David Von Erich

Last updated

David Von Erich
David Von Erich, 1984.jpg
Von Erich appearing posthumously on the cover of the June 1984 edition of The Wrestler magazine
Birth nameDavid Alan Adkisson [1]
Born(1958-07-22)July 22, 1958 [1]
Lake Dallas, Texas, United States [2]
DiedFebruary 10, 1984(1984-02-10) (aged 25) [1]
Tokyo, Japan [1]
Cause of deathAcute enteritis
Spouse(s)
Candy McLeod
​
(m. 1978⁠–⁠1979)​
Trisha Matter
​
(m. 1982)​
Children1
Family Von Erich
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) David Von Erich
Billed height6 ft 8 in (203 cm) [1]
Billed weight230 lb (104 kg) [1]
Billed from Dallas, Texas
Lake Dallas, Texas
Shady Shores, Texas [3]
Trained by Fritz Von Erich [2]
DebutJune 28, 1977 [2]

David Alan Adkisson (July 22, 1958 – February 10, 1984) was an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name David Von Erich. A member of the Von Erich Family, Von Erich is best known for his appearances with World Class Championship Wrestling, the Dallas, Texas-based professional wrestling promotion owned by his father, Fritz Von Erich. [4]

Contents

Early life

David was named after his mother Doris' brother David (real name Eugene David Smith), who at 14 had died of a brain tumor only months before David Von Erich was born in 1958.

David, along with brothers Kevin and Kerry, loved to hunt and fish with their father; Fritz. Hunting on the Von Erich ranch was quite an event. Many of their relatives and friends would join in and sometimes the hunting group would be 20 or more. WCCW Referee David Manning and WCCW Announcer Bill Mercer were quite often among the group. David's first love in life was raising horses, which turned out to be very profitable for him. He raised and sold quarter horses and horses for show and made his own fortune that way, apart from the family business of wrestling.

Adkisson was a high school basketball star and a football player at Lake Dallas High School. He won a scholarship to North Texas State University to play basketball and football. David dropped out to pursue a wrestling career.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (1977–1981)

Adkisson made his professional wrestling debut in June 1977, adopting the name "David Von Erich". He was considered a breakout star of his family, as his fiery temper produced memorable interviews. His first major match came just a few weeks later on August 15, 1977, when he wrestled NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race to a 30-minute draw in a two out of three falls match. Von Erich made his first appearance with the St. Louis Wrestling Club in Missouri in early-1979 and was an instant hit with the fans and the promoters. Due to his popularity at the time, on May 27, 1979, David again wrestled NWA World Heavyweight Champion Race in Missouri in a non-title match and defeated him with the Iron Claw.

In November 1979, Von Erich made his first and only appearance in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), competing on a card against Davey O'Hannon at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

In the early years of his career, Von Erich had several resigns as NWA Texas Heavyweight Champion and NWA Texas Tag Team Champion, as well as holding the All Asia Tag Team Championship, NWA American Tag Team Championship, and Texas version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship.

Championship Wrestling from Florida (1981–1982)

Von Erich applying an iron claw on Mike Graham in a 1982 match. Mike Graham vs David Von Erich, 1982.png
Von Erich applying an iron claw on Mike Graham in a 1982 match.

In late-1981, David left Texas and struck out on his own, heading to Florida and competing as a heel for Championship Wrestling from Florida. In Florida, David was managed by J. J. Dillon and was in the same stable as Kendo Nagasaki and Jimmy Garvin. David's mentor in Florida was Dory Funk Jr. and during that time David teamed with Dory or his brother Terry Funk in addition to singles competition. Memorable opponents included Barry Windham, Mr. Wrestling II, Eric Embry, Sweet Brown Sugar, and Butch Reed. Kerry Von Erich later joined his brother on the heel side in Florida, playing a vain self-absorbed muscleman alongside David's loudmouthed "spoiled brat" persona. By July 1982, David was back in Texas.

