All language subtitles for Dark Side Of The Ring S02e08 Cocaine & Cowboy Boots The Herb Abrams Story

In 30 years, I have never seen more
exciting match. Well, down for the

One, two, three. In 1990, the Universal
Wrestling Federation appeared out of

nowhere, ready to make a major impact on
the wrestling world.

UWF was a dream.

I'll tell you, we have some of the
finest talent anywhere in the world.

The UWF brought together a roster of all
-time greats and future stars.

It was an ambitious dream of an
outsider.

a man named Herb Abrams. The purpose of
this federation is to have wrestling go

back to basics, the way wrestling used
to be. I really believed that I was

stepping into something new and cutting
edge with Herb Abrams and the UWF.

UWF, number one, baby, number one!

While his lofty vision put the UWF on a
path to success, Herb's dream became

everyone else's nightmare.

I am going to get you once and for all!

Right from the get -go, the show was a
joke.

The money wasn't legit.

Herb had squandered millions of dollars.

All hail broke loose.

Herb was like a ball of fire, just
looking for oxygen.

SWAT teams are going to be knocking down
the door here in a minute. I couldn't

even fathom it. I heard that he was
covered in Vaseline and cocaine.

It's crazy.

You've got to start from the bottom and
work your way up. Herb started at the

top and worked his way down.

Now, for the first time ever, it's a
true story behind the monumental

of Herb Abrams. You can't get any darker
than the story of the UWF and Herb

Abrams. You can't.

By the end of the 1980s, The WWF
dominated professional wrestling.

Powered by the vision and expertise of
Vince McMahon, no other organization

close to its mainstream popularity.

But in 1990, an unknown wrestling
fanatic came from out of nowhere to

slay the WWF monster.

I mean, I see him so clearly in my mind
like it was yesterday, and I cannot...

Talk about Herb without smiling.

I am Mick Foley. I am sometimes known as
the hardcore legend.

Herb was the little guy with a big
personality.

His enthusiasm was contagious.

I believe I was at one of John Arezzi's
weekend of champions.

John was one of the first guys who was
putting together wrestling weekends.

My name is John Arizzi, and I've been in
and out of the pro wrestling business

really since the early 1970s. There was
a gentleman who was looking to start a

wrestling promotion, and he was a little
eccentric.

He had really big aspirations.

He wanted to launch at the Wrestling Fan
Convention. He mentioned a lot of money

being pumped into the organization, but
when he mentioned the names like Bruno

Sammartino, I mean, to me, that was
legitimacy.

For most of the 20th century, Bruno
Sammartino was the face of professional

wrestling and one of its first true
icons.

And I called Bruno to verify it, and he
said he was going to be getting involved

with Herb. So I certainly gave him the
time of day and welcomed him to my

wrestling fan convention.

The Wrestling Fans Fantasy Weekend event
is one of the first fan conventions of

its kind and a convenient arena for Herb
to approach talent looking for new

opportunities.

There was a lot of the guys from the
Northeast, the Cactus Jacks, Sunny

and Herb made a point to introduce
himself to almost everybody there.

I know he was trying to, you know, look
for talent at the convention. He was

there, I guess, recruiting.

My name's Rick Allen, formerly known as
Sunny Beach in the wrestling world.

He was, you know, looking to do big
things. And he goes, Sunny, my boy,

going to make it big one day, you know.
Just be there for the ride.

I didn't inspire to become a
professional wrestler, to be honest with

saw something in me that I didn't even
see.

He's a hell of a wrestler, this guy.

The brand name is Wild Thing Stevie Ray.
He said, Stevie, my boy, I'm going to

turn you into a big star.

I can't wait to be around this guy.

Herb had never wrestled. He had never
really experienced anything in the

wrestling other than really being a fan.

My name's B. Brian Blair, and I've been
wrestling for a long time.

I knew Herb Abrams from the very
beginning. He asked me if I wanted to

for him. I thought, well, you know, this
is a great way back to kind of the WWE

without the pressure of wrestling 67
days in a row.

