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00:00Gracias por ver el video.
00:30Y es un gran promotor, era un visionario.
00:32Eddie's championship wrestling for Florida.
00:34It was built on wrestling, and the main events were violent.
00:39He gave the people the circus.
00:42Eddie Graham coming back into that ring after Killer Knapp.
00:45Eddie Graham was a titan of professional wrestling who ruled his era
00:49and passed on his iconic legacy to his only son, Mike.
00:53The son of any great athlete, they've got the scrutiny on him.
00:56But Mike Graham didn't take shit off anybody.
00:58I think maybe he felt like he had to be as good as his father.
01:04Mike Graham followed in his father's footsteps to wrestling greatness
01:08and also descended into his own dark world of pain, addiction, and grief.
01:13The wrestling culture is very cutthroat.
01:16You have to have this thing about you where nothing's going to break you.
01:20He was under tremendous pressure from so many different angles.
01:24Mike kept shit to himself, too, like his father.
01:27The apple didn't fall far from a tree.
01:30My mom gets pushed under the rug.
01:32In certain families, who are you supposed to go to for help?
01:35The tragic legacy of a wrestling dynasty,
01:38haunted by self-destruction and suicide.
01:41It is with a deep sense of regret that I announce the untimely death of a friend, colleague, and a leader.
01:47It was like somebody dropped a bomb on all of us.
01:51We're a father, father, and we're a kid.
01:55That runs in the family genes, right?
01:58Once that spotlight's gone or once you don't have that ring, like, it's emptiness.
02:01Championship wrestling from Florida was one of the most respected and successful wrestling promotions of modern times.
02:17The legacy of the Graham family in Florida is they meant professional wrestling to millions of people
02:24all over the state for almost 30 years.
02:27One member of the Graham family was on the card or in the main event or behind the scenes
02:33in the glory years when they were selling a million tickets a year just in the state of Florida to see live matches.
02:40And their TV ratings were Super Bowl level.
02:43I guess I was used to it.
02:44Like, when you don't know what's different, it's just what your life is.
02:47And I just knew that that was a huge part of, like, my grandfather and my dad's life.
02:52I am Nicole Gossett, and Eddie Graham was my grandfather, and Mike Graham is my father.
02:57And that's Eddie Graham in the center of the ring now, his son Mike watching very carefully.
03:02Every Sunday, they'd have matches with the Eddie Graham Stadium.
03:05And the first phone call in the morning was my grandfather calling my dad to talk about the night.
03:10We'd wake up, and we'd walk into, like, our family room to see who was crashed out on our couch for a little while, you know?
03:16Because we had different wrestlers sleeping on our couch at times.
03:19Magnum T.A., Terry Allen, when he first started, he slept on our couch, and he was so sweet.
03:23And so I was pretty accustomed to having big, boisterous personalities and people around.
03:28The one that scared me was Andre the Giant.
03:30When he came, like, crouching through our front door, he freaked me out.
03:33Yeah, I was scared.
03:36That was the family business.
03:39Everybody wanted to be on the roster of championship wrestling from Florida,
03:45both for the money, for the weather, for the girls, and also to learn from Eddie Graham.
03:51I'm Jim Cornette.
03:53I've had a 40-year career in professional wrestling,
03:55but for even longer than that, I've been a collector and an historian.
03:59Eddie could make you believe that he was the toughest man in the state of Florida,
04:05which is exactly what most of the fans believed.
04:07He just had a magnetism about him, and he was somebody that you wanted to listen to,
04:12and if you were working for him, you wanted to follow.
04:15A leader, a general.
04:16When I was born up in the Tennessee mountains, brother,
04:19if you didn't have heart and desire, you were finished to begin with.
04:22So I ain't gonna lay down and quit.
04:24That's my bottom line.
04:26There you have it.
04:27The comments from Eddie Graham.
04:29There goes a wrestler and one hell of a man.
04:33Eddie was a legend in Florida.
04:36He could get a reaction just walking to the ring.
04:38My name is Kevin Sullivan.
04:41I worked for the Graham family for decades,
04:44and I've been a wrestler for over 50 years.
04:47Your nightmare is just starting.
04:51Eddie was about five, ten and a half, wide shoulders,
04:55leech blonde hair, and he just had a presence about nobody else was ever in his class.
05:01The genius of the business, R. Einstein.
05:05Eddie was from the hills in Chattanooga.
05:07He had a very difficult life.
05:09His father died young.
05:11Eddie came up through the College of Hard Knocks.
05:15Just a good old tough country boy.
05:18My name is Dottie Curtis,
05:20and I am the wife of the late Don Curtis.
05:25Don was a very, very knowledgeable wrestler.
05:29Don and Eddie met back in around 52, I think it was.
05:34They became friends, and Eddie asked Don to come up here to Jacksonville,
05:40and he was the promoter up here for quite a few years.
05:43Now it's Graham for the good solid chop across the throat.
05:46Eddie Graham is probably one of the finest wrestlers that was around in his time.
05:53I don't think there'll ever be another Eddie Graham.
05:57Though born Edward Gossett, Eddie's wrestling career is forever altered
06:01when he adopts the Graham name from one of the ring's top stars.
06:05The originator of the Graham wrestling family dynasty was Dr. Jerry Graham.
06:13He had the bleached hair, and he carried himself like a star,
06:16and what's more, he had the gift of gab.
06:18We will be the international tag team champions as soon as that match comes off,
06:22and it's going to be the greatest match ever.
06:24Brother teams in New York were over at the time.
06:28But if you could find a guy that looks something like you,
06:32nobody's reading your birth certificate, just say it's your brother.
