Attitude Era
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The Attitude Era was a major era of
The Attitude Era marked the rise of many WWF wrestlers, including
The era also saw the resurgence of
Initiation
Monday Night War and shift to edgier content
During the
Several moments have been credited with helping WWF transition into the Attitude Era. In his book, Vince Russo mentions the debut of the character
Birth of Austin 3:16
The 1996 King of the Ring tournament saw Austin's first usage of the catchphrase "Austin 3:16", the major marketing tool for WWF during the era.[21] After winning the tournament by defeating Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Austin mocked Roberts' recital of the biblical passage John 3:16 by saying, "You sit there and you thump your Bible, and you say your prayers, and it didn't get you anywhere! Talk about your Psalms, talk about John 3:16... Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!"[22]
Austin's popularity gradually started to rise as an
Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels, debut of "WWF Attitude" promo, and the Montreal Screwjob
Another storyline from 1996 to 1997 was the personal feud between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels, who had legitimate issues with one another outside of wrestling. The conflict behind the scenes spilled into their on-screen storyline, where both men made deeply personal remarks in interviews and promo segments that were often rooted in these issues.[24]
On November 1, 1997, then-WWF Champion Hart officially signed a contract to work for WCW beginning that December. Vince McMahon sought to prevent Hart from leaving the WWF as its champion, allegedly not wanting Hart to potentially appear on WCW television with the WWF Championship, and proposed having Hart lose to Michaels at their scheduled match at Survivor Series on November 9. Hart refused due to his personal issues with Michaels becoming too great, with Bret using his "creative control" clause included in his WWF contract as leverage. Both parties seemingly came to an agreement in which the match would have a disqualification finish – which would not result in a title change – therefore, Hart would retain the championship and either lose or forfeit the title at a later date. However, McMahon, Michaels, and other WWF employees covertly went on to change the outcome of the match without Hart's knowledge.
During the pay-per-view broadcast, a video package aired immediately before the Hart vs. Michaels match, debuting the “Attitude” promo that included the first instance of the WWF "scratch" logo.
One week later, on Raw, McMahon gave an interview with Jim Ross in which McMahon explained his actions and infamously claimed that "Bret Hart screwed Bret Hart." The WWF successfully went on to parlay fan resentment towards McMahon – whose position as owner of the WWF was rarely acknowledged on-screen prior to the Montreal Screwjob – into creating the "Mr. McMahon" character, a villainous, overbearing boss. McMahon's new heel character would become a major part of the WWF's transition to reality-based storylines, particularly his rivalry with Stone Cold Steve Austin.
On the December 15th, 1997 edition of Raw, McMahon expressed the change into the new era as an evolution towards more contemporary tones in a segment denoted as "The Cure For The Common Show". He harkened back to the phrase "sports entertainment", to describe the pairing of athleticism now delving deeper beyond sports mediums in favor of broader spectrums like popular television programs of the time. McMahon discussed the idea of blurring the lines more for fans between the typical hero and villain (or babyface and heel) dynamic which would ring true for popular anti-hero Steve Austin. He referred to the "era of the superhero urging you to say your prayers and eat your vitamins" as passé; as of that time former WWF Champion Hulk Hogan had also transitioned from larger than life superhero into the leader of the villainous faction The New World Order on WCW television. It verbally represented a transition further from the Hulkamania era of the 1980s as well as the "New Generation" period of the early-to-mid-1990s. McMahon laid out a campaign to continue adapting creatively with the times as a means of furthering the WWF's longevity. He advised parental discretion for parents of younger viewers among an increased viewer base who would now be watching RAW and War Zone.[26][27]
USA Network ownership change
