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The Rocket Owen Hart
World Wrestling Federation wrestler Owen Hart has been fatally injured when he fell 50 feet into the
ring as he was lowered from the ceiling of the arena — stunning the sold-out crowd and pay-per-view television audience
that initially thought the accident was a stunt.
Owen Hart, 33, hit his head on a turnbuckle. Owen, who wrestles under
the nickname "Blue Blazer," was given CPR in the ring in front of the audience at Kemper Arena and then taken to a nearby
hospital.
"We thought it was a doll at first," said 15-year-old Robert McCome. "We thought they were just playing with
us. We were really shocked when we found out that it was no joke."
Michelle Hindorff, a paramedic and dispatcher for the
city ambulance service, said Hart was supposed to be lowered down into the ring.
"It didn't get hooked on to him. He thought
it was hooked on. We gave him CPR in the ring. He was a trauma code," she said.
Commentator Jim Ross repeated over and
over to the audience that Hart's fall was not scripted, as professional wrestling matches openly are.
The event was televised
live on pay-per-view and seen around the country.
Hart's fall happened in the second part of the event called "Over the
Edge." The first part of the event, "Sunday Night Heat," was televised live on the USA network.
"We at the WWF are saddened
by the tragic accident that occurred here tonight," Vince McMahon Sr., chairman of WWF, said at a news conference. "We don't
have any answer as to why this happened ... There is an ongoing investigation."
He declined to comment further.
Shawn
Gaitan, 24, who brought his 7-year-old nephew to the event, said: "I think it's really messed up that they kept on with the
show. They could at least told us what was going on. We worry just like the other people worry."
Gaitan said he saw Owen
flying through the air; his head hit a turnbuckle and snapped back.
Hart is the younger brother of World Championship
Wrestling wrestler Bret (The Hitman) Hart.
Lord William Regal
The Big Boss Man
World Wrestling Entertainment is saddened by the loss of Ray Traylor, professionally known as the Big Boss Man. Our thoughts
and prayers go out to his family and friends.
Inside the wrestling ring, Boss Man was one of the most feared and respected Superstars of his time. Outside the ring,
however, Traylor was a kind, gentle, charitable, compassionate family man. While his WWE persona was known for antagonizing
others, the real Traylor stopped at nothing to put smiles on the faces of the children he would meet.
Traylor began wrestling in 1984. While serving as a prison guard in Cobb County, Georgia, Traylor caught the attention
of a local Atlanta wrestling booker. After months of learning the ropes and paying his dues, Traylor was re-christened Big
Bubba Rogers. Not long after, Big Bubba Rogers was in main events all over the country, serving as Jim Cornette’s bodyguard.
A few years later, Traylor traveled to Stamford, Connecticut, to meet with Vince McMahon. Shortly thereafter, the Big Boss
Man was created.
As a member of WWE, Big Boss Man rapidly moved up the ranks to main event status. It was as the Boss Man in WWE that Traylor
enjoyed his greatest success, facing off against many huge names – Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage and Andre the Giant.
Ray's spirit and warm nature will never be forgotten.
Stu Hart
Stu Hart was a wrestler. A teacher. A promoter.
And he was a decent human being, patriarch of The Hart Family.
Hart, 88, who left his mark on the wrestling world and on the Calgary sports community, died Thursday after pneumonia,
stroke and failed kidneys did what so few others could do -- keep him down for the count.
WWE boss Vince McMahon weighed in after Hart's death: "He was one of those larger-than-life human beings who come along
so seldom."
Born May 3, 1915 in Saskatoon, Stu grew up in Edmonton. He headed off to New York City in 1946, looking for fame, fortune
and a career in wrestling. He would wrestle, then become a huge influence on the international scene as a promoter with his
Stampede Wrestling in Calgary.
His home became home for many up-and-coming stars as they learned how to wrestle ... and scream as Stu would yank an arm
out of a socket or twist a noggin' in ways it shouldn't be twisted. It was tough love, but wrestlers like Andre the Giant,
The British Bulldogs and The Junkyard Dog learned the ropes under his tutelage.
Stu gave so much ... his time, money and passion. And now he's gone. He'll be missed.
