I recall hearing that one of his dying wishes was to be cremated and then have his ashes mixed in with the pyro on Nitro. And they actually did it. I don't recall what episode of Nitro it was but supposedly the pyro at the opening of that episode had his ashes. If that's true, that's legit some gangster shit.
i wonder if bischoff made the call to do that, since he'd get royalties for it. for all of eric's faults, he did make sure brian got paid out weekly until he passed and made it clear his job was always there when he got better (that's something mick foley went out of his way to praise eric for in his books)
@ericmonaco4509 lol word, as a kid i always just assumed it was Nick Patrick since he was the NWO ref, but finding out its Brian Hildebrand aka Mark Curtis is cool
True story about Adrian Adonis. Roddy Piper was a friend of his. Adrian's accident happened here in my province, Newfoundland, Canada. My uncle was the first person on the scene. What he saw was very tragic. But he kept the images he saw to himself for all those years. Roddy Piper came to my area for a show he was touring with. He wanted so much to know more about what happened. So we organized it so that my Uncle would write a letter about what he witnessed. That's what Roddy wanted. I presented Piper with the letter, and he said "You are a sweet man, thank you!". He read the letter later that night, and said on Twitter that he shed tears, and finally put closure to it, and that he wanted to thank those involved. There were a number of people who passed that fateful day. It always bothered Roddy not knowing. He just needed that closure. So I connected with Roddy for a little bit after. He was also doing advocacy for an anti-bullying group I was involved with. That's my story of Roddy Piper, and I will forever cherish that connection in which I played a small part to help him. May all those we have lost rest in peace.🕊️
It is such an amazing example of how much everyone at cultaholic cares about not just pro wrestling but the community that made it and the community that keep it going that don’t normally get the interest they deserve. Thank you to everyone at cultaholic
If I'm not mistaken, another WCW referee, Randy Anderson, also passed away from cancer in his 40s within a couple of years of Brian Hildebrand's passing.
Yes, he did, and to this day I despise Eric Bischoff for coming up with the "you're fired" angle he used when he was with the NWO. Randy was in the middle of his cancer fight when that happened.
@@danc3488 to be fair though, that angle got Randy a ton of sympathy from the audience and is one of the reasons that his untimely death has stuck in my head for all these years. Edit: but yeah, exploiting real life tragedy/struggles for storylines is always in poor taste.
Thank You SO much for this vid. So many of these wrestlers get forgotten because they weren't "main eventers" or didn't wrestle for WWE. Jay Young blood is one of my all time favorite wrestlers, and his tragic death has been all but forgotten by the wrestling industry
When I was 10 I went to use the Bathroom during Intermission at the Shark tank in San Jose. I used a different Mens Room due to Lines. My mom grabbed a dude to look for me in the bathroom because I was taking forever in her mind. Turned out to be Crash Holly's Brother that she grabbed and he got her huge Hand Drawn Undertaker Portrait for an old WWF Magazine Cover Autographed by Undertaker for her.
ICYMI there's a DSOTR episode about JYD. I won't say too much if you haven't seen it, but IIRC he fell asleep at the wheel, he'd been taking a lot of amphetamines to maximise his waking hours (yes I know he wasn't the only wrestler who did this). Still, very much a tragedy. May he R.I.P.
The WWF Games on N64 were better...but I may be biased. When we got an N64 for Christmas back then, my sister got Super Mario 64...I got Raw Is War and loved it. The Create a Character Career Mode was waaaay ahead of it's time
I remember watching WCW as a kid and seeing Brian Hildebrand he was one of those referees that have the respect of the locker room in the wrestling matches that he was the referee in
Man that story about Russ Haas is definitely sad and does spark another what if cases. What would've happened for Shelton Benjamin if Russ stayed on this earth? Would Charlie have had a longer mainstay in WWE with his brother? And while it didn't happen to Russ, hearing the stories of those who had to deal with obviously physical health but as well as mental health is why mental health needs to be taken seriously and sadly today it still feels like it isn't talked about enough so people don't seem to consider it serious
@@reirose3069 the vast majority of people who play the mental health card have absolutely nothing wrong with them. You know that as well as I do people are just weak and soft now.. They get offended by everything
Rowdy Piper said the ghost of Adrian Adonis showed up at his new house the week he purchased it, He said that Adonis was the the one who talked him into buying a house and putting down roots. Adrian and Rowdy were great friends so maybe he did.
