TapouT Accused Of Stealing, Possibly Selling Mask's Ashes
Of all the bizarre stories that pop up from time to time, this was not a subject I ever really expected to write about. TMZ is reporting that the late Charles "Mask" Lewis' ashes have been stolen and possibly resold by his fellow TapouT founders.
The story is that Mask's sister Carla, allowed Tim "SkySkrape" Katz and Dan "Punkass" Caldwell to take Lewis' ashes and urn for a memorial service. Upon arriving at the service, she found that they were either giving away or selling small vials containing portions of Lewis' ashes to a small group of people whose names were on "a list." From the TMZ report:
Carla believes somewhere between 50 to 100 vials were either "sold, given away, donated or otherwise distributed to several unknown persons."
Not only is Carla PISSED about the vials ... she claims TapouT still has possession of the urn and the remainder of Mask's ashes ... and the company refuses to return them.
Carla is suing for unspecified damages -- citing "overwhelming and severe emotional distress."
If true (and remember, this is the early stages of a lawsuit) this would be a truly disgusting move on the part of the TapouT crew. We're just going to have to sit back and wait for details to emerge.
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.......What?
They made a video game about Yakuzas. It’s called Yakuza. And it’s about Yakuza
gocyborg.com
by Krimson on May 11, 2011 11:30 AM EDT reply actions 15 recs
......The?
Follow me: @IISMASHII
by II SMASH II on May 11, 2011 11:36 AM EDT up reply actions 15 recs
....GRAPE NUTS??
You look in the box and no grapes! No nuts!
"Me, afraid of Michael Bisbing? Stop the jokes!" -Wanderlei Silva
by Kailua99 on May 11, 2011 12:38 PM EDT up reply actions 17 recs
*badum tish
Anderson Silva, Edson Barboza, Jose Aldo, Charles Oliveira, Thiago Alves = Muay Thai wrecking machines!
by SentientAndroid on May 11, 2011 12:43 PM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
That was a real rec there.
Xtreme Couture- The best never rest! The girl in my av is Kari Sweets (you're welcome).
"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates
by ElliotMatheny on May 11, 2011 7:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Mobile rec for killer instinct reference. Damn I’m old.
by itsnotthatserious on May 11, 2011 12:53 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 1 recs
what gave it away?
Tatum: I think he's a good man. I like him. I got nothing against him, but I'm definitely gonna make orphans of his children.
by Dave Strummer on May 11, 2011 11:50 AM EDT up reply actions
I said something bad about these guys in a recent story
And was treated like Hitler because of everything they did for this sport.
by RashadsLeftNipple on May 11, 2011 12:25 PM EDT up reply actions
His childs mother said they also ripped off his estate when they sold Tapout. I believe his kids will only get like 7 million dollars
Also they told the media that they would pay for his services then charged his estate 45k for a cremation
by Papercut Elbow on May 11, 2011 2:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Wonder if it's true?
I think the people who would pay money for viles of Lewis’ ashes are the real fucking weirdos.
Xtreme Couture- The best never rest! The girl in my av is Kari Sweets (you're welcome).
"I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler."
-Socrates
by ElliotMatheny on May 11, 2011 7:46 PM EDT up reply actions
Like I’ve always said: don’t go into business with guys called “SkySkrape” and “Punkass.”
Fight Rankings - I don't know more about MMA than you, but I'll certainly pretend that I do.
by krcampbell on May 11, 2011 11:35 AM EDT reply actions 4 recs
How much for the ashes?
Let the fighters fight, let the referees ref, but dear God, don't let the judges judge.
You sure this is from TMZ and not The Onion?
Bolts from the Blue // "I eat cereal out of a giant novelty wine glass because it makes me feel fancy." - Britney Wade
Bloody Elbow // "Everybody underestimates the kick in the groin." - Bas Rutten
I've been appologetic
of pretty much all of TapOuts weirdness over the years… but this is to much.
