The Tragic Real-Life Story Of The Von Erich Brothers And ‘The Iron Claw’

It’s hard to fathom how the so-called “Von Erich Curse” can be viewed as nothing more than a mythologized idea by ardent wrestling fans and even nonexistent by the family’s lone living relative. Tragedy, as much as stardom, has followed the family as far back as the 1950s when Jack Adkisson started wrestling under the ring moniker Fritz Von Erich.

The Invention of the Iconic Iron Claw

During that same decade, Fritz invented one of the sport’s most iconic wrestling moves, the Iron Claw, in which he spread his humungous hand over his opponent’s face and squeezed it to oblivion.

Unthinkable Tragedy Strikes

In 1959, the family suffered its first unspeakable tragedy when the youngest son, Jackie, died at just 7 years old in Upstate New York after he was electrocuted, fell face-first, and drowned in a puddle of melting snow.

The Von Erich Family’s Wrestling Stardom

In the years and decades that followed, pain and sorrow plagued the Von Erichs, and these calamitous events, sadly, would come to define their storied wrestling legacy. The family’s wrestling stardom and tragic events became the subject of an ESPN 30 for 30 short-documentary dubbed Wrestling the Curse in 2015. Nearly a decade later, Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White lead a star-studded cast for A24’s film on the real-life story of the Von Erich family, aptly dubbed The Iron Claw.

The Real-Life Characters in ‘The Iron Claw’

The two standout leads are at the heart of the story, which follows the Von Erich family, led by Fritz (played by Mindhunter star Holt McCallany). Efron plays Kevin Von Erich, White plays Kerry Von Erich, Harris Dickinson plays David Von Erich, and Stanley Simons plays Mike Von Erich. The Von Erich brothers spent the majority of their careers in World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), where they won multiple individual and tag team titles. The family was inducted into the Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2009.

Fritz Von Erich: From Football Star to Wrestling Villain

Long before finding wrestling stardom and becoming the patriarch of a family that churned out wrestling stars, Jack Adiksson was a football star at Southern Methodist University in Texas. The story goes that he briefly played for the then-Dallas Texans of the National Football League. After football, Jack found wrestling in the early 1950s. According to a 1988 profile of the family in D Magazine, Jack started fighting under the ring moniker Fritz Von Erich and he adopted the role of a Nazi villain. At a towering 6 feet, 4 inches, Fritz was considered a terrifying figure, never mind the eerie persona. Fritz would eventually ditch the villainous role in the mid-1970s for the “good guy” role. But he kept the name, and his sons would later adopt the famous moniker that would define them as one of wrestling’s most iconic families.

The 1959 Tragedy that Shattered the Family

Fritz found stardom in the 1950s, but the high of highs as a wrestling star paled in comparison to the lowest of lows. While living in a trailer park in Niagara Falls, New York, his wife, Doris, gave birth to their first son, Jackie, in 1952. But just seven years later, Jackie died after he was electrocuted. He touched a live wire while playing in the trailer park. After touching the wire, little Jackie fell face first and drowned in a puddle of melting snow.

A Decade of Devastation: The Loss of Four Sons

It’s between 1984 and 1993 when the family is leveled by one death after another. David was the second son to die, and it came out of nowhere, too. He died suddenly from an intestinal infection in a Tokyo hotel in 1984. Mike, Chris, and Kerry would soon follow. Mike died at just 23 years old from a drug overdose. D Magazine reported that after he was arrested for DWI, Mike had driven out to the woods and taken a lethal overdose of tranquilizers. Police found his body curled up in an old sleeping bag just a few hundred yards away from the Von Erich home. Police also found a note from Mike addressed to his mom: “Mom, you have always been wonderful. I am in a better place.” Chris died next. He was just 22 years old when he died by suicide after a gunshot to the head. Kerry also died by suicide after a gunshot to the chest. He was 33.

Wrestling with the ‘Von Erich Curse’

Despite such tragic history, Kevin told the Dallas Morning News in 2015 that the “Von Erich Curse” is not a thing. “It’s not a curse,” he said at the time. “To tell [you] the truth, I may have believed it when it was going on, but I never said it out loud.” For ESPN’s 30 for 30 short-doc, Wrestling the Curse, Kevin said that “after all of this, I went a little crazy.” “I wanted to die, but I wasn’t going to kill myself,” he added. “I wanted to go to prison and get in fights, and I wanted to be punished like I had done something. It was stupid.” In 1997, the patriarch of the family died in 1997 from brain and lung cancer. He was 68.

The Legacy Continues: Kevin Von Erich

Kevin moved to Hawaii with his wife and four children. His mother, Doris, came along as well. She died in 2015. Kevin and his family announced earlier this year they would be relocating to Boerne, Texas, just northwest of San Antonio.

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