ERIC BISCHOFF'S 83 Weeks | Bret Hart in WCW |
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- Опубликовано: 28 сен 2024
- Eric Bischoff and Conrad Thompson run through the incredible true story of bringing Bret "The Hitman" Hart to the WCW during the peak of the Monday Night Wars.
Since 1984 every wrestling promoter has tried to best Vince McMahon and the World Wrestling Federation unsuccessfully… except one, Eric Bischoff. Eric beat Vince McMahon’s Monday Night RAW head-to-head in Monday Night Wars 83 consecutive times. 83 Weeks will take a deep dive into the highs and lows of Eric Bischoff’s unparalleled successes in the wrestling business.
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Vince was right, WCW wouldn't know what to do with a Bret Hart
Vince McMahon said that and how true it was. Sad really
Insanely true. They really blew it with Hart.
If you think about it that's a statement that really denigrates Bret along with WCW.
I wonder how much of it is that and how much of it is they were too arrogant to care or put a lot of thought into it
In all fairness, neither did Vince. I remember Vince saying in the Bret dvd that if he were WCW, he wouldve built the entire company around Bret.
Yet in his conversations with Bret when Bret asked what they had planned for him for the next few years, Vince told him he would be putting over Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin, and would then be used to help elevate other performers.
I don’t believe Vince is putting the spotlight on Bret on a roster with Hogan, Goldberg, and Sting.
"I don't recall" with Eric Bischoff and Conrad Thompson.
I know right?
I think they made an "I don't recall" t-shirt too.
That's hilarious!
Chris Terry jjlf
SHOCKER 401
Brett Hart was one of the best pro wrestlers of all time. He made it look like wrestling was easy. The only other wrestler I can say that about is Curt Henig. They just flowed naturally in the ring.
AGREED...Bret knew how to work properly...
I agree in terms of American pro wrestling. Owen Hart may be one of the others also.
Also Dean Malenko he didnt have the charisma asBret so he wasnt nearly as over but Dean was as far as in ring work top 10 Alltime!
@@jacksonhewitt7827 Dean Malenko vs Eddie Guerrero matches were some of the best.
I agree
They had some real classics that are just old vaulted matches I stumbled upon on Daily Motion. Circa 89 Hart and Henning had some matches that were ahead of their time and much better than what WWE was putting on Saturday Night Main Event and PPVs back then
I have to agree with Bret on saying that Ric Flair would go 20 minutes with no psychology. They'd lock up, Flair would go for a wrist lock, his opponent would reverse it, Flair would scream in pain, go to the ropes, hit the turn buckle, take the back body drop, plead for mercy by screaming "noooo!", get up and poke the guy in the eyes, go to the turn buckle and chop the guy, attempt an Irish whip, have it reversed, hit the turn buckle again, take another back body drop and repeat the process all over again. It's entertaining but, yeah. It was like that with every time, even when these 2 wrestled in the WWF for the title.
“Bret wasn’t a draw.”
“I paid him over 2 million to be the top guy on Thunder.”
Complete contradiction.
hindsight. he thought he was a draw, until he realized bret didnt draw anything for wcw
Darth There’s no way he would’ve offered that kind of money without seeing the numbers, and KNOWING Bret was a draw.
He certainly wouldn’t have planned to make him the top guy on their new show.
He just bent to the will of “Doesn’t work for me, brother.”
AND....then offer him a 2 year extension on his contract!
He wasn't a complete draw when compared with his contemporaries, although his name and lineage still had significance which could of potentially been a draw with the correct booking.
Darth Also, to your second point, no one can draw if they’re not pushed.
Stone Cold wasn’t the top draw in the business until he got pushed to the top of the cards.
Same for Rock, and even Hogan.
Hogan drew peanuts in his first WWE run, being on the lower card (in his blue ring gear). Then he went to the AWA, got pushed, and a star was born. Came back to WWE, got pushed there, and drew insane numbers.
Bisch just desperately wants to rewrite history so that he never screwed anything up. Unfortunately, it’s not true. For all the good he did, he also helped kill WCW by letting guys like Hogan essentially run the place, and change plans on a whim (exactly what Hogan did with Bret).
Bret was a 5x World Champion and should've been brought in immediately to be in that mix
Yep. You dont put the belt FIVE TIMES on someone who "doesnt draw" lol. Especially back then when 5 times was A LOT.
Bret should have pdirected his character more first and foremost and looked out for Davey boy , tag titles then u.s belt just to prove he's worthy and push Goldberg's title win back and Hart Hogan should have had a back and worth trade off with the belt
@@Buckdawg I hope one day some idiot kid is arguing with you about Edge's solo run being bigger than his TLC tag team days so you can see how stupid you sound.
Mick Foley held the title less than Bret and he was a New York Times best selling author at the height of his fame. Mankind is bigger than Bret Hart.
If Bret was so amazing then frankly the fans would have just made his angle what was hot, it's what happened with SCSA. Heck the Rock was getting over as a face while he was a heel before the Deadly Game Survivor Series.
Just go watch it on Peacock from late 95 until the Screwjob and you'll see WCW is not to blame, Bret was not some god who all the fans loved and adored. neither was HBK.
