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Owen Hart
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The Dungeon - Sultan of Submission The
following is the chat transcript from Larry King on CNN. Conducted by
Larry King, this interview features Bret Hart (brother of Owen Hart) and
Owen's widow Martha Hart, a few days after the tragedy. MARTHA HART, OWEN HART'S WIDOW: Well, I always hoped he -- he was that popular, and he did travel internationally, so I knew that he was world-renowned, yes. KING: Bret, did you know it? BRET HART, OWEN HART'S BROTHER: Yes. KING: It seems in death his fame is, like, incredible? B. HART: No. You know what? Everybody's a closet wrestling fan, you know. But people watch wrestling -- people watch wrestling everywhere. And you know, I -- I know just having, you know, walking through airports and everywhere I go, people recognize you all the time. But I think the important thing I take pride in is knowing that they really recognized him for what he was. He was a great human being. It wasn't so much the recognition for being a wrestler, which he was a great wrestler also. KING: Martha, we don't know yet of course what happened. And there'll still be an inquiry as to cause and how the accident occurred, but you said today, "the day of reckoning will come." What were you referring to? M. HART: Well, I wish I could tell you, but I have been advised by counsel not to, so I have no comment on that. KING: It's a strong word, though, reckoning? M. HART: It is. KING: All right. Can we expect from that statement, Bret, that this story will get bigger before it gets lesser? B. HART: Yes. I think that we're going to, you know, both of us and I think my whole family and, you know, we do want some answers, and, you know, I don't think that's unfair for us to expect that. KING: Vince McMahon will be on this show next Thursday night. And your brother wrestled for him, right, Bret? B. HART: Yes, he did. KING: I mean, that's who he worked for the -- he was also a critic of the World Wrestling Federation at the same time, was he not? B. HART: My brother Owen? KING: Yes. B. HART: Yes, I don't think Owen or I was very content with the direction that Vince McMahon took wrestling. I think that, you know, wrestling was always something that we took a lot of pride in, at least in my family. It was something that was family entertainment. You know, we used to pride ourselves on, you know, it was something that grandchildren and grandfathers and sort of the entire family could do. It's a shame in a way, because Vince McMahon was actually the guy that sort of took it and brought it up to that level again, and then he took a radical course in a different direction, and it's become something very sleazy, and something that it's very hard to be proud of. And you know, I have always been disappointed. And I never felt that Owen -- I know Owen didn't like the direction that it was going. How could he? KING: Did Owen -- Martha did, Owen talk to you about this increased sexual attention and making this the -- playing up the sex aspect and the -- even more violent, the shows and the kind of show they put on? Was he against that? M. HART: Yes, he was. He -- we talked about it, and I think even he was more against it because I was so against it. And I let him know that, you know, I didn't think it was good, and we have a different kind of a lifestyle, Owen and I had a different kind of a lifestyle, where our children, you know, they go to private school, and we know reputable people. And I didn't think that it was proper for him to be in that kind of a role when he is a family man and, you know, has to see these people every day, these friends of ours and answer to them and unfortunately, people in the wrestling world, when they do these angles and different things -- you know, people tend to view them that way in real life. So, I didn't want to mesh the two, and so I always, you know, promoted him to keep that clean, wholesome kind of image. KING: Bret, do you feel the same way? B. HART: Absolutely. I have, you know, my kid stopped watching wrestling. I had, you know, I left under a dark cloud of, you know, very bad circumstances. I left the WWF two years ago. KING: I know. B. HART: And, you know, my kid stopped watching before I left. I know Martha's two children stopped watching. And I always thought that it was a shame because I think Vince McMahon, almost like, he built his company on the backs of little children, like they're the ones that, you know, the Hulk Hogan and eat your vitamins and he, you know, he -- I wouldn't say exploited it, but he made a lot of money -- generated a lot of money off kids and their involvement in wrestling, and then he took this sort of radical direction he's taken. He still sells kids these toys, but at the same time the shows are totally unviewable for children. KING: Martha, was Owen thinking of leaving? M. HART: No he wasn't. I mean he was basically happy there. He had a two-year contract -- he had a five-year contract with two years left to go with one optional year, but he'd hoped to stay there, but maybe just reduce his schedule slightly, so... KING: Has World Championship Wrestling, the other big promotion in the field, helped any in the fact that it runs its matches a little differently, Bret? B. HART: I can't tell you what a difference is between the two companies. You know, there's a distinct difference in the class between one company and the other. Like, for example, when I found out about this horrible tragedy, I was met at the airport in Los Angeles by Eric Bischoff. He immediately chartered an airplane at the company's expense and flew me back. KING: That's World Championship Wrestling? He was on the show that night. B. HART: Yes. And he also told me, he said -- which is so kind -- and I've never had another promoter ever say this to me. He said, take all the time you need. We'll be waiting for you when you come back. And I just, you know, it's situations like that are sort of unheard of in wrestling, and I do want Eric Bischoff to know and the people in the WCW that I really do appreciate it. My family appreciates it. We have got all of these fans all around the world that they have been so kind to us. I know the fans, even in Kansas City, have been great to us. The police department in Kansas City has been great to us. We have had such a tremendous outpour that I know my family and Martha, in particular, will never forget how kind everyone has been to us through this tragedy. KING: Martha, how are the kids doing? M. HART: Well, our children are seven. And my daughter is -- she'll just be going on to four. So they really don't have their arms around it right now. They just don't have a grasp of what's happened. But I would also like to thank Kansas City police department. They were wonderful to me, and very helpful, so -- and I appreciated that. I needed some answers, and they helped me. KING: Can we assume, since you mentioned reckoning and the legal advice, that -- we only have 30 seconds, Martha, that we will see some lawsuits out of this? M. HART: Well, I don't think it's ever safe to assume anything, so I think time will tell, and we'll just have to wait and see. KING: But we would not be shocked, right, Bret? B. HART: I don't think so. I don't think anyone would be too shocked at that. I think that what happened here was absolutely awful and should never have happened, and someone certainly should answer for it. KING: Thank you both very much. On a sad day, we appreciate your coming on. M. HART: Thank you. KING:
Martha Hart, the widow and Bret "The Hitman" Hart, the brother
of the late Owen Hart. Thanks for joining us on this edition of LARRY
KING LIVE. Good night.
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