WWE Attitude Era Backstage Tales Fans Should Know
Highlights
- JBL's excessive bullying led to him getting beaten up by Steve Blackman, who had enough of his antics.
- Jim Ross fought to hire Mick Foley, and Vince McMahon allowed it to prove a point, but Foley ended up being a great success.
- Edge and Christian turned Wrestler's Court into a comedy routine, presenting a fake book about brownnosing and were ultimately acquitted.
In the history of WWE, one of its most important periods is what’s known as the Attitude Era. Lasting from 1997 to about 2002, the Attitude Era saw the promotion move from kid-friendly content to something more edgy for older audiences as stars like The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin became household names.
5 Worst (& 5 Best) Things About The Attitude Era
The Attitude Era revolutionized wrestling, but for all the good that came out of this time, the era also had some bad qualities.A highly lucrative time that many fans look back on with a sense of nostalgia, the Attitude Era has its share of backstage tales. Let’s take a look at 10 such anecdotes, including several backstage fights as well as the stories behind some of WWE’s most infamous angles at the time.
Bradshaw's Bullying Got Him A Beating At The Hands Of Steve Blackman
The Future JBL Ran Afoul Of “The Lethal Weapon”
Wrestler | WWE Run | WWE Accomplishments |
|---|---|---|
Steve Blackman | 1997-2002 | WWE Hardcore Champion |
JBL | 1995-2009 | WWE Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion, WWE Hardcore Champion |
When it comes to backstage stories from the late 1990s and 2000s, one of WWE’s most notorious figures is JBL — then known as Bradshaw —, who gained infamy for his excessive bullying. In 1999, he decided to commit some sexual harassment at an airport by repeatedly patting the butt of Steve Blackman. Blackman, a legit martial artist, had enough of Bradshaw’s antics and decided to attack his harasser. Amidst the scuffle, Blackman got his leg stuck on a baggage handle, which, by all accounts, saved Bradshaw from an even worse beating. Bradshaw apologized later that day.
Jim Ross’s Struggle To Hire Mick Foley
Vince McMahon Let JR Hire Foley To Prove A Point
Mick Foley WWE Run | WWE Accomplishments |
1996-2000, 2004-2008 | WWE World Tag Team Champion, WWE Champion, WWE Hardcore Champion |
Alongside the aforementioned Rock and Austin, one of the other beloved figures of Attitude Era WWE was Mick Foley, best known during that period as Mankind. However, it turned out WWE only hired him to prove a point. Jim Ross, head of Talent Relations, adamantly pushed to hire Foley, knowing that he was hard-working, reliable, and not addicted to drugs. Vince McMahon eventually acquiesced, but only because he wanted JR to know what it was like to be disappointed by a talent not being as successful as one believed. Of course, the opposite happened, and Foley was a great success in WWE.
Edge & Christian Hijacking Wrestler’s Court
The Tag Team Was Indicted For Allegedly Sucking Up To The Writers
Edge & Christian's Original Tag Team Run | WWE Accomplishments |
1999-2001 | WWE World Tag Team Champions |
There's no shortage of backstage stories about Wrestler’s Court, WWE’s unofficial kangaroo court wherein wrestlers decide to put one another on trial for perceived slights. At one point, Hardcore Holly decided to indict Edge and Christian for allegedly sucking up to WWE writer Brian Gewirtz.
Wrestler's Court: One Of Wrestling's Most Controversial Relics, Explained
Though it's not used in wrestling anymore, WWE Superstars used to solve their differences with each other through Wrestlers' Court.Rather than take the proceedings even remotely seriously, Edge and Christian decided to turn it into a comedy routine, complete with them presenting a fake book “written” by them about how to properly brownose one’s way into success. Needless to say, the wrestlers were acquitted.
The Injury That Derailed Shawn Michaels’ Career
HBK Was Out Of Wrestling For Five Years
Match | Event | Date | Location |
Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker | WWE Royal Rumble | 1/18/1998 | San Jose, CA |
One notable WWE star that missed a good chunk of the Attitude Era was Shawn Michaels, who had become a huge star by the mid 1990s. While he certainly had memorable moments in the era like forming D-Generation X with Triple H, “The Heartbreak Kid” suffered an unfortunate injury in early 1998. While wrestling The Undertaker in a Casket Match, Michaels was thrown out of the ring and into the casket, which ended up herniating two disks. Michaels managed to wrestle one last match at WrestleMania 14 two months later, but then ended up stepping away from the ring for four years in order to heal up.
Ken Shamrock Fights The Big Show
Shamrock Put Show In An Ankle Lock For Real!