It was perfect for me.

With the exhilaration of an obsessive
fan, Herb officially launches the UWF at

the convention with a press conference
laying out his grand plans for global

domination.

his vision, and announced some of the
performers that were going to be

associated with him.

But it turned into more of a circus, and
there was an angle between Dan Spivey

and B. Brian Blair.

There were tables torn. There were
glasses thrown.

He introduced as his booker Black Jack
Mulligan, who at the time was

incarcerated. And he mentioned that he
was going to be using Bruiser Brody as

one of his top stars, but Bruiser Brody
had been murdered a year ago.

It was far -fetched.

But it wasn't because the entire
wrestling business is far -fetched. His

in his own words made people around him
want to believe.

And, you know, when he's telling you
this is going to be one of the greatest

wrestling promotions, I thought this is
the man who's going to mix Hollywood and

sports entertainment in a way that not
even Mr. McMahon had done.

Exploding out of the convention, Herb's
pure force of personality.

has bought him a roster of eager
wrestlers, each with the high

man who is a complete mystery.

I didn't know a whole lot about who Herb
Abrams was.

I knew that he was a businessman of some
kind. He was working with the stock

market. He told me he was in the
clothing industry.

I have no idea what Herb Abrams did. I
really don't know.

Herb owned clothing companies in New
York City called I'm a Big Girl Now.

It was all these beautiful dresses that
you wouldn't have thought would have

been for these oversized women.

My name is Lane Duke.

I worked at NBC for 24 years as head of
post -production and quality control.

I always wanted to get involved with
professional wrestling.

When you're a fan, you have that deep
desire to want to be on the inside.

Herb Abrams.

was my best friend.

We were kindred spirits.

Herb was in a pair of jeans, cowboy
boots, and he was going from the minute

met him. He let me in so quickly because
he didn't have a me.

He didn't have someone that could do
what I did. He believed so much in what

was doing and in what he was selling.

Herb Abrams' greatest dream comes to
life on October 1st, 1990.

when the UWF Fury Hour debuts on cable
television.

There's excitement in the air throughout
this capacity crowd. This is the

premiere of the UWF. We were in Reseda,
California.

It was a nice setup. It was a small
venue, but it was sold out. We were

believing in Herb's vision. I didn't
know where it might take us, but I

to enjoy it. To these two guys, this is
Captain Jack, and I would rather hurt a

man.

He had guys that had recently parted
with WWF, and so they were fresh and hot

the television.

Herb Abrams had what I thought was
arguably more star power than WWE at

time. Guys like Paul Orndorff, who'd
drawn an enormous amount of money. Then

had Steve, Dr. Jeff Williams, Captain
Lou Albano. Danny Spivey and Bob Orton.

brought instant credibility to the UWF,
having these big names on board with us.

It's coming, wrestling fans!

The on -door pile driver.

Boom!

Taking a hands -off approach, Herb
empowers his talent with creative

they'd never had before.

It was a lot looser in Herb Abrams'
territory than it was in Vince's, where,

know, you had to walk like you did in
the Army. I went from feeling like I'd

been wrestling with handcuffs on to
feeling like I had total freedom.

I thought it was something special. I
thought I got into the ground floor, the

empathy of the show.

I knew that I was heading for...

You know, I knew that Herb was going to
give me that big push.

Everybody was happy and things were
good.

With his dream of becoming a big -time
promoter within reach, Herb seeks to

align with the one man who could fast
-track his success in the wrestling

Herb met with Vince McMahon and said to
him, you want the East Coast and the

Central and it's all yours.

What about if I promote the West Coast
for you?

And Vince McMahon blew him off.

Rejected by Wrestling's King, Herb's
attitude towards the WWF evolves into a

desire for utter domination.

In order to compete, he looks to expand
the UWF roster.

I'm Marty Yesberg.

I'm from Gaffney, South Carolina.

