WWE Hall Of Fame Report From USA Network Airing Only

Credit: Buck Woodward of PWInsider

THE FULL WWE HALL OF FAME REPORT (WHAT DIDN'T AIR ON TV) IS POSTED UNDER THIS ONE

The WWE Hall Of Fame broadcast opened with a nice montage of still shots of past inductees, along with audio sound bytes from many of them. For those of you wondering, there were no shots or clips of Ric Flair or Hulk Hogan. They included still shots of some of the inductees from earlier tonight.

They showed the Dodge Theatre, and the first thing to jump out at me is that, for the first time, Linda McMahon is not seated in the front row. Triple H and Stephanie were present, but no Linda or Shane.

Jerry Lawler came out to open the show, giving credit to the "future Hall Of Famers", the stars in the front row. John Cena, Shawn Michaels, Kofi Kingston and MVP were shown sitting together. Batista was shown sitting along, wearing sunglasses.

Lawler commented on past celebrities to appear at Wrestlemania, and as he mentioned each one, shots of them were shown on screen. Lawler then brought out Dick Ebersol, head honcho of NBC Sports, to induct Bob Uecker. Ebersol joked that they told Uecker he could visit the WWE Hall Of Fame, and that it was two miles north of WWE headquarters in Stamford. Of course, there is nothing two miles north of WWE headquarters.

They showed a video package on Bob Uecker, including clips from his Baseball Hall Of Fame induction, his appearance in Major League, and more. They then reviewed his appearances at Wrestlemania III and IV, including the famous shot from Wrestlemania IV of Andre The Giant choking him.

After a break, they did a crowd shot again, and I could pick out Danny Spivey amongst those in attendance. They showed Dusty Rhodes, who was identified as a member of the Hall Of Fame.

Dick Ebersol talked about going to the Silverdome with Vince McMahon to survey the building for Wrestlemania III. Vince had trouble convincing Uecker to appear at Wrestlemania, so Ebersol went with Vince and Jesse Ventura to go convince him to work the show. Ebersol joked it took "more beer than he ever drank in those Miller Lite commercials" to convince him to appear, and he ended up having the time of his life. Ebersol then brought out Uecker, and as they went to commercial, I spotted Harley Race in the crowd.

Bob Uecker joked about how he wasn't a good player, but he signed with the Braves for a $3,000 bonus ... and noted his father paid the Braves $3,000 so he could play for them. Uecker remarked about how he didn't miss many games as a player, and those he did miss he tried to catch on the radio. Uecker told a story about posing for a picture with Jake Roberts' snake Damian, and how after the snake was wrapped around him, Uecker saw a scar on Roberts' body that Jake said he got from Damian biting him. Uecker commented on Ivana Trump leaving Wrestlemania quickly one year, and that Donald hasn't seen her since.

Uecker talked about the great time he had at Wrestlemania, and how after Andre choked him, if the cameras stayed on them, everyone would have seen him on top of Andre, but luckily for Andre, Vince McMahon onvinced Uecker to get off him, since Andre had a match that night. Uecker continued "so, later on, after I changed my underwear...." which got a big laugh. Uecker talked about having a great time with Dick Ebersol and Vince McMahon, and said he was looking forward to going to the show tomorrow. Uecker then thanked everyone to close his speech.

They showed Sgt. Slaughter in the crowd after the commercial break, identifying him as a Hall Of Famer.

Jerry Lawler talked about the great nicknames in wrestling, then noted the next inductee was known as "The Human Orchid" before introducing a video package on Gorgeous George. The package was fantastic, with tons of vintage clips and comments from former opponents and wrestlers from the era, as well as comments from director John Waters, boxing historian Bert Sugars and George's wife Betty. They noted George inspired others, showing clips of Ric Flair, The Rock, Hulk Hogan, Triple H, The Miz, Superstar Graham and others. They then talked about how George inspired Muhammad Ali, with comments from Ali's trainer Angelo Dundee.

Jerry Lawler introduced Betty Wagner, so they cut out all of the Destroyer's speech. Betty Wagner was pretty much interviewed by an unidentified female on the stage, and told the story of how George got his name from Betty's mother, who said he was gorgeous, and it was decided that would be his name. Betty then talked about making his robes, and how their children helped and would play in them. When the interviewer asked if there was anything else she'd like to say about George, Betty said "I don't want to tell everything", which got a laugh.

During the next break, they aired a great commercial for the Bret Hart vs. Vince McMahon match, noting the Montreal screwjob was the end of Bret Hart's legacy and the start of the Mr. McMahon era. Just a really well done commercial to promote Wrestlmania.

They showed Jack Lanza (listed by that name, not Blackjack) in the crowd, identifying him as a Hall Of Famer.

A brief clip package of the earlier inductions were shown. I've got to say, I really wish they had included the Stu Hart induction on the broadcast.

A video package on Ted DiBiase was shown, focusing solely on his Million-Dollar Man days in the WWF. They included a section on the creation of the Million Dollar Belt. No Mid-South footage at all. They had comments from The Miz, MVP, Jack Swagger, Cody Rhodes and John Cena all commenting on classic DiBiase angles, like buying Hercules from Bobby Heenan and trying to buy the WWF Title. They mentioned how DiBiase's son Ted is now carrying on the DiBiase legacy in WWE.

Ricky Steamboat, to an ovation, was shown in the crowd and identified as a Hall Of Famer.

Jerry Lawler introduced Ted DiBiase, so they cut Ted Jr. and Brett DiBiase's induction speech.

Ted DiBiase, carrying the Million Dollar Belt, came out to a standing ovation. DiBiase patted the belt and said "Just like American Express, I never leave home without it" and delivered a classic Million Dollar Man laugh. DiBiase remarked that there are moments in life you can't put a price on, and that this was a priceless night for him. DiBiase talked about how being put in the Hall Of Fame was a stamp of approval from his peers, and he was honored and humbled. DiBiase said he wanted to share a "too good to be true" story. DiBiase talked about how he worked for 20 years in this business, and one day the phone rings and it is WWE. He talked about being flown to New York, then taken by limo to Stamford, Connecticut to meet with "the top brass." DiBiase spoke about how the Million Dollar Man character was presented to him, and how he was told that, to get the character over, he would be flown first class everywhere, driven around by limos and put up in first class hotels. DiBiase joked, "It was a tough job, but someone had to do it." DiBiase said the fans would hate him, and so would the wrestlers who still had to rent cars and fly in coach.

DiBiase thanked the wrestlers that came up with him that were in attendance, like Arn Anderson, Ricky Steamboat and Steve Keirn. DiBiase then spoke to the younger stars in WWE, telling them that it is the stars that are the most dependable and have the biggest heart that make it in their business. The camera showed many of the younger stars in attendance (we even had an Abraham Washington sighting) as he spoke. DiBiase then said he wished his father was there, and thinks his dad would have patted him on the back tonight and said "Job well done."

DiBiase then thanked the fans, before going into the Million Dollar Man character. He remarked that if anyone had a doubt that he couldn't buy them, make them bark like a dog, or make them dribble a basketball, he wanted to show them that "everyone had a price for the Million Dollar Man." DiBiase laughed, and with that, a bunch of money was dropped from the ceiling. Fans were shown holding up hundred dollar bills as the broadcast ended.