As you've already heard by now WWE Superstar Chris Benoit
was found dead along with his wife Nancy and 7-Year Old son Daniel.
WWE scrapped scripted plans for last night's 3 hour edition of Raw and instead did a three hour tribute/retrospective of Benoit's greatest matches with thoughts from WWE superstars in-between.
The fact that police found no bullet wounds or evidence of gun violence and the ironic timing of Benoit rushing back to Atlanta for a "Family Emergency" only to wind up dead the next day, left it impossible to come to usual conclusions.
Clouded by wrestlers admiration for Benoit were some repeated observations that Benoit was a "private person" who kept to himself.
Also found it striking that Jerry Lawler was very careful in his choice of words (falling short of the "good wrestler, great guy" eulogy that everyone else was giving, and was quick to bring up Nancy and Daniel, the other victims in this tragedy).
Benoit was a wrestler admired specifically by discerning wrestling fans as an underdog who unselfishly made his opponents look better throughout his career and broke the glass ceiling (read World Champion) usually reserved by bigger talent. It is for this reason, these fans related to Chris Benoit.
Well moments after the three hour eulogy went off the air WAGA-TV a Fox affiliate in Atlanta
revealed the direction of the investigation.
Police believe Benoit himself is responsible for the deaths of Nancy and Daniel returning to Atlanta to kill himself on Monday.
While this is still conjecture, at least for today, if this were true then Benoit would go from lovable underdog to a deranged dark killer the likes of Cho-Sueng Hui and allegedly O.J. Simpson.
I'm sure a lot of details about Chris Benoit that many didn't know or didn't want to know will come out in the next couple weeks.
Let this serve as a lesson that in a business where fans willingly suspend disbelief, that it is foolish to think we know anything about the people we watch, admire and emulate once the camera goes off.
Labels: Chris Benoit Case, WWE