BC I’M BRIAN FN PILLMAN – The Life and Legacy of Brian Pillman

“No, no, Joey Styles. You’re not running this interview, I am! Cause I’m Brian fucking Pillman!”

Ah man 1 of my favourite lines from 1 of my favourite wrestlers, the great Brian Pillman. I’ve always thought of him as pro wrestling’s Kurt Cobain bc I feel that they have the same kind of impact on their fans. Both have become almost mythical figures within their respective fields of expertise and their legends have both grown to grandiose proportions. Pillman’s look was the personification of cool and you could say the same about Kurt Cobain. Both guys left this world far too soon with legions of fans left behind that had nobody else that could fill the void created by the loss of their energy that they gave us through their art. Pillman was incredible in the ring and was doing things that nobody else could follow at that time. If you watch his first matches in Stampede he literally has too much athleticism, consistently jumping too high or too far on his opponent but eventually he figured out how to control it and became one of the best wrestlers in the world. The level of charisma he had was insane, that was what fuelled his legend and made his promos so compelling, you couldn’t take your eyes off him when he was on screen and didn’t want him to stop talking. He would have been incredible as a villain in an action or Marvel movie. At his best, Brian Pillman was 10/10 in both ring ability and promos so even though he had a Hall of Fame career, he never came close to his true potential.

My introduction to Pillman was through the Apter magazines but even on the pages of a magazine, he made you stop and pay attention and figure out who he was and what he was doing. First match I ever saw was when I rented a SuperBrawl II tape and saw what was arguably the best match of his career vs Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger and was instantly a fan. There were never many WCW tapes available to rent but whenever I saw one I would immediately look at the back to see if he was on the card and if he was it was coming home with me lol such a shame that he had the car accident that destroyed his ankle and put him in a coma bc the Attitude Era would be much different and most likely be even better and bigger. The coma prob took 30-40 years off his life and the ankle was so bad that he never wrestled close to the same level he used to and substantiated the addiction issues that led to the end of his life. But the whole story of Brian Pillman is one of overcoming adversity at every step of his life and not only getting through it, but succeeding at the highest levels. Gonna enjoy walking through his life and remembering why he was 1 of my favourite wrestlers.

Brian Pillman was born May 22, 1962 in Cincinnati, Ohio and he was an unexpected birth coming after 3 sisters and 1 brother but was loved from the start. Brian’s Dad died when he was just 2 months old so you can see his battles to overcome adversity started very early. When Brian was 2 yrs old had started having breathing problems and the doctors discovered polyps growing on his vocal cords. His family had him booked to go to see a specialist but it got so bad he had emergency problems with it and almost died. They had to perform surgery to try and remove the polyps but the polyps would grow back after sugeries so they had to do them frequently and the repeated surgeries took their toll on his voice. In the end he had over 40 surgeries and the medical professionals even wrote a paper on him due to the volume of polyps. After one of the first surgeries, he was saved by a little boy after having complications to surgery and struggling to breathe but the boy told the doctors he needed help and they got to him just in time. Brian went through a lot with the throat issues and couldn’t speak for weeks after a surgery but he had the discipline to do it and never disobeyed orders by talking before he was supposed to. Makes sense why he became so good at promos.

Brian started playing hockey and was great at it but he wanted to get a scholarship and hockey wasnt gonna get him one so he switched to football. Everyone thought Brian was too small to be a football player until they saw him play and the there were no doubts, he was great and became a star player on the team. Tried to get bigger but height was the problem so he ended up transforming his body muscularly and got pretty jacked for his size and age. Brian used to vomit before games he was so hyped up and excited, sometimes when people saw that for the first time they got concerned but someone would fill them in, “don’t worry he throws up before every game” lol he played like he had something to prove every play, never took a play off and always showed that he had the biggest heart on the field. The foundation for the Loose Cannon persona was built in his teenage years as he was intense and high strung back then, known as a street fighter that you didn’t want to fight. During 1 bar fight, Brian hung a guy over the first floor railing and got banned lol the frustration over his size would eat away at him, esp when scouts would see his size and not give him the offers other players got. He ended up the only guy on the team to not get a scholarship offer despite being one of the best players.

The choice was accept defeat or fight through the adversity to prove himself so he walked on to Miami’s football program and went through the battles of being treated like 2nd class citizen having to use old equipment to train. During the 1st practice, coach let him play and he sacked the 1st string QB, dumping him on his head breaking his collarbone lol Coaches knew immediately they had a player and Brian’s stock began to rise. He played nose tackle despite his size bc he was so quick and could get to the QB. If you know anything about football, you know it’s insane that he was a fn nose tackle those guys are usually beasts but that’s why Pillman always stood out from the rest, he was out-wieghed by 50-75 lbs and would still get double-triple teamed on plays to try and deal with his speed. Brian fought to become a big time college football player at a major college being named 2nd team AP All American, 2nd to Hall of Famer William Refrigerator Perry and 1 center that played against both, wrote Brian a letter saying he was tougher to play against than Fridge. Pretty incredible what Brian was able to at his size and position and the level of respect that he received. One of his roommates at Miami was Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh who has so much love and respect for Brian that he has come out to AEW events to support his son Brian Pillman Jr.