06:36Eddie Gossett was in Texas wrestling as Rip Rogers,
06:40and a lot of people told him,
06:42you look like Jerry Graham.
06:45Jerry and Eddie connected, and in 1958,
06:48the Graham brothers, the Golden Grahams,
06:51as a team, ruled the roost in wrestling
06:54in the biggest TV market in the country,
06:56where wrestling is already red hot,
06:58being presented in the most famous arena in the world,
07:01Madison Square Garden.
07:02Dr. Graham has just the treatment for that tired, nagging backache.
07:06Eddie performs the surgery while Jerry looks on approvingly.
07:09If you could sell out Madison Square Garden,
07:11you could sell out anywhere.
07:13Eddie and Dr. Jerry made a fantastic duo,
07:17aided by everybody, and just really drew the crowds in.
07:23And just main eventing Madison Square Garden,
07:26they were probably making close to six figures per year
07:29in 1958 and 1959,
07:32and that would translate into somewhere over a million bucks apiece
07:35in today's money.
07:36With money and fame to burn,
07:39Eddie and Jerry are box office sensations.
07:42But before long, Dr. Jerry's behavior outside the ring
07:45becomes even more notorious than his matches.
07:49Dr. Jerry Graham, as big of a genius as he was in wrestling,
07:53was an alcoholic, was mentally ill,
07:57and he got in a lot of trouble and caused a lot of trouble.
08:00Jerry Graham, to impress fans,
08:03used to light his cigars with $100 bills.
08:06Or he would walk into a biker bar
08:08and walk right up in front of a guy and say,
08:10Hey, my name's Balls.
08:12You got any?
08:13But the most shocking incident involving Jerry Graham
08:18transpires years later
08:20in his hometown of Phoenix, Arizona.
08:23One day he got the word
08:24that his mother was sick and in the hospital.
08:27And he called the hospital
08:28and he told the doctor
08:29that his mother better come out of that hospital
08:31in good health.
08:33And then she died.
08:34So, Dr. Jerry Graham shows up with a 12-gauge shotgun,
08:40a .38 caliber revolver,
08:43and an 8-inch long hunting knife
08:45and appears in the intensive care unit
08:49where he fires a shot
08:50at the doctor
08:52and then goes down the hallway
08:56and grabs the gurney
08:57that his mother's body is on.
09:01And as he's taking it down the hallway,
09:03here come the orderlies and the interns,
09:06and they're trying to tackle him.
09:08So he grabs his mother's corpse
09:11and slings her over his shoulder.
09:14And he's screaming,
09:15I just want to take her and bury her!
09:17Jerry Graham was so good
09:22at his chosen profession
09:24that he was also
09:26completely, utterly insane.
09:30After two years,
09:32Eddie Graham could not put up
09:34with being partners
09:35with Jerry Graham anymore.
09:37And he had to leave
09:38the greatest spot that he'd ever had.
09:41In 1960,
09:42Eddie uproots his family
09:43from New York and settles in Tampa,
09:45the hub of championship
09:47wrestling from Florida.
09:49He was a visionary.
09:50He said to himself,
09:52I know my capabilities as a wrestler.
09:54I can get over here.
09:56I can be the star.
09:58And this whole thing can be bigger.
10:00And over the next 25 years,
10:02not only did he become
10:03the most successful wrestler
10:05in the history of Florida
10:06and the most popular,
10:08but he worked his way
10:09into being able to buy
10:10into the promotion,
10:12then taking it over completely
10:13and expanding wrestling
10:15in the state of Florida
10:16and made it the place
10:18that everybody wanted to go
10:20to wrestle and to learn.
10:22Eddie probably bought the territory
10:24just knowing that
10:25he had the wherewithal,
10:28the brains,
10:29the connections with the talent
10:31to take the territory
10:33to another level.
10:34Hi, I'm B. Brian Blair,
10:37and I started wrestling
10:39in Florida in 1977.
10:42Got my start right here in Tampa.
10:43Blair has him up.
10:44The airplane's spin.
10:46The armory was hot.
10:48I would call it like
10:49Saturday Night Fever.
10:50It was so entertaining.
10:52Tonight, we're in a jam-packed armory
10:54in Tampa, Florida,
10:56the home of championship wrestling.
10:58All the wrestlers
10:59from championship wrestling
10:59from Florida
11:00gave their all
11:01every Tuesday night
11:02at that place.
11:03Growing up in Tampa,
11:04these wrestlers were just huge.
11:06Fans wouldn't come up to them.
11:07We couldn't go anywhere
11:08without someone wanting
11:09to talk to my dad
11:10or my granddad.
11:11And it was telling
11:12that Eddie Graham
11:13would have continued
11:15good relations
11:15with Vince McMahon Sr.
11:18and later on
11:18with Vince McMahon Jr.
11:20He was someone
11:21that the other promoters
11:22all called to ask for advice.
11:24The National Wrestling Alliance
11:33was an organization
11:33of promoters
11:34from regional territories
11:36all over the country.
11:37There was no major decision
11:39made in the N.W.A.
11:40without consulting
11:42Eddie Graham.
11:43He was president twice.
11:45He was well-respected.
11:47But he was a complicated guy.
11:51Eddie would do
11:51some violent things.
11:53He was a tough,
11:54tough person.
11:56You either did
11:57what he told you to do
11:58or you were out.
12:01Now, there was
12:02the side of Eddie Graham
12:04that did want to keep
12:06the credibility
12:06of the wrestling business.
12:08And guys were expected
12:09to lay shit in
12:11to make people believe
12:12what they were doing
12:13was real.
12:14Eddie Graham
12:15was a stickler.
