fbpx
Wikipedia

Attitude Era

February 05, 2023

The Attitude Era was a term used by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as World Wrestling Entertainment or WWE) to describe the company's programming from November 9, 1997 to May 6, 2002. It began during the Monday Night Wars, a period in which WWF's Monday Night Raw (later Raw Is War) went head-to-head with World Championship Wrestling's (WCW) Monday Nitro in a battle for Nielsen ratings each week from September 4, 1995, to March 26, 2001. The era was initiated on November 9, 1997, at Survivor Series 1997, when a video package aired ending with the first use of the "WWF ATTITUDE" scratch logo,[1] immediately before the main event featuring Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels, which retrospectively would be known as the Montreal Screwjob due to the controversial finish of the match. WWF's programming in this era featured adult-oriented content, which included increased depicted violence, profanity, and sexual content. This era was part of a wider surge in the popularity of professional wrestling in the United States and Canada as television ratings and pay-per-view buy rates for WWF and its rival promotions saw record highs.

The WWF Attitude logo, used from November 9, 1997[1] to May 6, 2002[2]

The Attitude Era marked the rise of many WWF male singles wrestlers, including "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, Kane, Mick Foley (in various personas), Kurt Angle, and The Undertaker (who was already a veteran but continued to gain popularity).[3] The Steve Austin-Vince McMahon feud was one of the longest-running rivalries of the era.[4] The WWF Women's Championship, which had lay dormant since December 13, 1995, was reactivated on September 15, 1998. While most of the company's female talent, such as Sable, Sunny and Stacy Keibler during this time period were marketed as sex symbols and often booked in sexually provocative gimmick matches (for example "bra and panty" matches, bikini matches, etc.) in an effort to draw more male viewership, prominent female stars such as Chyna, Lita, and Trish Stratus among others were presented as legitimate wrestlers in legitimate wrestling matches.[5] WWF also signed a number of wrestlers who left WCW during this period, including Chris Jericho, Big Show and The Radicalz.[6]

The era also saw the resurgence of tag team wrestling, namely The Hardy Boyz, The Dudley Boyz, and Edge & Christian, who were featured in several destructive, physical and stunt-filled Tables, Ladders and Chairs matches during this era. Distinguished stables were established in this era, such as D-Generation X, Nation of Domination, The Corporation, Ministry of Darkness, Corporate Ministry and The Brood, among others, and developed major rivalries among each other. The Hardcore Championship was established on November 2, 1998, and this chaotic division involved no disqualification, falls count anywhere matches that would start and then would be taken outside the ring, with blunt weapons involved.[7] The era drew to a close on May 6, 2002, as WWF changed its name to WWE and ceased using "WWF Attitude" branding.[2]

Initiation

Monday Night Wars and shift to edgier content

 
Vince Russo

During the Monday Night Wars, a television ratings battle between WWF's Monday Night Raw and WCW's Monday Nitro, the WWF began to transition from the "traditional way" wrestling had been presented,[8] instead opting for a product which "pushed the envelope" according to then-head writer Vince Russo.[9] The creative side of the product during the era's early stages in 1997 was spearheaded by Russo, who drastically changed the way WWF television was written. Ed Ferrara would later join Russo in June 1998, when he was hired by the WWF.[10] Russo's and Ferrara's booking style has been described as "Crash TV",[11] where they contributed edgy, controversial storylines involving sexual content, profanity,[12] swerves,[9] unexpected heel turns, and worked shoots, as well as short matches, backstage vignettes, shocking angles and levels of depicted violence.[13]

Several moments have been credited with helping WWF transition into the Attitude Era. In his book, Vince Russo mentions the debut of the character Goldust in 1995 as a pivotal turning point,[14][15] while Brian Pillman's "Loose Cannon" persona and the infamous "Pillman's got a gun" segment from 1996 has also been viewed as a key moment of change within the company. In 1996, the WWF had also begun playing up female sexuality, led by Sunny and Sable.[16] On March 10, 1997, the WWF officially debuted its Raw is War moniker to signify it was waging "war" with WCW's Monday Nitro. One week later, on the March 17 episode, after losing a steel cage match against Sycho Sid in an attempt to win back the WWF Championship, Bret Hart angrily shoved Vince McMahon to the mat during a post-match interview and went into a profanity-laced tirade.[17] The actual start of the Attitude Era itself is unclear and often debated among fans, with moments such as Steve Austin's "Austin 3:16" speech at the 1996 King of the Ring[18] and Vince McMahon's speech on the December 15, 1997 episode of Raw often being referenced. Meanwhile, the WWE Network lists WrestleMania 13 as the earliest event under their Attitude Era section.

Birth of Austin 3:16

The 1996 King of the Ring tournament saw Austin's first usage of the catchphrase "Austin 3:16", the major marketing tool for WWF during the era.[19] After winning the tournament by defeating Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Austin mocked Roberts' recital of the biblical passage John 3:16 by saying, "You sit there and you thump your Bible, and you say your prayers, and it didn't get you anywhere! Talk about your Psalms, talk about John 3:16... Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!"[20]

Austin's popularity gradually started to rise as an anti-hero despite being portrayed on-screen as a heel character,[21] eventually leading to a long-term feud with Bret Hart from late-1996 to mid-1997, climaxing in a Submission Match at WrestleMania 13. In 1997, a storyline involving Owen Hart and Austin (in which Owen botched a piledriver that caused severe neck injuries to Austin and ultimately led to his early retirement in 2003) culminated in Austin performing a Stone Cold Stunner on Vince McMahon to a positive crowd response and led to Austin being kayfabe arrested.[20]

Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels, debut of "WWF Attitude" promo, and the Montreal Screwjob

Main article: Montreal Screwjob
 
Michaels in September 1997

Another storyline from 1996 to 1997 was the personal feud between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels, who had legitimate issues with one another outside of wrestling. The conflict behind the scenes spilled into their on-screen storyline, where both men made deeply personal remarks in interviews and promo segments that were often rooted in these issues.[22]

On November 1, 1997, then-WWF Champion Hart officially signed a contract to work for WCW beginning that December. Vince McMahon sought to prevent Hart from leaving the WWF as its champion, allegedly not wanting Hart to potentially appear on WCW television with the WWF Championship, and proposed having Hart lose to Michaels at their scheduled match at Survivor Series on November 9. Hart refused due to his personal issues with Michaels becoming too great, with Bret using his "creative control" clause included in his WWF contract as leverage. Both parties seemingly came to an agreement in which the match would have a disqualification finish – which would not result in a title change – therefore, Hart would retain the championship and either lose or forfeit the title at a later date. However, McMahon, Michaels, and other WWF employees covertly went on to change the outcome of the match without Hart's knowledge.

During the pay-per-view broadcast, a video package aired immediately before the Hart vs. Michaels match, debuting the “Attitude” promo that included the first instance of the WWF "scratch" logo.[1][23] During the match, after Michaels placed Hart in the Sharpshooter, Hart's signature finishing maneuver, McMahon – who was at ringside, a rarity at the time, as he was primarily working as an on-screen commentator – quickly ordered referee Earl Hebner to call for the bell and award Michaels the WWF Championship by submission, despite Hart not submitting. Hart, realizing that he had been the victim of a so-called "screwjob", spit on McMahon, destroyed television equipment, and traced the letters "WCW" in the air with his finger while fans in the arena threw garbage into the ring area and expressed their support for Hart. The incident would go on to be dubbed the Montreal Screwjob. Both the promo and the screwjob are considered by most as the official beginning of the Attitude Era.

One week later, on Raw, McMahon gave an interview with Jim Ross in which McMahon explained his actions and infamously claimed that "Bret Hart screwed Bret Hart." The WWF successfully went on to parlay fan resentment towards McMahon – whose position as owner of the WWF was rarely acknowledged on-screen prior to the Montreal Screwjob – into creating the "Mr. McMahon" character, a villainous, overbearing boss. McMahon's new heel character would become a major part of the WWF's transition to reality-based storylines, particularly his rivalry with Stone Cold Steve Austin.

USA Network ownership change

In October 1997, USA Network owners at Seagram agreed to sell the network to media mogul Barry Diller.[24] Diller's purchase of the USA Network was finalized in February 1998,[25] and longtime USA Network managing head Kay Koplovitz would be ousted from the network she founded two months later.[26] Shaun Assael and Mike Mooneyham's book Sex, Lies, and Headlocks: The Real Story of Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment stated that "the terrain shifted completely under everyone's feet" following Diller's purchase of the USA Network, which began in October 1997, and that Koplovitz was in fact planning to remove WWF programming from the USA Network prior to the purchase.[27] Following the purchase, the WWF began to dominate cable television ratings with Raw episodes which were not only breaking away from traditional censorship, but that were also showing fans at ringside screaming obscenities, wearing risqué t-shirts, and holding signs that often sported controversial phrases.[28][29] The USA Network was even reported as showing less remorse than WWF owner Vince McMahon did over a controversial incident on the September 14, 1998 episode of Raw where the wrestler Jacqueline had one of her breasts exposed during an evening gown match, which network spokesman David Schwartz described as "not worse than anything you see on broadcast television at that time of night, such as NYPD Blue."[29] USA Network executive Bonnie Hammer, a protege of Diller who was also one of the few USA Network executives to speak out against the plan to cancel Raw,[30][27] worked extensively with head writer Vince Russo in reinventing the World Wrestling Federation.[31]

Notable stars

Stone Cold Steve Austin

Main article: Stone Cold Steve Austin
 
Stone Cold as the WWF Champion in 1999. Austin was widely considered by critics, fans, and the WWF itself to be the face of the Attitude Era.

After Stone Cold Steve Austin won the 1998 Royal Rumble, former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson, who was in attendance at the pay-per-view, made a guest appearance on Raw the following night.[20][21] Tyson, who at the time was still suspended from boxing, was to be introduced as the "Special Guest Enforcer" referee for the championship match at WrestleMania XIV,[32] but Vince McMahon's presentation of Tyson was abruptly interrupted by Austin, who flipped off Tyson, leading to a brief scuffle.[21] In an interview with Austin, head writer Vince Russo described this moment as the start of the Attitude Era.[32] Over the following weeks, Tyson aligned himself with Michaels, Austin's opponent at WrestleMania, and D-Generation X.[32] At WrestleMania, in the closing moments of the match, Tyson counted Austin's pinfall on Michaels.[20][33] Tyson was paid $4 million for his role.[34]

Following his crowning as champion, a long-term storyline pitting Austin and McMahon as rivals began,[21] and it proved pivotal in increasing the WWF's revenues from merchandise sales, arena events, and PPV sales, as well as television ratings.[35][36] Week by week, Austin would regularly have to overcome the odds stacked against him by Mr. McMahon.[21] Austin and McMahon were featured in numerous segments which led to a scheduled match between the duo on April 13, 1998, episode of Raw. Austin and McMahon were going to battle out their differences in an actual match, but the match was declared a no-contest when Mick Foley (Reprising his character Dude Love) interrupted. On that night, Raw defeated Nitro in the television ratings for the first time since June 10, 1996. Austin again wrestled McMahon on February 14, 1999, at St. Valentine's Day Massacre in a steel cage match, which he won when the debuting Big Show accidentally threw him through the cage wall, resulting in Austin earning a WWF title shot at WrestleMania XV, where he defeated The Rock, whom he also defeated in a rematch the following month at Backlash.

Throughout the Austin-McMahon rivalry, McMahon founded two heel factions: The Corporation and The Corporate Ministry. The feud between the two also involved some of the most iconic moments of the Era, including Austin driving a Zamboni to the ring to attack McMahon; Austin visiting and attacking McMahon in a hospital; Austin filling McMahon's Chevrolet Corvette with cement; and Austin driving to the ring in a beer truck and spraying Vince, Shane McMahon, and The Rock with beer.[20][37]

At Fully Loaded in 1999, Vince McMahon added a special stipulation to the scheduled first blood match between The Undertaker and Austin for the WWF Championship. The stipulation was that if Austin won, McMahon would kayfabe step away from the WWF, but if Austin lost, he would never receive a shot at the WWF Championship again. Austin won the match, thus leading to Vince temporarily being banned from the WWF.[38] At Survivor Series, Austin was run down by a car driven by a mystery assailant in the parking lot.[citation needed] This was due to Austin needing to take time away from wrestling because of underlying spinal and neck issues caused by his initial injury at SummerSlam in 1997. Austin then underwent spinal fusion surgery by Dr. Lloyd Youngblood.[39] Austin would not be seen on WWF television (aside from a one-off appearance at Backlash 2000) for nine months.

Upon Austin's return at Unforgiven 2000, he confronted and questioned several superstars, hoping to find his assailant. Rikishi would ultimately admit responsibility for the attack on Austin, claiming the assault was done as a favor per the request of Austin's prior rival, The Rock. Austin faced off against Rikishi at No Mercy, the match ending in a no contest. Austin would go on to win the 2001 Royal Rumble match and face The Rock for the WWF Championship in the main event of WrestleMania X-Seven. At WrestleMania, Austin officially turned heel after aligning with his former rival Vince McMahon and defeated The Rock to regain the WWF Championship.[40][41] During the Invasion storyline, Austin entered a rivalry with Kurt Angle, losing the WWF Championship to him at Unforgiven.

The Rock

Main article: Dwayne Johnson
 
The Rock as the WWF Champion in 2000

Dwayne Johnson, a third-generation wrestler, made his debut at the 1996 Survivor Series as "Rocky Maivia", naming himself after his grandfather Peter Maivia and his father Rocky Johnson. Despite being a babyface with an impressive winning streak and an Intercontinental Championship reign, he was frequently met with negative reception from live audiences, such as loud boos, "Rocky sucks!" chants, and even crowd signs that read "Die Rocky Die". Maivia officially turned heel when he joined the Nation of Domination in late 1997 and renamed himself "The Rock". As a member of the Nation of Domination, The Rock won the Intercontinental title for a second time. The Rock eventually overthrew Faarooq to become the leader of the Nation. After the Nation disbanded in late 1998, The Rock began referring to himself as the "People's Champion" and began to receive the support of the audience, which led Vince McMahon and the Corporation to target him. Survivor Series 1998 marked the first PPV headlined by The Rock. During the final match of a tournament against Mankind to crown a new WWF Champion, a double turn occurred with the help of McMahon, similar to the previous year's Survivor Series, revealing that Rock was working with The Corporation all along, leading to The Rock's victory. The Rock officially joined McMahon as the crown jewel of The Corporation, abandoning his previous moniker as "The People's Champion" and declaring himself "The Corporate Champion".[42]

The Rock had a lengthy feud with Mankind, who won the title on an episode of Raw in January 1999. The reign was short-lived. However, The Rock received his rematch at the 1999 Royal Rumble in an I Quit Match. The Rock won the I Quit Match in a controversial fashion and became the WWF Champion again. A rematch, known as "Half-Time Heat", took place during halftime of that year's Super Bowl, which saw Mankind win the match and the title. The Rock would receive another rematch at St. Valentine's Day Massacre, in a last-man-standing match for the chance to headline WrestleMania XV as the WWF Champion. The bout ended in a draw after both men were unable to stand before the ten count. Despite Mankind being the WWF Champion, he gave The Rock one more shot at the title in a ladder match on Raw. This was their final match, as the Big Show interfered in it and choked Mankind off the ladder, leaving The Rock all by himself and allowing him to win the match and headline WrestleMania XV as the WWF Champion. At WrestleMania XV, The Rock defended the title against the challenger, Stone Cold Steve Austin. Vince McMahon interfered in the match, attacking Stone Cold to try and stop him, but was unsuccessful.[43]

After being fired from the Corporation by Shane McMahon following WrestleMania, The Rock once again declared himself the People's Champion and went on a number of small feuds during the latter part of 1999. During this time, The Rock's popularity began to flourish again, and he aligned with his former rival Mankind to create the tag team, The Rock 'n' Sock Connection. In 1999, The Rock surpassed Stone Cold Steve Austin as the WWF's top babyface star.[44] The team won the WWF Tag Team Championship on an episode of Raw in 1999. After the Rock 'n' Sock connection broke up, The Rock went back into the main event picture of the WWF, battling the likes of Triple H and his stable, the McMahon-Helmsley Regime. Late in the Attitude Era, The Rock faced Stone Cold Steve Austin again at WrestleMania X-Seven in the main event match for the WWF Championship. Austin once again defeated The Rock to regain the title and joined forces with his nemesis Mr. McMahon. Later in 2001, upon his return to the company following a brief hiatus, The Rock would defeat Booker T at SummerSlam to win the WCW Championship, which was now part of the WWF following WWF's purchase of WCW earlier that March.[45] Later that year at Survivor Series, The Rock led Team WWF to victory over Team Alliance as part of the Invasion storyline, by being the sole survivor after last eliminating his rival Austin and celebrated the win with Vince McMahon.[46]

Mick Foley

Main article: Mick Foley
 
Mick Foley

Mick Foley played three different personas during this era: Mankind, Dude Love, and Cactus Jack. While Mankind was his main WWF persona, and Cactus Jack was previously used in his days in WCW, ECW, Japan, and various independent promotions, Dude Love was inspired by a character Foley created when he and his high school friends participated in backyard wrestling in his hometown of Long Island, New York. Foley debuted both Dude Love and Cactus Jack in the WWF in mid-1997, while Mankind debuted at Foley's first-ever WWF event on April 1, 1996, during the Raw after WrestleMania XII. Foley's creative versatility allowed him to create distinct characteristics for each character. The 1998 Hell in a Cell match between Mankind and The Undertaker remains one of the most iconic and memorable Hell in a Cell matches to ever take place, with its level of extreme violence and dangerous spots, such as Mankind getting legitimately knocked unconscious and suffering multiple injuries.