i believe that he believed that. don't let my name fool you, i'm not religious, but i wish i could believe in the afterlife. it's a beautiful, comforting thing to believe in that sort of thing. makes life that much less of a bummer.
I remember the day or the day they announced when Joey Morell passed away. I was truly saddened. There was something about him as a referee. You knew he was a good-hearted person. I never knew Harvey Whipelman was with him in the car. Thank you for sharing this.
I remember that referee Joey Marella has passed because it was mentioned on a show back in 1994. Even remembered that he was just 31 when he died. I was a kid watching and my mom was watching with me. She was shocked that he was still so young dying at 31 already. When I saw a referee on the thumbnail I was assuming it was him. Good to know what his name was after 30 years now. Strange what one can remember.
Also worth mentioning that Charlie briefly dropped his first name and wrestled as “RC Haas” in the wake of his brother’s passing - he used it for all of 2002, per Cagematch, until he moved from HWA to OVW, where he resumed being Charlie.
@ she might’ve ruptured a vein in her stomach (possibly from a body slam) and continued to wrestle later that same night (7/27/1951) despite complaining of a serious headache shortly before the evening match, she collapsed shortly after tagging in her teammate. She never regained consciousness and died on 7/28/1951 with the official cause of death being listed as a brain hemorrhage from a blood clot that had formed a week earlier
I was in the gym with Jerry Tuite aka WCW's The Wall and TNA's Malice. Bro was in the best shape of his career not long before he passed and left behind a lot of "what if."
Very good video and thank you for the content. I appreciate the people involved in the video treating the subject with class and keep the wonderful content coming please.
Thanks for highlighting MOFO Steve Bradley. I met Steve his post WWE days in NH where he was running his promotion, WFA ( Wrestling Federation of America ) I used to go to as many shows as I could, was in a group of the crowd that was vocal all the time….. met Eddie Edwards, The golden Greek, Alex Arion, Brian Fury, and many other great talents. RIP Steve.
Thank you for mentioning Jay Youngblood. I learned of him when I was really young and was always drawn to the story. It has always baffled me that I've never heard mention of him when stories of wrestling tragedies are told.
@@The_Shining_wizard 😂😂😂 be quiet fool i have no idea who they are. I stopped watching wrestling in 2004 and if a wrestler hasn't worked for Vince Mcmahon I don't know them
@@The_Shining_wizard Why are you worried about people making comments on TH-cam? Don't you have anything better to do with your time. Look at some photos of beautiful women like Tina Chandler Lenda Murray Iris Kyle Andrea Shaw Sheila Bleck Debi Laszewski Yaxeni Oriquen Garcia Betty Pariso and many others
There's so many the list couldn't be too long. If they do a follow up though I think Test isn't talked about anywhere near enough as he should so it would be nice to see him on there
I have the same pancreatitis Jay Youngblood passed from. With all the medical advancements we've had it's still no joke. If he wrestled going through that he's the toughest guy ever. Sheesh. R.I.P Youngblood
Brian Hildebrand is one of my favorite wrestling figures of all time. The video of him stopping the fan from entering the ring is GOLD. Dude would have thrived in today's more diverse era as far as size and grit goes, but I'm glad I grew up with him and Pee-wee as referees. Great men and I miss them in the business.
Larry Sweeney hit me hard as a teen. I was such a big fan of his on Chikara and ROH, and his death was sad to say the least. I can't imagine how it felt for his family and friends.
Thanks for doing this. The fact that I know some of these and wouldn't have called them "forgotten" only makes their inclusion even more important, it would seem.
