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Many called him a legend. Others remembered him as one of the most colorful characters to ever step inside a wrestling ring.
But Dr. Jerry Graham, who recently died of complications from a stroke at the age of 68, was in life a tortured soul who battled his own demons and struggled with his excesses.
Graham's personal life, as well as his professional career, were marked by turmoil and controversy. His drinking binges and unpredictable behavior eventually brought him from the heights of stardom to an existence in which alcoholism and depression were constant companions.
"The Doc," as he was known to his friends in the business, died Jan. 24 at a convalescent home in Glendale, Calif. He had suffered an apparent stroke six weeks earlier that had left him in a semi- comatose state in a Glendale hospital.
Attempts to locate family members, including two surviving sons, had proved futile and he was moved back to the nursing center one day before his death.
Dr. Jerry Graham's many escapades inside, and especially outside, the ring became legend. During the heyday of his career in the late '50s and '60s, he was a Madison Square Garden headliner and one of the sport's top...