Owen Hart

Owen James Hart (May 7, 1965 – May 23, 1999) was a Canadian professional wrestler and entertainer. He competed under the ringname Owen Hart and had many nicknames such as The Rocket, The King of Harts, The Blackhart, The Blue Blazer and the derogatory term Nugget.

Death

Hart died in Kansas City on May 23, 1999, during the WWF's Over the Edge PPV event. His death occurred while he was being lowered into the ring from a catwalk of the Kemper Arena for a match with The Godfather (a wrestler with a pimp gimmick). This entrance was originally planned to be a "comedy stunt" entrance, in keeping with the buffoonish character of the Blue Blazer; indeed, Owen had perfomed the stunt successfully before. Owen, in Blue Blazer regalia, was to be lowered to just above ring level, at which time Owen would release himself from the safety harness, drop to the ring, land on his feet...and then fall flat on his face. However, for reasons never revealed, the release was triggered early, and Owen fell 90 feet into the ring, smashing his chest on a ring turnbuckle. The viewers at home did not see the incident, as the WWF was transmitting a promotional package for the Hart/Godfather match. Upon the return to live action, the cameras focused on the crowd and the announcing team (Jim Ross and a visibly shaken Jerry Lawler) as paramedics tried to revive Owen. The crowd, believing that this was "part of the act" (despite Ross stating repeatedly that it was not), cheered with a standing ovation as Owen was carried out. Owen was transported to the Truman Medical Center in Kansas City, where he died a short time later; the cause was later revealed to be internal bleeding from blunt chest trauma. Despite the tragedy, the show continued.

Related Topics:
Kansas City - May 23 - 1999 - Catwalk - Kemper Arena - The Godfather - Pimp - Stunt - Turnbuckle - Jim Ross - Jerry Lawler

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The next night on Monday Night Raw, the WWF mounted a two-hour televised tribute to Owen (see RAW is Owen), featuring the company's biggest stars (most of whom were in shock or in tears) - which concluded with a "beer toast" from Steve Austin (many found this controversial due to the animosity that existed between Austin and Owen). The Over the Edge event name was retired immediately, and the WWF tried to distance itself from the in-ring events. However, the Hart family (as well as sports radio talk show host Jim Rome) was furious with the WWF for continuing the PPV, with Bret accusing McMahon of murder.

Related Topics:
Monday Night Raw - RAW is Owen - Sports - Radio - Talk show - Jim Rome

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Owen left a widow, Martha, and two children, Oje and Athena. His widow now runs a charity called the Owen Hart Foundation with the money gained from her out-of-court settlement with the WWF from a wrongful death lawsuit (as a result of the settlement, what truly happened on May 23, 1999 was never revealed). Martha wrote a book about Owen's life in 2002 called Broken Harts.

Related Topics:
May 23 - 1999 - 2002

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Owen's last match was on May 22, 1999 in Chicago. He and Jarrett won a tag team match against Edge and Christian.

Related Topics:
May 22 - 1999 - Chicago - Edge - Christian

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On the night of his death, he was booked to win the Intercontinental Championship from The Godfather.

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His brother Bret and longtime friend Chris Benoit had a tribute match in WCW in Kansas City on October 4, 1999.

Related Topics:
Chris Benoit - October 4

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