Deceptively Healthy Trivia Quiz

Answer: WrestleMania

The Ultimate Warrior (fka James Hellwig) was one of the most energetic superstars in the WWF/E (World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment). He became a dual champion in 1990 when he defeated Hulk Hogan for the WWF Championship at "WrestleMania VI" while already holding the WWF Intercontinental Championship.

Due to backstage issues, The Ultimate Warrior and the WWF had been on bad terms for a long time. However, they were eventually able to improve their relationship and he was enshrined into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 5, 2014. He made appearances at "WrestleMania XXX" the next night and "Monday Night Raw" the night after. That Tuesday, April 8, 2014, The Ultimate Warrior passed away suddenly of a heart attack at age 54.

Answer: The Undertaker

Andre the Giant (Andre Roussimoff) was 7'2" and had intense natural strength at his prime. However, his enormous size was the result of a disorder called acromegaly. Acromegaly is caused by a noncancerous tumor that affects the pituitary gland, which causes it to pump out too much natural growth hormones. However, the disorder often leads to numerous health problems later in life. Andre the Giant passed away on January 28, 1993 at age 46.

The Great Khali (Dalip Singh), The Big Show (Paul Wight) and Omos (Tolulope Omogbehin) are three other giant wrestlers who have also been affected by acromegaly. However, they were able to have the tumor surgically removed, which will hopefully prevent them from leaving this world the same way Andre did. The Undertaker (Mark Calaway) is also a tall wrestler, but his height was not the result of acromegaly.

Answer: Kevin

The Von Erich's are probably one of the most tragic families in professional wrestling. The family patriarch, former NWA (National Wrestling Alliance) wrestler Fritz Von Erich had six sons with his wife Doris. Of the six boys only one, Kevin (second oldest), was still alive when this quiz was written. His oldest son, Jack (1952-1959) died as a child after stepping in an electrified puddle.

David Von Erich (1958-1984) died from a case of severe enteritis while competing at a wrestling event in Japan. Mike Von Erich (1964-1987), Chris Von Erich (1969-1991) and Kerry Von Erich (1957-1993) each committed suicide. Fritz Von Erich himself passed away in 1997 at age 68 from lung and brain cancer. Fritz and his sons (sans Jack) were all posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009.

Answer: cocaine

Curt Hennig competed for numerous promotions, including AWA (American Wrestling Association), WWF/WWE and WCW (World Championship Wrestling). He was a second generation wrestler as his father was Larry "The Axe" Hennig (1936-2018). His son Joseph Hennig (aka Curtis Axel) also became a professional wrestler.

Late in his career, Curt Hennig's personal life was becoming marred with drug and alcohol abuse. In 2002, he was released from WWE after several alcohol related incidents including the infamous "Plane Ride from Hell". Curt Hennig passed away at age 44 due to acute cocaine intoxication less than a year after the incident.

Answer: Chavo Guerrero

On November 13, 2005, Eddie Guerrero passed away while the WWE was visiting Minneapolis, Minnesota. His nephew, former WWE superstar Chavo Guerrero, discovered Eddie passed out in his hotel bathroom. According to Chavo, Eddie died in his arms. Eddie Guerrero was only 38 years old at the time of his passing.

Eddie Guerrero's death was ruled to have been caused by congestive heart failure. Unfortunately, like Curt Hennig, Eddie had also been struggling with drug and alcohol addiction. While Eddie had attempted to sober himself up, the damage to his body significantly shortened his lifespan.

Answer: Chris Benoit

On June 25, 2007, former WCW/WWE superstar Chris Benoit was found to have committed suicide after murdering his 43-year old wife Nancy and his 7-year old son Daniel at their home in Fayetteville, Georgia. Chris was only 40 years old at the time of his death.

There have been numerous factors put forward as to what may have caused Chris Benoit to take this action on himself and his family. One factor was the severe depression Chris was dealing with following the death of Eddie Guerrero. Other factors include possible brain damage that Chris may have had after sustaining numerous concussions in addition to his alleged abuse of steroids and/or other performance enhancing substances.

Answer: He suffered a heart attack while driving

Randy Poffo (aka "Macho Man" Randy Savage) was one of the most iconic wrestlers of the 1980's along with Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant. Sadly on May 20, 2011, the Macho Man suffered a heart attack while driving in Florida which caused him to lose consciousness and crash his Jeep into a tree. He passed away at age 58.

It was initially believed that the Macho Man was killed from injuries he sustained in the accident. However, his autopsy revealed cardiovascular issues which were declared to be the primary cause of his death. While Macho Man claimed to have never used steroids, his brother Lanny said that he did use a lot of HGH (human growth hormone) during his career which may have contributed to his poor circulatory health.

Answer: Ashley Massaro

Former WWE Diva Ashley Massaro was found unconscious at her home in Smithtown, New York on May 22, 2019. She was pronounced dead just ten days shy of her 40th birthday. While an official cause of death was not initially released by authorities in order to comply with privacy laws, several entertainment news sites such as TMZ had reported that Ashley had committed suicide via hanging.

"Miss Elizabeth" Hulette passed away on May 1, 2003 at age 42 after accidentally ingesting a lethal mixture of painkillers and vodka. Sherry Schrull (Sensational Sherri) passed away at age 49 due to accidental drug overdose on June 15, 2007. Joanie Laurer (Chyna) passed away at age 46 on April 17, 2017. Chyna's death was also determined to have been caused by an accidental drug overdose.

Answer: Jerry Lawler

On September 10, 2012, wrestling legend and WWE commentator Jerry "The King" Lawler suffered a severe heart attack during a live airing of "Monday Night Raw" from Montreal, Quebec. His fellow commentator Michael Cole was forced to break character in order to provide the audience with updates to his colleague's condition. It was reported that Jerry's heart stopped for nearly 30 minutes, but he did manage to recover without any serious brain issues.

Jerry "The King" Lawler was 62 years old when he suffered his heart attack. There have been plenty of wrestlers over the years who passed away due to cardiovascular problems following or even during their in-ring careers. The intense training a wrestler goes through, combined with the use of legal and illegal drugs and enhancement substances can take a massive toll on a wrestlers heart and body overall.

Answer: Jonathan Huber

Jonathan Huber had previously worked for the WWE under the name Luke Harper. He signed with AEW (All Elite Wrestling) and made his debut as Brodie Lee on March 18, 2020 just as the Coronavirus pandemic began. Brodie Lee won the TNT Championship from Cody Rhodes on August 22, 2020. However he lost the belt back to Cody on October 7, 2020 after which he went on an hiatus for a then undisclosed illness.

Jonathan Huber passed away on December 26, 2020 at age 41 due to a rare disease known as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis which according to Wikipedia "causes the thickening and stiffening of lung tissue". Jonathan Huber's death stunned a wrestling community that was already trying to cope with the hardships brought on by COVID-19.