Amazing the things you find when you start auditing your computer files.
Dunno what I was going for with this report. I can't even really remember exactly what time frame I wrote this up, except that it was apparently after John Kronus died, but before they knew what Sherri Martel died from. I remember doing this in response to all the news reports that came out about how many wrestlers die before retirement age. It's in PDF format, and should open in a new window.
http://www.sciencegonemad.com/archive/deadwrestlerstats.pdf
Monday, February 11, 2008
Data Analysis on Dead Wrestlers
2 comments:
This is some interesting statistical analysis, or at least the beginning of some interesting statistical analysis. I assume that where you were going with this is that one criticism of mainstream media coverage of wrestler deaths is the selection bias or otherwise vague explanations involved in concluding the number of deaths in professional wrestling being premature and/or resultant from their involvement in the wrestling business. Obviously the long-term use and abuse of alcohol, narcotics and other hard drugs can manifest in different and occasionally unpredictable ways, but by this list 40.5% of those deaths were impossible, or nearly impossible, to categorize as drug-related or a negative result of being a professional wrestler.
Cancer (8), kidney or diabetes (5), automobile accidents (5), in-ring accidents and health complications (5), murder (3), and various other health-related deaths (6) cut the death toll down nearly half without even beginning to trim out the heart-related deaths which encompass most of the remaining fatalities.
Because heart attacks and failures can be a result of congenital defects often triggered by vigorous activities, long-term substance abuse, old-age, or a combination of those factors, a simple classification of heart failure tells little. Other variables must be examined; for example, Russ Haas' death by heart attack at age 27 suggests either a congenital heart defect or the possibility of substance abuse. It is known that he had suffered a heart attack three months previous to his death, but nothing found on the Internet provides any information on postmortem examinations. However, nothing provides any information that would give one to conclude that Haas' death was in any way drug related. Another wrestler who died of heart failure, Rick Rude, was believed to have died as a result of an overdose of GHB and steroids; his autopsy listed his death as an overdose of "mixed medications." A number of heart-related deaths can easily be categorized as natural causes, such as Andre the Giant, Giant Baba, Bad News Brown, Gorilla Monsoon, and others.
Without breaking this down any further, I would imagine that as much as 60% and as high as 80% of these deaths were beyond the reasonable control of anyone, and it is good example of the irrelevance of including these large numbers of "questionable deaths" in any discussion about professional wrestling.
Wow. That's some number-crunching right there.
1) Apparantley both Rocco Rock and Johnny Grunge are dead (I thought it was just one of them). I guess that effectively rules out a reunion of the Public Enemy, with "Sweet" Stan Lane in place of the departed Enemy.
2) I never knew Big Dick Dudley was dead in the first place.
3) I'd forgotten about The Wall and Mike Awesome. Although that does remind me that around the time that happened, Buck and I had ourselves horse-laughing as we re-enacted Mike Awesome putting the noose around his mullet, "UUUUAAAAAAHHHHH I CAAAAIIIN'T GO ON ANYMORRRRREE....." I never had much use for Awesome, no matter how much I was told he was a "really good worker." I didn't want dude to kill himself, though. Regardless, Buck, Josh and myself are going to burn in purgatory for a long time for countless events like this one.
4) I'm starting a rock band called Dead Wrestlers.
5) I scanned this list thoroughly for Santino Marella, and came up dry and empty.
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