Bet the media’s gonna jump on this one…
“Former ECW tag champ found dead today
by Dave Meltzer
Dave@wrestlingobserver.com
John Kronus was found dead today at his apartment in New Hampshire. At this point, no other details are available.
Kronus & Perry Saturn, as The Eliminators, were pushed by Paul Heyman as “The Best Tag Team in the World,” during much of 1996 and 1997, as multiple-time ECW tag champions. New Jack & Kronus also held the title.”
Now, I know that he never worked for WWE and he was a walking disaster waiting to happen for years, but this does not look good for Vince to have yet ANOTHER wrestler drop dead during the media storm surrounding Benoit. Probably the only thing worse for them would be for an actual contracted wrestler to die under their watch, but you can bet that hard-hitting journalists like Nancy Grace won’t need much prompting to lump Kronus in with guys like Johnny Grunge.
In short, this was not what wrestling needed right now.
To be honest, this may be exactly what was needed right now, as sad as that is to say.
What the media and the WWE are missing in general is that the story shouldn’t be about whether the blame should or should not be placed on WWE. The issue really is that wrestling as an industry has a serious problem with early deaths, and statistically that has to have a direct correlation with the lifestyle that people in this profession are leading.
Maybe WWE isn’t “responsible” specifically for the Benoits, or John Kronus, or Johnny Grunge, Mike Awesome, Eddie Guerrero, etc. But in a broader sense, they are. As the industry leader, it should be the model of how the industry behaves.
The whole PR machine from the WWE is going about this the wrong way. What they really should have done is come out aggressively against drug use/steroid use in wrestling and taken an active effort in thinking of ways to reduce the stress that is on their employees (both mentally and physically) and their families. That would’ve garnered them some incredibly positive press and placed the McMahon family in a great light in the middle of a horrific tragedy.
Instead, they (typically) went into defensive posturing that has resulted in a sea of negative press. Then they criticized the media for being short sighted after bringing all that negative attention on themselves, and now this makes the McMahon’s look totally foolish (on par with how the media references disasters such as the XFL). Whoever is running the PR machine in Stanford needs to be fired immediately. They’ve done the organization a great disservice.
As a side note, is anyone else really tired of hearing Jim Ross (who I love) and other front office personnel talk about how difficult and frustrating the road schedule is for all wrestlers and how physical their job is, and then sound surprised when something intensely negative happens? Seriously, just fix it.
I’m rambling, but the original point here was to say that having ANOTHER wrestling death at a young age happen while the spotlight is still on the Benoit case is a horrible tragedy but could really be a turning point in the grand scheme of things as that spotlight will still shine brighter on the industry leader.
I have to completely agree with Adam here, I couldn’t have said it better. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, and Vince has been wearing that crown for some time now, and now these deaths are shining the spotlight on him and he isn’t reacting like he should. Lord help me here, but he’s reacting like an old time carny would when confronted with the legitimacy of the sport a hundred years ago.
Its a tragedy to lose another talent so young. There isn’t much to be said that hasn’t been said about all the others who have passed away at a young age.
Not to make light of it, but someone might want to check on Perry Saturn…..just calling a spade a spade. It seems ECW has had a particularly high number of deaths: Chris Candido, Louie Spicolli, Big Dick Dudley, Johnny Grunge, Rocko Rock, Mike Awesome, Pitbull #1, Mike Lozanski, Erin O’Grady (crash holly), and now John Kronus. You can make a decent PPV out of that.
The E needs to a hire a President Bush Level spin doctor to fix the mess he’s in now. A strong clear legitimate sincere interest in a strictly enforced drug test would atleast be a step in the right direction. Psychological testing might not be a bad idea either. I suppose you have to be a little crazy to want to be a pro wrestler in the first place, but with a psych evaluation there is the possibly we could have caught a von erich, mike awesome, or chris benoit before anything really bad happened. But thats just speculation and can’t really be confirmed. Still there are things that could be done, and need to be done. Now we just need the ones with the ability to make change to actually do it.
