Kevin Von Erich, and his family, are set to move away from Hawaii soon and will resettle back in Texas, where they are beloved. In a Haus of Wrestling exclusive interview, the central figure from Dark Side of The Ring’s The Last of The Von Erichs explained why he felt it was time to make the transition back to the continental United States, at least for the time being.
“I’m not leaving,” he clarified. “I’m going to keep this place, and I will be coming back. It’s been so good to us, I’ve only good things to say about living on Kauai. I’ll say this, I have daughters, granddaughters too, and they’re getting to the age to get married, or to look at such a thing. We’re being realistic, and I want them to be able to choose from more than just, there are 70,000 people on our island, that’s it. It’s been great for me, but I was kind of selfish, I guess. I don’t have children now, and it’s important that they do have all the opportunities they should have.”
Kevin will be taking the stage for a seven-city tour of his one-man show, Tales From The Top Rope, on September 1 in Dallas. The majority of the tour will take place in Texas, and it seems like he may be ready to reembrace the Lone Star State’s pro wrestling community, beyond just his shows.
“Yeah, I’ve got my sons now and they’re so gifted at the business, and, so, I’m going to see, we’re just talking about it right now,” he revealed. “It could be that I can teach the kind of style that we had at World Class because there was a day when we were set to change the wrestling business, where you just pour your hearts into it. I mean, tomorrow morning, you’re gonna be really sore. You may not be able to work two shows back to back because you’re gonna have to heal one of them.
“But I know that with TV ratings, when we started wrestling each other, when we started beating each other with leather straps, and Come As You Are matches, they got more and more violent, bloody. I know it was tough and you get hurt a lot, but it’s great TV. It makes great TV, and every week they get better and better. Man, it’s like a drug you want to get better and better every time, you want more and more.”
The news that Kevin could be returning to the pro wrestling business in a teaching role is certainly something that perks the ears up of potential, young wrestlers. In his career, Kevin won multiple titles in the NWA, WCCW, WCWA, and other major promotions. He was honored with a WWE Hall of Fame induction in 2009, as a member of The Von Erich Family.
“Here in Kauai we’re midway between America and Japan, and my boys work Japan a lot, and so did I,” he pointed out. “So, if things go well, we just might have a place here and there. A finishing school here and also a wrestling school, a kind of a finishing school, kind of to polish men. We could teach them how to work our style but then interviews, polish, preparing for Japan. That could be something out here and we’re just thinking about all this stuff.”
Kevin Von Erich’s Tales From The Top Rope seven-city tour kicks off September 1 at The Majestic Theater in Dallas, TX. Tickets for the general public go on sale today, Friday, June 2, and are available at EmporiumPresents.com. The events will be hosted by noted sports reporter Dale Hansen, and will also feature appearances by legendary WCCW referee, booker, and promoter, David Manning.
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