The Australian hospital Jay died in was the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Parkville, near the city centre of Melbourne. My mother & her sister were both trained as nurses there.
Mark Curtis (Brian Hildebrand) was my favorite referee as a kid...loved watching him ref in WCW...would watch him more than the match itself...the way he slid around the ring among other things made matches more interesting...loved his appearance as a ref in the N64 games as well
When he switched to the Adorable gimmick Adonis gave his biker jacket to Piper. Hot Rod would wear the jacket in tribute to his friend for most of the rest of his career.
Wasn´t Joey adopted by Gorilla? But since Monsoon died just 5 years later, because of heart issues, for me it always felt that he died from a broken heart from losing his son.
You are correct. Joey was adopted. Gorilla was a very proud father. Jesse Ventura and Bobby Heenan used to rib him all the time on commentary by being overly critical of Joey. After he died, Gorilla, understandably, was never the same again, and I think it's fair to say he died of a broken heart.
@@thedispatcher01 People say that it is not possible to die of a broken heart. But I have seen it personally the guy who lived across the street from my mom when I was a kid lost his daughter in a automobile accident and less than a year later he was gone. It was crazy how much he aged in such a short period of time he lost that stentorian voice and wasn't jacked any more
I think you are absolutely right. I was never a fan of WWF, but had seen Gino/Gorilla wrestle for Frank Tunney in Toronto a couple of times. I also think he may have died of a broken heart.
Jerry Blackwell was one of those who played monsters in the ring but like John Tenta were complete sweethearts outside it. Such a gentle man. Fun Fact: One of his biggest wins was beating Andre the Giant clean. RIP Big Guy. You are missed.
The irony is Brian would have had a decent shot in today's wrestling landscape.... And his buddy Jim Cornette would never stop shit talking him for it.
I started watching wrestling at the age of 9, and almost immediately had a crush on Jay Youngblood. Being so young and believing wrestling was real, I was always so devastated when he was "injured ". I was in 9th grade when he passed away. He could have been a real breakout star.
5:55 Brady "Battle Cat" Boone was one of the greatest jobbers during the golden era of wrestling alongside Iron Mike Sharpe and The Brooklyn Brawler Steve Lombardi.
Damn, I hadn't thought about Jay Youngblood in decades. I watched him and Steamboat in Mid-Atlantic growing up. Jim Crockett's territory was so stacked.
I watched everything until I hit Charlie Haas. I lost it. I don’t know what happened. I lost my brother when he was 20 back in 2006. I don’t know what happened. I completely crashed.
I remember hearing a story that Mene Gene Okerlund on the WCW hotline said nobody had a bad word to say about Brady Boone but that’s because nobody had ever heard of him
Crash Holly went to my HS and wrestled as the leprechaun in my local indie (APW) loved going to watch him when I was in middle school was pretty sad when he passed away especially like he did.
I'm going to check out Larry Sweeney. Hadn't heard of him before, but I know all too well the good and bad of managing bipolar disorder. It's not all bad since it allows for tapping into special talents (like being uniquely motormouthed) but ultimately will lead to tragedy if you're not taking special care of yourself. Which I'm sure is incredibly difficult when living the life of a pro wrestler.
Pedro Aguayo. Poor bastard died in the ring during a match with Rey Mysterio. Edit: just for clarity sake, I’m not saying Rey is to blame. The reason I brought him up was purely so people would understand what I was referring to. Freak accidents happen
Perrito was already injured, i mean he could just cancelled the match to get check out but he was old school like his father, he didn't want to leave his fans disapointed
The story of Brian Hildebrand is one that will warm your heart as much as it will break it, dude truly was a salt of the earth kind of guy
Here, Here, Thank You Mr. Hildebrand, Your Contributions to the Squared Circle will Never Be Forgotten!🥲
And despite there being other well-known (and tenured) referees in the company, The Shooter was made the cartoon referee for WCW vs. nWo Revenge.