Stone Cold Steve Austin
REAL NAME: Steven Williams
NICKNAME: Stunning Steve, the Ring Master, Stone Cold
241 pounds,
6-foot-2
BORN: December 18, 1964 in Victoria, Texas
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin was once on top of the world,
the biggest name in the history of the industry, only to fall victim to personal demons.
Born Steven Williams, Austin
got into wrestling after an injury ended the former defensive end's football career at North Texas University. Shortly after
graduating from Chris Adams' wrestling school in 1989, Austin defeated Frogman LeBlanc in his pro debut in World Class Championship
Wrestling. Because there was already a Steve Williams in pro wrestling, Austin would soon have to change his name.
Austin
and Adams would feud in a classic teacher-vs.-student feud in the Texas-based USWA in 1990. Austin would also appear in Tennessee
under the USWA banner and the Texas Wrestling Federation, where he teamed with Rod Price to win the TWF Tagteam titles.
With
just a year and a half of experience under his belt, Austin headed to Atlanta and World Championship Wrestling. Within weeks
of his WCW debut, Austin (with valet Lady Blossom) defeated ring veteran Bobby Eaton for the WCW TV title. With Blossom gone
and manager Paul E. Dangerously and the Dangerous Alliance in, it would be ten months before Austin finally lost the belt
to Barry Windham to end his first of two TV title reigns. Austin also formed a successful tagteam with former Calgary Stampede
star Brian Pillman. Dubbed "the Hollywood Blondes", the pair won the WCW World Tagteam titles in March 1993 and held them
for five months before Austin and Steven (now William) Regal lost the titles. (Regal was subbing for an injured Pillman).
At Starrcade '93, Austin won his first of two United States Championships, defeating Dustin Rhodes. However, on September
18, 2004, almost immediately after regaining the U.S. title (an injured Ricky Steamboat vacated the title), Austin was defeated
by Jim Duggan and his time in WCW came to an end.
With Austin out with a torn tricep, (an injury suffered in Japan),
Eric Bischoff and WCW decided that "Stunning Steve" was unmarketable didn't fit into their future plans and fired Austin,
over the phone. In the summer of 1995, Austin arrived in ECW. During his time there, he cut several promos that seemed to
prelude the character he would later portray in the WWE.
By year's end, however, Austin had left for the WWE. Austin
debuted as "the Ringmaster", managed by Ted Dibiase. The gimmick never went anywhere and Dibiase was soon gone. Inspired by
a comment by his wife about not letting his tea get "stone cold", Austin soon adapted the ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.
At the 1996 King of the Ring, Austin came into his own. After defeating Marc Mero and Jake Roberts, Austin won the
annual pay-per-view tournament. But the biggest step towards superstardom was still to come. As Doc Hendrix conducted a post-match
promo with the new King of the Ring, Austin demeaned Roberts' "born again" gimmick stating that unlike the biblical verse
John 3:16, "Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your *ss!" A catchphrase was born that soon appeared on T-shirts, hats and anything
else the WWE could manufacture.
While feuding with Savio Vega and Jake Roberts might have put some wins under his
belt, the first high profile feud for "Stone Cold" would come with Bret Hart. Austin began calling out Hart as the "Hitman"
was preparing to come back from a lengthy absence. The two met at the Survivor Series, clashed at the Royal Rumble and engaged
in a bloody battle at Wrestlemania XIII that fully established Austin as a fan favourite and turned Bret Hart heel.
The
Hart - Austin war raged over the summer of 1997 and involved the British Bulldog and Owen Hart as well as Dude Love, a surprise
tagteam partner for Austin. The unlikely duo of Dude Love and Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Owen and the Bulldog to win
the WWE Tagteam titles.
At SummerSlam '97, Austin added to his gold count when he won the Intercontinental Championship
but at a cost that would haunt him for the remainder of his career. Austin's opponent, the late Owen Hart, executed a piledriver
on Austin, but the move went wrong and Austin suffered a stinger that left "Stone Cold" temporarily paralyzed and with neck
problems that continue to plague him.
After recovering from the initial effects of the injury, Austin returned to
battle Owen Hart who was now a member of the Nation of Domination. In time, Austin would turn his attention to the entire
Nation, which included Rocky Miavia.