And back in the 80s, I was branded the
colonel by Jimmy the Boogie Woogie Man

Vagant. In the dressing room, we kept
hearing about this Mark out in

California who had tons of money and was
putting together a TV show

called the UWF.

He flew us all out to California.

He set me up in this two -bedroom
estate.

Hotel Beverly Hills.

And it was all that and a bag of chips.
And we wasn't working for him.

Understand, we was just going to meet
him. You know, I'm like, wow.

That night, he knocks on the door, and
he has two

high -end call girls.

We're not talking about South Carolina.

snaggletooth call girls. We talking
about Hollywood honeys.

He brings these girls into my suite that
I thought was my suite.

And I'm drooling all over myself
because, I mean, I'm thinking, I don't

to see women like this, much less, you
know, have this delivered to my room.

And in the process, he broke out a
little mirror.

and he had his nose candy with him.

The only thing I can think of is, you
know, SWAT teams are going to be

down the door here in a minute, and we
got two high -priced hookers and cocaine

everywhere.

I didn't know how to get out of the
room. I really and truly wanted out of

room. I'm in California.

I'm on his dime.

I can't call the police.

Hell, the room's in my name.

So I kind of just sat over in the
corner.

And, you know, I mean, it was like a
live pornography session.

And it was a very long night.

This is my pride and joy. This is the
original television championship belt

Sports Channel. It says UWF on both
sides.

Fuck you to Vince McMahon.

That's what the FQ was standing for. So
when he would hold it up, Herb would

hold it up. He knew that he was telling
Vince McMahon to F himself.

Herb's vision for the UWF was to put the
WWF out of business.

I mean, he was that cocky. Herb was
doing everything in his power to

intentionally needle McMahon and to piss
him off. He wanted a squash fence.

He wouldn't even be happy with peaceful
coexistence. I think he just wanted to

put the guy down.

With rival WWF far out of view, Herb
Abrams takes the opportunity to launch

first attack, bringing in one of Vince
McMahon's most prized attractions.

Herb calls me and he's so excited.

He goes, Lenny, get here as fast as you
can.

I'm not going to tell you who's sitting
here, but this is the best thing. Now,

when I came out here before, I said I
had a surprise.

Something special.

Something that only Universal Wrestling
Federation can handle. The 12th wonder

of the world, here he is, Andre the
Giant.

Yes, this is true. Andre the Giant has
signed a long -term contract with the

Universal Wrestling Federation.

Well, he's not in his prime anymore, as
everybody knows, but... He will be

wrestling, John.

He will be wrestling.

He will be wrestling. They had Andre the
Giant.

Andre the Giant had come in. It was just
colossal to have him walk down the

ring. Even though we maybe had 200, 300
people in the audience, they were all

standing. And they knew that we had...

hit. But Lou, I want to ask you one
thing.

Why is he, what does UWF mean?

After Andre made the appearance for UWF,
Mr. Mann got on the phone and called

him and brought him right back in.

The embarrassment of losing Andre the
Giant is an enormous blow to Herb's plan

for dominance.

Without McMahon's riches, Herb responds
by throwing every gimmick in the book to

gain the attention of fans.

Herb would think of things on the fly,
change things on the fly.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a
disgrace.

I'm reversing the decision.

As long as it entertained Herb.

He thought it was entertaining the
world. The fighting is back.

I told you I'm going to hurt every
pencil neck, every pitch pick. I want a

match! Indian strap match!

Indian strap match! I don't think he had
the knowledge, you know, to...

really take it to the next level.

If you don't understand the psychology,
if you don't understand how each guy

works, what their strengths are, what
their weaknesses are, how to put them

together, who they work the best with,
then you are never going to be

successful.

Running out of ideas, Herb turns to yet
another new strategy to invigorate the

UWF. What made you come to this?

I said, who is this overgrown smurf
asking me questions?

It's interesting what happens to a
promotion when the boss becomes the star

the show.

