Zitat:REMEMBERING CHRIS CANDIDO
by Dave Prazak

We received word late Thursday night of the passing of Chris Candido. He
sustained injuries to his leg this past weekend at the TNA pay-per-view.
Complications following surgery were the cause. Chris was just 33 years old.

To say I'm in shock right now is a complete understatement.

Chris Candido was such an amazing locker room presence for the IWA Mid-South
roster during the past eight months.

Much like Tracy Smothers, Chris was very eager to help the younger talent to
improve their game, and had a newfound desire and determination to step up his
own game several notches, and prove to everyone that he was a real
contributor to pro wrestling in 2005. Everyone within the promotion, as well as our fans
were so very proud to see that he had gotten his career back on track.

Personally, I didn't really start following independent level wrestling until
about 1993. The initial smaller organizations I began to follow at the time
were Smoky Mountain Wrestling and Dennis Coralluzzo's NWA promotion in New
Jersey. Without a doubt, the one independent level star I marked out for more than
anyone at the time was Chris Candido. His over the top personality, comedic
ability, and hard work in the ring were such an entertaining combination that I
couldn't help but become a fan of his work. At the time I was publishing a
wrestling newsletter while attending high school, and made sure to send Chris a
complimentary copy of each issue, knowing he read the sheets himself.

I was incredibly proud to watch his career progress into becoming a major
star on national television during the mid-90's for the WWF as part of the
Bodydonnas, despite his lack of size. When opportunity knocked for me to get
involved with an independent promotion as a ring announcer, that promotion was run by
Dennis Coralluzzo. I'll admit that a big part of why I was eager to work for
Dennis was the idea that I'd be working for the same promoter who helped Chris
get many of his early opportunities in the wrestling business.

When I finally got the chance to appear on a wrestling show with Chris and
Tammy in June of 1996 for Dennis, I was sent back into mark-out mode. It was
such an honor to share a locker room with someone whose talents I appreciated so
greatly. The same was still very true five years later when Chris and Tammy
made their way to IWA Mid-South in 2001 for shows in Dayton, Charlestown, and
Indianapolis.

Late last year, IWA Mid-South welcomed Chris Candido back into the fold. He
had really turned things around, and was determined to work his way back into
national prominence once again for being such a versatile performer. The locker
room was full of young wrestlers that were happy to see someone with such
amazing abilities get his career back on track, and bust his ass even for just a
few hundred fans in a rec center outside Chicago or a double digit crowd in
southern Indiana. Ian put together a Chris Candido vs. AJ Styles match
specifically to show everyone just how good Chris was, and that he could still "go"
with a current junior heavyweight star if given the opportunity. His match with
Jimmy Jacobs in Rock Island, and the eight man tag in Lafayette, will go down
as two of the most entertaining matches I've ever witnessed.

Whenever Chris would say hello in the locker room in recent months, he'd call
me "Dave Meltzer," remembering back to when I'd send him my newsletter twelve
years ago. Every time I'd look across the IWA Mid-South locker room and see
Chris Candido place his gear bag alongside guys like Matt Sydal, Chris Hero,
and Trik Davis, I'd shake my head and smile. It was so awesome to have Chris be
a part of our roster of hungry young talent.

"Hey Meltzer, what happened the the blond hair?"

"I realized the short guy with bleached blond hair gimmick wasn't over, so I
shaved it off."

"I wish I'd have known that sooner."

Truth be told, the gimmick was over, but only Chris Candido could actually
pull it off.

Rest in peace, Chris. You will be missed.

A special Chris Candido thread has been opened on the message board. Fans are
encouraged to post their memories and pay tribute to Chris.

http://iwamidsouth.proboards19.com/index.cgi?board=IWA&action=display&num=1114
748127

Zitat:TNA Wrestling joins the entire wrestling world in mourning the untimely death of Chris Candido on Thursday night.

TNA is deeply devastated by the loss of Chris, who touched the lives of millions of fans around the world during his successful career.

We hope everyone will keep Candido’s friends and family in their thoughts and prayers as we say goodbye to a friend

Early Friday morning, Chris Candido's brother Johnny posted the following message to fans on the USAProwrestling.net website:

"I find it only fitting you hear the truth from me about the death of my bestfriend, brother, and soulmate. Chris died tonight due to a blood clot brought on by complications with his surgery.

I just want to tell everyone that in their sorrow, find a way to be happy that he went out the way he wanted to...on top of the world, blonde, tan, and loving life up until the last minute. Every ounce of my brother loved this sport, and for him to go out 2 or 3 years ago wouldn't have been a fitting end to the life of such a determined, passionate, and benevolent human being.

I truly view my brother as an angel as will all who knew him. Thanks to everyone for all your positive press, Chris went out a happy man and will forever live on as the(one of) greatest of all time. He would have had it no other way."

Zitat:CHRIS CANDIDO REMEMBERED
by Mike Johnson

Chris Candido used to really P*ss me off. I can't deny that, even as I am saddened by his loss. Several years ago, Candido looked to have permanently joined the club that no wrestling fan is proud of but every fan discusses and knows exists - the club of wrestlers who had that chance but lost themselves to their issues. Some members of the club, no matter how talented, like Brian Pillman, lost their way. Others, like William Regal, broke free and made a new life for themselves.