On the January 4, 1999 edition of Raw, Foley won his first WWF Championship, defeating The Rock with the help of Steve Austin.[47][48] This match is regarded as a major turning point of the Monday Night Wars, shifting the ratings permanently in the WWF's favor.[47][48] In 2000, Foley reprised his Cactus Jack persona and was involved in a major rivalry with Triple H over the WWF Championship. At No Way Out, Foley lost to Triple H in a Hell in a Cell match, and as per the stipulation, Foley was forced to retire from full-time competition. Foley would then serve as storyline WWF Commissioner under his real name beginning in the summer of 2000. He lost the position that December after being kayfabe fired onscreen by Mr. McMahon during which he received a brutal beat down.[49][50]

Triple H

Main article: Triple H

At the start of the Attitude Era, following Shawn Michaels' severe back injury and subsequent retirement from wrestling in 1998, Triple H assumed leadership of D-Generation X. At SummerSlam, Triple H defeated The Rock in a ladder match with the help of fellow D-X member Chyna to win the Intercontinental Championship. At WrestleMania XV, Triple H lost to Kane after Chyna interfered on his behalf and seemingly rejoined D-X. Later on in the night, however, Triple H would betray his long-time friend and fellow D-X member X-Pac by helping Shane McMahon retain the European Championship and joined The Corporation, turning heel in the process. In April, he started moving away from his D-X look, taping his fists for matches, sporting new traditional wrestling trunks, and adopting a shorter hairstyle. His gimmick changed as he fought to earn a WWF Championship opportunity, and Triple H began referring to himself in interviews as "The Game".[51] After failed attempts at winning the championship, Triple H, along with Mankind, challenged then-WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin to a triple threat match at SummerSlam, which featured Jesse "The Body" Ventura as the special guest referee. Mankind won the match and the title by pinning Austin.[52] The following night on Raw, Triple H defeated Mankind to win his first WWF Championship.[51] However, he would lose the WWF Championship to Mr. McMahon on the September 16, 1999, episode of SmackDown! before regaining it at Unforgiven in a Six-Pack Challenge that included British Bulldog, Big Show, Kane, The Rock, and Mankind. He defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin at No Mercy before dropping the title to Big Show at Survivor Series. Triple H then continued his feud with Mr. McMahon by marrying his daughter Stephanie McMahon and defeating McMahon at Armageddon, which saw Stephanie betray Vince. As a result of the feud, an angle with Triple H and Stephanie began, which carried the WWF throughout the next seventeen months; together, they were known as The McMahon-Helmsley Regime.[53]

Triple H participated in the Fatal Four-Way Elimination match main event of WrestleMania 2000 with Stephanie at his corner for the WWF Championship, becoming the first heel to win the main event of WrestleMania.[54] He would continue to feud with The Rock in the following months, which included a 60-minute Iron Man match between the duo at Judgment Day, a match Triple H won.[55] However, Triple H would lose the title to The Rock in a Six-Man Tag Team Elimination Match at that year's King of the Ring. Triple H would then be involved in a love triangle with Kurt Angle and Stephanie before revealing himself to be the man who convinced Rikishi to run over Stone Cold Steve Austin the year prior. At the 2001 Royal Rumble, Triple H lost to Angle in a WWF Championship match.[56] Triple H would, unfortunately, suffer a severe quadriceps injury during an episode of Raw in May 2001, which would lead him to be out of action for the rest of the year.

Chyna

Main article: Chyna
 
"The 9th Wonder of the World", Chyna in 1997

Chyna made her WWF debut on February 16, 1997, at In Your House 13: Final Four; her character emerged as a plant from a ringside seat, choking Marlena while Goldust was in the ring with Triple H.[57] Her original role in the promotion was as the stoic enforcer/bodyguard for Triple H and later D-Generation X, which was founded by both Triple H and Shawn Michaels. She often helped them cheat to win by physically interfering in matches by executing her trademark low blow to the groin.[57] She was given the ring name "Chyna", an intentionally ironic moniker; fine china is delicate and fragile, a sharp contrast to her character.[58] Backstage, however, the male wrestlers initially hesitated to let a woman be seen overpowering them on television.[59] Despite this, she would become a prominent member of D-Generation X, and besides competing in the women's division later in her career, she would regularly compete against male wrestlers in intergender matches.

After leaving D-X in 1999, Chyna would be featured in a more prominent role; in addition to regularly wrestling against male wrestlers and becoming a two-time Intercontinental champion, she would also be featured twice on the cover of Playboy,[60] and her autobiography reached number one on The New York Times Best Seller list, the fourth by a wrestler to achieve the feat.[61][62]

Not long after losing the Intercontinental title, Chyna became the on-screen girlfriend of the recently debuted Eddie Guerrero. Originally seen as villains, they became fan favorites during the summer of 2000, with Guerrero dubbing her his "Mamacita".[63] They faced Val Venis and Trish Stratus in an intergender tag team match at SummerSlam with the Intercontinental Championship on the line.[64] Chyna won the match, but lost the belt two weeks later to Guerrero in a Triple Threat match with Kurt Angle.[65] The two officially split in November 2000 after Chyna, in storyline, was shown footage of Eddie cavorting in the shower with two other women.[66] Chyna left the WWF on November 30, 2001, several months after she had been taken off of television.[67]

The Undertaker and Kane

 
The Undertaker and Kane, known together as "The Brothers of Destruction"
Main article: The Brothers of Destruction

At SummerSlam in 1996, The Undertaker became embroiled in a feud with his former manager Paul Bearer. During the course of their conflict, Bearer threatened The Undertaker with the threat of revealing his "secret", calling him a "murderer," and accusing him of killing his parents and brother. In the weeks that followed on Raw, Bearer revealed that Kane was actually still alive and that Bearer had an affair with The Undertaker's mother, which produced Kane, meaning Bearer was Kane's biological father. Kane officially debuted at Badd Blood: In Your House, interfering in the inaugural Hell in a Cell match between Undertaker and Shawn Michaels. Following a series of taunts from Bearer and Kane, who cost him the WWF Championship at the Royal Rumble, Undertaker, who had previously stated that he would never fight his own brother, agreed to face Kane at WrestleMania XIV. The Undertaker won the match at WrestleMania and proceeded to win the first ever Inferno Match the following month at Unforgiven.[68]

Kane then teamed with The Undertaker's rival Mankind, and they won the Tag Team Championship on two occasions. In the interim, Kane would win the WWF Championship from Stone Cold Steve Austin during a First Blood main event match at King of the Ring 1998, which was preceded by a Hell in a Cell match between Mankind and The Undertaker, but Kane lost the title to Austin the following night on Raw. A few weeks later, thanks to the influence of The Undertaker, Kane turned on Mankind. Following the conclusion of this storyline, The Undertaker and Kane united to form a tag team that became known as The Brothers of Destruction.

In late 1998, The Undertaker turned on Kane and realigned himself with Paul Bearer, both wrestlers executing a double turn in the process. Now a heel and proclaiming himself as the "Ministry of Darkness", Undertaker began taking a more macabre and darker persona, claiming that a "plague of evil" was coming to the WWF. During the weeks that followed, he reignited his feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin, whom he blamed for costing him the WWF title. At Rock Bottom: In Your House, Austin defeated the Undertaker in a Buried Alive match with the help of Kane, writing him off of WWF television for a month. As a result, The Corporation had Kane committed to an insane asylum. Kane was then forced to join The Corporation in order to stay out of the insane asylum. He was later betrayed by them and thrown out of the faction.

The Undertaker and Kane briefly reformed The Brothers of Destruction in the summer of 2000; at this time, Undertaker had recently taken on the "American Badass" biker persona instead of the satanic character he had portrayed previously. Now faces, the two challenged then-Tag Team Champions Edge and Christian for the titles on an episode of Raw, but due to interference from Kurt Angle, they were disqualified, meaning they didn't win the titles. On the August 14 episode of Raw, Undertaker faced Chris Benoit in a match where Kane turned heel on Undertaker by chokeslamming him through the ring, and the two feuded with each other once again. This culminated in a match at SummerSlam, which resulted in a no contest when Undertaker unmasked Kane, causing him to flee the ring.[69]

Kurt Angle

 
Kurt Angle at the King of the Ring 2000
Main article: Kurt Angle

Kurt Angle, the 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist, debuted at the 1999 Survivor Series as a heel who opposed the society and culture of the Attitude Era. Citing his "three I's"; Intensity, Integrity, and Intelligence, Angle would hypocritically chastise crowds each week to the crowd's disapproval. Angle would carry an undefeated streak until losing in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to The Rock on the January 31, 2000 edition episode of Raw. Angle would go on to win the European and Intercontinental championships, holding both titles simultaneously and dubbing himself the "Eurocontinental" champion. Angle lost both the Intercontinental and European championships in a two-fall triple threat match to Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho, respectively, without losing a single fall. Angle would go on to win the 2000 King of the Ring tournament and be crowned the 2000 King of the Ring.

Kurt Angle would then be involved in a love triangle with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon during the summer of 2000, stemming from interactions between Angle and McMahon beginning in December 1999. This would lead to Angle's first PPV main event, where he would face The Rock and Triple H for the WWF Championship at SummerSlam. Following the love triangle, Kurt Angle defeated The Rock to win his first WWF Championship at No Mercy. Kurt Angle successfully defended the WWF Championship in the first and only 6-man Hell in a Cell match at Armagedddon that included The Rock, Stone Cold, Triple H, The Undertaker, and Rikishi. In February 2001, Angle would lose the WWF Championship back to The Rock at No Way Out.

Kurt Angle is cited as having the greatest rookie year of not only the Attitude Era but in WWE history, quickly becoming a main star. At Unforgiven in 2001, Kurt Angle defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin to win his second WWF Championship.[70]

Stables

D-Generation X

 
Chyna (right) acted as an enforcer for Triple H (left) and Michaels in 1997, then remained allied with the larger incarnation of the stable until 1999

D-Generation X officially formed on August 11, 1997, edition of Raw after Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Chyna, and Rick Rude helped Shawn Michaels win his main event match against Mankind. The night after WrestleMania XIV, Shawn Michaels began a four-year hiatus from in-ring wrestling to recuperate from a severe back injury. Triple H cut a promo claiming that he was taking over D-Generation X and had ejected the absent Michaels for "dropping the ball" after losing the WWF Championship the previous night. Triple H would then recruit the New Age Outlaws ("Road Dogg" Jesse James and "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn) and X-Pac. On April 28, 1998, WCW's Nitro event was held at the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia, while Raw was held nearby at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. With the ongoing war between WWF and WCW, D-X was sent to initiate an immediate "invasion" of Nitro, driving in an army Jeep and challenging WCW head Eric Bischoff. Soon after, D-X appeared at CNN Center (as well as WCW's stand-alone Atlanta offices) to call out WCW owner Ted Turner. The stable's popularity continued to rapidly grow, and they were eventually pushed as antihero fan favorites, much like Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock.

On the November 6, 2000, episode of Raw, Chyna, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, and Triple H, as part of D-Generation X, took on The Radicalz (Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn) in an eight-person tag team match, which D-X won. This would be their final match while united in the Era, after which Triple H and Chyna began receiving their own singles pushes while the others fell into the mid and lower cards.[71]

The Corporation

Main article: The Corporation (professional wrestling)

In 1998, storylines involving Mr. McMahon struggling to maintain order within the WWF led to the creation of a new faction, the Corporation. The Corporation was officially formed on November 16, 1998, [72] when Shane and Vince McMahon along with Big Boss Man, Sgt. Slaughter Pat Patterson, Gerald Brisco, and The Rock joined forces. The faction would feud heavily with Stone Cold, D-Generation X, and later the Ministry of Darkness, the latter of which would lead to an eventual merge. The merger would lead to the creation of the Corporate Ministry, a mega-faction led by Shane McMahon and The Undertaker, as well as suffering defections with the creation of the short-lived Union.

Ministry of Darkness

Main article: Ministry of Darkness

Upon his return, The Undertaker introduced his Ministry of Darkness, a satanic-themed stable which would consist of The Acolytes (Faarooq and Bradshaw), Mideon, Viscera and The Brood (Edge, Christian, and Gangrel). The storyline continued over the weeks that followed, as Undertaker announced his intentions of taking over the WWF and claimed he was working for a "higher power". He began a feud with Vince McMahon and his daughter Stephanie, with the Ministry burning Undertaker's symbol in the McMahon family yard. At Backlash: In Your House, The Undertaker kidnapped Stephanie and attempted to marry her to Undertaker the next night on Raw by holding a "Black Wedding". The ceremony was successfully ruined by Steve Austin after two attempts by former Corporation members Big Show, and Ken Shamrock failed. The Ministry would later merge with the Corporation, forming the Corporate Ministry, which would be involved with most major storylines until July, when they would disband.

The women's division

The original Divas

 
Sable during a WWF tour in England in April 1998. She was the first WWF female wrestler to refer to herself as a Diva.

In August 1995, WWF debuted Tammy Lynn Sytch as "Sunny". According to the Toronto Sun, she was able to use "sex appeal, looks and serious wrestling moves" to become famous beyond wrestling,[73] and was named by AOL as the "most downloaded woman of the year".[74] Rena Mero made her WWF debut at WrestleMania XII in March 1996; using the name "Sable", she escorted Hunter Hearst Helmsley to the ring when he faced The Ultimate Warrior, and her first major angle involved her then real-life husband "Wildman" Marc Mero. Sable quickly eclipsed both her husband and Sunny in popularity, first leading to her becoming an in-ring performer,[75] and later to the reinstatement of the WWF Women's Championship.[76] Sable would become the first WWF female to refer to herself as a "Diva";[76] the term would be coined and shortly thereafter became the official title for WWF's female performers. The use of Sable as an on-screen character was increasingly sexual, including competing in the first "bikini contest" against Jacqueline at Fully Loaded: In Your House.[76] Her on-screen popularity resulted in her breaking through into mainstream pop culture, becoming the first wrestler to appear on the cover of Playboy.[76] Sable was considered the "blonde bombshell", the usage of Sable's appealing appearance to draw more male viewers reignited the interest in the women's division [77] and wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer has described her as a "huge ratings draw".[78] Sable later said that it was written into her contract that she was not allowed to take bumps.[79]

The Sable character would eventually be transitioned into a heel,[80] and soon after the relationship between the WWF and Mero would break down, with Mero filing a $110 million lawsuit, saying that the WWF had become increasingly "obscene, titillating, vulgar and unsafe", and alleged that she was asked to perform in lesbian storylines, as well as being requested to strip on live television.[81] Sable's rise in popularity was repeated by Chyna, who would be featured in a more prominent role; in addition to regularly wrestling against male wrestlers and becoming a two-time Intercontinental Champion, she would also be featured twice on the cover of Playboy,[60] and her autobiography reached number one on The New York Times Best Seller list, the fourth by a wrestler to achieve the feat.[61][62]

Lita and Trish

Lita made her WWF debut as a valet for Essa Rios on the February 13, 2000, episode of Sunday Night Heat, where Rios won the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship from Gillberg.[82] During the match, Lita captured the attention of the fans and viewers by mimicking Rios' moves, notably the moonsault and hurricanrana.[82] Lita eventually left Rios' side and allied with The Hardy Boyz, and the trio formed a stable known as Team Xtreme. As a member of Team Xtreme, Lita developed a more "alternative" image,[82] and her popularity greatly increased.[83]

In June 2000, the trio began a storyline with T & A(Test and Albert), with Lita engaging in a rivalry with their manager, Trish Stratus.[84] Lita also began a concurrent feud with WWF Women's Champion Stephanie McMahon, who was promoted at the time as being one of the biggest stars in the company.[85] On the August 21, 2000 episode of Raw, Lita defeated McMahon for the Women's Championship, her first championship win.[86] McMahon would later describe the moment as an "incredible privilege".[87] In 2001, Stratus and McMahon took part in their own storyline revolving around Stephanie's father Vince; Stratus later noted that the female performers had moved from being on the side of storylines to being a "viable part of the program".[88]

Defections from WCW

Chris Jericho

Frustrated over WCW's refusal to allow him to wrestle Goldberg, as well as various other issues, Chris Jericho left WCW and signed with the WWF on June 30, 1999. On the August 9 episode of Raw, he officially made his debut, referring to himself as "Y2J" (a play on the Y2K frenzy) and began feuds with The Rock, Chyna, Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit while capturing the Intercontinental and European championships on several occasions in the era. On the April 17, 2000 episode of Raw, Jericho defeated Triple H to seemingly win the WWF Championship, but the decision was reversed by referee Earl Hebner under pressure from Triple H. Therefore, the company does not officially recognize Jericho's supposed title reign. Jericho continued to feud with Triple H throughout 2000, leading to a Last Man Standing match at Fully Loaded, which Triple H won. Jericho would maintain a prominent spot on the roster, becoming a fixture in both the mid-card and upper-card. Jericho would go on to defeat Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock on the same night at Vengeance 2001, becoming the first Undisputed WWF Champion in the process.[89] In the main event of WrestleMania X8, Jericho lost the Undisputed WWF Championship to Triple H.[90]

Other notable defectors

Many other WCW wrestlers, who were unhappy with the disorganization, backstage environment, and workplace politics of the promotion, jumped ship to the WWF. The first high-profile acquisition was Paul Wight, who had previously wrestled as "The Giant" in WCW since 1995. Wight allowed his WCW contract to expire on February 8, 1999, when Eric Bischoff denied his request for a pay increase.[91] He signed with the WWF the next day and debuted at St. Valentine's Day Massacre: In Your House as "The Big Show" Paul Wight, Mr. McMahon's enforcer in The Corporation. At Survivor Series in November 1999, The Big Show defeated The Rock and Triple H in a triple threat match to win the WWF Championship.[92]

In January 2000, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn left WCW for the WWF. Benoit had just defeated Sid Vicious for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at Souled Out 2000 on January 17, but the decision was reversed after disputes with WCW management. The quartet made their television debut on the January 31 episode of Raw as audience members and backstage guests of Mick Foley before attacking the New Age Outlaws. They were offered a chance to "win" contracts by defeating members of D-Generation X in a series of three matches. Despite losing all three matches, they were given WWF contracts by Triple H in exchange for betraying Foley. The quartet became known as The Radicalz.