World Class Championship Wrestling (1982–1984)

Feud with Gorgeous Jimmy Garvin (1983)

During his stay in Florida, David met and became great friends with Jimmy Garvin, convincing Garvin to come to World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) in Texas in early 1983 and they created an angle for a feud between them, which culminated with David winning the held-up NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship at The Tarrant County Convention Center on July 4, 1983. As a result of David's victory, Garvin and his valet Sunshine were forced to serve as David's valets for a day, with the results of the day being broadcast on the WCCW weekly show. The whole angle was conceived by David and Jimmy. They traded the Texas title back and forth several times, then that belt was held up several times and when the feud reached its climax on July 4, 1983; it was time for both men to move on to the next part in their career (David continuing the Von Erich feud with The Freebirds and Garvin starting a feud with Chris Adams).

Feud with The Freebirds (1982–1984)

Von Erich, c. 1982 David Von Erich, circa 1982.png
Von Erich, c. 1982

In the fall of 1982, David was also working behind the scenes in WCCW and helped create several angles. He invited the Fabulous Freebirds to come to WCCW. Michael Hayes made his debut at the Sportatorium on Saturday, October 16, 1982, and Terry Gordy made his debut at the Sportatorium two weeks later, on October 30, 1982. Buddy Roberts did not show up. The Freebirds were initially booked as faces in the run-up to the Christmas spectacular "Wrestling Star Wars" card at Reunion Arena on December 25, 1982.

In the final match to crown the first-ever Six-Man Champions, David took Buddy Roberts' place in the Freebirds against Tom Sharpe, Mike Sharpe & Ben Steel. It was David who won that match and the title, but in a ringside interview right after the bout, David gave his third of the title to Buddy Roberts. Later that evening, David's brother Kerry battled NWA World Champion Ric Flair in a Steel Cage with Michael Hayes and David Manning as the referees. During the match, Hayes knocked out Flair and attempted to hand the pin (and World Title) to Von Erich, but turned on Kerry when he refused the tainted victory and as Kerry tried to leave the cage, Gordy slammed the cage door on Kerry's head. Thus the Von Erich/Freebird feud was born.

David took part in many matches against the Freebirds in 1983 and early 1984. Notable bouts include David vs Terry Gordy in a Handcuff Match on April 1, 1983, at "Wrestling Star Wars", David, Kevin & Kerry defeating the Freebirds on July 4, 1983, in Ft. Worth at "Star Wars" and what would be David's next-to-last match was against Terry Gordy on February 3, 1984. On the same day, David defeated Hayes to win the NWA United National Championship, his last title ever. This title is now part of All Japan Pro Wrestling's Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship.

Feud with Ric Flair (1983–1984)

David won the NWA Missouri Heavyweight Championship from Ric Flair on September 16, 1983, holding the championship until losing it to Harley Race on January 6, 1984. Many within the industry believe that David's reign with the belt was his final step to winning the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, as the NWA Championship Committee supposedly voted in January 1984 for David to win it from Ric Flair in March or April of that year. An angle between David and Ric Flair was started when David battled Flair at Reunion Arena on December 25, 1983, and Flair retained the NWA World Championship. Immediately afterward, on December 31, 1983, on the NWA television broadcast, Ric Flair did an interview where he commented on how Mike Von Erich was not a good wrestler and he could beat Mike in 60 seconds with one hand tied behind his back.

In an interview in Ft. Worth on January 9, 1984, David did possibly his most intense interview ever, telling Flair that he had heard Flair's comments about Mike and that he had a proposition. Mike would wrestle Flair in a "10 Minute Challenge Match" and if Flair beat Mike in that 10 minutes, David would never again ask for another shot at the NWA World title, but if Flair did not beat Mike in those 10 minutes, David would get to name the place, the time and every stipulation for his match against Ric Flair. The "10 Minute Challenge match" between Ric Flair and Mike Von Erich was held at WCCW Wrestling Star Wars at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Ft. Worth, Texas, on January 30, 1984. Flair was unable to pin Mike in the 10 minutes and as a result, David won the challenge. A week later on February 6, 1984, in Ft. Worth, in what would turn out to be his last interview, David Von Erich expressed his happiness over Mike lasting 10 minutes with Ric Flair and said that now he (David) would get to name every single stipulation in David's return match with Flair. The big match was to be held sometime in about April 1984, after David was to return to Texas at the end of February and he and Flair would have a chance to build the match up even more. His last match was defeating Kamala by DQ in Ardmore, Oklahoma on February 7.

