For Bret to have been upset about how Oliver ranked him would have
been petty, as some here have posted, but that is not, in fact, the case. Bret
feels that Greg Oliver’s books often present the writer’s own opinion — (not
just about Hart) as fact and that blurs the line of responsible journalism. Bret
told me that recognizing Greg Oliver with an award provides him with a
“credential” upon which other credentials can be built; a few years from now
Greg would appear to have a ‘wall of credentials’ and would be called upon (
more often than he already is) as a wrestling expert by the mainstream press,
like Dave Meltzer is now. And so, then someone who presents his own opinion as
fact would have too much power to further distort an accurate account of the
history of pro wrestling. Bret is passionate about a truthful account of pro
wrestling being preserved for generations to come, no matter how he is
portrayed, as long as it is factually accurate.
Bret’s perceived difference between Greg Oliver and those “like him”
from Meltzer, for example, is that Oliver is in it for the wrong reason;
recognition. During the afternoon event, while I was busy handling an autograph
session where Bret and Roddy were signing, Greg Oliver gave me a copy of his
latest book to give to Bret (The Heels), but then he said, ‘Oh wait, let me sign
that for him before I give it to him ... ’ and he did. So, basically, Greg
autographed his book for Bret. Bret feels there is some degree of audacity in
that, as Greg is supposed to be the reporter, not the participant. Dave Meltzer,
whose landmark publication is even named The Observer, defines himself as such,
without the attached ego. He was a journalism major and has, over the years,
displayed objectivity and detachment from outcome, which is lacking on Oliver’s
reporting, and he, “... at least attempts to get it right...”, according to
Bret.
Bret doesn’t have any problem at all with a deserving journalist
being honored and inducted. He just felt that Stu would have been honored to be
inducted into this particular hall of fame because it is rooted in amateur, not
pro, footings and the past inductees are all distinguished and deserving people
who had sacrificed much for the love of wrestling and for the business. He felt
that Greg Oliver doesn’t fit that bill in that he hasn’t paid his dues and
doesn’t report or write with objectivity.
I hear that Greg stated, on Wrestling Observer Live, to Bryan
Alvarez, that I, myself, walked out of the banquet to tell Bret that he
shouldn’t have said what he said. I didn’t hear this myself but was told this in
an email from Mike Lano. In fact, I walked out only because it was such an
unusually awkward moment that I wanted to see what, if anything, Bret might want
from me. I’ll get back to that. Before I left, I saw that the first person to
stand up and give Bret an ovation after Bret walked out was Harley Race. Next to
stand to show his approval was Danny Hodge. Then other legends stood up,
including Roddy. None of the wrestlers walked out and no fans walked out. I left
a minute or so after Bret did. Bret asked me to get his notes, which he’d jotted
down briefly just after sitting down at the head table (where seats had been
reserved for Bret, Roddy and myself. (When we walked in, late I initially sat
next to Bret but then I chose to sit with Harley and BJ instead so I could see
better. Also, although I appreciated the compliment of my seat assignment, I’ve
always preferred to be behind-the scenes and wasn’t comfortable being so visible
at the head table.)
Bret’s notes were not about Greg Oliver, but pertained to his speech
in general. He’d left them on the podium when he walked out. I didn’t want to
parade up to the podium in front of everyone so I asked Mike Chapman, the
Director of the Museum, to get the notes for me, which he did. While Mike waited
for an opportune moment to go to the podium, I was standing just outside the
door to the banquet room and one notable after another came out and expressed
support to me for what Bret had said. As what they said to me was not in a
public forum, I won’t betray their confidences by revealing their exact words
and identities at this time. No doubt, some will call that a convenient excuse
or whatever, but frankly I don’t care about that because the reason I’ve been
around as long as I have is because I respect the honor of being trusted by
these men; and I work hard and have paid my dues. One of them passionately
expressed to me that there are no shortcuts in this business and that respect
and honor have to be earned — and that Greg Oliver hadn’t done so, in his
opinion. That sentiment was echoed over and over to me by iconic men throughout
the rest of the evening — and not so much that it was directed at Greg
specifically, but at the so-called ‘wrestling reporters’, especially
internet-based ones, whose egos have diluted whatever objectivity they might
have started out with because they seem to enjoy the pseudo-celebrity that comes
with the internet a little too much.
Nowhere in this account have I expressed my own opinion of Greg
Oliver; and I won’t. I’ve simply given you the facts of what happened. At CAC a
couple of weeks ago, during his acceptance speech, Bret mentioned how he’d had
the honor and privilege to watch and learn from Harley Race and Terry Funk (who
were seated behind Bret, on the stage) when he was a kid. After Bret’s speech,
while Bret was being mobbed at the side of the stage by the Japanese and
European media, I watched as an emotional Terry Funk took the mic, ‘I speak for
both myself and Harley.‘That kid grew up to do it so much better than we ever
could. And we love him for it.’ Terry Funk’s supreme compliment carries more
weight than how any reporter ranks Bret.
Marcy Engelstein Sr. Consulting Mgr.
Bret Hart/ Hitman Productions
Wrestling News 
