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December 9th
It is on a sad note that I write this installment of the truth. I am sure that most, if not all of you, have heard about Umaga passing away recently. It was been reported that he had died from a heart attack. Now, I’m not going to bullshit anyone, I didn’t know Umaga. Hell, I didn’t even watch him often when he was working for the WWE.
Regardless if I did or didn’t watch Umaga on a regular basis, one thing is fact, wrestlers, or sports entertainers, if you prefer are all family. We may not all work in the same ring or for the same company, but we are all brothers and sisters none the less. Umaga was way too young to die. There is never a good time, but the man was only 36. That’s right 36 fucking years old and he died from a heart attack.
Umaga’s death was a surprise, it is just so damn hard to believe that someone that young could have a heart attack. My heart goes out to Umaga’s family. I find it painful each time I hear about a fellow brother’s death. I offer my sincerest condolences to Umaga’s family. Brother, you will be missed by all!!!!
Death is something that each and everyone of us have to deal with. We have all had loved ones die. It is different with wrestlers though. There have been far too many wrestlers die way to soon. In fact, here is a list and their ages. All of these wrestler’s have been on national television and are considered to be stars. They have also all died since 1985. I apologize if I have missed anyone.
Chris Von Erich- 21
Mike Von Erich - 23
Louie Spiccoli - 27
Art Barr - 28
Gino Hernandez - 29
Jay Youngblood - 30
Rick McGraw - 30
Joey Marella - 30
Ed Gatner - 31
Buzz Sawyer - 32
Crash Holly - 32
Kerry Von Erich - 33
D.J. Peterson - 33
Eddie Gilbert - 33
The Renegade - 33
Chris Candido - 33
Test - 33
Adrian Adonis - 34
Gary Albright - 34
Bobby Duncum Jr. - 34
Owen Hart - 34
Yokozuna - 34
Big Dick Dudley - 34
Brian Pillman - 35
Marianna Komlos - 35
Umaga - 36
Pitbull #2 - 36
The Wall/Malice - 36
Emory Hale - 36
Leroy Brown - 38
Mark Curtis - 38
Eddie Gurrerio - 38
John Kronus - 38
Davey Boy Smith - 39
Johnny Grunge - 39
Vivian Vachon - 40
Jeep Swenson - 40
Brady Boone - 40
Terry Gordy - 40
Bertha Faye - 40
Billy Joe Travis - 40
Chris Benoit - 40
Larry Cameron - 41
Rick Rude - 41
Randy Anderson - 41
Bruiser Brody - 42
Miss Elizabeth - 42
Big Boss Man - 42
Earthquake - 42
Mike Awesome - 42
Biff Wellington - 42
Brian Adams (Crush) - 43
Ray Candy - 43
Nancy Benoit - 43
Dino Bravo - 44
Curt Henning - 44
Bam Bam Bigelow - 45
Jerry Blackwell - 45
Junkyard Dog - 45
Hercules - 45
Andre The Giant - 46
Big John Studd - 46
Chris Adams - 46
Mike Davis - 46
Hawk - 46
Mitsuharu Misawa - 46
Steve Dunn - 48
Cousin Junior - 48
Dick Murdoch - 49
Jumbo Tsuruta - 49
Rocco Rock - 49
Sherri Martel - 49
Moondog Spot - 51
Ken Timbs - 53
Uncle Elmer - 54
Pez Whatley - 54
The Angel of Death - 54
Eddie Graham - 55
Tarzan Tyler - 55
Haystacks Calhoun- 55
Giant Haystacks - 55
Buddy Rose - 56
The Spoiler - 56
Kurt Von Hess - 56
Moondog King - 56
Gene Anderson - 58
Dr. Jerry Graham - 58
Bulldog Brown - 58
Tony Parisi - 58
Rufus R. Jones - 60
Ray Stevens - 60
Stan Stasiak - 60
Terry Garvin - 60
Boris Malenko - 61
Little Beaver - 61
Sapphire - 61
Shohei Baba - 61
Dick the Bruiser - 62
Wilbur Snyder - 62
George Cannon - 62
Karl Krupp - 62
Dale Lewis - 62
Gorilla Monsoon - 62
Hiro Matsuda - 62
Bad News Brown - 63
Bulldog Brower - 63
SD Jones - 63
Wahoo McDaniel - 63
Unless I miscounted that is 108 wrestlers that have died since 1985. On average that is 4.5 wrestlers that die a year with the average age being 45 years old. Lets just think about that a minute. 108 wrestlers have died in the past 24 years. Wrestlers seem to drop off like flies. No other professional sport has that kind of death rates. Actors and musicians don’t have that type of death rate either. I honestly cannot think of any other group of celebrities that have a death rate as high as what professional wrestlers have.
