Chris Klucsaritis, who wrestled in WCW and WWE as Chris Kanyon, was found dead Friday night at his apartment in the Sunnyside section of Queens, New York. He was 40 years old.
Klucsaritis’ death is believed to be suicide as a longtime friend reports that a pill bottle and several notes were found close to his body.
Klucsaritis had been vocal about suffering from a bipolar disorder and had threatened suicide many times in the past according to those close with him. He told one friend as recently as Monday that he was going through another bout of depression and contemplating suicide.
Earlier in his career, Kanyon wrestled in WCW as the masked character Mortis. After wrestling as Chris Kanyon in WCW, he got picked up by WWE in 2001 after the WCW buyout. During his WWE run, Kanyo held the WCW United States Championship and WWF Tag Team Championship. He garnered headlines following his 2004 departure from WWE by going public with his homosexuality and claiming WWE fired him for being gay. Although he retired from wresting at one point, he returned to the ring and worked matches on occasion.
He, along with Scott Levy and Michael Sanders, attempted to sue WWE for “cheating them out of health care and other benefits” but a federal judge in Stamford, Connecticut dismissed the case.
Our deepest condolences the family and friends of Chris Klucsaritis.