Mid 20th Century
197-513: The Von Erich family is an American professional wrestling family. Originally from Texas , their actual surname is Adkisson , but every member working in wrestling has used the ring name "Von Erich" after family patriarch Fritz Von Erich (real name Jack Adkisson). Fritz, who wrestled from 1953 to his retirement in 1982, took on the German-sounding name as part of his wrestling gimmick (i.e. in-ring persona), as he originally portrayed
394-465: A Rude Awakening neckbreaker, Chris "regained his eyesight." With the patch gone, Chris became the number one contender to Rude's World Class heavyweight title, and on July 4, 1986, he won it after a hard-fought and bloody battle at Reunion Arena in Dallas. Adams won with a small package when interference from Rude's manager Percy Pringle backfired. Over the course of the next three months, Chris defended
591-435: A bona fide athletic contest or competition. Professional wrestling is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting bona fide athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed professional wrestling under this Part. Professional wrestling as used in this Part shall not depend on whether the individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in
788-415: A performing art evolved from the common practice of match-fixing among American wrestlers in the 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance
985-415: A professional wrestling exhibition. All engagements of professional wrestling shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches. In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a worked match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A shoot match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from
1182-462: A June 1983 match between Iceman Parsons and Freebird Buddy Roberts). Adams had the match won, but picked Hernandez up twice to dish out more punishment, and while he was arguing with the referee, Hernandez grabbed the hair cream and threw the contents in Adams' face, thus "blinding" him. Adams won the match by DQ as a result. However, by the time this angle aired on television a few days later, Hernandez
1379-651: A Nazi heel . Fritz and his wife Doris had six children between 1952 and 1969, all sons. Except for their firstborn Jack Jr., who died at age six, all went on to become professional wrestlers. By the time Fritz died of cancer in 1997 at age 68, five of his sons had predeceased him: Jack Jr. drowned in a freak accident in 1959, David died from enteritis in 1984 at age 25, and Mike , Chris , and Kerry all died by suicide, respectively in 1987 at age 23, 1991 at age 21, and 1993 at age 33. Kevin , Fritz's last surviving son, retired from wrestling in 1995 and remains alive today. The Von Erichs' involvement in wrestling continued into
1576-413: A background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmicky and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish. Gorgeous George , who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over
1773-694: A bandaged left hand. The card itself, which featured the infamous country-whipping match, had at least a half-dozen piledrivers performed in the ring; including two by Taylor on Adams, another by Gordy on Kevin Von Erich, and two from Kerry – one on Gordy and another on Roberts. In another strange angle, Adams wrestled Taylor while wearing a catcher's mask in Fort Worth, in order to protect Chris from legit injuries he sustained during an earlier match in Missouri. Adams lost that match by DQ when he hit Taylor with
1970-737: A bid to become a major national promotion, but was unsuccessful in its attempts and eventually went out of business in 1990. Rights to the pre-1989 WCCW tape library belong to WWE (the post-1988 rights are owned by International World Class Championship Wrestling ) and select episodes from 1982 to 1988 are available on the WWE Network . World Class Championship Wrestling experienced tremendous success from 1981–1985, shattering attendance records and achieving global exposure through their syndicated television program. Bookers Ken Mantell , David Von Erich , Gary Hart , Bruiser Brody and Kevin Von Erich provided fans with hard hitting action centered on
2167-532: A carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned. Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the Civil War , with catch wrestling eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so
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#17327802465212364-519: A central authority. Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members. McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to
2561-491: A chair. Unintentionally, Adams hit Kevin in the head hard enough for the chair to break in half, causing Kevin some bleeding from the head and resulting in his hospitalization for a few days. The Adams-Von Erich feud had been set up in this way because Fritz Von Erich felt that too many fans were siding with Adams, and after the Cotton Bowl incident, Adams still heard cheers from some of the fans. A month later, Kevin returned
2758-585: A champion that Curley put forth: Dick Shikat . The National Wrestling Association shut down in 1980. In 1948, a number of promoters from across the country came together to form the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories. If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from
2955-581: A couple of times. In a 2010 interview, Ross stated that he and his brother Marshall are also training to become professional wrestlers. They debuted as a tag team for Pro Wrestling Noah on July 22, 2012. Ross and Marshall made their national television debut as part of the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) Slammiversary XII PPV on June 15, 2014, in a tag match defeating The BroMans via disqualification. In July 2017 Ross, along with his brother Marshall and father Kevin, wrestled at
3152-428: A degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded kayfabe by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans. I watch championship wrestling from Florida with wrestling commentator Gordon Solie . Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an Oscar . World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling ( WCCW ), later known as
3349-446: A dispute over money), Wild Bill Irwin , The Missing Link , Buddy Roberts, Brian Adias, Jack Victory , Tatum and Parsons. Bill Mercer left World Class to become the ring announcer for Wild West Wrestling. After only a few months, Mantell agreed to return to WCCW as co-promoter with Kevin and Kerry Von Erich, following Fritz's decision to sell out his interest in the promotion; Wild West was absorbed into WCCW, and most of its talent — with
3546-404: A distinct vernacular . It has achieved mainstream success and influence within popular culture , with many terms, tropes , and concepts being referenced in everyday language as well as in film , music , television , and video games . Likewise, numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international icons with recognition by the broader public. In the United States, wrestling
3743-595: A document which was revealed by matchmaker Frank Dusek to be a wrestling match between the two. The popularity of Embry reached its high point when he lost a loser leaves town match to Gary Young, due to outside interference by Cactus Jack Manson. This prompted the return of Percy Pringle to the promotion, who would later campaign to bring Embry back to World Class, as well as being the victim of several attacks by Akbar and his troops. The campaign led to Embry's reinstatement to World Class, but it would cause Dusek to be temporarily suspended by WCCW Board Member Elmore Hayes. Among
3940-520: A face, wrestling alongside the Von Erichs, starting a civil war between Hayes, Roberts and Gordy. Gordy would eventually join Hayes and the Von Erichs later on, but this occurred only weeks before the angle ran its course. One high mark in this renewed rivalry was a February 1988 country-whipping match between Kevin and Kerry against Gordy and Roberts. Iceman King Parsons and Chris Adams got involved in
4137-592: A fatal dose of tranquilizers and alcohol around April 12, 1987, in Denton County, Texas . He was missing for 4-5 days, with the date of death being set the Sunday after bailing out of jail. Born Chris Barton Adkisson on September 30, 1969, in Dallas, Texas , Chris Von Erich was the youngest of the Von Erich family. With his short stature (5'5”), asthma, and extremely brittle bones, which were prone to breaking, Chris
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#17327802465214334-410: A fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers
4531-423: A fight. Buddy Roberts, Iceman King Parsons and the late Angel of Death stormed the ring and handcuffed Fritz to the cage, delivering a furious beating while Kerry was being ganged up by Gordy. Eventually Kevin stormed the ring to save both Kerry and Fritz. After the attack, Fritz — who was normally seen walking away from vicious attacks under his own power — was assisted out of the ring by Kerry and Kevin. Upon leaving
4728-654: A hard-fought 14-minute battle to win the title at the first annual David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions supercard held at Texas Stadium in Irving. However, because Kerry already had a reputation within the industry for being unreliable due to substance abuse, the NWA only allowed him a brief title reign; he lost the belt back to Flair in Yokosuka, Japan on May 24 (May 23 in the U.S.) in another hard-fought match. The match, which did not air on television initially, allowed World Class to use an angle in which Flair cheated in
4925-536: A helicopter at the Cotton Bowl, interfered in a match, allowing French to pin Roberts. This angle, which also involved Chris Adams, ended in 1985. With The Freebirds out of the picture and attempting other angles that proved to be not as highly successful as the Freebirds-Von Erichs wars, World Class decided to turn Chris Adams heel and start a long and legendary war which lasted for over a year, and at