Professional wrestling style and persona

Von Erich was nicknamed "the Yellow Rose of Texas". His signature moves were the "Iron Claw" (a clawhold) and the "Dream Machine" (a sleeper hold). [2]

Personal life

David's first marriage was with Candy L. McLeod. The couple were wed on June 26, 1978, in Denton, Texas. Together they had a daughter, Natosha Zoeanna Adkisson (October 19, 1978 – December 29, 1978). Natosha died of SIDS at 13 weeks old. Shortly after, David separated from his wife and they were officially divorced on July 12, 1979. [5] David married for the second time on June 8, 1982, to Patricia A. Matter, known as Trisha. [6] The couple remained married until David's death. Trisha was interviewed for the June 1984 edition of The Wrestler magazine, which was a tribute to David. She spoke of how she loved the fans, and thanked them for their support. Trisha has remained out of the public eye since that interview.

Death

Von Erich died during a tour with All Japan Pro Wrestling on February 10, 1984, before defending the United National championship belt he had won in Texas seven days earlier. One theory of his death is that it was a painkiller overdose, perhaps hydrocodone. [4] Ric Flair mentions in his autobiography that Bruiser Brody (Von Erich's long-time friend) removed the evidence of any drug-related incident. The Von Erichs, however, claimed it was caused by ruptured intestines resulting from acute enteritis, [7] which is the documented cause of death listed on the Consular Report of Death provided by the U.S. embassy in Japan. [8] In the documentary Heroes of World Class: The Story of the Von Erichs and The Triumph and Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling, Kevin Von Erich and former referee David Manning both attested to a heart attack theory.

Championships and accomplishments

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Class Championship Wrestling</span> American professional wrestling promotion

World Class Championship Wrestling(WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA) (1966–1990) was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich. Beginning as a territory of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), it went independent in 1986 in a bid to become a major national promotion, but was unsuccessful in its attempts and eventually went out of business in 1990. Rights to the pre-1989 WCCW tape library belong to WWE (the post-1988 rights are owned by International World Class Championship Wrestling) and select episodes from 1982 to 1988 are available on the WWE Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Adams (wrestler)</span> English judoka and professional wrestler

Christopher Adams, best known as "Gentleman" Chris Adams, was an English professional wrestler, promoter, coach, and judoka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Global Wrestling Federation</span> American professional wrestling promotion

Global Wrestling Federation was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. Often the promotion provided programming five days a week, airing at 4 p.m. Eastern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kerry Von Erich</span> American professional wrestler (1960–1993)

Kerry Gene Adkisson, better known by his ring name Kerry Von Erich, was an American professional wrestler. He was part of the Von Erich family of professional wrestlers. He is best known for his time with his father's promotion World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), where he spent eleven years of his career, and his time in World Wrestling Federation (WWF), under the ring name the Texas Tornado. Adkisson held forty championships in various promotions during his career. Among other accolades, he was a one-time NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion, four-time WCWA World Heavyweight Champion, making him an overall five-time world champion and one-time WWF Intercontinental Champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Hayes (wrestler)</span> American professional wrestler

Michael Seitz is an American retired professional wrestler and former musician. Seitz is best known for leading The Fabulous Freebirds under the ring name Michael "P.S." Hayes and for his role as an announcer under the name "Handsome" Dok Hendrix in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). He is currently employed with WWE as Vice President, Creative Writing & Booking and is also a senior producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Von Erich</span> American professional wrestler

Kevin Ross Adkisson is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kevin Von Erich. A member of the Von Erich family, Von Erich is best known for his appearances with his father's World Class Championship Wrestling promotion. He is a six-time world champion, having held the WCWA World Heavyweight Championship on 6 different occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Von Erich</span> American professional wrestler (1964–1987)

Michael Brett Adkisson was an American professional wrestler under the ring name Mike Von Erich. His four brothers, David, Kerry, Kevin and Chris, also wrestled. He was the son of longtime Texas wrestler and wrestling promoter Fritz Von Erich and a member of the Von Erich family.

