One MIND-BLOWING Secret From EVERY Month Of The WWE Attitude Era
26. March 1999 | Boom, Let’s Go Ignite
Several factors contributed to the success of the WWF Attitude Era.
Stone Cold Steve Austin was the greatest character, all-rounder, and entertainer in pro wrestling history. The lowbrow, sex-crazed tone appealed to the young blokes high on the numbskull bro culture of the day. Also, and this cannot be overstated enough, false advertising was a massive, massive part of it. The WWF would constantly tell you something that could not happen was going to happen, like an impromptu WrestleMania-sized main event on Raw, which didn’t end up happening. WCW Nitro’s 83 week streak was broken by the unfulfilled promise of Steve Austin Vs. Mr. McMahon as the Raw main event.
The actual wrestling action wasn’t too appealing to the new bro audience, which is why so many Raw matches lasted all of a few minutes in order to arrive at the next daft stunt. This was also key in building the Attitude Era.
The WWF planned something incredible in this department as the big angle ahead of WrestleMania 15 before realising it was much too ambitious. The Corporation beer bath would have to do.
Vince McMahon purchased the Debbie Reynolds Hotel near Las Vegas in 1998; while the project was eventually dropped, the idea was to build a WWF resort in its place. The site needed tearing down to enable this, and Vince, per the March 15, 1999 Observer, wanted Steve Austin to blow it up under the idea that he had ruined Vince’s outrageously expensive investment.
Mr. McMahon’s facial expressions would have been nothing short of incredible.