12:16He said,
12:17if anybody here
12:18gets their ass kicked
12:19by a mark,
12:20you're fired.
12:21In other words,
12:22you get your butt kicked
12:23by a wrestling fan,
12:24you're out of here.
12:25You protect the business
12:26at all costs.
12:27I guess you could call it
12:28maybe a horror chamber
12:32down there
12:32at the sportatorium.
12:34But fellas would say
12:35they want to wrestle
12:36and they figured
12:37all you had to do
12:38was get in the ring
12:39and perform.
12:42They'd put them
12:43through their paces
12:44and, you know,
12:45some of them were just,
12:46they couldn't take it.
12:48I had to do things
12:50that I'm not proud of,
12:52that I didn't like to do.
12:55A couple of them I did.
12:58Well, they wanted you
12:58to break people's bones.
13:00It's hard, baby.
13:03Oh, man.
13:06Somehow,
13:07this guy got booked
13:08for TV.
13:09He said,
13:09oh, I've worked
13:10some local shows.
13:12I'm a butcher by trade.
13:14And I see Eddie's
13:15his burka,
13:16a bunch of dogs.
13:17And the guy says,
13:18I'm going to make you
13:19look good.
13:19I'm going to tell
13:20all the guys
13:20you're a nice guy.
13:22So the guy
13:22just off the corner
13:23and he said,
13:25if he doesn't come
13:25back bleeding,
13:26you're through.
13:31I kept my job.
13:35Your marching orders
13:37were to make
13:37this guy bleed.
13:38I had a family.
13:40At that period,
13:41it was my livelihood.
13:43It wasn't his livelihood.
13:45He was going to go back
13:46to that job
13:47no matter what.
13:48Worst thing
13:49I probably ever did.
13:51Eddie's hard-nosed ambition
13:53to dominate
13:54the wrestling trade
13:55is all-consuming.
13:56But his desire for power
13:58is far from his only flaw.
14:00wrestler and promoter
14:09Eddie Graham
14:09is known
14:10for his unrelenting drive,
14:12limitless ambition,
14:13and his determination
14:14to legitimize the business.
14:16Eddie was a go-getter.
14:19He had a portfolio
14:20of a lot of property.
14:23He expanded outside
14:25of the wrestling business.
14:26He wanted to write checks
14:28rather than receive checks.
14:31Eddie wanted to elevate
14:32the perception of wrestling.
14:34That's where he started
14:36getting involved
14:36with the Boys' Ranch
14:37and with charitable organizations
14:39in every town
14:40and every county in Florida.
14:42They're furthering
14:43amateur wrestling programs.
14:45Eddie was a rock star
14:46in Florida.
14:47I mean, politicians
14:48were kissing Eddie's ass.
14:51To be seen on
14:51Championship Press
14:52in Florida
14:53where you're running
14:54for office
14:55was a big deal.
14:57And I'm sure
14:57Eddie got favors
14:59from that, too.
15:00Eddie was involved
15:01in everything.
15:03I think Eddie
15:06put a lot of pressure
15:07on himself.
15:09He never wanted
15:10to fail
15:11in anything he did.
15:12And for most
15:13of the things
15:14that he did,
15:15like flying
15:16and being a boatsman
15:17and that,
15:18diving,
15:19he was fabulous.
15:21His only problem
15:22was that alcohol
15:23got to him.
15:25One night,
15:26Eddie was drinking
15:27and decided
15:28he was going out
15:29on his boat.
15:30and his son,
15:31Mike,
15:32was panicking
15:33because he took off
15:34in the car.
15:34And so Mike,
15:35as a young boy,
15:36he got on his bicycle
15:37and he drove
15:39to a crossbridge
15:41over the water.
15:43And his idea was
15:44he was going
15:45to jump off
15:46that bridge
15:47and onto the boat
15:48because he was afraid
15:49his father would
15:50kill himself
15:51out in the water.
15:52And thank God
15:53he missed the boat.
15:54I mean,
15:55it wasn't there
15:55because if he'd have
15:57jumped off of that bridge,
15:58he would have
15:59possibly
16:00drowned in the water.
16:02That scared Eddie.
16:04That was one
16:04of his sobering moments,
16:06if you want
16:07to call it that.
16:09Mike idolized
16:10his father
16:11and vice versa.
16:13I believe you told me
16:14that your own boy
16:15does quite a little wrestling.
16:17Well, yes,
16:17he does.
16:18In fact,
16:19I'm hoping
16:19he'll take
16:19the state tournament
16:21in the 95-pound division.
16:23How old is he?
16:24He's 10 years old.
16:25Even though
16:26he's a lovable father,
16:27he was demanding.
16:28He put high expectations
16:30on Mike.
16:34Then when my dad
16:35started wrestling,
16:36he obviously started wrestling
16:37under Mike Graham.
16:38So maybe that gave him
16:40a little bit more
16:40of a chip on his shoulder
16:41at times.
16:42At 222 and 1⁄2 pounds,
16:44Mike Graham.
16:45Mike Graham.
16:46He gave me
16:47all the tools
16:48to get as good
16:50as I could get
16:51before I turned pro.
16:52But even at that,
16:53the pressure really,
16:54and a lot of it,
16:55came from him.
16:55And I loved
16:56going someplace
16:57where he wasn't
16:58going to be
16:58because I knew
16:59I could go out,
17:00I could wrestle,
17:01I could come back,
17:02and it wasn't
17:03constant scrutiny.
17:05My grandfather
17:05did throw my dad
17:06in the ring,
17:07be like,
17:07okay,
17:07let's see what you got.
