15 Facts About Ed Gantner

Ed Gantner was considered a "puny little runt," all the way through junior high school.

Ed Gantner's father moved out of the house, while his mother went back to school.

Ed Gantner's newly found physique gained him confidence to the point, where he talked incessantly about the weight he gained, how much he could lift, and the size of his biceps and neck.

Ed Gantner played pro football in the United States Football League, where he played for the Tampa Bay Bandits for one year, and for the Jacksonville Bulls for two years.

Ed Gantner made his debut for Championship Wrestling from Florida in 1985 as a heel, joining the House of Humperdink, led by Sir Oliver Humperdink.

Ed Gantner would have a feud with Lex Luger that would go on for a good part of 1986.

In February 1987, Ed Gantner was awarded the NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship, after his manager Sir Oliver Humperdink defeated Bad News Allen for the title.

Ed Gantner feuded with Humperdink's group with Barry Windham, Blackjack Mulligan, Bugsy McGraw and even Dusty Rhodes as his partner at different times.

In 1988, Ed Gantner's health began to decline after years of steroid use.

Ed Gantner's kidneys were the first to start failing, causing him to undergo kidney dialysis, and he had to be hooked up several hours a week to a machine to survive.

Ed Gantner complied by giving up red meat and starting a holistic diet, making his own watermelon tea.

Ed Gantner was rushed to the hospital for heart failure four times within two months.

On Thanksgiving Day, November 23,1989, Ed Gantner received a kidney transplant, as his sister donated her kidney.

Ed Gantner would get dressed for work, make it to his car, and sit there for a half-hour with the keys in the ignition, before going back in his house.

On December 31,1990, Ed Gantner was discovered lying motionless in the kitchen of his parents' home in Orlando, Florida.