Personal Life
Following his retirement in 1984, Martin briefly served as an NFL analyst for NBC, participated in the battle royal at WrestleMania 2 (1986) for World Wrestling Federation, and appeared several times in World Class Championship Wrestling and the Global Wrestling Federation as a ringside commentator.
With football gone, many inner demons came to light, including bankruptcies, domestic violence, and polysubstance abuse. Although coach Tom Landry sent him to rehab in 1983, Martin continued to abuse drugs and alcohol. He hit rock-bottom in 1996, when "Too Mean" was jailed on domestic violence and cocaine charges, where he received probation and spent the next eight months in a court-ordered rehabilitation program.
Afterwards, he was given a job selling chemical products by former teammate and Cowboys offensive lineman John Niland. He was able to turn his life around, staying clean and sober for the final years of his life, giving anti-drug speeches to both schoolchildren and recovering addicts.
Martin died of pancreatic cancer on December 24, 2001 at the age of 51. As of July 14, 2012, he is the only Super Bowl Most Valuable Player who is deceased.
Read more about this topic: Harvey Martin
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