5122-405: A legitimate sport. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have
5319-799: A match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929. Bowser then broke away from the trust to form his own cartel, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), in September 1930, and he declared Sonnenberg to be the AWA champion. This AWA should not be confused with Wally Kadbo's AWA founded in 1960. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the National Wrestling Association , which in turn crowned
5516-428: A match in which Roberts lost his hair in a hair vs hair match despite winning the match. Parsons, who lost the match, managed to grab the infamous Freebird Hair Cream (used as a plot device in earlier matches as a fictional hair remover) and rub the contents onto Roberts' head. This prompted Roberts to wear a wig and headgear to cover his bald head, whose hair grew back in a time span of six months. A secondary feud
5713-424: A more literal meaning in those places. A notable example is India's Pro Wrestling League . In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: Professional wrestling means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise
5910-581: A new angle that would bring a return to sellout crowds to the Sportatorium for the first time in over six months: Eric Embry against Devastation Inc. Embry, who became the promotion's booker and lead babyface, was originally offered a contract by Skandor Akbar to join Devastation Inc., which he refused to join. This resulted in several gangups on Embry by his stable, including Cactus Jack Manson , King Parsons and Gary Young . Jeff Jarrett , who
6107-440: A new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to
Von Erich family - Misplaced Pages Continue
6304-510: A new ring and red, yellow and blue ring ropes with a World Class banner placed at Section D of the arena, with the American flag moved to Section C. By now, attendance for WCCW shows was nearly dead. Gary Hart (who along with Brody were now World Class' main go-to people) formed a new stable alongside wrestler/manager Phil Apollo (who was then known as Vince Apollo ) which included Brian Adias, Al Madril, and Al Perez , who would eventually win
6501-558: A pre-match altercation. Unable to continue, Adams allowed the Warrior to pin him following a flying elbow. Chris gave the Warrior a title shot, and narrowly defeated him. Adams also faced Abdullah the Butcher in some matches, all of which ended either in a countout or a DQ against Abdullah. Mulligan and Bruiser Brody were involved in a three-way feud during that time; while South African Steve Simpson joined World Class as an ally of Adams and
6698-450: A rematch between the two in a steel cage to prevent any interference, and announced a write-in poll in which fans could vote for the wrestler they wanted to serve as special referee for the match. Freebird Michael Hayes , whose popularity in WCCW at that point was second only to the Von Erichs themselves, was selected to officiate, and his tag team partner Terry Gordy was at ringside to guard
6895-406: A short time. Kerry Von Erich also returned to World Class, wrestling with a prosthetic foot, and during a November card at the Sportatorium, he interfered in a match between his brother Kevin and Brian Adias. Adias, who taunted Kerry to enter the ring, was discus-punched out of the ring by Kerry, and then later Kerry and Kevin Von Erich drop-kicked manager Percy Pringle out of the ring, which brought
7092-497: A storyline with them by turning heel against Mike Von Erich during a match, then eventually began feuding with Kevin Von Erich later on. This angle, similar to the one used with Chris Adams in 1984, proved to be unsuccessful, and pairing Adias with Alberto Madril to form a newer version of The Dynamic Duo (and even going so far as using Adams and Hernandez's "Bad to the Bone" as their ring entrance music) made matters worse. Adias lacked
7289-511: A superkick". Afterwards, he unmasked to reveal himself as Chris Adams, which proved to be a turning point in Adams' tenure in World Class; elevating him from mid-card to main-event status. Sunshine , who used to be Garvin's valet, joined Adams' side two weeks later, and with Sunshine in his corner, Adams defeated Garvin for the American title on November 24 at Reunion Arena; the first of five NWA American/World Class heavyweight title reigns for
7486-534: A ten-bell salute to honor David Von Erich was carried out. David's funeral took place two days later, and an estimated 5,000 people paid tribute to the fallen star; one of the largest funeral gatherings to take place in the Metroplex at the time. A March 3, 1984 telecast of World Class Championship Wrestling was dedicated exclusively to the life of David Von Erich, with wrestlers Michael Hayes, Jimmy Garvin, Harley Race , Chris Adams and Ric Flair paying tribute to
7683-451: A third generation: Kerry's daughter Lacey wrestled from 2007 until 2010, and Kevin's sons Marshall and Ross have been wrestling since 2012, including as a tag team named "The Von Erichs". The deaths of Kevin's brothers are the main basis for a widespread myth about a family curse . The term "Von Erich curse" is also used colloquially to refer to the chain of events leading to each brother's death, as well as associated tragedies (such as
7880-598: A three-hour block of wrestling from the USWA promotion (two hours from Dallas and one hour from the Memphis' CWA promotion). John Keaton left the promotion soon afterwards and was replaced by former Wild West Wrestling referee Harold Harris. Following the merger of World Class with the CWA and AWA, the promotion originally developed an angle pitting wrestlers from Texas against wrestlers from Tennessee. This would eventually evolve into
8077-403: A tirade against Perez, demanding a title shot. Terry Gordy later came in and began fighting with Adams, with Kerry Von Erich running in to battle Perez and Gordy. Taylor, who did not get involved in the carnage, then sucker-punched Adams and broke his left hand with two piledrivers, as Von Erich and Gordy were fighting up the aisle. Adams missed about a month of wrestling as a result, returning with
Von Erich family - Misplaced Pages Continue
8274-722: A top star in many National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) promotions, most notably in St. Louis and in World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW). He held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship at one time in the 1960s. Despite never winning the NWA World Heavyweight Championship , he maintained his presence within the NWA, holding many other major belts. Fritz also served shortly as NWA President in
8471-503: A typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via UHF broadcasting . But cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called All-American Wrestling airing on the USA Network in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in
8668-586: A victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the East Coast (outside its traditional heartland in the Midwest ). These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches. The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point
8865-499: A wrestler he called "Rip Von Erich", who was played by a wrestler who had previously gone under the name Kit Osbourne in other promotions. Rick LeRibeus, a Texas-based wrestler, has been billed as "Mark Von Erich" since the 1990s. This eventually became a storyline in the Global Wrestling Federation with Skandor Akbar accusing LeRibeus of being an illegitimate son of Fritz Von Erich . On March 16, 2009, it
9062-481: A year. It was also at this point that Kerry Von Erich was involved in a motorcycle accident (June 4, 1986) and suffered injuries that later worsened when he attempted to return to the ring too soon (an attempt said by some observers to have taken place under heavy pressure from Fritz) and would finally necessitate the amputation of his right foot. As a result of this accident, the organization's attendance dropped greatly. WCCW's fortunes declined further in 1986–87 with
9259-486: A young Shawn Michaels , Gino Hernandez and Iceman King Parsons , and others. World Class Championship Wrestling was a member of the NWA and was originally known as Big Time Wrestling until 1982, when Adkisson decided that the name of his federation needed to be changed. Mickey Grant, who headed the production of its telecasts (known as Texas Championship Wrestling ), suggested the name World Class. WCCW operated its enterprise in Dallas, Texas and held wrestling events at
9456-436: Is a form of athletic theater that combines mock combat with drama , with the premise that the performers are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling is distinguished by its scripted outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and showmanship . The staged nature of matches is an open secret , with both wrestlers and spectators nonetheless maintaining the pretense that performances are bona fide competitions, which
9653-410: Is a true sport. Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing. When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say the word kayfabe to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present and they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted
9850-427: Is generally practiced in an amateur context. No professional league for competitive wrestling exists due to a lack of popularity. For example, Real Pro Wrestling , an American professional freestyle wrestling league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as Iran and India , wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as a genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has