Welcome back to another night of the
Fury Hour. I'm Herb Abrams, and again,

we've got a powerful show for you
tonight.

He was writing the checks so Herb could
do anything that he wanted to do because

it was Herb's world and we were just
living in it. You think about it. You

about it. Because you're the one that
wanted it, and now you've got it. All I

saw was money.

I was open to anything to get the
exposure that I was after.

He saw a way to get heat and actually be
on camera and have a

feud between the colonel and the owner
of the organization.

What's Herb doing?

Herb took him down.

Herb Abrams may have a new career,
folks. I knew as long as he was part of

He would keep me around.

Herb A. Regan.

He hit him right in the head with that
speed.

And another one.

Colonel Rendon has ever done something
like this to me. I am going to get you

once and for all.

Herb attempts to get one over McMahon by
emulating one of WWF's most lucrative

ventures, merchandising.

Everybody's buzzing over the UWF
merchandise.

Call the UWF.

Introducing the UWF Superstars cookies.

We've got the Steve Ray Wild Thing
cookie, the Steve Williams cookie, and

coming soon, the Herbie cookie.

Herbie cookies.

Herbie. Let me repeat that for you.

Herbie cookies.

He also wanted the ice cream bar, but
the cookies, they were great.

And let's not forget the B. Brian Blair
cookie.

It's honey flavored.

Herb is in desperate need of a power
play when his television contract starts

slipping away.

When

I

heard that Herb was putting on a pay
-per -view, it seemed like the

moment. And it was proven by the WWF. It
was proven by WCW. That's where they

made the majority of their income was
through their pay -per -view events. And

for Herb to step into that arena, maybe
he was expecting to roll the dice, get

lucky, and then finance the whole
operation.

High expectations for the UWF's
inaugural pay -per -view weigh heavily

Instead of holding the beach brawl in a
largely populated area, Herb lands on

Palmetto, Florida.

over an hour away from the closest major
city.

Palmetto Manatee Civic Center was a nice
venue. I mean, WWF does TV tapings out

of there.

I think that's one of the reasons why
Herb picked that place.

Herb said that he had every newspaper,
he had every radio station. Everyone was

going to give it a push to help him.

Chris, we're real excited about the
beach brawl, and I would highly suggest

people call to secure beach brawl right
in their living room because it will be

just that, a brawl at the beach.

Hopefully millions of fans watching the
show.

I go and I look at this building and I
know that there's no way in hell we can

sell this building out. The building was
immense.

The building was bigger than any
building I had ever seen in my entire

And I knew damn well that we didn't sell
this building out.

Somebody screwed up.

With the UWF's first pay -per -view
event just days away, promoter Herb

indulges in Florida's nightlife scene,
letting it get the better of him.

They talk about those people that work
hard, play hard. That was Herb Abrams.

What was your drug of choice, would you
say?

Obviously,

it was cocaine.

There were more drugs back in the
late...

early 90s than any other time in the
history of pro wrestling. There was

like, debauchery down there. They were
staying up around the clock, partying.

was like one big party for some of the
guys.

When I got to Florida, he was in his
hotel room, and he had been partying.

I found Herb to be in really, really bad
shape.

I said to him, you've got to straighten
yourself out. We've got this goddamn pay

-per -view to do.

You're going to kill yourself while
you're doing this.

You know, Len, it's the stress I'm
under.

I said to him, Herb, when we're finished
with this, we've got to get you into

the rehab.

If you don't go to rehab, I can't do
this with you.

Herb's distractions from the beach brawl
comes to a head.

as he arrives to find thousands of empty
seats at the arena.

They had to cut the auditorium lights
down to do the TV show, so nobody knows

there's nobody there.

That's pay -per -view.

That was a pay -per -view.

When I saw how few people were in the
audience, I'd say to Herb, how can this

be? And he'd say, somebody screwed up.

He tried to keep upbeat, and he was in
there doing the ring -a -dancing and his

thing, but I think that really hurt him.
Brian, I'm going to go with the doc.