At Wrestlemania XIV, Austin had finally reached the main event and defeated Shawn
Michaels for the WWE title. Although it seemed as if special referee, boxer Mike Tyson might side with Michaels and DX, it
was all a ruse and Tyson counted three and awarded Austin the championship. The "Austin Era" had begun.
The new WWE
Champion, Austin soon found himself with a new adversary. Instead of an in-ring opponent, Austin found himself battling WWE
head Vince McMahon. With the company sliding in the ratings against rival WCW, the Austin-McMahon feud was just the fix they
needed, becoming the biggest storyline in the company's history. Austin vs. McMahon was also the catalyst for pro wrestling's
wave of mainstream popularity that would last for several years.
McMahon would recruit the likes of the Undertaker,
Kane and even Dude Love to take on Austin in the hopes of taking the title off of "Stone Cold". McMahon's plan succeeded at
the 1998 King of the Ring when Kane defeated Austin. Austin rebounded the next night to regain the title.
Kane got
some help from the Undertaker to defeat Austin on September 27th but the title was held up afterwards and although Austin
tried his best to regain the title at the 1998 Survivor Series, betrayal at the hands of Shane McMahon short-circuited Austin's
plans.
Austin seemed to be en route to winning the 1999 Royal Rumble despite getting attacked by McMahon's cronies,
but it was Vince McMahon himself who dumped Austin and won the Royal Rumble. Austin would eventually win the right to battle
for the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania (including having to face Vince McMahon in a steel cage match at St. Valentine's
Day Massacre in February).
The Rock fell to Austin at Wrestlemania. After rematches against the Rock, Austin would
trade the title with the Undertaker over the spring and early summer before finally losing the title in a Triple threat match
that included Triple H and the winner, Mick Foley at Summer Slam 99.
By the end of 1999, the injury suffered over
two years earlier, combined with the normal wear and tear suffered by wrestlers, had finally caught up to Austin. Written
out of WWE storylines as being hit by a car, Austin underwent surgery to repair damage to his spinal cord and neck.
When
Austin returned nearly a year later, his first order of business was to find out who had "hit" him with a car. Eventually,
after tearing up the WWE, it was revealed that it was Rikishi, so that the Rock could become champion.
At Wrestlemania
X7 in Houston, Texas, it was once again Austin vs. the Rock and once again Austin defeated the Rock for the WWE World title
but this time it was due to interference by Vince McMahon.
Aligned with McMahon, Austin would team with Triple H to
form the Two Man Power Trip and held the WWE World Tagteam Championship until Triple H went down with a quad injury.
As
the infamous "Invasion" angle began, Austin seemed to be on the side of the WWE but turned his back and joined the Alliance
in July 2001. He feuded with and teamed with Kurt Angle as the fall of 2001 went on. On October 8th, 2001 he beat Angle for
the WWE title, becoming a six-time World Champion.
He would lose the title to Chris Jericho at Armageddon as Y2J unified
the WCW and WWE World titles. Meanwhile, Austin found himself involved in a battle against the NWO facing Scott Hall at Wrestlemania
XVIII.
Shortly after, Austin walked out of WWE over "creative differences" and his marriage to Debra fell apart. For
nearly a year, Austin was MIA as far as WWE was concerned. In 2002, he returned and after crossing paths with Eric Bischoff,
ended up feuding, once again with the Rock.
Wrestlemania XIX saw the final match of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's career
as he battled the Rock one last time, and this time he was defeated by his long-time adversary.
In April 2003, Austin
returned to the ring, not as a wrestler but as the co-General Manager of the Raw brand. Austin and his fellow co-GM Eric Bischoff
clashed as they both tried to run Raw as they saw fit. Even after being "fired" as co-General Manager, Austin remained as
a special "Sheriff" before refereeing the Brock Lesnar-Goldberg match at Wrestlemania XX.
History repeated itself
after Wrestlemania XX as Austin and the WWE were once again on the outs, and Austin left the organization. His future is unknown
at this point, although it is doubtful that pro wrestling has seen the last of Stone Cold Steve Austin.
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