Considering all the tragic deaths from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), you might think football is the most dangerous sport in America. But that wouldn’t be quite right. It’s pro wrestling—and it’s not even close. Except, it’s not just repeated blows to the head that’s killing retired wrestlers—though, that’s certainly part of it—it’s also a life of pills, booze and powders.
Today’s lead story, about the tragic end of Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart, is a prime example. And the biggest shame isn’t that his death came as he was in the process of emerging from a decades-long drug problem—it’s that pro wrestling enabled—probably even encouraged—him to sink so low in the first place.
That story and everything else we published today is below, in case, of course, you missed it…
Must Read
“Jim ‘The Anvil’ Neidhart and the Ballad of Pro Wrestlers Who Die Shortly After ‘Getting Their Act Together’”
Last week, retired pro wrestler and notorious addict Jim Neidhart passed away at age 63 after a fall at his home. Neidhart, who had successfully completed his latest stint in rehab in 2015, was clean at the time. Unfortunately, after battling his worst impulses for more than 40 years, simply getting clean wasn’t enough. Instead, Neidhart joins a long, tragic list of wrestlers whose rough-and-tumble lives caught up with them just when things started looking up. READ MORE
My #Wife
Good job @LaraLeaTrump #Wife #MakeAmericaGreatAgain ???? pic.twitter.com/qPMJbJMUvr
— Eric Trump (@EricTrump) August 14, 2018
What are the large adult Trump sons good for if not for saying dumb shit, and immediately having said dumb shit turned into a meme—a la last week’s #wife?
Hey men, I'm here to help you find the really good #Wife content like a totally normal person. Use the hashtag #Wife and you'll find plenty of good, normal things that us men love about our #Wife
— Jamble (@d_apollo) August 16, 2018
Night Fever
Have you woken up recently only to realize you sweat the bed? There are a number of reasons a person might experience night sweats, but perhaps what’s most interesting is that those reasons are largely dependent upon whether you’re a man, woman or child—or if you’re like me, how recently you ordered Chinese food on Seamless.
One Size Does Not Fit All
All dicks aren’t created equal. Just don’t go explaining that to Big Condom, for whom 7 inches long and 5 inches around is industry standard, despite average penis size being a pubic hair over 5 inches. So what are little guys to do?
Yikes. Here’s what one condom company is trying to do about it.
This Guy Gets It
New York Mets play-by-play man Josh Lewin wants you to know he suffers from depression. Also, anxiety. Oh, and so do a lot of the professional athletes he covers. That’s because Lewin believes the best way to normalize mental health troubles is to show that even those with “perfect” lives sometimes struggle to make it through the day.
Johnny Mac is Back
Is your impression of John McEnroe that he was as much a transcendent talent as he was an unbridled asshole? If so, bad news: You ain’t seen shit. At least, not until you check out the new film John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection. Read MEL critic-at-large Tim Grierson’s take on the new doc, Tom Hulce’s decision to base his performance as Mozart in Amadeus on the mercurial tennis player and whether it’s possible to perform even better when you’re angry, here.
The Future of Business is… Meatless?
WeWork, the shared workplace company catering to start-ups and freelancers, announced in a memo this month that it was now a “meatless organization.” Lemme break that down for you:
Outta Here
- Serving meat at company meals and celebrations
- Expensing any meals containing meat, even when entertaining clients
Still Good
- Eggs
- Fish
The reason? Environmental sustainability, which is hilarious, considering eggs and fish are two of the most environmentally unsustainable foodstuffs around. But who’s counting, amirite?
Yet WeWork is just one example of a trend where corporations like Google, The Wing and others are beginning to take a heavier hand in deciding what their employees can and cannot eat.
Da Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Batbro
Meet Batman: World’s greatest detective, atheist, CrossFit enthusiast and Reddit bro.
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions
Do you ever find yourself unable to make tough choices? Perhaps you need to catch up on the life of Ernest Shackleton, who led a 1914 voyage to the South Pole that historians have called a master class in decision-making. Need a new bumper sticker quote to live by? Here’s the man himself:
Find out what the fuck that means—and how it pertains to making quicker decisions here.
Too Long; Didn’t Read
Guys, guys, GUYS: Repeatedly sending messages to some girl you just met on the internet even though she replied once—or worse, never replied at all—is sooo not a good look. Plus, it makes the rest of us guilty by association. It’s called “pleading into the void,” and for some reason, dudes seem unaware that such messages are 1) bothersome; and 2) that all kinds of other men are doing the same thing.
Jeff Gross
Jeff Gross is MEL’s senior editor for social media and content marketing. His daily ICYMI column, which chronicles all things meta on the site, is the quickest way to catch up on MEL, and the funniest thing you’ll read all day. Follow him on Twitter.
