Vince Russo's 10 Worst WWE Ideas
2. The Blue Blazer Repels From The Ceiling
(Mother of God)
I don't want to blame Vince Russo for Owen. Even as I blast his ideas, I don't want to pin a man's death on him.
That all said: who the hell thought it was so vital to have a throwaway midcard act in such a situation? Who was it that pitched to Owen, a man deathly afraid of heights, that he should rappel from the ceiling and come down to the ring?
This is really uncomfortable to write, because I seriously don't want to write about how Vince Russo is a murderer or how he orchestrated the death of Owen Hart. However, from his own testimony, the events that led to such a tragedy came at his volition (i.e. he thought that Owen would be perfect to be the guy to rappel from the ceiling).
And even after such a horrible event? Russo, or whoever he was working with, decided that in TNA's early stages, it would be good for the company to have Roddy Piper to come out and confront Russo directly about Owen's death.
This was an era where Russo was claiming he was the Anti-Christ of wrestling. What's more devilish than tacitly admitting you were responsible for a wrestler's death? Not saying he was, but he certainly didn't shy away from that controversy when it was convenient for him.