Wrestling with shadows – The Bret Hart saga

Back in the good old days, wrestling was more than just a glamorous show. It was a circus; ever had the experience of riding with your dad to a circus which you were excited about? Even though you had to drive for over 3 hours, in the end, it was worth it, because you were absolutely fascinated with the toys and clowns, along with all the different shows being put on. Wrestling was something similar for the old school fans. They used to drive from town to town to take a peek at these mammoths, who used to drive into their towns for only a day, and leave the next. On the way, their dads used to tell them all about these ‘men’ who travel all around the world, putting on one show after another, in the circus known as professional wrestling. Men, not superstars, who were larger than life characters. Pro wrestling was all about what happened inside the ring, with the gasping audience holding their breath in awe as one guy would wrench the arm of the opponent in ways unimaginable, and when the night ended, like a magic show, everyone would appreciate the guys who put on the show, while trying to figure how both of these men came out alive.

When you grow up with pro wrestling, you are completely engrossed by it. Families such as the Von Erichs had the misfortune of being one of them, and you cannot see yourself doing anything else other than performing. When you stay in the business long enough, or see someone close to you being in the business for a long time, you get addicted to it. In that sense, pro wrestling is like a magic show. When you’re the magician, and a good one at that, the whole world looks at you with love and heaps praises. When you’re next to a magician getting all the glory, you immediately start learning the tricks, even though you’re unaware of the fact. You begin to learn the reality aspect of a world that is covered by smoke and mirrors. For you, the magic tricks are the truth, and the people become an obsession, you develop the need to be who you are while performing the tricks. You become your own shadow.

Pro wrestling is exactly the same. Whether it was the Von Erichs or the Guerreros or the Colons, pro wrestling has been passed down generations in families where they do not know anything else. For them, pro wrestling is in their blood, and that’s all they dream about. Perhaps, the most legendary and famous family in pro wrestling hails from Canada. Stu Hart was the most famous Canadian professional wrestler, who was loved and respected by everyone in the country. His sons also had taken the same route as their father, learning the tricks of the trade at the famous Hart Dungeon, in the basement of their home. This was the place where the career of perhaps the greatest wrestler in the history of professional wrestling was born. The Hitman knew what he was supposed to do.

Starting at Stampede Wrestling, Bret Hart, son of Stu Hart, began training to become a pro wrestler. People who saw Bret knew he was cut for the major league. The way he carried himself since a young age gave implications of his inevitable journey to the top of the mountain, and when Vince asked Bret to replace someone on the card at Madison Square Garden, Bret knew that his time was just beginning. Bret Hart would no longer be known as ‘The son of Stu Hart’. After Vince smashed the territorial rule, all the guys from Stampede came down to the major leagues, and that was when Bret was acquired by Vince McMahon. Vince always saw something special in the kid, and at a time when the wrestling world was dominated by big guys, Bret knew he had to get into the business with a tag team partner.

When Bret debuted in the WWF, he was partnered with Jim ‘The Anvil’ Neidhart, a team which became one of the most famous tag teams in the history of pro wrestling. Managed by Jimmy Hart, the team was known as the Hart Foundation. This was where Hart honed his craft, learning to wrestle the WWF style, and slowly but surely, earned the respect of his peers. The team would go on to win the WWF Tag team championships, but Bret was meant for bigger things. When Bret began focusing on his singles career, there was another talented rookie in the WWF who was watching Bret through the curtains, hoping to be at his spot sometime soon. This young rookie was none other than Shawn Michaels.

Bret started his singles journey by going after the second most coveted title in the WWF at that point, the one title that elevated the guys from the mid card to the main event. This was the time when the smaller guys in the back were frustrated with the Hulk Hogans and the Warriors, and wanted someone to break the shackles and go on to main event in the WWF. Having earned the respect and adulation from his peers, Bret was chosen to be ‘the guy’ who’d break the proverbial glass ceiling. Mr. Perfect, who held the WWF Intercontinental title at that point, pushed for Hart to win the title, and go on to challenge for the WWF title. The evolution of The Hitman had begun. The night when Bret won the Intercontinental title from Mr. Perfect, the crowd roared in approval, and Vince couldn’t ignore the fan base Bret had gathered.

