The World of Vince and The WWE

Gary KayJul 1, 2007

Just wanted to fill you in on some thoughts and reality. First of all, I too am a former professional wrestler of some 22 years. I have worked extensively for years in the Canadian Circuit and was originally trained by the late Dave "Wildman" McKigney. ( I actually lived next door to him on Mulock Sideroad in Newmarket, Ontario)

I was there to see when Dynamite Kid first came to Canada and was shocked at his size. (he looked 98 pounds soak and wet and looked like he suited the name kid). He sure didn't look as though he fit in with the big boys of Stampede Wrestling at the time. Boy how things changed in a short time when he all of a sudden looked like a behemoth with veins popping everywhere. He had that want to be a big star look in his eyes and you can't blame him. I have watched over the years how these small men bulked up to the extremes to be at par in size with their counterparts, mentors and heros.

The demand and pressure is so great in this business and if you want that shot at the big name, in the big manopolized organization, you have to be at least close in size to your opponent or it just aint going to happen. If you are full time in the business and aren't just a weekend circuit jobber, you have very little time for yourself and family as you are on the road. This also now cuts into your work out time for that big ligit body so you now need that edge of enhancement and that's how the Steroids enter the picture.

Sure, You're on a guaranteed Salary (as long as you are working), so you work even when injured or in pain and now add pain killers on top of the steroids used to give you that extra jump you need to increase muscle mass, and you have a deadly cocktail. Steroids increase Muscle Mass (your heart is a muscle), now add the pain killers (cocaine is used a lot as that pain killer), and that increases the heart rate on an enlarged heart and "POOF" gone. Sure they give you a list of the wrestlers who have died prematurely since 85 and they love to downplay that total by saying things like so and so choked, or so and so died in a car accident and do you really want to know whats sad??? Downplay it all you want to the point that only 10 are left who died due to steroids and it's still a sad, sad day. Truth is that the toll is much higher and I am merely making a point here as there shouldn't be one steroid related death in this wonderful entertainment sport. I also feel that there should be a stiff inquirey into the deaths dating back to 1985.

If the demand for your time and Body wasn't so great in this business, you wouldn't have half the steroid use there is as you would have the time to work out for that ligit body and/or work out time to maintain that bodyonce you have built it. If you had some form of pay for rehab or healing time on an injury and were actually given the time, you wouldn't have the pain killer use that leads to the abuse either. And god knows .... this business hurts the body over the years. I have a bad back and 2 bad knees as life time souveniers. (By the way, I was fortunate to have a large frame with big bones so I never had to give in to steroids but Pain killers and lots of them...both legal and not were a way of life for me starting in my 10th year.) I can remember times right after a match where I just wanted to get out of the arena/ring area, out of the view of the audience, around the corner to the dressing room hallway so that I could lose that phoney smile and literaly drop to my knees and almost crawl on all fours to the dressing room because it just plain hurt to stand. Once there, (in the dressing room), it was more pain killers to get through that night followed by more the next day so that I could get back in the ring that night. Really ... it wasn't a pretty picture. Don't get me wrong, I loved making the fans happy and giving them everything they came for so that they were satisfied and that self satisfaction is what always clouds your view of reality and what you are really doing to yourself.

I see these poor small guys who are training hard for this business in the smaller traveling circuits with their big dream of becoming the next WWE star and I just shake my head to think that they too, will likely fall prey to the pressure and demand and it saddens me.

Sure you'll read posts on these forums where I look as though I get contradicted but by who?? It's those that are still in the business, especially the one that carries the manopoly. The ones that still draw that guaranteed salary. The Minute they were honest and posted anything such as I or any other former star have (who are no longer in the business), they would be unemployed with the manopoly company. I truly give cudos to the other former stars that have stepped out from behind that dark wall and have spoken up.

This Sport Entertainment Business is far from what it used to be and I have lost respect for the WWE and Vince's way of running things. Even though I wrestled, I used to watch it on T.V. to pick up on pointers of the dos and don'ts but that all changed the very day that Vince Scripted in Shane to hit his mother in the middle of the ring in front of Millions of people watching on T.V. along with the thousands who were at the event live..... Why Vince even brought in Family Values is beyond me but when close to 70% of your audience is kids and adolescents, why is he showing them and teaching them to hit their parents?? Do we not already have a problem with minors in today's society?? That's just part of Vince's antics that literaly get my goat and there is much more.

All I can say to these young hard working want to be future WWE Superstars is ........ take up acting alone, you'll likely live longer and in less pain plus you'll only have to wear one occupational hat. (Actor) For in this Squared Circle Business, besides the pressures, you will wear 3 hats at the same time, (Athlete, Actor and Stuntman)........oh.... and don't let it fool you .... size does matter.