17:09Graham breaking it up again,
17:10arm drag,
17:10tick down.
17:11I remember my dad
17:12always saying,
17:13Nicole,
17:13don't worry.
17:14The bigger they are,
17:15the harder they fall.
17:17So he was not
17:17intimidated by anyone's size.
17:20Mike was shorter
17:22and didn't have
17:23the same
17:23over-the-top personality,
17:26but he had
17:27the wrestling knowledge
17:28in there
17:29from growing up
17:29with Eddie Graham.
17:30And there it is,
17:31there's a fall
17:32right out of the booth,
17:33Mike Graham.
17:34So he was
17:35a very good worker.
17:37He was in plenty
17:38of great tag teams,
17:40but the attention
17:41never went on him
17:42specifically.
17:43And to be honest,
17:44he didn't want
17:44to be the top guy.
17:45He didn't want
17:46to be the big star
17:46because people
17:47would have said
17:48it was because
17:48of his father.
17:49Mike swallowed
17:51a lot of shit,
17:52you know,
17:52and left things go.
17:54He did it as well,
17:55if not better,
17:56than anybody ever saw
17:57being a promoter's kid
17:59to blend in
17:59with the guys.
18:01And Graham
18:01after Kevin Sullivan.
18:03I had the pleasure
18:03of being his partner
18:04and I had the pleasure
18:06of being his opponent.
18:07I can't believe this.
18:08They're going to hang him.
18:09I get violent
18:10to hold it
18:10and I'm waiting for you.
18:11If you go to Mike's
18:12bad side,
18:13you're on his bad side
18:14and he wasn't
18:15going to back down.
18:16He knew the pressure
18:17he was under.
18:18He couldn't go home
18:19if he got his ass kicked.
18:22My grandfather
18:22was bloody
18:23all the time, right?
18:24My dad also was bloody.
18:26So mornings in my house,
18:28my mom would get
18:28my brother and I up.
18:30My dad would be in bed
18:31because he'd get home
18:31so late
18:32and he was just
18:32hungover,
18:33beat up,
18:34and we'd go in
18:35to kiss my dad
18:36goodbye in the morning.
18:38And there'd be tape
18:39on his forehead
18:40with blood
18:40and bite marks
18:42on his finger
18:43and the smell
18:44of alcohol oozing
18:45from his body.
18:46And we'd kiss him
18:48goodbye.
18:49See you later,
18:49Dad.
18:49Have a good day.
18:50Let me turn right now
18:51to Mike Graham
18:52because I know he's...
18:53As the 1980s dawn,
18:55Mike Graham joins Eddie
18:57in steering the ship
18:58at Championship Wrestling
18:59from Florida
19:00as the company
19:01becomes a breeding ground
19:02for wrestling legends
19:03including Hulk Hogan,
19:05Ric Flair,
19:06and Dusty Rhodes.
19:07I am the dream.
19:09I am the man.
19:10Go on with it, baby.
19:12Dusty was like
19:13of his little surrogate son.
19:16He loved Dusty
19:17and Dusty loved him too.
19:19Dusty Rhodes, of course,
19:20was always around.
19:21We all go out
19:22to the beach together.
19:23Dusty would always say
19:24that fat looks better tan.
19:27Eddie Graham took Dusty
19:29under his wing
19:30and he became
19:31the most popular wrestler
19:32in the history
19:33of the state of Florida.
19:34When Dusty
19:35turned babyface,
19:37the territory was on fire
19:38and all of us
19:39became so close
19:40we were like family.
19:41And now the ring
19:42beginning to fill.
19:43Jerry Briscoe charges in
19:44Don Serrano,
19:45Brian Blair,
19:47and a host of others.
19:48As this younger generation
19:49elevates the territory
19:50to a whole new level,
19:52Eddie, now in his 50s,
19:54decides to quit
19:55the ring for good
19:56just as his pursuits
19:58outside of the business
19:59begin to bring him trouble.
20:02There were a lot of things
20:03going on in Eddie's life.
20:04He was torn between two women.
20:07He was in business
20:08with some shady characters.
20:10I could tell that
20:13Eddie was drinking
20:14too much.
20:15He was maybe
20:17taking too much medication.
20:19He had a lot of struggles
20:20in his life,
20:22personally.
20:25When he came back
20:27in the plane
20:28at nighttime,
20:29there was a store
20:32that was open
20:33and he could get
20:34a cheap bottle
20:36of wine there.
20:37Every time
20:38he was driving,
20:39he would chug-a-lug
20:40that wine down
20:41and he would take
20:42the bottle
20:43and he'd throw it
20:44out of the car
20:45into the grass.
20:48And he came home
20:49one night
20:50and the place
20:51wasn't open.
20:52And he was so desperate.
20:54He went out
20:55into the field there
20:57and he groveled
20:59around
20:59in the dirt
21:01and found
21:02all these bottles
21:03and he sat there
21:06in the field
21:06and drank
21:07the dregs
21:09out of those bottles.
21:11By this time,
21:13alcohol
21:14had taken over.
21:15He couldn't stop.
21:17Consumed by his alcoholism
21:26and burdened
21:27with personal
21:28and professional troubles,
21:29Eddie Graham struggles
21:31to find meaning
21:32beyond the ring.
21:33Over time,
21:34people forget
21:35who you are, right?
21:37My grandmother
21:38told a story
21:39about how they
21:40had gone to
21:41a restaurant
21:42and they didn't know
21:43who he was.
21:44He wasn't
21:45in the spotlight anymore.
21:46But I remember
21:47my grandmother
21:47being like
21:48how he was
21:49just not himself
21:49after that encounter.
21:54When that career
21:55is over,
21:56who are you?