In October 1997, USA Network owners at Seagram agreed to sell the network to media mogul Barry Diller.[28] Diller's purchase of the USA Network was finalized in February 1998,[29] and longtime USA Network managing head Kay Koplovitz would be ousted from the network she founded two months later.[30] Shaun Assael and Mike Mooneyham's book Sex, Lies, and Headlocks: The Real Story of Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment stated that "the terrain shifted completely under everyone's feet" following Diller's purchase of the USA Network, which began in October 1997, and that Koplovitz was in fact planning to remove WWF programming from the USA Network prior to the purchase.[31] Following the purchase, the WWF began to dominate cable television ratings with Raw episodes which were not only breaking away from traditional censorship, but that were also showing fans at ringside screaming obscenities, wearing risqué t-shirts, and holding signs that often sported controversial phrases.[32][33] The USA Network was even reported as showing less remorse than WWF owner Vince McMahon did over a controversial incident on the September 14, 1998 episode of Raw where the wrestler Jacqueline had one of her breasts exposed during an evening gown match, which network spokesman David Schwartz described as "not worse than anything you see on broadcast television at that time of night, such as NYPD Blue."[33] USA Network executive Bonnie Hammer, a protege of Diller who was also one of the few USA Network executives to speak out against the plan to cancel Raw,[34][31] worked extensively with head writer Vince Russo in reinventing the World Wrestling Federation.[35]
Notable stars
Stone Cold Steve Austin
After
Following his crowning as champion, a long-term storyline pitting Austin and McMahon as rivals began,[23] and it proved pivotal in increasing the WWF's revenues from merchandise sales, arena events, and PPV sales, as well as television ratings.[39][40] Week by week, Austin would regularly have to overcome the odds stacked against him by Mr. McMahon.[23] Austin and McMahon were featured in numerous segments which led to a scheduled match between the duo on April 13, 1998, episode of Raw. Austin and McMahon were going to battle out their differences in an actual match, but the match was declared a no-contest when Mick Foley (Reprising his character Dude Love) interrupted. On that night, Raw defeated Nitro in the television ratings for the first time since June 10, 1996. Austin again wrestled McMahon on February 14, 1999, at St. Valentine's Day Massacre in a steel cage match, which he won when the debuting Big Show accidentally threw him through the cage wall, resulting in Austin earning a WWF title shot at WrestleMania XV, where he defeated The Rock, whom he also defeated in a rematch the following month at Backlash.
Throughout the Austin-McMahon rivalry, McMahon founded two heel
At Fully Loaded in 1999, Vince McMahon added a special stipulation to the scheduled first blood match between The Undertaker and Austin for the WWF Championship. The stipulation was that if Austin won, McMahon would kayfabe step away from the WWF, but if Austin lost, he would never receive a shot at the WWF Championship again. Austin won the match, thus leading to Vince temporarily being banned from the WWF.[42] At Survivor Series, Austin was run down by a car driven by a mystery assailant in the parking lot.[43] This was due to Austin needing to take time away from wrestling because of underlying spinal and neck issues caused by his initial injury at SummerSlam in 1997. Austin then underwent spinal fusion surgery by Dr. Lloyd Youngblood.[44] Austin would not be seen on WWF television (aside from a one-off appearance at Backlash 2000) for nine months.
Upon Austin's return at Unforgiven 2000, he confronted and questioned several superstars, hoping to find his assailant. Rikishi would ultimately admit responsibility for the attack on Austin, claiming the assault was done as a favor per the request of Austin's prior rival, The Rock. Austin faced off against Rikishi at No Mercy, the match ending in a no contest. Austin would go on to win the 2001 Royal Rumble match and face The Rock for the WWF Championship in the main event of WrestleMania X-Seven. At WrestleMania, Austin officially turned heel after aligning with his former rival Vince McMahon and defeated The Rock to regain the WWF Championship.[45][46] During the Invasion storyline, Austin entered a rivalry with Kurt Angle, losing the WWF Championship to him at Unforgiven.