The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed under the Freebirds name. The Freebird lineup of Hayes, Roberts, and Gordy was inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2015, and members Hayes, Roberts, Gordy, and Garvin were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Gordy</span> American professional wrestler

Terry Ray Gordy Sr. was an American professional wrestler. Gordy appeared in the United States with promotions such as Mid-South Wrestling, Georgia Championship Wrestling, World Class Championship Wrestling, Jim Crockett Promotions/World Championship Wrestling and the Universal Wrestling Federation as a member of The Fabulous Freebirds. He also appeared in Japan with All Japan Pro Wrestling as one-half of The Miracle Violence Connection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy Garvin</span> American professional wrestler

James Williams is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring names "Gorgeous Jimmy" Garvin and Jimmy "Jam" Garvin. A member of The Fabulous Freebirds, Garvin is best known for his appearances with promotions including the American Wrestling Association, World Class Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fritz Von Erich</span> American professional wrestler

Jack Barton Adkisson Sr., better known by his ring name Fritz Von Erich, was an American professional wrestler, wrestling promoter, and the patriarch of the Von Erich family. He was a 3-time world champion and a 6-time NWA United States Champion. He was also the owner of the World Class Championship Wrestling territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddy Roberts</span> American-Canadian professional wrestler

Dale Hey was a Canadian-American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Buddy Roberts. Primarily a tag team wrestler, Roberts is known for his appearances as one of The Hollywood Blonds in the 1970s and as one of The Fabulous Freebirds in the 1980s. He was inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2015 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2016 as part of The Fabulous Freebirds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lance Von Erich</span> American professional wrestler

William Kevin Vaughan is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Lance Von Erich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gino Hernandez</span> American professional wrestler

Charles Eugene Wolfe Jr. was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Gino Hernandez. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with the Dallas, Texas-based promotion World Class Championship Wrestling between 1976 until his death in 1986. Hernandez's death was initially ruled a murder case, but police later concluded that he had died of a drug overdose. (allegedly)

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCWA World Heavyweight Championship</span> Professional wrestling championship

The WCWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship promoted by the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area–based World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA). The championship was originally created in June 1966 by WCWA's predecessor NWA Big Time Wrestling (BTW), billed as the local version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship before being renamed the NWA American Heavyweight Championship in May 1968. In 1982, Big Time Wrestling rebranded themselves as "World Class Championship Wrestling" (WCCW) and the championship was renamed the WCCW American Heavyweight Championship. In 1986 WCCW withdrew from the National Wrestling Alliance, creating the World Class Wrestling Association, replacing the WCCW American Heavyweight Championship with the WCWA Heavyweight Championship, replacing the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship as the top title recognized by the promotion. In 1989, the WCWA championship was unified with the AWA World Heavyweight Championship to become the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship as WCWA merged with the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA) to become the United States Wrestling Association. In 1990 WCWA split from the USWA, but the promotion folded without determining a WCWA World Heavyweight Champion. As it is a professional wrestling championship, the WCWA World Heavyweight Championship was not won by actual competition, but by a scripted ending to a match.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship</span> Professional wrestling trios tag team championship

The WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship promoted by the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area-based World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA) from 1982 until 1988. The company was known as World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) in 1982 as they introduced the WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship, on occasion billed as the NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship . As it is a professional wrestling championship, it is won not by actual competition, but by a scripted ending to a match.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Parsons</span> American professional wrestler

King Bailey Parsons Jr. is a former professional wrestler better known by his ring name Iceman King Parsons.

The WCCW Parade of Champions was a series of professional wrestling supercards promoted by Fritz Von Erich's World Class Championship Wrestling first in 1961, in 1972 and then annually from 1984 through 1988. Von Erich used the "Parade of Champions" name in 1984 as a way to honor his recently deceased son, David and the subsequent Parade of Champions were all "Von Erich Memorial" Parades of Champions. At the inaugural Von Erich Memorial event, in front of the largest crowd ever to watch a pro wrestling event in the United States up to that point, Kerry Von Erich defeated Ric Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, only to lose it back to Flair 18 days later in Yokohama, Japan. Over the next few years, Von Erich altered the names as tragedy repeatedly struck his family. The Parade of Champions was the most recognized event that World Class Championship Wrestling, later known as World Class Wrestling Association, promoted. There was a Parade of Champions super card held by Southern Sports in 1961 and another held by Big Time Wrestling in 1972. All Parade of Champions supercards were held at Texas Stadium in Irving, Texas. A wrestling organization out of Texas called NWA Southwest ran an event in late August, 2010, called Parade of Champions, which it claimed was the "Longest Running Wrestling Event In Texas History Dating Back To 1972," but there was no actual connection between the WCCW show event other than the name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Von Erich family</span> Professional wrestling family