21:57You're just looking
21:58back in the mirror.
22:00One of the last checks
22:01my grandfather wrote
22:02was to a liquor store
22:04for $8.
22:06And in the memo
22:06it said,
22:07peace of mind.
22:10I think if anyone's
22:11had time of their life
22:12and they just can't
22:13find comfort
22:14within themselves
22:15and they feel like
22:15everything's out
22:16of control,
22:17you just don't
22:17have that peace
22:18of mind
22:18and he couldn't
22:19find it.
22:21He turned 55
22:22and I had gone
22:25over to my
22:26grandparents' house
22:27and I was
22:29roller skating
22:30and so I was like
22:30skating around him
22:31in circles
22:32and I'm like,
22:33so what'd you get
22:33for your birthday?
22:35He's like,
22:3555.
22:37And I was like,
22:3855 what?
22:39He said,
22:4055 years.
22:42Looking back,
22:42I realized
22:43he was telling
22:45me that
22:45he was
22:46done.
22:51That he got
22:5255 years
22:53is what he had.
22:54I was at the
23:00Super Bowl
23:01and the Miami
23:01Dolphins were
23:02playing the
23:02San Francisco
23:0249ers.
23:04They paged me,
23:06Mike Graham,
23:06Mike Graham,
23:07please come to
23:08the box office.
23:09I walked into
23:10the box office
23:11and said,
23:11hey,
23:11my name is
23:11Mike Graham,
23:12they paged me
23:13and the woman
23:13goes,
23:14oh yeah,
23:14you gotta call
23:15home.
23:16Call home.
23:17What's wrong?
23:18What's wrong?
23:18What's wrong?
23:19What's your dad?
23:21Dad?
23:22What's wrong with my dad?
23:23His wife,
23:26Lucy,
23:26went out
23:27is what
23:28she told
23:29my daughter
23:30and when she
23:32came back
23:33he had shot
23:33himself
23:34not once
23:35but twice.
23:37That's what
23:38I heard
23:38from
23:39what
23:40the coroner
23:41said
23:41and
23:42I will
23:43spare you
23:44the gory
23:44details
23:45about the
23:45bedroom.
23:47He's in the
23:48hospital
23:48and he's hooked
23:49up to machines
23:49and a family
23:50member has to
23:51say to
23:51unplug him
23:52or keep him
23:53alive
23:54and I got
23:56back home
23:56the next morning
23:57and walked
23:58to the hospital
23:59and Barry sat
24:00back in the
24:01corner
24:01his head
24:01all bandaged
24:02up and
24:02everything.
24:04I said
24:04well it was
24:05no accident
24:06so I looked
24:07at mom
24:08and I said
24:08mom
24:08you know
24:10gotta do it.
24:12He wouldn't
24:12want to be
24:13here like this.
24:15So we went
24:16out and said
24:16okay
24:17bullet
24:17and he lived
24:18about
24:18five minutes.
24:22It was
24:25shocking
24:26I mean
24:26everybody
24:27was a
24:28state of
24:28shock.
24:31It is
24:32with a
24:32deep sense
24:33of regret
24:34that I
24:34announced
24:34to you
24:35at this
24:35timely
24:36untimely
24:37death
24:37of a
24:38friend
24:38colleague
24:39and a
24:40leader
24:40Eddie
24:41Graham.
24:42I
24:47immediately
24:48started
24:49crying.
24:52I
24:52couldn't
24:53believe it.
24:54I mean
24:54why?
24:56Why
24:56Eddie?
24:57Why would
24:57you do
24:58that to
24:59your son?
25:00To your
25:01grandchildren?
25:04We were
25:05young but
25:05my brother
25:06was like
25:06if he
25:07loved us
25:07so much
25:08how could
25:09he do
25:09this?
25:10my brother
25:12was very
25:13attached
25:13to my
25:14grandfather
25:14very
25:15attached.
25:17I think
25:18that people
25:19knew he
25:20was depressed
25:20but they
25:21never thought
25:22Eddie
25:22would go
25:22that far.
25:24He was
25:25keeping that
25:25to himself.
25:27I think
25:28he bottled
25:29a lot of
25:30it up
25:30because he
25:31didn't want
25:31people to
25:32know he
25:32wasn't as
25:32strong as
25:33his outside
25:34persona was.
25:36He realized
25:37that if
25:38he let
25:38people know
25:39he was weak
25:40that there
25:41were people
25:42that would
25:42love to
25:43have just
25:43walked in
25:44and taken
25:44over and
25:45I think
25:46he was
25:46probably
25:46fighting for
25:47the territory
25:48too.
25:51We hear
25:52the news
25:52Eddie
25:53Graham's
25:53dead and
25:54holy shit
25:56what's going
25:56to happen
25:56to Florida?
25:57We found
25:58out within
25:58a year
26:00Florida was
26:01on its
26:02last legs.
26:03Vince McMahon
26:04was starting
26:04the national
26:05expansion in
26:061984 and
26:07the territories
26:08were going
26:08out of
26:09business
26:09because Vince
26:10was trying
26:10to suck
26:10up all
26:11the talent.
26:12When WWE
26:13started robbing
26:16the territories
26:17Eddie saw
26:17the writing
26:18on the wall
26:18probably much
26:21earlier than
26:22most of the
26:22people did.
26:24A year
26:25before Eddie
26:26passed away
26:27the territory
26:29started struggling
26:30Yeah, big time.
26:32Tell me
26:33about that.