Increase in violent content

Hardcore division

See also: WWE Hardcore Championship

Brawling in places outside the ring was a staple feature of the Attitude Era, and on November 2, 1998, the Hardcore Championship was introduced when Mr. McMahon gifted Mankind the championship belt.[93] Hardcore matches were no-disqualification, no-count-out, falls count anywhere matches, involving a variety of weapons. Wrestlers would often take their matches outside the ring into other parts of the arena and occasionally outside the arena.[94] Frequent participants in the Hardcore division included Al Snow, Crash Holly, Steve Blackman, and Raven. Raven was the most successful wrestler in this division, winning the championship on 27 separate occasions. Another stipulation was introduced when Crash won the belt, known as the "24/7 rule", meaning the belt was to be defended any place, at any time of day, so long as a referee was present.[94] This rule has allowed the shortest title reigns and quickest title changes in the company's history, and four women have held the Hardcore Championship: Molly Holly (as Mighty Molly), Trish Stratus, Terri Runnels, and one of The Godfather's hos.[94] For the first time, the Hardcore Championship was contested in a ladder match in 2001 at SummerSlam where Rob Van Dam defeated Jeff Hardy. When the Attitude Era ended, the championship was retired and unified with the Intercontinental Championship on August 26, 2002, after Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam defeated Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer, unifying the titles.[93][94]

Tables, ladders, and chairs matches

While members of "The New Brood", The Hardy Boyz faced off against Edge & Christian (the original Brood) in the first-ever tag team ladder match, the final match of the "Terri Invitational Tournament" at No Mercy in October 1999. The Hardys won the match and subsequently the services of Terri Runnels as their manager. During this time, the Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von) debuted in the summer of 1999 following their departure from ECW. They were initially villains and were largely responsible for popularizing the use of wooden tables as weapons in professional wrestling. Bubba Ray, in particular, became notorious for putting women through tables, including Mae Young.[95] In January 2000, the Dudleys faced off against The Hardy Boyz in the first-ever tag team Table match at the Royal Rumble, which the Hardys won.

Eventually, the three teams were brought together in a chaotic triangle ladder match at WrestleMania 2000 for the WWF Tag Team Championship. Edge and Christian won the match and the titles, and this would be the first of several matches involving the three tag teams. Edge and Christian soon developed the "con-chair-to" (a play on the word "concerto") finishing move, which involved the two hitting an opponent's head simultaneously, on opposite sides, with steel chairs (which simulated the clashing of cymbals). This led to then-WWF Commissioner Mick Foley to make the first-ever Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match (TLC) at SummerSlam in August 2000, also won by Edge and Christian. The following year, a second TLC match, dubbed "TLC II", occurred at WrestleMania X-Seven and is widely regarded as one of the greatest wrestling matches of all time. This match, which Edge and Christian yet again won, also featured interference from Rhyno, the lackey of Edge and Christian; Spike Dudley, the half-brother of Bubba Ray and D-Von; and Lita, the stable mate of Matt and Jeff Hardy.

Backlash against content

In late 1999, Parents Television Council (PTC) founder L. Brent Bozell III began a campaign to pressure companies to pull advertising from WWF programming,[96] due to the content becoming characterized by "cheap sex, vulgarity and violence of the most sadistic sort".[97] Many Fortune 500 companies had been keen to associate themselves with the WWF due to their transformation into "theater-in-the-round redone as 'roid rage, jam-packed with charismatic, monumental players, prime-time-worthy production values, and labyrinthine plot machinations".[98] Having lost several advertisers,[99] the campaign forced the WWF to change the content portrayed on their programming, in particular SmackDown,[100] with McMahon saying that there would be "less aggression, less-colorful language, less sexuality", and controversial characters would be appearing less frequently.[101]

The following year, WWF filed a lawsuit against the PTC, claiming they had used threats and lies to drive advertisers away.[102] The PTC accused the WWF of being responsible for several young children's deaths, including that of six-year-old Tiffany Eunick by Lionel Tate,[103] for which Dwayne Johnson received a subpoena to testify in 1998.[104] Shortly before filing the lawsuit, WWF and McMahon had begun a storyline where wrestler Stevie Richards, changed his name to Steven Richards and began attempting to "clean up" the company, forming the "Right to Censor" stable, eventually adding characters previously portraying a pimp (The Godfather) and a porn actor (Val Venis).[105]

In 2001, federal judge Denny Chin threw out a motion put forth by the PTC in an attempt to have the charges dismissed,[106] and the following year the WWF was awarded damages of $3.5 million, and Bozell apologized for the accusations made.[107] In 2001, international broadcaster Channel 4, who aired WWF programming in the United Kingdom, declined to renew their contract, citing the concern of the "increasingly extreme nature" of the programs.[108] This followed Channel 4 being told by the Independent Television Commission earlier in the year that they were wrong to air a violent scene involving a sledgehammer.[109] In Ireland, the Irish Film Classification Office banned 13 home video releases from a possible 70 over a three-year period, with age restrictions on 55 of the 70.[110]

End of the era

Departures of Vince Russo, Ed Ferrara, and Chris Kreski

On October 3, 1999, Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara abruptly left the WWF and signed with WCW;[111] Russo contends that his reason for leaving the WWF was the result of a dispute with Vince McMahon over the increased workload caused by the introduction of the new SmackDown! broadcast and McMahon's disregard of Russo's family. Vince Russo is credited with inventing the "Crash TV" format of shorter story based TV matches with no matches going into commercial, No matches would go over 8 minutes except a main event, and skit-heavy, personal reality-based television took stories and rivalries beyond the scope of an arena, which led to peak cable television ratings and profitability for the WWF.[112] However, the WCW fanbase, which consisted mainly of rural, older traditional wrestling fans from the Southern States, did not welcome Russo's "Crash TV" formula in their programming and almost entirely stopped watching it altogether.[113]

Following the departures of Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara, Chris Kreski would take over the position as head writer of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).[114] Kreski was later replaced as head writer by Stephanie McMahon following October's No Mercy PPV 2000 event,[115] but remained on the creative team until 2002, when he left to pursue other opportunities.[114]

Closure of WCW and ECW

In January 2001, AOL Time Warner announced they were to sell WCW to a group of investors called Fusient Media Ventures, with the provision that they would continue television broadcasts on TNT.[116][117] However, in March, AOL Time Warner announced that they would be ending the broadcasting of professional wrestling across their Turner networks,[118] causing the abrupt end of the sale. Later that week, it was announced that the WWF had purchased the remaining assets and select contracts of WCW[119] from AOL Time Warner for a number reported to be around $7 million,[120] putting an official end to the Monday Night Wars.[121] Linda McMahon stated that the purchase had great cross-brand potential,[122] and described it as the "perfect creative and business catalyst for our company".[123] Paul Levesque attributed WCW's downfall to a lack of respect, and that WWF would continue to be successful despite the end of the rivalry.[124] The end of WCW was followed in April 2001 by ECW filing for bankruptcy;[125] ushering in the Invasion storyline. In 2003, ECW and its assets were purchased by WWE.[126]

WrestleMania X-Seven, Stone Cold's heel turn, and departure of The Rock

Main article: WrestleMania X-Seven

On April 1, 2001, WrestleMania X-Seven took place and is generally considered as the other main catalyst to the eventual decline of the Attitude Era. The final match of the night was the WWF Championship match between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin, which had a surprise no disqualification stipulation added just minutes before the superstars were introduced. During the match, the two brawled inside and outside of the ring, with both men bleeding after hitting each other with the ring bell. The Rock attempted to place Austin in a Sharpshooter hold, but Austin reversed it into a Sharpshooter of his own. After Rock reached the ropes to force a break, Austin applied the Million Dollar Dream, a submission holds best known from his former gimmick, The Ringmaster. Shortly after, Rock used Austin's own finishing maneuver on Austin by executing a Stunner. Vince McMahon then came to ringside to observe the match. When Rock tried to pin Austin after the People's Elbow, McMahon seized Rock's leg and pulled him off Austin, breaking the pin attempt. After chasing McMahon around the ring, Austin responded by using Rock's signature move, the Rock Bottom. Later, Rock executed a Rock Bottom for a near fall. After Rock attacked McMahon, he was given a Stunner by Austin for a near fall. After Rock kicked out of the Stunner, McMahon handed Austin a steel chair to hit Rock with at Austin's request, revealing that Austin had sided with McMahon, a man he once considered his nemesis. With this, Austin turned heel. Austin attacked him with the steel chair, hitting him sixteen times before pinning him and becoming the new WWF Champion. The show ended with Austin and McMahon shaking hands and sharing beers.

Following the April 2, 2001 edition of Raw is War, The Rock departed on hiatus from the WWF to film The Mummy Returns as his character, the Scorpion King. The combination of Austin's heel turn, which had a very mixed reception from fans, along with the departure of The Rock and the closing of WCW, effectively ended the boom period.

The Invasion and aftermath

Main articles: The Invasion (professional wrestling) and New World Order (professional wrestling)
 
Kevin Nash was a key member of nWo

In the Invasion storyline, Shane McMahon (kayfabe) acquired World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in March 2001, and WCW personnel invaded WWF. For the first time since the Monday Night Wars, WWF's purchase of WCW had made a major American inter-promotional feud possible, but the Invasion turned out to be a disappointment to many fans. One main reason would be that many of WCW's big-name stars were still under contract to WCW's old parent company, AOL Time Warner, rather than WCW itself, and their contracts were not included in the purchase of the company. Although these wrestlers could, in theory, choose to sign and appear with the WWF, they instead chose to sit out the duration of their contracts and be financially supported by AOL Time Warner rather than work for WWF for a cheaper salary. These names included Goldberg, Sting, Scott Steiner, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Hulk Hogan, and Ric Flair.

On July 9, 2001, the stars of WCW and Extreme Championship Wrestling (acquired by Stephanie McMahon in a related storyline) joined forces, forming The Alliance with WCW owner Shane McMahon and the new owner of ECW Stephanie McMahon leading the charge, with the support and influence of original ECW owner Paul Heyman. At Invasion, Stone Cold Steve Austin turned on the WWF and helped the Alliance win the Inaugural Brawl.[127] At Survivor Series, WWF finally defeated WCW and ECW in a "Winner Takes All" match, and the angle was concluded. In the aftermath of the Invasion angle, WWF made several major changes to their product. Ric Flair returned to the WWF as "co-owner" of the company, feuding with Vince McMahon. Jerry Lawler returned to the company after a nine-month hiatus after his replacement on commentary, Paul Heyman, was fired on-screen by Vince McMahon. Several former Alliance stars were absorbed into the regular WWF roster, such as Booker T, The Hurricane, Lance Storm, and Rob Van Dam. At Vengeance 2001, Chris Jericho went on to unify the WCW Championship and WWF Championship, beating both The Rock and Steve Austin on the same night.[128]

Eventually, Vince McMahon brought back Hollywood Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, and Scott Hall to reunite the nWo at the No Way Out pay-per-view in February 2002. However, Hogan proved to be too popular with nostalgic fans yearning for the return of "Hulkamania" and soon turned face at WrestleMania X8 after his classic match with The Rock, which The Rock won.

Raw Is War name change

In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks and the upcoming United States invasion of Afghanistan in response weeks later, the WWF changed Raw is War back to simply Raw on October 1, 2001, to remove the reference to war and to signify that the Monday Night Wars were indeed over after WWF purchased WCW back in March. As a result, the second hour of War Zone was renamed Raw Zone to coincide with the dropping of the "War" line.

Brand extension and WWF draft lottery

Main articles: WWE brand extension, WWE draft, and 2002 WWF draft lottery

With an excess of talent employed as a result of having purchased WCW and later ECW, the WWF needed a way to provide exposure for all of its talent. This problem was solved by introducing a "brand extension", with the roster split in half and the talent assigned to either Raw or SmackDown! in a mock draft lottery held on the March 25, 2002, edition of Raw. Wrestlers, commentators, and referees became show-exclusive, and the shows were given separate on-screen General Managers. The brand extension came into effect on April 1, 2002. Later in 2002, after WWE Champion Brock Lesnar announced himself as the exclusive property of the SmackDown! brand and with the creation of the World Heavyweight Championship, all the championships became show-exclusive as well. Additionally, both Raw and SmackDown! began to stage individual bi-monthly pay-per-view events featuring only performers from that brand – only the major four pay-per-views Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Survivor Series remained dual-branded.[citation needed] The practice of single-brand pay-per-view events was abandoned following WrestleMania 23.[129] In effect, Raw and SmackDown! were operated as two distinct promotions, with a draft lottery taking place each year to determine which talent was assigned to each brand. The first draft was held to determine the inaugural split rosters, while subsequent drafts were designed to refresh the rosters of each show. This lasted until August 2011, when the rosters were merged, and the Brand Extension was quietly phased out.[130]

Rebranding to WWE and the Ruthless Aggression Era

The company officially ceased its "Attitude" promotion on May 6, 2002, when the usage of the initials "WWF" became prohibited as the result of a legal battle between the company and the World Wildlife Fund.[131] World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. officially became World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) and replaced its old logo with a new "scratch" logo with only the double "W" and a red scar underneath.[2]

A month later, on June 10, 2002, Stone Cold Steve Austin failed to appear on that night's episode of Raw and was effectively released from the company; similar events had allegedly taken place in the weeks following WrestleMania X8 stemming from Austin's frustration with his character's direction.[132]

Because of the trademark ruling, the company transitioned into its Ruthless Aggression Era on May 6, 2002,[133] and on the June 24 showing of Raw, Vince McMahon officially named the new era as such to motivate the younger roster. The Ruthless Aggression Era featured many elements of the Attitude Era, including similar levels of violence, sexual content, and profanity. However, a greater emphasis on wrestling was showcased.[134]

Media

Home video

On November 20, 2012, a three-disc documentary set simply entitled The Attitude Era was released on DVD and Blu-ray. The video cover is a collage of WWF Superstars and celebrities of that era, designed as a parody of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover.[135][136] Volume 2 was released in November 2014. Volume 3 was released on August 9, 2016. Volume 4, 1997: Dawn of the Attitude, was released on October 3, 2017. Volume 5, Best of 1996: Prelude to Attitude, was released on November 29, 2021.

Video games

Many video games were released by WWF based on the Attitude Era, with some of the most notable titles being WWF War Zone, WWF Attitude, WWF WrestleMania 2000, WWF No Mercy, WWF Royal Rumble, WWF SmackDown!, WWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role, WWF SmackDown! Just Bring It, WWF Raw and WWE WrestleMania X8.

A video game entitled WWE '13, which was released in October 2012, paid tribute to the era with its "Attitude Era" mode, which allows the player to re-enact WWF matches and storytelling from SummerSlam in August 1997 to WrestleMania XV in March 1999. Also, in WWE '13, there is an "Off Script", including the debut of Smackdown! in April 1999 to the match between Trish Stratus and Lita on Monday Night Raw in November 2001. The video game first entitled WWE 2K14 featured some of the four WrestleMania matches based on the Attitude Era as well, with WrestleMania XIV and XV having previously appeared in WWE Legends of WrestleMania prior to their appearances in WWE '13 and WWE 2K14. The video game entitled WWE 2K16 featured some events of the Attitude Era specifically related to Stone Cold Steve Austin, who was also on the game's cover.

