Dark Side of the Ring

Skilled as a performer in the ring and as a booker, who created storylines behind the scenes. ‘Hot Stuff’ Eddie Gilbert was a ticking timebomb of talent and self-destruction.

Often imitated, never duplicated, Superstar Billy Graham broke the mold for what a wrestler could be but steroid abuse and battles with the McMahons kept Graham from the spotlight.

With the physique of an Adonis and endless charisma, Tony Atlas made his mark as one of wrestling’s first Black stars but racism, addiction and ego kept Mr. USA from the top.

With an iconic look and skills few of his size could match, Big Van Vader stood out as a wrestling monster but controlling his anger became a bigger battle in and out of the ring.

A Finnish wrestling bad guy turned real-life racist politician, Tony Halme’s time in the WWF as Ludvig Borga is only the start of his chaotic and destructive life.

From the first terrifying fall off the cage to the impact he still feels today, Mick Foley relives one of wrestling’s most iconic matches, Hell in a Cell ‘98 moment by moment.

The wildest wrestler never to break through, Chris Colt’s life took him from LSD trips in the ring to the world of porn but his self-destructive ways kept him from becoming a star.

Harley Race achieved near mythical status for wrestling fans as the ultimate tough guy, but behind closed doors his life was haunted by violence and unimaginable personal tragedy.

Brutus 'The Barber' Beefcake's path in the wrestling world was defined by his decades-long friendship with Hulk Hogan and a horrifying accident that almost took his life.

Already a wrestling star as a teenager, Terry Gordy's time with the renowned Fabulous Freebirds made him a living legend until an accidental overdose robbed him of everything.

Marcus "Buff" Bagwell's brash persona in the ring was easily matched by his wild antics outside of it, made even wilder by the eccentric family he brought along for the ride.

John Tenta couldn't be further from the monstrous Earthquake character WWF fans loved to hate; as his career faded, a health battle threatened to take him from the family he loved.

A real life street fighter, Adrian Adonis turns flamboyant wrestling heel, but his life cuts short in an horrific accident that has been shrouded in mystery for the past thirty years.

One of the first Black megastars in wrestling, the Junkyard Dog's journey to the top of the business is marked by addiction and unrealized potential.

Matt Borne, the man behind Doink the Clown, lived a life of unhinged violence and substance abuse until his shocking death left his family questioning if it really was an accident.

Florida became a wrestling mecca for decades under patriarch Eddie Graham and his son Mike, but a series of shocking and unrelenting tragedies threatened to eclipse their legacy.

Wrestling hearththrob Terry Magnum T.A. Allen was destined for worldwide stardom, but one rainy night altered his career and the future of wrestling forever.

Chris Candido and Tammy Sytch were high school sweethearts whose talent and ambition had them on a path to wrestling stardom. Along the way, drugs, injuries, and ill-fated choices sent them down another road altogether.

After Japan's Atsushi Onita creates FMW and its spectacular matches featuring explosions and gratuitous gore, his handpicked successor takes his own life while drowning in debt.

In a culture that celebrates machismo and negative gay stereotypes, wrestling innovator Chris Kanyon kept his own sexuality a closely guarded secret for decades.

A private 757 flight descended into a nightmare as intoxicated wrestlers clashed with their flight crew, erupting into one of wrestling’s most infamous scandals.

The Dynamite Kid earned worldwide fame with a riveting, self-sacrificing style, but violent confrontations outside the ring would destroy his family, his body and his legacy.

Having survived familial abuse at the hands of their father and the mysterious abduction of their sister, Jake "The Snake" and his siblings struggle to reconcile with their past.

The Ultimate Warrior was a divisive force in and outside of the ring. His first wife reveals how an aspiring chiropractor morphed himself into wrestling's most polarizing figure.

In one of the most bizarre acts of political theatre ever conceived, professional wrestlers deployed to North Korea faced a terrifying ordeal that had them fighting for their lives.

Nick Gage is the self-proclaimed king of deathmatch wrestling, but his road to the top has been marked with a six-year prison sentence for armed robbery and personal tragedies.

After enduring a horrific car wreck, Brian Pillman masks his injuries while pushing his body to the brink. His untimely death leaves his young family struggling to cope.

Brian Pillman clawed his way to infamy with a groundbreaking performance that blurred the lines between fact and fiction until it led to his ultimate destruction.

Family and friends of Dino Bravo relive his descent from Montreal's favorite wrestling son to mob enforcer, and the deadly consequences that followed.

Investigating the mysterious story of Jimmy Snuka, whose girlfriend Nancy Argentino died in their motel room in 1983, and revealing her family's 30-year struggle for justice.

Known as the worst idea in the history of professional wrestling, a legitimate boxing tournament leads to career-ending injuries and has audiences begging for the final bell.

One of the most feared and controversial wrestlers of all time, New Jack's career reads like a criminal rap sheet; revealing the man behind the monster and his hardcore legacy

The conclusion to wrestling's darkest hour, including startling revelations about the troubled mind of Chris Benoit before he killed his wife and son, and then took his own life.

In 2007, wrestling superstar Chris Benoit murders his wife and 7-year-old son, then ends his own life; those closest to the tragedy never speak openly until now.

In one of wrestling's most infamous off-script moments, wrestler Bret Hart is stripped of his championship title through a backstage plot of betrayal that forever changes the sport.

Art collides with real life when the mythical love story between wrestling icons Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth explodes beyond the ring with tragic consequences.