Dean Simon, or Dean Malenko, as he was known in the biz, grew up in a family of wrestlers and started at a young age. He started wrestling professionally in ’79, and by 1998 he had won a number of championships, such as Cruiserweight and U.S Heavyweight. The former pro worked with the WWE as a road agent for over 17 years, until he left in April of 2019.
During his career, Malenko was hailed by many as the “man of 1,000 holds.” These days, Malenko is still active within the industry and works as a senior producer with All Elite Wrestling. He has been married to his wife for decades, and they have 3 children together. In 2010, he gave his family quite a scare when he experienced a heart attack, although he luckily recovered from it.
Tito Santana Is a Master Educator
Tito Santana maybe in his 60s, but lest we not forget what a beast he was in the ring during his days in the WWF. The fan-favorite has been wrestling professionally since the late ’70s. He has won a number of championships, including the WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship. Before beginning his career in wrestling, he was actually signed to the Kansas Chiefs, but was he cut in the middle of training camp.
These days, Santana still makes his rounds in the world of wrestling. In 2004, he was inducted into the WWE’s Hall of Fame, and in 2012, he was entered into the Modern Category at the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. Nowadays, Tito teaches Spanish at a middle school in New Jersey, where he lives with his family. He also occasionally teaches wrestling at the Independent Wrestling Federation. The former pro has also taken part in a charity match with the IWF that was held to benefit the Semper Fi Fund, a charity for wounded veterans.
Billy Kidman Went Behind the Scenes
Billy Kidman, or Peter Alan Grunter, started with the WWE in 2001 and has been working with them on-and-off ever since. Kidman gained worldwide fame during his time with the WCW, in which he wrestled as a member of several influential stables, including Raven’s Flock and The New Blood. The WWE bought his contract after his impressive participation in The Filthy Animals.
In February of 2008, Grunter wrestled in his last official match as a pro, but that doesn’t mean the WWE had seen the end of him. In fact, he’s currently working with them as a producer. Like many other former pro wrestlers, he released an autobiography in 2014 that was called 'Billy Kidman: Shooting Star'. He was married to WWE diva, Torrie Wilson, for a few years in the early 2000s, but the two got divorced in 2008 and he has not since remarried. His net worth has grown exponentially over the past few years and is an estimated $50 million today.
Kurt Angle: a Father and an Author
Angle started building up to his professional wrestling career in college, while he attended Clarion University, where he won the NCAA Heavyweight Wrestling Championship. He signed with the WWF in 1998 and immediately started showing signs of a lengthy and promising career in the industry. Over his many years in the business, he’s won more than 20 championships, including 6 World Championship Heavyweight titles, and the WWE Championship, for which he is the first pro-wrestler to win.
In August of 2006, Kurt was released early from his WWE contract, citing his injuries as the reason. In 2015, he had to have emergency surgery due to fluid buildup on his spinal cord, only a week after he’d undergone another surgery to have a (benign) tumor removed from his neck. The former wrestler is married to his wife, Giovanna, with whom he has 3 daughters and an adopted son. Angle released a book in 2001 called 'It’s True! It’s True!'.
Trevor Murdoch: Business Owner
Trevor Murdoch, born William Mueller, is one of the few redheads we have on this list. The former pro got his start in the industry in ’97, and signed on with the WWE in 2005. He won his very first match, a tag-team round with partner Lance Cade, and fans were impressed.
Murdoch officially retired from pro wrestling in 2017. He lives with his wife, Amanda, and a newborn son in Missouri, where he owns heavy machinery and a fiber optic installation business. Murdoch has been made into a playable video game character in a few of the WWE’s games, including 'WWE: Smackdown vs. Raw', both in 2007 and 2009. Murdoch still makes appearances at events every once in a while.