It'd be like if TNA had gotten big and hired away CM Punk and Daniel Bryan in 2012, wrestling got hot and by that I mean even your grandparents are aware of it somewhat, and then Cena/RKO were ran out of town for new better talent. That's essentially what happened in 96-98.
Bret is always consistent and everybody else either says " I don't recall " or change their stories or like Shawn Michaels they outright admit they had lied. I'm going with Bret on this.
It's easier to maintain a simple lie than remember an complicated absolute truth.
Bret hart is a known liar
Always a few jackass Bret haters that flip the narrative lol. Guys like Michaels and others admit they lied and somehow Bret is still the liar lol
This. You don't need to remembet shit when you tell the truth.
Bret's stories have been the same for 20 years. Everyone else "can't recall"
Classic psychology always tells us it’s far easier to remember the truth. I don’t doubt that Bret has embellished, but there’s a lot about Bischoff’s account that does not add up. He literally says he would’ve never offered Bret that kinda money, but he actually signed for pretty damn close to that kind of money. I don’t understand how he can say one thing with a straight face when the reality of the actual contract is not in line with his words.
Eric: Bret wasn’t a draw.
Also Eric: Hey Bret! I will pay you 2.8 million dollars.
Yes, I agree. I love how Conrad & Eric say none of the contract at the start. Saying Bret is lying. But let's go back to how much he actually signed Bret to. The Exact amount Bret said he offered him? But Bret lied... none of this never happened. Come on. One thing even Vince says there was a bidding war with Bret. But they have the right to their opinion. & Their "Facts" But when Bret's story never has changes in 20 plus years. I know who's story I'm going with.
This is not a bad episode but there are some huge missed questions here. Why was Bret not booked in matches with Hogan and Sting right off the bat? Why did Bret not say on Nitro he couldn't wrestle because he broke his hand punching Vince? Challenges about how to fit Bret into a crowded roster? Where was his title run in 1998? What about a WCW branded Thunder headed by Bret? Eric's thoughts on nWo 2000? These topics are not seriously discussed with the same fervor as the topics in the finger poke of doom episode.
Noel ComiX Eric wasnt there for the title or NWO run
Morgan Leggett right, but they should still discuss it.
Noel ComiX they did it deliberately to create the illusion that WCW had a greater depth of talent than WWF, that Bret wasn’t worthy of headlining Nitro
Where do i begin? What a load of shit!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I bet ppl believe eric's dream. Eric, you remember all these meetings but forget how much you paid Bret hart? hahahaha. Ok then! Eric, Bret wasnt a draw, yet you paid him TOP DOLLAR cash! You mentioned him with Hogan, savage, flair (BTW flair couldnt draw for shit. he was all southern draw. Nobody in Canada gave a shit, nor did anyone over sea's, or most of america. sorry but that's fact) in same sentence. You're all over map on this one.
Hogan came to WWF in 1993, so was flair and in 1992 when they where on top, DIDNT DRAW! As Bruce Prichard said, nobody cared to be quiet frank. WHATS THAT ABOUT DRAWING POWER? They where already on way down in all kinds of numbers, WWF and wrestling that is because of steroid scandal. In 1993, Hogan couldn't pick up viewing numbers or house show numbers or ppv buys as CHAMP, you know the #1 guy! Fact was, he was behind Bret in popularity at that time. Bret was most IMPACT and profitable wrestler in ALL of north america at this time.
So Bret wasn't a star, yet...every1 knew his name, was all over tv's, media. Had a #1 song about him in Germany, top Canadian, wwf biggest draw outside of america, won everything in wwf, made MILLION's and was handed #1 heel in 1997 a long with most popular wrestler in wwf 3 outta 6 years he was champ. Yet, can't draw, not a star power? WTF is eric talking about???? Buddy, you dont like Bret, thats fine but at least be HONEST and real in your podcast. You are contradicting yourself, dumbass. Listen, if Bret wasnt that big... he wouldnt be able to get no where near that cash and his name wouldnt be top 5 of all time in his ERA. Oh is Bret going to have fun with this one...
Oh now HINDSIGHT he was signed for WCW Thunder. Anybody who knows and was close to wrestling and Bret... knows youre flat out, FULL OF SHIT esp on this one! Dont even try and pretend, now, that's why u picked Bret Hart! Maybe the ppl who dont know the in details, but you aint fooling the one's who know!