10047-470: Is likened to the suspension of disbelief employed when engaging with fiction . Professional wrestlers perform as characters and usually maintain a " gimmick " consisting of a specific persona , stage name , entrance theme , and other distinguishing traits. Matches are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or feuds , between heroic " faces " and villainous " heels ". A wrestling ring , akin to
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#173278024652110244-545: Is the daughter of Kerry Von Erich. She was previously with World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action (TNA) where she was a former TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champion . She retired in 2010. Waldo Von Erich was the stage name of Canadian professional wrestler Walter Sieber. Though billed as the brother of Fritz Von Erich when they teamed, he is not related to the Adkisson family. Waldo died in July 2009. Lance Von Erich
10441-527: The Dallas Morning News , Adams, who was under the influence, verbally assaulted a stewardess when he became belligerent when it was announced that liquor sales would no longer be available in flight. He then head-butted an American Airlines co-pilot before Kevin Von Erich restrained Adams. He left World Class shortly thereafter and joined Ken Mantell in the UWF, when it was told that Adams would lose
10638-744: The Florida territory to show that he could work as a heel. This run was successful, with David enjoying brief reigns as both singles and tag team champion. David was married on June 26, 1978, to Candy L. McLeod. Together, they had a daughter Natosha Zoeanna (born October 19, 1978). The baby died in infancy and David's marriage soon ended in divorce on July 12, 1979. He married again on June 8, 1982, to Patricia A. Matter. They remained together until David's death. David died on February 10, 1984, in Tokyo , Japan. The US Embassy's death report says he died of acute enteritis . Ric Flair wrote in his autobiography, To Be
10835-540: The Grand Olympic Auditorium wrestling promotion in Los Angeles, who would compete in Dallas regularly, as did Fritz and several Texas-based wrestlers doing the same for Gene and Mike LeBell's promotion in L.A. As his sons began to launch wrestling careers of their own in the mid-to-late 1970s, Fritz gradually cut back on his in-ring appearances and concentrated on promoting, finally retiring from
11032-570: The Heroes of World Class DVD documentary , as well as not liking the idea of Ken Mantell buying a portion of the company, which he also revealed on the Triumph and Tragedy of WCCW DVD. Several unsuccessful attempts had been made in 1987–88 to take World Class national; among them was a sparsely-attended Von Erichs over America tour, and a merger between World Class, the AWA and CWA the following year. A major pay-per-view card, AWA SuperClash III ,
11229-624: The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes. Shortly thereafter, New Jersey deregulated professional wrestling. The WWF then rebranded itself as a " sports entertainment " company. In the early years of the 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was catch wrestling . Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. In
11426-912: The Rage Megashow in Israel. In May 2019, Ross and Marshall signed a multi-year contract with Major League Wrestling (MLW). Kevin Marshall Adkisson (born November 10, 1992), better known as Marshall Von Erich , is the son of Kevin Von Erich. He is named after his father. He was trained by Kevin, Harley Race and at the Noah dojo. He debuted in 2012, with his brother Ross in Pro Wrestling Noah. He adapted his father's trademark of wrestling barefoot. Marshall and Ross made their national television debut at Slammiversary XII on June 15, 2014, where they defeated The BroMans . On May 29, 2015,
11623-550: The Reunion Arena , and mostly at the famed Sportatorium , located just south of Downtown Dallas, which was also a well-known boxing and wrestling arena as well as the one-time home to the famous Big D Jamboree . WCCW was originally known as Big Time Wrestling and, until the late 1970s, was dominated by its owner, Fritz Von Erich. In 1966, Von Erich and Ed McLemore-owner of the Dallas Sportatorium- bought out
11820-673: The WWE Hall of Fame in 2009 , and he, David, Kerry and Kevin were all individually inducted into the St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame between 2007 and 2016. The family was the subject of a Dark Side of the Ring episode in 2019, and the 2023 biographical film The Iron Claw , titled after the Von Erichs' signature move. Fritz Von Erich was born Jack Barton Adkisson on August 16, 1929, in Jewett, Texas. Originally trained by Stu Hart , Fritz became
12017-577: The World Class Championship Wrestling promotion. It was there that he faced off with Harley Race and later Ric Flair several times for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (never winning), as well as teamed with brothers Kevin and Kerry against The Fabulous Freebirds . David also wrestled in Missouri , winning the Missouri Heavyweight Championship on a couple of occasions. From late 1981 to mid-1982, David wrestled in
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#173278024652112214-509: The World Class Wrestling Association ( WCWA ), was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas . Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich . Beginning as a territory of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), it went independent in 1986 in
12411-557: The independent circuit , to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in the United States , Mexico , Japan , and northwest Europe (the United Kingdom , Germany/Austria and France ), which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling. Professional wrestling has developed its own culture and community , including
12608-431: The spectacle . By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from the competitive sport to become an artform and genre of sports entertainment . Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various " promotions ", which are roughly analogous to production companies or sports leagues . Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on
12805-593: The "World Class Championship Wrestling" name for its broadcasts and matches after the 1985 Cotton Bowl event were sanctioned by the World Class Wrestling Association. The NWA American Heavyweight Championship, which had been the promotion's top championship for nearly 20 years, was immediately renamed and declared it to be their "World" title and Rick Rude , the holder of the American Heavyweight Championship,
13002-584: The 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the Gold Dust Trio introduced moves which have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, suplexes , punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs. By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either faces (likeable) or heels (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in
13199-400: The 1930s and 1940s. Before the age of television, some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in. This eventually came to an end in the age of national television wrestling shows, which forced wrestlers to stick to one persona. Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in
13396-473: The 1970s, as well as President of WCCW when it moved to Dallas, Texas . Fritz was also a major part of Japanese wrestling , where he was known as " Tetsu no Tsume " ( 鉄の爪 ; "The Iron Claw"), and helped rebuild the business after the death of Rikidōzan . Fritz married Doris on June 23, 1950. Together, they had six sons before divorcing on July 21, 1992. On September 10, 1997, Fritz died of lung cancer that had spread to his brain. Fritz Von Erich's first son
13593-487: The 1984 NWA World Heavyweight Championship match between Flair and Kerry Von Erich, and had been used sporadically before World Class seceded from the NWA, including its TV championship. The Freebirds-Von Erich war reignited in late 1985, with Hayes, Gordy and Roberts against Kevin, Kerry and Lance Von Erich; reborn following a surprise gang-up on Kevin and Kerry during a match in Fort Worth, with announcer Marc Lowrance exclaiming that The Devil has emerged when returning from
13790-509: The 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its World Heavyweight Championship . Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches. In professional wrestling, two factors decide
13987-653: The Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC). The AAC shut down in 1960. In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member Joe Dusek recognized Verne Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Association in 1960. This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior. Gagne's AWA operated out of Minnesota . Unlike
14184-523: The British star. Adams and Garvin traded the American title on numerous occasions and engaged in mixed tag team matches involving Sunshine and Precious. It was said to be among the first mixed tag-team matches in modern wrestling history and would pave the way for future mixed tag team matches, including one Adams promoted himself six years later involving two of his ex-wives (Jeanie Clark and Toni Adams) and his protégé Steve Austin . On February 10, 1984, at
14381-574: The Christmas Day Massacre of 1987, turned into a four-on-two brawl, and eventually erupted into a battle royale. Announcer Marc Lowrance exclaimed during the brawl that 20 men were coming into the ring, which proved to be true as wrestlers from the back tried to end the carnage. Another hot feud taking place during this period was Chris Adams against both Terry Taylor and Iceman King Parsons, both of whom were brought into WCCW by Mantell. Parsons and Adams resumed their feud that began in