Music

In 1998, the WWF released WWF The Music, Volume 3, which achieved platinum status in the United States, signifying one million sales,[137][138] while WWF The Music, Volume 4 reached number five in the Canadian Albums Chart in 1999.[139] Following this, WWF and their composer Jim Johnston would collaborate with mainstream hip hop and rock musicians for albums,[139] and Johnston would often hand-pick artists to work with on new theme songs with WWF Aggression album in 2000.[140] In 2001, WWF The Music, Vol. 5 reached number two on the Billboard 200 and number five in the Canadian and UK Albums Chart.[141]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "First WWF Attitude promo at Survivor Series 1997". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b c "World Wrestling Federation Entertainment drops the 'F'!". WWE. May 6, 2002.
  3. ^ Hau Chu (December 18, 2015). "Where are they now? WWE Attitude Era superstars". New York Daily News.
  4. ^ Mueller, The Doctor Chris. "Power Ranking Stone Cold Steve Austin's 6 WWE Championship Victories". Bleacher Report.
  5. ^ "Bruce Prichard Says Attitude Era Women Were Mostly Comfortable With Bra & Panties Matches, Says They Wanted to 'Show Off Their Body'". 411mania.com.
  6. ^ "10 WCW Stars That Walked Out On The Company (And Why They Did It)".
  7. ^ "From Federation to Entertainment, WWE's Journey is Mirrored in Wrestling Games". NDTV Gadgets 360.
  8. ^ Kilbane, Lyle (7 May 2021). "Shawn Michaels On Wanting The Attitude Era 3 Years Before It Happened". Inside The Ropes. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  9. ^ a b Sinclair, Paul (24 March 2021). "Vince Russo Reveals His Biggest Wrestling Regret". Inside The Ropes. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  10. ^ "Ed Ferrara". April 28, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  11. ^ Talbot, Jordan (24 May 2021). "Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara – 3 Months of Power in WCW". Pro Wrestling Stories. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  12. ^ Bachman, Justin (9 April 2000). "WCW Looks To Get Off the Mat". Associated Press. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  13. ^ "Vince Russo On Biggest Misconceptions About Him, Origin of The Attitude Era, Who WWE Writers Write For Today". January 7, 2018. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  14. ^ Irel, Rob (September 20, 2018). "Goldust – How The Bizarre One Tried to Get Breast Implants". Pro Wrestling Stories.
  15. ^ "Goldust Believes He Helped Launch WWE's Attitude Era Over 20 Years Ago". October 26, 2017.
  16. ^ Tierney, John (September 23, 1999). "Take Wrestling. Seriously". The New York Times. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
  17. ^ "Keller on Stacy, Bret swearing, Tekno Team, WM8 Sid-Hogan, Flair-Savage, TNA". www.pwtorch.com.
  18. ^ ""Stone Cold" Steve Austin".
  19. ^ "The 15 greatest T-shirts in wrestling history". WWE.
  20. ^ a b c d e Bonzagni, Michael; Williams, Matthew (16 March 2020). "It's Stone Cold Steve Austin Day: The moments that made 'Austin 3:16' iconic". ESPN. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  21. ^ a b c d e Hammond, Scott (26 April 2019). "Austin Vs McMahon: The Greatest Rivalry In History". VultureHound. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  22. ^ WWE: Greatest Rivalries – Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart
  23. ^ Brock Allen (November 9, 2017). "Throwback Thursday: WWF Survivor Series 1997 (20 Years Ago Today!), As Seen on WWE Network". Wrestling DVD Network.
  24. ^ Quinones, Eric R. (October 20, 1997). "Barry Diller taking over USA Network and other Universal TV businesses". Associated Press. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  25. ^ Fabrikantpublisher=New York Times, Geraldine (February 15, 1998). "Barry Diller, Media Titan, Wants a Shot at the Small Time". Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  26. ^ Hofmeister, Sallie (April 10, 1998). "USA Networks CEO Kay Koplovitz Resigns". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  27. ^ a b Assael, Shaun; Mike Mooneyham, Mike (February 2004). "Sex, Lies, and Headlocks: The Real Story of Vince Mcmahon and World Wrestling Entertainment". The Crown Publishing Group. p. 188. ISBN 9780307758132. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  28. ^ "Pro Wrestling a Darling of Teen-Age Boys and Cable TV". Bloomberg News. November 11, 1998. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  29. ^ a b Alex Marvez, Scripps Howard News Service (September 18, 1998). "Nudity episode brings remorse from McMahon". South Coast Today. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  30. ^ Lieberman, David (2014-09-15). "Bonnie Hammer Re-Teams With Mentor Barry Diller On IAC Board". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  31. ^ "Spike TV Executive Responds To Vince Russo, Talks Spike Helping TNA In The Past". Wrestling Inc.
  32. ^ a b c Tennant, Matt (29 November 2020). "Stone Cold Steve Austin Gives The Bottom Line On Working With Mike Tyson". Inside The Ropes. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  33. ^ Cole, Glenn (March 30, 1998). "Stone Cold and Tyson stun Michaels". Slam Sports. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
  34. ^ Smith, Timothy W. (February 6, 1998). "Tyson Confirms a Split With His Two Managers". The New York Times. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
  35. ^ Lieberman, Paul (15 November 1998). "The Ultimate Grudge Match". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  36. ^ Schone, Mark (1 December 1998). "The Steel-Cage, No-Holds-Barred, Cable-Ratings Death Match". Spin. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  37. ^ Beaston, Erik (29 July 2017). "Stone Cold Steve Austin's Best, Worst and Most Outrageous Moments in WWE Career". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  38. ^ "WWF Fully Loaded".
  39. ^ Shoop, Stephen A; Falcon, Mike (December 14, 1999). "Piledriver slams Austin into surgery". USA Today. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  40. ^ Powell, John (April 2, 2001). "Austin turns heel at WM X-Seven". Slam Sports. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  41. ^ "WWF WrestleMania 17 Results - 4/1/01 (The Rock vs. Stone Cold II, Undertaker vs. Triple H) -". 20 August 2020.
  42. ^ "411Mania".
  43. ^ "From the Bowery: WrestleMania X-Seven". 411mania.com.
  44. ^ Brown, Blackjack (7 November 1999). "WWF mulls changing 'Stone Cold' into a heel". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 1 December 2021 – via newsbank.com. The major news around the wrestling world recently has been the World Wrestling Federation's idea of possibly turning "Stone Cold" Steve Austin into a heel. Austin's popularity has been diminishing during the last few months, and The Rock clearly has become the No. 1 man in the organization. The problem the WWF has with turning Austin into a heel is that he has no friends and does not associate himself with anyone. Pitting him against honcho Vince McMahon again would not work because the fans would turn on McMahon. The only solution for the WWF is to put Austin with Hunter Hearst Helmsley in Degeneration X. The WWF's hope is to have Austin face The Rock at WrestleMania next April.
  45. ^ "The SmarK Retro Repost – Summerslam 2001". 411mania.com.
  46. ^ "WWE Survivor Series". www.prowrestlinghistory.com.
  47. ^ a b Lake, Jefferson (7 January 2019). "Mick Foley says 1999 WWF title win on Raw was a 'mistake' by company". Sky Sports. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  48. ^ a b Dilbert, Ryan (30 December 2017). "Mick Foley's 1st WWE Championship Win a Reminder of When Raw Was at Its Best". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  49. ^ "PPV Lookback – WWF No Way Out (2000): Cactus Jack vs. Triple H, Angle vs. Jericho, Rock vs. Big Show, Kane vs. X-Pac". 10 March 2017.
  50. ^ "Mick Foley Reveals Why He Didn't Face Vince McMahon at WWE WrestleMania 17". 30 March 2021.
  51. ^ a b "Examining Triple H's Influence 19 Years After 1st WWE Championship Win". Bleacher Report.
  52. ^ Pro Wrestling Illustrated presents 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. "Wrestling's historical cards" (p.104)
  53. ^ Baer, Randy, and R. D. Reynolds. Wrestlecrap: The Very Worst of Pro Wrestling (p.257)
  54. ^ Curran, Robert (4 April 2020). "WrestleMania 2000 Was WWE's Weirdest Big Show Ever (So Far)". CBR. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  55. ^ "Kevin's Random Reviews: WWF Judgment Day 2000 – Triple H vs. The Rock". 411mania.com.
  56. ^ "The SmarK Rant For WWF Royal Rumble 2001". 411mania.com.
  57. ^ a b Laurer, Joanie. If They Only Knew, 259, 269.
  58. ^ Laurer, Joanie. If They Only Knew, 289.
  59. ^ Laurer, Joanie. If They Only Knew, 274.
  60. ^ a b Oppenheim, Maya (21 April 2016). "Chyna dead: Five surprising facts about the WWE legend's action-packed life". The Independent. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  61. ^ a b Varsallone, Jim (29 January 2001). "Chyna's done it her way". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  62. ^ a b Campbell, Duncan (8 July 2001). "Enter the dragon". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  63. ^ Laurer, Joanie. If They Only Knew, 7–8.
  64. ^ Powell, John (August 28, 2000). . SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from the original on July 23, 2020. Retrieved August 8, 2008.
  65. ^ . World Wrestling Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 21, 2008. Retrieved August 8, 2008.
  66. ^ Milner, John (October 13, 2004). "Eddie Guerrero". SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved August 8, 2008.
  67. ^ "Chyna's profile". Online World of Wrestling. from the original on April 5, 2008. Retrieved August 9, 2008.
  68. ^ "411Mania".
  69. ^ "Summer Slam 2000".
  70. ^ "Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship". World Wrestling Entertainment. September 23, 2001. Retrieved September 17, 2010.
  71. ^ . Online World of Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2008-06-07. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
  72. ^ "WWE Raw - Show #097". TV.com. November 16, 1998.
  73. ^ Hunter, Brad (24 May 2021). "Porn to Prison: The rocky life of WWE diva Sunny". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  74. ^ Khal (1 December 2015). "Classic WWE Divas: Where Are They Now?". Complex. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  75. ^ Wedlan, Candace A. (5 July 1999). "She's Got a Lock on Roles in and Out of Ring". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  76. ^ a b c d Beaston, Erik (26 March 2014). "Full Career Retrospective and Greatest Moments for Sable". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  77. ^ "Wrestling Queen: 'A Sport Run Amok'".
  78. ^ Van Boom, Daniel (31 October 2016). "Two women just changed pro wrestling forever". CNET. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  79. ^ Oliver, Greg (11 January 1999). "Sable looks beyond wrestling". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  80. ^ Byrne, Bridget (5 June 1999). "Sable: Sexism, Hazards, Rage Rule WWF". E!. NBCUniversal. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  81. ^ "Wrestling Star Sues WWF". Associated Press. 4 June 1999. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  82. ^ a b c Beaston, Erik (5 December 2013). "Full Career Retrospective and Greatest Moments for Lita". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  83. ^ Laroche, Stephen (14 February 2001). "Lita riding wave of popularity". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  84. ^ "Lita's Alumni Profile". WWE.com. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  85. ^ Canton, John (26 August 2020). "TJR Retro: WWF Raw Deal 08/21/00 Review (Lita vs. Stephanie McMahon Main Event)". TJR Wrestling. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  86. ^ Beaston, Erik (24 September 2019). "Celebrating the 10 Greatest WWE Moments of Stephanie McMahon". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  87. ^ Wilder, Charlotte (21 August 2020). "Q&A: WWE's Stephanie McMahon". Fox Sports. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  88. ^ Csonka, Larry (19 April 2013). "Trish Stratus Talks Retirement, Barking Like a Dog, Having A Backup Plan, More". 411Mania. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  89. ^ "Chris Jericho's first WWE Championship reign". WWE. Retrieved 2008-02-14.
  90. ^ "411Mania".
  91. ^ The Monday Night War DVD
  92. ^ Diot, Dylan (2014-02-08). "From The Shelf- WWF Survivor Series 1999". 411mania.com. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  93. ^ a b Linder, Zach (31 October 2012). "The chaotic chronicles of the Hardcore Championship". WWE Official Website. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  94. ^ a b c d Bower, Aaron (29 November 2013). "Remembering the Hardcore Title Under 24/7 Rules". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  95. ^ Oliver, Greg (9 January 2014). "Mae Young and the Dudley Boyz powerbomb". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  96. ^ Baldwin, Kristen (6 December 1999). "More WWF advertisers cave to public pressure". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  97. ^ "Grudge Match". The Wall Street Journal. 14 November 2000. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  98. ^ Baldwin, Kristen; Flaherty, Mike (16 April 1999). "Why 'Wrestlemania' can no longer be ignored". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  99. ^ Farache, Emily (30 November 1999). "A Kinder, Gentler "Smackdown!"". E!. NBCUniversal. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  100. ^ Gordon, Devin (12 December 1999). "WWF Tones Down Its 'Smackdown' Act". Newsweek. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  101. ^ McKay, Betsy (30 November 1999). "World Wrestling Federation Clamps Down on 'Smackdown!'". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  102. ^ "WWF Sues Media Watchdog Group". Los Angeles Times. Reuters. 10 November 2000. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  103. ^ "WWF Officially Sues PTC's Bozell". IGN. 9 November 2000. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  104. ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (19 October 1998). "WWF: Rock's Fight". People. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  105. ^ Oliver, Greg (7 November 2000). "Steven Richards discusses the politics of Right To Censor". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  106. ^ "WWF wins round 1 against parents org". Variety. 28 May 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  107. ^ Farhi, Paul (9 July 2002). "TV Watchdog Apologizes for False Claims On Wrestling". Washington Post. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  108. ^ Kelso, Paul (27 July 2001). "Wrestling 'soap opera' faces chop". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  109. ^ "Channel 4 hit by wrestling rap". BBC News. 12 February 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  110. ^ "Wrestling with our convictions". Irish Times. 27 March 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  111. ^ Cohen, Eric. "Vince Russo – Biography of Vince Russo the Former Head Writer of WWF Monday Night Raw & WCW Nitro". About.com. Retrieved March 27, 2007.
  112. ^ "Vince Russo Reveals What Vince McMahon Said to Him That Made Him Leave WWE". ewrestlingnews.com. December 19, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  113. ^ RD Reynolds & Bryan Alvarez (December 3, 2004). The Death of WCW: Wrestlecrap and Figure Four Weekly Present. ECW Press. pp. 156–210. ISBN 1-5502-2661-4.
  114. ^ a b Keller, Wade (May 10, 2005). "WWE News: Former WWE TV writer Chris Kreski dies of cancer, age 42". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  115. ^ Pantoja, Kevin (November 23, 2017). "Kevin's Random Reviews: WWF No Mercy 2000". 411Mania. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  116. ^ Leeds, Jeff; Hofmeister, Sally (12 January 2001). "Time Warner to Toss Out Wrestling". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  117. ^ "Time Warner sells WCW". CNN. 11 January 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  118. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (19 March 2001). "Turner Drops Wrestling in First Decision by Its New Chief". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  119. ^ Sorkin, Andrew Ross (24 March 2001). "Smackdown! W.W.F. to Buy Wrestling Rival". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  120. ^ . March 23, 2001. Archived from the original on March 13, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2007.
  121. ^ "WWF buys WCW from Turner". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 23 March 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  122. ^ "WWF buys rival WCW". CNN. 23 March 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  123. ^ "Wrestling Federation Buys Rival". Los Angeles Times. 24 March 2001. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  124. ^ Powell, John (24 March 2001). "Triple H on the collapse of WCW and ECW". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  125. ^ Sabga, Chris (11 April 2001). "ECW Files For Bankruptcy". IGN. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  126. ^ Shields, Brian; Sullivan, Kevin (2009). WWE: History of WrestleMania. p. 58.
  127. ^ Powell, John (July 23, 2001). "Austin turns at Invasion". Slam Sports. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  128. ^ "PWTorch.com – Torch Flashback (12-09-01): Chris Jericho becomes WWE Undisputed champion – Torch cover story with parallels to The Miz as WWE champion, Vengeance 2001 PPV Report". www.pwtorch.com.
  129. ^ . Archived from the original on March 19, 2007.
  130. ^ "WWE Rumors: Brand Split Will Continue After FOX Deal Starts, Per ..." The Inquisitr. The Inquisitr. 23 November 2018. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  131. ^ "World Wildlife Fund and Titan Sports, Inc. legal settlement". Contracts.onecle.com. January 20, 1994. Retrieved June 2, 2012.
  132. ^ Bush, Greg (2017-06-11). "Stone Cold walking out on WWE: The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar's Reactions". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
  133. ^ "WWE Roster: Ruthless Aggression Era (May 6, 2002—July 21, 2008)". thesmackdownhotel.com.
  134. ^ "WWE Ruthless Aggression: New Lies For A New Era". UpRoxx. February 17, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  135. ^ "WWE: The Attitude Era". WWE. Retrieved March 26, 2013.
  136. ^ "Amazon.com "Attitude Era" DVD Release Synopsis". Amazon. Retrieved September 26, 2012.
  137. ^ Barrasso, Justin (March 28, 2018). "Jim Johnston Discusses the Creation of 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin's Theme Song, His 32 Years With WWE". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  138. ^ King, Christopher (May 9, 2019). "Jim Johnston Story – WWE Theme Song Mastermind". Pro Wrestling Stories. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  139. ^ a b Cantin, Paul (November 17, 1999). "Jim Johnston and his musical WWF career". Slam Wrestling. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  140. ^ Ali, Reyan (April 3, 2013). "The Man Who Writes WWE Wrestlers' Theme Music Is a James Taylor Fan". The Atlantic. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  141. ^ "WWE The Music: Volume 5 CD Debuts at No. 2 on Billboard Top 200". WWE Official Website. March 1, 2001. Retrieved April 29, 2021.

