If You Believe In Wrestling Heaven...

"If you believe in forever,
Then life is just a one-night stand.
If there's a rock and roll heaven,
Well you know they've got a hell of a band."

It was 1974 when the previously broken up Righteous Brothers reunited to record this anthem in memory of their fallen peers.

Jim Croce, Jimi Hendrix, Janice Joplin and Otis Redding are a few of the artists who receive special mention.

With the recent passing of Scott "Bam Bam" Bigelow, I am called once again to reflect on the large number of professional wrestling superstars who I have grown up watching that have been taken from us too soon. I cannot help but think that if there is a hell of a band playing out there somewhere, there must also be one hell of a wrestling promotion too.

Imagine, if you will, your commentators Gorilla Monsoon and Gordon Solie welcoming you to the program. Your referees are Pee Wee Anderson, Mark Curtis, and Joey Marella.

It is sure to be a star studded event, as the list of talent is seemingly endless. Perhaps, it is announced that the main event will be a showdown among two of the greatest wrestling families of all time as the Von Erichs, comprised of Kerry, David, Mike, and Chris will be accompanied by Fritz to take on the Hart Foundation, comprised of Owen Hart, Dean Hart, "British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith, and Brian Pillman accompanied by Stu Hart.

The heavyweight title picture is very interesting. Former AWA Champion "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig might be taking on his good friend and former WCW International Champion "Ravishing" Rick Rude. Right in the middle of the title hunt would former NWA World Champions Kerry Von Erich, Chris Candido, and Shinya Hashimoto, Former WWE World Champions Yokozuna, Andre the Giant, and Eddie Guerrero and former ECW World Champion "Bam Bam" Bigelow, among others.

A special monsters of the ring tournament could be announced. First round matches see Andre the Giant taking on his old nemises Big John Studd and Yokozuna battling Earthquake. Pride and honor beckon these larger than life superstars.

The tag team division would be able to thrive. Maybe you could see the team of Eddie Guerrero and Art Barr, known as Los Gringos Locos in action as they take on "Flyboy" Rocco Rock and Johnny Grunge, the Public Enemy or Gino Hernandez and "Gentleman" Chris Adams reunite to take on Chris Candido and Louie Spicolli. Earthquake and Dino Bravo, the Hart Foundation, and the Von Erichs are just some options to round out the full tag team roster.

If your style is more extreme or hardcore, this is the place to see some of the stiffest most brutal wrestlers of all time. Perhaps you could see a rematch of the battle of the Bam Bam's as Bam Bam Bigelow takes on Terry "Bam Bam" Gordy. Maybe all hell breaks lose when Shinya Hashimoto wrestles the incomprable Bruiser Brody. Maybe old school greats like the Sheik, Dick Murdoch, or "Hotstuff" Eddie Gilbert get involved.

There are so many possibilities when you think of some of the greatest names in the sport being able to square off. Possibly Road Warrior Hawk has a score to settle when he meets up with former Legion of Doom stablemate Buzz Sawyer. What would happen when two strongmen collide like Hercules and Dino Bravo? What about if two dogs collide with fan favorite, Junkyard Dog taking on Moondog Spot. Who knows, maybe even Sky-Low-Low and Little Beaver will get into the action. Wrestlers like The Big Bossman, Adrian Adonis, Gary Albright, Jay Youngblood, and "Pistol" Pez Whatley could have a great deal to contribute to the wrestling business as road agents if they were still with us. Perhaps in heaven, they are stealing the show.

There is even some room to create some of the stars of the future. Who knows what would have been had wrestlers like The Wall, Pitbull #2,Crash Holly, Russ Haas, the Renegade, Bobby Duncum Jr., and Big Dick Dudley had more time here on earth. Perhaps they could be the biggest superstars on the other side.

There are even a great deal of popular wrestling personalities to invigorate storylines. A jealous rift over the lovely Miss Elizabeth or a long feud with the incomparable Andy Kaufmann are just two possibilities. Sweet Sapphire, The Grand Wizard, "Classy" Freddie Blassie, Johnny Valentine, Lord Alfred Hayes and Bertha Faye are some additional ways to liven up a wrestler or angle.

This doesn't even touch upon previous generations who have gone before: Frank Gotch, Stanislaus Zbyszko, "Mr. Wrestling" Tim Woods, Lou Thesz, Ray "Crippler" Stevens, Stan "The Man" Stasiak, El Santo, "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers, Antonino Rocca, Rikidozan, Bob Orton Sr., Pat O' Conner, Bronko Nagurski, William Muldoon, Wahoo McDaniel, Hiro Matsuda, "High Chief" Peter Miavia, George Hackenschmidt, Gory Guerrero, Eddie Graham, Gorgeous George, Dory Funk Sr., Dick the Bruiser, Mike Dibiase, Haystacks Calhoun, Bobo Brasil, Giant Baba, Mr. Togo, and Prof. Tanaka are just a sample of deceased professional wrestlers who have passed who left an incredible legacy in the business. Perhaps in heaven they are in their prime and ready for action.