I agree with Adam. Pro wrestling has proven that it cannot solve its own problems, so the only hope for stopping insanity is to drag them kicking and screaming towards government regulation.
You do realize that most of these wrestlers are huge dirtbags, right? They aren’t dying because of wrestling, they are dying because of how they live their life. If John Kronus didn’t wrestle, he’d probably be some forklift driver at a Walmart who gets high on the weekends. Normal people don’t go to dogfights, normal people don’t inject themselves with drugs to get bigger, etc. etc.
Wrestlers are just the fringe of society, that’s all. We just know who they are. I doubt anyone ever dropped out of Law School to become a professional wrestler.
If there’s been one thing that’s pissed me off over the way the WWE has gone on the defensive, is in that before the Benoit tragedy everyone in management and in the main event scene would wear as a badge of honour the coping with the schedule, the working through injuries, etc.
Now in light of everything that’s happening the spin is that the schedule’s not that bad, the injuries aren’t that serious or we wouldn’t let them work, etc. Another response that’s been hypocritical, JR on his blog saying the he never knew of any wrestler being turned down time off, someone should’ve reminded Vince before he told Kurt to rehab on the road.
WWE is a bunch of fucking hypocrites!
In fairness, I’d take anything Kurt Angle says for a grain a salt. His story about his release, about his supposed drug dependencies, and pretty much everything else seems to change by the second.
In fairness that was the only example I could think of off the top of my head.
Kurt’s funny.
As happy as I am that pro wrestling is under a microscope and maybe the deaths of guys like Davey Boy, Henning, Boss Man and Eddie can be prevented in the future, I still don’t see the connection between pro wrestling and what Benoit did. No pro wrestler has ever murdered their family before. I see how the road eventually killed someone like Eddie, but how does that explain Benoit turning into a murderer? By the logic presented by the media that steroids can turn you into a killer, why had it never happened before? Are baseball players going to start killing people now? Football players?
Pro wrestling has a lot of things about it that need to be fixed but I still can’t blame it for Benoit’s actions. I will say that the spin by the WWE regarding it, especially at Nancy’s funeral, is over the line. They’d be better to shut the f*ck up and do something about the problems.
That’s a fair comment, but I think the appropriate response is that while steroids don’t necessarily turn you into a killer, steroids aren’t the only issue here. There’s a tremendous cumulative effect of the progressively accelerated use of pain killers, recreational drugs (including alcohol), a very demanding schedule, little family time, and the presence of performance enhancing drugs has on a person’s personal life.
Additionally, the removal of steroids and other drugs can cause serious withdrawal symptoms, including severe depression and anxiety. It completely alters your body chemistry, which means it can change your behavior, mood, and violent tendancies. If professional wrestlers are under pressure (no matter who they work for) to enhance their physiques and stay on the road as long as possible and these are the means they are using to achieve those goals, then the industry is somewhat liable. Maybe not legally, but certainly morally.
Using steroids as a reason to explain the Benoit tragedy is incredibly short sighted, but to deny that they played a role in the overhaul of his entire personality is a similar error. Obviously the only person to blame for the three deaths is Chris Benoit. The question is, what can the industry leader do to ensure that the same mistakes aren’t repeated continuously by it’s personnel? Whether it’s seriously violent episodes or premature deaths, wrestlers below the age of 50 are dying at an alarming rate. If nothing else, this should be a business decision for Vince. In the past two years, he has lost two men who have proven to be relatively viable draws in Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit. Logic dictates that it would make sense for him to do as much as possible to keep those draws intact. If that means stronger and more transparent drug testing procedures and a yearly comprehensive psychological evaluation for all talent that can diagnose legitimate problems, then I can’t see why anyone would be against that, whether they are in the industry or not.
