When I say Pro Wrestling Star i don't mean gold medalists and Sumo guys. I'm talking about the "Superstars" of WWE, WCW, TNA, etc. Now that we have that clear, lets move on to the point of this blog.
Recently you may have heard of Randy Savage, aka Macho Man, who died at age 58 standing 6'2" weighing 240 pounds. When you look at old wrestling clips of when he first started out it's not hard to see that he gained a lot of muscle. His natural build was lean and lanky, which was perfect for baseball where he started out. Now over twenty years later at age 58 he was massive. It was no surprise to me that they found his heart to be enlarged and in bad shape. Minor cuts and bruises don't kill people, bad hearts do.
Starting from 1917, we will go through the causes of death of Pro Wrestling Stars. I'll go in order from least common to most common causes. To save time i wont give names and detailed accounts of how they died, but i'll place several sites at the end of this blog in case you get curious.
In all there have been 95 deaths starting from the first in 1917 (Frank Gotch) and last being Randy Savage, as previously mentioned, this year.
#12.) Ruptured Blood Vessel: 1 (happened while weight lifting)
#11-9.) 3 way tie: Unknown causes, Murder, and Stroke = 3 (each)
--Yes, i find it interesting that there are just as many murders as strokes. Especially strokes being the #3
cause of death in the United States and murder being #15. So, if you use the US statistics vs Pro Wrestling Statistics you find that as a pro wrestler you have over 3 times the normal chance for being murdered.
#8-7.) Tie: Complications with surgery, and kidney problems = 4 (each)
-- Kidney disease is the #9 leading cause of death in the US, so in my opinion there is no real reason to draw
attention to this number.
#6-5.) Tie: Vehicular Accidents, and Suicide = 6 (each)
-- one was a plane crash, and he was the pilot. That's also a disturbing number of suicides considering in the US it's not even a top 10 cause of death, and here it's tied for #6 with accidents, which is #5 in the US. As a Pro
Wrestler you are 6 1/2 times more likely to commit suicide than the average American.
#4.) Drug Overdose: 9
-- This again is a very disturbing number, and also helps to prove my point for putting this blog up. The drugs range from pain killers to cocaine. Showing that they seem to have a strong bond with Professional Wrestling. The last one to OD was Andrew Martin, aka TEST, and was just 33 years old, in March of 2009. Drug use is in the
"other" category which is a clump of things that cause less than 1% of deaths in the US put together, which means Pro Wrestlers have a serious drug problem no matter how you slice it.
#3.) Cancer: 10
-- In the US cancer is the #2 leading cause of death. Although scary, this number is one of the few that is not totally out of whack.
#2.) Natural Causes: Those that have died of a heart attack at age 65+ (beings the average American Males first heart attack is at age 66), and other causes such as sickle cell (1 guy), and diabetes (1 guy). = 16
-- so whether they died do to an enlarged heart from years of drug use or not, once they hit 65 it's really hard to
make a big conspiracy out of, so for this blog we'll call them all legit deaths.
#1.) Heart Attack Before age 65: 30
-- This is perhaps the the most disturbing number. Pro Wrestlers are the most likely to die of heart problems before the average of any other occupation. Most of the 30 where not even 60! Nearly a dozen where under 40, and
the youngest was Russ Haas at age 27.
The lesson to take from this is that our Superstars are obviously out of control, and although awesome spectacles to look at, and awe inspiring to children and wrestling fans, they are in need of much help. Someone isn't doing their job if people are dying so obviously young from things that shouldn't even be a concern. I myself am a wrestling fan, and although i'm not a big fan, i still enjoy watching it at times, and i too find my self wishing i could look like them, but i know what they put themselves through and sometimes i feel a big guilty for supporting it, but then again when it comes down to it, they are making the choice... so how do you begin the argument with someone that is totally ok with what they are doing, knowing the risks they are taking? I suppose you start by making others aware.
some sites for more information:
WRESTLERS
http://ricknovaksr.tripod.com/wrestlinglife/id20.html
http://www.pwwew.net/people/dead.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/2004-03-12-pro-wrestling_x.htm
DEATH STATS
http://www.howtolivealongerlife.com/2009/07/leading-causes-of-death-in-us.html
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0779147.html
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/lcod.htm
Recently you may have heard of Randy Savage, aka Macho Man, who died at age 58 standing 6'2" weighing 240 pounds. When you look at old wrestling clips of when he first started out it's not hard to see that he gained a lot of muscle. His natural build was lean and lanky, which was perfect for baseball where he started out. Now over twenty years later at age 58 he was massive. It was no surprise to me that they found his heart to be enlarged and in bad shape. Minor cuts and bruises don't kill people, bad hearts do.