If indeed, there is a wrestling heaven, when it is my time to go, after I greet my family and friends, I hope to find my way to the grandstand for an incredible night of professional wrestling, because they sure do have a hell of a band.

Rest In Peace to all the former warriors of the squared circle. Your contributions are why we are here today. You are fondly remembered and greatly missed.

More on This Story...

How Hard Has Bret Screwed Bret?

Pro Wrestling Pundit is officially launched, and we begin with a topic that is sure to turn a lot of heads.

Some fans would ask, "how can you criticize one of the greatest champions of the 1990's?" I would respond, "how can you not?"

Bret Hart was close to being released when he was lucky enough to be paired with Jim Neidhardt and Jimmy Hart to form the Hart Foundation. They had a successful run as a team that lasted many years, and were one of my favorite childhood tag teams.

Then they split up, and Bret came seemingly out of nowhere to defeat Mr. Perfect for the Intercontinental title at Summerslam. So far so good...

When the steroid trial reared it's ugly head, Bret was in position to change the face of the stereotypical WWE champion. This ushered in a new WWE era.

I will give Bret his due. Bret's successful title run paved the way for the actual WWE wrestling product to get better over the years, and set the stage for many smaller wrestlers to have success. Without Bret carrying the ball, would we have had Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit title runs? It's debatable.
We can look back at Bret Hart leading the charge for the "New Generation" and we see a time where WWE business wasn't very impressive. While Bret wasn't offensive as champion, he certainly didn't put the butts in the seats that Hogan did before him and Austin did after...

For me personally, becoming a fan when the Megapowers were sitting on top of the wrestling world, it was hard to support Bret Hart as a World Heavyweight Champion. His defeat of Ric Flair meant no title rematch for Randy Savage. His first title reign would be ended to put the belt back around Hogan's waist, but by the time he had his second reign, it was more than apparant that Hulkamania was either dead or certainly on a long hiatus.

I learned to live with Bret Hart as a World Champion. While I never cared particularly about the stories between Bret and Owen, Hakushi, or Bob Backlund, I knew Bret Hart could produce a great match. I point to his match with the British Bulldog at In Your House as a shining example of what Bret could do in the ring when he had the belt. That match is vastly underated, as most people tend to remember their 1992 Summerslam encounter.

Outside of the ring, I didn't feel like Bret delivered. As a babyface champion, he was boring. I didn't feel that he was the best there is, best there was, or the best their ever would be, and resented him for making the claim.

The WWE groomed Shawn Michaels as a successor to the Hitman. Bret was never happy with the way he was portrayed in the buildup to Wrestlemania, and he wasn't going to be happy with Shawn Michaels from that point on. We all know how that story ends up...

But it wasn't all Montreal Screwjobs. There was a time when the legitimate backstage tension between Bret and Shawn was good for the business, especially while the WWE accidentally found their new savior in a foul mouthed s.o.b. by the name of Steve Austin.

Bret had lost touch with the fans who were tired of his lame babyface schtick. It was time for a change. Bret joined with Owen, The Anvil, The Bulldog, and "Loose Cannon" Brian Pillman to form the NEW Hart Foundation, and while WCW was still dominating the ratings war, the Foundation's feuds were rebuilding interest in RAW. Eventually it would give birth to Austin vs. McMahon and Degeneration X, and the ball would be back in Vince's court.

Before that however, Bret's relationship with the WWE would self-destruct. Bret Hart was sitting on top of the WWE as the World Champion. However, his large contract was too much for Vince to handle, and Bret wasn't happy anyways. Bret wanted a change of scenery. It was time for him to move on.

The Survivor Series came from Canada that year, where Bret was still a crowd favorite. He wasn't comfortable with dropping the title to Shawn Michaels in his home country. We all know the story, as the WWE has revisited numerous times since.

Vince defended his actions by breaking kayfabe on Raw and essentially explaining how the business works. When you are a champion, and you are leaving a promotion, you do the right thing and lose the title. Hell, when you aren't a champion, and you are leaving a promotion, you lose a few matches. They weren't in Calgary, they were in Canada. That's like Hogan saying that he can't lose a match in the United States (which I guess arguably you could say he's pretty much stuck to over the past 20 plus years).