The Von Erich family is an American professional wrestling family. Originally from Texas, their actual surname is Adkisson, but every member who has been in the wrestling business has used the ring name "Von Erich," after the family patriarch, Fritz Von Erich. Jack took on the name as part of his wrestling gimmick as he originally portrayed a Nazi heel, hence his use of a German name.

World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), based out of Dallas, Texas held a number of major professional wrestling super shows under the name Wrestling Star Wars between 1981 and 1989, with three of these being held in 1982. Promoter Fritz Von Erich held two "Wrestling Star Wars" events, one in March and one in August as well as a special "Christmas Star Wars" on December 25 of that year. The driving storyline behind both the second and third Star Wars show of 1982 was Von Erich's son Kerry Von Erich's quest to defeat Ric Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, a quest that was ultimately unsuccessful due to the Fabulous Freebirds turning on the Von Erich family, starting the most well known storyline in WCCW as the Von Erichs and the Freebirds fought for years following the December Christmas Star Wars.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hornbaker, Tim (July 2, 2012). Legends of Pro Wrestling: 150 Years of Headlocks, Body Slams, and Piledrivers . Sports Publishing. p.  540. ISBN   978-1-61321-075-8 . Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Kreikenbohm, Philip. "David von Erich". Cagematch.net. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  3. ↑ "David Von Erich In Florida". youtube.com. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021.
  4. 1 2 Foley, Mick (October 31, 1999). Have a Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks. ReganBooks. p. 129. ISBN   978-0-06-039299-4.
  5. ↑ Texas Divorces
  6. ↑ Texas Marriages
  7. ↑ "Acute Enteritis Blamed For Von Erich's Death". Classic Wrestling Articles. June 13, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  8. ↑ "The Fall of the House of von Erich".
  9. ↑ All Asia Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
  10. ↑ NWA Florida Television Title history At wrestling-titles.com
  11. ↑ NWA North American Tag Team Title (Florida) history At wrestling-titles.com
  12. ↑ NWA Southern Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
  13. ↑ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). "(Dallas) Texas: NWA American Tag Team Title [Fritz Von Erich]". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. ISBN   978-0-9698161-5-7.
  14. ↑ "N.W.A. American Tag Team Title". Wrestling-Titles.com. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
  15. ↑ Will, Gary; Duncan, Royal (2000). "Texas: NWA Texas Heavyweight Title [Von Erich]". Wrestling Title Histories: professional wrestling champions around the world from the 19th century to the present. Pennsylvania: Archeus Communications. pp. 268–269. ISBN   0-9698161-5-4.
  16. ↑ "NWA Texas Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  17. ↑ Will, Gary; Duncan, Royal (2000). "Texas: NWA Texas Tag Team Title [Von Erich]". Wrestling Title Histories: professional wrestling champions around the world from the 19th century to the present. Pennsylvania: Archeus Communications. pp. 275–276. ISBN   0-9698161-5-4.
  18. ↑ "NWA Texas Tag Team Title [E. Texas]". wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
  19. ↑ NWA United National Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
  20. ↑ World 6-Man Tag Team Title (World Class) history At wrestling-titles.com
  21. ↑ Duncan, Royal; Will, Gary (2000). "Texas: NWA World Tag Team Title [Siegel, Boesch and McLemore]". Wrestling title histories: professional wrestling champions around the world from the 19th century to the present. Pennsylvania: Archeus Communications. ISBN   0-9698161-5-4.
  22. ↑ "National Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Title [E. Texas]". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  23. 1 2 "PWI 500 of the PWI Years". Willy Wrestlefest. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  24. ↑ NWA Missouri Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.