Posted on by bdamage1
Brian Damage
This is the 476th installment of the ‘Wrestling with Sin‘ series. A group of stories that delves into the darker, underbelly of pro wrestling. Many of the stories involves such subjects as sex, drugs, greed and in some cases even murder! As with every single story in the Sin series…I do not condone or condemn the alleged participants. We simply retell their stories by researching interviews, newspapers, magazines and various other sources of media.
Beer Foot
Antonino Rocca is considered the WWE’s first real star, who helped get the promotion off its feet in the early days of its existence. Rocca would eventually have a bitter falling out with Vince McMahon Sr and leave the company to form his own “outlaw” promotion in 1963 to compete against McMahon. Rocca partnered with famed Carolinas promoter Jim Crockett Sr, secured a venue in the Sunnyside Gardens in Queens, New York, a television deal with the local WOR TV channel 9 and a financial sponsor with Schaefer Beer.
Crockett would supply the talent for Rocca’s new venture, with Rocca emphasizing Hispanic wrestlers to corner the ever growing Latino population in the NYC area. The initial show was said to be a disaster with many uninspired matches on the card. Within a couple of weeks, Jim Crockett Sr pulled out of his partnership with Rocca returning his focus to the Carolina territories. A few months later, Rocca’s main sponsor…Schaefer Beer also dissolved their partnership with Rocca’s group.
According to the late Lanny Poffo, it was rumored that Rocca was caught carousing with one of the Schaefer Beer owner’s daughters. This led to a rift between Rocca and Schaefer and the beer company immediately stopped advertising for the promotion. Rocca’s promotion would ultimately fold in 1964. What also allegedly contributed to its downfall, was Rocca’s heavy drinking. It’s the heavy drinking that some say eventually lead to his early death.
Kevin’s Collapse
On May 11, 1987 during an 8 man tag team match in Fort Worth, Texas…Kevin Von Erich collapsed in the middle of the ring after whipping off the ropes. Von Erich’s eyes rolled into the back of his head and started to convulse. One of Von Erich’s tag partners that evening was Tommy Rogers, who ran into the ring and performed CPR on the fallen Von Erich.
As Kevin was being attended to by medical staff, Rogers returned backstage and was allegedly being stared down by Kevin’s father Fritz. Rogers surmised that Fritz was not happy with him because he performed CPR on Kevin in front of TV cameras and an arena filled with fans perhaps in the process making Kevin look weak. An excuse was made to fans, that Brian Adias was (kayfabe) responsible for Kevin “passing out” due to using a devastating maneuver called the Oriental Deathlock on him.
Years later, Kevin claimed he passed out from exhaustion due to all the stress and tragedy in his life at the time. He admittedly said he doesn’t remember what happened that night that as it was all just a blur. Some reports have stated that Kevin actually suffered a drug overdose in the ring. Years earlier, Gary Hart warned Fritz of his sons excessive partying and drug use and was allegedly fired as booker from World Class because of it.
The Beef With Brutus
In November of 2002, Ed Leslie aka Brutus Beefcake in the WWF, was arrested at the London Gatwick Airport. He was detained for allegedly trashing a hotel room, stealing items from said room and refusing to pay for the damages. Leslie, who was booked to work for an independent group in the United Kingdom decided to skip town after the incident at the hotel.
Once Leslie arrived at the airport, he was met by police and arrested. Leslie paid an undisclosed fine and was released from custody where he returned to the United States.
That’s Amari
NXT developmental wrestler Amari Miller revealed on social media that in January of 2023 she attempted suicide. She asked her fans to be supportive and opened up about her mental health issues. Miller stated…“Everything isn’t what it seems, mental health is hard, we should all speak out even though I know it’s hard, you are loved, fight through with me plz!
“I show this not for sympathy but to relate and know that you are not alone and I’m here for anyone that needs an ear to listen!”
Amari had been a rising star within WWE’s NXT brand before she was sidelined due to injury. Amari is currently rehabbing from a knee injury. We here at Ring the Damn Bell offer our support to Amari Miller and her battles with mental health. Hopefully she gets all the help and support she needs.