Tonight, on World Wrestling Entertainment's ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling) program, WWE chairman of the board Vince McMahon did something he rarely does. He apologized. Well, at least he more or less did. The words "I'm sorry" were never actually spoken. But the dead serious tone of McMahon's voice spoke volumes.
What he was referring to in his words which opened tonight's ECW show, was Monday night's nationally televised three hour tribute show to wrestler Chris Benoit, who was found dead along with his wife and son in Atlanta — also on Monday.
In a short, tersely worded statement, McMahon acknowledged the previous night's tribute, then said that in light of events that had become known "26 hours later" that "there will be no mention of Chris Benoit" on the show. It was a marked contrast to the emotional celebration of the wrestler's life that was broadcast on national television just one day prior.
McMahon added that "this evening marks the first step of the healing process."
When I first had the unfortunate instance of reporting the story on the deaths of Benoit and his family late yesterday evening for this website, none of us knew all the details yet. The truth is, we really still don't, and probably won't for days and weeks to come.
I also doubt very much that the WWE knew everything that has since come out today. Otherwise, I can't possibly see that they would have gone on with the three hour Benoit tribute show. If that wasn't clear prior to tonight's ECW broadcast, it certainly is so now.
For most of us who heard the initial story, before all of the gruesome details revealed today, our initial reaction was one of shock, and of sympathy for Benoit's family. Hence the piece eulogizing Benoit you read here. I would venture to say this is also what prompted the tribute show by WWE last night.
Listening to the more gruesome details of this story today driving around as part of my "day job" — as they unfolded in hourly reports on my car radio — my initial shock turned to a mostly dumbstruck sense of horror.
I can't possibly fathom what possesses a man to strangle his own wife and 7-year-old son over the course of a weekend, and then take his own life by hanging himself a day later — as Atlanta police believe Benoit did. Until today, Benoit was by all accounts known as a man devoted to both his family and his craft.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - pamela
could it be possible that the whole murder suicide thing was staged to look like he did it.? does anyone else think there should have been at least a note?..could someone else have done it and made it look like he is the one to blame to cover it up..? he looked like a loving dad.
2 - Rufus T. Firefly
If the allegations are true, Chris doesn't deserve to rest in peace. If it had just been a suicide, I would have felt bad that he had been driven to it, but to take your family out as well is quite possibly the worst action imaginable. Too bad there is no Hell for him to rot in.
3 - Glen Boyd
Hi Pamela,
Much as I would really like to believe that -- and you have no idea how much I really would -- I don't think it's likely at this point.
I have a few friends with loose connections to the wrestling industry, and spoke to one of them tonight for a couple hours before I sat down to write this update. He urged me to make the appeal about the steroid problem in my article because of Blogcritics large readership.
Based on things that my friend heard today talking to other people connected to the industry, there are apparently some things about Chris Benoit we never knew that run somewhat contrary to his public image. I'm not saying that to run down Benoit after the grizzly facts revealed today -- and I am quite sure that everything we knew previously about Benoit as a performer quite dedicated to his craft remains true.
However, the evidence about both his steroid use and the problems in his marraige steming back to at least 2003 are troublesome facts we did not know of until today.
This has all been quite hard for us wrestling fans to assimilate because of the image we had of this man. Unfortunately, as with so many things about this industry -- in some ways, we may have been had here.
I just hope that the industry takes a long, hard look at itself as a result of this horrible tragedy.
Thanks for the comment Pamela.
-Glen
4 - Candy
Just wanted to say this is a great article. I love how you write.
5 - Concerned Wrestling Fan
Thank you for this article. I completely agree. Nothing can condone what he did it was horrible even if steriods were the reason. And from my sources yes he was on steriods and the company knew it. They saw him having a serious case of "roid" rage and mood swings. Yet they did nothing. The industry wants great wrestlers that can put on amazing shows and they got that in Chris Benoit, but at what expense? If it does come out that he was on steroids then WWE shouldn't sweep this under the rug like they seem to be doing now to save face but own up to it and do something about it so something else tragic doesn't happen to anyone else and their family.
6 - Glen Boyd
Thanks Candy. I'm glad you enjoyed reading it.
-Glen
7 - Glen Boyd
And thanx CWF. I don't know for an absolute fact that WWE is "sweeping anything under the rug," so I'm going to withold judgment on that. But the mounting number of WWE performers who have died premature deaths over the years does tell me that something more needs to be done.
Thanx for the comment.
-Glen
8 - TJ
The thing that is really disgusting to me is that the WWE is turning their back on Chris. For all we know, he may have been some jerk, but the truth stands that they shouldn't just turn their back on him like this. Yes, there is a very good chance due to the timeline that he killed his wife and son, but at the same time, he was also a veteran in the industry that the WWE is selling. Let's take a nice long look at this (as I have a slightly unique angle on the matter.)
Michael Lockwood (Crash Holly) died from an OD on pain killers. Curt Hennig died of acute Cocaine Intoxication. Mike Awesome hung himself. Eddie Guerrero died died of a heart failure most likelty stemming from his long and noted drug history. But, these folks are not going to be tossed out of the WWE. Even though more than one had an even worse past than Chris. I am absolutely not making it sound like Chris was a saint, and he may very well have done what a lot of folks are accusing him of, however, I do realise that before the 48 hours, the man has had a 21 year professional wrestling career, in at least 6 documented companies.