I'm going to go with the doc. So Herb
Abrams going with Steve, Dr. Death

Williams. He was running in and out of
the bathroom a lot that night, so

obviously he was doing a lot of cocaine.

It was the worst pay -per -view, I
think, in pay -per -view history.

He got like a .01, you know, buy rate.

That equates to maybe 100.

It's either 100 or 1 ,000 people.

It was a financial loss, a tremendous
financial loss. Nobody was happy.

All the guys were talking, you know,
between themselves, and they thought it

might be the end of, you know, the
promotion.

I was a glass -half -full guy. I would
see those empty seats, and I would think

that it was a way to do cool stuff.

It was really clear that most of his
best intentions were not going to come

fruition.

With the event a financial disaster and
checks for the talent starting to

bounce, the UWF wrestlers confront Herb
face to face.

I go knock on his hotel door so I can
get my money. And the door opens and

there's these...

two naked girls so not like i hadn't
seen a naked girl before but this was a

little unusual and then i look and i see
herb on the bed he's naked and he's

laughing and i look over and he's got
two big old piles of cocaine on each

nightstand it's a picture that's forever
etched in my mind so he tells those

girls to leave and as they're getting
dressed

Herb writes him a check for $2 ,000
each.

I thought, golly, $2 ,000.

This guy's crazy, blowing money on
cocaine and hookers. I mean, how long is

promotion going to last?

I had a guy tell me one day, you know,
this is a runaway train. I said, no,

brother, this is a train wreck.

And all they're trying to do now is just
figure out if there's any survivors.

Herb Abrams' connections in the
wrestling world start to dry up.

Many of the wrestlers stiffed on pay are
refusing to work while Herb's vices are

taking hold.

I kept in contact with Herb even when I
did not work for Herb. You could see the

wear and tear on his face. I mean,
between the drugs and the failing

it was really taking a toll on Herb.

I don't think he was keeping up with
money.

I don't think it mattered to him as long
as the party continues.

In Spartanburg, South Carolina, he
pulled a fast one.

So the day of the show arrives.

TV crew gets there about 12 o 'clock.

Herb's there.

And they said, we need to get a check
from you for tonight's show. Herb says,

let me get everything set up and I'll
cut you a check.

So we get up to about 4 .30.

TV crew came back and said, Mr. Abrams,
if you don't give us some money,

we're packing up leaving.

Herb says, okay, let's go up to the
office.

They call Herb's bank.

Mr. Abrams has multi -millions of
dollars in this bank account.

Confirms it.

TV crews look at each other.

He definitely got the money.

He had two bank accounts.

He had one that was filthy rich, and
then he had the other bank account that

cut this check on that had no money in
it.

Herb worked something out to where they
accepted a check.

And I told them, don't accept a check if
you don't want to accept a check.

And they accepted a check.

All hail broke loose.

Some of the guys that had worked that
show threatened to throw Herb off the

fifth floor balcony.

And that's when reality hit me upside
the head. I was hiding out. I had people

calling my phone. I mean, they were
wanting to kill me for being associated

the company.

As UWF leader Herb Abrams is now forced
to promote shows in smaller towns, his

party lifestyle grows more intense, and
his grasp on reality begins to flip.

He would get into this paranoia state
where he would swear that there was

someone with a bug, you know, in his
hotel room.

I've seen him paranoid several times,
and I'd ask, what's wrong?

He'd, like, just stare around and look
around and say, I think they're outside.

I said, who?

goes they're watching us i said who and
he would never tell me who it was i

don't know who he felt was recording him
whether it be the police whether it be

the hookers whether it be the pimps i'm
thinking no one's spying on her it's the

drugs talking he would go through the
furniture and look for

microphones or cameras, and he'd tear
the furniture up just to tear it up to

bits. For some reason, he had a
fascination with cushions. And if there

zipper, he'd open them up, and he'd just
start ripping through them. I mean,

he'd just rip them out, and, you know,
and then when that was ripped out, he'd

go to the next one. All the feathers
would have been all over the room. I

you know, he wanted everything.