Draw power? Bret was biggest star outside of America in his era, ask Vince or JR who have publicly said this how many times? Oh wait they're lying, lets listen to Eric B who cant even get his facts straight. BTW, the tickets bought and merch are TRUE indicators. Austin, Rock, Hogan, Cena are all bigger then Bret in America, but he's legit top 5! Who the hell saved WWF in days of fans leaving? Bret Hart. Who woulda been that champion and guy who could take wwf outta dark days in usa and go everywhere else and make money? Hogan and flair couldnt draw in those days in WWF and WCW where they wrestled in empty chairs and wwf still wrestled in full arena's for PPV and packed whatever taping event they had whichever size. Dont get it twisted that Hogan was drawing huge in WCW. Its a roster that draws... bookers, why do u think he couldnt draw in 1992-1993 in wwf when he came back? IN LATE 96 nwo was a cool faction, new look in wrestling...perfect take credit! But notice in cpl years that ended faaaaaaaaaaaast? But I thought Hogan drew? why did WCW sink? why did they lose to WWF in ratings all of a sudden, but they had biggest star ever hogan? Becuz its not one guy team, he needs bookers and great talent around him. Oh and dont go after Bret on wcw sink, you didnt let him wrestle anyone big or start a rivalry or push him to #1 to even say he couldnt draw in those days! So its just like austin and rock in wwf they had great roster backing em up but eventually in 2002 numbers started slipping and by 2004 it went right down. Not because rock and austin are not stars or cant draw.. it just became stale entertainment and nothing new to look forward too. Like any league you got stars but you def need talent around to make it fun and exciting with rivalry. Bret wrestled in era's with Bashiton booger, al montoya, eric bradford, sparky plug, skip, dean douglas, whalem murssy etc... Bret cant wrestle himself, he needs another top dog to start rivalry with. Imagine if he was pushed with savage, flair, hogan, warrior, jake snake, ric rude, mr perfect etc... he coulda been huge too wrestling great talent makes you big. Bret did it on his own because that was his only shot, vince seen that outta him! Hogan knew, dont wrestle bret or he'll be booed outta park, he wasnt the man after 1992. Thats fact, jack! No one can deny it. Hogan coulda helped wwf and helped push Bret to newer heights.. but meh he wanted yokozuna, that worked out well, that drew huuuuge lol!!!
Bret WAS a star, made million's... had legion of fans everywhere. #1 selling book, top canadian, top selling WWE dvd. Lead wwf 4 different years in merch sales. Shawn loves to brag about his 1996 merch lead, mean while Bret was out for 6 months, fuck i hope you made most shawn!!! and when wrestling went to Canada he was THE biggest thing. Not even Austin, Hogan or rock and Goldberg could get over VS Bret Hart...neither in UK, Germany or south Africa etc... and you cant fight it because youtube or GOOGLE is your fucking friend in case you "forget" as u like to say in this podcast.
You didnt let Bret Hart vs Hogan happen but once on a silly b.s. match that ended up them being "friends" you coulda had a rivalry, started a feud made/tried for millions off a match Hogan bulked at in WWF years earlier, which he prolly did again in WCW, thats why we didnt see it. But u let Hogan run ur show in WCW and u got what u deserved. Bankrupt!!! BTW since Hogan is draw by himself, what happened to wcw...while he was top guy? Why did u sink? exactly! Wow is this complete fucking joke of a podcast by you. Conrad is cool. BTW, wtf was Bret Hart in WCW anyways? Good, bad, good, bad, mid card, heavy weight champ, us champ, referee, HUH???????? Yeah thats YOUR mind set! Your ego is upset because Bret has said numerous times, youre full of shit and back stabbing POS. This podcast proves all lies you make up. I love when you pretend to tell us what u think now... Best Line. Bret Hart wasn't a draw...but i paid him top dollar just under Hogan. Thats an idiot, folks.
Ill leave it as.. if Bret wasnt a big star, why are we talking about him? why does his name sell? why does have he have millions of followers? We are talking about him right now, because...HE WAS A FUCKING STAR! Not a Konan....
I can answer some of those, even though I’m not Bischoff.
Why was Bret not booked immediately with Hogan and Sting? Because he came in right before Sting vs Hogan which had been building since Bash at the Beach 96 and was the biggest thing in wrestling despite what the revisionist history that the WWE would have you believe. Sting and Hogan had 2 more matches that lasted into the spring. I argue that while 2 more matches was sufficient, the feud could’ve stretched out a little further, especially had the match at Starrcade gone the way it shouldve. Then outta nowhere Bill Goldberg became white hot. I’ve always thought it was ridiculous that Bret has always basically contended that WCW should drop everything they were doing and put everything on hold just to give Bret the feud he wanted. Also important to note that Bret did not come in as “the hottest thing in wrestling” like so many people contend. In 1997, the internet was in something like one out of every 5 households, and those homes tended to be higher income homes who did not watch wrestling. The majority of fans had no idea what had even happened at Survivor Series....and for the ones that did, why would they have all this sympathy for Bret after he dogged the shit out of them for the better part of 97?
I distinctly remember Bret getting booed in his early WCW interviews and several “USA!” chants. It was so bad that I remember Bret interrupting the boos and chants to say that he didn’t want to disrespect America. So his switch from vicious anti-American heel to babyface was “I mean no disrespect to Americans??”
Quite the babyface turn.....
Bret’s hand? Vince said in his infamous Bret screwed Bret interview that he was keeping legal options open. Last thing you want to do is say something on live television that could be used by McMahon in court.
Challenges about Bret fitting in? He was a WWF guy who had no allies, he had trashed the company, Hogan, and Flair, he is a loner without many friends and wasnt adept at maneuvering in political climates.
Bret’s 98 title run? Pushed to the side because Goldberg, Sting, and nWo wolfpack were getting much stronger reactions.
I love how Thompson will call both Prichard and Bischoff out. He's not aiming to shoot on either of them, but he knows the smell of bull and calls it bluntly without issue when he gets wind of it.
Thompson, you're one of the best if not THE BEST in the shoot business.
It feels like, unlike other shoot interview guys, he is kind of a voice for the fans.
This is a classic episode. When Eric and Conrad bump heads it's a classic.
