Verne Gagne suspected in death investigation

[King Kamala 0]

Link

 

Damn, one of the most bizarre stories (at least wrestling-wise) I've seen in a while. Does not look good for Verne.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

An 82-year-old Minnesotan wrestling legend is under investigation after the death of his 97-year-old roommate.

 

Police believe that Verne Gagne may have contributed to the January death of Helmut R. Gutmann, who lived with him in the Bloomington living facility, Friendship Village. Gagne and 97-year-old Gutmann, who both suffer from Alzheimer's-related dementia, allegedly got into a fight on Jan. 26 that led to Gutmann's death.

 

They're the original odd couple!

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

No word yet on whether or not he used the Crippler Crossface to do him in.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

This is even worse than when he killed the AWA!

[daileyxplanet 0]

Well his finisher was the Sleeper, so...

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

On a serious note, it sounds like the facility potentially has a bigger problem on their hands. The police were contacted by an elderly rights group?

[Guest Smues]

So has anyone gone back and watched his last match and seen if there was anything to indicate he might be capable of this?

 

I'm not sure I'll ever be able to listen to the Wrestlerock Rumble again. I mean, it'd be like rewarding a murderer right?

[snuffbox 0]

A fight between Alzheimer's patients. Another famous wrestler, in his 30s or 40s, planning for and killing his wife and very young son. Same?

[Guest Smues]

An episode of AWA wrestling from October 1986 is on ESPN Classic right now. I'm going to watch and look for any clues!

[HollywoodSpikeJenkins 0]

The room is spinning.

[TMC1982 0]

I didn't know that Verne was suffering from dementia. He still seemed pretty lucid on the Spectacular Legacy of the AWA DVD.

[Enigma 0]

I wonder what Verne's physical address was.

[CBright7831 0]

I wonder what Verne's physical address was.

And were his dogs enclosed in the pool area w/ the garage side door open?

[Richard 0]

Apparently Verne tried to trick police by showing 6-month old video footage of Gutmann and acting like it was brand new.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

One of pro wrestling's biggest legends in tragic story PDF Print E-mail

 

Verne Gagne, one of the most influential pro wrestlers in history, is alleged to have thrown down 97-year-old Helmut Gutmann, on Jan. 26, breaking his hip and Gutmann later passed away over the weekend.

 

Both at the time were residing in a facility in Bloomington, MN, which treats patients with Alzheimer's and dementia.

 

Gagne, a week shy of his 83rd birthday, is believed to have thrown Guttman down hard on the ground, and nobody knows exactly what caused the incident at the memory loss unit. Guttman was at first hospitalized, then released, but his condition deteriorated and he died in hospice care according to an article in the MinnPost.

 

Gagne is no longer a resident at the facility. The newspaper reported Gagne had been kicked out of the facility due to an incident previously and at the time was allowed to return.

 

It's a tragic story because Gagne would have absolutely no idea of what he had done. Gutmann's wife Betty said she was notified about what happened in the 1/26 incident and found her husband lying on the floor in tremendous pain.

 

"You can't blame the person that did it," she said. "(Verne Gagne) doesn't know what he's doing. I feel so sorry for his family, bcause they are faced with a terrible problem of what to do."

 

The story quoted someone only identified as one of Gagne's daughters, who described it as a personal family matter and that nobody is saying that is the reason the man ended up dying.

 

Gagne was one of the biggest stars in pro wrestling history. A two-time NCAA champion, who turned down an NFL offer to become a pro wrestler, was United States champion for Fred Kohler's Chicago-based promotion which had national television in the early 50s, making him one of the highest paid athletes in the country during that period.

 

He later purchased controlling interest in the Minneapolis Boxing and Wrestling Club from Tony Stecher, withdrew the promotion from the National Wrestling Alliance when he was bypassed in the selection of the world heavyweight champion, and created the American Wrestling Association, where he was both promoter and usually top babyface for much of the period from 1960 until his retirement as a full-time wrestler in 1981.