Why I never joined a frat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-KNVrZaN8M
"Don’t quote old fucks to me" – Brent Brookhouse
"A samurai would bite your cock off if you tried that shit on the battlefield." - Kid Nate
This may turn out to not be true
But those guys always upset me. How they often thrust themselves into Tapout commercials. No one’s buyin their shiz to look like them. I mean yea they contributed a lot to the sport but they think way way too highly of themselves.
Who the F would want to buy that dudes ashes?
Dude, if this is true...
I hope he haunts the F%*@ outta everyone involved… Customers and Tapout alike.
by Aggressor666 on May 11, 2011 11:56 AM EDT up reply actions 4 recs
Especially the customers...
…sick of seeing these trendy TapOut shirts on everyone who thinks it automatically makes him a raging cage fighter.
Rawr
Legendary lay-up Jordan with the right-left switch.
Hang time, Hand glide, Stir fried, Chinky-eyed, Shanghai
by AndersonSativa on May 11, 2011 1:49 PM EDT up reply actions
You know, perhaps they just [somehow] like these shirts?
When I wear a t-shirt from H&M or Levis jeans, I certainly don’t feel like a raging model.
I never liked these guys
Mostly cause the majority of their customers are meat heads who think they’re ufc fighters.
by SpinningFistback on May 11, 2011 2:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Why report on this now?
At this point, all we have is a completely unverified claim on a gossip site. Does that really qualify as news? I’ll be at the front of the lynch mob if this turns out to be true, but right now there is absolutely no evidence one way or another.
This reminds me of the old newspaper trick of running a bullshit story on the front page only to have to issue a page six retraction (in fine print) a week later. Everyone reads the first article, no one sees the retraction, and the Tapout guys are forever branded as body-snatching scumbags.
The kind of people who hang out with dudes who wear stupid fuckin costumes and facepaint every day.
by nastyem on May 11, 2011 11:48 AM EDT up reply actions 6 recs
You mean the idiots who wear Tapout Cloths?
The Just bleed guy bought three vials
I am vorn the unspeakable the skulls of those who defy me bleach in the suns of hundreds of worlds...... and you are
The lawsuit HAS been filed, it’s not like it’s JUST a rumor. It could turn out that they didn’t sell the ashes, but the story IS a story.
Managing Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
by Brent Brookhouse on May 11, 2011 11:48 AM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
Meh
It still smacks of cheap sensationalism to me.
Athletes get hit with bogus lawsuits all the time. The filing of a lawsuit is not a story in and of itself.
It’s still a story and coming from Mask’s sister it’s not like a “slip and fall” in a celebrity driveway law suit.
by Coeman on May 11, 2011 12:03 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
The filing of a lawsuit is not a story in and of itself.
Sure it is.
Why I never joined a frat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-KNVrZaN8M
"Don’t quote old fucks to me" – Brent Brookhouse
"A samurai would bite your cock off if you tried that shit on the battlefield." - Kid Nate
by Chris Barton on May 11, 2011 12:04 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Of course it’s a story.
And then God created Saturn ... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it. ... Always a ninja
SaberCats Examiner | SB Nation Bay Area | Niners Nation | Twitter
by James Brady on May 11, 2011 12:17 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Please look up "blog." I'll wait.
And then God created Saturn ... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it. ... Always a ninja
SaberCats Examiner | SB Nation Bay Area | Niners Nation | Twitter
by James Brady on May 11, 2011 12:17 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
So you're saying I need to give back my vial now?
Tatum: I think he's a good man. I like him. I got nothing against him, but I'm definitely gonna make orphans of his children.
by Dave Strummer on May 11, 2011 11:50 AM EDT reply actions 4 recs
Nah, jst keep it for now. Hopefully you could collect the other two and then your collection would be complete.
by itsnotthatserious on May 11, 2011 11:56 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Mobile rec!!