26:33Well, Dusty
26:35left, took
26:37the whole
26:37crew with
26:38Dad had
26:40spent years
26:40getting Dusty
26:41over and
26:42creating Dusty
26:43Rhodes, but
26:43when Dusty
26:44left, he took
26:45half the
26:45territory with
26:46him, and
26:46that really
26:47made Dad
26:48mad.
26:48It was like
26:49he was almost
26:49trying to
26:49kill the
26:50territory for
26:50taking all
26:51the talent
26:51with him.
26:52In 1984,
26:54Dusty Rhodes
26:54leaves Florida
26:55to work for
26:56Jim Crockett
26:57Promotions.
26:58With the
26:58wrestling industry
26:59in chaos,
27:00Mike Graham is
27:01still reeling
27:02from his
27:02father's
27:03death when
27:04he inherits
27:04the daunting
27:05task of
27:06leading the
27:07territory.
27:08Mike picked
27:09up like a
27:09man, ran
27:11the territory,
27:12and, you
27:14know, life
27:15went on.
27:16Mike was
27:17obviously
27:18attempting to
27:19fill his
27:20father's shoes.
27:21It wasn't just
27:22him trying to
27:22do everything,
27:23but it just,
27:24it wasn't the
27:24same place.
27:25Where have
27:25you been?
27:26You been
27:26home?
27:27Okay.
27:28Shut up.
27:28A second one.
27:29They even ran
27:30an angle after
27:31Eddie's death
27:32with the Freebirds
27:32were down there
27:33and they were
27:34trying to heat
27:35things up and
27:35they thought,
27:36well, if we
27:36desecrate the
27:38memory of
27:38Florida's most
27:40popular wrestler
27:40ever, then the
27:42fans will hate
27:43us.
27:43It's like
27:43father, like
27:44son.
27:45You're a
27:45bold loser.
27:48Eddie would
27:49have wanted
27:49Mike to use
27:51his death in
27:53something that
27:55enhanced wrestling.
27:56I'm going to
27:56prove to you
27:57that he was
27:58more of a
27:58man than the
28:00three of you
28:00ever be
28:01as long
28:02as you
28:02live.
28:03Your
28:03asses are
28:04mine.
28:05It was too
28:05far.
28:06It was too
28:06much.
28:07The fans could
28:07tell it was
28:08desperation because
28:09they could see
28:10the crowds had
28:11shrunk.
28:12At the time,
28:13things were
28:13already shifting.
28:14I guess cable
28:15TV was starting
28:16to come out
28:16and my dad was
28:17just trying to
28:19keep it afloat
28:20and no matter
28:21what he did,
28:21it wasn't going
28:22to quite stay
28:23afloat.
28:24Struggling under
28:25the weight of
28:25Eddie's absence,
28:26the once great
28:27territory lasts
28:28just two more
28:29years before
28:30closing its
28:31doors.
28:32Eddie would
28:32have been the
28:33only one to
28:33be able to
28:34save it because
28:35of all of the
28:36NWA promoters
28:37of every other
28:38territory in the
28:39country, the
28:40one guy that
28:42had the best
28:42relationship with
28:43Vince McMahon
28:44Sr. and would
28:46have had one
28:46with Vince
28:46Jr. was
28:48Eddie Graham
28:49and he was
28:49gone.
28:50Mike and I
28:50were at a
28:51bar having a
28:52couple beers
28:53and just talking
28:55about his dad
28:55and all of a
28:56sudden he broke
28:56down and I
28:57could tell that
28:58his dad not
28:59being there
29:00weighed heavy
29:02on Mike every
29:03single day.
29:05Already grieving
29:07the death of his
29:07father and the
29:08loss of their
29:09family's wrestling
29:10empire, Mike
29:11Graham is soon
29:12to face another
29:13devastating tragedy.
29:15Following his
29:22father's death and
29:23the collapse of
29:24their company, Mike
29:25Graham must now
29:26forge a new path
29:27outside the
29:28promotion that
29:29has defined his
29:30life's work.
29:31This should be an
29:32interesting matchup.
29:33Mike Graham and
29:34Diamond Dallas
29:35Page to take on
29:36Bill Kazmaier and
29:37Jusin Thunder Liger.
29:39By that point,
29:40Mike was closing
29:41it on 40.
29:42He got a position
29:43with WCW and
29:45he was trying to
29:45help mentor some
29:46of the younger
29:47guys.
29:48Obviously people
29:48who knew Mike
29:49and knew Eddie
29:50respected him
29:51and etc.
29:52But I think
29:52unfortunately he
29:53never made his
29:54mark in WCW as
29:56anybody with a
29:57lot of pull
29:58because he was
29:59just one of the
29:59soldiers at that
30:00point.
30:02I think that
30:03when it shifted
30:03and it was more
30:04theatrics, it was
30:06being written by
30:07people that had
30:08no idea about
30:09wrestling, he got
30:11a little bit bitter
30:11because he was
30:12old school.
30:12My dad was
30:13definitely not a
30:14corporate guy.
30:15Mike never reached
30:16the pinnacle of
30:17Eddie's dreams, but
30:19he still had a
30:20very successful
30:21wrestling career
30:22and he was a
30:23good businessman.
30:25He had a great
30:25lifestyle, lived
30:26on the water, had
30:28an altitude of
30:29boats, and he
30:30won a bunch of
30:31offshore races.
30:33My brother loved
30:34racing boats, and
30:36so my dad and
30:37brother actually got
30:38the chance to race
30:39a couple times.
30:39things.
30:40My dad never
30:41wanted to sit
30:42still.
30:43He would always
30:44be like, yeah, you
30:44sleep when you die.