 

The AWA expanded from Minneapolis throughout the Midwest, and because it was a successful area that paid well, but had a limited schedule, many considered it the promotion where wrestlers had the highest quality of life. The promotion was successful until 1985, when its dated presentation was exposed by Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation and Jim Crockett Promotions. The promotion quickly lost its popularity and limped to its death a few years later.

 

After negotiating a deal to sell his tape collection to McMahon, Gagne was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. He had been suffering for years with Alzheimer's.

[johnson316cane 0]

I wonder what Verne's physical address was.

 

I bet once they study his brain, it'll look like that of an 80 year old Alzheimer patient.

[PILLS! PILLS! PILLS! 0]

You're learning, kid. You're learning.

[Paul Stanley 0]

Where's Johnny?

 

 

 

 

(Sopranos reference)

[zappafrank 0]

Aside from this message, Mr. Gagne's name will not be mentioned again. Do not expect to see him, his matches, or any reference to him on any of our programming.

[Twisted Intestine 0]

nobody knows exactly what caused the incident at the memory loss unit

 

Oh really?

[jester 0]

Re: Verne Gagne suspected in death investigation

 

I wonder if this will be enough to distract Nancy Grace from Caylee Anthony for a night with nonstop hysterical OH MY GOD VERNE GAGNE AND CHRIS BENOIT ARE IN YOUR CLOSET STRANGLING YOUR KIDS RIGHT NOW!

 

Sorry. Lost my grip.

[King Kamala 0]

More detailed article

 

Check out the name of the deceased's daughter. Huh, odd odd story. Can't imagine they'll press charges towards Verne though.

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

Why couldn't have been Greg Gagne?

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I wonder what Verne's physical address was.

 

I bet once they study his brain, it'll look like that of an 80 year old Alzheimer patient.

This is the only one that was amusing. The rest of you are just sad.

[BruteSquad_BRODY 0]

This is even worse than when he killed the AWA!

 

i dunno i thought this was pretty funny

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I wonder what Verne's physical address was.

 

I bet once they study his brain, it'll look like that of an 80 year old Alzheimer patient.

This is the only one that was amusing. The rest of you are just sad.

You didn't like when I called them the original odd couple? For shame alkeiper, for shame.

[PILLS! PILLS! PILLS! 0]

Subtopic: Will you still be able to watch his matches? Too Soon?

 

Ha! No, this will not affect whether or not I will be able to watch his matches. Which is to say that I will continue to watch zero of his matches.

 

Except for the Money in the Bank with Verne Gagne vs. Ray Stevens vs. The Crusher vs. Fritz Von Erich vs. Ken Patera vs. Nick Bockwinkel. That one's too good to miss out on.

 

[LaParkaMarka 0]

Subtopic: Will you still be able to watch his matches? Too Soon?

 

Ha! No, this will not affect whether or not I will be able to watch his matches. Which is to say that I will continue to watch zero of his matches.

 

Except for the Money in the Bank with Verne Gagne vs. Ray Stevens vs. The Crusher vs. Fritz Von Erich vs. Ken Patera vs. Nick Bockwinkel. That one's too good to miss out on.

 

The triple-stacked table spot was pretty amazing for it's time.

[Mos_Def 0]

So has anyone gone back and watched his last match and seen if there was anything to indicate he might be capable of this?

 

I'm not sure I'll ever be able to listen to the Wrestlerock Rumble again. I mean, it'd be like rewarding a murderer right?

 

Why are you trying to make light of, and minimize, Benoit murdering his family? Over the years we made all kind of character assassinations and assumptions about guys like HBK, Nash, Hall, HHH, ext... Because they looked our for themselves and didnt play "fair" with anointed internet favorites. Benoit murders his son and wife and its like "so". Yes he was a great wrestler ---- BUT DAMN.

 

As far as Verne goes, this story is super random. Dont know what to make of it. Getting old sucks. You dont know what the hell you're doing at a certain point.

[River City Rocker 0]

"...therefore, other than my comments, there will be no mention of Mr. Gagne tonight..."