Von Erich family

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The Von Erich family is a professional wrestling family. Their actual birth names are "Adkisson", but every member of the family that went into the wrestling business used the ring name "Von Erich", after the family patriarch, Fritz (real name - Jack).

Patriarch Fritz lived until his natural death, but 4 of his sons died before him within a 9-year span (as well as his eldest son Jack, who was electrocuted as a child). In 1984 David Von Erich died in Japan from acute enteritis of the upper intestine. Michael, Chris, and Kerry all committed suicide in 1987, 1991, & 1993 respectively. Mike died after taking an overdose of Placadyl. Chris shot himself in the head with a 9mm at his parents home in East Texas. Kerry shot himself in the chest behind his father's house on Shady Shores Road. Kevin Von Erich is sole surviving child of Fritz Von Erich (Jack Adkisson) and Doris Adkisson.

The third generation of Von Erichs are in the process of forming; as Lacey Von Erich is now in the business, and Ross Von Erich (Kevin's son) is contemplating entering the squared circle himself.

[edit] Members

[edit] Fritz Von Erich

Main article: Fritz Von Erich

Fritz Von Erich was born on August 16, 1929 in Jewett, Texas. Standing 6'4" tall and weighing 241 lbs, Fritz was an imposing figure who quickly became a top heel in the wrestling business due, in no small part due to his devastating finishing maneuver, "The Iron Claw."

Originally trained by Stu Hart, Fritz became a top star in many National Wrestling Alliance promotions, most notably in St. Louis and in World Class Championship Wrestling.^[1] He held a variation of the AWA World Heavyweight Title at one time in the 1960s.

Despite never winning the NWA World Heavyweight Title, he maintained his presence within the Alliance, holding many other major belts. Fritz also served shortly as NWA President in the 1970s, as well as President of WCCW when it moved to Dallas, Texas. Fritz was also a major part of Japanese wrestling, where he was known as "Tetsu no Tsume" (in English, "The Iron Claw"), and helped rebuild the business after the death of Rikidōzan.

Fritz is the father of the other members of the Von Erich family, and the grandfather of six. Kevin and his wife Pam have four children; Kristen born 2/3/1981, Jill born 2/10/1985, Ross, born 6/1/1988 and Marshall, born 11/10/1992. Kerry and his former wife Cathy Murry had Hollie, born in 1984 and Lacey born in 1986. Lacey was in the wrestling business for a brief time but left the wrestling business to pursue a career in acting. Lacey is also the mother of a son. Fritz Von Erich died of lung cancer which spread to his brain in 1997.^[2]

[edit] Jack Adkisson, Jr.

Fritz Von Erich's first son died after accidentally being electrocuted and drowning in a puddle at the age of 7 in Niagara Falls, New York, United States. They were living in the Sunny Acres Mobile Home Park on Pine Avenue.

[edit] Kevin Von Erich

Main article: Kevin Von Erich

Born May 15, 1957 in Belleville, Illinois, "The Golden Warrior" Kevin Von Erich is the second oldest son of Fritz Von Erich.

The majority of Kevin's career was spent working in World Class Championship Wrestling, where he had many memorable feuds against legendary wrestlers such as Chris Adams, The Fabulous Freebirds, and Ric Flair. It was there that Kevin became known for utilizing the body scissors and iron claw as his trademark manoeuvers, as well as wrestling barefoot.

Kevin retired in 1995 and is now settled down with his family and working in real estate. He has been married since August 1, 1979 to his wife Pam. He occasionally makes appearances in wrestling shows, but never wrestles. He is the sole survivor of the sons of Fritz Von Erich. Though he remained in Texas for several years after his retirement, Kevin and his family eventually moved to Hawaii.

