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When Bret Hart left the WWF after Survivor Series 1997, the other members of the Hart Foundation had a decision to make. Davey Boy Smith and Jim Neidhart decided to go to WCW with Bret while Owen Hart was stuck in the World Wrestling Federation. Owen could've stayed at home, but his lengthy WWF contract meant that he wouldn't be able to seek work elsewhere. And so, Owen Hart returned to the WWF in December of 1997. Owen was repackaged as "The Black Hart", the sole survivor of the Hart Foundation, and he initially set his sights on Shawn Michaels, the man who was instrumental in the "Montreal Screwjob".
The WWF had an incredible oppurtunity to make a main event player out of Owen Hart due to the circumstances surrounding Bret's exit, and at first it appeared that the company where going to give Owen a chance. Owen surprised everyone when he showed up at the D-Generation X pay per view towards the end of 1997, but in no time at all, Owen was moved into a rivalry with Triple H. Hunter Hearst Helmsley soon got injured, and Owen's push was seemingly over before it got started. This video looks at the return of Owen Hart following the 1997 Survivor Series and Owen's repackaging as "The Black Hart".
Topics covered include:
00:00 - Owen Hart & The Montreal Screwjob
05:08 - Owen Returns to the WWF
07:02 - The Owen Hart / Vince McMahon interview
11:12 - Owen Hart vs Shawn Michaels on Raw
14:08 - Owen begins his rivalry with Triple H
17:27 - Enough is Enough
- Loads More
#WWE #Wrestling #Documentary
The Story of "The Black Hart" Owen Hart
860 Shikime 87 mijë
It would have made more sense and been much more epic if it had been Owen Hart who had the title shot against Shawn at the Royal Rumble rather than the Undertaker. Following HIAC that really should have been the end of the feud between HBK and Taker. Taker's focus should only have been with Kane, and logically after the Montreal Screwjob Owen and HBK were prime for a real feud and a pay-per-view match. I'm not sure if Owen should have gone over and won the title because my feeling with Owen is that he wasn't interested in being the world champion. He saw wrestling as job, once he had done his match he wanted to go home and be with his family. I don't think he had the passion that Bret and HBK had, and so perhaps couldn't have cared less to be the top man in the company. Maybe I read this in Bret's book.
I believe that stone cold had a big part in holding owen back. Whether it be the office doing it because he almost paralyzed their future or Steve Austin himself
Imagine if he lived thru the attitude era and ruthless aggression to meet angle in the ring. Usa vs canada best in the world or how many other greats he could have wrestled.
This was his best character.
If the wwf wasnt all about crotch gestures and fart jokes at that point i think owen could have been a top guy. Because apparently owen was the best real life pranker in the back. And that could have transfered over but when you have hbk crying everytime hes supposed to put someone over and hhh about to be with Stephanie no one had any chance but austin
It should be considered a criminal act, never giving Owen Hart a run with the heavyweight title. ESPECIALLY after Montreal... and especially after Vince lost the entire Hart Foundation to WCW. Owen STAYED. He continued to work for Vince, when he could've just sat home. He earned a run with the strap, and he had the talent in spades. Like I said... a criminal act. RIP Owen Hart. You most certainly were NOT a nugget.
BEST Vid AB The BLACK HART... It started w VKM/OWEN having that Intense confrontation AB " REAL LIFE.. " He was getting OVER... Instead of doing an emotional match for the WWF Title at the RUMBLE 98, Booker's decided to put TAKER into the Title Match w/SHAWN. This was a time where WWF was Struggling with fresh, young, talented New Guys on Top. OWEN Woulda been perfect to be one of the New Top Guys I'm the Attitude Era... INSTEAD he has one damn t.v. match on RAW w/ HBK on RAW... Missed $$$$ Opportunity.. ESPECIALLY OVER SEAS...
Here's my point you will never get to see Owen Hart in the Hall of Fame because of what Vince McMahon hold at over the edge and Kemper Arena with him going down and he weighs over a hundred pounds at least and has something on the thing that only holds 6 lb so think about that
Imo...Owen was the better wrestler and was better at promos than Bret was...you could feel the emotion behind Owen and his journey to step out of his bigger brother casted...he could’ve been a multiple time wwf(e) champion...but then tragedy struck...regardless of who is truly to blame (I believe it was split between McMahon and the operator of the harness) Owen Hart was and will always be the best...
WWF didn't make the most of Owen here, but no other white guy could have joined the Nation and make it work.
One reason why Owen didn't get a run with the belt during late 97 to early 98 was because Austin didn't want to work with him anymore
What could have and should have been, Owen was taken too soon. My favorite wrestler of all time who never got the chance he so deserved.
Just another career ruined by the clique.
HBK might have saved his back in that casket match..BUT Owen did spike Austin on his head.
I don’t know how Vince sleeps at night...his decisions and pettiness essentially led to Owen’s death. If he’d not mistreated Owen post Screwjob, which he did because he wanted to show he was bigger than the Hart’s, if he’d not made him take on that ridiculous Blue Blazer gimmick again, which he most likely did to punish Owen for refusing an angle, he likely wouldn’t have been repelling from the rafters at Over The Edge.