Relentless energy + hard work made Brian a force but size still held him back and he went undrafted but quickly signed with Bengals as free agent and crushed the workouts meant to faze out the players that didnt want it bad enough. Brian made an amazing tackle in a pre season game and ended up making the team. He was 1 of smallest players but his teammates said he was 1 of hardest hitters and even won the Ed Block courage award that the Bengals give out which was big honour. Unfortuantely he ended up being cut by the Bengals and joined the Buffalo Bills playing for them in preseason in 1985 but was the final player cut before the rosters were finalized for the regular season. Brian just needed an opportunity and he would’ve had an NFL career but never found that person willing to give it to him so he tried to continue his football career in Canada in the CFL for the Calgary Stampeders. Brian made it to Calgary to play for the CFL but hurt his ankle and that ended his pro football career. Pro Wrestling was suggested to him as a possible career so he called the number he was given and made friends with Bruce Hart who brought him in to the Harts to train and work in Stampede. As I said in the opening paragraph, Brian was ridiculously athletic in the ring, over shooting opponents he could jump so far and so high. Training with the Harts was the perfect place for Brian bc they could teach him the wrestling foundation that would help him figure out how to make the most of his athleticism within the confines of a wrestling match.

Brian didn’t just do something half way, when he did something it as all the way so in addition to the physical training, he actually studied the history of wrestling and was drawn to guys like Ric Flair. Lou Thesz’s book ‘Hooker’ was like his Bible, he soaked up the info like a sponge and became a pro wrestling historian in no time. Soon after completing his training, Brian was working in Stampede and formed the tag team Badd Company with Bruce Hart and they won the Stampede International Tag Titles in April 1987 and held them until July 1988. Brian would finish up with Stampede in Aug 1988 and head for a short tour with NJPW for some singles matches and tag matches with Vader vs Riki Choshu and Tatsumi Fujinami. After returning to the US, Bengals strength coach Kim Wood vouched for him to JR so he could sign with WCW and after getting a look at him, JR thought he could be really special. Brian’s football career gave him some credibility in wrestling and the same drive and work ethic that put him on the map in football would make him 1 of the fastest rising stars in wrestling. He worked his 1st big match vs Lex Luger and he really brought out best of Luger having a great match with him not once but twice in 1989. Ric Flair saw something special in Brian as well so he had a main event match against him on WCW Saturday Night that got 1 of the highest ratings in the shows history and it was a fcking great match that put Brian on the map.

With more fame thanks to wrestling, Brian was able to indulge in 1 of his biggest vices, women. Being a jacked, good looking guy combined with that ‘cool’ look he personified made it easy for Brian to live a life of lust bc Brian loved women and women loved Brian lol there is a famous legend that he once slept with every single member of a college sorority so not a lot more that needs to be said haha he may not have been the best husband/boyfriend but there was no denying that he was a great father and that he really loved his kids and tried to provide the best life he possibly could for them. On his days off he was very involved, always playing and spending time with them. Back on the road, Brian quickly earned his ‘Flyin’ nickname with outstanding athleticism and exciting offense including many moves that are regular now but we saw for first time in US with Brian. He was on a different level than everyone else and was working a style that was ahead of its time. Brian formed a team with Tom Zenk and won the US Tag Titles from the Fabulous Freebirds but the team didn’t last long after losing them in a great match vs The Midnight Express Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane. It took some patience but Brian found himself in a big spot at the 1991 WrestleWar competing in War Games with Sting, Brian Pillman and The Steiner Brothers vs Ric Flair, Barry Windham, Sid Vicious Larry Zbyszko with Arn Anderson and they delivered an incredible match that stands as one of the best War Games matches of all time. Brian almost broke his neck after SID tried to powerbomb him but Pillman’s legs hit the top of the cage and SID basically dropped him on his head. The Horsemen won but a PPV main event with the calibre of guys he was in there with was a big deal. Pillman would get a ‘Taped Fist’ match vs Barry Windham at SuperBrawl 1991 but would come out on the losing end. Brian would have another great Tag match with Marcus Bagwell vs Terrence Taylor/Tracy Smothers at Clash of the Champions 18 but it was time to establish himself as a singles star.

WCW was introducing a Light Heavyweight Title and while his goal was to be the World Heavyweight Champion, Brian took it upon himself to make the Light Heavyweight Championship mean as much as Heavyweight title. Brian would end up winning a tournament to be 1st champ by defeating Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger in an absolutely incredible match that is prob the best of his career. Just bell to bell pure greatness. This set up a rivalry to see who was best vs Jushin Liger as both guys were very similar making them perfect opponents for each other, so many amazing matches that really paved the way for smaller wrestlers, not only with moves but for standing out from the Heavyweights. Pillman took a lot of chances to get people talking and always went 110% no matter the size of the crowd/building or who his opponent was. This was the start of a string of awesome matches as Light Heavyweight Champion vs Brad Armstrong on WCW Saturday Night April 92, vs his former partner ‘Z-Man’ Tom Zenk at WrestleWar May 92 and as a tag team with Liger vs Chris Benoit/Beef Wellington at Clash of the Champions 19 June 92. Unfortunately his title run would end at Beach Blast in Jun 1992 in a really good match vs Scotty Flamingo who most know better as Raven. Pillman would team with Liger again for the Tag Title tournament and have another banger but would lose to Nikita Koloff and Ricky Steamboat. This became the norm for Brian, having an awesome match but ultimately losing against Steamboat at Halloween Havoc and both matches in the Battle Bowl at Starrcade with Scorpio vs Windham/Great Muta and with Windham vs Steamboat/Shane Douglas in a fcking great match.

