[INTERVIEW] Charleston Post And Courier 7.16.08 Q&A With Matthew Randazzo
Evad Seltzer
Q&A With Matthew Randazzo
Matthew Randazzo, author of "Ring of Hell: The Story of Chris Benoit &
The Fall of the Pro Wrestling Industry," answers some questions about
his controversial new book on professional wrestling.
How long have you followed the business, and do you consider yourself
a devout fan?
I've been a wrestling fan since I was a child, and for many years I
was a hardcore, tape-trading, dirtsheet-reading fan. Though I enjoyed
wrestling on its own terms, my fandom was always largely due to my
fascination with the business itself, the bizarre behind-the-scenes
subculture that I've always found fascinating.
What first attracted you to the business, and what attracts you now?
Since I became a fan as a small child, I would probably say it was the
larger-than-life characters and epic good-versus-evil storylines.
Today, my interest in the business is a sort of morbid fascination at
how twisted, destructive and morbidly hilarious one of the great
fascinations of my youth has become.
What compelled you to write a book on the Benoit tragedy?
A good friend who worked in WWE contacted me shortly after Benoit's
death. He was in shock, as he had been a good friend and great admirer
of Benoit's. He asked if I would help him put together a book proposal
on the subject, which I did. Shortly afterwards, worried about the
ramifications for his career, my friend backed out, but I decided to
finish the project on my own. The more I thought about pro wrestling
and how little it is understood by even hardcore fans, the more I
realized that a serious study of the wrestling business and its
dysfunctions was, in the aftermath of Benoit's death, more timely and
necessary than ever.
Why do you think Benoit killed his family? More specifically why would
he kill his son?
The simple answer is that Benoit was a brain-damaged junkie who was
completely out of his mind. The chemical cocktail that Benoit was
regularly and haphazardly consuming in enormous dosages - steroids,
speed, alcohol, painkillers, various psychiatric drugs - was, by
itself, enough to induce severe derangement similar to schizophrenia.
This dangerous pyschoactive brew happened to be affecting a brain that
was already desperately scrambled and dysfunctional; post-mortem
autopsies discovered severe damage to all four lobes of Benoit's brain
and the brainstem, ostensibly from repeated concussions Benoit
suffered in the ring. When all of these factors are considered, it's
clear that it would be impossible to deduce a rational motive for an
insane man's actions. After all, Benoit was in such a disturbed state
of mind that, after murdering his 7-year-old son, he rebooked his
flights to the next WWE show so that he wouldn't miss a match and
then, in an apparent attempt to clean up the mess he made, searched
Google for the "prophet Elijah" - who had resurrected a boy in the Old
Testament.
Do you feel characters like Benoit and Eddie Guerrero could have been
portrayed more sympathetically, or do you think that would have
hampered the flow of the narrative? Were they victims of their own
devices, or did the wrestling business ultimately dictate their fate?
I feel like I treated Benoit and Guerrero as sympathetically as they
deserved. These were two men who made orphans of their children for
pro wrestling. While I can appreciate their devotion to their craft,
the essential fact is that they selfishly and irresponsibly accepted a
lifestyle that they knew was destroying their bodies and minds and
killing their friends so that they could wrestle, despite having wives
and children who desperately needed them. There have been countless
writers who have portrayed Benoit and Guerrero's literally suicidal
devotion to wrestling as a noble sacrifice to the art they loved, so I
certainly don't think my criticism of them is unwarranted.
Responsibility primarily rests on Benoit and Guerrero as adults for
accepting the lethally horrible terms that the pro wrestling business
offered them, but promoters like Vince McMahon are equally responsible
for configuring their businesses according to a model that results in
the destruction and deaths of the performers.
What do you consider the most scandalous stories in the book?
The most scandalous story in "Ring of Hell", to me at least, was the
harrowing tale of Hiromitsu Gompei, a young trainee in New Japan Pro
Wrestling who was allegedly beaten to death for failing to perform his
wrestling drills satisfactorily. According to numerous wrestlers who I
spoke with, this crime was covered up by the Japanese mob, and no one
involved in his death has suffered any penalty whatsoever to their
career or reputation.
