Gino Hernandez Charles Eugene Wolfe , Jr . ( August 14 , 1957 – February 2 , 1986 ) was a professional wrestler better known by his ring name Gino Hernandez . His in - ring nickname was " The Handsome Half - Breed " ( a reference to his Italian / Hispanic ring name ) Career . At the beginning of Gino Hernandez ' career , he wrestled as a rookie babyface for The Sheik ' s Big Time Wrestling out of Detroit . Gino was a fresh faced good looking young inexperienced wrestler who got over with the female fans with his long black hair and his good looks . He won the United States Heavyweight Championship in the Detroit area by defeating Bulldog Don Kent . Gino also wrestled at least one match around this time in the WWWF . Gino eventually lost his United States Heavyweight Championship to the man who ruled Detroit for many years : The Sheik ( promoter Eddie Farhat ' s in - ring Psycho - Arab heel persona ) . Southwest Championship Wrestling . " The Handsome Halfbreed " started wrestling in 1975 in Southwest Championship Wrestling ( SCW ) after being trained by Jose Lothario . He formed a team with Lothario and eventually turned on him , starting a feud that saw Hernandez lose his hair to Lothario as the result of a hair vs . hair match . World Class Championship Wrestling . In the late 1970s and early 1980s , Gino went to World Class Championship Wrestling ( WCCW ) , then known as Big Time Wrestling , where he feuded with David Von Erich over the Texas Heavyweight Title which he won and lost to Von Erich . He returned to SCW and formed a tag team called " The Dynamic Duo " with Tully Blanchard that was quite successful . Return to WCCW . He returned to WCCW in 1984 and feuded with the Von Erichs ; Mike , Kevin and Kerry Von Erich . In the summer , he was paired with Nickla Roberts , who was billed at the time as " Andrea the Lady Giant " . The duo was paired in a series of mixed tag team matches between Sunshine and Mike Von Erich , with Sunshine ' s " aunt " Stella Mae French also getting involved . He formed a tag team with WCCW newcomer , Jake " The Snake " Roberts , in August 1984 . He also formed a team with Chris Adams , also called the " Dynamic Duo " . That version proved to be the most famous , as Adams and Hernandez drew in high revenues and television ratings for World Class in their feud with the Von Erichs . The duo invented the famed " gold scissors " , and were known to cut hair off of their opponents after each win , a trend which would later be used in the WWF by Ed Leslie , aka Brutus Beefcake . Adams and Hernandez lost a loser - loses - hair match to Kevin and Kerry Von Erich at the Cotton Bowl on October 6 , 1985 . After the match , Hernandez attempted to escape , but was tackled by Chris Von Erich , who was at ringside , and eventually had his hair shaved bald . His hair quickly grew back in two months , while Adams ' hair took longer . He soon turned on Adams in December 1985 ( two months after losing their hair at the Cotton Bowl ) and started a feud , which was to have been the top storyline of 1986 for World Class . On January 27 , 1986 , during a grudge match in Fort Worth , Hernandez threw " freebird hair cream " ( a " hair - removal product " previously established in WCCW storyline continuity in 1983 by Freebird Buddy Roberts ) into the face of Adams , who was to sell his blinding injury so he could spend time in England with his new wife Toni and his family . Hernandez was scheduled to compete on a house show the following Thursday and a non - televised wrestling card at the Sportatorium in Dallas the following Friday . Gino did not show for either of those matches , and phone calls made to him were never returned . Death . On February 4 , concerned with Hernandez ' s well - being , two World Class officials , David Manning and Rick Hazzard , and several local law enforcement officers broke into his Highland Park apartment and found Hernandez dead ( he had been dead for approximately two - three days ) . Initially , Hernandez ' s death was ruled a homicide case , but following autopsy reports , his death was ruled as a result of an overdose of cocaine . Many people believe Gino was murdered in a drug related incident . According to Manning , he said that Hernandez had three times the amount of cocaine in his system that would have resulted in a fatality , and he and Kevin Von Erich stated that Gino also had cocaine in his stomach . Manning also suspected foul play due to the fact that Hernandez ' s dead bolt on his door was not locked , as he made it a habit in the past to lock the dead bolt at all times . Scotland Yard in fact contacted and questioned Adams , who had returned to England three days before hearing the news of Gino ' s death . Adams , who was never considered a suspect , was never charged in the case , as the FBI and Scotland Yard later ruled him out as a potential suspect . His cocaine addiction nonetheless was not a secret to many World Class mainstays , including manager Gary Hart , who tried to encourage him many times to kick the habit . On the DVD " " The Triumph and Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling " , " Hart said that he has pictures of all of the wrestlers he managed except for Hernandez , because it makes him too upset to see a picture of Gino . The syndicated World Class broadcast ( scheduled for a February 15 airing ) was scheduled to have aired a match involving Gino Hernandez , originally taped on January 24 at the Sportatorium . That match never aired ; instead , announcer Bill Mercer made the announcement of Gino ' s death , and a different match would air instead . Both Mercer and Marc Lowrance treated Hernandez ' s death as well as Chris Adams ' blinding angle as equally significant during a time when World Class was about to go forward with their feud beginning at Texas Stadium . Adams returned the following May , and won the World Class Heavyweight Championship two months later . Personal life . Wolfe was married twice , both times to Janice Marie Bancroft . They were first married on April 10 , 1976 in Harris County , Texas , before divorcing soon after on January 27 , 1977 . During their first marriage , they had a child . The pair remarried on April 12 , 1978 before divorcing again on July 19 , 1979 .