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‘Hell of a bang’ – The little-known sacrifice behind the Attitude Era’s greatest meme and how it was almost axed
There are some scenes in WWE history that have etched themselves into the minds of wrestling fans all over the world. It’s the same in any sport. As a Premier League fan, could you imagine a world where Aguero hadn’t broken QPR hearts to net Manchester City the 2012 Premier League title in the most iconic of fashions? Highlight reels without Eric Cantona’s ‘kung fu’ kick at Crystal Palace, would just seem empty. Stone Cold and Vince McMahon bashed and bruised each other on a weekly basisWWE The wild and unpredictable world of WWE is no exception. Ask any fan of the Attitude Era to reel off its best moments will undoubtedly dig back to the same handful of memories. The Undertaker thrusting Mankind off the top of Hell in a Cell would rank highly, as would DX invading WCW. In the mix somewhere, too, would be Bedpan McMahon – arguably Stone Cold Steve Austin’s most memorable attack on arch nemesis Vince McMahon, and there were a fair few! For the better part of three years, Austin and McMahon waged war with one another as fans tuned in week in, week out to see which of the pair would come out on top on an episode of Raw and, often, which brilliantly chaotic way Austin would torment McMahon next. In October of 1998, poor Vince was in right old strife with abuse coming from all corners. Having been caught flipping Undertaker the bird the week prior and getting his ankle smashed as a result, he ended up in hospital. For no reason that was ever explained, he remained laid up there a week later for the next instalment of Raw. McMahon spent much of the night fussing about Austin infiltrating the hospital to attack him. Just when his guard eventually came down, his enemy – dressed as a Doctor, obviously – pounced on his rival, climbing on his hospital bed and showering a terrified McMahon with punches. If that wasn’t fun enough for viewers, what followed next proved legendary: Austin reached for a steel bedpan and, in what the Rattlesnake described as ‘the funniest thing we ever did,’ crunched the Chairman over the head with it, the impact creating the most glorious of clonks as it bounced off his skill. McMahon’s willingness to put himself in the firing line of physical brutality for the sake of on-screen entertainment was a staple of the Attitude Era but, even so, the Texan legend later admitted the epic bedpan shot took a lot of planning and rehearsal. Given he didn’t want to bash his billionaire boss any more than the once that the actual televised shot required, a willing volunteer stepped forward to help run through it – Austin himself. “Everyone seems to remember that bedpan shot,” the now 60-year-old said in his book, of the scene that’s spawned countless memes in the years since. “Of course, I whacked him pretty hard in the head with it. The story on the bedpan was that he wanted me to beat him up… Vince came up with the idea of me hitting him in the head with the bedpan while he was lying there in bed. I said: ‘Man, Vince, these things are pretty hard. They’re solid stainless-steel bedpans. I don’t know how to hit you with it and have it not hurt.’ The retort from McMahon was as maniacal as you’d expect: he wanted it to look good, so the pain was irrelevant – he ordered Austin to go through with it and give his fullest. Multi-time former WWE champ Austin did as he was told, but not before wearing himself out with the bedpan first. He added: “I spent five or ten minutes on the other side of the room, testing the damn thing on my own head, trying to see where the best acoustic sound spots were versus the best places to receive the blow. Vince McMahon played the part of a ‘difficult patient’ on Raw in 1998WWE McMahon new something was up when the nurse called out to the ‘Doctor’WWE The WWE Chairman was called ‘Bedpan McMahon’ for a while…WWE “I did it out of respect for Vince. It was going to be one-take only, and we needed a hell of a bang. I wanted it to sound good, but I didn’t want to hurt him. So, I tested the damn bedpan over and over again. Then we did the take, and I thought I clocked him pretty good. And he sold it so damn well.” The bedpan wasn’t even the most graphic moment of the attack. McMahon got ‘zapped’ with heart paddles and given an enema (hopefully not as realistically as the bedpan), leading to concern prior to airing among some WWF staff whom Austin claimed ‘said the ending was too violent.’ In the end, it survived any chopping and cutting and was shown in on Raw, in full. In a fairly draining night for the ‘patient’, McMahon too Austin’s full arsenal and a visit from Mick Foley which did little to cheer his spirits. The WWE legend knows what the sketch is best remembered for, though, saying: “….Everyone seems to remember that moment. It’s always good for a laugh, no matter how many times you’ve seen it. I can watch it ten times in a row.” Much like the ‘enema’, that m
There are some scenes in WWE history that have etched themselves into the minds of wrestling fans all over the world.
