12-05-2002, 04:53 PM
Quote:First off they did not know he was dead right away. Didn't he die on the way to the hospital or was it at the hospital.
Actually, it's been reported that Owen was killed on impact, due to massive head trauma and a broken neck; however, he wasn't actually pronounced dead until the ambulance arrived at the hospital. Many fans say that they saw Owen's arm raise off the mat shortly after the fall, but that may have been a last spasm.
I have mixed feelings as to whether or not the show should have continued; true, cancelling could have resulted in an riot amoung fans in attendence, many of whom probably would have been absolutely livid at the the thought of being "cheated" out of an entire show. However, it was very obvious that none of the other wrestlers' hearts were into going on. McMahon was stuck in a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" position; I'd like to think he made his decision with his heart, and not with his wallet.
As for Russo, I don't put much blame on him coming up with the stunt (if he was indeed the "mastermind"); wrestlers having been performing that particular stunt for a few years before the fall, and, as the WWF was using the same harness guys that WCW used for Sting, nobody had any reason to think the stunt would go so horribly wrong. In fact, Owen even went through several practice runs that evening (although he did so without wearing the elaborate Blazer outfit, which many claim may have caused the harness mechanism to release too soon).