Will always be remembered for taking out a fan who ran in the middle of the match 😊
@@nicktaylor2657 I laugh my butt off whenever I see that moment, Bobby Heenan's comment after Brian tackles the dope makes it even better XD
I recall hearing that one of his dying wishes was to be cremated and then have his ashes mixed in with the pyro on Nitro. And they actually did it. I don't recall what episode of Nitro it was but supposedly the pyro at the opening of that episode had his ashes. If that's true, that's legit some gangster shit.
I love that in WCW nWo Revenge, Mark Curtis is the onscreen cartoony referee. R.I.P.
I was literally going to comment this and saw that you already beat me to it. Great call!
i wonder if bischoff made the call to do that, since he'd get royalties for it.
for all of eric's faults, he did make sure brian got paid out weekly until he passed and made it clear his job was always there when he got better (that's something mick foley went out of his way to praise eric for in his books)
I thought that was Nick Patrick
@ericmonaco4509 lol word, as a kid i always just assumed it was Nick Patrick since he was the NWO ref, but finding out its Brian Hildebrand aka Mark Curtis is cool
Its the fact that the oldest guy on the list was 40. That is way too young to be passing away. A lot of good work and understanding put into the video
45 (Jerry Blackwell) but still way too young
Thank you for giving Crash Holly his dues.
Really wish you would have mentioned the Death of Trent Acid & Matt Travis
Man so glad u mentioned these
Whole bunch of CZW originals like Trent left us far too soon
I honestly think theres so many tragedies in the wrestling world and hopefully there is many parts to cover as much as possible
I'm suprised crash Holly hasent been on the dark side of the ring he defiantly had one
I wasn’t watching at the time of Trent Acid, but they definitely keep his name alive. Matt Travis’ was so sad and shocking! Good dude
Holy shit, I just realized I saw Joey Marella's last match. I was at that Ocean City show
same
True story about Adrian Adonis. Roddy Piper was a friend of his. Adrian's accident happened here in my province, Newfoundland, Canada. My uncle was the first person on the scene. What he saw was very tragic. But he kept the images he saw to himself for all those years.
Roddy Piper came to my area for a show he was touring with. He wanted so much to know more about what happened. So we organized it so that my Uncle would write a letter about what he witnessed. That's what Roddy wanted.
I presented Piper with the letter, and he said "You are a sweet man, thank you!". He read the letter later that night, and said on Twitter that he shed tears, and finally put closure to it, and that he wanted to thank those involved.
There were a number of people who passed that fateful day. It always bothered Roddy not knowing. He just needed that closure.
So I connected with Roddy for a little bit after. He was also doing advocacy for an anti-bullying group I was involved with.
That's my story of Roddy Piper, and I will forever cherish that connection in which I played a small part to help him.
May all those we have lost rest in peace.🕊️
@M1stah.J it absolutely did happen. Not sure why you have to be an absolute dick about it, but ok.
@@M1stah.J do you feel better?
@@M1stah.J 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Get to the point
Me and my wife drove to Bakersfield and visited Adrian Adonis headstone.
It is such an amazing example of how much everyone at cultaholic cares about not just pro wrestling but the community that made it and the community that keep it going that don’t normally get the interest they deserve. Thank you to everyone at cultaholic
If I'm not mistaken, another WCW referee, Randy Anderson, also passed away from cancer in his 40s within a couple of years of Brian Hildebrand's passing.
Yeah, sadly Randy died in 2002 after having battled testicular cancer for six years.
Yes, he did, and to this day I despise Eric Bischoff for coming up with the "you're fired" angle he used when he was with the NWO. Randy was in the middle of his cancer fight when that happened.
@@danc3488 to be fair though, that angle got Randy a ton of sympathy from the audience and is one of the reasons that his untimely death has stuck in my head for all these years. Edit: but yeah, exploiting real life tragedy/struggles for storylines is always in poor taste.