It’s the same in any sport. As a Premier League fan, could you imagine a world where Aguero hadn’t broken QPR hearts to net Manchester City the 2012 Premier League title in the most iconic of fashions? Highlight reels without Eric Cantona’s ‘kung fu’ kick at Crystal Palace, would just seem empty.
The wild and unpredictable world of WWE is no exception. Ask any fan of the Attitude Era to reel off its best moments will undoubtedly dig back to the same handful of memories. The Undertaker thrusting Mankind off the top of Hell in a Cell would rank highly, as would DX invading WCW. In the mix somewhere, too, would be Bedpan McMahon – arguably Stone Cold Steve Austin’s most memorable attack on arch nemesis Vince McMahon, and there were a fair few!
For the better part of three years, Austin and McMahon waged war with one another as fans tuned in week in, week out to see which of the pair would come out on top on an episode of Raw and, often, which brilliantly chaotic way Austin would torment McMahon next.
In October of 1998, poor Vince was in right old strife with abuse coming from all corners. Having been caught flipping Undertaker the bird the week prior and getting his ankle smashed as a result, he ended up in hospital. For no reason that was ever explained, he remained laid up there a week later for the next instalment of Raw.
McMahon spent much of the night fussing about Austin infiltrating the hospital to attack him. Just when his guard eventually came down, his enemy – dressed as a Doctor, obviously – pounced on his rival, climbing on his hospital bed and showering a terrified McMahon with punches.
If that wasn’t fun enough for viewers, what followed next proved legendary: Austin reached for a steel bedpan and, in what the Rattlesnake described as ‘the funniest thing we ever did,’ crunched the Chairman over the head with it, the impact creating the most glorious of clonks as it bounced off his skill.
McMahon’s willingness to put himself in the firing line of physical brutality for the sake of on-screen entertainment was a staple of the Attitude Era but, even so, the Texan legend later admitted the epic bedpan shot took a lot of planning and rehearsal. Given he didn’t want to bash his billionaire boss any more than the once that the actual televised shot required, a willing volunteer stepped forward to help run through it – Austin himself.
“Everyone seems to remember that bedpan shot,” the now 60-year-old said in his book, of the scene that’s spawned countless memes in the years since. “Of course, I whacked him pretty hard in the head with it.
The story on the bedpan was that he wanted me to beat him up… Vince came up with the idea of me hitting him in the head with the bedpan while he was lying there in bed. I said: ‘Man, Vince, these things are pretty hard. They’re solid stainless-steel bedpans. I don’t know how to hit you with it and have it not hurt.’
The retort from McMahon was as maniacal as you’d expect: he wanted it to look good, so the pain was irrelevant – he ordered Austin to go through with it and give his fullest.
Multi-time former WWE champ Austin did as he was told, but not before wearing himself out with the bedpan first. He added: “I spent five or ten minutes on the other side of the room, testing the damn thing on my own head, trying to see where the best acoustic sound spots were versus the best places to receive the blow.
“I did it out of respect for Vince. It was going to be one-take only, and we needed a hell of a bang. I wanted it to sound good, but I didn’t want to hurt him. So, I tested the damn bedpan over and over again. Then we did the take, and I thought I clocked him pretty good. And he sold it so damn well.”
The bedpan wasn’t even the most graphic moment of the attack. McMahon got ‘zapped’ with heart paddles and given an enema (hopefully not as realistically as the bedpan), leading to concern prior to airing among some WWF staff whom Austin claimed ‘said the ending was too violent.’
In the end, it survived any chopping and cutting and was shown in on Raw, in full. In a fairly draining night for the ‘patient’, McMahon too Austin’s full arsenal and a visit from Mick Foley which did little to cheer his spirits.
The WWE legend knows what the sketch is best remembered for, though, saying: “….Everyone seems to remember that moment. It’s always good for a laugh, no matter how many times you’ve seen it. I can watch it ten times in a row.”
Much like the ‘enema’, that must really be the bottom line.