There was one thing that separated the Bret Harts and the Undertakers from the rest of the pack, and that was their love for the business and the fans. It’s almost hard to believe that Undertaker hadn’t gone out of character nearly for a decade during his initial ‘Deadman’ gimmick, as he was one of the last old school guys, who always put the business ahead of themselves. In a scripted, made up world, these guys were the true patriots, the flag bearers, those who maintained a sense of reality. While other guys were doing drugs, taking steroids, and consuming alcohol, the Undertakers and Bret Harts maintained their dignity. When Bret went out to meet his fans, he would get genuine love, and he’d reciprocate it. Bret Hart was not only a great wrestler, but also an upstanding character, something which he ardently believed in even in his real life.

As Bret climbed up the ranks, he soon found himself fighting for the WWF title, and the night he won the WWF Championship, the transition had begun. The Hogans and the Warriors were no longer the top guys in the company, and this was when Shawn Michaels found the opportunity to replicate what Bret Hart did. Fast forward a couple of years, these two smaller guys were engaged in a feud for the WWF title. Diesel and Shawn had just finished their runs as the WWF champions, which had gathered the least revenues and buys for a champion. At a time when WWF was losing to WCW in every aspect, Bret Hart took the responsibility of resurrecting the WWF. But all was not well backstage, as tensions were growing between Bret and Shawn. Shawn and his friends were hated by all the other guys in the locker room, as they had formed a union (Known as The Kliq) and would look out for themselves. Bret, who was the top guy at that time, didn’t like what was going on, and this just fuelled their rivalry.

Things took a turn for the worse when Shawn told Bret backstage that he would never put him over. The story goes that when Bret tried to make peace by saying he would put Shawn over anywhere at any time, Shawn looked at him and said, ‘I appreciate that, but I would not do the same for you’. After Bret lost to Shawn at WrestleMania, thus dropping the WWF title to him, it was verbally agreed that Shawn would repay the favour next year, putting Bret over. It was at a time when WWF was in financial turmoil, and Shawn relinquished the title, saying he had ‘lost his smile’. It was well known that Shawn did a lot of drugs, and his personal life was in shambles, but it was heavily rumoured that Shawn had done that as he didn’t want to put Bret over. And this didn’t help their rocky relationship. It was also at this time that Bret was approached by WWF’s competition, WCW, and they offered him thrice the amount WWF paid him, and Bret being true to his character, turned them down. The story goes that this angered Shawn, as he wasn’t even approached by WCW.

Vince’s idea to take the edgier, sexually explicit route didn’t make Bret happy. Because of the financial situation, Vince urged Bret to rethink about his WCW deal. Bret, being loyal to WWF, refused at first, but had to accept unwillingly. Vince wanted to make Shawn the poster boy of the company, as Bret was too clean cut for the Attitude Era. Slowly, Vince formulated a plan to uproot his most loyal tree and throw it away. Bret Hart’s time in the company was coming to an end. It all boiled down to one thing, which was respect. For guys like the Undertakers and Bret Harts, respect meant everything. These were the guys who worked with a broken foot, a broken arm, broken ribs only because they were too proud to quit. They earned their respect not by deceiving people, but because of their love and passion for the business.

This led to the infamous Montreal Screwjob, and while some people blame Bret for what happened, many fail to see the point of Bret Hart as a person, and a character. Bret believed in his character, something very few have done throughout their careers. Since he came from a wrestling family, Bret’s character was his own self. Bret’s shadows were real, and so was Bret. In a shady world, Bret was the truth, and that ultimately led to his downfall. Was Bret at fault for not losing to Shawn? I don’t think so. His character defined him for the past decade, and selling out for one night would undo all the work he did. Bret didn’t screw Bret, in the end, pro wrestling screwed Bret.