In May 2006, Kevin sold the World Class footage to Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment. By July 2006, Kevin had made two brief appearances at WWE shows when they filmed in Dallas, one before the sale and one after. In his first appearance, at WWE Homecoming, he beat down Rob Conway with several other legends, even applying the legendary Von Erich Claw. He also made a brief appearance on the July 15, 2006 episode of WWE Saturday Night's Main Event. Kevin still owns Southwest Sports Inc (which distributed its syndicated World Class broadcasts as well as Championship Sports), which he renamed K.R. Adkisson Enterprises Inc.

Kevin now hosts the show History of WCCW along with Michael Hayes on WWE Classics On Demand.

At WrestleMania XXV, Kevin Von Erich represented the Von Erich family being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

[edit] David Von Erich

Main article: David Von Erich

"The Yellow Rose of Texas" David Von Erich is the third son of Fritz Von Erich. He was born on July 22, 1958 in Dallas, Texas.

David had many memorable feuds, mostly in Fritz's World Class Championship Wrestling promotion. It was there that he faced off with Harley Race and later Ric Flair several times for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship (never winning), as well as teamed with brothers Kevin and Kerry against the Fabulous Freebirds. David also wrestled in Missouri, winning the Missouri Heavyweight Championship on a couple of occasions.

David died in 1984, reportedly shortly before he was booked to win the NWA World Heavyweight Title from Ric Flair. (Although many insist that, before he died, David was scheduled to carry the NWA belt, there has never been anything concrete to substantiate this fact, nor have any NWA board members come out and confirmed this story.)

The official doctor's report allegedly states that he died of acute enteritis, but Ric Flair stated in his autobiography To Be the Man that "everyone in wrestling believes" it was a drug overdose that really killed him and that Bruiser Brody (a fellow wrestler who found David) disposed of the narcotics by flushing them down a toilet before the police arrived. Mick Foley also claims that he died from an apparent drug overdose.^[1] A death certificate or doctor's report has never been provided by the Von Erich family.^{[citation needed]}

A tribute show was held a couple of months later in his honor, during which his younger brother, Kerry Von Erich, won the NWA title from Ric Flair.^[1]

[edit] Kerry Von Erich

Main article: Kerry Von Erich

Kerry Von Erich is the fourth son of Fritz Von Erich. He was born on February 3, 1960 in Niagara Falls, New York. Known as "The Modern Day Warrior" and "The Texas Tornado," Kerry was by far the best-known of the Von Erich Family.

Much like his brothers, Kerry spent the majority of his career wrestling in World Class Championship Wrestling. Amongst the many major feuds he had were those against Gino Hernandez, Iceman Parsons, Chris Adams and The Fabulous Freebirds.

Kerry became the most successful of the Von Erich family when he won the NWA World Heavyweight Title from Ric Flair at the David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions, a tribute show to his deceased older brother.^[1] Kerry lost the belt three weeks later to Flair. Kerry also wrestled for several months in both the World Wrestling Federation (where he won the WWF Intercontinental Championship at SummerSlam on August 27, 1990) and Global Wrestling Federation, two national promotions that were rising to fame at the expense of regional promotions such as WCCW.

On June 4, 1986, Kerry was in a motorcycle accident that nearly ended his life. With a dislocated hip and a badly injured right leg, Kerry was in bad shape. Doctors tried hard, but could not save his foot, eventually amputating it. According to brother Kevin, Kerry injured the foot following surgery by attempting to walk on it prematurely, thus forcing the doctors to amputate it. He was able to continue wrestling after the accident with a prosthesis and until his death kept the amputation secret to the majority of fans and fellow wrestlers, going to the extreme of even showering with his boots on.

Kerry had a history of drug problems. Amongst the many of them were two arrests, the first of which resulted in probation. After the second, which violated the probation and likely would have resulted in extensive jail time, Kerry committed suicide by a shot to the heart in 1993 on his father's ranch.

[edit] Mike Von Erich

Main article: Mike Von Erich

Mike Von Erich, born March 2, 1964 in Dallas, Texas, was the fifth son of Fritz Von Erich.