Eric's theme here is that Bret didn't care so he didn't book him with much. He also said Sting didn't care so he didn't follow through on Sting's angle. Additional Info: Bobby Heenan (who was brilliant) went to Eric once with a great opening for Nitro and Eric ignored him so much that Bobby said he never bothered again. Tony Schiavone said he would literally put his head down on the desk between segments. Maybe WCW was just a terrible place to be for anyone but Eric Bischoff, Hulk Hogan and their immediate buddies, and that's why no one seemed to care.
Well said.
you nailed it. which is why i didnt listen to this. he's full of himself, just like Hogan
The fact someone hasn't cleaned Eric Bischoff's clock is just beyond belief.
@@fredpamalexander6406Ric Flair punched him directly in the face when he showed up in the WWE locker room.
1:05:00 - 1:05:20
I bought a ticket to a WCW house show in 1998 to see Bret Hart. Me and 5 friends.
There is an HBO Special about Eric Bishoff coming out next month and it will be titled "I can't recall the specifics: The Eric Bishoff story"
"I didn't recall then. And I don't now."
@Definitely NOT DB Cooper It was DB Cooper, it said so on Unsolved Mysteries
The backstage stuff unfolding from the past is a better story than anything coming out in pro wrestling today 😂😂😂
Would’ve been a draw if you would’ve just had Bret vs Hogan. Hogan scared of Bret because he makes his wrestling look mediocre
Hogan will still outdraw Bret any day if the week. Hogan always was cooler and a bigger draw that Hart
RC DR3 EVERYONE wanted to see Brett Vs. Hogan. Except Hulk Hogan.
You need top guys to put you over in order to be a top guy.. Hogan held so many potential top guys down. As much as he did for the business, he also fucked it over massively.
See that statement about hogan being scared of Bret because Bret would make his wrestling look mediocre never really made sense to me. Not saying that your wrong for saying it as that may very well have been the case to Hogan’s mind.
The reason it doesn’t make sense to me is that Bret could wrestle a paper bag and make that paper bag look like amazing (hyperbole and exaggeration on the example I freely admit) but Bret could go out there and have a fantastic match with anyone and walk out afterwards with both guys looking really good. Hogan should have jumped at the chance to work with Bret... that’s basically a Win/Win situation for both guys in my opinion and from your lead in it seems to also be yours as well.
@ no question! Hogan was definitely the one with the higher name recognition of the two. Which is why a feud between the two could only have helped both of them.
Hogan would have looked awesome because Bret could make anyone look awesome, and Bret would have benefited from working a feud with Hogan due to Hulk’s name recognition. And WCW would have made a ton of money off it... it would have been a no-lose scenario.
Alas this is NOT what happened.
I love how Conrad bluntly calls Bischoff on his bullshit but this also makes me realize Bischoff more. Bischoff is direct and honest and not afraid to assess situations from his perspective and call bullshit on others. He's also a bit of a bullshitter himself.
Bret was way over than hogan, hbk in my country. I'm from India and back in the mid 90's bret's name was in the mouth of every kid in India.
Lol Bret might've been over there but here in the states where it really matter hulk waz king bret really never draw a dime anywheres
bret was big in the UK aswell.
Yeah same here in Sweden! We love Bret. Same with Jake The Snake and Ultimate Warrior!
I knew literally no one who cheered Hogan over them.
John Cook Im curious about the Warrior in the UK?
Bret has always talked up the reception he received when he fought Davey.
Ive seen that PPV numerous times and its clear to me that Davey got the biggest reaction of the night and Warrior was a close second.
@@Tad1945 germany too...US fans have no clue how big bret really was over here
Eric screwed Eric
Eric's wife screwed...not Eric
Fuck Eric
Only person who would.
I call b.s. Bret has stayed so consistent on topics over the years..and his story never changes..do an interview with easy e in a year about this topic and it will be different.
Yeah Bret wasn't a draw and that's why you spend an entire podcast talking about him....
They have an entire podcast on doink the clown too don't mean he was ever a draw Bret Hart is the biggest Bret Hart fan he blames everyone else for anything that ever happened brets full of shit there's a reason everyone in the business buries him
... I’ve seen this comment a few times. Listening about Bret for FREE is one thing, going out and buying tickets to see/ hear about him would mean he’s a DRAW (back in the day terms) that’s what he means when he says draw, he doesn’t draw people to pay for his Shit or to come see him. A podcast is free anyone can search this Shit up
To say Bret Hart didn't draw is by far the dumbest thing I have ever heard..Bret was a huge draw over seas and in Canada..and when he was heel doing the anti American thing he was the most hated man in wrestling...so for Bret not to be a draw is a flat out joke..
Killer Joe That is bs..
In wcw he wasn’t no one paid to come and see him because imo he wasn’t used properly if they had good programmes and story lines with him against great wrestlers that they did have he would of done good but just like vince said wcw wouldn’t no what to do with a Bret Hart
I believe 100% that Kevin Sullivan booked that War Games match at Fall Brawl 98. It has his trademark overbooked gimmick match written all over it.
Sorry to hear that Bischoff got amnesia
Lol
Remembering day to day events 20 years ago may a little difficult.
Some takeaways from this.
I don't think anyone would seriously believe that when Bret tells Eric that he can be late when discussing his 1997 jump from WWF that he intended that to be written into his contract. More like he was forewarning him.