It was around this time that he got paired up in a team with Steve Austin and being in another tag team is not what Brian wanted but Austin esp wasn’t happy initially bc he thought he was about to get a push as a singles star. Despite not intially being happy with the pairing, they ended up becoming a legendary team called the Hollywood Blondes that crushed it both on the mic and in the ring. Brian would actually read the dictionary in the car in between towns to try and get better at promos and he was the one that came up with the Hollywood Blondes name and everything about their team. Brian came up some great ideas; made light up boots for themselves, they each got gold chains(Steve Austin still has his to this day) and had matching gear made for them. The light up shoes are impressive for making it themselves. Turned out to be a great pairing as they had chemistry with each other as well complimented each other in the ring with 2 different styles that meshed perfectly. They were both hungry to succeed so it made it fun for both. The Hollywood Blondes had great matches vs Steamboat/Douglas in their first feud as both teams liked working together even tho one time Steamboat got pissed at Brian after a stiff belt shot one night lol the Hollywood Blondes would lose by DQ to Steamboat/Douglas in a really good match at Clash of the Champions 22 setting them up to tear the house down in the rematch in March on WCW Worldwide when the Hollywood Blondes won their 1st and only tag team gold. They would defend the titles in an awesome cage match at Slamboree 93 vs Steamboat and Zenk before entering into a feud with the 4 Horsemen.

Around this time, Brian married Melanie Pillman and each of them had 2 kids from previous relationships and then in Sept they had Brian Jr together. A feud with top guys like Ric Flair and Arn Anderson is exactly what Brian and Austin wanted so they were ready to give thisall they had and went on Ric Flair’s talk show, ‘A Flair For The Gold,’ and starting insulting them calling Ric and Arn old and almost starting a brawl. The Hollywood Blondes came to play and would take the feud a step further with their parody, ‘A Flair For The Old’ with the two of them dressed as ridiculously old versions of Flair and Arn and it was pretty great lol

“AUSTIN: Ladies and gentleman: It’s the world renown celebration of nostalgia: ‘A Flare for the Old’. Featuring the seven, or eight, or nine time World Champion: The Nature Boy and featuring his maid Potté – and now: The Nature Boy – and tonight’s special guest: One half of the World Tag Team Champions, Hollywood Blonde Stunning Steve Austin!”

Brian hobbles in as an old version of Ric Flair with a walker and takes the mic from Tony Schiavone, who rolls his eyes

Thank you. mumbles Thank you very much, um. Everybody um, please renounce to the special segment of um ‘A Flare for the Old’. Here we are, um… Nursing Home Paradise, live… um… here in technicolor. But before we go any further, I’d like to, um, give that moment to every red-blooded male in America and try to take a deep breath… Let’s bring her out: Potté the maid! There she is. The overweight maid poses and gets a slap on the butt from Brian Whooo, ho-ho-ho… oh, you sex-kitten you. [CROWD CHANTS: We want Flair!] I’m very pleased to announce my special guest: One half of the World Tag Team Champions: Stunning Steve Austin! Let’s bring him out!

Stunning Steve enters. He shakes Brian’s hand hard, who then pretends to collapse

BRIAN: How are you, Steve? I’ve heard that you and your partner are doing some… um… tremendous things… um… you and Stunning Steve are just a tremendous combination.”

AUSTIN: “I‘m Stunning Steve!”

BRIAN: “Um… what was that?”

AUSTIN: “I‘m Stunning Steve!”

BRIAN: “Anyway, Steve: You could maybe tell the great fans out there… um… some of the great things… um… that the Blondes are doing as tag team.”

AUSTIN: “Well I feel like with a partner like Flyin’ Brian the Hollywood Blondes can go… the Hollywood Blondes can go as… Brian pretends to fall asleep HEY, WAKE UP! The Hollywood Blondes can go as far as they want to in tag team wrestling.”

BRIAN: “Steve, I believe it is time for my medication. You can hold on one minute, please? Please hold the microphone for me.”

AUSTIN: “Le-le-le-le-let me do that here. Open up!” Throws pills in Brian’s mouth

BRIAN: “Thank you very much. Um… and don’t you worry about that medication, it’s all legal and prescribed, a little nitro for the oldtimer…

AUSTIN: “Well, I don’t know about problems like that but what I do notice is that it’s sense to say that your best friend, your right hand stooge… a pissed off Arn Anderson enters Oh there is Mr. Stooge right there. I gotta say, Double A, it’s a shame that the Nature Boy has to suffer of old days like this. But I’ve gotta say: Lookin’ at that body, the last time I saw a body like that, It had an apple stuffed in his mouth and it was roasted over an open flame.”