Be a man, not a child-Phil Anselmo
by ANance on May 11, 2011 7:40 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
You know, I’ve wondered what advances our legal systems have made in the last 40 years regarding stealing the remains of a dead person. Something tells me this might go a bit further than being fined for stealing an urn.
Fight Rankings - I don't know more about MMA than you, but I'll certainly pretend that I do.
You cannot sell anything with a certain amount of tissue on it, that’s all I know. You can sell bones, but ashes are a grey area to me.
And then God created Saturn ... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it. ... Always a ninja
SaberCats Examiner | SB Nation Bay Area | Niners Nation | Twitter
by James Brady on May 11, 2011 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions
I hope that no pun was intended with ashes as a “grey” area.
Fight Rankings - I don't know more about MMA than you, but I'll certainly pretend that I do.
by krcampbell on May 11, 2011 12:31 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Do you guys REALLY think they would sell Mask’s ashes? It’s probably an act of kindness that they are giving away mask’s ashes to their friends. Dude was inspirational.
Either way they had no right to distribute the guys remains no matter how inspirational
by 19Miles on May 11, 2011 11:55 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
This.
It could be that Mask had expressed a desire to be given away to his friends. The fact that there was a list means there was some kind of organization to it. Maybe Mask just never told his sister about this idea when he was alive ‘cause he knew she’d think it was creepy.
"Ellismania is, along with the black President, a symbol of the future." - Mayhem Miller
Tweeter!
That’s what wills are for. otherwise the person who is given the remains (next of kin generally) is going to be able to do whatever they want.
Managing Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
by Brent Brookhouse on May 11, 2011 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, I didn't say what they did was legal.
There’s just the outside chance that it’s not quite immoral. Just really, really fucking strange.
"Ellismania is, along with the black President, a symbol of the future." - Mayhem Miller
Tweeter!
That's fucked up
Friends or not dude you don’t do that shit to a guy’s family. The idea is kind of out there to begin with, but if they did it behind her back without even intending to tell her or ask, that’s just man, not cool.
"That little fucker hit me with a Hadukan or something" – Nick Diaz on Gomi
"You should study Pokemon to get stronger." - Sakuraba
"A champion is someone who sweats to exhaustion, even when no one else is watching." -Bas Rutten
I'm on the Britney Palmer Bandwagon
We're all connected to each other, Biologically
To the earth, Chemically
And to the rest of the Universe, Atomically
Man this makes me wanna burn all my TapouT apparel!
No wait, I don’t have any since they’re ugly as hell and no self-respecting human being should be wearing them ever..
by the guy with the big nose on May 11, 2011 11:58 AM EDT reply actions
For 400 dollars I got Charles Lewis in a pouch, man!
Pouches of ash come in handy when facing an “Eight fourteen”.
Gun for hire
Contributor at cagepages.com Come check us out.
Head Kick Legend
by Neil Manich on May 11, 2011 12:08 PM EDT up reply actions
I keep my vile of Mask’s ashes around my neck just incase I’m in the middle of and under cover drug bust involving half naked women with swords and sai’s.
If you can't wow them with brilliance, then baffle them with bullshit.
by DayGeaux on May 11, 2011 12:04 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
So, is it okay to make fun of Mask now? ‘Cause it’s getting hard to hold my tongue everytime someone gushes over how great he was.
by crazybones on May 11, 2011 12:05 PM EDT reply actions 4 recs
This is why when I die, I will have my body rendered into liquid and poured down a storm drain.
There is a good chance this will be the most fucked up thing I read all day, if I avoid world news.
by bigstupidsmile on May 11, 2011 12:06 PM EDT reply actions
I'm gonna be a scarecrow.
