Jerry “The King” Lawler’s return to RAW on Monday has caused a lot of controversy. More on the controversy part later, as it is the intent here to focus on the real story. That story being that Lawler returned to work two months after facing a nearly fatal heart attack and the fact that he has improved to the point of being able to not only appear on RAW but to sit at the announcer’s table and do his job. This is nothing short of a miracle from God.
If you were watching RAW the night of the heart attack, you probably thought a couple of things. Either you were concerned that Lawler was not going to make it or you thought that the whole thing was a work by the WWE. As time passed and with footage of Lawler in the hospital and with reports from his girlfriend and others, it was obvious that “The King” had faced death’s door.
To hear his music play last night and to see him come from behind the curtain, is one of the feel good news stories of the year – and not just in the wrestling world. Seeing and listening to him talk about all the support, including mentioning the prayers that went out on his behalf – is a touching side of the business that we don’t get to see very often.
This first 4 minutes of this video is what the real story is!
Now for the controversy. At the 4:00 minute mark in the video, CM Punk’s music hits and Punk and Paul Heyman head for the ring. Punk does the classic heel routine and gets a lot of well deserved heat from the crowd. To long time wrestling fans, this part really shouldn’t be a surprise as Lawler and Punk had a well publicized feud prior to the heart attack – they had even been involved in a match earlier that night before Lawler slumped to the floor from his chair while doing commentary.
The next part was totally unnecessary and where many who are upset probably get totally irate. Heyman faked having a heart attack and Punk pretended to be concerned and was calling for help. There was already enough heat without this little stunt, and it really was just plain stupid.
Not everyone thought that the Heyman “heart attack” part of the segment was the only offensive part though. In an article at Wrestling Inc.com, they quote Lawler’s former business partner Jerry Jarrett from Jarrett’s Facebook page,
“I watched WWE last night. Jerry Lawler was returning after surviving a life threatening heart attack. I sat watching the television with a feeling of pride that they were honoring the return of such a great wrestler. I sat thinking, “now this is real class”. Just when I was appreciating the class WWE was showing, it ended suddenly with a juvenile cheap heat angle.”
“I turned the television off and starting thinking about Linda McMahon’s hard work and great expense running for the Senate. It is exactly this kind of programming that prevented her from becoming a Senator. Wrestling should have some limits and boundaries. If you offend great portions of the audience, it is a bad angle.”
When you read in the comments below the story you will see a mixture of opinions on the matter.
The other part of the controversy was very real, no story line – but footage of the timeline from the time Lawler fell from his chair until the ambulance pulled away from the arena. If you are a little sensitive to watch someone being treated for a heart attack as it is happening, then just skip this short video.
Some believe that this qualified in the TMI (too much information) category. It certainly was an up close and personal viewing of someone who could very easily have passed away while the cameras were rolling.
Did the WWE over step the boundaries by having Punk do his heel routine at Lawler’s expense? Was Heyman’s fake heart attack more than was necessary? Could you have done without seeing the EMT’s and doctor doing heart compression’s and using the paddles on Lawler? You can decide those things yourself.
What would be good to know is how “The King” feels about the entire situation and if he’s ok with it all. If he is, it would be good for him to let the WWE Universe know that, and put this controversy to bed.
Now back to the opening part of the article and the REAL STORY here – watch those first 4 minutes of the first video again and thank God in Heaven for sparing the life of Jerry “The King” Lawler.
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