30:46He got his first
30:47tattoo when he was
30:4840, and it was
30:50like a skull with
30:52fire coming out of
30:52the head and a
30:53lightning bolt going
30:54through it, and
30:55then underneath it
30:56it said, peace of
30:57mind.
30:58So my dad would
31:00always talk to my
31:01brother and I about
31:02it.
31:02Peace of mind, like
31:04if you don't have
31:04Gossett, you have
31:06nothing.
31:07But like his
31:08father before him,
31:09Mike's search for
31:10inner peace often ends
31:11at the bottom of a
31:12bottle.
31:14He had two driver's
31:14licenses, actually, one
31:15legally under Mike
31:17Gossett and one under
31:18Mike Graham.
31:21So Mike Gossett got
31:22one DUI, then Mike
31:24Graham got one, and
31:26then his drinking got
31:27so much worse.
31:28After my grandfather
31:31passed away, he was
31:32miserable, and it
31:35just, he changed.
31:37Normally, you know, my
31:38dad was not like that.
31:39He never showed that
31:40side to my brother and
31:41I.
31:41He was always just
31:42upbeat.
31:43More tough to, like,
31:44my brother, I think,
31:45because he wanted him
31:46to be a strong, strong
31:47man.
31:49Stephen did have to
31:51fight and prove that
31:53he wasn't a wimp
31:55growing up.
31:56Because he was from a
31:59wrestling family and he
32:00did have kind of, like,
32:01a stronger build, I
32:02think everyone expected
32:03him to be some tough,
32:06mean guy.
32:08I think that that hurt
32:10him in the long run,
32:12but he just kind of never
32:15found his stride.
32:17We talked every day, you
32:18know, text, phone call,
32:20whatever.
32:21I sent my brother a text
32:23in the morning.
32:23He didn't respond.
32:24I just thought he was
32:24working or doing
32:25something.
32:26And then my dad called
32:27me asking me if I'd
32:28heard from Stephen.
32:31And I was like, I'll go
32:31check on him.
32:36And so that's how we
32:37found out that he took
32:39his life.
32:46When I found my brother,
32:48I, you know, ran outside
32:50and I called my dad
32:51first.
32:51My dad was saying he'd be
32:55there.
32:55I'm like, no, no, don't
32:56come here, don't come
32:57here.
33:00And so once I was able
33:02to leave, I walked into
33:04the kitchen with my dad
33:05and he said, he said,
33:09it's a good thing you
33:09found Stephen because if I
33:11would have found him, you'd
33:12be burying both of us
33:13because I'd have taken my
33:14life right then and there.
33:15It just floored me.
33:18I don't know what the
33:20demons were that got him
33:22again.
33:24Now here's his sister, poor
33:26little Nicole, you know,
33:27just distraught.
33:29His dad, everybody, distraught,
33:33you know, it just didn't
33:36have to be.
33:38I wasn't expecting it at all
33:41because Stephen and I went
33:43through and saw how hard it
33:44was with my grandfather.
33:45We saw what it did to my dad.
33:46We saw how it absolutely
33:47destroyed our family.
33:49But with my grandfather
33:50doing what he did, I felt
33:52that it made it an option.
33:54it turned into something
33:57that my brother felt, eh,
34:01he did it.
34:02Now we have my grandfather
34:03and my brother who is my
34:05best friend, you know, and
34:07I found my brother.
34:09So everyone was so worried
34:10about me.
34:11But I was worried about my
34:13dad.
34:22Haunted by the death of his
34:24son, Stephen, in 2010, Mike
34:27Graham struggles with the
34:28pain of losing another family
34:30member to suicide.
34:32I think every parent blames
34:34himself.
34:35He said, I must have been a
34:37shitty son and a shitty
34:39father.
34:40Pretty heavy.
34:41Sometimes we're our own
34:43worst critics and we're hard
34:46on ourselves about different
34:48things.
34:49And I think that, you know,
34:52there's many things that Mike
34:53could have thought about and it
34:56was just another one of the
34:57things, just knocking on the
34:59bad side of his brain.
35:02You know, between his dad and
35:04now my brother, he just, he
35:06just absolutely was crushed.
35:09Mike and I were close, but we
35:11aren't that fuzzy, fuzzy,
35:14good feeling close.
35:15He called me up and said, hey, you
35:18know, I love you, right?
35:20I said, I love you too, Mikey.
35:23That was it.
35:24He hung up the phone.
35:28My dad met my daughter and I at a
35:30park and I was like, dad, this
35:32ends with Stephen.
35:34I'm like, look at her.
35:35She doesn't deserve this.
35:37What your dad did was horrible.
35:39What Stephen did, we're never going to
35:41recover from it.
35:42But this ends now.
35:43Look at her.
35:44She doesn't deserve this.
35:46And he was like, you're right,
35:46Nicole.
35:47You're right, Nicole.
35:48You're right.
35:52But less than two years later, he
35:53did the same.
35:56He was in Daytona Beach, bike
35:58week or something, with his wife.
36:02And from what I gather, she went
36:11outside and said she was going to go
36:13see some friends.
36:21When she got back and opened the
36:24door simultaneously, she heard a
36:28gunshot and there was Mike dead in his
36:40son, Stephen's cowboy boots.
36:41He couldn't break the cycle.
36:57You can't see what's behind the
37:00person's eyes.
37:01They're telling you one thing, they're
37:02smiling, but they may be, you know,
37:04they may be just absolutely torn up
37:07inside.
37:08Then you realize he's gone.
37:10End of story, you know.
37:13No more.
37:14There's no more.
37:15I mean, I was still trying to pick
37:16out the pieces after my brother.
37:18Again, it wasn't, it was less than two
37:20years apart between my brother and my
37:22dad.