The Rock
The Rock had a lengthy feud with Mankind, who won the title on an episode of Raw in January 1999. The reign was short-lived. However, The Rock received his rematch at the 1999 Royal Rumble in an I Quit Match. The Rock won the I Quit Match in a controversial fashion and became the WWF Champion again. A rematch, known as "Half-Time Heat", took place during halftime of that year's Super Bowl, which saw Mankind win the match and the title. The Rock would receive another rematch at St. Valentine's Day Massacre, in a last-man-standing match for the chance to headline WrestleMania XV as the WWF Champion. The bout ended in a draw after both men were unable to stand before the ten count. Despite Mankind being the WWF Champion, he gave The Rock one more shot at the title in a ladder match on Raw. This was their final match, as the Big Show interfered in it and choked Mankind off the ladder, leaving The Rock all by himself and allowing him to win the match and headline WrestleMania XV as the WWF Champion. At WrestleMania XV, The Rock defended the title against the challenger, Stone Cold Steve Austin. Despite interference from Vince McMahon attacking Austin on his behalf, The Rock went on to lose the match and the championship.[49]
After being fired from the Corporation by Shane McMahon following WrestleMania, The Rock once again declared himself the People's Champion and went on a number of small feuds during the latter part of 1999. During this time, The Rock's popularity began to flourish again, and he aligned with his former rival Mankind to create the tag team,
Mick Foley
On the January 4, 1999 edition of Raw, Foley won his first WWF Championship, defeating The Rock with the help of Steve Austin.[53][54] This match is regarded as a major turning point of the Monday Night War, shifting the ratings permanently in the WWF's favor.[53][54] The duo fought in an infamous "I quit" match at the 1999 Royal Rumble event. The match was notable for its brutality, in the ending The Rock chased a bloodied Mankind out of the ring and up the walkway while having Mankind handcuffed, hitting him repeatedly with a chair (a total 13 times over the match) until he fell unconscious on the concrete. Finally, Mankind was heard shouting "I quit!" three times in a row; the audio was actually a recording from a promo Mankind made on Heat in the match build up, so Mankind never actually quit, but the Rock was declared the winner nonetheless.[55]
Backstage In 2000, Foley reprised his Cactus Jack persona and was involved in a major rivalry with Triple H over the WWF Championship. The duo had a critically acclaimed street fight match at the 2000 Royal Rumble which Triple H won, with the level of brutality displayed by the duo being praised.[56][57][58] At No Way Out, Foley lost to Triple H in a Hell in a Cell match, and as per the stipulation, Foley was forced to retire from full-time competition. Despite this Foley competed in the Fatal Four-Way Elimination match main event of WrestleMania 2000 against the Rock, The Big Show and Triple H, which was won by Triple H. Foley would then serve as storyline WWF Commissioner under his real name beginning in the summer of 2000. He lost the position that December after being kayfabe fired onscreen by Mr. McMahon during which he received a brutal beat down.[59][60]
Triple H
At the start of the Attitude Era, following Shawn Michaels' severe back injury and subsequent retirement from wrestling in 1998, Triple H assumed leadership of D-Generation X. At SummerSlam, Triple H defeated The Rock in a ladder match with the help of fellow D-X member Chyna to win the Intercontinental Championship. At WrestleMania XV, Triple H lost to Kane after Chyna interfered on his behalf and seemingly rejoined D-X. Later on in the night, however, Triple H would betray his long-time friend and fellow D-X member X-Pac by helping Shane McMahon retain the European Championship and joined The Corporation, turning heel in the process. In April, he started moving away from his D-X look, taping his fists for matches, sporting new traditional wrestling trunks, and adopting a shorter hairstyle. His gimmick changed as he fought to earn a WWF Championship opportunity, and Triple H began referring to himself in interviews as "The Game".[61] After failed attempts at winning the championship, Triple H, along with Mankind, challenged then-WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin to a triple threat match at SummerSlam, which featured Jesse "The Body" Ventura as the special guest referee. Mankind won the match and the title by pinning Austin.[62] The following night on Raw, Triple H defeated Mankind to win his first WWF Championship.[61] However, he would lose the WWF Championship to Mr. McMahon on the September 16, 1999, episode of SmackDown! before regaining it at Unforgiven in a Six-Pack Challenge that included British Bulldog, Big Show, Kane, The Rock, and Mankind. He defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin at No Mercy before dropping the title to Big Show at Survivor Series. Triple H then continued his feud with Mr. McMahon by marrying his daughter Stephanie McMahon and defeating McMahon at Armageddon, which saw Stephanie betray Vince. As a result of the feud, an angle with Triple H and Stephanie began, which carried the WWF throughout the next seventeen months; together, they were known as The McMahon-Helmsley Regime.[63]
Triple H participated in the Fatal Four-Way Elimination match main event of WrestleMania 2000 with Stephanie at his corner for the WWF Championship, becoming the first heel to win the main event of WrestleMania.[64] He would continue to feud with The Rock in the following months, which included a 60-minute Iron Man match between the duo at Judgment Day, a match Triple H won.[65] However, Triple H would lose the title to The Rock in a Six-Man Tag Team Elimination Match at that year's King of the Ring. Triple H would then be involved in a love triangle with Kurt Angle and Stephanie before revealing himself to be the man who convinced Rikishi to run over Stone Cold Steve Austin the year prior. At the 2001 Royal Rumble, Triple H lost to Kurt Angle in a WWF Championship match.[66] Triple H would, unfortunately, suffer a severe quadriceps injury during an episode of Raw in May 2001, which would lead him to be out of action for the rest of the year.