Thank You SO much for this vid. So many of these wrestlers get forgotten because they weren't "main eventers" or didn't wrestle for WWE. Jay Young blood is one of my all time favorite wrestlers, and his tragic death has been all but forgotten by the wrestling industry
Crash Holly was hilarious when it came to him defending his Hardcore title 24/7. Thanks for giving the little guy props.
He's still my favorite super heavyweight.
Crash Holly is one of my heroes. Thank you for giving him his flowers. R.I.P Mike.
When I was 10 I went to use the Bathroom during Intermission at the Shark tank in San Jose. I used a different Mens Room due to Lines. My mom grabbed a dude to look for me in the bathroom because I was taking forever in her mind. Turned out to be Crash Holly's Brother that she grabbed and he got her huge Hand Drawn Undertaker Portrait for an old WWF Magazine Cover Autographed by Undertaker for her.
@justinlast2lastharder749 That's so cool! Thanks for the story. :)
Junk Yard Dog (Sylvester Ritter) died at age 45, in 1998. Single-car accident, driving home from his daughter's graduation.
He made an appearance in ECW right before he died in the car crash.
ICYMI there's a DSOTR episode about JYD. I won't say too much if you haven't seen it, but IIRC he fell asleep at the wheel, he'd been taking a lot of amphetamines to maximise his waking hours (yes I know he wasn't the only wrestler who did this). Still, very much a tragedy. May he R.I.P.
Jyd is a notable passing
Brian Hildebrand will always be immortalised as the ref in the WCW N64 games
I thought that was Nick Patrick
The WWF Games on N64 were better...but I may be biased. When we got an N64 for Christmas back then, my sister got Super Mario 64...I got Raw Is War and loved it. The Create a Character Career Mode was waaaay ahead of it's time
Dead are only those we forget. Thank you guys for this video.
I remember watching WCW as a kid and seeing Brian Hildebrand he was one of those referees that have the respect of the locker room in the wrestling matches that he was the referee in
Brian Hildebrand and his akimbo guns will never be forgotten by the older fans and those who are reliving those days through Reliving The War.
Chin abuse, the wiggle, David flair sucking balls, high quality entertainment
Man that story about Russ Haas is definitely sad and does spark another what if cases. What would've happened for Shelton Benjamin if Russ stayed on this earth? Would Charlie have had a longer mainstay in WWE with his brother? And while it didn't happen to Russ, hearing the stories of those who had to deal with obviously physical health but as well as mental health is why mental health needs to be taken seriously and sadly today it still feels like it isn't talked about enough so people don't seem to consider it serious
it is talked about way too much i am sick of people playing the mental health card
@@stewartmcrae8007 so you're one of those that don't believe in mental health?
@@reirose3069 the vast majority of people who play the mental health card have absolutely nothing wrong with them. You know that as well as I do people are just weak and soft now.. They get offended by everything
Rowdy Piper said the ghost of Adrian Adonis showed up at his new house the week he purchased it, He said that Adonis was the the one who talked him into buying a house and putting down roots. Adrian and Rowdy were great friends so maybe he did.
i believe that he believed that. don't let my name fool you, i'm not religious, but i wish i could believe in the afterlife. it's a beautiful, comforting thing to believe in that sort of thing. makes life that much less of a bummer.
Yeah Piper talked about this on one of those paranormal shows
@@billblaski9523 --- I seen that show and a psychic said that another wrestler was there. Turned out to be Owen Hart!
I remember the day or the day they announced when Joey Morell passed away. I was truly saddened. There was something about him as a referee. You knew he was a good-hearted person. I never knew Harvey Whipelman was with him in the car. Thank you for sharing this.
I remember that referee Joey Marella has passed because it was mentioned on a show back in 1994. Even remembered that he was just 31 when he died. I was a kid watching and my mom was watching with me. She was shocked that he was still so young dying at 31 already. When I saw a referee on the thumbnail I was assuming it was him. Good to know what his name was after 30 years now. Strange what one can remember.
