Viceland TV to tell story of complicated wrestling icon Bam Bam Bigelow

Bam Bam Bigelow packed a lot of life into his 45 years.

Born Scott Bigelow, the professional wrestler known as Bam Bam was one of the most notable and well known in his sport during his career. But there was a lot more to his life than what fans saw.

Bigelow was born in Mount Laurel, but moved to Neptune, where he went to high school. There, he was a standout athlete and football player. But his better sport was wrestling, placing third in the state tournament as a sophomore in 1979. He missed the tournament his senior year due to a back injury.

That was the end of his amateur wrestling career, but it didn't take long for him to become a star pro wrestler, and that's where he gained fame.

On Tuesday, Bigelow will be profiled on Viceland's Dark Side of the Ring series, which highlights stories of professional wrestlers.

Bigelow was a complicated figure. While he's known for the larger-than-life persona of Bam Bam Bigelow in the ring, he struggled outside of it. He spent time in jails and prisons, and battled addiction, which eventually cost him his life in 2007.

Still, he's remembered fondly and vividly among the wrestling community.

"I love Bam Bam, he was an incredible wrestler," said former Extreme Championship Wrestling owner Tod Gordon, who hired Bigelow when he was overseeing the promotion. "As a wrestler, I never saw a guy that big and that agile. He did things guys half his size could do. He was such a terrific athlete. A lot of who he was got lost because he had the giant tattoo on his head, but he was a great athlete and a great guy."

It's unclear what Dark Side of the Ring will focus on, but Bigelow had frequent brushes with the law.

He spent nine months in prison on an assault charge as a teenager after a fight with a member of a motorcycle club.

In 1985, Bigelow was arrested after interacting with a sex worker in Asbury Park, who claimed he sexually assaulted her and threatened to kill her.

In a 1995 interview with the Asbury Park Press, he told tales of being a bounty hunter before he became a pro wrestler. He spent months in a Mexican prison for that work, which he described as "worse than anything imaginable."

"It's pretty funny," he told the Press. "I answered an ad in the Asbury Park Press. This guy was looking for a bounty hunter. His Mexican wide had run off with their child. He wanted me to locate them. Apparently somebody tipped off the police and they were waiting for me."

He parlayed his career into main event matches with Andre the Giant, King Kong Bundy, Hulk Hogan, and even the main event at Wrestlemania XI, when he lost to New York Giants all-time great Lawrence Taylor. He was a top draw wherever he went, from the World Wrestling Federation to World Championship Wrestling, to Extreme Championship Wrestling, to stints in Japan. He also represented his area well. His finishing move was called "Greetings from Asbury Park."

He was well-renowned in the ring, but according to Gordon, that wasn't the only thing that made him special.

"After ECW, I used him in 3PW when I was there with the Blue Meanie," Gordon said. "People love him. He was a great guy, he looked tough, and he was, but he had a huge heart."

In 2000, he reportedly suffered burns to 40 percent of his body while rushing to save children caught in a brush fire.

He also dealt with injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident, as well as the years of wear and tear from wrestling. The matches might be predetermined, but those moves are anything but fake.

Bigelow was also a family man.

He married his wife Dana, and had three children. Though they divorced in 2000, ending their 13-year marriage, he told the Asbury Park Press in 1995 they were the most important part of his life.

"You realize that you have people besides yourself to worry about. My two sons (and my wife) are the three most important things in my life. There comes a time in your life when you have to grow up, when you have responsibilities. That time is here for me now."

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Bam Bam Bigelow's Dark Side of the Ring to air on Viceland