Chyna
Chyna made her WWF debut on February 16, 1997, at
Chyna being considerably stronger than any other women in the roster participated in several
The Brothers of Destruction (The Undertaker and Kane)
At
Kane then teamed with The Undertaker's rival
In late 1998, The Undertaker turned on Kane and realigned himself with Paul Bearer, both wrestlers executing a double turn in the process. Now a heel and proclaiming himself as the "Ministry of Darkness", Undertaker began taking a more macabre and darker persona, claiming that a "plague of evil" was coming to the WWF. During the weeks that followed, he reignited his feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin, whom he blamed for costing him the WWF title. At Rock Bottom: In Your House, Austin defeated the Undertaker in a Buried Alive match with the help of Kane, writing him off of WWF television for a month. As a result, The Corporation had Kane committed to an insane asylum. Kane was then forced to join The Corporation in order to stay out of the insane asylum. He was later betrayed by them and thrown out of the faction.
A 12-minute match between The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin drew a 9.5 rating on June 28, 1999. It stands as one of the highest-rated segment in Raw history. The match was fought for the WWF World Heavyweight Title, and was won by Austin.[76]
The Undertaker and Kane briefly reformed The Brothers of Destruction in the summer of 2000; at this time, Undertaker had recently taken on the "American Badass" biker persona instead of the satanic character he had portrayed previously. Now faces, the two challenged then-Tag Team Champions Edge and Christian for the titles on an episode of Raw, but due to interference from Kurt Angle, they were disqualified, meaning they didn't win the titles. On the August 14 episode of Raw, Undertaker faced Chris Benoit in a match where Kane turned heel on Undertaker by chokeslamming him through the ring, and the two feuded with each other once again. This culminated in a match at SummerSlam, which resulted in a no contest when Undertaker unmasked Kane, causing him to flee the ring.[77] On April 19, 2001, episode of SmackDown! The Undertaker and Kane defeated Edge and Christian in a no disqualification tag team match to win the WWF Tag Team Championship.[78]
Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle would then be involved in a love triangle with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon during the summer of 2000, stemming from interactions between Angle and McMahon beginning in December 1999. This would lead to Angle's first PPV main event, where he would face The Rock and Triple H for the WWF Championship at SummerSlam. Following the love triangle, Kurt Angle defeated The Rock to win his first WWF Championship at No Mercy. Kurt Angle successfully defended the WWF Championship in the first and only 6-man Hell in a Cell match at Armageddon that included The Rock, Stone Cold, Triple H, The Undertaker, and Rikishi. In February 2001, Angle would lose the WWF Championship back to The Rock at No Way Out. Later that year at the 2001 King of the Ring event Kurt Angle defeated Shane McMahon in a highly acclaimed Street Fight match notable for its extreme brutality, which included spots like Angle throwing McMahon through glass walls and both men suffering legitimate injuries.[80]
Kurt Angle has been cited having the greatest rookie year of not only the Attitude Era but in WWE history, quickly becoming a main star. At Unforgiven in 2001, Kurt Angle defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin to win his second WWF Championship.[81]
Stables
D-Generation X
On the November 6, 2000, episode of Raw, Chyna, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, and Triple H, as part of D-Generation X, took on The Radicalz (Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn) in an eight-person tag team match, which D-X won. This would be their final match while united in the Era, after which Triple H and Chyna began receiving their own singles pushes while the others fell into the mid and lower cards.[82]
The Corporation
In 1998, storylines involving Mr. McMahon struggling to maintain order within the WWF led to the creation of a new faction, the Corporation. The Corporation was officially formed on November 16, 1998,[83] when Shane and Vince McMahon along with Big Boss Man, Sgt. Slaughter Pat Patterson, Gerald Brisco, and The Rock joined forces. The faction would feud heavily with Stone Cold, D-Generation X, and later the Ministry of Darkness, the latter of which would lead to an eventual merge. The merger would lead to the creation of the Corporate Ministry, a mega-faction led by Shane McMahon and The Undertaker, as well as suffering defections with the creation of the short-lived Union.