Also worth mentioning that Charlie briefly dropped his first name and wrestled as “RC Haas” in the wake of his brother’s passing - he used it for all of 2002, per Cagematch, until he moved from HWA to OVW, where he resumed being Charlie.
Thanks for mentioning Brady Boone
Oh man most of these are super devastating. I surprisingly never knew about Russ Haas
Janet Wolfe, she’s still the youngest wrestler to die as a result of her injuries in the ring
Thank you for mentioning her. That's so sad. RIP
@ I know, she was only 18
@@jakealter5504 damn only 18? What happened
@ she might’ve ruptured a vein in her stomach (possibly from a body slam) and continued to wrestle later that same night (7/27/1951) despite complaining of a serious headache shortly before the evening match, she collapsed shortly after tagging in her teammate. She never regained consciousness and died on 7/28/1951 with the official cause of death being listed as a brain hemorrhage from a blood clot that had formed a week earlier
I was in the gym with Jerry Tuite aka WCW's The Wall and TNA's Malice. Bro was in the best shape of his career not long before he passed and left behind a lot of "what if."
Very good video and thank you for the content. I appreciate the people involved in the video treating the subject with class and keep the wonderful content coming please.
I thought Shad Gaspard would’ve got a mention, showed what it means to be a dad.
He is not a forgotten case though
@ fair point
@@bryannorton8945He is a hall of famer
Very nice to put Brian at the end. A respected legend everywhere
I was expecting Louie Spicolli / Rad Radford to be on this list.
Thanks for highlighting MOFO Steve Bradley.
I met Steve his post WWE days in NH where he was running his promotion, WFA ( Wrestling Federation of America )
I used to go to as many shows as I could, was in a group of the crowd that was vocal all the time…..
met Eddie Edwards, The golden Greek, Alex Arion, Brian Fury, and many other great talents. RIP Steve.
Thank you for mentioning Jay Youngblood. I learned of him when I was really young and was always drawn to the story. It has always baffled me that I've never heard mention of him when stories of wrestling tragedies are told.
RIP Sweet N Sour Larry Sweeney.
My dad played baseball with Joey Marella, and we live in the same town that Joey and his dad Gorilla lived in in Willingboro NJ
Misawa Mistuharu and Plum Mariko never forget them
Who
@@stewartmcrae8007Stop acting dumb
@@The_Shining_wizard 😂😂😂 be quiet fool i have no idea who they are. I stopped watching wrestling in 2004 and if a wrestler hasn't worked for Vince Mcmahon I don't know them
@@stewartmcrae8007 Don’t ask who when it takes a simple google search . Shit takes 40 seconds.🤣🤣
@@The_Shining_wizard Why are you worried about people making comments on TH-cam? Don't you have anything better to do with your time. Look at some photos of beautiful women like Tina Chandler Lenda Murray Iris Kyle Andrea Shaw Sheila Bleck Debi Laszewski Yaxeni Oriquen Garcia Betty Pariso and many others
So sad that if you’ve reached 46, you have outlived everyone mentioned in this video.
Another one is Trent Acid; phenomenal talent that couldn’t get past the addiction
he dominated in the ring. sad he couldnt dominate his demons
Adorable Adrian was magic in that character. For as big as he was, he moved incredible.
I'm a bit surprised Jack Tunny and Dino Bravo weren't mentioned.
There's so many the list couldn't be too long. If they do a follow up though I think Test isn't talked about anywhere near enough as he should so it would be nice to see him on there
To be far those deaths are remembered quite well so I don’t think they belong on this list.
Dino Bravo had a Dark Side of the Ring episode. I don't think you can call it forgotten
@@jamesmnaylor WWE rarely, if ever, bought up Tunny's name since he left.
