Along with the golden age, and perhaps even surpassing it, the Attitude era is one of the most famed and popular eras in proffesional wrestling history. With an unprecidented amount of competition between WCW and WWF, the likes of which has never been repeated, many see the attitude era as the one thing that gave WWF the edge. The breif period of time (about 5 years depending on who you ask) further drove WWF home as the single biggest company ever seen in proffesional wrestling.
So who where it's stars??
Easy, Stone Cold Steve Austin, the biggest baddest son of a bitch on the planet and the biggest name in wrestling since Hulk Hogan! The Undertaker, the phenom, and what a phenom he was, one of the single most frightning characters ever whitnessed on television. The Rock, the most electrifying man in sports entertainment, one of the most popular and well recieved stars ever! HHH, a man so familiar with the main event scene he is close to being recognised as one of the most celebrated athletes of all time.... Now to the crux of my article, I put it to you that all of these names would be half of what they where if it wasn't for one man... Mick Foley. Therefore by this logic, the attitude era would never have been as succesful or over without the presence of perhaps the most under appreciated gems ever signed by Vince McMahon.
I take you to January the 4th 1999, smack bang in the middle of the attitude era and right in the epicentre of the monday night wars. This night a show, pre-recorded the week before would feature the Rock taking on Mankind in a WWF title match, a rareity for free TV and a move that in hind-sight could be seen as a desperation match for the WWE who where falling behind in the ratings to the live show WCW. On WCW's show that night, comentator Tony Shiavone anounced to the world that Mick Foley would win the match, he then sneeringly remarked "like that would put bums on seats." Oh Tony, Tony, Tony; if only you knew how right you where. That night, WCW's main event, Hogan Vs. Nash and the eventual conclusion of the reformation of the nWo LOST 500,000 viewers imediately! That's huge numbers showing that Mick Foley is a major draw. Moreover, I'd like to further emphasise my point that Mick Foley made the attitude era, not just by getting his own gimmick over but by driveing everyone else around hims gimmicks to the moon!
Starting with the Undertaker, when the time was right for the phenom to step away from Paul Bearer, it was Mankind who made the storyline realistic. He was deranged and scary and this combined with the fear generated by the Undertaker created one of the most watchable feuds the WWF have ever produced, and this is just scrapeing the barrel. Lets go back to the 1998 King of The Ring, Steve Austin vs Kane in a first blood match where Austin lost the title, but that was overshadowed and forgoten about almost in relation to another match on the card, arguably the most talked about match in WWF history... Undertaker vs Mankind in the third ever hell in a cell. For wrestling purists there wasn't much suplexes or mat wrestling, but it provided the two most iconic bumps I as a wrestling fan have ever whitnesses. Firstly, Undertaker grabbed Foley and threw him off of the !2 ft Cell and THROUGH the Spanish anounce table. This alone cermented Undertaker as a vicious, monsterous, inhumane character who we all remember him for in the attitude era, but Foley wasn't done, he wanted to make this match one that would be remembered well beyond his and the undertakers respective careers... he climbed back up the cell and was then chokeslamed through the cell and then through the ring below! A chair falling on him knocking him unconcious and costing him a tooth! Well, Undertaker would always be remembered as the man who nearly killed Mick Foley, but it was Foley taking the bumps, it was Foley who helped make the Undertaker such a remarkable success in the attitude. Without Mick Foley the Undertaker would never have been who he was, MICK FOLEY SHAPED THE UNDERTAKER!
