By Joe Puccio

It certainly wasn’t always the case, but professional wrestling-themed documentaries are undoubtedly in the midst of a honeymoon phase. From the Evan Ginzburg-produced 350 Days, which peeled back the curtain on the uncompromising toll that former wrestlers were forced to endure being on the road for that many days a year, to PBS’s Head over Heels: Remembering Wrestling at the Chase, about the popular St. Louis, Missouri weekly television show, to the spectacular Dark Side of the Ring, currently in the middle of its sixth season on Vice TV, which primarily focuses on the somber and often untold tales of the very complicated business, modern fans of the sport have an overabundance of quality material to choose from in the genre.

Add Lunatic: The Luna Vachon Story to the mix.

The brand new film, distributed by Black Moon Media and Raven Banner Entertainment, is a deep dive into the fascinating, yet complex, life of the woman born Gertrude Elizabeth Vachon who, of course, became better known around the world as Luna. Beginning with her turbulent upbringing as the child of a widowed mother – the result of her bipolar birth father’s suicide when she was just four years old – and culminating with her untimely death via prescription drug overdose at 48, the nearly two-hour feature is a rather riveting examination of the Atlanta, Georgia-born troubled wrestler’s life.

For Kate Kroll, who directed the piece, the choice of Vachon as its motif wasn’t a difficult one. “After I fell in love with wrestling and the art form itself, one person who always stood out to me was Luna,” shared the multitalented filmmaker during a recent chat with Generation X Wire. “She could cut a promo (interview/speech) unlike anyone else. I’d never seen anything like it. But she was also such a strong presence in the ring as well and you could always tell she really knew what she was doing in there.”

Naturally, while a project as intricate as this requires an enormous commitment of time and extensive research, it wouldn’t be possible without a substantial amount of assistance and cooperation from its subject’s inner circle, including her family, friends, and colleagues. Kroll managed to secure hours of exclusive interviews with adoptive father Paul “Butcher” Vachon, who passed away last year, son Vincent (Van), a past competitor on Fox’s reality cooking show Hell’s Kitchen, former wrestling peer Debrah “Madusa” Miceli, and ex-husband David “Gangrel” Heath.

“I’m so thankful that I was able to speak with Paul and that he was so generous with his time,” Kroll stated. “I filmed with him just after his 84^th birthday and he shared a lot. But there were definitely some unpleasant things that he preferred to not talk about, which is understandable. Sometimes it’s better to just keep memories a specific way.”

While Paul’s decision to refrain from discussing sensitive subject matters such as the persistent innuendos over the years about Mary Ellison’s (The Fabulous Moolah) unsavory habit of pimping out, in a variety of ways, the vast number of attractive female trainees she coached, including Luna, he was open about the majority of aspects concerning her early life.

Van, the younger of Luna’s two children with ex-spouse Dan Hurd, was also largely forthcoming. “We spoke a lot,” Kroll commented. “We still text regularly.”  The conversation with Van, whose relationship with his mother would best be described as dubious, uncovered a few startling revelations, one of which will be readily apparent by viewers when it’s disclosed.

The closeted, often secretive, pro wrestling industry is known for often being overly protective of its inner workings. And it was, in fact, an obstacle that Kroll experienced during her time-consuming exploration of Luna, but one that she ultimately overcame.

“One thing I had going for me was that I’m a wrestler too,” she conceded. “People opened up to me because they felt I understood the business and that I was genuine about the project. I’m also a promoter (Canadian independent promotion WrestleCore) so they knew I wasn’t really an outsider,” she continued. “I interviewed Aubrey Edwards (All Elite Wrestling referee), who is such a trailblazer in her own right for women in the industry. Like both Luna and Luna’s father, Aubrey and her father were diagnosed with bipolarism as well. And Aubrey’s father shot himself too. So, they parallel each other in so many ways. But she, thankfully, has managed her disorder. Unfortunately, in Luna’s era, talking about mental health was taboo. People are taking care of themselves more now.”

Kroll’s interest in the squared circle was sparked by her sister’s fandom. After graduating from high school, the renaissance woman, who holds a certificate in Entertainment Law, dabbled in burlesque dancing, performing in over a dozen countries. “There was a burlesque/wrestling show in Vancouver that wanted dancers to learn a few wrestling moves. I got in the ring, tried it, and loved it so much. I wondered where this had been my entire life,” she laughed. “Growing up, I did taekwondo, and I was really into yoga. So, I always liked pushing my body and doing physical things. Wrestling was another way for me to push myself into doing things I never would have done otherwise.”

Although Kroll, happily married with a three-year old child, has hung up her wrestling boots for now, she keeps plenty busy with not only her behind the scenes directing, producing, writing, and editing, but with her aforementioned duties running WrestleCore. “My husband, who was actually my trainer, and I run regular shows in Canada. We have our next one, in Vancouver, on May 30. There’s live music involved as well,” she added. “I also have a documentary currently in development called Good to Be Seen about Michael Hogan of Battlestar Galactica, who suffered a stroke in 2020 and suffered brain damage. It’s about his journey to have one last acting performance.”

Lunatic had its premiere at the Canadian Film Festival in Toronto in March, with a screening at the Calgary Underground Film Festival having occurred in April. As for the United States, an announcement is expected shortly. “It just got invited to a really prestigious festival in the U.S. That should be in the fall,” Kroll exclaimed. “I’m hoping it’ll either stream or be broadcast somewhere in the U.S. as well. I think we can figure that out once it has its festival debut this year.”

Although the prolific auteur never had the opportunity to meet Luna before her death, Kroll feels as if she had. “I feel like I know her so well,” she smiled. “I think about her every day. She really was ahead of her time. If she was still alive or came around today, she’d be kicking ass.”

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