Ministry of Darkness
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Upon his return, The Undertaker introduced his
The women's division
The original Divas
In August 1995, WWF debuted
The Sable character would eventually be transitioned into a heel,[92] and soon after the relationship between the WWF and Mero would break down, with Mero filing a $110 million lawsuit, saying that the WWF had become increasingly "obscene, titillating, vulgar and unsafe", and alleged that she was asked to perform in lesbian storylines, as well as being requested to strip on live television.[93] Sable's rise in popularity was repeated by Chyna, who would be featured in a more prominent role; in addition to being prominently featured in legitimate wrestling matches against both women and men, she would also be featured twice on the cover of Playboy,[94] and her autobiography reached number one on The New York Times Best Seller list, the fourth by a wrestler to achieve the feat.[95][96]
Lita and Trish
In June 2000, the trio began a storyline with T & A(Test and Albert), with Lita engaging in a rivalry with their manager, Trish Stratus.[99] Lita also began a concurrent feud with WWF Women's Champion Stephanie McMahon, who was promoted at the time as being one of the biggest stars in the company.[100] On the August 21, 2000 episode of Raw, Lita defeated McMahon for the Women's Championship, her first championship win.[101] McMahon would later describe the moment as an "incredible privilege".[102] In 2001, Stratus and McMahon took part in their own storyline revolving around Stephanie's father Vince; Stratus later noted that the female performers had moved from being on the side of storylines to being a "viable part of the program".[103]
Defections from WCW
Chris Jericho
Frustrated over WCW's refusal to allow him to wrestle Goldberg, as well as various other issues, Chris Jericho left WCW and signed with the WWF on June 30, 1999. On the August 9 episode of Raw, he officially made his debut, referring to himself as "Y2J" (a play on the Y2K frenzy) and began feuds with The Rock, Chyna, Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit while capturing the Intercontinental and European championships on several occasions in the era. On the April 17, 2000 episode of Raw, Jericho defeated Triple H to seemingly win the WWF Championship, but the decision was reversed by referee Earl Hebner under pressure from Triple H. Therefore, the company does not officially recognize Jericho's supposed title reign. Jericho continued to feud with Triple H throughout 2000, leading to a Last Man Standing match at Fully Loaded, which Triple H won. Jericho would maintain a prominent spot on the roster, becoming a fixture in both the mid-card and upper-card. Jericho would go on to defeat Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock on the same night at Vengeance 2001, becoming the first Undisputed WWF Champion in the process.[104] In the main event of WrestleMania X8, Jericho lost the Undisputed WWF Championship to Triple H.[105]
Other notable defectors
Many other WCW wrestlers, who were unhappy with the disorganization, backstage environment, and workplace politics of the promotion, jumped ship to the WWF. The first high-profile acquisition was Paul Wight, who had previously wrestled as "The Giant" in WCW since 1995. Wight allowed his WCW contract to expire on February 8, 1999, when Eric Bischoff denied his request for a pay increase.[106] He signed with the WWF the next day and debuted at St. Valentine's Day Massacre: In Your House as "The Big Show" Paul Wight, Mr. McMahon's enforcer in The Corporation. At Survivor Series in November 1999, The Big Show defeated The Rock and Triple H in a triple threat match to win the WWF Championship.[107]
In January 2000,
Increase in violent content
Hardcore division
Brawling in places outside the ring was a staple feature of the Attitude Era, and on November 2, 1998, the Hardcore Championship was introduced when Mr. McMahon gifted Mankind the championship belt.[108] Hardcore matches were no-disqualification, no-count-out, falls count anywhere matches, involving a variety of weapons. Wrestlers would often take their matches outside the ring into other parts of the arena and occasionally outside the arena.[109] Frequent participants in the Hardcore division included Al Snow, Crash Holly, Steve Blackman, and Raven. Raven was the most successful wrestler in this division, winning the championship on 27 separate occasions. Another stipulation was introduced when Crash won the belt, known as the "24/7 rule", meaning the belt was to be defended any place, at any time of day, so long as a referee was present.[109] This rule has allowed the shortest title reigns and quickest title changes in the company's history, and four women have held the Hardcore Championship: Molly Holly (as Mighty Molly), Trish Stratus, Terri Runnels, and one of The Godfather's hos.[109] For the first time, the Hardcore Championship was contested in a ladder match in 2001 at SummerSlam where Rob Van Dam defeated Jeff Hardy. When the Attitude Era ended, the championship was retired and unified with the Intercontinental Championship on August 26, 2002, after Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam defeated Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer, unifying the titles.[108][109]
Tables, ladders, and chairs matches
While members of "The New Brood", The Hardy Boyz faced off against Edge & Christian (the original Brood) in the first-ever tag team ladder match, the final match of the "Terri Invitational Tournament" at No Mercy in October 1999. The Hardys won the match and subsequently the services of Terri Runnels as their manager. During this time, the Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von) debuted in the summer of 1999 following their departure from ECW. They were initially villains and were largely responsible for popularizing the use of wooden tables as weapons in professional wrestling. Bubba Ray, in particular, became notorious for putting women through tables, including Mae Young.[110] In January 2000, the Dudleys faced off against The Hardy Boyz in the first-ever tag team Table match at the Royal Rumble, which the Hardys won.
