Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson vividly remembers the day he first knew he had made it in the industry.

talking people magazine In his 50th anniversary special, the 51-year-old professional wrestler-turned-actor revealed that his first wrestling match at Madison Square Garden was the pivotal moment in his career after years of laying low as a wrestler time.

“When I was wrestling, I didn’t start out in the bright lights of WWE. I was wrestling in Tennessee, a company called the USWA,” he said, admitting that he “built my bones…in the barn.” , flea markets and other places offering wrestling for $40 a game.”

But he finally got his big break when he was recruited to compete in a WWE match at Madison Square Garden.

“I was a rookie. About an hour before I went out, they pulled me aside and said, ‘Hey kid, you’re going to win tonight. Sink or swim, this is the Garden, this is New York, and if you can make it, We felt like you had a chance and we had a chance,” he recalled.

By the end of the game, Jumanji The star fondly recalled hearing “22,000 people chanting slogans.” [his] name” appears for the first time.

“I just know my mom and dad are watching the game at home in Tampa and they’re bawling. It’s a really special moment,” he said.