When Vince decided to take the title off Bret, he was doing what was best for himself and his employees. Had Vince let Bret leave as the WWE World Champion, and had a tournament or battle royal for a vacant title while Bret appeared on WCW TV as the man who never lost the title, I guarantee that WWE would not be the promotion left standing today, and regardless of what you think about the current WWE product, wrestling as a whole would be worse off. Could you imagine a WCW product in 2006 with no competition for ratings? I think we can all safely presume that it would be absolutely horrid.

Bret should have done business, point blank. A loss to Michaels in Canada would have done a lot less damage to the Hitman than the aftermath of the Montreal Screwjob did.

Bret Hart has essentially spent the past 9 years publicly crying about what happened at that Survivor Series. His chance to redeem himself in World Championship Wrestling is largely a flop, as he doesn't truly have a memorable match until after Owen Hart dies, and he meets Benoit at the Kemper Arena in a tribute match. WCW does nothing for Bret Hart, and Bret Hart does nothing for WCW.

As much as I criticize Bret, I don't do it without sympathy. In the time between the Montreal Screwjob and right now, both of his parents have passed, his brother died in a very public accident, his brother in law dies as well, his marriage falls apart, his family begins fighting amongst itself, and then Goldberg mule kicks Bret's head off, effectively ending Bret's career. If that's not enough, Bret then has a stroke.

It's impossible to not have compassion for Bret Hart, however it's hard to grant as much compassion as Bret consistently asks for. I mean essentially, everything mentioned in the last paragraph is something that Vince has blamed on Vince McMahon.

Bret Hart's story is tragic, as he has gone from the excellence of execution to a very cynical shell of his former self. Bret has made no apologies for constantly chastizing everything WWE related in his Calgary Sun column since his retirement.

He has attached the in ring work of Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels, two of the greatest in ring performers of all time, and two men who Bret himself has had some of his greatest matches with. He criticizes that their matches are all the same.

However it is Bret himself who is responsible for the popularization of the term, "five moves of doom." Watch the Bret Hart DVD and look for matches that don't reach their climax with a vertical suplex, Russian legsweep, backbreaker, elbowdrop from the second rope, and the Sharpshooter.

Then watch the extras on the DVD, and find out how Bret even learned the Sharpshooter. Made it up in the Dungeon? No. The so called "Excellence of Excecution" had to have Konnan (as Max Moon) teach him the sharpshooter. I was hooking the Scorpion Deathlock when I was 5 years old, and it was damn effective too. I made a lot of little kids tap.

If anything is more important to Bret than his pride, it's his legacy. The Bret Hart DVD only exists because Bret was willing to put his pride aside if it meant he could have control over his DVD.

Bret becomes wrestling's greatest hypocrite as he poses shaking hands with Vince McMahon, who he has publicly chastized for tearing apart his life and his family, so that he can reestablish to fans that he was important to the business.

Bret, no one ever disputed that you were important to the wrestling business. We all know that you mattered. You contributed some fantastic things. You created a legacy for yourself.

However, your continuing campaign to prove to fans that you were one of the greatest of all time is doing much more to tarnish your legacy than it is to build it. Bret was ok with appearing on TV for Vince McMahon so long as it placed him into the WWE Hall of Fame. He flat out stated that he would walk out if Shawn Michaels attended, and he refused to appear on the stage at Wrestlemania, which is the part of the induction especially for the fans to give their appreciation, but Bret did indeed cement his place in wrestling history.

Shortly afterward, he was inducted into an alternate Hall of Fame, and made sure to still get in a shot at Vince and the WWE Hall of Fame.

Everytime Bret Hart makes a veiled comment like that the WWE Hall of Fame means nothing, I don't picture Bret Hart standing on the second rope holding his title belt. I picture Bret Hart standing around the ring, breaking monitors.

Day by day, Bret Hart does more and more to make that image resound in my head at the mention of his name.

Recently Bret said he wouldn't mind appearing on WWE TV to unveil that the whole Montreal situation was a work, but he can't because of his stroke. If it was a work, it certainly didn't work out as Bret had planned, and he's done more than enough to let us know ever since 1997.

The wrestling community as a whole is more than over what happened at the 1997 Survivor Series. Shawn and Vince may not be, but at least when they relive it, they do it in the name of entertainment. Bret Hart relives that night as a spiteful old man, and I've yet to see anything positive come of it.

Bret carries the weight of everything that happened at that Survivor Series everyday with him. Due to his attitude and his column, the event is almost more identifiable with him than his in-ring work. Bret has indeed screwed Bret, and even if he doesn't have to accept fault for what happened that night, he does have to accept fault for the change in public opinion since his retirement.

It's time, Bret, to forgive and forget. It is time to fade from the limelight and let your past actions define how you will be remembered...

Golden Talent or Tarnished Legacy? Wrestling Legend or Wrestling Tragedy?

Only time will tell... More on This Story...