Jim Ross blasts "horrible" WWE funeral segment
Jim Ross was a WWE commentator and talent relations executive in the late 1990s. In a recent podcast episode, the legendary announcer gave his honest thoughts on the infamous Big Boss Man vs. Big Show storyline.
The Attitude Era rivalry revolved around Big Boss Man mocking Big Show following his father's death. On the November 11, 1999, episode of SmackDown, Boss Man turned up at the funeral and drove away with the casket.
On Grilling JR, Ross told host Derek Sabato he disliked the outlandish storyline development:
"I thought it was the sh**s. Didn't like it, quite frankly. I thought it was hokey. Impossible to add any credence or credibility or any authenticity to it. It was so pro 'rassling. It stunk, and I thought it was just horrible. We did it and they're still in business. Every idea is not gonna be great." [1:40:54 – 1:41:36]
Big Show jumped on the casket in an attempt to stop Big Boss Man from escaping with his deceased father. However, the seven-foot star failed to hold on and the segment ended with him clumsily falling on the ground.
Jim Ross addresses Big Show punishment rumor
It was speculated that WWE's higher-ups booked the storyline to punish Big Show. At that point, the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion had worked for WWE for nine months and received backstage heat due to his treatment of other wrestlers.
Jim Ross clarified that the current AEW star's reputation behind the scenes had nothing to do with the Big Boss Man storyline:
"Derek, does it make any sense to f**k your own show to punish somebody? Here's how you punish Big Show: you fine his a**. You lessen his bank account. That will get him or anybody else's attention, quite frankly." [1:42:26 – 1:42:44]
The angle led to a match at Armageddon 1999, where Big Show defeated Big Boss Man in three minutes to retain the WWE Championship.
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Please credit Grilling JR and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.