Insane Insights From Mr. McMahon - Episode 4: Attitude
This is episode three of the Netflix Mr. McMahon documentary. This documentary is focused on Former WWE Chairman Vincent McMahon. At one point, he was on top of the wrestling world, but now his legacy is rotten, and it's such a fall from grace. This episode is titled "Attitude," and it talks about the Attitude era of WWE.
10. Vince's Favorite Wrestler Growing Up
Everybody has a favorite wrestler growing up. Vince talks about who his favorite wrestler was back in the day, and it was Dr. Jerry Graham. He loves his look with the blind hair, special strut, and lighting cigars with money. Vince loved Graham so much that when they worked together, he often rode in his car for rides. Vince was inspired by Jerry Graham's character and used his characteristics in the Mr. McMahon character.
9. The Moment Attitude Era Truly Began
The Attitude Era is one of the best eras in professional wrestling. One argument from fans is when it started. According to Bruce Pritchard, thank Shawn Michaels for it. One night Shawn wore bicycle shorts and stuffed a sock in his pants to show a "bulge". Shawn was fined 10,000 dollars, and Vince called it unprofessional. However, after rewatching it, Vince saw the entertainment value in it. A few days later Shawn got out of the fine and was told by Vince that this was the Attitude they needed.
Prichard notes Vince was not at the show that night. Michaels clarifies that it was gauze and not a sock. Glad he cleared that up! Vince called Shawn the next day, told him it was unprofessional, and fined him $10,000. Shawn told Vince he understood but told Vince to go back and watch and tell him it wasn’t entertaining. That started the conversation that they needed to go there. He weaseled his way out of the fine, and a few weeks later Vince pointed to Shawn and said that was the Attitude they needed.
8. The Austin 3:16 Promo
Triple H lost his planned King of the Ring win due to the curtain call incident that went to Stone Cold. Two weeks before the show, Vince told Austin he was going to win it and beat Jake "The Snake" Roberts. Michael P.S. Hayes told Austin about the religious promo Roberts cut and immediately thought of the Austin 3:16 and used it in his promo when he won the event.
Bruce Pritchard claimed that after that promo, Austin 3:16 signs were everywhere. Pritchard is full of nonsense; Austin was still in the preshow in 1996 SummerSlam. It was not until 1997 that Austin started getting popular with the fans.
7. How WWE Got Mike Tyson
The documentary dives into the year 1998, when WWE managed to get Mike Tyson to be a part of the show. Shane McMahon, who had the connections to reach out to him, is to thank for this. Tyson's arrival started to make Eric Bischoff wake up and become uncocky.
Something crazy was mentioned: At the time, Tyson had just gotten out of prison, and many saw it as a risk. Stephanie McMahon was interviewed about this in 2013 and said, “He hadn’t been arrested for r*** yet, though, when we did that? He had!” Yikes, that's not a great statement to make there, and she knew it by the look of her face.
6. Everyone Except Vince Believes He Shares Traits With The Mr. McMahon Character
Vince was asked if he shares any of his real-life traits with the character. He gave a whopper of an answer claiming that he doesn't. Everyone else was asked, but they had different answers. Shane McMahon said the character was an extension of Vince. Hulk Hogan, Bruce Pritchard, and Shawn Michaels say there same person. That's pretty telling those four would say that.
5. How WWE Almost Ruined The Rock
The topic of The Rock came up as he was a big part of the attitude era. However, that almost didn't come to be, as the company almost ruined him with the Rocky Maivia gimmick. Miava was shoved down fans' throats, and they started hating him. This wasn't mentioned in the documentary, but The Rock almost quit the company in 1996 due to money problems and seeing the writing on the wall.
That all changed when he turned heel and joined the Nation of Domination. Rock got more mic time, and he used it well to get over with the crowd. Things clicked, and it was a moment that shifted things for him.
4. WWE Went Overboard Many Times In The Attitude Era
The Attitude Era was one of the best in the promotion; however, there were plenty of moments where they went too far. The entire character of Sable was brought up, and the focus was on sex appeal rather than athleticism. Vince said that it was a product of the time and the highest-rated segments were often with Women performing lewd acts.
It's not just that, but other things, including racism and violence, are problematic. Two that stood out were DX doing Blackface and the Undertaker hanging the Boss Man at WrestleMania. Triple H himself even admits that they went over the line.
3. The Owen Hart Incident
May 23, 1999, is the most tragic day in WWF history as Owen Hart lost his life on the Over the Edge PPV. He was set to make his entrance from the building rafters, but Owen fell 78 feet in front of the audience.
Vince admits that most of the audience didn't see it, as it was when the ring lights were very low, as the video package had played. When Vince was notified of Owen's death, he and Kevin Dunn told Jim Ross to tell the audience at home. Dark Side of the Ring did an episode on it, and it's the saddest one to get through.
2. Why Vince Decided To Keep The Show Going
Vince has a choice to either end the show or keep it going. What Vince did was to keep the show going and not announce it to the live audience. The reason why is the crowd didn't fully see what happened and they came for a show. He even states if he had splattered on the mat, he would want out of there so the show could continue.
It was the wrong decision then and it still is today. This show should have immediately stopped and become a crime scene. The fact Vince forced the wrestlers who just saw a traumatic event one of their brothers to out and wrestle is just a disgrace.
1. The Aftermath Of The Incident
Owen Hart tragically dies and the documentary shows footage of the funeral. In the aftermath, Martha Hart filed a lawsuit against WWF and the other company involved with the stunt. Vince reveals that the apparatus used for the stunt was defective and the manufacturer was at fault.
The crazy part, too, is the ridiculous statement Bret Hart admitted he feared WWF murdered Owen to get back at him. The fact that Bret legit thought that is insane as he left the company two years previous. There's no way that WWF and Vince held that big of a grudge to kill his brother.
Bret got a call, and the police found that nothing criminal happened; it was a horrible accident. Bret eventually forgave Vince and realized that his issues were more professional than personal.
My Thoughts On Episode 4
This episode was a well-made piece. It got really sad when it got to the Owen Hart tragedy. That stunt should have never happened in the first place, and he should still be alive today. That show should have never continued, and it's a disgrace that Vince still believes he did the right thing when he didn't. It was briefly covered in this episode, but watching the Dark Side of the Ring piece on Owen Hart goes into detail about what happened, as there were a lot of details left out.
The Attitude Era had a ton of memorable and great moments, but they went way too far most of the time. It's not a shock that Shawn Michaels is the reason the attitude Era began, after all the definition of bad attitude can best describe Shawn at that time.
As for Vince claiming he and the character are two separate entities, I don't believe him one single bit and he still comes off scummy throughout this episode. Bruce Pritchard comes across as an absolute McMahon Yes Man and is full of it every time he speaks. Stephanie McMahon saying that comment with Mike Tyson doesn't paint her in a good light either.
The next episode is titled "Family Business" and that will likely cover the Family's involvement in WWF including Shane and Stephanie McMahon.
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