Starting from 1917, we will go through the causes of death of Pro Wrestling Stars. I'll go in order from least common to most common causes. To save time i wont give names and detailed accounts of how they died, but i'll place several sites at the end of this blog in case you get curious.
In all there have been 95 deaths starting from the first in 1917 (Frank Gotch) and last being Randy Savage, as previously mentioned, this year.
#12.) Ruptured Blood Vessel: 1 (happened while weight lifting)
#11-9.) 3 way tie: Unknown causes, Murder, and Stroke = 3 (each)
--Yes, i find it interesting that there are just as many murders as strokes. Especially strokes being the #3
cause of death in the United States and murder being #15. So, if you use the US statistics vs Pro Wrestling Statistics you find that as a pro wrestler you have over 3 times the normal chance for being murdered.
#8-7.) Tie: Complications with surgery, and kidney problems = 4 (each)
-- Kidney disease is the #9 leading cause of death in the US, so in my opinion there is no real reason to draw
attention to this number.
#6-5.) Tie: Vehicular Accidents, and Suicide = 6 (each)
-- one was a plane crash, and he was the pilot. That's also a disturbing number of suicides considering in the US it's not even a top 10 cause of death, and here it's tied for #6 with accidents, which is #5 in the US. As a Pro
Wrestler you are 6 1/2 times more likely to commit suicide than the average American.
#4.) Drug Overdose: 9
-- This again is a very disturbing number, and also helps to prove my point for putting this blog up. The drugs range from pain killers to cocaine. Showing that they seem to have a strong bond with Professional Wrestling. The last one to OD was Andrew Martin, aka TEST, and was just 33 years old, in March of 2009. Drug use is in the
"other" category which is a clump of things that cause less than 1% of deaths in the US put together, which means Pro Wrestlers have a serious drug problem no matter how you slice it.
#3.) Cancer: 10
-- In the US cancer is the #2 leading cause of death. Although scary, this number is one of the few that is not totally out of whack.
#2.) Natural Causes: Those that have died of a heart attack at age 65+ (beings the average American Males first heart attack is at age 66), and other causes such as sickle cell (1 guy), and diabetes (1 guy). = 16
-- so whether they died do to an enlarged heart from years of drug use or not, once they hit 65 it's really hard to
make a big conspiracy out of, so for this blog we'll call them all legit deaths.
#1.) Heart Attack Before age 65: 30
-- This is perhaps the the most disturbing number. Pro Wrestlers are the most likely to die of heart problems before the average of any other occupation. Most of the 30 where not even 60! Nearly a dozen where under 40, and
the youngest was Russ Haas at age 27.
The lesson to take from this is that our Superstars are obviously out of control, and although awesome spectacles to look at, and awe inspiring to children and wrestling fans, they are in need of much help. Someone isn't doing their job if people are dying so obviously young from things that shouldn't even be a concern. I myself am a wrestling fan, and although i'm not a big fan, i still enjoy watching it at times, and i too find my self wishing i could look like them, but i know what they put themselves through and sometimes i feel a big guilty for supporting it, but then again when it comes down to it, they are making the choice... so how do you begin the argument with someone that is totally ok with what they are doing, knowing the risks they are taking? I suppose you start by making others aware.
some sites for more information:
WRESTLERS
http://ricknovaksr.tripod.com/wrestlinglife/id20.html
http://www.pwwew.net/people/dead.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/2004-03-12-pro-wrestling_x.htm
DEATH STATS
http://www.howtolivealongerlife.com/2009/07/leading-causes-of-death-in-us.html
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0779147.html
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/lcod.htm
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