14578-604: The Dallas Sportatorium was to have Kamala, The Missing Link and Jimmy Garvin face Chris Adams and Kevin and Kerry Von Erich in the main event. Instead, Brian Adias and King Parsons took Kevin and Kerry's places, and the trio of Adams, Parsons and Adias defeated Kamala, Link and Garvin in an emotional match for all involved. The February 13 card, featured Marc Lowrance and David Manning in the ring alongside Sunshine, Adams, Parsons, Adias, Junkyard Dog, Chief Jules Strongbow, Jimmy Phillips, Bronko Lubich and Johnny Mantell as
14775-530: The Dallas Sportatorium, half of the crowd was chanting for Adams, while the other half was chanting for Kabuki. Both Adams and Kabuki would have sporadic matches, both singles and tag team, through 1986. In 1985, World Class went on a major tour to the Middle East (including Israel ). The tour, which ran from August 3 through August 7, was held mostly in Tel Aviv , and proved to be extremely successful, but
14972-779: The Dallas/Fort Worth Wrestling Office, breaking away from Houston Wrestling Office, which was managed by Paul Boesch . In 1969, Von Erich took sole control over the Office after McLemore died from a heart attack, and also gained ownership of the Dallas Sportatorium . Initially playing his longtime role of a snarling, goose-stepping Nazi monster heel and sometimes teaming with "brother" Waldo , Fritz turned babyface in late 1966 and began feuding with Gary Hart and his stable of wrestlers (which at this time included Karl Von Brauner , Al Costello and
15169-529: The Freebirds-Von Erich feud, returned to World Class in August to scout the babyface talent, including Adams, Iceman King Parsons, Brian Adias and others. Towards the end of the month, Adams, who had returned from his tenure in Los Angeles during the 1984 Summer Olympics , announced his alliance with Hart, which resulted in some friction between Adams and the babyfaces. On September 28, 1984, Adams
15366-484: The Man , that "everyone in wrestling believes" that it was a drug overdose that really killed him and that Bruiser Brody (a fellow wrestler who found David) disposed of the narcotics by flushing them down a toilet before the police arrived. Mick Foley also claims that David died from an apparent drug overdose. A tribute show was held a couple of months later in his honor, during which his younger brother, Kerry Von Erich, won
15563-622: The Memphis-based CWA began a working agreement with Renegades Rampage, allowing wrestlers from both organizations to appear either in Dallas or in the Memphis area. Jerry Lawler entered the Sportatorium ring for the first time in late-May and faced Kerry Von Erich for the first time. This bout never took place, as Lawler sucker-punched Kerry in the ring, resulting in Kerry being taken out on a stretcher. Adams and Taylor took their angle to Memphis and competed against each other several times at
15760-635: The Mid-South Coliseum. In the summer of 1988, the major storyline pitted Michael Hayes and Steve Cox against the Samoan Swat Team, managed by Buddy Roberts; along with a series of bouts between Jerry Lawler and Kerry Von Erich over the World Class and AWA titles. Chris Adams, Terry Gordy and Terry Taylor all left World Class at that time (Adams, who was also a promoter under the L&;A Promotions banner, would eventually return towards
15957-609: The NWA World Title from Ric Flair. Kerry Von Erich was the fourth son of Fritz Von Erich. He was born Kerry Gene Adkisson on February 3, 1960, in Niagara Falls, New York . Known as "The Modern Day Warrior" and "The Texas Tornado", Kerry was by far the best-known of the Von Erich Family. Much like his brothers, Kerry spent the majority of his career wrestling in World Class Championship Wrestling . Amongst
16154-480: The NWA as potential World Championship material. According to Ric Flair, David had indeed been chosen by the NWA to become the World Heavyweight Champion and Flair also stated in his autobiography To Be The Man that had David lived, he would have had the potential to be a long-term NWA Champion. On May 6, 1984, as a tribute to his late brother, Kerry Von Erich finally defeated Ric Flair after
16351-408: The NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone. The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from
16548-488: The NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions, Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him. In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the north-east , withdrew from the NWA. Vince K. McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into
16745-544: The Sportatorium began to run free wrestling tapings for its Championship Sports broadcast on KTVT and for several months on its Wild West Wrestling program, which in some markets accompanied its World Class Championship Wrestling broadcasts, featuring its top stars wrestling preliminary wrestlers and up-and-coming stars, very similar to the Memphis Wrestling programs seen there. These broadcasts lasted until August 1990. A few markets, including Las Vegas, included
16942-502: The Sportatorium patrons to their feet. Kerry even bodyslammed Ted Arcidi during the post-match brawl. As the UWF/NWA merger was complete, many top names returned to World Class, including Buddy Roberts, Terry Gordy, The Angel of Death Iceman King Parsons, Jason Sterling, and Jeff Raitz. The Iron Sheik also joined the organization later on. Upon Ken Mantell's return, WCCW held its final Christmas Day Star Wars show, during which one of
17139-399: The Sportatorium, Michael Hayes and Kevin Von Erich took turns attacking Khan, shoving each other away in the process. One of the top angles of the summer of 1984 was a mixed feud between Gino Hernandez and Nickla Roberts (aka Baby Doll, billed as Andrea The Lady Giant ) against Mike Von Erich and Stella Mae French. The angle reached new heights in the fall of 1984 when Sunshine, arriving on
17336-484: The Sportatorium. Chris Adams, who stayed with the NWA following their buyout with the UWF, abruptly left the NWA over a money dispute (reportedly against the wishes of Michael Hayes to stay), and returned to World Class beginning with the October 3, 1987 card at The Sportatorium. Upon returning, Adams worked an angle with Al Perez and manager Gary Hart, engaging in several matches — including one in which he supposedly won
17533-480: The Texas oil businesses entering a recession and Mike Von Erich's health and substance abuse problems and eventual suicide. As a result of these multiple catastrophes, attendance in both Dallas and Fort Worth plummeted; according to some former WCCW wrestlers, many fans became disillusioned with the Von Erichs as the supposedly "clean-living" brothers' drug use became harder to cover up, and they frequently no-showed cards
17730-464: The UWF, while Taylor came in during late-January 1988, duping everyone into believing that he was a changed wrestler and wanted to tag-team with Adams again, after a violent feud of their own. This led to a February 12, 1988 angle at the Sportatorium in which Taylor was to have faced Al Perez for the WCWA World title. Adams came in wondering what Taylor was doing in World Class, and then later went on
17927-427: The Von Erich family through the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s; directed by Sean Durkin , the film stars Zac Efron , Lily James , Jeremy Allen White , Harris Dickinson , Maura Tierney , Chavo Guerrero Jr. and Holt McCallany . Professional wrestling 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Professional wrestling (often referred to as pro wrestling , or simply, wrestling )
18124-485: The Von Erichs and the Freebirds, which began on December 25, 1982 during an NWA World title match between Kerry Von Erich and champion Ric Flair at Reunion Arena in Dallas . After several of Flair's title defenses against Kerry ended in controversy with the champion retaining the belt by various illegal means (including an earlier match which involved a corrupt referee, Alfred Neely), the promotion had finally booked
18321-691: The Von Erichs. Between July and September 1986, many of the top stars of World Class, including Adams, Parsons, Hyatt, John Tatum, and the Freebirds, defected to the Universal Wrestling Federation , following longtime WCCW booker Ken Mantell, who had resigned and joined the UWF after a falling-out with Fritz. World Class heavyweight champion Chris Adams was forced to relinquish his championship on September 17, 1986; one day after being convicted of misdemeanor assault from an incident on June 30, 1986 inflight between San Juan, Puerto Rico and Dallas . According to testimony and accounts from
18518-506: The WCCW footage to Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). At WrestleMania 25 , Kevin represented the Von Erich family during their induction into the WWE Hall of Fame . In 2015, Kevin appeared in an ESPN 30 for 30 short film titled "Wrestling the Curse". "The Yellow Rose of Texas" David Von Erich was the third son of Fritz Von Erich. He was born David Alan Adkisson on July 22, 1958, in Dallas, Texas . David worked in
18715-538: The WCWA was formed Fritz von Erich refused to book his shows outside of Dallas. This move led to a disputes with Fritz von Erich and the company's head booker Ken Mantell, who soon left the WCWA to become the head booker for the newly formed Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF); Referee David Manning took Mantell's place. After Mantell's departure in May 1986, attendance for WCWA shows began to drop greatly; along with Mantell,
18912-458: The WWF) to cut hair off opponents after each of their matches, and this resulted in a Cotton Bowl showdown in October 1985, in which Kevin and Kerry Von Erich defeated Adams and Hernandez in a losers-lose-hair match. Adams and Hernandez eventually broke up and began feuding, and faced each other in a January 1986 match where the loser would have his hair removed with Freebird Hair Cream (a gimmick used in
