Out Wrestler Chris Kanyon Found Dead

Chris Klucsaritis, who wrestled for World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Entertainment under the name Chris Kanyon, was found dead in his Queens, NY., apartment Friday night. He was 40.

According to WrestlingObserver.com, Kanyon died of an apparent overdose of pills. Kanyon has reportedly been treated for depression and bipolar disorder in recent years.

Kanyon wrestled professionally from 1992 until 2004 and later tried to get back into the business by marketing himself as the first openly gay professional wrestler. He told reporters he'd been fired by WWE by CEO Vince McMahon because he was gay but later changed his story, saying he wasn't gay and that he'd made the whole thing up.

He subsequently changed his story again, telling reporters he was gay.

At the time of his death, Kanyon was a part of a lawsuit against WCW for allegedly misclassifying wrestlers as independent contractors. Since being released by WWE in 2004, Kanyon has made sporadic appearances at independent shows.