The King is King

We here at How Much Does This Guy Weigh? ("we" meaning "I") wish Jerry Lawler a speedy recovery from his heart attack suffered this past Monday Night on Raw. According to Smith Hart, Lawler was clinically dead for 20 minutes before being resuscitated. Then again, this is the same guy who named his daughter Satanic Ecstasy Hart, so take what he says with a grain of salt. Lawler is reported to have not suffered brain damage from any loss of consciousness.

Jerry Lawler was the announcer I grew up with, having commentated WWF Superstars in 1993 even before he became a regular on Monday Night Raw. In honor of the King, here is one of my favorite matches of all time, Bret Hart vs. Doink/Jerry Lawler. This whole feud was classic, leading to a match with some of the biggest heat ever generated on WWF PPV. I look forward to reviewing the Raws of Summer 1993, where this feud played out.

 

A few interesting notes here: According to Bret Hart's book and subsequent interviews, the Hitman really locks in the Sharpshooter as payback for Lawler's hard shot to Bret with his crutch, as well as his stiff handling of the post-King of the Ring beatdown, which included throwing a throne onto Hart's back. Also, Bret's brothers Owen and Bruce, seated at ringside, did not know that Doink would throw water on them. Another great thing about this feud is how it played out in Memphis in the USWA, with Hart and Lawler switching roles as heel and villain, and even bringing in Vince McMahon and Tatanka to play the big bad New York heels.