Forget his 22 title reigns in the WWE and Companies the WWE has bought out. Forget his Royal Rumble Win. forget that 154 day reign during which he was the World Champ. Forget the Match of the Year award. Forget his record of Most Outstanding, and Best Tehnical Wrestler Awards. The WWE is basically saying that it has never happened, and all because of his final days. Forget that the man had one of the most notable submission manuevers in the business (second only to the Full Nelson as far as I am concerned). The WWE is essentially saying that because they were too narrowminded to see the signs that things were not OK with him, they'll just ignore him.
The WWE people have known Chris for a long time, and as you can do with your own family and people you're close to, you can tell when something isn't right with them. It is my own personal opinion that the WWE has needed some serious improvements for a long time, specifically in Mental and Physical Health testing. All they are really concerned about as far as I can see is that they are worried about Steroid use and that is only because it would hurt their reputation.
The WWE is making a mistake. Yes, the odds are very good that Chris did take two lives and then his own. Still doesn't make it right to turn your back on the man. There are so many positive things they could do in the aftermath, instead they opt to just say "Oh, screw him". They jumped the gun with the tribute, and then they jumped the gun with this retraction of that tribute.
9 - Glen Boyd
Interesting comments TJ.
After learning the horrific details we learned today, I actually felt that I had "jumped the gun" myself in writing my original news story. Which is what prompted me to do this followup piece. I think that at least part of what you say here makes sense -- we simply don't know all of the facts yet. And we won't for some time I suspect.
Whatever the case, I think the industry as a whole has to radically start to rethink the way it addresses the health of it's performers. This includes mental health, physical health, and it includes the performance enhancing (and other) drugs that are so pervasive in the business.
Too many wrestlers are dying too young. That's the bottom line in my opinion.
Good comment, and I thank you for it.
-Glen
10 - Nic
Could there not be any way possible that someone else was involved in this to make it look like he did it? I find it strange that he kept sending his exact address to people within a few minutes... like a cry for help kinda? Why no note? Is it not possibe that there could have been someone in his home making him say these things on the phone about food poisoning/making other travel arrangements? Perhaps he got hold of a phone and thought if he sent adress some1 would come? Could he have been knocked out and thats why he sounded groggy? He could've been injected with somethin so that his bloods come back saying steroids... The time between deaths says this was planned.. If he did it, he did it but i think other possibilities need to be considered and they may well be..
I suppose we won't know until all tests etc come back and we may never know the truth
11 - MC
I think most of us, just like the WWE had a quick and strong reaction to the tragedy; wrestling had lost one of its great stars. The tribute was fitting but as more and more facts came out, it became painfully obvious what a horrible act had happened. I can't fault the WWE for doing either the tribute or retraction statement, they acted responsibly in both situations. However you do have to question how much the recent controversy over the "fake Vince limo explosion" played a part in how the WWE reacted in handling this.
I guess we can also draw up a million "conspiracy theories" to defend a storied and idolized wrestler. But when the facts are presented by police and the attorney's office, they seem to be painstaking evidence that Benoit committed horrific acts this past weekend.
Kudos to Glen on this well-written piece. Let us hope that WWE is serious about a "healing process" from here on out.
12 - Pat Healey
it is a tragic event however everyone is way ahead in jumping the gate in syaing it had anything to dow iths teroids as benoit was not one of the 11 wrestlers named to be on rpoids in a recent release and in april 2007 he was negative for its use...plsu the way he did it was more of a deliberation not some rage...he was a great guy - my feeling is vince had no reason to even make mention of what he did on ecw - bc we honoured benoit the WRESTLER with the tribute ok - so guess this emans hell never get a WWE HALL OF FAME induction now bc he did something terrible - forget about all his acocmplishments they eman squat - not the way it should be but bet ya the way it WILL be.
13 - Jim
Many former wrestlers including Jacque Rugeaou/the mountie (sp), Bret Hart, and other Canadian wrestlers says that they had worried about him in the past. They said many times they would see wrestlers literally snap back stage, and then come back later and say they were sorry. When you take steroids, your body stops producing testosterone. When your blood level gets low and you dont' take more steroids, people will tend to get great depressions, paranoia, and be neurotic and sometimes extreme mental problems including rage. 60 dead wrestlers under the age of 45 in the last 10 years alone? and that doesn't count the lesser known wrestlers. McMahon and Triple H have had severe injuries just walking and if you don't think those 2 are on steroids, your nuts. Hopefully the WWE will be exposed. McMahon said he couldn't afford the $500/month for the wrestlers healthcare; he said this is the way it is and they shouldn't have a lot of time off. The WWE hopefully will be exposed finally. RIP to all 3 of these people.
