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Owen Hart's funeral

Grunts, roars and the smack of flesh on canvas have, for generations, echoed from Vancouver Island to Newfoundland. Pro wrestling is a gritty world populated by heroic "babyfaces," dastardly "heels," outrageous managers and outraged fans. We tackle some of the most colourful stories and characters to come out of the wrestling scenes from coast to coast.

Grunts, roars and the smack of flesh on canvas have, for generations, echoed from Vancouver Island to Newfoundland. Pro wrestling is a gritty world populated by heroic "babyfaces," dastardly "heels," outrageous managers and outraged fans. We tackle some of the most colourful stories and characters to come out of the wrestling scenes from coast to coast.

About 1,000 people stand in the rain outside a Calgary chapel to say goodbye to Owen Hart. The amiable wrestler, part of the famous and beloved Hart clan, fell to his death a week ago when a pre-match stunt went horribly wrong. There are limousines full of family, buses packed with some of the world's top grapplers and dignitaries including Alberta Premier Ralph Klein.

As we see in this CBC Television News report, World Wrestling Federation chair Vince McMahon Jr. has also joined the mourners. Many blame McMahon's over-the-top brand of showmanship for the accident. At the funeral, Hart's widow Martha promises "a day of reckoning." Ross Hart says his brother Owen was too good for a wrestling world now dominated by "outrageous stunts and gimmicks." 
. Owen James Hart was born May 7, 1965, in Calgary. He was the youngest of 12 children of Stu and Helen Hart. Owen grew up in the family's famous Hart House, a Calgary mansion with a practice ring in the basement famously dubbed "The Dungeon". He was also the last in the family to join his father's Stampede Wrestling promotion. In 1988, Hart followed his brother Bret into the World Wrestling Federation.

. Hart died May 23, 1999, at the age of 33. He suffered fatal injuries after falling 23 metres from the rafters of Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. He was making a flying entrance as The Blue Blazer, a costumed character, before his match at a WWF event called "Over the Edge". The quick release on his harness had opened early. There were 17,000 spectators present.

. As a stocky teen, Hart excelled at amateur wrestling in high school, earning a scholarship to the University of Calgary where he studied physical education. He left in 1986 when his father asked him to bring his grappling skills to Stampede Wrestling. All 12 Hart children worked for the promotion at some point, many as wrestlers. Three of the four daughters married wrestlers; the other married the owner of a gym where wrestlers trained.

. In 1993, Owen Hart told Saturday Night Magazine: "I wanted to be a phys ed teacher. I wrestled only to appease my father. I was compelled to get into the ring. Once I started there was the pressure of having the Hart name - I was expected to be good." He was known as an excellent technical wrestler who was uncomfortable with outside-the-ring showmanship.

. In November 2000, Hart's widow Martha, their two young children and Hart's parents won a wrongful death settlement totaling $18 million US. The family had sued the WWF, the City of Kansas City and the workers who set up the cable rigging. Three years later, the British company Lewmar agreed to pay $9 million US to the WWF. Lewmar had manufactured the trigger-latch shackle that released prematurely, dropping Hart to his death.

. In an interview with CBC Radio's This Morning Martha Hart called the wrongful death settlement the largest in Missouri history. "I won and I won big," she said, adding: "It certainly doesn't fix my broken heart." Martha Hart used the settlement to set up the Owen Hart Foundation. It helps needy people further their educations and buy their own homes.

. In 2002, after a lawsuit over its initials by the World Wildlife Fund, the WWF changed its name to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
Medium: Television
Program: CBC Television News
Broadcast Date: May 31, 1999
Guest(s): Martha Hart, Ross Hart
Reporter: Joanne Faryon
Duration: 2:16

Last updated: February 2, 2012

Page consulted on April 20, 2012

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