Wrestler | WWE Run | WWE Accomplishments |
|---|---|---|
Ken Shamrock | 1997-1999 | WWE Tag Team Champion, Intercontinental Champion |
Big Show | 1999-2021 | WWE Champion, World Heavyweight Champion, ECW Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, WWE Hardcore Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion, World Tag Team Champion |
Steve Blackman wasn’t the only shooter to get into a backstage fight in the Attitude Era. Nicknamed “The World’s Most Dangerous Man,” Ken Shamrock was a pivotal figure in the rise of MMA in the 1990s, and apparently not a dude to mess with given this anecdote. In 1999, The Big Show was teasing Shamrock to an excessive degree while the roster was hanging out in catering. Despite Shamrock’s protestations, Show persisted, causing the UFC Hall of Famer and former King of Pancrase to get fed up and put Big Show in an actual ankle lock, causing a tremendous amount of pain to the giant.
What Happened With The Higher Power Storyline
WWE Couldn’t Come Up With A Satisfying Reveal
Higher Power Reveal | Date | Location |
WWE Monday Night Raw | 6/7/1999 | Boston, MA |
One of the Attitude Era’s biggest misfires was the Higher Power storyline, where The Undertaker and his Ministry of Darkness was tormenting the McMahon Family at the behest of some mystery figure. According to Bruce Prichard, WWE didn’t actually have plan this with anyone in mind for the Higher Power. While a young Christopher Daniels was at one point suggested, ultimately it was decided that Vince McMahon would reveal himself as the Higher Power, which worked in terms of effect but rendered the storyline nonsensical.
How Bart Gunn Won Brawl 4 All
Gunn Wasn’t The Wrestler WWE Expected To Win
Brawl 4 All Final Match | Other Participants |
Bart Gunn vs. Bradshaw | 8-Ball, Scorpio, The Godfather, Dan Severn, Steve Williams, Quebecer Pierre, Bob Holly, Road Warrior Hawk, Darren Drozdov, Savio Vega, Brakkus, Mark Canterbury, Marc Mero, Steve Blackman |
The Attitude Era also brought fans a unique and deeply misguided concept in Brawl 4 All, in which WWE’s least important wrestlers all competed in a legitimate shoot fighting tournament. With competitors like The Godfather and Marc Mero, the tournament was meant to elevate “Dr. Death” Steve Williams as major foe for Steve Austin, but he didn’t actually win the tournament.
10 Things You Didn't Know About "Dr. Death" Steve Williams
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams was a legendary wrestler whose success mostly came from his time in Japan, but he did leave his mark on the industry.The belief by management that Williams was definitely going to win annoyed the other participants, and Bart Gunn became emboldened enough to try his hardest. Not only did Gunn win the tournament, but he managed to score an upset victory over Steve Williams.
Steve Austin Refused To Wrestle Marc Mero
It Was All Because Of A Powerbomb
Event | Date | Location |
WWE Monday Night Raw | 5/11/1998 | Baltimore, MD |
It seems like backstage politics is to be expected in wrestling, and the Attitude Era was no exception. In one notable case, top star Stone Cold Steve Austin refused to work with Marc Mero, a midcard heel who WWE was looking to push in a feud against Austin. The reason for this came down to Marc Mero taking a powerbomb from his valet/real-life wife Sable on an episode of Raw. When presented with Mero as a rival, Austin shot the idea down, believing that he would lose his credibility fighting a wrestler who took a powerbomb from his own wife.
How Jeff Jarrett Held The Intercontinental Championship For Ransom
This Made Double J Persona Non Grata In WWE
Jeff Jarrett's Intercontinental Title Run | Match With Chyna | Date |
56 Days | WWE No Mercy | 10/17/1999 |
The Attitude Era was defined by a ratings war with WCW, but one wrestler who jumped back and forth between companies was Jeff Jarrett. Double J’s last run with WWE as a performer lasted from 1997 to 1999, and ended under contentious circumstances. The Intercontinental Champion, Jarrett was scheduled to defend against Chyna at No Mercy 1999, but his contract was set to expire the day before. Because he also had gotten a huge offer from WCW, Jarrett was able to get double the money out of Vince McMahon, lest WWE risk another Madusa incident.
The Aftermath Of The Montreal Screwjob
Bret Hart Reportedly Assaulted Vince McMahon After The Match
Match | Event | Date | Location |
Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels | Survivor Series | 11/9/1997 | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
The Montreal Screwjob is one of the most significant moments in wrestling history, a kayfabe-blurring incident that saw Vince McMahon apparently forcing a match between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels to go off-script, screwing Hart out of the WWE Championship. Backstage accounts of whose idea it was and who was in on the conspiracy vary, but one thing fans can be sure of is that an angry Hart decked McMahon after it happened, with the aftermath being captured in the documentary Hitman Hart: Wrestling With Shadows.
