interview with Slam Sports, he rarely saw his father more than a couple times a year, because the old man was always on the road

Life as Grizzly Smith's kid wasn't easy, but the man only made it worse when it came to how he made his living: professional wrestling.

As Jake recounted in an interview with Slam Sports, he rarely saw his father more than a couple times a year, because the old man was always on the road wrestling. Plus, Smith never bothered telling his son how wrestling worked. As far as Jake was concerned, his father was always on the brink of getting killed in the ring because his opponent was out for blood. If Smith had told his son the truth about wrestling, that could've helped Roberts' psyche immensely. But Grizzly Smith would have had to give a damn about Jake, which he obviously didn't.

Then there was the first time Jake tried to wrestle. After graduating high school (his ever-supportive dad said, "Well, I hope you don't want anything from me"), Roberts attended one of Smith's matches and decided to challenge another wrestler. Jake, untrained and drunk, got battered and stretched worse than he'd ever been. After the ordeal, his father laid into him: "I'm ashamed of you, you're gutless, and you'll never amount to anything."

Such callousness motivated Jake to pursue wrestling full-time to show his dad how wrong he was. Clearly, he succeeded. He also hoped to, one day, finally hear his dad say he was proud of him. Sadly, it didn't happen.

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