Second - Eric says that Bret didn't contribute. Well, he certainly contributed to the Goldberg steel plate idea. Bret could have spoken up more, for sure. Why did or didn't is a question only he can answer. If Eric really believed that Bret wasn't a draw then why did WCW offer him a new deal in mid 1999?
eric said in a interview that he offered bret contract because he wanted a big star to headline thunder
yet he says in same interview bret did not draw ok
Needs upper level talent for Thunder....since all of the upper level talent there are tied up in the nWo. Then when Bret gets there, puts him in a convoluted back and forth with the nWo....yep.
Patrick Zipperer facts that confirm that Bischoff is either liar, or a complete moron. I don’t think he’s a moron.
Lol, yeah...such lazy and boring storytelling. It made absolutely no sense to put him in the N.W.O and could of had "Legend climbs the ladder" type angle hyping up matches against Sting and Hogan but instead of any type of thought out long driven storyline they go the easy and lazy route. I blame Bret just as much for even agreeing with going in the NWO.
If anyone thought biscoff wasn't the king of BS, here's your proof, any episode of 83 weeks
He was there, you weren't
Read Bret Hart book he threw in the towel when he went to WCW
@@dmanentertament125
Lol that book is full of lies and bull shit he's a bitter old man who bought into his own gimmick and found out he wasn't as important as he thought he was
@@jessieb9384 Bret compared himself to Beatlemania in his book, what BS. I actually agree with what Eric says here, no way would he offer Bret more money than his buddy Hogan was getting. Also, Eric is right, he was making himself sound like Elvis, or actually, as I stated above the Beatles. Ugh.
Joseph Delledonne
Theres a few details i believe eric on here. But the overall interview is Eric either not remembering or making excuses for how they used bret. Which was ridiculous lol. Nash doesnt even like bret but hes in charge of brets bookings lol. Laughable.
You can't call someone a liar and you say " I can't remember "
thanks for re-uploading!
Bret was a far superior wrestler then Flair ever was
thank you 83 weeks bringing everyone back down memory line
Looking forward to next week's show. I love how Conrad won't pull punches. Great interviewing style, keep it up!
Conrad is an obese mouth breathing smart mark who has done nothing but make money for the people who really have done stuff in the business. Brian last is much better as is Kevin Nash's host. The episodes where Conrad is gone are always better. You could literally replace Conrad with anyone and people would still care because they want to hear from bischoff and prichard and others. Replace Conrad with literally anyone and the shows are as good or better.
I always wish Bret Hart could had been used much stronger in WCW
Bishoff has major memory loss he needs help quickly 😢.... They brought Bret in to keep him under Hogan. They gave him 2.5 million to never use him they wasted millions in WCW go look up the horrible business decisions Bischoff made so to him what was another 2.5 million. Bischoff didn’t bring him back for Thunder 😂🤣😂🤣😂. That’s laughable they did nothing with Thunder.
As much as we can all (including Bischoff) agree that Bret Hart was ineffectually used in WCW, EB's account comes off pretty credibly here. ...Also, I did not know that Eric Bischoff was the one to meet Bret coming off a plane that horrible night. Ultimately, the thought of that tragedy, and the concurrence of both parties on events here (in fact, Bret putting Eric over more than Bischoff gives himself credit for), is what may stick with me more than anything from this podcast.
Eric loves to pull out that legacy and tradition stuff when it suits him.
I love how Easy E went out of his way to make it clear that he has the utmost respect for Hart in the beginning. But by the end of the first hour he called him a "professional whiner" and a dementia patient lol and a little later straight up called him an ass. That was great.
After listening to the show, it was obvious that Eric was full of sht when he said how much respect he's got for Hart.
Well as much as Bret has trashed people and whatnot it's great to see the shoe on the other foot.
Stop giving him a pass cause of Montreal and Owen dying 19yrs ago
Chris Taker The majority of what Bret says about people is 100% true though...if you believe half of what Eric says here then more fool you
Easy E was in NWA not the NWO
Makes you question the meeting they had, and exchange of gifts.
Lol
Even with a "broken hand" he could've came in to surprise people and build a killer storyline
Totally different then the fed but I loved wcw for that reason
You guys need to advertise this better. Im just now watching these. Amazing stories. I love it. Keep em coming! I want to buy a shirt too. Does he still call you if you buy one?
I'd like to hear more of Eric's thoughts on Shania Twain.
Conrad legend 3 podcasts now im in heaven
Michael Gregg he loves Conrad let it be Michael
"Bret Hart came in only because of Thunder. *ONLY.*" - Eric Bischoff
Bret Hart was the victim of being a fan and then a legend in pro wrestling, he felt betrayed by the promoter that was almost a second father to him, then the same business he loves took his younger brother. Then add in the Goldberg injury and the health problems. Bret Hart was shattered after Montreal, he trusted no one and mailed in the rest of his career, it often reminds me of Kevin Von Erich in a way, after the death of Dave. The business they loved, took so much from them both. They just lost their passion.
I wonder if everyone bitching about dishonesty and not recalling things can tell me what happened in their weekly life 20+ years ago .
Gary Mainz Jr exactly. I made a similar comment.