19109-586: The World Class heavyweight title by August. Eric Embry, Frankie Lancaster , The Rock 'n' Roll RPMs ( Mike Davis and Tommy Lane ), and Jason Sterling (the son of The Missing Link) also competed for a time in World Class. In mid-1987, after the buyout of the UWF by Jim Crockett Promotions , Ken Mantell launched his own Wild West Wrestling promotion with the popular Fort Worth nightspot Billy Bob's Texas as its homebase. Headlining for Mantell's group were such former World Class stars as Fabulous Lance (formerly Lance Von Erich, who by then had walked out on Fritz in
19306-400: The World Class title following a victory over Perez. The decision was reversed by referee John Keeton who was pushed into Adams's superkick by Perez (backup ref Bronco Lubich made the three-count when Adams surprised Perez with a sunset flip), thus Keeton DQed Adams and Perez retained the championship, a match which fans felt was a Dusty Finish . Al Perez stated in a 2018 interview that the plan
19503-401: The arena's loudspeakers, his being Pomp and Circumstance . He also wore a costume: a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring. He also had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers. For instance, McMahon's top star Hulk Hogan would delight
19700-418: The art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped. The term kayfabe comes from carny slang. By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice: American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that
19897-561: The audience by tearing his shirt off before each match. The first major promoter cartel emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included Jack Curley , Lou Daro, Paul Bowser and Tom and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As
20094-424: The belt to Black Bart on September 19 at the Dallas Sportatorium, a decision that enraged Adams, then-booker Gary Hart and several other wrestlers. Adams was sentenced on October 25 to 90 days in jail and fined $ 500. He began his sentence on November 1, and was released on January 29, 1987. Kevin Von Erich later defeated Black Bart for the World Class heavyweight title at the Cotton Bowl, and held that belt for nearly
20291-576: The brothers debuted at Imperial Wrestling Revolution, their new home promotion. They won the IWR Tag Team Championships from the Arrow Club in 2017. In July 2017 Marshall, along with his brother Ross and father Kevin, wrestled at the Rage Megashow in Israel. In May 2019, Marshall and Ross signed a multi-year contract with Major League Wrestling (MLW). Lacey Dawn Adkisson (born July 17, 1986), better known as Lacey Von Erich
20488-467: The cage door. However, when Kerry refused to pin Flair following unwanted interference on his behalf by Hayes, the Freebirds turned on Von Erich, with Gordy slamming the door on Kerry's head. Backup referee David Manning banished Hayes and Gordy to the dressing room, and the match ended shortly thereafter, with Flair retaining the title yet again as Manning stopped the match due to Kerry's inability to continue
20685-424: The cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who
20882-418: The case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming. Towards
21079-423: The character in shows must be considered fictional, wholly separate from the life of the performer. This is similar to other entertainers who perform with a persona that shares their own name. Some wrestlers also incorporate elements of their real-life personalities into their characters, even if they and their in-ring persona have different names. Kayfabe is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling
21276-501: The charisma and talent that Adams had during his feud with the Von Erichs, and Kevin and Mike dominated this feud from start to finish. There was one high mark in that feud, when Kevin passed out from concussion complications during an eight-man tag team match. That incident was worked into an angle in which Adias tried to end Von Erich's career by applying the Oriental Spike, a finisher made famous by Terry Gordy. Madril often drew
21473-455: The commercial break. John Tatum and Missy Hyatt entered the promotion, and started a feud with The Fantastics and Sunshine. Chris Adams returned in April to do two house shows, and in May received a huge ovation from the crowd at Texas Stadium in his first televised match since the "blinding" angle. Chris did begin an angle with Rick Rude; but not before becoming a full-fledged face. However, when
21670-512: The commission. The Commission did on very rare occasions hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between Jim Londos and Jim Browning in June 1934. This decree did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over. Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but they did not care as long as it entertained. In 1933, a wrestling promoter named Jack Pfefer started talking about
21867-584: The company's major stars - discovered him dead in his apartment. In addition, the NWA President at the time, Jim Crockett, Jr. , had also decided that he would no longer book the NWA World Champion at the time, Ric Flair, to wrestle in the state of Texas. World Class, still reeling over the death of Gino Hernandez, withdrew its membership from the NWA on February 18, 1986, became known as the World Class Wrestling Association, yet they retained
22064-432: The corner of the heels' side of the ring. Out of nowhere, Adams blasted Kevin with a superkick, which prompted Hernandez and Roberts to throw French out of the ring and attack Kevin, while Adams and Hart walked away. The two-on-one gangup continued (which included Roberts' patented DDT) until Buck Zumhofe and David Manning ran in to chase Roberts and Hernandez away. The following Monday in Fort Worth on October 1, 1984; Adams
22261-540: The current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good." Newspapers tended to shun professional wrestling, as journalists saw its theatrical pretense to being a legitimate sport as untruthful. Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans. The first professional wrestling magazine
22458-434: The death of David's two-month-old daughter of SIDS in 1978). The story of the Von Erich family has been presented as a cautionary tale about parental influence and the various dangers of the professional wrestling business. They remain one of the best-known families in professional wrestling, both for their accomplishments and their tragic personal history: Fritz and all five of his wrestler sons were collectively inducted into
22655-481: The decade; Parsons, Adams, "Gorgeous" Jimmy Garvin and members of Skandor Akbar 's Devastation Inc. stable were also involved in the Freebird-Von Erich feud directly or indirectly during the course of the angle. The official last match between the Freebirds and the Von Erichs took place in April 1993 in Dallas. Buddy Roberts was involved in several conflicts in 1983 with "Iceman" King Parsons, including
22852-405: The end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and
23049-621: The end of the year, as a wrestler and trainer). Gary Hart also left World Class during this time, and would not return to Dallas again until 1991 under the Global Wrestling Federation banner. Hart's decision to leave World Class (other than being under contract with the NWA) was mostly due to his concern that the promotion he, Mercer and Grant help build in a time span of eight years, would go out of business. World Class would in fact be defunct two years later. Hart mentioned this in
23246-603: The facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but Lou Thesz accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real. The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that kayfabe still mattered to
23443-422: The fallen hero. Bill Mercer and Mickey Grant also provided footage of David's earlier times as a high school basketball standout and had an interview with Fritz, Kevin and Kerry during the broadcast. The Von Erichs, who took David's death extremely hard, did not compete again until February 27, when they teamed with Adams to defeat Butch Reed, Jimmy Garvin, Michael Hayes and Terry Gordy. David had been seen by many in
23640-447: The famous incidents that occurred during this angle include Embry being hit with a baseball bat by Akbar, Cactus Jack and Gary Young (in a mask as The Zodiac ) during an April 1989 battle against Akbar; both of whom were hiding under the Sportatorium ring for some three hours. Frank Dusek , who served as the special referee, was also lit up with the baseball bat and piledriven by Young during the melee. Afterwards, Embry induced vomiting in
23837-530: The favor by smashing a chair into Adams' head after losing to him, and that resulted in Chris being helped out of the arena with a minor concussion and nearly losing his left eye when a piece of the wooden chair lodged onto his nose after the chair shot, very dangerously close to his eye. The wooden chair angle was quickly scrapped at Kevin and Chris' requests due to the legitimate injuries both wrestlers sustained. Adams eventually became World Class' biggest heel; yet at
24034-513: The feud out through much of 1986 which also involved mixed tag team matches. A brief yet high-profile angle between Chris Adams and Great Kabuki was played out during the summer of 1985 over which wrestler had the most lethal kick: Chris Adams and his superkick or Kabuki and his thrust kick. The angle was born in the spring of 1985 when manager Sunshine brought Kabuki in to battle Adams and Gino Hernandez. Both wrestlers displayed their martial arts talent in their matches, and during one singles match at
24231-470: The first place. "Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but nevertheless fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work. Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as Dick Shikat in 1936. In
24428-610: The game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high. The wrestler Lou Thesz recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated a lot of fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery. Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake whereas boxing endured as
