Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dr. Chris Whaley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Dr. Chris, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

Both of my parents had very little education. My dad had a third-grade education, and my mom had a seventh-grade education. They were from south Alabama and grew up after the Great Depression.

Even though they had little education, they were able to provide for their family and provide great help for me growing up.

They taught me to never give up. Even as a sickly child, they never allowed me to feel sorry for myself.

They taught me to have respect for authority.

They taught me that trust was not something that is given to a person, you have to earn trust and respect.

My parents were married for 64 years. They taught me what being a dad and a husband was all about.

Even though they were compassionate, they were also very firm. I grew up with discipline.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I was thankful for my parents, but I was also thankful for a wonderful doctor who refused to allow me to give up. He was the one who found out why I was continually getting sick. He found out I was allergic to over 200 things. I was put on allergy shots until I was a junior in college. He also encouraged me to go to the gym. I followed my doctor’s orders, and my body began to change.

I began watching professional wrestling when I was a child. When you’re in the hospital, very often you get your days and nights mixed up. Late at night I could always find professional wrestling on TV. I dreamed of one day becoming a professional wrestler.

My wife and I were married at the end of our junior year. After graduating from college, we moved back to central Florida. She was teaching high school math at her alma mater. I was working and also putting out resumes to become a minister.

My days consisted of working and working out at the gym. I was in the best shape of my life. One day while reading the Tampa Tribune I saw an ad that said, “Wanted: Professional Wrestlers.” I answered the ad.

I trained for six months before having my first match. I was hooked the moment I walked into the gym.

I wrestled professionally for ten years. I wrestled four world champions including The Undertaker and The Ultimate Warrior.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

After retiring from professional wrestling, I became a Baptist minister at the age of 33. When I went to my first church, I soon found some people who were being mistreated and bullied.

A young lady who attended my church with her two small children was the first one that I helped. She was always the last person to enter the church, and the first one to leave.

One Sunday she came in wearing sunglasses. At the end of the service, I normally stood at the front door and shook hands with people while they were leaving. On this day the young lady was the last one to leave the building. She walked up to me with her head down and took my hand with both of her hands. I noticed tears coming down her cheeks. I lifted her sunglasses to see that she had two black eyes.

I became enraged and asked if it was her husband who did this to her. She told me it was him. I told her I was going to visit him. She cried even more and said, “Please don’t do that, he will hurt you.” I told her I wasn’t worried about being hurt.

I visited her husband. I said, “How could you dare hurt the mother of your children? You’re obviously a bully because bullies only pick on people they know can’t fight back. I would like to invite you outside and see how you do against someone who is able to fight back.”

He became belligerent and shouted at me. But he also came outside. We “danced” in his front yard for a few minutes. It felt wonderful to relieve some of my pint up stress. He never hit her again.

I began to have episode after episode where I challenged people who were abusing others.

I began to think about the possibility of writing a book about my episodes. I really felt that it could be made into a TV series. There was so little good stuff on TV after Michael Landon died. He gave us two of the best TV series available, Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven. Those shows had a great moral fiber to them. The majority of programs on TV made the dad look like a buffoon, the mom is usually promiscuous, and the children were rebellious. I wanted to see something great like the shows that Michael Landon made.

I was turned down many many times by publishers. But I refused to give up. Finally, I self-published my first book, The Masked Saint. The Masked Saint is about my transition from professional wrestling to ministry.

Soon after book came out, I was contacted by a movie producer. After a year, he changed his mind. However, I had met other people in the movie industry and met with another producer who was interested in the book. He eventually turned me down too. Finally, a producer from Canada contacted me. He flew to Orlando and met with me. He was the one who made The Masked Saint into a feature length film. The movie won Best Picture at the 2015 International Christian Film Festival.

I was so thankful I never gave up on my dreams.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

My book and came out in 2008. The movie came out in January of 2016. I continue to be contacted by people who watched the movie or read my book.

The book and the movie give me numerous opportunities to this day to go and speak to audiences all over the country.

I received emails and messages from people who tell me how much the movie helped them in their lives.

Many people contact me for advice and direction.

The point is – if you do good work, the rewards will continue long after your work has been published.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.themaskedsaint.com
• Instagram: @therealmaskedsaint
• Facebook: @ChrisWhaley
• Twitter: @CwhaleyChris
• Youtube: The Clash Abundant
• Other: Email [email protected]