Despite 'Scream Queen' image, former wrestler Shannon 'Daffney' Spruill 'led with love'

The "Scream Queen," professional wrestling fans called Shannon Spruill, and she was a scary sight with her goth makeup, nasty attitude and blood-curdling shrieks while she wrestled under the name "Daffney Unger." But two days after Spruill’s death was announced, she was remembered much differently by other professional wrestlers.

"Work wise, she was so violent and spooky and like almost bone chilling," wrestler Jamie Lynn Senegal told Paste BN Sports. "But when you really knew her as a person, she was the most energetic, loving person. She would go out of her way and call me every day and go, ‘Baby doll, I love you so much. You’re going to have a great day,’ and just the most loving person I ever met."

The legendary screams subsided in the locker room, where Spruill welcomed new wrestlers, including those from other countries, said Cathy Corino, who wrestled under the name Allison Danger.

"She looked out for them and made sure the locker room was a safe place," Corino told Paste BN Sports. "She opened up her home to everyone who was travelling through town."

Spruill, 46, died of an apparent gunshot wound to the chest, according to a Gwinnett County (Georgia) Police Department incident reported obtained by Paste BN Sports.

She was found dead on her bed next to a firearm on Thursday when police officers entered Spruill’s apartment in Norcross, Georgia on a welfare check, according to the incident report. 

Melissa Anderson, who has wrestled as under the names Cheerleader Melissa and Raisha Saeed, recalled a time she injured a collarbone while she was working on the same wrestling show with Spruill. 

"My collarbone got injured, so I was in a sling and I couldn’t use my right arm," Anderson said. "And I couldn’t believe (Spruill) did this, but she stayed with me afterwards. She helped me change and she helped me pack my gear bag and not just put my stuff away. She helped me pack my bag exactly how I would have packed it. She didn’t have to do that. I was like, 'Here’s a former WCW superstar just going out of her way to make sure I got to hotel safely when I was injured.' "

Spruill, 46 at the time of her death, developed a close relationship with Senegal, 23, who said Spruill was aware of Senegal’s traumatic upbringing. 

"I just had a very rough family," Senegal said, "and she just immediately turned to me and she would always tell me, ‘I don’t have any other daughters in this business. I don’t have any other children. You’re my one child.' " 

Corino said she thinks Spruill’s devotion to others revealed something deeper. 

"I think that’s kind of something we have in common," Corino said. "When we can’t fix ourselves, we try to fix everybody else around us. And that’s a lot of who she was."

Corino said she and Spruill both were forced into retirement because of concussions and brain trauma. 

"It was a struggle for both of us and neither of us had our careers end in the way that we wanted to," Corino said. "And for professional wrestlers, especially when it’s your life like it was for me and for Shannon, having it taken away is not easy. It really leaves a mark on you mentally and emotionally."

The affect of the concussions were obvious, according to Senegal, who said she and Spruill frequently video chatted and Spruill would have to dim the light in the room. 

"It would be like her brain was so messed up that if she was looking at the phone screen she would have to put a blanket over her windows and have the lights off because she would get headaches," Senegal said. 

In January, Senegal said, Spruill reacted strongly after Senegal suffered her first concussion wrestling. 

"As soon as it happened, I called and she put her foot down immediately, and she was like, 'Baby doll, you relax, you don’t look at your phone screens, you stay inside the house, sleep and get as much rest as you can,' " Senegal said.  

They video chatted last on Tuesday, according to Senegal. 

"I could tell she was a little less energetic than normal, but I didn’t think anything of it, really," he said. 

During her days in the ring, Spruill and her energy never would have been described as normal. 

"We’d always find a way to make each other laugh in the ring no matter how serious the situation was," Corino said. "The storyline, whatever, we’d always try to make each other break character. She’s just really good at it."

Corino paused to compose herself at one point. 

"She just led with love," Corino said. "That was the foot she put forward and she always tried to look out for other people.

"I hope she knew how much everybody loved her. Nobody wanted her to go."

If you or anyone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.

Follow Josh Peter on Twitter @joshlpeter11.