And then God created Saturn ... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it. ... Always a ninja
SaberCats Examiner | SB Nation Bay Area | Niners Nation | Twitter
by James Brady on May 11, 2011 12:24 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Donating my body to science
I am sure they will want to know why my _ is so huge.
by Wrestling Uber Alles on May 11, 2011 12:34 PM EDT up reply actions
left forefinger
Let the fighters fight, let the referees ref, but dear God, don't let the judges judge.
nose
And then God created Saturn ... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it. ... Always a ninja
SaberCats Examiner | SB Nation Bay Area | Niners Nation | Twitter
by James Brady on May 11, 2011 12:54 PM EDT up reply actions
I know of a guy who did something similar.
My uncle went to the skeet & trap range nearby once and found out they were giving out free ammo. Turns out that a regular patron of the range had died, and his wish was to be cremated, mixed in with gunpowder, and then have that gunpowder/cremated ash mixture loaded into shotgun shells and distributed for free at his favorite range.
"Ellismania is, along with the black President, a symbol of the future." - Mayhem Miller
Tweeter!
If this story turns out to be true
then the Tapout guys are despicable human beings
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" - Philippians 4:13
Should of let the Undertaker watch over his urn.
Or should it had been Paul bearer?
hhhhmmmmmmmm????
by itsnotthatserious on May 11, 2011 12:12 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
I want to heat more about "The List"
Wouldnt it be funny if Lorenzo and Dana had one of these alleged vials?
Eh, true or not. I never cared for those two.
Mask however was awesome. Only reason I watched that Tapout show they did.
Mike Goldberg: "You know Joe, When Matt and his brother Mark Hughes were growing up, they would pound each other behind the barn."
Should of let the Undertaker watch over the urn.
Or Paul Bearer!?!!!?!?
Hhhhmmmmmmmm???!?
by itsnotthatserious on May 11, 2011 12:19 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
From Kirik Jeness on the UG
From: Kirik Send Private Message Add Comment To Profile
Posted: 1 hour ago
The Underground, Mayor for Life
Member Since: 1/1/01
Posts: 43506
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I was at the service, and don’t really remember a table with 50-100 vials of ashes in them? If anyone else who was there remembers anything else, post it here for sure. A table covered in vials of human remains is definitely something you would notice, too.
So that wasn’t the occasion where they distributed it, maybe? This doesn’t have to mean a thing, really.
Skyscrape ... same thread
From: SKYSKRAPE Send Private Message Add Comment To Profile
Posted: 59 minutes ago
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Posts: 96
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You all who talk shit should know the whole story first!!! She is a nut case that charles couldn’t stand(his words not mine)! And I was the closest person to him the past 13 years! She is reaching for SOMETHING!!!!!!!!!!
Good catch
Why I never joined a frat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-KNVrZaN8M
"Don’t quote old fucks to me" – Brent Brookhouse
"A samurai would bite your cock off if you tried that shit on the battlefield." - Kid Nate
by Chris Barton on May 11, 2011 12:40 PM EDT up reply actions
The whole story about what? That’s not a refutation that his remains were distributed against the family’s will.
by VirtualBalboa on May 11, 2011 1:12 PM EDT up reply actions
Right, that’s what needs to be understood. If he didn’t have a will or some other document that said that when he died he wanted “SkySkrape” and “Punkass” in charge of the body…well, then they don’t get to just do whatever they want.
Managing Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
by Brent Brookhouse on May 11, 2011 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions
Apparently he believes ‘Mask told me he couldn’t stand her’ is going to hold up in court as a defense.
No kidding
I can just imagine saying this in court WHILE in his usual Tapout garb/costume.
Is that the same SKYSCRAPE
who went on the UG and talked a ton of shit about “some bitch employee” who was just “after some money” and “all the haters on here don’t know what they are talking about” when an ex-employee filed suit for harassment…and then it turned out they were guilty of it all?
Of course he is going to go on the UG and defend himself. Anyone famous gets an instant E-Blow Job on the UG.
BOOSH
Punkass chimes in on Twitter
PunkASS
TapouTPunkASS PunkASS
Sad shit! Relatives who hadnt talked to Charles in 10 years now comin out to get money! Not his Ashes! Anyway his ashes belong to his kids!