That paranoia thing, uh...

It concerned me because there was some
truth behind some of that.

He would go over to the door and the
people,

and he would look to the people like
this right here.

Now, you've got to understand, here's
this five -foot -tall little naked

fellow with cowboy boots.

That's the one thing he didn't take off
was his cowboy boots.

And he's going.

I said, what's wrong, Herb?

They're coming.

They're coming. You hear them? They're
coming.

Now, what are you thinking?

Oh.

Yeah, they're probably coming.

Herb's problems escalate further when he
tries to put one over on the wrong

people.

Here he is. He's with this girl who he's
supposed to pay off. And he's doing

this, oh, I'll give you a check type
thing. No, you're supposed to give him

cash. She's not falling for it. Boom.

Door breaks down.

Doug's there.

Herb's popped out.

He goes and throws himself through a
window.

I literally got a phone call from him in
California. He's running through a

neighborhood naked.

And he's like, what do I do? What do I
do?

I said, make yourself visible. I don't
care. Make people see you. Get arrested.

Go to jail.

And that probably wouldn't have been a
smart thing because you probably had

contacts in there as well. But anyway.

Herb's excessive lifestyle has finally
reached its limit and his activities in

wrestling cease.

Any comeback for the UWF seems near
impossible.

Meanwhile, his old rival Vince McMahon
stages one of his most flamboyant events

yet. The spectacle of WrestleMania IX
shows Las Vegas casinos.

that wrestling can be a huge draw.

For Herb, it opens the door to a golden
opportunity in the city of second

chances, his first event in over a year,
the Black Jack Brawl.

What better way to showcase your product
than in one of the preeminent

locations in Las Vegas, or in the world,
for that matter?

For Herb to pull off the MGM Grand, it's
a...

It's a wager city. It's a betting city,
so obviously he got somebody to take the

bet. That was his deal. That was his
motif. That's what he did.

He would go for the biggest freaking
bite he could get, and he'd take it. He

spending an enormous amount of money on
the talent that he was bringing in for.

It was a loaded show with big, big
names, and it just seemed like a party.

The night before the show, Herb brings
me up to his penthouse suite.

When I saw the suite, I believed that
MGM was going to be packed. I was

17 ,000 people packed to the rafters.
And this overlooked the whole city.

And Herb goes, wait till you see this.

People are going to lose their minds.

He proceeds to pull out a pair of yellow
ostrich skin cowboy boots that have

UWF burnished into the leather. The fact
that he thought people would lose their

minds over a pair of cowboy boots was an
indicator that there were issues.

Making their way into the luxurious MGM
Grand, UWF talent discover once again.

that Herb's reach is leagues beyond his
grasp. It was a gorgeous arena, and that

night it was a gorgeous, empty arena.

It was, like, sad to wrestle in front
of, you know, a couple hundred people

again. You know, my first match was in
Clarksburg, West Virginia, and we had

people, but we were at the Clarksburg
Armory.

He didn't seem bothered by what was
going on, almost like it was part of

grand plan.

Like, okay, those 300 people are going
to be checking out my ostrich skin

It was just a bundle of energy running
from here to there and he was involved

everything. It really was an
embarrassment and, you know, he was

outrageous during that show. He might
have been coked up.

Throughout that entire show, I mean,
when he takes the microphone and he just

screams into it, let's hear it for the
Jews.

I mean, in front of the crowd, I mean,
it was kind of hilarious. It was sad.

All in the same way. It was kind of
weird.

He was acting very strangely.

His mannerisms were different.

The showdown will take place.

Steve, Dr.

Matt Williams, puts the panel on the
line against militia. Steve!

Not making too many friends tonight,
John.

He was twitching and jumping and such,
and so they all knew he was high.

On that night, I had a chance to wrestle
my idol, Jimmy Snuka.