What prompted the former WWE writers you sourced to speak up?
They saw themselves as "whistle-blowers." I believe most of the WWE
writers spoke to me because, since they can get mainstream
entertainment industry jobs, they realize that they are the only
insiders in the WWE monopoly who can afford to speak up and suffer
Vince McMahon's wrath. They saw the friends they made in the wrestling
business slowly being demeaned on a daily basis - called racial slurs
by WWE VP Michael Hayes, sexually harassed by WWE Smackdown head
writer Dave Lagana, berated and fired by Vince McMahon for seeking
medical attention for injuries - and they got fed up.
Describe the wrestling business in your own words.
World Wrestling Entertainment is a multi-billion dollar, publicly
traded entertainment company that treats its employees like disposable
circus animals. The wrestling business is the only place in the world
of sports or mainstream entertainment where international TV
celebrities are classified as independent contractors who receive no
benefits, no pensions, no vacation time, no insurance, no medical
care, no travel expenses, no contractual security, no liability
standing in court and no respect from their bosses.
Why do you think wrestlers, either way past their prime or in no shape
to perform, continue to return to the business?
Among the countless wrestlers I interviewed for "Ring of Hell," one
phrase came up more than any other: "Wrestling is an addiction." To
make it in modern wrestling, wrestlers have to sacrifice their entire
lives to the pursuit of stardom; they sacrifice their bodies, their
family lives, their financial security and their dignity to work their
way up the ladder. By the time they finally reach success, wrestling
has become their reason to get up in the morning and their way of
life; they've become addicts. It's almost impossible to walk away,
especially when the creative and physical high of performing in front
of millions is so invigorating. The money's also addictive for men
with no other way to make six or seven figures per year.
What is the most important message you wanted to drive home in the
book?
In "Ring of Hell," the most important thing I wanted to impart was
just how exploitative, destructive and dysfunctional the wrestling
business is. I did this in the hope that young men and women seeking a
career in wrestling would be fully informed of the potentially fatal
sacrifices they'd need to make to succeed, and, also, so that
wrestling fans can make informed choices on whether they want to
support companies with such callous and deadly business practices.
How is your wrestling book different from other similar books?
"Ring of Hell" is the most uncensored, no-punches-pulled investigative
expose of the pro wrestling business ever published. It is the
ultimate behind-the-scenes account of what it is like backstage in
wrestling locker rooms and dojos across the world. If you want to know
what it's really like training in the Hart Dungeon or the New Japan
dojo or working side-by-side with Vince McMahon everyday, then "Ring
of Hell" will give you the answer. In addition, I have had deep and
meaningful access to the inner echelons of World Wrestling
Entertainment and the Japanese wrestling business, which has allowed
me to break countless shocking, heretofore unpublished stories.
Would you acknowledge that there have been positive changes in the
industry, or do you see them as band-aid measures designed to deflect
negative publicity?
I certainly believe that there have been some beneficial changes to
World Wrestling Entertainment policy in the last year, especially the
new medical scans added to their Wellness Program and their
willingness to pay for rehab programs for ex-wrestlers. Of course,
since these changes have come without any meaningful change to the
underlying business practices that foster drug addiction and physical
breakdown in veteran wrestlers - the relentless schedule, the lack of
vacation time and off-season, the lack of benefits or pensions or job
security - I can only conclude that it is done primarily to deflect
criticism, not out of any serious concern for WWE employees.
Where do you see the future of the wrestling business?
Until Vince McMahon meaningfully changes his business model and begins
to treat his employees as something other than disposable circus
attractions, we will see deaths and scandals at the regular, once-
every-couple-months clip that we've seen over the past decade.
Where can readers find out more about "Ring of Hell?"
Readers can find out more about "Ring of Hell" at MatthewRandazzo.com
- Mike Mooneyham