2 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply
YOU FUCKED IT UP, WALTER! YOU FUCKED UP EVERYTHING!
http://mixedmartialartsblogger.wordpress.com/
by Cory Braiterman on May 11, 2011 1:46 PM EDT up reply actions
That was a story
Something along the lines of someone said Keith told them he did and then Keith went to some magazine to say he didn’t but with all the things that idiot did, I wouldn’t put it past him
by San Jose Sharks Fan on May 11, 2011 1:10 PM EDT up reply actions
I saw he had denied it,
but I’m with you in the who knows department.
by Mandmeisterx on May 11, 2011 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions
These dudes are so weird.
I would not rule out them having some weird pact to do this written years ago or something.
I'm just glad
He was cremated, it could have really gotten weird if they were hacking pieces for sale.
Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift.
I don’t know the situation regarding the family and what not, but hey, perhaps its true that Mask was closer to the Tapout guys than his blood family. Its possible. However, my general feeling is regardless of how true or not that is, popular consensus among MMA fans will be to believe whatever the Tapout guys say, factual or not.
I just read this on TMZ, the only place for MMA news(haha), and also wouldn’t put it past these idiots. No matter who “Mask” was closer with, his sister had power over his remains. If this is true, those guys are in for one hell of lawsuit and will have to write one giant check. But hey, is not like they would be the first one to make a profit off of a freinds death.
by San Jose Sharks Fan on May 11, 2011 1:17 PM EDT reply actions
Was Mask possibly Ethan Tremlbay's father?

"What do you know about my vision? My vision will turn your world upside down, tear asunder your illusions and send the sanctuary of your own ignorance crashing down around you. Now ask yourself: Are you really ready to see that vision?"
-Huey Freeman
Awesome movie...was actually the first thing that came to
Why do you have your father’s remains ina coffee can??
Because he’s dead, Peter!
Be a man, not a child-Phil Anselmo
by ANance on May 11, 2011 7:45 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Iphone fail...
:-(
Be a man, not a child-Phil Anselmo
by ANance on May 11, 2011 7:46 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Awesome movie...was actually the first thing that came to my mind...that came to
Why do you have your father’s remains ina coffee can??
Because he’s dead, Peter!
Be a man, not a child-Phil Anselmo
by ANance on May 11, 2011 7:46 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Ruh Roh!
Seems that at least part of this story has now been confirmed. MMA Photographer Tracy Lee chimed in on the UG thread and spilled the beans. Her post was quickly deleted and the thread was frozen, but not before some nimble-fingered folks managed to copy & paste it.
tracylee – To all…
Dan and Skrape are great guys, hands down and it pains me to see that this is going on..
I know of the vials that are being spoken of. As far as I know a total of 3 maybe, 4 exist. They are around the necks of the people that were closest to Charles, engraved with MASK on it. They were NOT mass produced- they were not SOLD at the funeral. Really?? You really think that someone SELLING Mask’s ashes at his funeral full of thousands of family, friends, and Fans would go over in any way shape of form? You think this would be the first time you’re hearing about said vials since his death??
When Rara told me about the TMZ article, my first reaction was, “wait, didn’t Mask dislike his whole family? Have no relationship with his sister?”
If Mask had a will, then I’m sure his money would have been left to his kids, not his sister. She probably became executor of his estate because she is the closest family member “by birth” not close emotionally.
To me, it sounds like she’s really grasping at straws for money here..
To all you really negative fans about this- you should be ashamed of yourselves. Mask may have been the visionary, but he didn’t do it all alone. Skrape, Punkass, and a ton of people that you never see were there from the start, backing fighters and helping to bring the sport to where it is today.
I am assuming the post got deleted because she flat-out confirmed that three or four people did get vials with Mask’s ashes in them, which obviously bodes ill for their chances of escaping this lawsuit unscathed.