ARN ANDERSON: “You like to barbecue, hum? Well, let’s see!” Arn attacks them“

Def better to be seen but still funny on paper and it was a big hit getting them positive attention and a match with Flair and Arn at Clash of the Champions 23 which they lost but it was still a big spotlight on them. The Hollywood Blondes would defeat Arn and Paul Roma at Beach Blast in a really good match before finally losing the titles to them at Clash of the Champions 24 but it was technically Austin and Steven Regal who was replacing Pillman after he injured his knee shortly before the show. Their last great match as a team was in a 6 man tag with Barry Windham vs Flair, Arn and Roma on WCW Saturday Night in July but the team started getting over as faces bc they were so good/cool/fun and in WCW that was somehow a bad thing so the politics killed the team. I can’t imagine how frustrating it would be to almost be punished for succeeding but it kind of helps me understand why Brian started the Loose Cannon persona. All of the obstacles in life from wrestling to his throat issues to football, everything was always out of his control no matter what he did or how hard he worked. With the Loose Cannon persona, he had all the control and everyone else was beholden to him. Brian and Austin were disgusted when they heard the team was over bc it was working but they just broke them up with no big angle or anything. They had a little feud with Brian losing a good match vs Austin at Clash of the Champions25 but the team was better.

Brian was part of a unique match in wrestling history with Dustin Rhodes and Sting defeating Paul Orndorff, Rick Rude, Steve Austin in the 1st ever Thundercage match that was basically a Hell in a Cell style with room to work between the ring and the cage just no roof. Awesome match. Brian would wrestle to a Time Limit Draw with Steven Regal at Spring Stampede in April and then not be seen much at all the rest of 1994. Brian would return to WCW in Jan 1995 but only briefly as he spent most of 1995 working for NJPW wrestling guys like Dean Malenko, Black Cat, Shinjiro Otani, Black Tiger, Wild Pegasus and Alex Wright who he also wrestled back in WCW at the Great American Bash in June. Brian would be back in WCW for good in the second half of 1995 starting with a great match vs Johnny B Badd at Fall Brawl that was booked to go 29 min as a rib but they had the last laugh tearing the house down. On the same show, Brian would help Arn defeat Flair and this put Brian on track for another great opportunity. WCW would debut their new TV Show, Monday Nitro and Brian was given the honour of having the first ever match, running it back with his old rival Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger. It was a good match but it was an off night and not on the level of their matches years earlier. A couple weeks later Brian got a disappointing rating in a main event on Nitro vs Ric Flair that is detractors used against him but the company was doing a lot of disappointing ratings at that point so it really wasn’t on him. Just the kind of luck he had tho.

All was not lost as Pillman was given a chance to join the 4 Horsemen with Flair, Arn, and Benoit when during a match with Arn vs Flair/Sting at Halloween Havoc, Flair turned on Arn revealing it was all a set up and the new group was revealed. Brian turned out to be a great fit as a Horsemen and looked to be raising his stock. Nobody could foresee how fast things would go downhill for Brian and that his last really good match would be vs Eddie Guererro on Nitro in Nov 1995. Brian’s personal life was becoming very chaotic and there were very nasty circumstances that went down with Brian’s ex Rochelle. Melanie wouldn’t allow Rochelle to be around their house or allow any of the family to talk to her. Brian filed for sole custody and had enough money to keep the courts going but Rochelle ran out of money so she couldn’t see her daughter. One day Rochelle came to see her daughter Brittany, her daughter ran to her and they hugged but Brian and Melanie reacted like Rochelle was going to take Britney and a huge fight started. Melanie filed kidnapping charges against Rochelle. Later, Rochelle called the house, Melanie answered and told Rochelle that even Rochelle’s own mother thinks Melanie would be a better mother for Britney than her and hung up. Rochelle called her mother to tell her she was going to kill heself and then did. Brian was absolutely devastated. Just a brutally sad situation but esp for Britney. I think Brian reacted like he did bc he needed to be in control and Rochelle was dealing with her addictions and doing things he couldn’t control like disappearing so getting sole custody meant he was in control. His reaction to the hug was a display of control to Rochelle. But I 100% believe Brian did not think she would do what she did and would’ve stopped pushing so hard if he knew.

Rochelle’s death was the last straw for Brian and he was about to take control of wrestling career. His Loose Cannon character started to form around this time, he even got Bobby Heenan to cuss on air by pulling at his jacket and it took a lot to rattle Heenan. But Bobby had a bad neck so was careful about being touched but Brian didn’t talk about it with Bobby at all so this character was def starting to ruffle some feathers. There was a promo on Nitro with Kevin Sullivan, Arn, Pillman and Sullivan calls Brian a punk. Arn says they aren’t scared of him but as he is talking, Brian is jumping around being silly like a punk kid and Arn just slaps the fcking shit out of him and says he told him to keep his mouth shut lol fuck what a slap man that was legit and man if looks could kill Arn would be dead twice haha Brian had bigger plans and put word out to the WWF that his contract was coming up. During a ‘I Respect You’ Strap Match where the loser says ‘I Respect You’ with Kevin Sullivan, Brian changed the plans and said ‘I respect you, booker man’ and walked out. Seems so tame now but this was a fcking huge moment in the 90s, you did not reference a guy as the booker on live TV. Didn’t happen so Pillman became an instant legend but that was just the beginning.