I name my son after this man
Owen Hart was always one of my favorites. As a kid I thought it was cool I shared a birthday with him but I always watched him closely throughout his career. RIP Owen, you are gone but you won't be forgotten.
Basically, Owen in the Nation makes him the first SJW, since the Nation’s gimmick was black supremacy
That Owen Hart Stone Cold tag team match against HHH and the New Age Outlaws is literally the first wrestling match I can remember seeing.
Owen was always my favorite hart
You already know Shawn was politicking behind the scenes and in Vince's ear saying " we just finally got 1 Hart out of the company, and now you want to put the strap on another Hart?!?...hell no im done feuding with " the Hart's , let him and HHH go at it, but H has to come out on top and make sure we keep Owen in check...HEY why don't we bring back the goofy Blue Blazer gimmick lolololol yea we should do that instead Vince 😉 ".....or something to that effect 🤔
Lmfao! I forgot about that " Owen 3:16 - I just broke your neck " 😂😂😂. But the injury was not funny at all , but at this Time Austin had recovered as best he could for the most part, making the shirt funny as hell
I love owen hart black hart gimmick and was hoping to see him as wwe champion,but it didn't happen. I love his tag team run with Jeff Jarrett.
Owen: yea Shawn fuk you. 3mins later Owen: oh shyt Wwe: owen dead 😂
GOD GIVE US BACK OWEN HART AND WILL GIVE U LJ CLEARY !!!
Vince screwed Bret and Vince killed Owen.
Owen Hart should have been wwe champion
Owen didn't get his push because of HBK and HHH kissing Vince's ass. How many wrestlers never got the push because HBK and HHH wanted to be centre of attention
They should have launched Owen. I would have had him join Vince later on and challenge Austin after Mania. It would have made more personal because he broke his neck verses having Austin\Foley
Honestly Stone Cold probably had a big part in stopping Owen's push too
I think so too
Had Owen Hart lived as the Black Hart, he would been a multiple time WWE Champion and cemented his place in the WWE Hall of fame. He would had been Universal, US, and 24/7 Champion. What could've been? RIPOwenHart
Owen and Goldust are the only guys I feel genuinely gave way more than they got.
This was a burial job.
Stating that "Vince McMahon has just a little bit of an ego" is like saying ((This space reserved for hilarious future punchline that I will undoubtedly think up and edit in))
R.I.P. you legend!
Thanks for the great videos I love them and their quality, will you be doing one on Raven?
WWE has absolutely NO EXCUSE. Owen Hart should've been WWE Champion. Everyone else could've waited their damn time. They dropped the ball in more ways than one, and it's a travesty.
I love Owen and in an ideal world, I wish he would have gone out to personally injure either HHH or HBK (The two biggest scumbags in wrestling) then get himself fired and he would have gone to WCW and would still be alive today.PS I wish HHH or HBK were in a feud with Owen instead of Stone Cold and they took that botched piledriver instead.
There are many fans that felt like Owen Hart was the best wrestler in the family = ME 100%
this is proof that shawn was an asshat.. even today nothing changes
No renegeades huh.. they why is there a retribution.. makes no sense.. vince is out of touch
The Hart of gold owen hart should have been used to much better :(
Y don't u do any tna
Great 2k 22 story mode
Owen vs edge at breakdown
Johnny from Cobra Kai
The black heart gimmick was awesome they should of stuck with it
Those punches at the DX ppv looked stiff.
I often wondered if Owen was setup. Or murdered, I bet Vince has alot of demons, I wonder how he sleeps at night
It's known that he doesn't
I can't be the only one that thinks he looks like Big Bossman in the thumbnail. RIP to both of them.
Not the ring i got in 94 for sure
Next model has tiny ropes on the turnbuckle pads and canvas
Owen knew what he was doing when he dropped the tombstone on his ass, and it came back to him 7 fold.
owen was the real hitman LOL vince!!
Owen heart pinned triple h when the nation of domination vs DX tag team match Owen heart beat triple h with the pedigree you forgot to mention excellent video though mate 👍
4:33- Sometimes that light is from a freight train.
It wouldn't have made any sense to make Owen the champion at that time (late 97/early 98). Clearly, Stone Cold was the man, and the company was building towards Austin vs. Michaels at WM 14. That was the big money match, and if Owen would have beat Michaels for the title prior to 14, then Austin beating Michaels for the title wouldn't have meant nearly as much. And you definitely couldn't have had Austin vs Owen at WM 14. Post Wrestlemania, the company was completely centered around Austin and McMahon, as it should have been. I think Owen was used correctly. He was great in mid card angles where he could either be serious or comedic. I think he was best used in comedic roles because that was true to his personality. He wasn't a "black heart". He was a lovable, funny guy.
I'm not usually one to point fingers, but the Black Hart joining NOD seems very Vince Russo-esque.