@@rhedosaurus2251 not necessarily wwf but wrestling fans no quite well.
we need crash holly in the hall of fame
R.I.P. to all those lost. I’m sorry. ❤💐🕊️
This is a tragic video but definitely a good watch. Thanks so much for bringing us wrestling history. I love your content
This is awesome that you gave these guys their due. RIP to all
I have the same pancreatitis Jay Youngblood passed from. With all the medical advancements we've had it's still no joke. If he wrestled going through that he's the toughest guy ever. Sheesh. R.I.P Youngblood
Brian Hildebrand is one of my favorite wrestling figures of all time. The video of him stopping the fan from entering the ring is GOLD. Dude would have thrived in today's more diverse era as far as size and grit goes, but I'm glad I grew up with him and Pee-wee as referees. Great men and I miss them in the business.
Larry Sweeney hit me hard as a teen. I was such a big fan of his on Chikara and ROH, and his death was sad to say the least. I can't imagine how it felt for his family and friends.
This was so well put together Adam but damn it was upsetting.
Thanks for doing this. The fact that I know some of these and wouldn't have called them "forgotten" only makes their inclusion even more important, it would seem.
Jay Young Blood great talent
The Australian hospital Jay died in was the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Parkville, near the city centre of Melbourne. My mother & her sister were both trained as nurses there.
Here. Love from Canada
I'm so glad Crash Holly is getting some recognition. People barely talk about him. He was a major part of the Attitude era.
Mark Curtis (Brian Hildebrand) was my favorite referee as a kid...loved watching him ref in WCW...would watch him more than the match itself...the way he slid around the ring among other things made matches more interesting...loved his appearance as a ref in the N64 games as well
the death of Joey Marella messed Gorilla up and among other things contributed to his own death in 1999 RIP Joey and Gorilla
When he switched to the Adorable gimmick Adonis gave his biker jacket to Piper. Hot Rod would wear the jacket in tribute to his friend for most of the rest of his career.
Really cool that you made Hildebrand the finale. I always like hearing cool things about him.
Wasn´t Joey adopted by Gorilla? But since Monsoon died just 5 years later, because of heart issues, for me it always felt that he died from a broken heart from losing his son.
You are correct. Joey was adopted. Gorilla was a very proud father. Jesse Ventura and Bobby Heenan used to rib him all the time on commentary by being overly critical of Joey. After he died, Gorilla, understandably, was never the same again, and I think it's fair to say he died of a broken heart.
@@thedispatcher01 People say that it is not possible to die of a broken heart. But I have seen it personally the guy who lived across the street from my mom when I was a kid lost his daughter in a automobile accident and less than a year later he was gone. It was crazy how much he aged in such a short period of time he lost that stentorian voice and wasn't jacked any more
I think you are absolutely right. I was never a fan of WWF, but had seen Gino/Gorilla wrestle for Frank Tunney in Toronto a couple of times. I also think he may have died of a broken heart.
I do not expect to see Benoit on this list. Although WWE wants/has forgot about him in general. The fans sure haven’t forgot.
Exactly why I feel Adrian Adonis and Joey Marella should be inducted into the Hall of Fame ❤❤
The Dynamite Kid lived near me
Jerry Blackwell was one of those who played monsters in the ring but like John Tenta were complete sweethearts outside it. Such a gentle man. Fun Fact: One of his biggest wins was beating Andre the Giant clean. RIP Big Guy. You are missed.
Great video, guys!
The irony is Brian would have had a decent shot in today's wrestling landscape....
And his buddy Jim Cornette would never stop shit talking him for it.
Yea but we shouldn’t take Jim seriously. He seems miserable.
Jim would have an excuse for why it was okay that Brian did wrestle for him in Smoky Mountain, as "Kowabunga the Ninja Turtle" no less.
I was hoping you guys would shine a light on Brad Armstrong or even WCW referee Randy Anderson
I started watching wrestling at the age of 9, and almost immediately had a crush on Jay Youngblood. Being so young and believing wrestling was real, I was always so devastated when he was "injured ". I was in 9th grade when he passed away. He could have been a real breakout star.
Thanks for the video guys
I miss crash holly (Mike Lockwood). He passed away in 2003. I definitely miss the 24 hours hardcore belt on the line.
Good stuff, but, How could you leave out the detail of Brian Hildebrand had his ashes mixed with the pyro on an episode of Monday night nitro?