And when Jimmy Snuka and I start heading
into the stands, you know, 16 ,700

empty seats, I remember Brian Blair
going, what are you doing? I said, it's

Herb's show. We can do whatever we want.

Ladies and gentlemen.

We have a double disqualification.

The downside is that check did not
clear.

He wrote me a check.

It bounced.

It was a failure. And, you know, that's
got to hurt. He had the weight of the

world on his shoulder.

I would never have wanted to be Herb
Abrams in his position.

When he came back, he told me how
successful it was.

I had the MGM, Len. Yeah, you drew 200
people, and it was a total clusterfuck.

And he says, yeah, but I had the MGM.

Emotionally and physically defeated by
his failure in Las Vegas, Herb's dreams

of a wrestling triumph may finally be
over.

The lifestyle took a toll on Herb.

He didn't have the spunk that he had,
that electricity, constant, constant

that made the room glow.

You know, it was like he aged ten years
in two years.

It was such a big deal that he left L
.A. for good and came back to New York.

thought he was really cleaning himself
up.

So I get a phone call from Herb, and he
goes, Len, big things are happening.

I go, Herb, are you sure you're
straight? He goes, Len, I'm perfectly

On July 17, 1996, a longtime friend
visits Herb at his office in New

York City. This is the last known
recording of Herb Abrams.

Hey!

Herbie!

You want to look around here first?

Yeah, we're looking.

Wow.

Get out.

Herb appears to have turned a corner on
his sobriety, but his friends are left

in the dark as he suddenly disappears.

In 96, when I was working in the offices
with him, sometimes, you know, he'd

come in the next day all hungover.
Sometimes he wouldn't even come in at

Sometimes you wouldn't see him for a
couple of days or hear from him for a

couple of days.

So that was just Herb being Herb.

I was working at NBC, and I got a call
from Stacy, my wife.

And she says, Lenny, I have some really,
really bad news.

Sunny Beach called, and Herb's passed
away.

Herb's dead.

It was Sonny's crying on the phone.

So I called Sonny Beach, and I go, what
is going on? Nobody knew what happened.

And then his mother called me up, and it
was just like a blur after that. I must

have cried for like two hours.

And it was just the hardest thing to
call those men, and then to hear them

start to cry.

These super gargantuan, strong men that
you saw fly across the ring.

I'll cry over Herb dying and me not
being able to almost talk.

On July 23, 1996,

officers respond to an unbelievable
scene at the office of Herb Abrams.

were sparse, and those closest to Herb
would hear varying accounts of the

disturbing event as they unfolded.

It was kind of like how someone would
say if they walked into his hotel room

saw him, you know, naked. That's a real
shock to some people, okay?

To me, that was part of his process of
what he was going through. The night

I guess he passed away, he was partying
and drinking. He had a couple of escorts

up there with him. And I heard that he
had done so much cocaine that he was

whacked. And he found a baseball bat and
started tearing up the room that he was

in and just went absolutely berserk.

I heard that he was covered in either
oil or Vaseline and cocaine.

It's crazy.

And he was chasing around hookers with
his baseball bat.

Somebody told me that escorts tried to
rob him, too, and that's why he grabbed

the bat.

That's a sight to see, I'm sure.

So I call Sunny Beach, and I go, what is
going on? And he says exactly what it

says in the tabloids, that Herb was
running around naked, smashing a

bat on the walls and in the office.

chasing a couple of hookers with coke
all over his body. He had baby oil all

over him, and I guess somebody called
the police. I heard somebody called the

police on him.

There's rumors like he got sodomized by
police with a baton. I mean, I heard

that. I'm going, what the hell?

I guess one of the girls ran out of the
office and shut the door behind him, and

I think he ran into it. I think that's
how he passed away.

When the police showed up, I heard he
had a massive coronary and died.

And what I'm told is that he took his
clothes off in the jail and he had a

seizure and they killed him.

Nobody knew if he was robbed. Nobody
knew if he got beat up with a baseball

So there was all kinds of stories going
around at the time and nobody knew the

true story.