JR called Brian very concerned about his behaviour and eventually Brian let JR in on the secret that it was his new character. Bischoff and Sullivan say they were in on it bc of course they do lol nobody wants to look like they got got and Pillman isn’t alive to dispute it, they might have known about some of his antics on the show but no way they knew he was planning to go to the WWF. Brian showed up in the crowd promoting some 900 number and was escorted out twice lol Brian convinced Bischoff to give him his actual release saying it would make it look real and it would be a bigger moment when he returned to WCW. Nice story but Brian had eyes on the WWF and just secured the out that he needed to get there. Paul Heyman was a friend so he showed up in ECW first and it was a fcking legendary moment as the crowd went nuts but Brian heeled on em going as far as almost pissing in the ring lol

PILLMAN: “I like you [Joey Styles] as an announcer, you know why? Cause I just had an announcer in Atlanta, Georgia, take away my constitutional rights. I have been fired by Eric Bischoff! He’s a pretty popular guy. He’s pretty popular with…my legal department as well. Bischoff – or should I say Jerk-off – you can’t take away my constitutional rights, ’cause I’m in Philadelphia, where the Constitution… where the Constitution was written.

Now, Bischer-gofer, Bischer-nineties-whiz-kid, the great success story of ’96, former coffee gofer for Verne Gagne, is now leading the show in the big time. You are a piece of fucking shit! [Styles tries to cut to commercial] No, no, Joey Styles. You’re not running this interview, I am! Cause I’m Brian fucking Pillman! Let me tell you a little more – you know what Eric Bischoff is? Eric Bischoff is each and every one of these motherfucking smart marks rolled up in a giant piece of shit!

I guess you guys didn’t get that. Smart marks – what’s a smart mark? A mark with a high IQ? Okay, smart marks, okay, you know what a mark is? A mark is a guy that pays his last twenty dollars on crack cocaine! A mark is a guy that believes that O.J. didn’t do it! And a mark is every one of you sorry son-of-a-fucking-bitches! So you know what… I gonna do right fucking here, right now? The only appropriate thing Brian Pillman should do – I’m gonna yank out my johnson and piss in this hell-hole!”

Lol 1 of my fav all time wrestling promos with the ‘Bc I’m Brian fcking Pillman’ 1 of my fav lines, just too bad he wanted to heel on em bc if he had come there with a rally the troops mindset, he could’ve been a Stone Cold level baby face. The fans desperately wanted to cheer him but that wasn’t Brian’s plan and he was in control this time. Brian’s goal was to always have ppl question the reality of what he was doing, was it real or part of the show and he had everyone in the business talking. At this point Brian wouldnt let anyone in on the character including JR, he was too far along and was def all in. But Brian could take things too far like taking a shit on the floor at a nice elderly couples home that ECW used to tape at which really pissed Joey Styles off and I don’t blame him, that isn’t edgy or cool it’s just wrong. Brian had a yellow Humvee at the time and drove it everywhere choosing not to follow rules like red lights and stop signs and that shows just how out of control his obsession with control was getting. He started officially speaking to the WWF about a contract and was the talk of the Big 3 promotions, everything he was working for was gonna pay off and then he fell asleep at the wheel of the Humvee and had a brutal crash. Brian was ejected from the car; almost died and slipped into a coma. His ankle was destroyed and turned 180 degrees, his face was so smashed up he needed 6 different doctors to help fix it. 1 of wrestling’s biggest ‘What if’s’ is this accident bc he was a shell of himself after but if he had his full compliment of skills, no telling how much bigger the Attitude Era would have been.

The wreck destroyed Brian, he blamed himself for ruining his dreams saying “i really messed up.” He had no contract at this time but started to recover and signed with the WWF. Brian very emotional at press conference and it wasn’t a show, this was a genuine moment of gratitude and relief that the accident hadn’t ruined everything. Unfortunately his ankle was fused into a walking position so his athleticism was gone but he still had so much more to offer with his mic skills. Brian made his debut at King of the Ring 1996 cutting a promo and crushed it,

JR: “Alright, Vince, thanks very much. Brian Pill…”

PILLMAN: How’s my extended family doing, Jimmy?

JR: Fine.

PILLMAN: I forgot to tell ya’… I don’t even give a damn about my own family! And I think even less of this sewer of human waste that sits before me. It’s easy to see why Jeffrey Dahmer tried to consume this whole state from head to toe, hahaha

Jim Ross: “It’s not really funny… I’m sure the fans are excited about the day you’ll be able to step in the ring. Tell me, how do you think you’ll measure up to this kind of competition?”