24625-606: The gap while Mike was recovering. Fritz billed Lance as the "son" of Waldo Von Erich, with whom Fritz tagged years earlier, but was not related to Fritz in any way. Vaughn made his WCCW debut at the 1985 Cotton Bowl event. To this day, it was considered to be the worst idea that Fritz came up with. The main participants on the Israel tour included Kevin and Mike Von Erich, Chris Adams, Gino Hernandez, Iceman King Parsons, Freebird Buddy Roberts, Scott Casey, Brian Adias, Rip Oliver, Kelly Kiniski and Johnny Mantell. On February 4, 1986, local authorities and friends of Gino Hernandez - now one of
24822-460: The government. They pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit. Paul Bowser's AWA joined the NWA in 1949. The AWA withdrew from the Alliance in 1957 and renamed itself
25019-588: The height of the Von Erich-Freebird wars, David Von Erich died from an intestinal rupture caused by a stomach ailment just after arriving in Japan for a tour for All Japan Pro Wrestling . Although Ric Flair asserted in his autobiography that most people in wrestling believe David died of a drug overdose, with Bruiser Brody flushing pills down a hotel toilet before the police arrived, David's autopsy report indicated no drugs in his system and that his death
25216-453: The incident throughout the course of the two-hour program. Afterwards, World Class promoted the renewed Freebird-Von Erich rivalry pitting Terry Gordy, Buddy Roberts, King Parsons and The Angel of Death against Kevin and Kerry Von Erich and Chris Adams, with Steve or Shaun Simpson also helping to even the odds. The unusual twist of this feud was the absence of Michael Hayes, who was still in the NWA, but would eventually return to World Class, as
25413-526: The independent. By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions within the United States, with more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that the independents appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the US Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court. The NWA settled with
25610-480: The industry was anything but a competitive sport. The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was Jack Pfefer . In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore
25807-496: The industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and passing on planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like Jack Curley were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of kayfabe as best they could. Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by
26004-546: The ire of the crowd by shouting in Spanish, sometimes using obscene language. The Los Angeles native eventually turned babyface and began feuding with Adias by 1987. Late in the year, the promotion briefly added another show to its lineup called Texas Championship Wrestling, which aired nationally on the now defunct cable network Tempo Television , filling a void left by the folding of USA All-Star Wrestling . The new show retained USA All-Star Wrestling's Steve Stack as its host and
26201-431: The last-ever match between Garvin and Von Erich). The angle reached new heights on October 21 when Adams disguised himself as The Masked Avenger and faced Garvin. Playing possum, Adams surprised Garvin with some wrestling moves, and then as he threw Garvin to the ropes, Chris superkicked him, which stunned the Sportatorium crowd and announcer Bill Mercer who said '"a thrust kick...HEY that looks like...here it is; 1, 2, 3;
26398-605: The many major feuds he had were those against Gino Hernandez , Iceman Parsons , Chris Adams and The Fabulous Freebirds . Kerry became the most successful of the Von Erich family when he won the NWA World Heavyweight Title from Ric Flair at the David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions , a tribute show to his deceased older brother. Kerry lost the belt three weeks later to Flair. Kerry also wrestled for several months under
26595-446: The mask. In another contest, Adams won by DQ when Taylor brought Mike George and Masahiro Chono in a three-on-one gangup. Meanwhile, Kerry Von Erich won the World Class title from Perez; and lost it to Iceman Parsons following an infamous incident during a March 1988 card in which the lights at the Sportatorium went out during the match, and when the lights returned, Kerry was down on the mat, with Parsons pinning him. Michael Hayes, who
26792-568: The masked Spoilers); the feud between Hart and Fritz (and his sons) would continue off and on for more than two decades. Fritz's other classic rivalries during this early period were with such stars as Johnny Valentine , Stan Stasiak , Professor Toru Tanaka , Lord Alfred Hayes , The Sheik , Bruiser Brody and The Great Kabuki . Babyface wrestlers playing secondary roles in the promotion at various times included Wahoo McDaniel , Pepper Gomez , Red Bastien , Jose Lothario and Lonnie "Moondog" Mayne . Many of these wrestlers were regular mainstays of
26989-409: The match, and claimed the referee was a sumo official who did not understand the rules of pro wrestling. The match, which Flair won with a clean pinfall over Kerry, in fact was officiated by veteran All Japan Pro Wrestling referee Joe Higuchi, who found David Von Erich's body the previous February, and was also the one who alerted David Manning of his death. Afterwards, the Freebirds left World Class in
27186-454: The match, and eventually turned into a six-man brawl. David Sheldon, aka The Angel of Death, also got involved, and orchestrated a four-on-two gangup on both Kerry and Adams with Kevin handcuffed to the ring rope. Kevin managed to escape and chase Sheldon, Roberts, Gordy and Parsons away. Another was a planned match between Adams against Parsons, with Kevin and Gordy seconding their respective partners. This event, which occurred three weeks after
27383-399: The match. Shortly after, Gary Hart left WCCW, due to money issues with Von Erich; the Freebirds wanted to follow suit, but Hart persuaded them to stay in WCCW. A year later, Gordy would have his head slammed by the cage door from Fritz Von Erich, in retaliation. The Freebird-Von Erich rivalry was one of the most violent feuds in modern-day wrestling history and continued off-and-on for much of
27580-498: The members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, Paul Bowser , bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in
27777-442: The most infamous incidents in Texas wrestling history — known to wrestling purists as the "Christmas Day Massacre" — occurred. WCWA champion Al Perez and Kerry Von Erich were scheduled to face each other in a steel cage main event for the title, with Gary Hart handcuffed to Fritz to prevent interference. However, before the match began, Terry Gordy ran in and made disparaging remarks about Kerry and his motorcycle accident, which started
27974-473: The much more athletic Adams, Kerry or Kevin wrestled Austin. After several years of not being able to succeed in the wrestling business, Chris became depressed and frustrated. He was also heartbroken over the loss of his brother, Mike, and experienced drug addiction. On September 12, 1991, aged 21, he shot himself in the head. His brother Kevin and mother attempted to dissuade him from his suicidal tendencies that same day. An apparent suicide note had been found at
28171-465: The new UWF was able to lure away more WCWA talent as well. During a May 26, 1986 six-man tag match at Will Rogers Coliseum in Fort Worth, Adams was paired with Lance and Kevin Von Erich against Rick Rude, Kabuki and the One Man Gang. It was the first time since September 30, 1984 that Adams (substituting for the injured Bruiser Brody) was partnered with a Von Erich in any tag team match, and there
28368-669: The notable exception of Fabulous Lance, who was now considered persona non grata by the Adkissons after his abrupt departure earlier in the year — returned along with Mantell. The organization later co-promoted cards with World Class, including a May 1988 card in Mesquite, Texas which had Marc Lowrance as the ring announcer, and former World Class referee Jerry Usher officiating several matches. Wild West Wrestling continued promoting cards at Billy Bob's until late 1988, with its programming now featuring its Championship Sports broadcasts from
28565-437: The platform used in boxing , serves as the main stage ; additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of the venue, in a format similar to reality television . Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with choreography , stunts , improvisation , and dramatic conventions designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement. Professional wrestling as
28762-422: The popular Von Erich brothers and a cast of devious villains. Storylines during this time followed a consistent theme of friendship and betrayal, with many of the top villains being first presented as friends to the Von Erich Family, only to betray them months or even years later. Talent deals and exchanges helped WCCW bring in future stars such as Chris Adams , The Fabulous Freebirds , Jake Roberts , Mick Foley ,
28959-400: The previous three years, drew less than 6,000 for the 1987 event, which featured Kevin Von Erich defending the World Class title against Nord The Barbarian , who in actuality was a protégé of Bruiser Brody's. To make matters worse, the WWF had also reached the pinnacle of its success at WrestleMania III , and began to gain more national exposure. The Dallas Sportatorium received a facelift with
29156-509: The promotion booked in smaller towns. Sportatorium cards, which at the beginning of the year before drew well over 4,000 had dropped to less than 1,000 within a time span of six months. In an attempt to keep World Class hot, by means of running long-term angles, Brian Adias , who was billed as the childhood friend of the Von Erichs (which is legitimate, since Brian grew up with the Adkissons in Denton and also went to high school with Kerry), began