Still, we don't know because I wasn't
there. So, you know, you never believe

everything you hear.

Chasing hookers around and, you know,
all greased up and died in the back of a

police car.

The one thing I know is that Herb Abrams
left this world

doing what he loved, cocaine and
hookers.

The wild and conflicting circumstances
surrounding Herb Abrams' death

his already extreme life and reach urban
legend status within the wrestling

world. It kind of became folklore.

Everywhere we go, you get a Herb Abrams
story.

Some are better than others. Some are
true. Some you don't know what to

When they told me he died, I said, no.

He's faked his death. He's left. He's
left the country.

And I hate to talk ill of the dead, if
he's dead. But I had a

promotion.

that was down in Union, South Carolina,
that ran under UWF.

And this promoter swore to me that the
night of his show, this little fella

came to the show in blue jeans and
cowboy boots and

asked him what the name of the
organization was.

And he swore.

He said, I'm telling you, he said, that
Herb Abrams showed up at my show.

And because it said UWF, this person
gave them the riot act, that he would

them. And it was as if Herb was
legitimately alive.

And I said to Marty, Herb's dead.

Uh, question.

Herb Abrams couldn't keep quiet for 30
years.

Maybe he went under witness protection.
I don't know. He would find a way to

resurface. No, I find it completely...

that Herb Abrams is alive and not
seeking the limelight somewhere.

And I know that if he was still alive,
he would have come and found me.

He would have let me know that he was
alive.

He would have done everything he could
to send a message somehow.

He wouldn't have stayed away 30 years.

He wouldn't have stayed away 30 years.

Herb, we miss you.

Wish you were still here with us.

You know, it could have been a great
thing.

You know, the UWF and just what he was
doing. If we would have had a

little bit more backing, a little bit
more support, I think it could have went

long way.

And now I'm visiting Herb in the
cemetery.

We deal.

We cope and we go on.

I actually inherited Herb's dog after he
passed away.

What was the dog's name?

Cokie.

It was Snow White the dog, and it was
laying in the coke. Herb called it

Herb loved that dog to death.

Herb's style was always to be a generous
guy. I picked up the tab for

everything. But again, that's easy to do
with other people's money.

If it was his hard -earned money, he
would still do the same.

I think he was just always trying to
prove himself or always wanted to be

or always wanted to be somebody to be
respected.

But we all respected him and we all
liked him.

How did you feel after he passed?

It was a loss of someone who... Someone
who

believed in me.

I'd say that he truly brought life.

He brought it out of me.

Without their fallen leader, the UWF
faded out of existence and into the

memories of those who fought to bring it
to the top.

I think Herb should be remembered as a
person who tried to do something special

in the wrestling industry.

I think Herb Abrams was this bizarre
character.

who wanted to become a major player in
the pro wrestling business, and he was

never able to succeed if he got in his
own way, from his personal demons to the

way he ran his business.

The worst thing that Herb Abrams did,
whether you hear about that he was

involved with hookers or coke or this or
not paying people, the worst thing that

Herb Abrams ever did to me was die.

It's haunted me for the entire time of
this 30 years.

And this is the only reason that I've
ever talked about, the first time I've

ever, about the secret of the UWFL.

And you have it, the best that I could
give it to you today.

He had the enthusiasm and I think the
courage to try to live out his dream.

He was such a diehard fan that that was
his downfall.

He would love the negative that's on the
internet.

He would love it all.

Why is that?

Because he was Herb Abrams.

He was a thing unto himself.

I have to believe this is the way Herb
would want it. Maybe he got in death

he didn't have in life, and that is he
became a legend.

Last question. If he was alive today,
what do you think he'd be doing?

Time.

Yeah, there's no way Herb's going to
keep his taxes. I just think he'd be

bars. He would have hurt no one except
himself, and I'd be visiting him,

and we'd be toasting with a glass of
milk and Herbie cookies.