Eventually, the three teams were brought together in a chaotic triangle ladder match at
Backlash against content
In late 1999,
The following year, WWF filed a lawsuit against the PTC, claiming they had used threats and lies to drive advertisers away.[117] The PTC accused the WWF of being responsible for several young children's deaths, including that of six-year-old Tiffany Eunick by Lionel Tate,[118] for which Dwayne Johnson received a subpoena to testify in 1998.[119] Shortly before filing the lawsuit, WWF and McMahon had begun a storyline where wrestler Stevie Richards, changed his name to Steven Richards and began attempting to "clean up" the company, forming the "Right to Censor" stable, eventually adding characters previously portraying a pimp (The Godfather) and a porn actor (Val Venis).[120]
In 2001, federal judge Denny Chin threw out a motion put forth by the PTC in an attempt to have the charges dismissed,[121] and the following year the WWF was awarded damages of $3.5 million, and Bozell apologized for the accusations made.[122] In 2001, international broadcaster Channel 4, who aired WWF programming in the United Kingdom, declined to renew their contract, citing the concern of the "increasingly extreme nature" of the programs.[123] This followed Channel 4 being told by the Independent Television Commission earlier in the year that they were wrong to air a violent scene involving a sledgehammer.[124] In Ireland, the Irish Film Classification Office banned 13 home video releases from a possible 70 over a three-year period, with age restrictions on 55 of the 70.[125]
End of the era
Departures of Vince Russo, Ed Ferrara, and Chris Kreski
On October 3, 1999,
Following the departures of Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara, Chris Kreski would take over the position as head writer of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).[129] Kreski was later replaced as head writer by Stephanie McMahon following October's No Mercy PPV 2000 event,[130] but remained on the creative team until 2002, when he left to pursue other opportunities.[129]
Closure of WCW and ECW
In January 2001,
WrestleMania X-Seven, Stone Cold's heel turn, and departure of The Rock
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On April 1, 2001, WrestleMania X-Seven took place and is generally considered as the other main catalyst to the eventual decline of the Attitude Era. The final match of the night was the WWF Championship match between
Following the April 2, 2001 edition of Raw Is War, The Rock departed on hiatus from the WWF to film The Mummy Returns as his character, the Scorpion King. The combination of Austin's heel turn, which had a very mixed reception from fans, along with the departure of The Rock and the closing of WCW, effectively ended the boom period.
The Invasion and aftermath
In the Invasion storyline,
On July 9, 2001, the stars of WCW and
Eventually, Vince McMahon brought back Hollywood Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, and Scott Hall to reunite the nWo at the No Way Out pay-per-view in February 2002. However, Hogan proved to be too popular with nostalgic fans yearning for the return of "Hulkamania" and soon turned face at WrestleMania X8 after his classic match with The Rock, which The Rock won.
Hulk Hogan would later win the WWF Championship from Triple H at Backlash and become the Attitude Era's final WWF Champion.
Raw Is War name change
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In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks and the upcoming United States invasion of Afghanistan in response weeks later, the WWF changed Raw Is War back to simply Raw on October 1, 2001, to remove the reference to war and to signify that the Monday Night War were indeed over after WWF purchased WCW back in March. As a result, the second hour of War Zone was renamed Raw Zone to coincide with the dropping of the "War" line.