The Rock, does it matter that he would never have been half of the wreslter he is if it wasn't for Foley...for once yes it does matter... Mick Foley made the Rock... Mick Foley was being aided by Vince McMahon, who foley was looking up to as a farther figure at the time to the finals of a tournament for the vacant WWF title at Survivor Series, he met the Rock in the final and remarkably Vinny Mac turned on Foley meaning the Rock turned on the people and joined the corporation! No one saw this coming and the consequences meant it cemented Foley as the company's second biggest face yet the rock had just become the biggest heel the company had seen since Andre the Ginat turned. To cement the Rock as a huge heel, let us fast forward to the Royal Rumble of 1999 where the two met in an I quit match, unlike in the hell in the cell match, The Rock, Foley's opponent took his fair share of bumps but none of them surpassed the abuse Foley took in order to get the Rock over. These included 11 un-protected chair shots, that right there is dedication and the Rock reaped the benefits. I could stop here and still claim Foley made the Rock, but I am still scraping the tip of the ice-berg... I know fast forward us to August 1999 and the introduction of one of the most popular tag teams in Wrestling history: The Rock and Sock connection. Did this help the Rock??? Hell yeah, the rock and sock connection spawned the higest rated segment in RAW history when Mick Foley provided the Rock with a very special "this is your life." Yet another example of Mick Foley helping out another main-eventer who reaped the rewards with Foley getting little back in return, in my opinion, the rock and sock connection helped the rock a hundred fold more than it helped Foley. The Rock wouldn't nearly have been as succesful in the attitude era without Mick Foley and as AGAIN the Rock was one of the eras biggest stars, I put it forward that FOLEY MADE THE ATTITUDE ERA!
Further proof? Triple H and the McMahon helmsley era.... they would not have been anywhere near as important if it wasn't for Mick Foley. Mick Foley getting fired and rehired and then fired again before headlining Wrestlemania, all of this wasn't helping Foley, it was the McMahon-Helmsleys who where reaping the benefits as they're characters of ruthless dictators who where prepared to just dispatch of over talent as and when they pleased worked like a charm...BECAUSE OF FOLEY.
Foley has even helped to shape the two top heels of today, the rated R superstar edge, and last years PWI wrestler of the year Randy Orton, it is Foley's feuds with these two that helped cement them as ruthless heels. Randy has his monnicker of the legend killer largely in part to MICK FOLEY!
What else do we think of the attitude era for other than the stars? I tell you..chair shots, tables, ladders, two-by-fours wrapped in barbed wire on fire, thumb-tacks? YUP, you name it and the attitude era had it as a weapon. May I remind you that Mick Foley was in the first ever Hardcore match on WWF tv AND later was the winner of the famed hardcore championship? Mick Foley bought his hardcore style of wresling over to the WWF and when the attitude era embraced this style it went over like a charm...
So next time you see a discussion on the attitude era and why it was a success, remember, keep your Austins, Rocks, Takers and H's.... There is just one man the attitude era could not have done without and that is Mick Foley.
I've been Jpfizzle, credit to Shocky and Wikepedia, Goodnight.
So who where it's stars??
Easy, Stone Cold Steve Austin, the biggest baddest son of a bitch on the planet and the biggest name in wrestling since Hulk Hogan! The Undertaker, the phenom, and what a phenom he was, one of the single most frightning characters ever whitnessed on television. The Rock, the most electrifying man in sports entertainment, one of the most popular and well recieved stars ever! HHH, a man so familiar with the main event scene he is close to being recognised as one of the most celebrated athletes of all time.... Now to the crux of my article, I put it to you that all of these names would be half of what they where if it wasn't for one man... Mick Foley. Therefore by this logic, the attitude era would never have been as succesful or over without the presence of perhaps the most under appreciated gems ever signed by Vince McMahon.
I take you to January the 4th 1999, smack bang in the middle of the attitude era and right in the epicentre of the monday night wars. This night a show, pre-recorded the week before would feature the Rock taking on Mankind in a WWF title match, a rareity for free TV and a move that in hind-sight could be seen as a desperation match for the WWE who where falling behind in the ratings to the live show WCW. On WCW's show that night, comentator Tony Shiavone anounced to the world that Mick Foley would win the match, he then sneeringly remarked "like that would put bums on seats." Oh Tony, Tony, Tony; if only you knew how right you where. That night, WCW's main event, Hogan Vs. Nash and the eventual conclusion of the reformation of the nWo LOST 500,000 viewers imediately! That's huge numbers showing that Mick Foley is a major draw. Moreover, I'd like to further emphasise my point that Mick Foley made the attitude era, not just by getting his own gimmick over but by driveing everyone else around hims gimmicks to the moon!
