William Stanley Apter (born October 22, 1945)[1] is an American journalist and photographer specializing in professional wrestling.

[2][3] The influence of these publications in the days before cable television and the internet was such that Apter has been credited with launching the careers of many young wrestlers whom he featured on magazine covers.

[4][5][3]Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Bill Apter made his debut as a writer in January 1970, writing for his first employer in publishing Stanley Weston (who he also credits as his mentor).

The publications Apter worked for were directed at the common fan and usually operated under the premise that professional wrestling was not scripted or predetermined.

[7] Apter hosted a television segment called the PWI Scouting Report on Jim Crockett's NWA Best of World Championship Wrestling, a weekly WTBS show.

[8] The rivalry between Kaufman and Lawler became one of the most memorable of the 1980s in professional wrestling and achieved significant mainstream attention, including a famous confrontation on a 1982 episode of Late Night with David Letterman[10] Apter has stated that the rivalry between Lawler and Kaufman, which blurred the lines between reality and entertainment, "was the start of what we know as sports entertainment today.

"[6] In 2008, Apter made his return to the Pro Wrestling Illustrated family of magazines as a freelancer in Volume 20 of The Wrestler with a 90-minute question and answer session with Tammy Sytch.

In December 2020, Apter announced the closure of 1Wrestling.com due to the death of its creator, Bob Ryder, and stated he would be working at vocnation.com.

In December 2016, he was honored at Pennsylvania's Keystone State Wrestling Alliance with a proclamation from Governor Tom Wolf commending his lifetime work in the pro wrestling business as well as his humanitarian work at the non-profit AHEDD, assisting persons with disabilities to find competitive employment.

The Apter Chat Podcast debuted in August, 2018 with the first part of a controversial two-part interview with Hulk Hogan.

Since that time, Apter and Shernoff have interviewed many top stars from the past and present of the wrestling industry, including Tazz, "Million Dollar Man" Ted Dibiase, Sting, Naomi, Rey Mysterio, Jerry Lawler, and Jim Cornette.