Mick Foley On The Origins Of His “Bang Bang” Catchphrase

Hardcore Legend Mick Foley has praised fellow WWE Hall of Famer for establishing his “Bang Bang” catchphrase.

Mick Foley has an incredibly popular back catalog of matches and moments working in WWE, WCW, ECW and in Japan. A career that saw Foley lose part of his ear during a match with Vader in Germany, introducing the world to a talking sock and being thrown off the top of Hell In A Cell by The Undertaker.

But its his famous “Bang Bang” catchphrase that Foley has been discussing, praising none other than “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes for helping establish the saying.

Speaking on his podcast, Foley Is Pod, Mick Foley shared that whilst wrestling as Cactus Jack in WCW, he was encouraged to use the catchphrase by Rhodes.

“I liked it, but it was also in ’91, where Dusty talked to me about it and how much he liked it, and to emphasize it even more. So somewhere in that fifteen month period… I had been utilizing it. It was alive, but Dusty really urged me to push it to the forefront.”

Cactus Jack would often follow up moves such as an elbow drop on the outside, with a double gun fire finger salute to the crowd and utter the words “Bang Bang”. By adding it to promos and after other match spots, it created something fans could identify and join in with.

Mick Foley admitted he is not sure where the saying began but continued to share memories of the phrase and his time in WCW.

“Bang… bang… bang… on the door, baby. You can actually hear me sing ‘on the door baby.’ So it wasn’t a quick ‘BANG BANG!’ Have no idea where it came from. It was just one of those things.”

Mrs. Foley’s baby boy retired in 2012 and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013. The former Three Time WWE Champion has been keeping a keen eye on the current WWE product and recently discussed the handling of The Bloodline v Sami Zayn storyline.

H/t to 411mania