29353-717: The promotion's closing in 1991. In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on TBS . McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself World Championship Wrestling (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. During
29550-595: The promotion. The combined federation became known as the USWA , originally called the United States Wrestling Alliance. Jarrett would run the new USWA out of two headquarters: one in Dallas (the weekly shows in Fort Worth being discontinued at this point, however several Fort Worth cards were still held), the other in Memphis. The deal made Jarrett 60 percent owner of World Class, with Kevin and Kerry Von Erich being 40 percent owners. In addition,
29747-411: The return of many major World Class stars by year's end. In April, World Class suffered another death when Mike Von Erich, after being diagnosed with toxic shock syndrome, was found dead near Lewisville Lake , having committed suicide by overdosing on Placidyl . The upcoming Parade of Champions card held in May was renamed in honor of both David and Mike Von Erich. This event, which drew over 20,000 fans
29944-422: The ring (which was censored on television). Prior to that, another infamous angle occurred when Embry, who was a special referee in a match between Kerry Von Erich and Gary Young, was fighting with Akbar. The battle carried out into the Sportatorium parking lot, when a hand came through the fire door to kidnap Embry (later revealed to be Killer Tim Brooks). Chris Adams, Kerry Von Erich and Jimmy Jack Funk then carried
30141-467: The ring altogether after a 1982 NWA American Title win over King Kong Bundy at Texas Stadium in Irving . By then, the promotion had switched to the World Class name and was centered on Fritz's sons, Kevin , David , Kerry , and later, Mike Von Erich. Developed and booked by manager and behind-the-scenes booker Gary Hart, World Class' most storied feud was the legendary and long-running battle between
30338-517: The ring full-time. His only previous appearance on-screen was being involved in an angle where Ric Flair insulted him and wrestled him as a run-up to what was planned as David winning the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, but Fritz pressured Mike into the ring after David's death. Kevin once stated that Mike suffered from the pressure of having to "be David" and to succeed on the same level as his older brothers. Mike
30535-638: The ring name "The Texas Tornado" in both the World Wrestling Federation (where he won the WWF Intercontinental Championship at SummerSlam on August 27, 1990) and Global Wrestling Federation . Kerry was married on June 18, 1983, to Catherine "Cathy" Murray. Together they had two daughters: Hollie Brooke (born September 19, 1984) and Lacey Dawn (born July 17, 1986). Lacey wrestled for several years, most notably with TNA as Lacey Von Erich , before leaving
30732-431: The ring, Fritz staged a seizure by self-collapsing onto the floor of Reunion Arena, and was supposedly rushed to a hospital; local news media reported this as a top story, not realizing until later that the entire incident had been a work. Kerry, after an hour or so, returned to the ring to face Perez but lost the match due to outside interference from Hart. The next day on Championship Sports, announcer Marc Lowrance recapped
30929-439: The same time, as the feud with the Von Erichs progressed, he began facing other heels, such as Ric Flair and members of Skandor Akbar's army. By 1985, Adams began tagging with Hernandez, forming the second and most successful version of The Dynamic Duo ( Tully Blanchard and Hernandez formed the original version). Towards the end of the year, Adams and Hernandez used scissors (a gimmick that Brutus Beefcake would use later on in
31126-408: The same time, drawing revenues that exceeded the Freebirds-Von Erichs angle. The new angle was developed by Ken Mantell, Gary Hart, Chris Adams and Fritz Von Erich, which was born out of a conversation between Adams and Hart, where Adams wanted to change his image and try his luck as a heel wrestler. Gary Hart, who left World Class in early-1983 due to a dispute with Fritz Von Erich over the booking of
31323-513: The scene. Toxicology reports also revealed cocaine and valium were in Chris' system at the time of his death. David Michael Ross Adkisson (born June 1, 1988), better known as Ross Von Erich , is the son of Kevin Von Erich. He is named after David and Mike. He was trained by Kevin, Harley Race and the Pro Wrestling Noah dojo. Ross returned to Texas to attend college in 2008, according to the family website, and reportedly has wrestled
31520-440: The stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery. Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked. A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For
31717-452: The summer of 1984, and, except for a few appearances, did not return full-time until December 1985. Jimmy Garvin and Precious also departed WCCW during this time to join the AWA. An unusual three-way feud ensued during the summer of 1984 involving Killer Khan , originally brought in by the Freebirds in their quest to destroy the Von Erichs, fighting the Freebirds and Von Erichs after Khan was bought by General Skandor Akbar. During one match at
31914-426: The territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of cable television in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s. Before cable TV,
32111-559: The title almost every week, against challengers like Rude, Kabuki, One Man Gang, Blackjack Mulligan and others. In a non-title match at the Dallas Sportatorium, he lost to the Ultimate Warrior , who was then known as the Dingo Warrior. In that match, Adams used a piledriver on the Warrior, and somehow the force of the piledriver hit Adams' throat; which had been hit earlier due to interference by manager Percy Pringle during
32308-475: The title back, and the NWA didn't recognize the faster pace of the sport. The new corporation also gained a deal with ESPN to air a weekly show on the network as well. As a result of the NWA withdrawal, the WCWA also introduced a title-change rule in which a champion could lose the belt on a disqualification or a countout, much to the dismay of heel wrestlers, who opt to DQ themselves to keep the championship (most notably Ric Flair). That rule had been in place during
32505-519: The trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed. By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute, shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by
32702-471: The truth, their audiences would desert them. Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it
32899-500: The two. On October 27, Adams and Von Erich squared off at the Cotton Bowl , with Kevin winning the match, amid controversy when Adams lifted his shoulder at the count of one, but referee David Manning counted to three with Adams lifting his shoulder again, believing he was at the count of two. Afterwards, Kevin made a deal with Chris: leave Gary Hart and go on his own and all would be forgiven. Adams responded by attacking Kevin with
33096-535: The way of proceedings: the "in-show" happenings, presented through the shows; and real-life happenings outside the work that have implications, such as performer contracts, legitimate injuries, etc. Because actual life events are often co-opted by writers for incorporation into storylines of performers, the lines between real life and fictional life are often blurred and become confused. Special discern must be taken with people who perform under their own name (such as Kurt Angle and his fictional persona ). The actions of
33293-508: The winning pinfall. After the match, with Chris, Lance and Kevin standing in the center of the ring, Kevin extended his hand, and Chris shook it and the two embraced in the center of the ring, signaling the end of World Class Championship Wrestling's most storied feud. Adams also feuded with Tatum and Hyatt, with Sunshine once again managing Chris, and also began wrestling against Matt Borne and Buzz Sawyer. Chris evidently continued wrestling against Rude on several occasions, and in one match after
33490-420: The wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours, whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked
33687-432: The wrestling business in 2010. Kerry and Catherine later separated, before divorcing on April 22, 1992. On June 4, 1986, Kerry was involved in a motorcycle accident that resulted in the amputation of his right foot. He continued wrestling after the accident with a prosthesis and kept the amputation secret from the majority of fans and fellow wrestlers. He became addicted to pain killers, developed several drug problems, and
33884-425: Was Wrestling As You Like It , which printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to kayfabe . Before the advent of television, professional wrestling's fanbase largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers and minorities. When television arose in the 1940s, professional wrestling got national exposure on prime-time television and gained widespread popularity. Professional wrestling
34081-564: Was also the start of another episode for the Adkisson family, as it was during this tour that Mike Von Erich suffered a separated shoulder (in a tag team match with Kevin against Gino Hernandez and Chris Adams) that led to his near-fatal bout with toxic shock syndrome following surgery. In an ill-advised desperation move that would later infamously backfire, Fritz brought in Pacific Northwest Wrestling Champion, Ricky Vaughn, as "cousin" Lance Von Erich to fill
34278-419: Was announced that the Von Erich family would be inducted (as a group) into the WWE Hall of Fame . They were inducted by longtime Von Erich rival Michael "P.S." Hayes , with Kevin Von Erich accepting the induction and celebrating victory. † = deceased As a family Individual The A24 film The Iron Claw takes its title from the wrestling move used by several of the family members. The movie portrays
