Lee Cole, Brother Of The Late Tom Cole: He Told Me Everyone Should Know About The Abuse He Suffered From Mel Phillips And The WWE
Tom Cole was one of the ‘ring boys’ for the WWF.
In the early 90s, there was a scandal in the WWF where allegations surfaced that boys were being recruited by Mel Phillips who was the chief of the ring crew to help be a member, but were allegedly sexually abused by Phillips and Pat Patterson, who left the company before coming back a year later.
Phillips would get fired too, before Vince McMahon brought him back years later, citing that he was ‘steering clear of kids’ with his new job with the WWF.
In a new interview with John Pollock and Brandon Thurston, Lee Cole, the brother of the late Tom Cole who passed away in 2021 has come forward and talked about the last conversation he had with Tom before his passing.
“The last day my brother [Tom Cole] was alive… I called him and we were talking on the phone for about two hours, and he told me, ‘Lee, let everybody know what these people did to me.'” Lee Cole recalls a final conversation with his late brother Tom, who wanted others to understand the abuse he said he faced at the WWF—an effort Lee says he returned to because of Janel Grant coming forward. This week, five John Does filed the “ring boy” lawsuit against WWE, Vince McMahon, and Linda McMahon, alleging negligence that led to their abuse by Mel Phillips. “And I remember saying to him… ‘Tom, what more can we do? No one’s listening anymore.’ … And the reason I came back here was because of Janel Grant… And right away they don’t want to believe her. They’ll say, oh, she took the money and all that stuff. But they don’t understand what being a victim is. And every victim acts different.”
To watch the full interview, you can view it at the link below.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, help is available.
Sexual Assault and Harassment
National Sexual Assault Hotline: a service of RAINN
- Online chat hotline
- Spanish online chat hotline
- Telephone hotline: 800-656-HOPE (4673)
H/t to Brandon Thurston for the transcription.
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