Brand extension and WWF draft lottery
With an excess of talent employed as a result of having purchased WCW and later ECW, the WWF needed a way to provide exposure for all of its talent. This problem was solved by introducing a "
Rebranding to WWE and the Ruthless Aggression Era
The company officially ceased its "Attitude" promotion on May 6, 2002, when the usage of the initials "WWF" became prohibited as the result of a legal battle between the company and the World Wildlife Fund.[146] World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. officially became World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) and replaced its old logo with a new "scratch" logo with only the double "W" and a red scar underneath.[2]
A month later, on June 10, 2002, Stone Cold Steve Austin failed to appear on that night's episode of Raw and was effectively released from the company; similar events had allegedly taken place in the weeks following WrestleMania X8 stemming from Austin's frustration with his character's direction.[147]
Because of the trademark ruling, the company transitioned into its Ruthless Aggression Era on May 6, 2002,[8] and on the June 24 showing of Raw, Vince McMahon officially named the new era as such to motivate the younger roster. The Ruthless Aggression Era featured many elements of the Attitude Era, including similar levels of violence, sexual content, and profanity. However, a greater emphasis on wrestling was showcased.[148]
Media
Home video
On November 20, 2012, a three-disc documentary set simply entitled The Attitude Era was released on DVD and Blu-ray. The video cover is a collage of WWF Superstars and celebrities of that era, designed as a parody of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover.[149][150] Volume 2 was released in November 2014. Volume 3 was released on August 9, 2016. Volume 4, 1997: Dawn of the Attitude, was released on October 3, 2017. Volume 5, Best of 1996: Prelude to Attitude, was released on November 29, 2021.
Video games
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Many video games were released by WWF based on the Attitude Era, with some of the most notable titles being
A video game entitled WWE '13, which was released in October 2012, paid tribute to the era with its "Attitude Era" mode, which allows the player to re-enact WWF matches and storytelling from SummerSlam in August 1997 to WrestleMania XV in March 1999. Also, in WWE '13, there is an "Off Script", including the debut of Smackdown! in April 1999 to the match between Trish Stratus and Lita on Monday Night Raw in November 2001. The video game first entitled WWE 2K14 featured some of the four WrestleMania matches based on the Attitude Era as well, with WrestleMania XIV and XV having previously appeared in WWE Legends of WrestleMania prior to their appearances in WWE '13 and WWE 2K14. The video game entitled WWE 2K16 featured some events of the Attitude Era specifically related to Stone Cold Steve Austin, who was also on the game's cover.
Music
In 1998, the WWF released WWF The Music, Volume 3, which achieved platinum status in the United States, signifying one million sales,[151][152] while WWF The Music, Volume 4 reached number five in the Canadian Albums Chart in 1999.[153] Following this, WWF and their composer Jim Johnston would collaborate with mainstream hip hop and rock musicians for albums,[153] and Johnston would often hand-pick artists to work with on new theme songs with WWF Aggression album in 2000.[154] In 2001, WWF The Music, Vol. 5 reached number two on the Billboard 200 and number five in the Canadian and UK Albums Chart.[155]
See also
- History of professional wrestling in the United States
References
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- ^ a b c "World Wrestling Federation Entertainment drops the 'F'!". WWE. May 6, 2002.
- ^ Hau Chu (December 18, 2015). "Where are they now? WWE Attitude Era superstars". New York Daily News.
- ^ Mueller, The Doctor Chris. "Power Ranking Stone Cold Steve Austin's 6 WWE Championship Victories". Bleacher Report.
- ^ "Bruce Prichard Says Attitude Era Women Were Mostly Comfortable With Bra & Panties Matches, Says They Wanted to 'Show Off Their Body'". 411mania.com.
- ^ "10 WCW Stars That Walked Out On The Company (And Why They Did It)". 26 June 2019.
- ^ "From Federation to Entertainment, WWE's Journey is Mirrored in Wrestling Games". NDTV Gadgets 360. 6 January 2015.
- ^ a b "WWE Roster: Ruthless Aggression Era (May 6, 2002—July 21, 2008)". thesmackdownhotel.com.
- ^ Kilbane, Lyle (7 May 2021). "Shawn Michaels On Wanting The Attitude Era 3 Years Before It Happened". Inside The Ropes. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
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