@ 33:16 ~ *"That logic from talent never made any sense to me. That's when you get so sucked in to the work, that you've worked yourself."* --- Eric Bischoff
I mean, yeah ... that is actually one of the most profound wrestling ideological correlations I've ever heard.
Great podcast can’t wait for next week’s episode 👍
His entrance music sucked in wcw
God awful. Not only was the overall Hitman theme was a head banger, but the opening riff let everyone know who was about to walk through the curtains.
It grows on you don't worry 😉
Bret was misused in WCW. Period. They never intended to utilize him. They just wanted to get him to finish off the WWE (so what they thought). Bret is a top 5 greatest wrestler of all time. Saying that he wasn’t a draw is ridiculous. The only good thing bischoff made was the NWO. No wonder Bret still hates him.
There was. Few good moments, I liked his US title series with DDP, and his feud with sting was enjoyable buy yeah mostly he was under utilised and misused badly, putting him in nwo with Hogan was so stupid, I think Hogan Wass scared of going into a feud with him in 98 so kept Bret as his lackey in nwo.
He had no idea what to do with Bret Hart. He was to busy trying to look cool with Hulk Hogan. Throwing up hand signs and wife swaping with DDP.
It should be noted that the end of the newest episode of this show effectively proves this entire episode is bullshite.
One man proves Bischoff is lying here, and that man is..... Eric Bischoff, from 1996.
Quotes from Eric himself in 96 have surfaced that prove he DID offer Bret a deal in 96.
The real question is why does Conrad have a grudge against Bret Hart? First the Montreal and Kliq episodes with Bruce Pritchard and now this.
REZ I think it all stems from how close Conrad is with Ric Flair.
It’s kinda weird at this point though, since Bret and Flair made amends a few years back.
It's already public knowledge. Don't know why he outright lied.
It’s because Conrad’s favourite is Flair and Bret is 100x better than Flair. So Conrad will continue to shit on Bret in an effort to convince people of his personal opinion that Flair is better.
Seen one Flair match and you’ve seen them all.heard one Flair interview and you’ve heard them all;
I’m.The.Nature.Boy...Ladies.Love.Me. wooo
Kiss.Stealing.bla,bla.bla
Wooo
Yawn.
I love how you Hart marks cant understand why anyone would possibly dislike Bret. And your reasoning is always “he puts on great matches and knows lots of moves”. So does HBK but you Hart marks certainly have issues with him, mostly because Bret Hart told you to.
Amazing show, love it!
"we can't do that...the sky is blue!" LOL
I'm 5 years late to the party so this may be a shirt already but another shirt for Eric should be
"You've covered a lot of ground there" 😂😂
If he couldn't draw why would you give him a top dollar contract?
Proof that Bischoff knows absolutely nothing about the wrestling business.
In his defense bischoff does say Bret was the best choice out of the top guys because Michaels/taker were not available.
How many other people did Dean Malenko injure? Maybe the reason you didn't hear about him acting the way Brett claimed, is because this was the only possible chance. He only ever hurt Brett, and showed his colours in that situation. Eric's response there is pretty damn short sighted, well no shit he was professional when he WASN'T hurting other wrestlers. Pretty fucking easy to do it then.
Bret Hart was a great wrestler but in his latest interview on the Jim and Sam show he talks about how he kept WWF afloat. I’m no wrestling expert but with names like Austin, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Rock, Undertaker, Mick Foley and so on, he has the most overinflated ego.
Love him or hate him Vince McMahon kept the boat afloat with the roster he had.
WCW brought most of the big names and overkilled it with the countless NWO incarnations. And misuse of great wrestling talent.
Eric Bischoff dropped the ball by giving Hogan, Nash and so on creative control.
Hart had to many hits to the head if you ask me.
I remember seeing the steel plate thing with Goldberg and thinking it was pretty awesome and hoping to see more main events with Bret. Definitely the highlight of him in WCW.
I liked Bretts 15 minute promo on the death of Owen. He recognized Owen for maybe a minute and a half and then made it all about himself.
It’s really funny actually how he made the death about Bret’s life and career
@@oldironsides4107 Typical Bret Hart. Even Vince said when they first spoke after the death of Owen, that he mentioned Owen once then talked about how Vince ruined his career, ruined his marriage, the Scewjob, etc.
Fascinating to me as well and I loved Bret as a kid but after the screw job I never felt the same.add the fact any time you hear Bret shoot he burys everyone comes off bitter and all as a direct result of his ego portraying everything from his warped prospective as only Bret Hart sees it
Eric talks like such a good business man when he talks about the turner filings and what not
If Bret was making all this up - the negotiations of ‘96 - how was he so accurately able to describe how contracts would be shaped 1 year into the future?
I mean, he knew Hall & Nash would have favoured nations clauses in their contracts and that Bret’s future WCW contract would have him paid in part by movie contracts?
These details were published in the Observer newsletter in ‘96 ( probably leaked by Bret’s camp ) and turned out to be 100% accurate by Eric’s own admission but not until 1 year later....
C’mon man!
I’m not buying that Bret just made all that shit up and it just coincidentally was 100% accurate 1 year later.
49:05 I beg to differ, Bret was voted 1997 Heel of the Year by Pro Wrestling Illustrated Magazine readers. I believe he topped out Hogan at that timr.
