One of the first openly gay professional wrestlers in the WWE was found dead in his Sunnyside apartment Friday night, surrounded by pills and several notes. Officially retired since 2004, 40-year-old Chris Klucsaritis (aka Chris Kanyon) debuted in the sport in the late nineties, as part of the construction worker-themed tag team “Men at Work.” The Daily News reports that officials are calling his death—from an overdose of various medications—an apparent suicide.
Kanyon was eventually cut from “Men at Work” (for using his tape measure at "inopportune times" causing the team to lose, according to Wikipedia) but as he launched off on his own the issue of his sexuality became contentious. In 2006, the wrestler, who also worked as a physical therapist, claimed he was released from his WWE contract because he was gay, although on several earlier occasions he'd told reporters that homosexuality was just another gimmick he used for publicity. The fallen wrestler's MySpace, which is now serving as a memorial, lists him as “single, gay, and looking ” though now it’s updated with the phrase “RIP Chris.”
