A Heart to Hart

A Heart to Hart
By Christian McHausenstern

Bret "the Hitman" Hart sits at his desk in a long sleeved shirt and jeans. His hair is long and unblemished with gray. In fact the only betrayal of age in the man are the light lines that crease the eyes and brow. He is still in good shape, a "gym rat" in the mornings he uses that time to let the world of the EWF fall away. For the rest of the day it is still wrestling 24/7 for this restless warrior. I had been warned about interviewing Mr. Hart by the other's in my field. "Hart," one reporter told me "has the ability to be obtuse and obfuscate while still retaining the loyalty of fans and wrestlers". It is a harsh assessment of a man that's seen as a "Sharpshooter". I found that Bret was neither forthright or dishonest. Instead what we get is the picture of a man who is cautious, some could say too cautious, about protecting the status quo.

CM: Bret I'd like to thank you for giving this interview today.

BH: Always good to see you Mac.

CM: You've been commissioner for about two years now. How would you rate your performance?

BH: I'll leave it to others to rate my performance. What I can do is rate the performance of the EWF over the last two years. So with respect to that, I believe this is probably the best two year run the company's ever had.

CM: Are you responsible for that then?

BH: Everybody that works here is responsible for that.

CM: How about in terms of a personal sense of accomplishment.

BH: I take great pride in what I do. So yeah, obviously I feel a sense of personal accomplishment when I see the company doing well.

CM: What is your greatest success and most bitter disappointment.

BH: Again, I'll let other people judge my successes.

CM: And bitter disappointment?

BH: Can I go with Shawn Michaels on that?

CM: I mean in the EWF.

BH: Anytime one of my wrestlers is injured.

CM: How did you feel when you first entered the job, were you bothered by the circumstances of a federation in turmoil? Can you take us through Caps invitation?

BH: Well, to the first part, I mean, I've spent plenty of time in 'federations in turmoil', as you say, so that didn't really faze me. And an top of that, I don't think this place really was in turmoil. I mean, if you saw what WCW was like towards the end, well this was nothing. As for Cap's invitation, it was actually Doggman's idea to bring me on. I didn't really know Cap before I came here.

CM: Your old partner Doggman has recently obtained a managing license. What do you expect from him? What was your experience working with him?

BH: I expect him to be a very entertaining manager. I don't know if his wrestlers will win more matches because of him; time will bear that out. My experience working with him was great. I learned a lot from him. He's a truly accomplished commissioner.

CM: And now you work with Jonny James, the former Lord of Darkness. There have been interesting rumors floating about dissension within the office fo the commissioner. Many people say that this recent push for Champions having power is really a push from Jonny James, how would you characterize the state of the commissioner's office today?

BH: What goes on behind closed doors is between myself and Jonny. All I'm going to say is that when we announce a card, we do so in agreement.

CM: I'd like to talk about the titles if we could. Particularly the Working Mans Title. There has been some outrage, particularly along the coasts, that the Cardinal's placing of the cross on the title is inappropriate. Where does EWF management stand on the issue, and will you ask him to remove the cross?

BH: That's the champion's prerogative. As far as I know, Chris hasn't violated any FCC regulations, so I see no need for discipline or change.

CM: I'd like to stay with this. There is of course no FCC regulation, but there are many fans who feel offended by this, I'd like to point to the online petition "Cross Face the Cardinal", which calls for the title to be stripped.

BH: Look, I realize different people are going to be sensitive to different things. But let's try and keep this in perspective. Nobody wanted to suspend Jamal when he was portraying an unfavorable stereotype of an urban african american. Nobody wanted to suspend Dave Finn for portraying the stereotypical drunken irishman. Nobody wanted to suspend the heartbreakers because they portrayed stereotypical flamboyant homosexuals -

CM: That's not entirely true in their case. I mean, people did call for their firing -

BH: The point, Mac, is that people are going to be sensitive to different things. This is an entertainment business. That's what Chris is doing. It may not meet with your sensibilities, or mine. But the fact of the matter is he's not hurting anybody, and he'll be allowed to continue.

CM: I think some of those competitors might take umbrage with the idea that they are "portraying" anything. Do you feel that these individuals are being insincere?

BH: This is show business, Mac. Most of these guys go home to wives and kids. Do you think they're the same person when they're at home that they are in the ring? Some are and some aren't. Like I said, this is show biz.

CM: Final question on this topic. If lieu of your statement today that the Cardinal will not be suspended, will you meet with or in any way ask Mr. Christian to remove the religious symbol from the belt?

BH: I believe I've already answered that.

CM: There has been a youth movement in the EWF that some people say is a result of older wrestlers fading in athletic prowess. Is their still a place in the EWF for a Dr. Frank? How about a David Finn or Han Zo Mon, neither are over the hill, but each has been wrestling for a such an expanse of time?

BH: There's a place for anybody as long as they remain competitive. And that's up to them. Nobody has a job here because of what they did 5 years ago, or ten years ago. If Frank or Finn or Zo or anybody else entertains the fans, then there is a place for them.

CM: I'd like to address the issue of Steroids with you. Han Zo Mon was accused of doing steroids, Dr. Acula appears and claims it was a scheme. Some in the press have questioned the timing and validity of Dr. Acula's timely interference. Has the EWF changed its drug testing policy? Would it diminish Han Zo Mon's accomplishments in your eyes if he had been taking enhancements?

BH: I'm not going to comment on any of that. That's really Cap's department, and he'll probably refer you to the Untouchables.

CM: Are you saying The Untouchables set steroid policy in the EWF?

BH: The Untouchables are Cap's enforcement arm. We don't condone or tolerate the use of performance enhancing drugs. The enforcement of that policy falls to the Untouchables. That's all I'm saying. If you want anything more, you'll have to talk to Cap.

CM: Some final questions. Greatest Champion Ever?

BH: I'm going to get hell for saying this, but for one day, it was Chris Benoit.

CM: Best Finishing move?

BH: Weapons of Mass Destruction off the top rope.

CM: Best two young wrestlers today?

BH: Gotta go with Tracey Dix again. And I'm curious about this Romney kid over in England.

CM: Will Bret Hart ever step back in that ring?

BH: Never say never, but I doubt it.

CM: Thanks for your time Bret.

BH: Any time, Mac.