Why are so many analysts and reviewers of the WWE from the UK? WhatCulture, Cultaholic, Wrestlelamia, OSW, etc. I know it's WORLD Wrestling, but still, it seems odd. I mean, I can't think of a UK company that is mostly reviewed by Americans.
Everybody screwed up by not hiring Bruce Hart.
This time period is hard to think about. Just angers me so much
Thank you for doing this video. I always thought the "Black Heart" character was abandoned too quickly, as I had been a fan of Owen Hart and liked that he seemed to be getting a main event push. The story made sense and had that touch of reality that enhanced the story. I thought they would push the Owen-Michaels feud further and I was looking forward to it. As to your explanation as to their motive and keeping the Michaels-Austin feud hot for Wrestlemania; this was often the problem with WWF booking. They were so focused on pay per views and it gave their story arcs a sense of being contrived and also predictable. When a hot angle grew organically, they wouldn't go with it, if it got in the way of their plans to have the pay per view main events that drew the most money. Perhaps it did earn them money, but it often weakened the product in the months leading up to Wrestlemania because it got so predictable and dull. I personally would rather have seen an Owen-Michaels feud and Wrestlemania main event, even if it meant Austin would be involved with other angles.
Wrestling bios great videos they all are what ever you make but what would be nice to see if you could ever do one a story all about the wwf wrestler called nails not many people mention him like but yer he was in Wrestling for about 2 to 3 years be nice to no more about is time in Wrestling and your definitely the man who could do that thought ide mention it ok cheers ill keep a look out anyway on your page keep the amazing work up that you do ok buy 👍
When I rewatched the 96-98 raws I couldn’t believe how over Owen was right after Montreal. UnfortunTely he didn’t get the support from the office (and michaels probably out the Kabash on it S well)
If only Shawn had been the one to die coming from the rafters and wrestlemania 12!
He low key started looking like jon moxley
Love Owen Hart.
Owen Hart had the talent to beat Shawn michaels
you were right on about the hindsight view of shawn v owen instead of shawn v taker ... shawn doesn't hurt his back .. owen doesn't die..
I'm beginning to wonder if Vince screwed /F-ed over Owen cause he's a petty, vicious dictator just because Bret spat on him, for the Screwjob. If this is the case then Vince should burn in Hell when he dies.
Such a missed opportunity with Owen, he deserved so much better. Really sad and upsetting what happened to him.
Felt like the black hart gimmick was buried the moment he came back after the Montreal screwjob. The fact that he attacked Shawn michaels after the match at the degeneration X pay per view and no sold the ending proved that they weren’t going to put Owen over. And then hhh kept beating Owen over and over without any offense didn’t help either.
Owen Hart... pure talent! I was lucky enough to meet him and Bulldog at Wembley Arena when I was a young lad. Such a sad end to an amazing talent!
As much as I love your work, I can't even make it through this video. Along with Pullman and guys like Jericho, Benoit and malenko, I can't bring myself to care or be interested in Owen Hart. He didn't speak like a star, look like a star or wrestle like one.
Owen was a great wrestler he had great technical skills !!! R. i. P.
Can you cover the Nation's feud with Dx?
Thank you for this @wrestlingbios Owen’s Black Heart persona is my personal favourite.
His big drawback was indeed his mic skills. They just couldn't sell him as a legitimate top guy even if his in ring ability and potential storyline could. He sounded weak, which is unfortunate because other than that, you're totally right, everything else was there for a solid push.
Man.. i was always a huge fan of the black heart. The outcast... of the family. The black sheep! Been dealing with it mu whole life as well JG
Do Jeff Jarrett
Amazing video on my favorite wrestler of all time
Owen would've been better off going to Japan.
Sadly as we all know, He gave his life for the company that basically s..t on him I feel because of Bret.
Would have been the best story line ever
Owen was so much better than Triple H. Wtf man. Terrible.
Best sub on ALfirst.
So I haven’t watched wrestling in years. Literally.... I always watch your vids and others on the old time dudes. So nostalgic and rad. I love Owen Hart. Poor dude. He really did deserve a shot...
the one dude WWE made their biggest mistakes with
WWE is the king of missed opportunities and wasted potential.
Long live Owen Hart miss you
Crazy how this video pinpointed the exact moment I started watching wrestling.
R I P Owen I miss him
Owen should have been WWE champion.
He looks like Orange Cassidy in that thumbnail
Wish they would have kept the gimmick going when he did that promo on Vince that was one of the greatest shoot promos he was so popular with the fans
Owen gave Rock a great rub. That's why the Rock does the sharp shooter
WWE blew it with Owen. Owen was elite. Probably Shawn crying backstage screwed him. Owen was especially hot right after the screwjob. Yet, he ends up dying from a stupid stunt as the wretched and silly midcard "character" the Blue Blazer. Shame.
Apparently he and Vince reconciled later on since the game persona given to Triple H was intended for Owen Hart
I believe the Game gimmick was a rip off of the Franchise gimmick from shane douglas in ecw for hhh in wwf 99.
"Seriously wronged his brother" That's a matter of perspective my friend lol
Black hart was the prelude to stone cold steve austin character