Brian Pillman: “Listen, you stupid son of a bitch! I’ll get…hahahahahahahah…. What I want to know is, how does it feel to be one of the members of the wretched refuse? Paralyzed with fear of Brian f’n Pillman. Does, says, whatever he wants. We’ll find out real soon if any of your so-called WWF Superstars has the guts to stop me. Yeah, take a good look. I’m the brightest star to ever step foot on God’s green earth! While you crown a King of the Ring, the leader of the new revolution ascends to his throne. I’m gonna rape, pillage and plunder this entire federation!”

I remember watching that promo as a kid thinking ‘OK here we go Pillman in the WWF is gonna be fn crazy’ and really got excited for the future. There was a funny moment on RAW when Bret picks Austin as his opponent for Survivor Series 96 and Austin is watching on the monitor as Pillman jumps around celebrating behind him until Austin turns around with a pissed off look and Pillman immediately stops lol Unfortunately Brian came back too soon and re-injured his ankle so he needed to have more surgeries on it, setting him even further back than he was. To explain his absence, Austin attacked Pillman during an interview and beat the hell out of him until finally putting Pillman’s ankle inside of a steel folding chair so if you stepped on one end of the chair, the steels bars would close on the ankle and break it. Austin jumped off the middle ropes onto the chair and Pillman reacted like his leg was being cut off man it was incredible acting and made it all seem very real. This move would be called ‘Pillmanizing’ someone and for awhile it was an effective spot to build heat for a feud or give a guy time off but these days wrestlers recover from being Pillmanized within the same match so it’s def lost the effectiveness. Too bad bc I always loved it and thought it was a great way to do a serious injury angle.

This would lead to the infamous ‘Pillman’s got a gun’ incident on RAW where Austin tried to attack Brian at his home but Brian pulled a gun on him lol it was fn insane and I remember pacing around after it happened trying to call every wrestling hotline I could think of bc before the internet; there were numbers you could call and hear a pre recorded message with new and rumours and stuff. They were not updated regularly and usually a good one only lasted a few weeks but it was all we had haha Pillman was legit recovering from the additional surgeries and should have just been resting but he knew he had to strike while the iron was hot so he did this angle. It was just going to be an interview with Brian but Austin said he would show up but Brian was ready and pulled out a gun saying he wasn’t scared bc when ‘Austin 3:16 meets Pillman 9mm glock’ but he gets interrupted as Austin is outside the house. After commercial we see Austin beating the shit out of Pillman’s friends trying to stop him and he is fn smoking those guys lol after another commercial, Austin smashes in the back window and barges into the house as Brian stands up pointing the gun with an absolutely crazed look on his face as the feed cuts out with screaming. One of the most intense moments in wrestling history, like I say I was losing my mind not knowing what happened. They are giving updates for the rest of the show until they finally get them feed back and Pillman is being held back by his friends as Austin tries to get in again as Pillman waves the gun around and the show ends. This made big time noise and shocked a lot of people with how far that went. The WWF got nuclear heat from USA, TSN and pretty much everyone but wrestling fans lol it eventually blew over and the incident would increase the legend of Brian Pillman and be known as one of the craziest moments in wrestling history. Despite his injuries, Pillman was making the impact he knew he could make but not being able to follow it up with great wrestling combined with the excruciating pain just ate away at him and pushed him deeper into his addictions.

Brian finally got as healthy as he was gonna get and returned at the end of RAW attacking Austin and beating the absolute fuck out of him with fists/kicks/chairs lol those are some stiff shots but it sold the hatred for each other big time. The next week, Brian joined the 1997 Hart Foundation by setting a trap for Austin, trying to lure him to the ring with Owen and the Bulldog ready to jump him but Austin saw it coming and escaped. So Pillman, Owen and Bulldog held a prayer circle to pray for Bret’s recovery from knee surgery as well as praying for Austin for after they get done with him lol at the end of the night, Austin was about to attack Bret on the top of the stage when Jim Neidhart returned to help Bret and the 1997 Hart Foundation was complete and ready to fn light up the WWF. Not just anyone gets that honour so it shows the respect and love the Harts had for Brian. This was my fav time period in wrestling and I was so pumped that Pillman was part of it but most importantly on our side. He was a perfect fit and it was a joy to watch him be part of the group, it really was a dream team but went through hell, pain wise to be in the ring during this time period. Jim Ross got Brian a spot doing commentary for Shotgun Saturday Night to keep him relevant while his ankle healed and got stronger, thought he could be the next great colour guy like Heenan or Ventura. He def could have been but despite being great at it, he hated doing commentary and wanted to be in the ring. At the In Your House: Cold Day in Hell PPV, Pillman interfered in the Austin/Taker main event by ringing the bell as Austin was about to win and distracting him long enough for Taker to recover. After Taker won, Pillman and the Harts hit the ring to attack Austin until they were ran off by Austin swinging a crutch. Always loved Pillman ringing the bell, thought that was brilliant interference.