Candido used to really make me angry and sad because he had joined that club and he was so much damned better than that. He had everything going for him - a hot girlfriend, a love for the business, a great work ethic, an innate ability to make you laugh at just the right moment, and the knowledge to know exactly when and where to pull out the right bump, the right shortcut, the right snide remark. As someone who followed him from the point he billed himself as "Mr. Charisma" Chris Candido, in a forgotten age where Tammy Sytch was sitting in the front row cheering him on and taking photos like mad, it used to burn me up that he had gone from the local guy made good by making it to the WWF, to the burned out independent worker on the local indies, sometimes working for next to nothing, when he deserved so much more.

I had written him off a long time ago as just another victim to the business, but Candido proved me wrong.

Over the last year or so, Candido had turned his life around. Like many who follow the business, I couldn't help but be a little cynical - I guess it comes with talking to and writing about professional wrestlers, so many of whom have demented and unique theories on everything in the world. Candido proved every naysayer wrong. He had cleaned up and was having entertaining matches everywhere he was booked, whether he was working AJ Styles in TNA or Mike Tobin for UXW in New York. Some people had written that the old Chris Candido was back. I wouldn't go that far, because you can't go back in time. The person that was in the ring was a smarter, wiser Candido, someone who had gone from being the butt of the latest "Did you hear about Chris and Tammy?" story to someone who became the subject of the "Did you hear about that great match with Candido and Homicide?" type of conversation.

If there is anything that can be taken from his loss (beyond the memories of great wrestling and personal memories of those who knew him), it is the story of someone who fell from grace, hard and clawed his way back. He had regained his reputation, he had regained his performances, and he had regained the respect of many in the business - from Dusty Rhodes who went to bat for him to bring Candido to TNA on down to the most unknown indy worker, who Candido would treat the same as if he was a WWE PPV main eventer. There was no ego to Candido these days, as he would routinely poke fun at himself and his past problems when appearing on Frank Goodman's hotline in New York City. It just wasn't how he carried himself.

There were a lot of people in the business who cared about Candido probably more than he himself ever realized, and they were all shattered by his passing. I don't recall a passing being taken harder within the business for as long as I've been following it. The TNA locker room was unison in taking his death terribly hard. Old friends from the WWF and ECW were no different. Indy workers from all over the Northeastern area, who Candido had befriended, were equally speechless. It was something that no one saw coming. Candido had exited the Club a long time ago and was someone that a lot of the younger workers all looked up to. With his passing comes a major void in the indy scene, as there's one less wrestler to give back to the next generation. Although his influence was nowhere near as great, Candido took to a number of workers on indy shows the same way Terry Funk took to the ECW roster, advising and trying to help everyone improve. He did it because he loved what he did for a living, and took the good with the bad, his successes with his mistakes.

I don't know that he would have ended up returning to WWE in the end, but there were a lot of people pulling for him. Candido could have been the next Eddie Guerrero or William Regal feel good story, but instead Father Time had other ideas. Everyone in the business should take heed - things can change forever in your life in a second's notice. For those of you working to better yourselves, remember the work ethic Candido carried. For those who are dealing with their own problems, let Candido's passing be the warning sign you need to clean up, so if you get your chance to mount a comeback, you can do it before you run out of time as well.

I'll always remember watching Candido busting his rear on the independents against the likes of Tazz and Sabu. I'll always remember Tammy Sytch telling everyone who would listen at the last Weekend of Champions convention in NYC that the evolution of great wrestling in the business was "Buddy Rogers, Ric Flair, Chris Candido." I'll always remember him wandering around at the Fanfest of Wrestlemania 11 in Conneticut with Tammy Sytch, weeks after being signed by WWF but unknown by most of the fans in attendance, just taking it all in and signing for the few fans who did recognize them. I'll always remember that feeling of "indy guy makes good" watching him debut in Madison Square Garden, defeating Aldo Montoya (Justin Credible). I'll never forget the pride the late Dennis Coraluzzo had in Candido, who was truly "his boy." I'll never forget Candido's return to ECW, where he strutted out as a surprise to defeat Spike Dudley. I'll never forget the great whiny promos. The baby bottle matches in SMW. The promos where the Bodydonnas looked out from the TV to tell everyone how fat and disgusting they were. The gimmick with Rad Radford (the late Louie Spicoli) as the Bodydonna in training. The striped trunks he wore as a tribute to his hero Terry Funk. The Triple Threat. The team with Lance Storm.

I'll never forget the last time I saw Chris Candido wrestle in person, facing Mike Tobin in a great comedy match where Candido kept trying different gimmicks to outwrestle him, from a Tazz t-shirt to his old BodyDonnas tights. It was good clean fun, the way wrestling should always be at its best. The way Candido was at his best.

Thanks for the memories Candido. I'm sure right about now Dennis is pouring you a tall glass of ice tea and regaling you with stories of some scheme he's cooked up, even in heaven. Enjoy the conversation.