10 Worst Wrestling Publicity Stunts

Few reputable grief counselors advise that the best way to comfort a widow in the immediate aftermath of a bereavement is by subjecting her to a live television interview. But just a single day after Brian Pillman's sudden death, that's exactly what Vince McMahon did.

McMahon gratuitously and tastelessly promoted the segment featuring Melanie Pillman on the Monday Night Raw broadcast 24 hours after Pillman was discovered lifeless in his hotel room, as though it were simply the next chapter in a wrestling angle. Come the time, an obviously distraught Melanie struggled to fight back tears, as the boss grilled her on a series of questions relating to her husband's unexpected death, including ones regarding his past issues with drug abuse, and how she would cope raising a family of five alone.

The exercise seemed partly designed to absolve WWF of any responsibility for the tragedy - Melanie was badgered into acknowledging self-medication, not steroid abuse, was at play - but mostly as a lurid ratings grab. The screw was strategically turned as McMahon sadistically angled for a reaction, finely cranking up the emotions - and, he hoped, the ratings.

McMahon was, not surprisingly, pilloried from all corners of the industry - including his own locker-room. But he remained unrepentant, telling TSN's Off the Record that the forum had allowed the family to benefit in some capacity. Even a trio of mice being chased through a kitchen with a carving knife could see through the pretense; it was tacky, insensitive sensationalism at its absolute basest.