February 05, 2023
attitude, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, november, 2022, l. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Attitude Era news newspapers books scholar JSTOR November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Attitude Era was a term used by the World Wrestling Federation WWF now known as World Wrestling Entertainment or WWE to describe the company s programming from November 9 1997 to May 6 2002 It began during the Monday Night Wars a period in which WWF s Monday Night Raw later Raw Is War went head to head with World Championship Wrestling s WCW Monday Nitro in a battle for Nielsen ratings each week from September 4 1995 to March 26 2001 The era was initiated on November 9 1997 at Survivor Series 1997 when a video package aired ending with the first use of the WWF ATTITUDE scratch logo 1 immediately before the main event featuring Bret Hart vs Shawn Michaels which retrospectively would be known as the Montreal Screwjob due to the controversial finish of the match WWF s programming in this era featured adult oriented content which included increased depicted violence profanity and sexual content This era was part of a wider surge in the popularity of professional wrestling in the United States and Canada as television ratings and pay per view buy rates for WWF and its rival promotions saw record highs The WWF Attitude logo used from November 9 1997 1 to May 6 2002 2 The Attitude Era marked the rise of many WWF male singles wrestlers including Stone Cold Steve Austin The Rock Triple H Kane Mick Foley in various personas Kurt Angle and The Undertaker who was already a veteran but continued to gain popularity 3 The Steve Austin Vince McMahon feud was one of the longest running rivalries of the era 4 The WWF Women s Championship which had lay dormant since December 13 1995 was reactivated on September 15 1998 While most of the company s female talent such as Sable Sunny and Stacy Keibler during this time period were marketed as sex symbols and often booked in sexually provocative gimmick matches for example bra and panty matches bikini matches etc in an effort to draw more male viewership prominent female stars such as Chyna Lita and Trish Stratus among others were presented as legitimate wrestlers in legitimate wrestling matches 5 WWF also signed a number of wrestlers who left WCW during this period including Chris Jericho Big Show and The Radicalz 6 The era also saw the resurgence of tag team wrestling namely The Hardy Boyz The Dudley Boyz and Edge amp Christian who were featured in several destructive physical and stunt filled Tables Ladders and Chairs matches during this era Distinguished stables were established in this era such as D Generation X Nation of Domination The Corporation Ministry of Darkness Corporate Ministry and The Brood among others and developed major rivalries among each other The Hardcore Championship was established on November 2 1998 and this chaotic division involved no disqualification falls count anywhere matches that would start and then would be taken outside the ring with blunt weapons involved 7 The era drew to a close on May 6 2002 as WWF changed its name to WWE and ceased using WWF Attitude branding 2 Contents 1 Initiation 1 1 Monday Night Wars and shift to edgier content 1 2 Birth of Austin 3 16 1 3 Bret Hart vs Shawn Michaels debut of WWF Attitude promo and the Montreal Screwjob 1 4 USA Network ownership change 2 Notable stars 2 1 Stone Cold Steve Austin 2 2 The Rock 2 3 Mick Foley 2 4 Triple H 2 5 Chyna 2 6 The Undertaker and Kane 2 7 Kurt Angle 3 Stables 3 1 D Generation X 3 2 The Corporation 3 3 Ministry of Darkness 4 The women s division 4 1 The original Divas 4 2 Lita and Trish 5 Defections from WCW 5 1 Chris Jericho 5 2 Other notable defectors 6 Increase in violent content 6 1 Hardcore division 6 2 Tables ladders and chairs matches 6 3 Backlash against content 7 End of the era 7 1 Departures of Vince Russo Ed Ferrara and Chris Kreski 7 2 Closure of WCW and ECW 7 3 WrestleMania X Seven Stone Cold s heel turn and departure of The Rock 7 4 The Invasion and aftermath 7 5 Raw Is War name change 7 6 Brand extension and WWF draft lottery 7 7 Rebranding to WWE and the Ruthless Aggression Era 8 Media 8 1 Home video 8 2 Video games 8 3 Music 9 See also 10 ReferencesInitiation EditMonday Night Wars and shift to edgier content Edit Vince Russo During the Monday Night Wars a television ratings battle between WWF s Monday Night Raw and WCW s Monday Nitro the WWF began to transition from the traditional way wrestling had been presented 8 instead opting for a product which pushed the envelope according to then head writer Vince Russo 9 The creative side of the product during the era s early stages in 1997 was spearheaded by Russo who drastically changed the way WWF television was written Ed Ferrara would later join Russo in June 1998 when he was hired by the WWF 10 Russo s and Ferrara s booking style has been described as Crash TV 11 where they contributed edgy controversial storylines involving sexual content profanity 12 swerves 9 unexpected heel turns and worked shoots as well as short matches backstage vignettes shocking angles and levels of depicted violence 13 Several moments have been credited with helping WWF transition into the Attitude Era In his book Vince Russo mentions the debut of the character Goldust in 1995 as a pivotal turning point 14 15 while Brian Pillman s Loose Cannon persona and the infamous Pillman s got a gun segment from 1996 has also been viewed as a key moment of change within the company In 1996 the WWF had also begun playing up female sexuality led by Sunny and Sable 16 On March 10 1997 the WWF officially debuted its Raw is War moniker to signify it was waging war with WCW s Monday Nitro One week later on the March 17 episode after losing a steel cage match against Sycho Sid in an attempt to win back the WWF Championship Bret Hart angrily shoved Vince McMahon to the mat during a post match interview and went into a profanity laced tirade 17 The actual start of the Attitude Era itself is unclear and often debated among fans with moments such as Steve Austin s Austin 3 16 speech at the 1996 King of the Ring 18 and Vince McMahon s speech on the December 15 1997 episode of Raw often being referenced Meanwhile the WWE Network lists WrestleMania 13 as the earliest event under their Attitude Era section Birth of Austin 3 16 Edit The 1996 King of the Ring tournament saw Austin s first usage of the catchphrase Austin 3 16 the major marketing tool for WWF during the era 19 After winning the tournament by defeating Jake The Snake Roberts Austin mocked Roberts recital of the biblical passage John 3 16 by saying You sit there and you thump your Bible and you say your prayers and it didn t get you anywhere Talk about your Psalms talk about John 3 16 Austin 3 16 says I just whipped your ass 20 Austin s popularity gradually started to rise as an anti hero despite being portrayed on screen as a heel character 21 eventually leading to a long term feud with Bret Hart from late 1996 to mid 1997 climaxing in a Submission Match at WrestleMania 13 In 1997 a storyline involving Owen Hart and Austin in which Owen botched a piledriver that caused severe neck injuries to Austin and ultimately led to his early retirement in 2003 culminated in Austin performing a Stone Cold Stunner on Vince McMahon to a positive crowd response and led to Austin being kayfabe arrested 20 Bret Hart vs Shawn Michaels debut of WWF Attitude promo and the Montreal Screwjob Edit Main article Montreal Screwjob Michaels in September 1997 Another storyline from 1996 to 1997 was the personal feud between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels who had legitimate issues with one another outside of wrestling The conflict behind the scenes spilled into their on screen storyline where both men made deeply personal remarks in interviews and promo segments that were often rooted in these issues 22 On November 1 1997 then WWF Champion Hart officially signed a contract to work for WCW beginning that December Vince McMahon sought to prevent Hart from leaving the WWF as its champion allegedly not wanting Hart to potentially appear on WCW television with the WWF Championship and proposed having Hart lose to Michaels at their scheduled match at Survivor Series on November 9 Hart refused due to his personal issues with Michaels becoming too great with Bret using his creative control clause included in his WWF contract as leverage Both parties seemingly came to an agreement in which the match would have a disqualification finish which would not result in a title change therefore Hart would retain the championship and either lose or forfeit the title at a later date However McMahon Michaels and other WWF employees covertly went on to change the outcome of the match without Hart s knowledge During the pay per view broadcast a video package aired immediately before the Hart vs Michaels match debuting the Attitude promo that included the first instance of the WWF scratch logo 1 23 During the match after Michaels placed Hart in the Sharpshooter Hart s signature finishing maneuver McMahon who was at ringside a rarity at the time as he was primarily working as an on screen commentator quickly ordered referee Earl Hebner to call for the bell and award Michaels the WWF Championship by submission despite Hart not submitting Hart realizing that he had been the victim of a so called screwjob spit on McMahon destroyed television equipment and traced the letters WCW in the air with his finger while fans in the arena threw garbage into the ring area and expressed their support for Hart The incident would go on to be dubbed the Montreal Screwjob Both the promo and the screwjob are considered by most as the official beginning of the Attitude Era One week later on Raw McMahon gave an interview with Jim Ross in which McMahon explained his actions and infamously claimed that Bret Hart screwed Bret Hart The WWF successfully went on to parlay fan resentment towards McMahon whose position as owner of the WWF was rarely acknowledged on screen prior to the Montreal Screwjob into creating the Mr McMahon character a villainous overbearing boss McMahon s new heel character would become a major part of the WWF s transition to reality based storylines particularly his rivalry with Stone Cold Steve Austin USA Network ownership change Edit In October 1997 USA Network owners at Seagram agreed to sell the network to media mogul Barry Diller 24 Diller s purchase of the USA Network was finalized in February 1998 25 and longtime USA Network managing head Kay Koplovitz would be ousted from the network she founded two months later 26 Shaun Assael and Mike Mooneyham s book Sex Lies and Headlocks The Real Story of Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment stated that the terrain shifted completely under everyone s feet following Diller s purchase of the USA Network which began in October 1997 and that Koplovitz was in fact planning to remove WWF programming from the USA Network prior to the purchase 27 Following the purchase the WWF began to dominate cable television ratings with Raw episodes which were not only breaking away from traditional censorship but that were also showing fans at ringside screaming obscenities wearing risque t shirts and holding signs that often sported controversial phrases 28 29 The USA Network was even reported as showing less remorse than WWF owner Vince McMahon did over a controversial incident on the September 14 1998 episode of Raw where the wrestler Jacqueline had one of her breasts exposed during an evening gown match which network spokesman David Schwartz described as not worse than anything you see on broadcast television at that time of night such as NYPD Blue 29 USA Network executive Bonnie Hammer a protege of Diller who was also one of the few USA Network executives to speak out against the plan to cancel Raw 30 27 worked extensively with head writer Vince Russo in reinventing the World Wrestling Federation 31 Notable stars EditStone Cold Steve Austin Edit Main article Stone Cold Steve Austin Stone Cold as the WWF Champion in 1999 Austin was widely considered by critics fans and the WWF itself to be the face of the Attitude Era After Stone Cold Steve Austin won the 1998 Royal Rumble former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson who was in attendance at the pay per view made a guest appearance on Raw the following night 20 21 Tyson who at the time was still suspended from boxing was to be introduced as the Special Guest Enforcer referee for the championship match at WrestleMania XIV 32 but Vince McMahon s presentation of Tyson was abruptly interrupted by Austin who flipped off Tyson leading to a brief scuffle 21 In an interview with Austin head writer Vince Russo described this moment as the start of the Attitude Era 32 Over the following weeks Tyson aligned himself with Michaels Austin s opponent at WrestleMania and D Generation X 32 At WrestleMania in the closing moments of the match Tyson counted Austin s pinfall on Michaels 20 33 Tyson was paid 4 million for his role 34 Following his crowning as champion a long term storyline pitting Austin and McMahon as rivals began 21 and it proved pivotal in increasing the WWF s revenues from merchandise sales arena events and PPV sales as well as television ratings 35 36 Week by week Austin would regularly have to overcome the odds stacked against him by Mr McMahon 21 Austin and McMahon were featured in numerous segments which led to a scheduled match between the duo on April 13 1998 episode of Raw Austin and McMahon were going to battle out their differences in an actual match but the match was declared a no contest when Mick Foley Reprising his character Dude Love interrupted On that night Raw defeated Nitro in the television ratings for the first time since June 10 1996 Austin again wrestled McMahon on February 14 1999 at St Valentine s Day Massacre in a steel cage match which he won when the debuting Big Show accidentally threw him through the cage wall resulting in Austin earning a WWF title shot at WrestleMania XV where he defeated The Rock whom he also defeated in a rematch the following month at Backlash Throughout the Austin McMahon rivalry McMahon founded two heel factions The Corporation and The Corporate Ministry The feud between the two also involved some of the most iconic moments of the Era including Austin driving a Zamboni to the ring to attack McMahon Austin visiting and attacking McMahon in a hospital Austin filling McMahon s Chevrolet Corvette with cement and Austin driving to the ring in a beer truck and spraying Vince Shane McMahon and The Rock with beer 20 37 At Fully Loaded in 1999 Vince McMahon added a special stipulation to the scheduled first blood match between The Undertaker and Austin for the WWF Championship The stipulation was that if Austin won McMahon would kayfabe step away from the WWF but if Austin lost he would never receive a shot at the WWF Championship again Austin won the match thus leading to Vince temporarily being banned from the WWF 38 At Survivor Series Austin was run down by a car driven by a mystery assailant in the parking lot citation needed This was due to Austin needing to take time away from wrestling because of underlying spinal and neck issues caused by his initial injury at SummerSlam in 1997 Austin then underwent spinal fusion surgery by Dr Lloyd Youngblood 39 Austin would not be seen on WWF television aside from a one off appearance at Backlash 2000 for nine months Upon Austin s return at Unforgiven 2000 he confronted and questioned several superstars hoping to find his assailant Rikishi would ultimately admit responsibility for the attack on Austin claiming the assault was done as a favor per the request of Austin s prior rival The Rock Austin faced off against Rikishi at No Mercy the match ending in a no contest Austin would go on to win the 2001 Royal Rumble match and face The Rock for the WWF Championship in the main event of WrestleMania X Seven At WrestleMania Austin officially turned heel after aligning with his former rival Vince McMahon and defeated The Rock to regain the WWF Championship 40 41 During the Invasion storyline Austin entered a rivalry with Kurt Angle losing the WWF Championship to him at Unforgiven The Rock Edit Main article Dwayne Johnson The Rock as the WWF Champion in 2000 Dwayne Johnson a third generation wrestler made his debut at the 1996 Survivor Series as Rocky Maivia naming himself after his grandfather Peter Maivia and his father Rocky Johnson Despite being a babyface with an impressive winning streak and an Intercontinental Championship reign he was frequently met with negative reception from live audiences such as loud boos Rocky sucks chants and even crowd signs that read Die Rocky Die Maivia officially turned heel when he joined the Nation of Domination in late 1997 and renamed himself The Rock As a member of the Nation of Domination The Rock won the Intercontinental title for a second time The Rock eventually overthrew Faarooq to become the leader of the Nation After the Nation disbanded in late 1998 The Rock began referring to himself as the People s Champion and began to receive the support of the audience which led Vince McMahon and the Corporation to target him Survivor Series 1998 marked the first PPV headlined by The Rock During the final match of a tournament against Mankind to crown a new WWF Champion a double turn occurred with the help of McMahon similar to the previous year s Survivor Series revealing that Rock was working with The Corporation all along leading to The Rock s victory The Rock officially joined McMahon as the crown jewel of The Corporation abandoning his previous moniker as The People s Champion and declaring himself The Corporate Champion 42 The Rock had a lengthy feud with Mankind who won the title on an episode of Raw in January 1999 The reign was short lived However The Rock received his rematch at the 1999 Royal Rumble in an I Quit Match The Rock won the I Quit Match in a controversial fashion and became the WWF Champion again A rematch known as Half Time Heat took place during halftime of that year s Super Bowl which saw Mankind win the match and the title The Rock would receive another rematch at St Valentine s Day Massacre in a last man standing match for the chance to headline WrestleMania XV as the WWF Champion The bout ended in a draw after both men were unable to stand before the ten count Despite Mankind being the WWF Champion he gave The Rock one more shot at the title in a ladder match on Raw This was their final match as the Big Show interfered in it and choked Mankind off the ladder leaving The Rock all by himself and allowing him to win the match and headline WrestleMania XV as the WWF Champion At WrestleMania XV The Rock defended the title against the challenger Stone Cold Steve Austin Vince McMahon interfered in the match attacking Stone Cold to try and stop him but was unsuccessful 43 After being fired from the Corporation by Shane McMahon following WrestleMania The Rock once again declared himself the People s