10 Things We Learned From Dark Side Of The Ring: Terry Gordy
3. The Other Side Of His WWF Run
Inside the ring, Terry wasn't the worker he'd been before. Outside it, he was still struggling with addictions and would ask random people on planes if they had any pills he could take. Gordy would apparently swallow anything if he’d heard of it beforehand, which is really grim and shows where he was mentally in 1996.
Mick Foley (in the earliest knockings of his Mankind character) and Paul Bearer also had to constantly be on top of things at the hotel. They'd hunt Terry down when he wandered off, and had to work overtime to make sure their friend was safe. Both knew without saying much that the WWF gig was never going to last.
Terry needed help, not bookings.
The Executioner gimmick has always been a bit of a curious idea to hardcore fans. It wasn't great on paper, but proved even worse because Gordy was incapable of meeting 'Taker halfway during matches. His personal life had spiralled, and it's probably just as well he had good guys like Foley and Bearer to look out for him.