Even though Bret’s run in WCW was far from great it was cool just to see him there and he had some great matches with DDP and Benoit in WCW
Bret and DDP worked very well together. They had a few good matches on WCW Nitro.
Conrad "Master of the Jab and Run" Thompson
As much as I love Bret in the ring his story is far from consistent. In his book he claims he wanted to keep his options open but on Austin's podcast he insisted that he never wanted to leave.
Bret tried jumping in 1992. That says it all
It's funny hearing Conrad going along with everything Eric says, 3 episodes in. Doesn't happen 9 months later lol
Bret should've never joined nWo, having real life heat with Hogan and the Kliq, they never had chemistry together. Kept Bret a face. Feuded with Hogan/Sting then worked/fueded with upper mid-card Wrestlers(Benoit, Booker, Jericho etc.) had great matches with them (like he did with Austin) to help elevate mid-card guys to main-event level.
Oh wow that sounds fucking so exhilarating… Man master storyteller… That’s how you would’ve used Bret Hart? Have him have “good matches” and eventually main event against goldberg? So you literally would’ve done absolutely nothing with him. You sound like an amazing booker.
I would've had Gillberg VS Nash Starrcade 98. Real Goldberg runs in and uses a cattle prod on Nash and Gillberg hits Nash with a spear tackle followed by Jackhammer to get the win. Goldberg comes in and hits Gillberg with the title belt. The end.
You must really don't know how good Bret heart is I'm sorry how excellent Bret Hart is to set him up with that shitty ass future in WCW
I think Eric is either forgetting key details or is choosing to leave them out to shit on bret. A lot of this is documented in the Wrestling With Shadows documentary. Why would Bret lie about the $ in his WCW contract multiple times (once in the film, once to Meltzer, and finally in his book)?
Listen to the full podcast, the contract is publicly available due to some litigation that Turner Broadcasting had endured.
Bret did draw for the WWF from 91-95 as well as internationally in Canada, Europe and parts of Asia. He stopped drawing around 96-97. How can Bischoff, who wasn't part of the WWF in the 90s claim that Bret didn't draw given that Eric always chooses his words carefully?
Even though I am a HUGE Bret Hart fan, I have to acknowledge that he does tell stories from his own perspective for sure. (As we ALL do!)
Bret's my favourite wrestler of ALL time, and I have to say, that AS a Canadian, Bret Hart is DEFINITELY a Canadian Hero!
No question! (Bieber... not so much...)
That being said, I do believe Bischoff's take on the events that were discussed here.
I was a HUGE fan of WCW and was so excited to see Bret there, but was terribly disappointed by the lack of direction. But hearing Eric talk about what was going down with Turner at the time, I understand why it happened.
I always liked Bischoff's character on WCW, he was a good heel...
Wish Bret's WCW run would have been better, but that's all in the past now.
Happy to have been around watching those glory days!
I like Bret and Eric and I hope they can move on and forgive each other. It doesn't look good for Bret to bad mouth and blame everyone else for all of his problems. Again, I like Bret and he should just move on, look forward and stay positive. Blaming everybody else makes him look bad and I don't want that for Bret. As a Canadian I'm proud of all of his accomplishments and the way he's represented Canada in the world of pro wrestling. A good public relations move for Bret would be to stop bad mouthing everybody and just stay focused on his stellar wrestling career in all future podcasts/ interviews.
Eric Bischoof said something that makes ALOT of sense. When you attend a wrestlecon you won't see Diesel and Razor Ramon you will Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. Wow!!! He should have added that he Eric Bischoof got the biggest pop at Raw show.
Bischoff has this completely wrong. There were protracted negotiations during 1996 and the conversation with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash regarding the favoured nations did occur in 1996. Nash and Hall admitted it themselves. Watch the RF Video shoot with Kevin Nash and Scott Hall - I think it was done in 2008. Nash and Hall talk about the negotiations with Bret in 1996 and Scott says "Remember we called him and told him to come (to WCW). That was the time he didn't come (in 1996)." There you have it. Bret's book was 100% accurate and Bischoff has thing completely wrong. That's a shame!
Erics point on bret walking around in misery is great. The dude had a career very few have the oppurtunity to even get close and will be talked about for ever when it comes to wrestling history. Dude needs to lighten up
It is true. The Goldberg/Hart angle was huge. It was all over the wrestling websites.
i learned to like bret when he went to wcw. even though he hated working in wcw
Bret was more of a solid draw as WWE champ than Deisel or HBK which is why they both had to drop the belts after short runs as champ, Bret saved the WWE during it`s lowest period, the WWE was doing better business in 97 than it was in 96, Bruce Pritchard said Bret was always a solid draw as champ, just not a great draw.
Eric "It happened in 1997 but I don't recall the specifics" Bischoff
This interview would've been a fraction of the time if they took out all the things Eric couldn't remember.
Except for the things he could remember, because he said he did his homework the night before, knowing he was coming on the podcast (his words)
I liked Bret's stuff in WCW.
