The pro-wrestling world suffered another tragic loss this past week with the passing of Christopher Klucsaritis (Chris Kanyon). It is believed that the 40-year old former WWE and WCW star (who also wrestled one match for TNA in 2005) took his own life. His body was discovered in his New York apartment on Friday, April 2, 2010.
Kanyon began his career on the independent circuit and briefly appeared as a “jobber” (i.e. “enhancement talent”; guys who are brought in to lose to the bigger stars on TV) for the WWF (WWE) in 1994.
In 1996, Kanyon headed to WCW (World Championship Wrestling) and after several months of “jobbing” to WCW Superstars, was placed in the short-lived tag-team known as “Men At Work.”
With Mark Starr, Chris made up a team of construction workers; a gimmick that was as comically bad as WCW’s “Special Forces” (Firebreaker Chip & Todd Champion) in the early 90’s. Suffice to say the teams (and their hard-hats) were given the boot, after sinking like a brick in water.
Kanyon managed to shake off the “jobber” stigma (“Men At Work” rarely won any matches) when he was repackaged as the video-game-esque masked character “Mortis” in 1997. However, although the look of the gimmick (which was a cross between the “Mortal Kombat” fighters “Reptile” and “Scorpion”) was impressive, Kanyon’s new win-loss record wasn’t. (This coupled with the fact that he was feuding with another computer-game-inspired wrestler called “Glacier” made the whole thing seem very silly, even by barmy pro-wrestling standards).
After forming a brief partnership with Wrath (Bryan “Adam Bomb” Clark), Kanyon tried to join Raven’s “Flock” in 1998. He was unsuccessful (he failed to defeat Diamond Dallas Page in a match to earn a place in the faction) and soon dropped the “Mortis” gimmick to feud with Raven. Together, they had a positively brutal, weapons-filled Cage Match at WCW Uncensored that year.
In 1999, Kanyon (as he was now known) formed the “Jersey Triad” with Diamond Dallas Page and the late Bam Bam Bigelow. The entertaining heel trio were one of the few highlights of the summer months for WCW fans and together, they enjoyed a reign as WCW World Tag-Team Champions (they were also allowed to defend their titles as a 3-man outfit, and were allowed to “chop and change” tag partners ([ike Demolition did in the WWF back in 1990]).
Towards the end of the year, Kanyon went by the name Chris “Champagne” Kanyon (when he made his “debut”, he was decked out like the WWF’s Godfather, which obviously wasn’t by accident, considering that former WWE writer Vince Russo was now on the creative team) and was managed by Luther Biggs (Clarence Mason from the WWF). He also had two beautiful “Nitro Girls” on his arm (Baby and Chameleon).
During this time, Kanyon had a brief run against his former “Triad” pal Bigelow and in one particular match, actually knocked him out with a [gimmicked] champagne bottle.
At Slamboree 2000, Kanyon had a stellar match with the late Mike Awesome, who was making his WCW PPV debut that night. Although Kanyon lost the bout, he certainly held his own with Awesome and gave fans possibly his best singles match of his career.
Kanyon returned later that night to get thrown off the top of the triple-tier “Ready To Rumble” cage by Awesome, in a scary stunt that was made disturbing by the fact that it took place in the same arena (the Kemper Arena in Kansas, Missouri) where Owen Hart had died one year earlier after his Blue Blazer “flying” ring entrance from the scaffold above the ring had gone tragically wrong.
After selling the “injuries” he suffered at the hands of Awesome at Slamboree, Kanyon shockingly turned on best friend DDP and joined the “New Blood” (led by Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff). Ridiculously, it turned out to be a “set-up all along” (Kanyon wasn’t really injured and had apparently “asked” Awesome to throw him off the three-tier page to “trick” Page into feeling sorry for him and trusting him as his “best friend”).
Idiocy aside (why didn’t they just say Kanyon had a “change of heart” or that Page “failed to visit” when he was in hospital?), the angle did give Kanyon a hilarious new character, “Positively Kanyon”, a spoof on DDP and his “positive” attitude (Page released an autobiography in 1999 called “Positively Page”).
Unfortunately, once the DDP feud was done, Kanyon found himself losing to Buff Bagwell at New Blood Rising in a “Judy Bagwell On A Forklift” match (yes, they actually involved Bagwell’s mother in a match, and not for the first time, either).
In 2001, Kanyon revived his rivalry with Page before getting his contract picked up by the WWF following their purchase of WCW in March.
As a member of the WCW/ ECW “Alliance” (led by Shane McMahon, Stephanie McMahon and Paul Heyman), Kanyon was more of a “bit player” in the grand scheme of things, although he did have a reign as U.S. Champion (admittedly after being handed the title by Stephanie) and also had a WCW World Tag-Team Championship reign with Page (although the pair lost the belts and were completed slaughtered in a one-sided pasting at the hands of The Undertaker & Kane in a Steel Cage Match at SummerSlam).
It should also be noted that Kanyon brought some light-relief to WWF broadcasts when he began referring to himself as the “MVP” of “The Alliance” (plus WWE really got behind his “Who Beta Than Kanyon” catchphrase, much more than WCW ever did).
Unfortunately, like many of the “Alliance” members, Kanyon ultimately took a back seat to “leader” Stone Cold Steve Austin and “co-owners” Shane and Stephanie. At times, it appeared that he was there to “make up the numbers”. The situation got worse when he hit the bench with a serious injury, and by the time he returned in 2003, he had really “been through the mill” health-wise and was soon relegated back to playing the “jobber” role on the short-lived week-end wrap-up show “Velocity”. Then in early 2004, he was released from his contract.
After working a few independent dates and a one-shot deal for TNA (losing to Raven at Turning Point in 2005), Kanyon retired from the ring. He later “came out of the closet” as a homosexual, after initially saying that his admittance was a “publicity stunt.”
Overall, Chris Kanyon will be remembered for being a dependable, reliable and always entertaining mid card act throughout WCW and WWE. Although in many ways his success was fleeting, what he did do had impact and will forever be remembered by the many fans that followed him and his career over the years. He will not be forgotten.
Previously posted on Smash Wrestling:
http://www.firetank.com/smashwrestling/