June 28 was his last show doing commentary after he attacked a fan with a pencil and was suspended. Brian was doing a lot of 6 man tags with the other members of the Hart Foundation so he didn’t have to push his ankle through singles matches but it was hard to watch at times bc he was not even close to the same wrestler he was before the crash. Brian went through hell, pain wise to be in the ring during this time. He ended up getting an infection in his ankle and was literally plugging in and out of IV’s to do shows that’s how bad he wanted it. But once again, it was out of his control. Brian returned to the ring in early June for matches against Mankind and 1 vs Steve Austin with Hart Foundation members handcuffed to the ring posts, the matches were nothing special but all things considered it’s incredible that he was even able to do what he did in there. His last great match was on the 10 Man Tag at Canadian Stampede as the 1997 Hart Foundation, Pillman/ Bret/Owen/Bulldog/Anvil defeated Austin/LOD/Shamrock/Goldust on one of the most incredible nights in wrestling history. The crowd was at building shaking levels and stayed that way all night but got insanely loud when the Hart Foundation made their entrances as Pillman made his way out first and got the crowd really riled up for the rest. It was the peak of the 1997 Hart Foundation and really meant a lot to me as a Canadian kid watching it, Pillman was forever family after that night. The match was awesome with tons of action before Owen blew the roof off the Saddledome after rolling up Austin for the 3 count. The entire Hart family and friends celebrated in the ring as the crowd went crazy, a little slice of Heaven for the 1997 Hart Foundation.

It was legendary times with crowds in the US despising the Hart Foundation 1 week and then the next in Canada the crowd cheered like crazy. One week when RAW was in Halifax, the crowd stepped it up to an unbelievable level and that show is known for one of the hottest crowds of all time and during the main event flag match with Bret Hart, Owen Hart & The British Bulldog Vs. The Undertaker, Steve Austin And Dude Love, Pillman interfered at the end to help the Hart Foundation secure the victory. This would lead into SummerSlam where every Hart Foundation would be in a match that had a stipulation if they lost and during a Hart Foundation interview, Brian explained his…

VINCE MCMAHON: And you Brian Pillman, you already stated what you would do if you lost the match to Goldust..whats the matter?

BRIAN PILLMAN: Dusty, I know you’re watchin, I love you! Ha NOT REALLY I just like your style! Years and years of abuse and neglect on your little boy Dustin while you fed your massive ego and your fat face on top of it! Turned your little son into the most celebrated drag queen of the century! But Dustin, I know your daddy broke your heart, come SummerSlam I’m gonna rip it out of your chest! And if I don’t, the next night on RAW, I’ll wrestle you wearin a dress and it might as well be one of Marlena’s. And I can promise you, if I’m gonna do that, that won’t be the only thing of hers I’ll be getting into! HAHA

Lol he came with all guns blazing for this promo, it was still taboo to talk about other companies/wrestlers so this moment stood out at the time as being pretty controversial. This set up Pillman be Goldust at SummerSlam 1997 and it was a bad match but it got the job done and Pillman lost so he had to wear a dress for his match on RAW. But the joke was on them as Pillman loved wearing the dress lol got him instant reactions and he had lots of fun playing off it. But outside the ring, life was not fun as others around him had noticed a change for the worse in Brian the last 2 years his life and he was on a downward spiral, everyone wanted to help him but he didn’t want the help. Brian wasn’t in denial about his problem, just didn’t want the help. I think he knew that stopping the pills meant the end of his wrestling career.

After he wrecked 3 rental cars in a month, Vince McMahon asked Brian to take a drug test and he felt betrayed by JR who had become a father figure to him. JR said he was worried about him dying and Brian just said im not gonna die, I’m Brian Pillman. If only.. The test revealed lots of pain meds and pills but no street drugs so he was clearly over-medicating to get through everything. Brian ended up calling Eric Bischoff very depressed one night, not happy about the way things were going and he even asked for his release from the WWF but it was never granted. After losing at SummerSlam, Brian entered into a controversial storyline with Goldust and his wife Marlena that would begin at the next PPV In Your House: Ground Zero with the stipulation that if Brian won, he gets Marlena for 30 days. It gets awkward bc Brian actually used to date Marlena, who is now Dustin Rhodes wife and they had Pillman win the match, getting her for 30 days but making things very uncomfortable with Dustin in real life who was going through his own problems and seeing his wife close with a man she used to date was very tough. Pillman even implied that Dustin/Terri’s daughter was his so you can understand why Dustin would be having a tough time with it. After Pillman won, he started Pillman’s XXX-Files and filmed himself in a hotel room in bed in his underwear with bra and panties all over the bed, even with Terri actually in bed with him. He had her dress in black and very revealing lingerie , they really pushed the envelope with this and I remember being shocked by it but really wanted to see where it was gonna go. Unfortunately we would not get to see it.