That Starrcade finish ruined everything
I really like Eric and enjoy these shows. But if I think I know who I believe more out of these two:
-The guy who consistently tells every detail of the same story multiple times, over the course of 2 decades
-The guy who’s catchphrase on these shows is ‘I don’t recall that’
So yeah, I’m with Bret on this one 😂
If the original plan was for Bret to work with Ric right off the bat why have Bret even involved with Sting and Hogan at Starrcade? Why have him do a promo taking credit for screwing Hogan over the next night on Nitro? Why have involved in any of that and not just go right to Ric right away?
Eric sounds like a liar
@Edgehead10075 yep bet was lying
He is a liar, but he is not lying about this
Hogan burying Bret in the WWF, then HBK wrecked him, the screw job killed him. He was never right in WCW.
Austin was also buried by Hogan and Flair in WCW, but he left, went to ECW then went to WWE motivated.
The Hitman blames everyone but himself, that’s a fact.
lmaaaaooooo "he's writing a movie in his head"
WCW|nWo Starrcade 1983 - 2000|ECW|NXT NTR 1993 - 2000|WWF|DX Wrestlemania 1985 - 2002
I hope Bret is a part Conrad's All In panel.
Not the biggest Bischoff fan but you can't deny that Bret is bitter about everything and almost everyone. It's annoying and truly sad.
I think Bret was the perfect guy for the wrestling business in the first half of the 90s but I think after that it’s hard to find a place for him to fit in. I really can’t see him in the WWF in the heart of the attitude era and honestly there was never a real spot for him in WCW to begin with. WCW already had half a dozen main event guys that were established and by the time he got there goes like DDP and Bill Goldberg we’re on the come up and you don’t want to cut their legs off for a guy that’s already a five time world champion and one of the most famous wrestlers of the 90s so I just really think the late 90s was a bad atmosphere for Brett ovar all
Which of Bret's book is referred to here? He had a couple.
Nobody was drawing at that time in wwf not just Bret. Austin literally was just starting to get hot.
It's called business . Barry bloom is Smart AF and Hall and Nash always supported Hart .🤷♂️💯👊❤️👊
When Goldberg won the title we all knew that Bret Hart would win the title from Goldberg eventually and end the streak….we were wrong.
I think it would have been better if Bret Harts debut was a match at Starrcade. I think many people forget that Bret Hart had a broken hand when he first came in. I think what I would have done is a sit down interview with Bret Hart about the Montreal screw job. Vince went on WWF and gave his version of what happened I think if they plugged Bret Hart giving his side on WCW it would get a lot of interest. Also in the interview after the MOntreal stuff have Bret HArt talk about what he wants to accomplish in WCW and maybe call out some wrestlers to set the seeds for future feuds. To me I see a sit down interview much like Jim Ross did with Mick Foley during his first face turn something like that for Bret on Nitro or Thunder, before he came out and wrestled at a ppv.
Eric saying Brett should get checked for dementia but then three seconds later can’t remember anything himself
I think Bret hart was differcult to deal with,bishoff said it,vince said it,Bruce Prichard said it as much in the Brett hart episode he did with Conrad, undertaker question Bret hart over not wanting to lose,Bret was trying to protect his character but seems very difficult to work with,Brett is still one of the greats though,no matter what you say about him
WCW should have given Bret the mic, let him cut a brutal shoot on Vince and Shawn, ending it by saying "Since I can't beat the shit out of Shawn Michaels I am gonna do the next best thing, hurt Shawn where it hurts, his friends" hinting at Bret gunning after Hall and Nash and then put him in the main event of a 3 way match with Hogan and Sting at Superbrawl. Build a new Hart stable. The Hart Dungeon. With Bret, Jim Neidhart, Davey Boy, Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit. Feud with the NWO and Horseman. Keep him as far away from Goldberg as possible and just use Bret for all he's worth. If he wasn't in the best state of mind after Montreal, then inspire him he needs to be successful and rub it in Vince's face.
Keep him the face of WCW. Instead he had some lame feud with Ric Flair and turned heel and face more than Big Show. His WCW career went nowhere
I like the whole Hart Dungeon idea and also him going after Hall and Nash. Makes a lot more sense than trying to pass them off as his buddies in nWo 2000
Lance storm wasn't there yet kid, Chris benoit was the second best Canadian
Bischoff is pretty truthful most times but here talking about the initial meeting he's full of shit. Bret made himself look very bad at times in his book with his honesty, but Bischoff is saying he wouldn't pay Bret 3 million a year when less then a year later Bret made 2.8 million a year, makes no sense.
Also, Conrad caught Eric in a lie when Eric kept downplaying Bret, saying Bret wasn't a good draw, then Conrad asked why Eric paid so much money to someone who wasn't a good draw. Obviously, Eric was trying to place blame on Bret for Bret's lame run in WCW. I mean, when Eric said that Bret didn't have any good ideas, I started wondering why Eric didn't have any good ideas.
People quoting Meltzer's "star ratings" is like quoting my blind aunt's opinions on the hotel lobby decor
Eric, I'm a big fan and I have a question. You've expressed in the past that the imposition of Thunder on you was something of a burden and you brought in Bret to help out with that show. Here's the question. When your group put together a deal to buy WCW why did you ask for BOTH television time slots rather than only asking for Monday night and letting Turner keep Thursdays for whatever? Also, if they were bristling over the image of TNT did you consider offering to move Nitro to TBS?
Bret Hart in WCW >>>> Bobby Lashley's WWE return
I agree
Down vote