5:55 Brady "Battle Cat" Boone was one of the greatest jobbers during the golden era of wrestling alongside Iron Mike Sharpe and The Brooklyn Brawler Steve Lombardi.
Damn, I hadn't thought about Jay Youngblood in decades. I watched him and Steamboat in Mid-Atlantic growing up. Jim Crockett's territory was so stacked.
never forgot Adrian, every time i saw Roddy in that jacket it moves me near to tears
I'm hearing the ages of these guys and it floors me that they died so young.
Having a heart attack at 27 is crazy God bless Charlie has brother soul ❤❤
I grew up a half hour from where Adrian Adonis died and moose related car accidents are still a big problem on that highway.
Brian Hildebrand was my Mom's favorite. She loved watching him sell punches and moves on Nitro. I remember she cried when news broke of his passing.
Blackwell was a cruiserweight in a super heavyweight body. Strong, agile, and professional. RIP
I watched everything until I hit Charlie Haas. I lost it. I don’t know what happened. I lost my brother when he was 20 back in 2006. I don’t know what happened. I completely crashed.
Rip Brodie Lee and jey Briscoe ❤❤❤❤
I remember hearing a story that Mene Gene Okerlund on the WCW hotline said nobody had a bad word to say about Brady Boone but that’s because nobody had ever heard of him
Had no idea about Russ Haas. Wow. Charlie fought through
Being on the road 300+ days a year and having to travel every night checks out with these guys falling asleep at the wheel.
Crash Holly was one of those unsung stars. Was very over for a while there.
The really tragic part of almost all of theses is that they could have been so easily preventable.
Mick Foley dedicated a beautifully written chapter of his autobiography to Brian Hildebrand.
I never heard how Jerry Blackwell died. If you do another one, you should talk about QuickDraw Rick McGraw.
Crash Holly went to my HS and wrestled as the leprechaun in my local indie (APW) loved going to watch him when I was in middle school was pretty sad when he passed away especially like he did.
When you're 42 and realizing you outlive so many pro wrestlers...
Joey was my childhood referee!! RIP
12 Large forever baby ❤
I'm going to check out Larry Sweeney. Hadn't heard of him before, but I know all too well the good and bad of managing bipolar disorder. It's not all bad since it allows for tapping into special talents (like being uniquely motormouthed) but ultimately will lead to tragedy if you're not taking special care of yourself. Which I'm sure is incredibly difficult when living the life of a pro wrestler.
Crash Holly's death is unsurprising given the massive amount of weight he was carrying around on such a small frame.
Hey now.... He was only ALLEGEDLY well over 400lbs
"The Crown Jewel of the Embassy" Jimmy Rave passing on December 12, 2021 at the age of 39.
The Haas could've been one of the best tag teams of the ruthless agression era
I would’ve thought Trent Acid would be on this list. RIP.
Honestly I'm surprised a bit that Bruiser Brodie wasn't listed. But a great video nonetheless
Read the title: "Forgotten deaths". The Bruiser Brody case is hardly forgotten. It's one of the most notorious deaths in wrestling history
Let’s make sure these stars aren’t forgotten anymore 🕊️🫡
68 comeback special neck breaker ddt is my favorite finish rip sweet and sour
Stevie Richards really needs to talk about Crash on his Podcast...
I have a Crusher Blackwell action figure. Didnt pick up AWA at my home but ...
Thanks 🎉
Pedro Aguayo. Poor bastard died in the ring during a match with Rey Mysterio.
Edit: just for clarity sake, I’m not saying Rey is to blame. The reason I brought him up was purely so people would understand what I was referring to. Freak accidents happen
Freak accident. You definitely can’t blame anyone for that.
@ i wasn’t
Perrito was already injured, i mean he could just cancelled the match to get check out but he was old school like his father, he didn't want to leave his fans disapointed
@@ElDunPleb we can throw blame around all we want, but it’s a horrible tragedy
Daffney