The Von Erich family tragedy features on Dark Side of the Ring (Image: George Napolitano)
However, behind the bright lights, glitter and stunning athleticism there is a dark side that has taken a horrible toll on various wrestlers’ lives and contributed to many deaths with its gruelling schedule, tough nature, extreme demands and controversial past.
Many of those tragedies are being covered in the first season of VICE TV’s Dark Side of the Ring documentaries which are produced by Evan Husney and directed by Jason Eisener and have received glowing reviews from the wrestling world and beyond.
With an impressive rating of 8.8 on IMDB, Dark Side of the Ring covers the tragic love story of Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth, the infamous Montreal Screwjob which stripped Bret Hart of the WWE Championship, the brutal killing of Bruiser Brody, the dark history of the Von Erich dynasty, Gino Hernandez’s mysterious death and a look at the allegations against WWE Hall of Famer The Fabulous Moolah.
The sports entertainment spectacle took off in the 1980s with the creation of WrestleMania and the likes of Hulk Hogan, Savage, Ric Flair, Andre The Giant and many more leaving the world in awe with their incredible athleticism combined with catchy gimmicks and tremendous showmanship.
But that was also the time of Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll, which is mostly covered in the series, that saw wrestlers living like rock stars with an edgy lifestyle of big money, gorgeous women, strong drugs and steroids.
Many notable superstars from that era are now dead, like Miss Elizabeth, Rick Rude, Savage, Brody, Hernandez, King Kong Bundy, Owen Hart, and many others came close to dying way before their time like Jake Roberts, Scott Hall, Hart and many more.
One of the most well-known cases Dark Side of the Ring covers is the Von Erich family which was extremely famous in Texas and many consider it to be cursed as five out of six sons of patriarch Fritz Von Erich died very young.
First-born Jack suffered a deadly accident when he was only six years old as he was electrocuted by an exposed wire and drowned in a puddle.
The relationship of Miss Elizabeth and Randy Savage is covered by Dark Side of the Ring (Image: GETTY)
Fritz’s five other sons Kevin, David, Kerry, Mike and Chris all went on to become wrestling royalty as they were loved by millions across the world but their fame came with a devastating price.
David was found dead in his hotel room in Tokyo when he was only 26 years old by a reported acute enteritis, but some suspect a possible drug overdose.
Kerry, Mike and Chris committed suicide just six years apart from one another and Kevin is the only surviving Von Erich from that generation who shared his story to Vice TV’s programme.
Husney dismisses all the talk about the family being cursed but believes that issues like mental health and depression weren’t really addressed during the 1980s and 1990s when the deaths took place.
The producer, though, claims that there has been a lot more progress in recent years that helps young wrestlers overcome any demons they are dealing with on the treacherous road to superstardom.
Husney exclusively told Express Sport: “I think it’s a very nuanced thing.
“I don’t think there is a clear answer other than [it was] an especially male, testosterone-driven world that the Von Erichs inhabited.
“I don’t think that issues like mental health or depression and those types of things were something to discuss properly.
Bret Hart’s story of the Montreal Screwjob is explored in Dark Side of the Ring (Image: GETTY)
“They had to go not only through the rollercoaster ride that is stardom but I think also, and I won’t throw all the blame on, there is a little bit to be said for them coming up through a kayfabe wrestling where they have to kind of portray in real life the values that they have on screen and as a younger kid you kind of want to rebel against that and you sort of lose it in the Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll era of wrestling.
“Now 30 or 40 years [later] we’re able to kind of have more conversations, it’s still changing and that’s a good thing.”
The sport has seen major improvements in the last few years as WWE in particular have adopted a concussion protocol that offers proper treatment to superstars who suffer the common head injury.
Vince McMahon’s promotion also banned a series of dangerous moves, such as chair shots to the head, frequently hand out “Legends contracts” that allow stars of the past to continue working for the company when they can no longer wrestle and also pay for the rehabilitation of formerly contracted talent since 2007.
Husney and Eisener believe the right steps are being taken to avoid any more tragedies in the future but are not yet certain these dark days are completely over.
Eisener said: ”It sounds like a lot of awareness about mental health and other health issues, I mean drug testing [has been raised].
“I have a feeling that WWE are putting a lot more effort in taking care of their talent.
“I don’t know, you never know. I hope we’re past the days of the really dark days of wrestling. I don’t know, I hope the future is better for wrestlers.”
The Von Erich family experienced a lot of tragedy (Image: George Napolitano)
Husney has noticed a culture switch in wrestling as the sport now concentrates on pure athleticism and has changed the way it deals with injuries.
The show’s producer brought up the reported locker room mentality that existed before the 2010s which was so demanding that if a wrestler didn’t perform due to an injury then it would be taken as a sign of weakness from the rest.
He hopes that the series will become “cautionary tales” and everyone will learn from any mistakes of the past.
Husney said: “Me personally, I feel like there’s a major focus on wrestling talent and athleticism.
“There’s a lot of people on the roster today that are in tip-top physical condition.
“There are people who are just a specimen of pure athleticism. So I think the culture is very different.
“Going back to the locker room culture around injuries where if you didn’t wrestle while injured that was a sign of weakness.
“You get a concussion and you can’t go out next week because you got your bell rang, as they say.
Dark Side of the Ring covers various hidden tales of wrestling (Image: VICELAND)
“But really knowing what we know now is the amount of damage you really can do to yourself while you’re in that state is like tenfold. So I think there is more precaution in that regard.
“I think that culture, not just in the locker room but in the world, has changed. I clearly hope that we can look but at these stories and kind of learn something from them and they can be cautionary tales to some extent.”
You can watch Dark Side of the Ring every Wednesday at 10pm on VICE TV, which is available on SKY (183), TALKTALK (338), VIRGIN (219), NOW TV, TVPLAYER, BT TV (SD channel 338, HD channel 391), the BT Player and BT TV App.