Starting with the Undertaker, when the time was right for the phenom to step away from Paul Bearer, it was Mankind who made the storyline realistic. He was deranged and scary and this combined with the fear generated by the Undertaker created one of the most watchable feuds the WWF have ever produced, and this is just scrapeing the barrel. Lets go back to the 1998 King of The Ring, Steve Austin vs Kane in a first blood match where Austin lost the title, but that was overshadowed and forgoten about almost in relation to another match on the card, arguably the most talked about match in WWF history... Undertaker vs Mankind in the third ever hell in a cell. For wrestling purists there wasn't much suplexes or mat wrestling, but it provided the two most iconic bumps I as a wrestling fan have ever whitnesses. Firstly, Undertaker grabbed Foley and threw him off of the !2 ft Cell and THROUGH the Spanish anounce table. This alone cermented Undertaker as a vicious, monsterous, inhumane character who we all remember him for in the attitude era, but Foley wasn't done, he wanted to make this match one that would be remembered well beyond his and the undertakers respective careers... he climbed back up the cell and was then chokeslamed through the cell and then through the ring below! A chair falling on him knocking him unconcious and costing him a tooth! Well, Undertaker would always be remembered as the man who nearly killed Mick Foley, but it was Foley taking the bumps, it was Foley who helped make the Undertaker such a remarkable success in the attitude. Without Mick Foley the Undertaker would never have been who he was, MICK FOLEY SHAPED THE UNDERTAKER!
The Rock, does it matter that he would never have been half of the wreslter he is if it wasn't for Foley...for once yes it does matter... Mick Foley made the Rock... Mick Foley was being aided by Vince McMahon, who foley was looking up to as a farther figure at the time to the finals of a tournament for the vacant WWF title at Survivor Series, he met the Rock in the final and remarkably Vinny Mac turned on Foley meaning the Rock turned on the people and joined the corporation! No one saw this coming and the consequences meant it cemented Foley as the company's second biggest face yet the rock had just become the biggest heel the company had seen since Andre the Ginat turned. To cement the Rock as a huge heel, let us fast forward to the Royal Rumble of 1999 where the two met in an I quit match, unlike in the hell in the cell match, The Rock, Foley's opponent took his fair share of bumps but none of them surpassed the abuse Foley took in order to get the Rock over. These included 11 un-protected chair shots, that right there is dedication and the Rock reaped the benefits. I could stop here and still claim Foley made the Rock, but I am still scraping the tip of the ice-berg... I know fast forward us to August 1999 and the introduction of one of the most popular tag teams in Wrestling history: The Rock and Sock connection. Did this help the Rock??? Hell yeah, the rock and sock connection spawned the higest rated segment in RAW history when Mick Foley provided the Rock with a very special "this is your life." Yet another example of Mick Foley helping out another main-eventer who reaped the rewards with Foley getting little back in return, in my opinion, the rock and sock connection helped the rock a hundred fold more than it helped Foley. The Rock wouldn't nearly have been as succesful in the attitude era without Mick Foley and as AGAIN the Rock was one of the eras biggest stars, I put it forward that FOLEY MADE THE ATTITUDE ERA!
Further proof? Triple H and the McMahon helmsley era.... they would not have been anywhere near as important if it wasn't for Mick Foley. Mick Foley getting fired and rehired and then fired again before headlining Wrestlemania, all of this wasn't helping Foley, it was the McMahon-Helmsleys who where reaping the benefits as they're characters of ruthless dictators who where prepared to just dispatch of over talent as and when they pleased worked like a charm...BECAUSE OF FOLEY.
Foley has even helped to shape the two top heels of today, the rated R superstar edge, and last years PWI wrestler of the year Randy Orton, it is Foley's feuds with these two that helped cement them as ruthless heels. Randy has his monnicker of the legend killer largely in part to MICK FOLEY!
What else do we think of the attitude era for other than the stars? I tell you..chair shots, tables, ladders, two-by-fours wrapped in barbed wire on fire, thumb-tacks? YUP, you name it and the attitude era had it as a weapon. May I remind you that Mick Foley was in the first ever Hardcore match on WWF tv AND later was the winner of the famed hardcore championship? Mick Foley bought his hardcore style of wresling over to the WWF and when the attitude era embraced this style it went over like a charm...
So next time you see a discussion on the attitude era and why it was a success, remember, keep your Austins, Rocks, Takers and H's.... There is just one man the attitude era could not have done without and that is Mick Foley.
I've been Jpfizzle, credit to Shocky and Wikepedia, Goodnight.