Brian’s last TV match was on Shotgun Saturday Night defeating the Patriot by DQ after Goldust attacked him and chased Brian and Marlena out of the building. At the In Your House:Badd Blood PPV, Brian was supposed to face Dude Love but he never made it to the show. Brian was late to the building and nobody had heard from him which wasn’t totally unusual but it was getting late and when Bret arrived and Brian wasn’t with him, everyone got very worried. The company talked to Melanie who hadnt seen him so they sent police over to his hotel who discovered Brian dead of a heart attack at 35. Vince made the announcement on the PPV and his Hart Foundation brothers were crushed but had to continue the show and did their best but you could tell their minds were elsewhere. The news of Brian’s death took the wind out of Austin and he has said that it didn’t really sink in that he was actually gone until they did the 10 bell salute and then it was real and it rocked him to realize he would never see Brian again in this life. We couldn’t afford to buy this PPV and I had it on the channel trying to see and hear through the scrambles bc sometimes you could get decent/picture sound but it was getting worse the closer it got to the start of the PPV. I’ll never forget hearing Vince McMahon announce that Brian had died and just kind of panicking like ‘What did he say!? Did he say Brian Pillman is dead!? Is that real!?’ but by the time the show started the feed you couldn’t see or hear anything. I remember going out with my friends that night doing anything I could not to tear up, I couldn’t believe that he was actually dead. I thought the 10 bell salute the next night on RAW was such an amazing way to honour a wrestler and there was no holding back the tears for that. Brian Pillman was one of my favourite wrestlers and I had a lot of love for him.

Unfortunately there was also a really gross interview with Vince and Melanie Pillman the next night that I can’t even watch anymore, the questions he is asking her are so fucked and the last place she should have been after losing her husband is doing an interview on fn RAW.But I should also add that the WWF did try to help out the family with money and support but Melanie was using it to fuel her addictions. Such a sad end to one of the brightest stars that wrestling has ever seen , the likes of which will never be seen again. I think Brian Pillman is the biggest ‘What if’ in wrestling history bc if he doesn’t have that accident, Pillman vs Austin could have been the big match to kick off the Attitude Era at WrestleMania 14. Pillman had the potential to be just as big a star as Austin and the Rock were esp when he could still goin the ring. I so wish we could have seen Pillman’s reaction to the Montreal Screwjob bc I think there’s a good chance Bret never has a chance to knock out Vince bc Pillman kicks his ass first lol but most importantly I wish Brian could have been there for his family bc they had some really hard times after he died. Melanie fell deeper into her addictions and the kids suffered for it. But despite that his children have his survival instinct and work ethic and have built good lives for themselves, he would be very proud of them all. His daughter Lexi was trying to make it in wrestling but she was killed in a car accident. His son Brian Jr is carrying on his legacy in pro wrestling and has established himself as someone with a high ceiling but so far has not found his groove yet. He had a good run in AEW and I’m surprised he isn’t still there, Brian Jr is really good in the ring and can cut a good promo, just needs to be more consistent. You would think NXT would be all over him but he hasn’t been there yet. I always thought he would be great as a Raven type character, would get him away from comparisons to his Dad and let him forge his own path. Def too good to not be in a major company.

Need to give a big shout out to Brian’s sister Linda who stepped up in the biggest way for the kids and became their rock that they leaned on for support and love. Without Linda, God knows what kind of lives the kids would have lived as it was bad enough as is. An angel in human form, lots of love and God’s Blessings out to Linda Pillman. The Loose Cannon craziness is def what people talk about most but I believe Brian Pillman’s legacy is that no matter what anyone else says, if you are willing to out work everyone else, you can make your dreams come true. If Brian had listened to what everyone else told him, he wouldn’t even have made to playing college football but every step of the way, he out worked everyone else to make sure that his talent shined the brightest. He knew what he was and what he could do and refused to let anyone tell him different. They could try to prove it if they wanted but 100% of the time Brian proved them wrong. With his charisma and the way he just looked fn cool, if Brian was 6″5 it would’ve been too easy, God wanted to challenge Brian and he rose to meet it every time. With health and a Godly moral foundation, that’s the Brian Pillman I want to see bc that’s the one with the highest potential. But the Brian Pillman we got was an absolute fn legend and I’m very happy I was alive at the same time so I could appreciate his greatness. Brian is an honorary Canadian and will always be family as part of the 1997 Hart Foundation. And I still think his son is going to rise up and become a star in wrestling, just needs that one spark and then that Pillman fire will be roaring.

Well I def enjoyed taking a look back at the life of 1 of my favourite wrestlers and I need to go back and watch his WCW stuff again bc there is lots that I missed. We didn’t get WCW consistently so I watched what I could and Brian always stood out as one of the best. He hit 10’s on so many levels, Charisma, promos, cool factor, athleticism, ring ability, presence, he was everything you would want a wrestler to be. He would’ve crushed it in the social media era bc he would’ve figured out how to use it to his advantage and take his ideas to the next level. Just imagine what he could’ve done with the Loose Cannon character with cameras everywhere bc he was never off, he was his character 24/7 so his legend would have grown to astronomical proportions. I don’t think he was before or ahead of his time, I think Brian would have found a way to become a star in any time period he lived. The picture I used as the featured image is prob my fav and was my profile pic on the Rajah forums back in the day, we can only wish to be that cool haha People throw around the word legend a lot but Brian Pillman is someone that embodies it in every sense of the word. The tragic end to his life only adds to the mystique of his life. As I said at the start, I see him as wrestling’s Kurt Cobain and his life will be remembered as long as people talk about wrestling. Sending love and prayers of health, happiness and good fortune up for Brian’s family, friends and fans. Nobody will ever forget, Brian fuckin Pillman!