tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1546665963755719151.post6519261706295843509..comments2023-07-15T07:17:49.535-04:00Comments on Professional Wrestling in U.S. Popular Culture: Tragedy and FailureSam Fordhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17233749268141980625noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1546665963755719151.post-67944439425259961632007-07-09T09:34:00.000-04:002007-07-09T09:34:00.000-04:00DJ, it is such a tragedy. There have been a varie...DJ, it is such a tragedy. There have been a variety of articles, news pieces, books or book chapters, and DVDs on the subject, but no one will ever be able to truly understand how and why it happened.Sam Fordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17233749268141980625noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1546665963755719151.post-17133479674362816812007-07-07T09:07:00.000-04:002007-07-07T09:07:00.000-04:00The Von Erich Family Story is a real tragedy. Whe...The Von Erich Family Story is a real tragedy. When the boys were young their mother committed suicide, that left Fritz to raise the boys. The Von Erich Brothers, David, Michael and Kerry all committed suicide. It is all very sad. <BR/>As I heard it Fritz was a hard man to live with. He was hard on his wife and the boys as well. I feel sorry for the whole situation.DJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14526478902368370419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1546665963755719151.post-6092876160536556572007-02-28T11:56:00.000-04:002007-02-28T11:56:00.000-04:00There has already been some discussion of inductin...There has already been some discussion of inducting the Von Erichs in the Hall of Fame in some way, but the question was raised whether they should be inducted as a family act, as individual members, etc. On their own, no one of the boys had a career that made them deserve to be in the Hall of Fame, save Fritz because of his many years as a wrestler, but you could see how they would as a family. Kerry was NWA World Champion and WWE Intercontinental Champion, but both were already after his prime, and David was cut off before his prime, while Kevin was never a top pro wrestler on his own.<BR/><BR/>As for WCCW, it's hard to understand now how innovative this show was because it still seems "old-fashioned." But the six cameras, for instance, led to a much different presentation of the wrestlers, and I was amazed at how up-front the promotional commercials shown in the documentary were about that fact, with the commercial hyping all the technological innovations. <BR/><BR/>on WWE 24/7 On Demand, the subscription service to old wrestling clips, they've just started showing the WCCW shows, hosted by Michael Hayes and Kevin Von Erich, who explained that entrance music became popular in WCCW before it was in most other places as well, and they were one of the first shows to be "in stereo."Sam Fordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17233749268141980625noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1546665963755719151.post-65033446671980019562007-02-28T11:55:00.000-04:002007-02-28T11:55:00.000-04:00The story of the Von Erich family was truly a trag...The story of the Von Erich family was truly a tragedy. I know the many deaths the Von Erichs suffered through were a bit of an oddity in the wrestling world, but it made me wonder how prevalent drugs and other social pressures were in the wrestling world. Was this simply a product of a time when drugs just happened to be on the scene? I guess it's just kind of difficult to reconcile the picture of wrestling as depicted in the WCCW documentary with that championed by the AWA and the likes of Verne Gagne and Nick Bockwinkel. Maybe these guys were just the last of a dying era who naturally had to give it up to the new era of wrestlers. I suppose it would be naive to believe that wrestling was somehow immune to the "rockstar" lifestyle.Omarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14586811474858202484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1546665963755719151.post-77586768060357922032007-02-28T03:50:00.000-04:002007-02-28T03:50:00.000-04:00I remember watching Kerry Von Erich wrestle as the...I remember watching Kerry Von Erich wrestle as the Texas Tornado in the WWE when I was younger. I remember he passed away but I never knew how it happened. Even though I thought the video was really sad, I'm glad I was able to see the story behind him because it changed my view on Kerry from an average WWE wrestler to a major WCCW wrestler who, along with his brothers, could've been one of the greatest. It's hard to imagine the suffering that that family had to go through and the remaining brother, Kevin, continues to go through. I think that the rise and fall of the WCCW was directly realted to the Von Erich brothers. They helped make it the top rated wrestling promotion and when they weren't around to wrestle anymore, the WCCW didn't really have a chance. <BR/><BR/>The video also made me realize how much of a visionary Vince Jr. is. He was able to do what WCCW and AWA were hesitant to do, which was expand to all over the world. I'm sure a lot of the older promoters hated him and I'm sure he's still hated by many today, but it can't be denied that he knows exactly how to run his business.Ismaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05569007541989884404noreply@blogger.com