Mike replaced David in the feud the Von Erichs had with the Fabulous Freebirds following David's death. According to the DVD Heroes of World Class, Mike wanted to work for World Class as a cameraman and had no interest in being in the ring full-time (he had been involved in an angle where Ric Flair insulted him and wrestled him as a run-up to what was planned as David's winning the World Championship), but Fritz forced him into the ring after David's death.

After suffering a shoulder injury in 1985 on a tour of Israel, Mike was forced to have surgery. Shortly after, it was discovered that he suffered from Toxic shock syndrome, a rarity in men, and according to Ric Flair, was forced back into the ring by Fritz much too early. Eventually, Mike had to retire after not being able to return to the ring at full strength anymore. He committed suicide in 1987 by intentional overdose of a tranquilizer.

[edit] Chris Von Erich

Main article: Chris Von Erich

Born September 30, 1969 in Dallas, Texas, Chris Von Erich was the youngest, shortest, and least athletic of the Von Erich family. He made many attempts to succeed in the squared circle due to an incredible love of wrestling that kept him going despite numerous injuries. He managed one major feud with Percy Pringle in the USWA/World Class, but his career didn't take off like the rest of the family's.

After several years of not being able to succeed in the wrestling business, Chris became depressed and frustrated. He was also heartbroken over the loss of his brothers. He committed suicide in 1991 by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

[edit] Other members

[edit] 3rd Generation

[edit] Ross Von Erich

Ross Von Erich is the stage name of David Michael Adkisson, known as Ross (born on June 1, 1988). He is the son of Kevin Von Erich and the grandson of Fritz Von Erich, and the heir to the Adkisson family name and Von Erich legacy. Ross, like his father before him is also a football player. He is also an alumnus of Billy Ryan High School in Denton, Texas. Ross returned to Texas to attend college in 2008, according to the family website, and reportedly has wrestled a couple of times.

[edit] Lacey Von Erich

Main article: Lacey Von Erich

Lacey Von Erich (born July 17, 1986 [1] in Dallas, Texas) is the stage name of Lacey Dawn Adkisson. She is the daughter of Kerry Von Erich and Cathy Murray. Kerry and Cathy were divorced prior to his death. Lacey is the grandaughter of Fritz Von Erich and Doris Adkisson. Lacey has one son. She is also currently signed with TNA as the new member of The Beautiful People.

[edit] Non-related Von Erichs

[edit] Waldo Von Erich

Main article: Waldo Von Erich

Waldo Von Erich was the stage name of Canadian professional wrestler Walter Sieber. Though billed as the brother of Fritz Von Erich when they teamed, he is not related to the Adkisson family. Waldo died in July 2009.

[edit] Lance Von Erich

Main article: Lance Von Erich

Lance Von Erich was the stage name of Dallas-born professional wrestler William Kevin Vaughn. He was billed for a brief period of time in the 1980s as the son of Waldo Von Erich, but there was no biological relation between the two. Lance also has no biological relation to the Adkisson family.

[edit] Afterward

Many people, in discussions about pro wrestling, including Rowdy Roddy Piper, (in his own autobiography In the Pit with Piper: Roddy Gets Rowdy), have said that the Von Erich family, among numerous other wrestler deaths in the last several years, is a prime example of how the wrestling business is run and how promoters tend to treat wrestlers like a disposable resource. In his autobiography, To Be the Man, Ric Flair disagrees with Piper, saying that it was not wrestling that killed the Von Erichs, it was drugs. Flair also stated that he partially blames Fritz, because if Fritz had not lived in denial, and made his sons accountable for their behavior, they might well be alive today.

[edit] WWE Hall of Fame

On March 16, 2009, it was announced that the Von Erich family would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. They were inducted by Michael "P.S." Hayes, with Kevin Von Erich accepting the induction.

[edit] Championships and accomplishments

The blood relatives of the Von Erich family have combined for 144 professional wrestling championships through the years. The following list combines all of the family members' titles.