Champion and went on a number of small feuds during the latter part of 1999 During this time The Rock s popularity began to flourish again and he aligned with his former rival Mankind to create the tag team The Rock n Sock Connection In 1999 The Rock surpassed Stone Cold Steve Austin as the WWF s top babyface star 44 The team won the WWF Tag Team Championship on an episode of Raw in 1999 After the Rock n Sock connection broke up The Rock went back into the main event picture of the WWF battling the likes of Triple H and his stable the McMahon Helmsley Regime Late in the Attitude Era The Rock faced Stone Cold Steve Austin again at WrestleMania X Seven in the main event match for the WWF Championship Austin once again defeated The Rock to regain the title and joined forces with his nemesis Mr McMahon Later in 2001 upon his return to the company following a brief hiatus The Rock would defeat Booker T at SummerSlam to win the WCW Championship which was now part of the WWF following WWF s purchase of WCW earlier that March 45 Later that year at Survivor Series The Rock led Team WWF to victory over Team Alliance as part of the Invasion storyline by being the sole survivor after last eliminating his rival Austin and celebrated the win with Vince McMahon 46 Mick Foley Edit Main article Mick Foley Mick Foley Mick Foley played three different personas during this era Mankind Dude Love and Cactus Jack While Mankind was his main WWF persona and Cactus Jack was previously used in his days in WCW ECW Japan and various independent promotions Dude Love was inspired by a character Foley created when he and his high school friends participated in backyard wrestling in his hometown of Long Island New York Foley debuted both Dude Love and Cactus Jack in the WWF in mid 1997 while Mankind debuted at Foley s first ever WWF event on April 1 1996 during the Raw after WrestleMania XII Foley s creative versatility allowed him to create distinct characteristics for each character The 1998 Hell in a Cell match between Mankind and The Undertaker remains one of the most iconic and memorable Hell in a Cell matches to ever take place with its level of extreme violence and dangerous spots such as Mankind getting legitimately knocked unconscious and suffering multiple injuries On the January 4 1999 edition of Raw Foley won his first WWF Championship defeating The Rock with the help of Steve Austin 47 48 This match is regarded as a major turning point of the Monday Night Wars shifting the ratings permanently in the WWF s favor 47 48 In 2000 Foley reprised his Cactus Jack persona and was involved in a major rivalry with Triple H over the WWF Championship At No Way Out Foley lost to Triple H in a Hell in a Cell match and as per the stipulation Foley was forced to retire from full time competition Foley would then serve as storyline WWF Commissioner under his real name beginning in the summer of 2000 He lost the position that December after being kayfabe fired onscreen by Mr McMahon during which he received a brutal beat down 49 50 Triple H Edit Main article Triple H Triple H as the Undisputed WWF Champion at WrestleMania X8 At the start of the Attitude Era following Shawn Michaels severe back injury and subsequent retirement from wrestling in 1998 Triple H assumed leadership of D Generation X At SummerSlam Triple H defeated The Rock in a ladder match with the help of fellow D X member Chyna to win the Intercontinental Championship At WrestleMania XV Triple H lost to Kane after Chyna interfered on his behalf and seemingly rejoined D X Later on in the night however Triple H would betray his long time friend and fellow D X member X Pac by helping Shane McMahon retain the European Championship and joined The Corporation turning heel in the process In April he started moving away from his D X look taping his fists for matches sporting new traditional wrestling trunks and adopting a shorter hairstyle His gimmick changed as he fought to earn a WWF Championship opportunity and Triple H began referring to himself in interviews as The Game 51 After failed attempts at winning the championship Triple H along with Mankind challenged then WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin to a triple threat match at SummerSlam which featured Jesse The Body Ventura as the special guest referee Mankind won the match and the title by pinning Austin 52 The following night on Raw Triple H defeated Mankind to win his first WWF Championship 51 However he would lose the WWF Championship to Mr McMahon on the September 16 1999 episode of SmackDown before regaining it at Unforgiven in a Six Pack Challenge that included British Bulldog Big Show Kane The Rock and Mankind He defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin at No Mercy before dropping the title to Big Show at Survivor Series Triple H then continued his feud with Mr McMahon by marrying his daughter Stephanie McMahon and defeating McMahon at Armageddon which saw Stephanie betray Vince As a result of the feud an angle with Triple H and Stephanie began which carried the WWF throughout the next seventeen months together they were known as The McMahon Helmsley Regime 53 Triple H participated in the Fatal Four Way Elimination match main event of WrestleMania 2000 with Stephanie at his corner for the WWF Championship becoming the first heel to win the main event of WrestleMania 54 He would continue to feud with The Rock in the following months which included a 60 minute Iron Man match between the duo at Judgment Day a match Triple H won 55 However Triple H would lose the title to The Rock in a Six Man Tag Team Elimination Match at that year s King of the Ring Triple H would then be involved in a love triangle with Kurt Angle and Stephanie before revealing himself to be the man who convinced Rikishi to run over Stone Cold Steve Austin the year prior At the 2001 Royal Rumble Triple H lost to Angle in a WWF Championship match 56 Triple H would unfortunately suffer a severe quadriceps injury during an episode of Raw in May 2001 which would lead him to be out of action for the rest of the year Chyna Edit Main article Chyna The 9th Wonder of the World Chyna in 1997 Chyna made her WWF debut on February 16 1997 at In Your House 13 Final Four her character emerged as a plant from a ringside seat choking Marlena while Goldust was in the ring with Triple H 57 Her original role in the promotion was as the stoic enforcer bodyguard for Triple H and later D Generation X which was founded by both Triple H and Shawn Michaels She often helped them cheat to win by physically interfering in matches by executing her trademark low blow to the groin 57 She was given the ring name Chyna an intentionally ironic moniker fine china is delicate and fragile a sharp contrast to her character 58 Backstage however the male wrestlers initially hesitated to let a woman be seen overpowering them on television 59 Despite this she would become a prominent member of D Generation X and besides competing in the women s division later in her career she would regularly compete against male wrestlers in intergender matches After leaving D X in 1999 Chyna would be featured in a more prominent role in addition to regularly wrestling against male wrestlers and becoming a two time Intercontinental champion she would also be featured twice on the cover of Playboy 60 and her autobiography reached number one on The New York Times Best Seller list the fourth by a wrestler to achieve the feat 61 62 Not long after losing the Intercontinental title Chyna became the on screen girlfriend of the recently debuted Eddie Guerrero Originally seen as villains they became fan favorites during the summer of 2000 with Guerrero dubbing her his Mamacita 63 They faced Val Venis and Trish Stratus in an intergender tag team match at SummerSlam with the Intercontinental Championship on the line 64 Chyna won the match but lost the belt two weeks later to Guerrero in a Triple Threat match with Kurt Angle 65 The two officially split in November 2000 after Chyna in storyline was shown footage of Eddie cavorting in the shower with two other women 66 Chyna left the WWF on November 30 2001 several months after she had been taken off of television 67 The Undertaker and Kane Edit The Undertaker and Kane known together as The Brothers of Destruction Main article The Brothers of Destruction At SummerSlam in 1996 The Undertaker became embroiled in a feud with his former manager Paul Bearer During the course of their conflict Bearer threatened The Undertaker with the threat of revealing his secret calling him a murderer and accusing him of killing his parents and brother In the weeks that followed on Raw Bearer revealed that Kane was actually still alive and that Bearer had an affair with The Undertaker s mother which produced Kane meaning Bearer was Kane s biological father Kane officially debuted at Badd Blood In Your House interfering in the inaugural Hell in a Cell match between Undertaker and Shawn Michaels Following a series of taunts from Bearer and Kane who cost him the WWF Championship at the Royal Rumble Undertaker who had previously stated that he would never fight his own brother agreed to face Kane at WrestleMania XIV The Undertaker won the match at WrestleMania and proceeded to win the first ever Inferno Match the following month at Unforgiven 68 Kane then teamed with The Undertaker s rival Mankind and they won the Tag Team Championship on two occasions In the interim Kane would win the WWF Championship from Stone Cold Steve Austin during a First Blood main event match at King of the Ring 1998 which was preceded by a Hell in a Cell match between Mankind and The Undertaker but Kane lost the title to Austin the following night on Raw A few weeks later thanks to the influence of The Undertaker Kane turned on Mankind Following the conclusion of this storyline The Undertaker and Kane united to form a tag team that became known as The Brothers of Destruction In late 1998 The Undertaker turned on Kane and realigned himself with Paul Bearer both wrestlers executing a double turn in the process Now a heel and proclaiming himself as the Ministry of Darkness Undertaker began taking a more macabre and darker persona claiming that a plague of evil was coming to the WWF During the weeks that followed he reignited his feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin whom he blamed for costing him the WWF title At Rock Bottom In Your House Austin defeated the Undertaker in a Buried Alive match with the help of Kane writing him off of WWF television for a month As a result The Corporation had Kane committed to an insane asylum Kane was then forced to join The Corporation in order to stay out of the insane asylum He was later betrayed by them and thrown out of the faction The Undertaker and Kane briefly reformed The Brothers of Destruction in the summer of 2000 at this time Undertaker had recently taken on the American Badass biker persona instead of the satanic character he had portrayed previously Now faces the two challenged then Tag Team Champions Edge and Christian for the titles on an episode of Raw but due to interference from Kurt Angle they were disqualified meaning they didn t win the titles On the August 14 episode of Raw Undertaker faced Chris Benoit in a match where Kane turned heel on Undertaker by chokeslamming him through the ring and the two feuded with each other once again This culminated in a match at SummerSlam which resulted in a no contest when Undertaker unmasked Kane causing him to flee the ring 69 Kurt Angle Edit Kurt Angle at the King of the Ring 2000 Main article Kurt Angle Kurt Angle the 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist debuted at the 1999 Survivor Series as a heel who opposed the society and culture of the Attitude Era Citing his three I s Intensity Integrity and Intelligence Angle would hypocritically chastise crowds each week to the crowd s disapproval Angle would carry an undefeated streak until losing in his hometown of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania to The Rock on the January 31 2000 edition episode of Raw Angle would go on to win the European and Intercontinental championships holding both titles simultaneously and dubbing himself the Eurocontinental champion Angle lost both the Intercontinental and European championships in a two fall triple threat match to Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho respectively without losing a single fall Angle would go on to win the 2000 King of the Ring tournament and be crowned the 2000 King of the Ring Kurt Angle would then be involved in a love triangle with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon during the summer of 2000 stemming from interactions between Angle and McMahon beginning in December 1999 This would lead to Angle s first PPV main event where he would face The Rock and Triple H for the WWF Championship at SummerSlam Following the love triangle Kurt Angle defeated The Rock to win his first WWF Championship at No Mercy Kurt Angle successfully defended the WWF Championship in the first and only 6 man Hell in a Cell match at Armagedddon that included The Rock Stone Cold Triple H The Undertaker and Rikishi In February 2001 Angle would lose the WWF Championship back to The Rock at No Way Out Kurt Angle is cited as having the greatest rookie year of not only the Attitude Era but in WWE history quickly becoming a main star At Unforgiven in 2001 Kurt Angle defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin to win his second WWF Championship 70 Stables EditD Generation X Edit Chyna right acted as an enforcer for Triple H left and Michaels in 1997 then remained allied with the larger incarnation of the stable until 1999 D Generation X officially formed on August 11 1997 edition of Raw after Hunter Hearst Helmsley Chyna and Rick Rude helped Shawn Michaels win his main event match against Mankind The night after WrestleMania XIV Shawn Michaels began a four year hiatus from in ring wrestling to recuperate from a severe back injury Triple H cut a promo claiming that he was taking over D Generation X and had ejected the absent Michaels for dropping the ball after losing the WWF Championship the previous night Triple H would then recruit the New Age Outlaws Road Dogg Jesse James and Bad Ass Billy Gunn and X Pac On April 28 1998 WCW s Nitro event was held at the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk Virginia while Raw was held nearby at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton Virginia With the ongoing war between WWF and WCW D X was sent to initiate an immediate invasion of Nitro driving in an army Jeep and challenging WCW head Eric Bischoff Soon after D X appeared at CNN Center as well as WCW s stand alone Atlanta offices to call out WCW owner Ted Turner The stable s popularity continued to rapidly grow and they were eventually pushed as antihero fan favorites much like Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock On the November 6 2000 episode of Raw Chyna Road Dogg Billy Gunn and Triple H as part of D Generation X took on The Radicalz Chris Benoit Eddie Guerrero Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn in an eight person tag team match which D X won This would be their final match while united in the Era after which Triple H and Chyna began receiving their own singles pushes while the others fell into the mid and lower cards 71 The Corporation Edit Main article The Corporation professional wrestling In 1998 storylines involving Mr McMahon struggling to maintain order within the WWF led to the creation of a new faction the Corporation The Corporation was officially formed on November 16 1998 72 when Shane and Vince McMahon along with Big Boss Man Sgt Slaughter Pat Patterson Gerald Brisco and The Rock joined forces The faction would feud heavily with Stone Cold D Generation X and later the Ministry of Darkness the latter of which would lead to an eventual merge The merger would lead to the creation of the Corporate Ministry a mega faction led by Shane McMahon and The Undertaker as well as suffering defections with the creation of the short lived Union Ministry of Darkness Edit Main article Ministry of Darkness This section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Upon his return The Undertaker introduced his Ministry of Darkness a satanic themed stable which would consist of The Acolytes Faarooq and Bradshaw Mideon Viscera and The Brood Edge Christian and Gangrel The storyline continued over the weeks that followed as Undertaker announced his intentions of taking over the WWF and claimed he was working for a higher power He began a feud with Vince McMahon and his daughter Stephanie with the Ministry burning Undertaker s symbol in the McMahon family yard At Backlash In Your House The Undertaker kidnapped Stephanie and attempted to marry her to Undertaker the next night on Raw by holding a Black Wedding The ceremony was successfully ruined by Steve Austin after two attempts by former Corporation members Big Show and Ken Shamrock failed The Ministry would later merge with the Corporation forming the Corporate Ministry which would be involved with most major storylines until July when they would disband The women s division EditThe original Divas Edit Sable during a WWF tour in England in April 1998 She was the first WWF female wrestler to refer to herself as a Diva In August 1995 WWF debuted Tammy Lynn Sytch as Sunny According to the Toronto Sun she was able to use sex appeal looks and serious wrestling moves to become famous beyond wrestling 73 and was named by AOL as the most downloaded woman of the year 74 Rena Mero made her WWF debut at WrestleMania XII in March 1996 using the name Sable she escorted Hunter Hearst Helmsley to the ring when he faced The Ultimate Warrior and her first major angle involved her then real life husband Wildman Marc Mero Sable quickly eclipsed both her husband and Sunny in popularity first leading to her becoming an in ring performer 75 and later to the reinstatement of the WWF Women s Championship 76 Sable would become the first WWF female to refer to herself as a Diva 76 the term would be coined and shortly thereafter became the official title for WWF s female performers The use of Sable as an on screen character was increasingly sexual including competing in the first bikini contest against Jacqueline at Fully Loaded In Your House 76 Her on screen popularity resulted in her breaking through into mainstream pop culture becoming the first wrestler to appear on the cover of Playboy 76 Sable was considered the blonde bombshell the usage of Sable s appealing appearance to draw more male viewers reignited the interest in the women s division 77 and wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer has described her as a huge ratings draw 78 Sable later said that it was written into her contract that she was not allowed to take bumps 79 The Sable character would eventually be transitioned into a heel 80 and soon after the relationship between the WWF and Mero would break down with Mero filing a 110 million lawsuit saying that the WWF had become increasingly obscene titillating vulgar and unsafe and