14 - Wes
My initial reaction to this whole thing was one of shock and awe. I just happen to check the WWE website about 2 minutes after they posted the news of the family's death. I watched the tribute show and initially thought it was weird. After all, after the death of Owen and Eddie, they said "the show must go on" and proceeded with their live show, but abandoned the storylines. But they didn't do that in this case. However I think the most telling thing in that show was the interview by Steven Regal. You could see the disgust of the situation in his face. I think they knew more Monday night than they were letting on about.
15 - who cares
chris didnt kill his family. i think it was stagged
16 - pablo Leon
It is painful just to think about what just happened. Benoit is another victim of the relentless system of wwe entertainment thing. Wrestlers are high performance athletes and not working machines, they need time to heal if not the pain of chronic injuries pushes them to use engancers or other substances. Lets change all this and on top lets remember Benoit as what he was, the best technical wrestler.
17 - Darkmoor
an avid wrestling fan im still struggling to right up an article for my net radio station
and set up a brodcast rembering benoit for my sat night show
could this have been staged very easily posible
benoit unnamed friend was contacted severel times and he even told her he loved her
everyone withh wwe new where he lived and how to get there
the signs are there of staged suicide double homicide this is the first article ive read
that has been heartfelt and factful
ty very much for this Glen Boyd im not sure what vince is thinking by retracting his statement
chris benoit should be rembered for 22 years of dedication to wrestling
every match every move hold for hold by comparison he ranks right up with ric flair harley race dusty rhodes and bret hart
rip chris benoit nancy benoit and daniel
u will never be forgotten
much luv rock on
18 - David
Benoit forsook the most sacred of trusts, that being his obligation to his family. He deserves no tribute, no pity and no mercy. If it was indeed a chemically induced rage he is the one who chose to introduce those chemicals into his body.
His suicide would have been a tragedy and would have accomplished his ultimate goal: removing himself from whatever pain he was in. Murdering his defenseless family beforehand assigns him a special place in the annals of cowardice and depravation. It's a sad day when anyone would give him any sort of tribute. Good riddance to bad rubbish.
19 - rosaleen
Although i live in England and am an avid fan of WWE, I still cannot take in what has happened. I sat down last night watching Fox News and I couldn't catch my breathe. How could Chris Benoit do such a thing? Although it seems that steroids are to blame for his actions it begs the question. Who's next to die in this world of wrestling?
R.I.P Chris, Nancy and Daniel........
20 - Brasky
Wrestling has changed too much. The veteran stars were not in the lineup week after week in the 80's. They would fight ham n eggers leading up to a PPV. Something is terribly wrong here. Wrestlers are dying to stay in the game but now family members are being killed. Read about Kurt Angle's battle with pain killers and uppers. McMahon is pushing these stars and should have given time for the veterans to heal without drugs. Woman and her son are now dead so if a wrestler's life isn't worth squat, do something about this now that a mother and child are victims. RIP for mother and child.RIP for the wrestlers that died but killed nobody but themselves. May God heal the families of all above mentioned.
21 - ulgen
I do believe Chris committed this terrible act however I suppose it is possible that it was staged. I myself have never been around steroids so I really don't know much about "roid rage" other than what I read or see on t.v. I think the more important aspect now is to remember Nancy and Daniel. If Chris truly did do this then I say to hell with him. Even on steroids every adult knows the risks and choosing to use them puts the drug above your family. The wwe does need enforce a very strict zero tolerance policy. In some cases maybe even inpatient drug treatment. Some of my favorite wrestlers have died due to drugs so yes the wwe needs to step NOW, not next week NOW.
22 - KATHY
I agree with Pam and TJ. I personally think this thing WAS staged to make Chris look bad. He was a nice guy by what I've seen (I don't think that family and career devotion was a fake).
I think its wrong that if he was using steriods, that the WWE can and is turning their back on him because of it.Look at all the other wrestlers that have died because of some sort of drug related issue. They aren't being put DOWN.
23 - KATHY
I agree with Pam and TJ. I personally think this thing WAS staged to make Chris look bad. He was a nice guy by what I've seen (I don't think that family and career devotion was a fake).
I think its wrong that if he was using steriods, that the WWE can and is turning their back on him because of it.Look at all the other wrestlers that have died because of some sort of drug related issue. They aren't being put DOWN.
24 - suzanne
When I first heard about this I thought it was another one of Vince's "stories" and that it was going to somehow be linked to his "death" story....boy was I wrong! I went to the WWE web-site and was shocked, still am.
I love wrestling, have for years, and this has me stunned. Where were his friends if he was having personal issues? Where were other members of this family? I cannot belive that in all the traveling that these entertainers do that NOONE thought that something was wrong BEFORE Chris snapped?
He is/was a fantastic wrestler and it saddens me to know that this might be the first and only impression people get.
25 - Chuck
This was not roid rage. He tied his wife up. Surely he did this before he killed her. Why after? Then he strangled his son in another room. That does not indicate blind rage caused by steriod use. It looks like incredibly severe depression caused by an untold amount of possible events. We don't know. He was a great entertainer and obviously had issues that eventually led him to make two incredibly stupid decisions. None of us who have not had these tpye issues can fathom his actions. Many people face demons everyday but do not murder their family. There is no explanation that will make sense.