All in all, it doesn’t sound as onerous as her lawsuit made it out to be, but it was clearly an illegal act.
Tracy Lee has now posted a clarification
From: tracylee Send Private Message Add Comment To Profile
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No, I think there is some confusion going on here and I should clarify what I said.
There are 3/4 necklaces created.. They say Mask’s name on them. They are held by the people that were closest to Mask. No where did I say they have his ashes in them; as far as I know, theres a script inside one of Mask’s sayings..
Looks like someone may have misunderstood and started deleting stuff. I was upset when I wrote and didn’t realize something I said would be taken the way it was..
A cynical person might say she realized her statement could wind up hurting her friends, so she is backtracking. However, in the interest of fairness, she is right. Her original statement didn’t say anything about there being ashes in the vials (though one wonders why you create a decorative vial and leave it empty).
Too much drama for me, I am bowing out. I just felt like I should include her clarification before signing off.
by Steve4192 on May 11, 2011 3:56 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
They were NOT mass produced- they were not SOLD at the funeral. Really?? You really think that someone SELLING Mask’s ashes at his funeral full of thousands of family, friends, and Fans would go over in any way shape of form?
She acknowledged their existance, then emphisized how crazy it would be if they had actually sold them(while referring to them as ashes). It’s 100% a backtrack.
by MRR1 on May 11, 2011 4:29 PM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
i had a friend that got killed in a car accident...
and he was creamated. the mother kept the main urn but gave out vials of ashes too his close friends. Not saying this is the same thing or anything like that but its not unheard of either.
oh i know...
i was just stating the act of giving away ashes isnt an uncommon practice and in itself isnt illegal just in case somebody thought it was.
by barzillatron on May 11, 2011 7:57 PM EDT up reply actions
i just did three lines of those ashes.
i paid a lot of fucking money for them, too. now i’m pissed.
by Victor Rodriguez on May 11, 2011 4:39 PM EDT reply actions
I wouldn't put this past them.
Chael Sonnen’s walkout T in the Silva fight was TapouT.
If they sponsor that "type" of fighter, they're capable of anything.
Just Breed!
"this" is "the" worst type of "post"
1) that “type” of fighter is top-5 in the division.
2) they’re sponsoring chael sonnen, the fighter.
3) the PEDs and fraud conviction came after the silva fight.
the idea that sponsoring chael sonnen is on the same level as allegedly disrespecting a dead body is ridiculous.
"EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING"
- Bob Cole
by kellly on May 12, 2011 8:37 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Just thought I'd point out
ScoreCardOTN’s also using the sarcasm block.
Update on TMZ..
TapouT Honchos — Yes, We Distributed Mask’s Ashes
5/12/2011 12:30 AM PDT by TMZ Staff
The two men who run the MMA clothing line TapouT admit they DID distribute a “very small amount” of Charles “Mask” Lewis’ cremated remains to his close friends … and they stand by their actions.
TMZ spoke to the attorney representing Punkass and SkySkrape … who tells us the men feel there is “nothing wrong with dividing up a loved one’s ashes” and giving them to loved ones … despite the fact Mask’s sister claims they had no legal right to do so.
We broke the story, Carla Lewis filed a lawsuit against Punkass and SkySkrape saying they gave away 50 to 100 vials containing Mask’s ashes at a public memorial service in 2009.
Carla — who claims she is the only person with the legal power to control the ashes — alleges the men have kept a significant amount of Mask’s ashes in their possession for years, and have refused to give them back to Mask’s estate.
Now, in light of the lawsuit, P and S have agreed to RETURN the remaining ashes … but they are adamant they have done NOTHING wrong. In fact, the men say Mask was estranged from his sister when he died in 2009 and “his close circle of friends had become his family.”
The men both insist the lawsuit is purely about money — but they’re happy to give the ashes back to the estate so Mask’s two young children can eventually inherit their father’s remains.

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