34475-614: Was arrested multiple times. Kerry died after shooting a .44 caliber bullet through his heart on February 18, 1993, on his father's ranch in Denton County, Texas . There is a marker of an angel placed by his father Fritz on the spot where Kerry shot himself. Bret Hart states in his autobiography, Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling , that Kerry had told him months before about his plans, that he had wanted to follow his late brothers, and that they were calling him. His marriage had fallen apart, and he thought his death
34672-576: Was born Jack Barton Adkisson Jr. on September 21, 1952. He died at age six in Niagara Falls, New York , on March 7, 1959, after he stepped on a trailer tongue, was electrically shocked , then fell into a melting snow puddle face first and drowned. Born Kevin Ross Adkisson on May 15, 1957, in Belleville, Illinois , "The Golden Warrior" Kevin Von Erich is the second oldest and last surviving son of Fritz Von Erich. The majority of Kevin's career
34869-449: Was born between Jimmy Garvin, who had spent much of 1983 feuding with David Von Erich, against England's Chris Adams. Adams faced Garvin for the first time on August 26, 1983 at the Dallas Sportatorium, both wrestling to a time-limit draw. Afterwards, both Garvin and Adams exchanged insults, calling each other a coward , with Adams challenging Garvin to a title match on October 7, as Garvin was about to face David Von Erich (which proved to be
35066-488: Was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in
35263-638: Was dead; his death, which was revealed by an autopsy to be the result of a cocaine overdose, ended any prospects of a hot feud between the former partners. The Scotland Yard questioned Adams regarding Hernandez's death, but no charges were ever filed against him. The original plan for the Adams-Hernandez feud was for Chris to return to face Hernandez at the Texas Stadium card after Adams' tour of Japan and visiting relatives in England, and stretch
35460-484: Was definitely caused by acute enteritis. His death was front-page news in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, triggering an area-wide outpouring of shock and grief among fans, and was the beginning of the Von Erichs' decline and fall (and WCCW's as well, although attendance levels would remain high for a time). His death prompted a few changes in upcoming events. The February 10 non-televised card at
35657-503: Was feuding with Embry over the World Class light heavyweight title, joined Embry's side and helped out fight off Akbar's Army, with Brickhouse Brown and later Chris Adams (returning to World Class after a six-month hiatus) getting involved. On two occasions, Embry duped Akbar, who referred to Embry as "the flamboyant piece of trash", into signing a contract to join Devastation Inc., once in which he took his $ 5,000 cash bonus and decked Akbar after quitting; and again when Embry and Akbar signed
35854-459: Was fighting outside the ring with Buddy Roberts, was also down outside the ring. Many wrestlers believed at one time that Kevin Vaughn, formerly Lance Von Erich, was responsible for the lights being turned off which resulted in the unknown attack on both Hayes and Kerry. Kerry regained the championship the following May at the final Texas Stadium Parade of Champions card. By May 1988, World Class and
36051-457: Was for Adams to regain the World Class belt from him, however Fritz Von Erich ruled against it and told Perez that he is to remain the champion. Adams also engaged in a brief feud with Brian Adias, mostly out of the rights to use the ring entrance music Bad to the Bone , which Adias used, much to the objection of Adams, who was best known for this ring entrance music with Gino Hernandez. Chris also had some bouts with Eric Embry and Vince Apollo for
36248-513: Was held in Chicago in December 1988, featuring a world title unification match in which Jerry Lawler defeated Kerry Von Erich. However, SuperClash III was not a hit, and Pro Wrestling USA was dissolved. After SuperClash III, Ken Mantell and Fritz Von Erich sold WCCW to CWA owner Jerry Jarrett . According to Skandor Akbar, Jarrett got sued by Kevin, although his brother Kerry welcomed Jarrett to
36445-491: Was inevitable. Mike Von Erich was the fifth son of Fritz Von Erich. He was born Michael Brett Adkisson on March 2, 1964, in Dallas, Texas , and was later known as the "Inspirational Warrior". Mike replaced David in the feud the Von Erichs had with The Fabulous Freebirds following David's death. According to the DVD Heroes of World Class , Mike wanted to work for World Class as a cameraman and had no interest in being in
36642-649: Was married on February 14, 1985, to Shani Danette Garza. He was divorced later that year. In 1985, he injured his shoulder on a tour of Israel and had surgery, leading to toxic shock syndrome , as there was an infection missed by the surgeons. He suffered some brain damage as a result of his illness and lost a great deal of weight. In 1986, he also suffered head injuries from a car accident in which his vehicle overturned after he lost control. Mike tried returning to wrestling after partial recovery. He continued to compete despite lack of mental coordination and strength. After an arrest for DUI and marijuana possession, Mike took
36839-548: Was never able to achieve the success that his father and brothers achieved. He made many attempts to succeed in the squared circle because of his incredible love of wrestling, which kept him going despite numerous injuries. He managed one major feud with Percy Pringle in the USWA / World Class , but his career did not take off like the rest of the family's. On occasion, he and his brothers Kerry and Kevin, as well as Chris Adams , wrestled tag-team matches against Percy Pringle and Steve Austin , but Chris only wrestled Pringle, while
37036-501: Was paired with Kevin Von Erich against Jake Roberts and Gino Hernandez, with Gary Hart and Stella Mae French in Adams and Von Erich's corner. As the match wound down, Hernandez had Adams in a high vertical suplex, with French tripping Hernandez, causing Adams to land on Gino; however he rolled over on top of Chris and pinned him. After the match, an enraged Adams began arguing with French, with Hart and Kevin coming in as peacemakers. Hart later abused Stella Mae, prompting Kevin to shove him to
37233-571: Was previously considered a niche interest, but the TV networks at the time were short on content and thus were willing to try some wrestling shows. In the 1960s, however, the networks moved on to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped. The core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s. In 1989, Vince McMahon was looking to exempt his promotion (the World Wrestling Federation ) from sports licensing fees. To achieve this, he testified before
37430-512: Was recognized as the promotion's first World champion. While there is no official means of granting a championship "World" title status in professional wrestling, Pro Wrestling Illustrated didn't recognize the championship's status as a "World" title as it had with the American Wrestling Association (AWA), NWA, and World Wrestling Federation (WWF) championships. It was rumored that the NWA didn't want to give Kerry
37627-409: Was selected as the mystery partner in a six-man tag match for Hernandez and Roberts in a match against Kerry and Mike Von Erich, with Buck Zumhofe subbing for Kevin. As Adams gave Mike a backdrop from the canvas using his legs, Kevin stormed the ring and attacked Adams, resulting in a brawl between the former friends and tag partners until David Manning, Bronco Lubich, Rick Hazzard and Gary Hart separated
37824-415: Was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted
38021-745: Was spent working in World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), where he had feuds against wrestlers such as Chris Adams , The Fabulous Freebirds , and Ric Flair . It was there that Kevin became known for utilizing trademark maneuvers like the body scissors and the iron claw, as well as for wrestling barefoot. Kevin has been married since August 1, 1980, to Pamela J. May. Together they have four children, including two daughters: Kristen Rain (born February 3, 1981) and Jillian Lindsey (born February 10, 1985) as well as two sons: David Michael "Ross" (born June 1, 1988) and Kevin Marshall (born November 10, 1992). Kevin has thirteen grandchildren. In May 2006, Kevin sold
38218-449: Was still some tension between Kevin and Chris in the early-going, but that eventually changed as the match progressed. As the match wound down, the One Man Gang was about to launch a major assault on Kevin with a chain, as Kevin was recovering from a double clothesline by OMG and Rude. As referee Rick Hazzard was trying to separate Rude and Lance, Adams entered the ring and superkicked OMG, then rolled Kevin on top of him and alerted Hazzard of
38415-460: Was taped at Gilley's Club in Pasadena, Texas , the site of its predecessor. The matches and interviews on Texas Championship Wrestling did not acknowledge the ongoing storylines taking place on the territory's other current television shows. Between late-1986 and the latter part of 1987, World Class was behind the UWF as the top promotion, but things were about to change soon, which would include
38612-417: Was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among
38809-463: Was the stage name of Dallas-born professional wrestler William Kevin "Ricky" Vaughn. He was billed for a brief period of time in the 1980s as the son of Waldo Von Erich, but there was no biological relation between the two. Lance also has no biological relation to the Adkisson family. On two episodes of MLW Fusion , Tom Lawlor , who was involved in a feud with the Von Erichs after turning his back on them, mercilessly beat and then aligned himself with
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