alleged that she was asked to perform in lesbian storylines as well as being requested to strip on live television 81 Sable s rise in popularity was repeated by Chyna who would be featured in a more prominent role in addition to regularly wrestling against male wrestlers and becoming a two time Intercontinental Champion she would also be featured twice on the cover of Playboy 60 and her autobiography reached number one on The New York Times Best Seller list the fourth by a wrestler to achieve the feat 61 62 Lita and Trish Edit Lita made her WWF debut as a valet for Essa Rios on the February 13 2000 episode of Sunday Night Heat where Rios won the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship from Gillberg 82 During the match Lita captured the attention of the fans and viewers by mimicking Rios moves notably the moonsault and hurricanrana 82 Lita eventually left Rios side and allied with The Hardy Boyz and the trio formed a stable known as Team Xtreme As a member of Team Xtreme Lita developed a more alternative image 82 and her popularity greatly increased 83 In June 2000 the trio began a storyline with T amp A Test and Albert with Lita engaging in a rivalry with their manager Trish Stratus 84 Lita also began a concurrent feud with WWF Women s Champion Stephanie McMahon who was promoted at the time as being one of the biggest stars in the company 85 On the August 21 2000 episode of Raw Lita defeated McMahon for the Women s Championship her first championship win 86 McMahon would later describe the moment as an incredible privilege 87 In 2001 Stratus and McMahon took part in their own storyline revolving around Stephanie s father Vince Stratus later noted that the female performers had moved from being on the side of storylines to being a viable part of the program 88 Defections from WCW EditChris Jericho Edit Frustrated over WCW s refusal to allow him to wrestle Goldberg as well as various other issues Chris Jericho left WCW and signed with the WWF on June 30 1999 On the August 9 episode of Raw he officially made his debut referring to himself as Y2J a play on the Y2K frenzy and began feuds with The Rock Chyna Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit while capturing the Intercontinental and European championships on several occasions in the era On the April 17 2000 episode of Raw Jericho defeated Triple H to seemingly win the WWF Championship but the decision was reversed by referee Earl Hebner under pressure from Triple H Therefore the company does not officially recognize Jericho s supposed title reign Jericho continued to feud with Triple H throughout 2000 leading to a Last Man Standing match at Fully Loaded which Triple H won Jericho would maintain a prominent spot on the roster becoming a fixture in both the mid card and upper card Jericho would go on to defeat Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock on the same night at Vengeance 2001 becoming the first Undisputed WWF Champion in the process 89 In the main event of WrestleMania X8 Jericho lost the Undisputed WWF Championship to Triple H 90 Other notable defectors Edit Many other WCW wrestlers who were unhappy with the disorganization backstage environment and workplace politics of the promotion jumped ship to the WWF The first high profile acquisition was Paul Wight who had previously wrestled as The Giant in WCW since 1995 Wight allowed his WCW contract to expire on February 8 1999 when Eric Bischoff denied his request for a pay increase 91 He signed with the WWF the next day and debuted at St Valentine s Day Massacre In Your House as The Big Show Paul Wight Mr McMahon s enforcer in The Corporation At Survivor Series in November 1999 The Big Show defeated The Rock and Triple H in a triple threat match to win the WWF Championship 92 In January 2000 Chris Benoit Eddie Guerrero Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn left WCW for the WWF Benoit had just defeated Sid Vicious for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at Souled Out 2000 on January 17 but the decision was reversed after disputes with WCW management The quartet made their television debut on the January 31 episode of Raw as audience members and backstage guests of Mick Foley before attacking the New Age Outlaws They were offered a chance to win contracts by defeating members of D Generation X in a series of three matches Despite losing all three matches they were given WWF contracts by Triple H in exchange for betraying Foley The quartet became known as The Radicalz Increase in violent content EditHardcore division Edit See also WWE Hardcore Championship Brawling in places outside the ring was a staple feature of the Attitude Era and on November 2 1998 the Hardcore Championship was introduced when Mr McMahon gifted Mankind the championship belt 93 Hardcore matches were no disqualification no count out falls count anywhere matches involving a variety of weapons Wrestlers would often take their matches outside the ring into other parts of the arena and occasionally outside the arena 94 Frequent participants in the Hardcore division included Al Snow Crash Holly Steve Blackman and Raven Raven was the most successful wrestler in this division winning the championship on 27 separate occasions Another stipulation was introduced when Crash won the belt known as the 24 7 rule meaning the belt was to be defended any place at any time of day so long as a referee was present 94 This rule has allowed the shortest title reigns and quickest title changes in the company s history and four women have held the Hardcore Championship Molly Holly as Mighty Molly Trish Stratus Terri Runnels and one of The Godfather s hos 94 For the first time the Hardcore Championship was contested in a ladder match in 2001 at SummerSlam where Rob Van Dam defeated Jeff Hardy When the Attitude Era ended the championship was retired and unified with the Intercontinental Championship on August 26 2002 after Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam defeated Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer unifying the titles 93 94 Tables ladders and chairs matches Edit While members of The New Brood The Hardy Boyz faced off against Edge amp Christian the original Brood in the first ever tag team ladder match the final match of the Terri Invitational Tournament at No Mercy in October 1999 The Hardys won the match and subsequently the services of Terri Runnels as their manager During this time the Dudley Boyz Bubba Ray and D Von debuted in the summer of 1999 following their departure from ECW They were initially villains and were largely responsible for popularizing the use of wooden tables as weapons in professional wrestling Bubba Ray in particular became notorious for putting women through tables including Mae Young 95 In January 2000 the Dudleys faced off against The Hardy Boyz in the first ever tag team Table match at the Royal Rumble which the Hardys won Eventually the three teams were brought together in a chaotic triangle ladder match at WrestleMania 2000 for the WWF Tag Team Championship Edge and Christian won the match and the titles and this would be the first of several matches involving the three tag teams Edge and Christian soon developed the con chair to a play on the word concerto finishing move which involved the two hitting an opponent s head simultaneously on opposite sides with steel chairs which simulated the clashing of cymbals This led to then WWF Commissioner Mick Foley to make the first ever Tables Ladders and Chairs match TLC at SummerSlam in August 2000 also won by Edge and Christian The following year a second TLC match dubbed TLC II occurred at WrestleMania X Seven and is widely regarded as one of the greatest wrestling matches of all time This match which Edge and Christian yet again won also featured interference from Rhyno the lackey of Edge and Christian Spike Dudley the half brother of Bubba Ray and D Von and Lita the stable mate of Matt and Jeff Hardy Backlash against content Edit In late 1999 Parents Television Council PTC founder L Brent Bozell III began a campaign to pressure companies to pull advertising from WWF programming 96 due to the content becoming characterized by cheap sex vulgarity and violence of the most sadistic sort 97 Many Fortune 500 companies had been keen to associate themselves with the WWF due to their transformation into theater in the round redone as roid rage jam packed with charismatic monumental players prime time worthy production values and labyrinthine plot machinations 98 Having lost several advertisers 99 the campaign forced the WWF to change the content portrayed on their programming in particular SmackDown 100 with McMahon saying that there would be less aggression less colorful language less sexuality and controversial characters would be appearing less frequently 101 The following year WWF filed a lawsuit against the PTC claiming they had used threats and lies to drive advertisers away 102 The PTC accused the WWF of being responsible for several young children s deaths including that of six year old Tiffany Eunick by Lionel Tate 103 for which Dwayne Johnson received a subpoena to testify in 1998 104 Shortly before filing the lawsuit WWF and McMahon had begun a storyline where wrestler Stevie Richards changed his name to Steven Richards and began attempting to clean up the company forming the Right to Censor stable eventually adding characters previously portraying a pimp The Godfather and a porn actor Val Venis 105 In 2001 federal judge Denny Chin threw out a motion put forth by the PTC in an attempt to have the charges dismissed 106 and the following year the WWF was awarded damages of 3 5 million and Bozell apologized for the accusations made 107 In 2001 international broadcaster Channel 4 who aired WWF programming in the United Kingdom declined to renew their contract citing the concern of the increasingly extreme nature of the programs 108 This followed Channel 4 being told by the Independent Television Commission earlier in the year that they were wrong to air a violent scene involving a sledgehammer 109 In Ireland the Irish Film Classification Office banned 13 home video releases from a possible 70 over a three year period with age restrictions on 55 of the 70 110 End of the era EditDepartures of Vince Russo Ed Ferrara and Chris Kreski Edit On October 3 1999 Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara abruptly left the WWF and signed with WCW 111 Russo contends that his reason for leaving the WWF was the result of a dispute with Vince McMahon over the increased workload caused by the introduction of the new SmackDown broadcast and McMahon s disregard of Russo s family Vince Russo is credited with inventing the Crash TV format of shorter story based TV matches with no matches going into commercial No matches would go over 8 minutes except a main event and skit heavy personal reality based television took stories and rivalries beyond the scope of an arena which led to peak cable television ratings and profitability for the WWF 112 However the WCW fanbase which consisted mainly of rural older traditional wrestling fans from the Southern States did not welcome Russo s Crash TV formula in their programming and almost entirely stopped watching it altogether 113 Following the departures of Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara Chris Kreski would take over the position as head writer of the World Wrestling Federation WWF 114 Kreski was later replaced as head writer by Stephanie McMahon following October s No Mercy PPV 2000 event 115 but remained on the creative team until 2002 when he left to pursue other opportunities 114 Closure of WCW and ECW Edit In January 2001 AOL Time Warner announced they were to sell WCW to a group of investors called Fusient Media Ventures with the provision that they would continue television broadcasts on TNT 116 117 However in March AOL Time Warner announced that they would be ending the broadcasting of professional wrestling across their Turner networks 118 causing the abrupt end of the sale Later that week it was announced that the WWF had purchased the remaining assets and select contracts of WCW 119 from AOL Time Warner for a number reported to be around 7 million 120 putting an official end to the Monday Night Wars 121 Linda McMahon stated that the purchase had great cross brand potential 122 and described it as the perfect creative and business catalyst for our company 123 Paul Levesque attributed WCW s downfall to a lack of respect and that WWF would continue to be successful despite the end of the rivalry 124 The end of WCW was followed in April 2001 by ECW filing for bankruptcy 125 ushering in the Invasion storyline In 2003 ECW and its assets were purchased by WWE 126 WrestleMania X Seven Stone Cold s heel turn and departure of The Rock Edit Main article WrestleMania X Seven This section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message On April 1 2001 WrestleMania X Seven took place and is generally considered as the other main catalyst to the eventual decline of the Attitude Era The final match of the night was the WWF Championship match between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin which had a surprise no disqualification stipulation added just minutes before the superstars were introduced During the match the two brawled inside and outside of the ring with both men bleeding after hitting each other with the ring bell The Rock attempted to place Austin in a Sharpshooter hold but Austin reversed it into a Sharpshooter of his own After Rock reached the ropes to force a break Austin applied the Million Dollar Dream a submission holds best known from his former gimmick The Ringmaster Shortly after Rock used Austin s own finishing maneuver on Austin by executing a Stunner Vince McMahon then came to ringside to observe the match When Rock tried to pin Austin after the People s Elbow McMahon seized Rock s leg and pulled him off Austin breaking the pin attempt After chasing McMahon around the ring Austin responded by using Rock s signature move the Rock Bottom Later Rock executed a Rock Bottom for a near fall After Rock attacked McMahon he was given a Stunner by Austin for a near fall After Rock kicked out of the Stunner McMahon handed Austin a steel chair to hit Rock with at Austin s request revealing that Austin had sided with McMahon a man he once considered his nemesis With this Austin turned heel Austin attacked him with the steel chair hitting him sixteen times before pinning him and becoming the new WWF Champion The show ended with Austin and McMahon shaking hands and sharing beers Following the April 2 2001 edition of Raw is War The Rock departed on hiatus from the WWF to film The Mummy Returns as his character the Scorpion King The combination of Austin s heel turn which had a very mixed reception from fans along with the departure of The Rock and the closing of WCW effectively ended the boom period The Invasion and aftermath Edit Main articles The Invasion professional wrestling and New World Order professional wrestling Kevin Nash was a key member of nWo In the Invasion storyline Shane McMahon kayfabe acquired World Championship Wrestling WCW in March 2001 and WCW personnel invaded WWF For the first time since the Monday Night Wars WWF s purchase of WCW had made a major American inter promotional feud possible but the Invasion turned out to be a disappointment to many fans One main reason would be that many of WCW s big name stars were still under contract to WCW s old parent company AOL Time Warner rather than WCW itself and their contracts were not included in the purchase of the company Although these wrestlers could in theory choose to sign and appear with the WWF they instead chose to sit out the duration of their contracts and be financially supported by AOL Time Warner rather than work for WWF for a cheaper salary These names included Goldberg Sting Scott Steiner Scott Hall Kevin Nash Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair On July 9 2001 the stars of WCW and Extreme Championship Wrestling acquired by Stephanie McMahon in a related storyline joined forces forming The Alliance with WCW owner Shane McMahon and the new owner of ECW Stephanie McMahon leading the charge with the support and influence of original ECW owner Paul Heyman At Invasion Stone Cold Steve Austin turned on the WWF and helped the Alliance win the Inaugural Brawl 127 At Survivor Series WWF finally defeated WCW and ECW in a Winner Takes All match and the angle was concluded In the aftermath of the Invasion angle WWF made several major changes to their product Ric Flair returned to the WWF as co owner of the company feuding with Vince McMahon Jerry Lawler returned to the company after a nine month hiatus after his replacement on commentary Paul Heyman was fired on screen by Vince McMahon Several former Alliance stars were absorbed into the regular WWF roster such as Booker T The Hurricane Lance Storm and Rob Van Dam At Vengeance 2001 Chris Jericho went on to unify the WCW Championship and WWF Championship beating both The Rock and Steve Austin on the same night 128 Eventually Vince McMahon brought back Hollywood Hulk Hogan Kevin Nash and Scott Hall to reunite the nWo at the No Way Out pay per view in February 2002 However Hogan proved to be too popular with nostalgic fans yearning for the return of Hulkamania and soon turned face at WrestleMania X8 after his classic match with The Rock which The Rock won Raw Is War name change Edit This section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks and the upcoming United States invasion of Afghanistan in response weeks later the WWF changed Raw is War back to simply Raw on October 1 2001 to remove the reference to war and to signify that the Monday Night Wars were indeed over after WWF purchased WCW back in March As a result the second hour of War Zone was renamed Raw Zone to coincide with the dropping of the War line Brand extension and WWF draft lottery Edit Main articles WWE brand extension WWE draft and 2002 WWF draft lottery With an excess of talent employed as a result of having purchased WCW and later ECW the WWF needed a way to provide exposure for all of its talent This problem was solved by introducing a brand extension with the roster split in half and the talent assigned to either Raw or SmackDown in a mock draft lottery held on the March 25 2002 edition of Raw Wrestlers commentators and referees became show exclusive and the shows were given separate on screen General Managers The brand extension came into effect on April 1 2002 Later in 2002 after WWE Champion Brock Lesnar announced himself as the exclusive property of the SmackDown brand and with the creation of the World Heavyweight Championship all the championships became show exclusive as well Additionally both Raw and SmackDown began to stage individual bi monthly pay per view events featuring only performers from that brand only the major four pay per views Royal Rumble WrestleMania SummerSlam and Survivor Series remained dual branded citation needed The practice of single brand pay per view events was abandoned following WrestleMania 23 129 In