In all honesty the death rate is fucking scary!!!! I know that I am going to die some day, there is no if’s, ands, or buts about it. I will die. In fact, each and everyone of us is going to die. I have come to terms with the fact that it is going to happen. I don’t want it to happen, but such is life. I really don’t have a choice. I know that as long as I have fans, and there are pictures and videos of me floating around on the net I will, in a way, be immortal. Immortality will be great, but even then, eventually, people forget and they will stop talking about me. So even immortality in that sense won’t last forever.
Not all of those on that list died from natural causes. Some died from drugs, alcohol, car accidents, and what not. It is no secret that wrestlers live a hard life. We sacrifice everything. We beat up our bodies. We don’t get enough sleep. We don’t always take care of our bodies the way we should. A lot of us live like rock stars and we love every fucking minute of it. LOL I mean holy shit, I was a severe alcoholic at one point in time. I used to drink at least a fifth of peppermint schnapps a day. That was the minimum, there was a lot of days where it was closer to 2 fifths a day.
It has been almost a year since I quit drinking every single day of my life. I am only human though and I’m not going to hide a fucking thing about my life or myself. There has been about five or six times that I have drank since I quit drinking daily. If that makes me a bad person then so fucking be it. To the people that are going to criticize me for going out once in a while I just want to say, fuck you and go burn in hell. I think going from daily to only once every couple of months is one helluva an accomplishment. Here are the facts!!!!
I love this business, I can’t think of a single thing that I would rather do with my life. I live, breathe, and sleep this business. I know the death rate, if you go by the statistics I could easily be dead in another 17 years. I highly doubt that is going to happen, but statistically it could happen. Knowing the death rate is a big part of the reason why I live my life by my rules.
Damn it, I am fucking proud to say that I am a professional wrestler. I beat up my body and drive for hours on end with little to no sleep to entertain the fans and damn it, I do just that. I personally think that I do a damn good job at entertaining the fans. You the fans are the greatest part of this business. I can’t speak for anyone other than myself, but you guys are the reason I love this business.
I am the proverbial fucking rock star and I fucking love it. I am larger than life and I have each and everyone of you to thank for that. There would be no me without you!!!! I may not be the smartest person in the world, but in my opinion knowing that we are all going to die we should live our lives to the fucking fullest!!!!!
I want to make a solemn vow to each and every one of you. It doesn’t matter what happens to me. If I die tonight in my sleep, in 17 years, or when I’m 105, it doesn’t matter I make this promise to you. I will make any and all sacrifices that I have to. I will bleed, I will beat the hell out of my body, I will cry, I will sacrifice my family, I will do whatever it takes to give you, the fans, hours of entertainment and enjoyment. I swear to you that I will give you every last ounce of my body, heart and soul. I am giving everything I possibly can to you and when it is said and done, I will be giving you my life when I die, it will all be for you. I am going to live my life by my rules and morals, but at the end of the day, my life will be given to you!!!
It is with great pride that I am giving you everything. Thank you for allowing me to be the proverbial fucking rock star!!!! I am yours now and forever!!!
Until next time,
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