Two points for other posters - whoever called all wrestlers basically dirtbags is really misguided. While Ken Kennedy may have sounded like an immature 15 year old earlier this week, many wrestlers are college educated and some even hold further degrees. Many have been successful in other professions and athletic pursuits.
As far as the point about ECW wrestlers, that’s not that surprising either. They were guys who were making very (VERY) little money who were literally killing themselves during the “hardcore revolution.” It’s not surprising when those guys get hooked on pain pills - there’s only so many times a guy can get tossed off of a balcony through three tables before he can’t walk anymore. I’m stunned that Tommy Dreamer and the Sandman are not only still standing, but look relatively decent.
Again, I’m rambling, and I haven’t posted on the site much, but I’ve been a wrestling fan basically my entire life (with several periods, including between 2002 and late-2006, where I didn’t watch at all). I’m just watching casually now and will probably always remain that way, but it’s frustrating on a personal level to see this business be so incredibly short sighted.
Adam- I didn’t say all wrestlers, I said “most” of them. I stand by my assessment.
I think that’s a rather unfair assessment to lump specifically on Wrestlers. The same could be said of Mixed Martial Artists or Boxers. Or for that matter even other pro sports such as Basketball or Football. How many of those guys would’ve even ever gone to college if they weren’t recruited?
Didn’t all of the guys you mentioned start their problems in WCW, with exception to maybe Hennig. I know Davey Boy hurt his back in WCW and started pain pills. Eddie started doing drugs in WCW as well I think. So that would make it not WWE’s fault. Blame Ted Turner.
Rightly or wrongly, even if the Benoit situation wasn’t a result of the lifestyle does it matter? Is there anyone who thinks that the way pro-wrestling operates doesn’t need to change? I’m all for this situation being exploited to facilitate change in the industry because nothing else has really brought WWE’s talent treatment under the microscope. It’s about time they were given some of the basic human rights that those of us in the mundane workforce take for granted (leave, etc.)
And I really do believe the lifestyle contributed to this tragedy. The loss of three close friends in three years, testosterone treatment to combat the ill effects of steroid use (taken to not try to look like a Vanilla Midget) and work schedule that takes you away from your family most of the week. I do not see how it did not contribute.
Basic human rights? That’s just silly.
And as far as I know, they are signed as independent contractors. You’re suggesting that they should get paid for staying at home?
No one puts a gun to their heads and makes them wrestle.
This is the business we’ve chosen.
Hyman Roth
I’d like to pay my respects to John Kronus and his friends nad family. Despite his short stint, he was pretty good as 1/2 of the Elminators and didn’t hinder Perry Saturn’s talents. Sad to see another one go.
As for the media fallout, I think the situation is alot different today than it was when McMahon was charged in the early nineties. This time company seems to have a fool-proof Wellness Policy (that is, if they can back up their claim that Benoit did tested negative for steroids), and the current WWE atmosphere isn’t drenched with the hard-drugs and rock ‘n roll lifestyle that was prevalent in the eighties. They just need a better P.R. man and stop acting like they’re the victim here.
As for those Congressional Hearings, I doubt it might happen. I’m sure there might be a few vote-getters wanting to exploit this, but seeing how last year’s BALCO/Baseball Hearings did squat and was essentially a waste of time from real issues, I don’t think they’re going to that route agin. I don’t think Chuck Schumer or any of the other senators would be enthusiastic sharing screen time with Chyna and Marc Mero (although if the hearings were to occur, than be ready for weeks of inevitable bad and unispired sketches from Saturday Night Live that’s sure to come out this).
No one puts a gun to our head for anything we do, and yet we still bitch, moan and complain when things aren’t to our liking and try to change the things we see wrong with our work.
Nor is a gun put to our heads when we inevitably do stupid things in our lives, yet we go ahead and do them in spite of the consequences.
Ayrton Senna dies on the racetrack and people don’t say “well he cose to get in the car”, the ruling body changes the playing field to make it a safer environment for its competitors.
Why is that such a hard concept for people to grasp?
Because its apples and oranges?