37:23After the conversations I had with my
37:25dad, asking him, telling him, begging
37:26him, please, this ends with Stephen, it
37:29was just a different level of pain.
37:34Mike had been away from wrestling for
37:36some time and I hadn't seen him in
37:38years, but then the news comes out and
37:40I, that was a shock.
37:43Even if you're not shocked at anything
37:45in wrestling, you still think, well, the
37:47same thing can't happen to two different
37:48generations.
37:50They can't do the same thing.
37:52And it happened to three generations.
37:55You just, how much, the same family,
37:58what, how much more can go on?
38:00The pattern of suicide that haunts the
38:03Gossett family reaches far beyond Eddie,
38:06Mike, and Stephen.
38:07This heartbreaking cycle of tragedy actually
38:10spans four generations and five men.
38:14A lot of people don't know this, but Eddie's
38:17father killed himself.
38:19And also Eddie's brother Skip killed
38:21himself. It's a very vicious cycle when you
38:26have a more than one suicide, one suicide
38:30is one too many. But when you have multiple
38:32suicides within the same family structure,
38:35it's just tragic.
38:38My only explanation or thought, because I'm
38:40not a doctor, obviously, but is that when
38:45one happens, then it makes it viable for
38:47someone else when they're having a hard time.
38:49And also the fact that depression and
38:52addiction is hereditary.
38:54And unless you have someone step in and
38:57recognize it and get help and let them know
39:01that it's not normal what you're feeling, but
39:04it's going to be okay, that just wasn't quite
39:07happening in my family.
39:09Big time lesson I learned.
39:11Because it isn't just the people that go, it's
39:15the people that are left behind.
39:17Heavy burden for the cold to carry and heavy
39:22burden for her daughter.
39:23We are at the Old Armory, which is now the Brian
39:39Glaser Jewish Community Center.
39:41And Larry Simon, who was Boris Malenko, who my
39:44grandfather had huge feuds with, his son helped put
39:48this together in a way to commemorate all the wrestlers
39:51that came here every Tuesday for many, many years.
39:55So it's, it's pretty great to see, actually.
39:59This is my, my dad and my grandfather.
40:02Mike and Eddie Graham have won the Florida Tag Team
40:05Championship.
40:07Nothing can keep the fans away.
40:08This was the home of the Titans of Tampa.
40:11And this will always be the house, the championship
40:13wrestling for the floor to build.
40:18I think wrestling fans should know that they absolutely
40:22respected the fans.
40:24And I hope that the fans that met them felt that.
40:28There was so much good, so much laughter, a lot of good times.
40:34And those are the things that I focus on more than anything else
40:38because they were really exceptional people.
40:42I remember Eddie, my papa, as bare-chested with a cast net
40:47off the dock, catching mullet for us.
40:50A lot of love.
40:52A lot of love.
40:54My brother, my bestie, my best friend.
40:57I just wish he knew how everyone loved him and wanted to be
41:01there for him.
41:02Dad.
41:10We had that tough relationship because I called him out on
41:14things.
41:17But there was so much love and respect.
41:22I miss my dad so much.
41:24I wish he was here to see my daughter grow up because he's
41:27missing out on a lot, but that I miss him.
41:29Some of the best times of my life were with the Grahams and
41:33with all the people that the Grahams brought in.
41:35There is a plethora of good times.
41:40A plethora of good times.
41:42They're friends of mine.
41:44Enjoyed my time with them.
41:47Wish we could have had a lot more days.
41:49The thing to do is not dwell on the bad.
41:54Dwell on the good.
41:55That's what gets me through.
41:58Nicole, love her.
42:01Love her.
42:02She's the legacy of that family.
42:04My grandfather being silly with me always.
42:08And it took me a while to get to a place where I felt like I
42:10could finally offer some type of assistance.
42:13And so I found the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
42:15And they offer amazing services.
42:18And I feel that I've come to a point in my recovery and healing
42:22that I can hopefully get a word out there that may strike a chord
42:27with someone to make them call for help.
42:30Or survivors that are struggling to get out of bed because they've
42:34lost family members to know that they should live their lives
42:36to honor those that they have lost.
42:38There has to be a lesson to everybody that's watching this program
42:44that if you feel suicidal, there's help right around the corner.
42:47And I don't care who you are.
42:49Somebody loves you.
42:50Always.
42:52You have to just make that step by reaching out to someone
42:55just to say, something's not right.
42:57I'm having these thoughts.
42:59Just speak up is what I'd ask.
43:02You can have fame, family, money.
43:05But if you don't have that peace of mind, you have nothing.
43:07My grandfather and my dad clearly didn't have it.
43:12And my brother didn't have it.
43:14But it occurred to me less than a year ago that I have it.
43:19And I had been wanting to get a tattoo.
43:21I'm not a tattoo person.
43:22And all I wanted was my handwriting that says peace of mind
43:25and a semicolon, which represents mental health,
43:27you know, suicide awareness.
43:29Very simple.
43:30And it's just an amazing reminder of where I've gotten
43:33with my life and how I feel and peace.
43:38I have so much to be grateful for,
43:40and I'm going to live my best life
43:42because that's the best way I can honor them.
43:44I am so happy right now.
43:46Things are great.
43:47My daughter's thriving, amazing friends, family.
43:50Like, I'm really happy, actually.
43:53Say show?
43:53znalee and stuff.
44:03You Помements
44:04Life
44:05Life
44:06Life
44:06Life
44:07Life
44:07Life
44:07Life
44:07Life
44:08Life
44:08Life
44:09Life
44:10Life
44:10Life
44:10Life
44:11Gracias.
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44:19
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