effect Raw and SmackDown were operated as two distinct promotions with a draft lottery taking place each year to determine which talent was assigned to each brand The first draft was held to determine the inaugural split rosters while subsequent drafts were designed to refresh the rosters of each show This lasted until August 2011 when the rosters were merged and the Brand Extension was quietly phased out 130 Rebranding to WWE and the Ruthless Aggression Era Edit The company officially ceased its Attitude promotion on May 6 2002 when the usage of the initials WWF became prohibited as the result of a legal battle between the company and the World Wildlife Fund 131 World Wrestling Federation Entertainment Inc officially became World Wrestling Entertainment Inc WWE and replaced its old logo with a new scratch logo with only the double W and a red scar underneath 2 A month later on June 10 2002 Stone Cold Steve Austin failed to appear on that night s episode of Raw and was effectively released from the company similar events had allegedly taken place in the weeks following WrestleMania X8 stemming from Austin s frustration with his character s direction 132 Because of the trademark ruling the company transitioned into its Ruthless Aggression Era on May 6 2002 133 and on the June 24 showing of Raw Vince McMahon officially named the new era as such to motivate the younger roster The Ruthless Aggression Era featured many elements of the Attitude Era including similar levels of violence sexual content and profanity However a greater emphasis on wrestling was showcased 134 Media EditHome video Edit On November 20 2012 a three disc documentary set simply entitled The Attitude Era was released on DVD and Blu ray The video cover is a collage of WWF Superstars and celebrities of that era designed as a parody of The Beatles Sgt Pepper s Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover 135 136 Volume 2 was released in November 2014 Volume 3 was released on August 9 2016 Volume 4 1997 Dawn of the Attitude was released on October 3 2017 Volume 5 Best of 1996 Prelude to Attitude was released on November 29 2021 Video games Edit This section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Many video games were released by WWF based on the Attitude Era with some of the most notable titles being WWF War Zone WWF Attitude WWF WrestleMania 2000 WWF No Mercy WWF Royal Rumble WWF SmackDown WWF SmackDown 2 Know Your Role WWF SmackDown Just Bring It WWF Raw and WWE WrestleMania X8 A video game entitled WWE 13 which was released in October 2012 paid tribute to the era with its Attitude Era mode which allows the player to re enact WWF matches and storytelling from SummerSlam in August 1997 to WrestleMania XV in March 1999 Also in WWE 13 there is an Off Script including the debut of Smackdown in April 1999 to the match between Trish Stratus and Lita on Monday Night Raw in November 2001 The video game first entitled WWE 2K14 featured some of the four WrestleMania matches based on the Attitude Era as well with WrestleMania XIV and XV having previously appeared in WWE Legends of WrestleMania prior to their appearances in WWE 13 and WWE 2K14 The video game entitled WWE 2K16 featured some events of the Attitude Era specifically related to Stone Cold Steve Austin who was also on the game s cover Music Edit In 1998 the WWF released WWF The Music Volume 3 which achieved platinum status in the United States signifying one million sales 137 138 while WWF The Music Volume 4 reached number five in the Canadian Albums Chart in 1999 139 Following this WWF and their composer Jim Johnston would collaborate with mainstream hip hop and rock musicians for albums 139 and Johnston would often hand pick artists to work with on new theme songs with WWF Aggression album in 2000 140 In 2001 WWF The Music Vol 5 reached number two on the Billboard 200 and number five in the Canadian and UK Albums Chart 141 See also EditHistory of professional wrestling in the United StatesReferences Edit a b c First WWF Attitude promo at Survivor Series 1997 YouTube a b c World Wrestling Federation Entertainment drops the F WWE May 6 2002 Hau Chu December 18 2015 Where are they now WWE Attitude Era superstars New York Daily News Mueller The Doctor Chris Power Ranking Stone Cold Steve Austin s 6 WWE Championship Victories Bleacher Report Bruce Prichard Says Attitude Era Women Were Mostly Comfortable With Bra amp Panties Matches Says They Wanted to Show Off Their Body 411mania com 10 WCW Stars That Walked Out On The Company And Why They Did It From Federation to Entertainment WWE s Journey is Mirrored in Wrestling Games NDTV Gadgets 360 Kilbane Lyle 7 May 2021 Shawn Michaels On Wanting The Attitude Era 3 Years Before It Happened Inside The Ropes Retrieved 3 June 2021 a b Sinclair Paul 24 March 2021 Vince Russo Reveals His Biggest Wrestling Regret Inside The Ropes Retrieved 3 June 2021 Ed Ferrara April 28 2014 Retrieved June 14 2020 Talbot Jordan 24 May 2021 Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara 3 Months of Power in WCW Pro Wrestling Stories Retrieved 3 June 2021 Bachman Justin 9 April 2000 WCW Looks To Get Off the Mat Associated Press Retrieved 3 June 2021 Vince Russo On Biggest Misconceptions About Him Origin of The Attitude Era Who WWE Writers Write For Today January 7 2018 Retrieved April 7 2021 Irel Rob September 20 2018 Goldust How The Bizarre One Tried to Get Breast Implants Pro Wrestling Stories Goldust Believes He Helped Launch WWE s Attitude Era Over 20 Years Ago October 26 2017 Tierney John September 23 1999 Take Wrestling Seriously The New York Times Retrieved December 10 2014 Keller on Stacy Bret swearing Tekno Team WM8 Sid Hogan Flair Savage TNA www pwtorch com Stone Cold Steve Austin The 15 greatest T shirts in wrestling history WWE a b c d e Bonzagni Michael Williams Matthew 16 March 2020 It s Stone Cold Steve Austin Day The moments that made Austin 3 16 iconic ESPN Retrieved 3 June 2021 a b c d e Hammond Scott 26 April 2019 Austin Vs McMahon The Greatest Rivalry In History VultureHound Retrieved 4 June 2021 WWE Greatest Rivalries Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart Brock Allen November 9 2017 Throwback Thursday WWF Survivor Series 1997 20 Years Ago Today As Seen on WWE Network Wrestling DVD Network Quinones Eric R October 20 1997 Barry Diller taking over USA Network and other Universal TV businesses Associated Press Retrieved April 28 2021 Fabrikantpublisher New York Times Geraldine February 15 1998 Barry Diller Media Titan Wants a Shot at the Small Time Retrieved April 11 2021 Hofmeister Sallie April 10 1998 USA Networks CEO Kay Koplovitz Resigns Los Angeles Times Retrieved April 15 2022 a b Assael Shaun Mike Mooneyham Mike February 2004 Sex Lies and Headlocks The Real Story of Vince Mcmahon and World Wrestling Entertainment The Crown Publishing Group p 188 ISBN 9780307758132 Retrieved March 28 2022 Pro Wrestling a Darling of Teen Age Boys and Cable TV Bloomberg News November 11 1998 Retrieved April 28 2021 a b Alex Marvez Scripps Howard News Service September 18 1998 Nudity episode brings remorse from McMahon South Coast Today Retrieved April 28 2021 Lieberman David 2014 09 15 Bonnie Hammer Re Teams With Mentor Barry Diller On IAC Board Deadline Retrieved 2021 12 12 Spike TV Executive Responds To Vince Russo Talks Spike Helping TNA In The Past Wrestling Inc a b c Tennant Matt 29 November 2020 Stone Cold Steve Austin Gives The Bottom Line On Working With Mike Tyson Inside The Ropes Retrieved 3 June 2021 Cole Glenn March 30 1998 Stone Cold and Tyson stun Michaels Slam Sports Retrieved December 10 2014 Smith Timothy W February 6 1998 Tyson Confirms a Split With His Two Managers The New York Times Retrieved December 10 2014 Lieberman Paul 15 November 1998 The Ultimate Grudge Match Los Angeles Times Retrieved 3 June 2021 Schone Mark 1 December 1998 The Steel Cage No Holds Barred Cable Ratings Death Match Spin Retrieved 3 June 2021 Beaston Erik 29 July 2017 Stone Cold Steve Austin s Best Worst and Most Outrageous Moments in WWE Career Bleacher Report Retrieved 6 June 2021 WWF Fully Loaded Shoop Stephen A Falcon Mike December 14 1999 Piledriver slams Austin into surgery USA Today Retrieved August 19 2014 Powell John April 2 2001 Austin turns heel at WM X Seven Slam Sports Retrieved May 10 2014 WWF WrestleMania 17 Results 4 1 01 The Rock vs Stone Cold II Undertaker vs Triple H 20 August 2020 411Mania From the Bowery WrestleMania X Seven 411mania com Brown Blackjack 7 November 1999 WWF mulls changing Stone Cold into a heel Chicago Sun Times Retrieved 1 December 2021 via newsbank com The major news around the wrestling world recently has been the World Wrestling Federation s idea of possibly turning Stone Cold Steve Austin into a heel Austin s popularity has been diminishing during the last few months and The Rock clearly has become the No 1 man in the organization The problem the WWF has with turning Austin into a heel is that he has no friends and does not associate himself with anyone Pitting him against honcho Vince McMahon again would not work because the fans would turn on McMahon The only solution for the WWF is to put Austin with Hunter Hearst Helmsley in Degeneration X The WWF s hope is to have Austin face The Rock at WrestleMania next April The SmarK Retro Repost Summerslam 2001 411mania com WWE Survivor Series www prowrestlinghistory com a b Lake Jefferson 7 January 2019 Mick Foley says 1999 WWF title win on Raw was a mistake by company Sky Sports Retrieved 4 June 2021 a b Dilbert Ryan 30 December 2017 Mick Foley s 1st WWE Championship Win a Reminder of When Raw Was at Its Best Bleacher Report Retrieved 4 June 2021 PPV Lookback WWF No Way Out 2000 Cactus Jack vs Triple H Angle vs Jericho Rock vs Big Show Kane vs X Pac 10 March 2017 Mick Foley Reveals Why He Didn t Face Vince McMahon at WWE WrestleMania 17 30 March 2021 a b Examining Triple H s Influence 19 Years After 1st WWE Championship Win Bleacher Report Pro Wrestling Illustrated presents 2007 Wrestling almanac amp book of facts Wrestling s historical cards p 104 Baer Randy and R D Reynolds Wrestlecrap The Very Worst of Pro Wrestling p 257 Curran Robert 4 April 2020 WrestleMania 2000 Was WWE s Weirdest Big Show Ever So Far CBR Retrieved 3 June 2021 Kevin s Random Reviews WWF Judgment Day 2000 Triple H vs The Rock 411mania com The SmarK Rant For WWF Royal Rumble 2001 411mania com a b Laurer Joanie If They Only Knew 259 269 Laurer Joanie If They Only Knew 289 Laurer Joanie If They Only Knew 274 a b Oppenheim Maya 21 April 2016 Chyna dead Five surprising facts about the WWE legend s action packed life The Independent Retrieved 4 June 2021 a b Varsallone Jim 29 January 2001 Chyna s done it her way Tampa Bay Times Retrieved 4 June 2021 a b Campbell Duncan 8 July 2001 Enter the dragon The Guardian Retrieved 4 June 2021 Laurer Joanie If They Only Knew 7 8 Powell John August 28 2000 Stunts highlight SummerSlam SLAM Wrestling Archived from the original on July 23 2020 Retrieved August 8 2008 Eddie Guerrero Sept 4 2000 November 23 2000 World Wrestling Entertainment Archived from the original on February 21 2008 Retrieved August 8 2008 Milner John October 13 2004 Eddie Guerrero SLAM Wrestling Archived from the original on July 20 2012 Retrieved August 8 2008 Chyna s profile Online World of Wrestling Archived from the original on April 5 2008 Retrieved August 9 2008 411Mania Summer Slam 2000 Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship World Wrestling Entertainment September 23 2001 Retrieved September 17 2010 RAW is WAR results 2000 Online World of Wrestling Archived from the original on 2008 06 07 Retrieved 2008 01 20 WWE Raw Show 097 TV com November 16 1998 Hunter Brad 24 May 2021 Porn to Prison The rocky life of WWE diva Sunny Toronto Sun Retrieved 4 June 2021 Khal 1 December 2015 Classic WWE Divas Where Are They Now Complex Retrieved 4 June 2021 Wedlan Candace A 5 July 1999 She s Got a Lock on Roles in and Out of Ring Los Angeles Times Retrieved 3 June 2021 a b c d Beaston Erik 26 March 2014 Full Career Retrospective and Greatest Moments for Sable Bleacher Report Retrieved 4 June 2021 Wrestling Queen A Sport Run Amok Van Boom Daniel 31 October 2016 Two women just changed pro wrestling forever CNET Retrieved 4 June 2021 Oliver Greg 11 January 1999 Sable looks beyond wrestling Slam Wrestling Retrieved 3 June 2021 Byrne Bridget 5 June 1999 Sable Sexism Hazards Rage Rule WWF E NBCUniversal Retrieved 4 June 2021 Wrestling Star Sues WWF Associated Press 4 June 1999 Retrieved 4 June 2021 a b c Beaston Erik 5 December 2013 Full Career Retrospective and Greatest Moments for Lita Bleacher Report Retrieved 4 June 2021 Laroche Stephen 14 February 2001 Lita riding wave of popularity Slam Wrestling Retrieved 4 June 2021 Lita s Alumni Profile WWE com Retrieved March 24 2016 Canton John 26 August 2020 TJR Retro WWF Raw Deal 08 21 00 Review Lita vs Stephanie McMahon Main Event TJR Wrestling Retrieved 4 June 2021 Beaston Erik 24 September 2019 Celebrating the 10 Greatest WWE Moments of Stephanie McMahon Bleacher Report Retrieved 4 June 2021 Wilder Charlotte 21 August 2020 Q amp A WWE s Stephanie McMahon Fox Sports Retrieved 4 June 2021 Csonka Larry 19 April 2013 Trish Stratus Talks Retirement Barking Like a Dog Having A Backup Plan More 411Mania Retrieved 4 June 2021 Chris Jericho s first WWE Championship reign WWE Retrieved 2008 02 14 411Mania The Monday Night War DVD Diot Dylan 2014 02 08 From The Shelf WWF Survivor Series 1999 411mania com Retrieved 2021 09 23 a b Linder Zach 31 October 2012 The chaotic chronicles of the Hardcore Championship WWE Official Website Retrieved 4 June 2021 a b c d Bower Aaron 29 November 2013 Remembering the Hardcore Title Under 24 7 Rules Bleacher Report Retrieved 4 June 2021 Oliver Greg 9 January 2014 Mae Young and the Dudley Boyz powerbomb Slam Wrestling Retrieved 3 June 2021 Baldwin Kristen 6 December 1999 More WWF advertisers cave to public pressure Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 4 June 2021 Grudge Match The Wall Street Journal 14 November 2000 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Baldwin Kristen Flaherty Mike 16 April 1999 Why Wrestlemania can no longer be ignored Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 4 June 2021 Farache Emily 30 November 1999 A Kinder Gentler Smackdown E NBCUniversal Retrieved 4 June 2021 Gordon Devin 12 December 1999 WWF Tones Down Its Smackdown Act Newsweek Retrieved 4 June 2021 McKay Betsy 30 November 1999 World Wrestling Federation Clamps Down on Smackdown The Wall Street Journal Retrieved 4 June 2021 WWF Sues Media Watchdog Group Los Angeles Times Reuters 10 November 2000 Retrieved 4 June 2021 WWF Officially Sues PTC s Bozell IGN 9 November 2000 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Silverman Stephen M 19 October 1998 WWF Rock s Fight People Retrieved 4 June 2021 Oliver Greg 7 November 2000 Steven Richards discusses the politics of Right To Censor Slam Wrestling Retrieved 4 June 2021 WWF wins round 1 against parents org Variety 28 May 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Farhi Paul 9 July 2002 TV Watchdog Apologizes for False Claims On Wrestling Washington Post Retrieved 4 June 2021 Kelso Paul 27 July 2001 Wrestling soap opera faces chop The Guardian Retrieved 4 June 2021 Channel 4 hit by wrestling rap BBC News 12 February 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Wrestling with our convictions Irish Times 27 March 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Cohen Eric Vince Russo Biography of Vince Russo the Former Head Writer of WWF Monday Night Raw amp WCW Nitro About com Retrieved March 27 2007 Vince Russo Reveals What Vince McMahon Said to Him That Made Him Leave WWE ewrestlingnews com December 19 2019 Retrieved April 29 2020 RD Reynolds amp Bryan Alvarez December 3 2004 The Death of WCW Wrestlecrap and Figure Four Weekly Present ECW Press pp 156 210 ISBN 1 5502 2661 4 a b Keller Wade May 10 2005 WWE News Former WWE TV writer Chris Kreski dies of cancer age 42 Pro Wrestling Torch Retrieved May 10 2014 Pantoja Kevin November 23 2017 Kevin s Random Reviews WWF No Mercy 2000 411Mania Retrieved April 13 2021 Leeds Jeff Hofmeister Sally 12 January 2001 Time Warner to Toss Out Wrestling Los Angeles Times Retrieved 4 June 2021 Time Warner sells WCW CNN 11 January 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Rutenberg Jim 19 March 2001 Turner Drops Wrestling in First Decision by Its New Chief The New York Times Retrieved 4 June 2021 Sorkin Andrew Ross 24 March 2001 Smackdown W W F to Buy Wrestling Rival The New York Times Retrieved 4 June 2021 WWE Entertainment Inc Acquires WCW from Turner Broadcasting March 23 2001 Archived from the original on March 13 2014 Retrieved May 5 2007 WWF buys WCW from Turner Canadian Broadcasting Corporation 23 March 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 WWF buys rival WCW CNN 23 March 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Wrestling Federation Buys Rival Los Angeles Times 24 March 2001 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Powell John 24 March 2001 Triple H on the collapse of WCW and ECW Slam Wrestling Retrieved 4 June 2021 Sabga Chris 11 April 2001 ECW Files For Bankruptcy IGN Retrieved 4 June 2021 Shields Brian Sullivan Kevin 2009 WWE History of WrestleMania p 58 Powell John July 23 2001 Austin turns at Invasion Slam Sports Retrieved May 10 2014 PWTorch com Torch Flashback 12 09 01 Chris Jericho becomes WWE Undisputed champion Torch cover story with parallels to The Miz as WWE champion Vengeance 2001 PPV Report www pwtorch com WWE Pay Per Views To Follow WrestleMania Formula Archived from the original on March 19 2007 WWE Rumors Brand Split Will Continue After FOX Deal Starts Per The Inquisitr The Inquisitr 23 November 2018 Retrieved December 16 2018 World Wildlife Fund and Titan Sports Inc legal settlement Contracts onecle com January 20 1994 Retrieved June 2 2012 Bush Greg 2017 06 11 Stone Cold walking out on WWE The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar s Reactions www sportskeeda com Retrieved 2021 10 24 WWE Roster Ruthless Aggression Era May 6 2002 July 21 2008 thesmackdownhotel com WWE Ruthless Aggression New Lies For A New Era UpRoxx February 17 2020 Retrieved June 27 2020 WWE The Attitude Era WWE Retrieved March 26 2013 Amazon com Attitude Era DVD Release Synopsis Amazon Retrieved September 26 2012 Barrasso Justin March 28 2018 Jim Johnston Discusses the Creation of Stone Cold Steve Austin s Theme Song His 32 Years With WWE Sports Illustrated Retrieved April 28 2021 King Christopher May 9 2019 Jim Johnston Story WWE Theme Song Mastermind Pro Wrestling Stories Retrieved April 28 2021 a b Cantin Paul November 17 1999 Jim Johnston and his musical WWF career Slam Wrestling Retrieved April 28 2021 Ali Reyan April 3 2013 The Man Who Writes WWE Wrestlers Theme Music Is a James Taylor Fan The Atlantic Retrieved April 28 2021 WWE The Music Volume 5 CD Debuts at No 2 on Billboard Top 200 WWE Official Website March 1 2001 Retrieved April 29 2021 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Attitude Era amp oldid 1135371346, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.