Jim Neidhart

Early life At Newport Harbor High School, Neidhart first gained athletic acclaim for his success in strength-oriented track and field events. He set a California high school record in shot put in 1973 which stood until 1985. After graduating from high school, Neidhart pursued a career in the National Football League (NFL), where he played for the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys in practices and preseason games.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (1978–1985) Following his release from the Dallas Cowboys, Neidhart traveled to Calgary to train with Stu Hart and pursue a career in professional wrestling. He was a two-time Stampede International Tag Team Champion, with Hercules Ayala in 1980 and Mr. Hito in 1983. Stu Hart, seeking publicity for Neidhart, promised him $500 to enter and win an anvil toss at the Calgary Stampede. He did, throwing it 11 feet, 2 inches. This earned him the nickname "The Anvil", replacing his prior nickname, "The Animal".

In September 1981, Neidhart appeared in Germany with the Catch Wrestling Association, taking part in the World Catch Cup. From April to May 1982, Neidhart wrestled in Japan for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) on its Big Fight Series tour as part of Stampede Wrestling's working relationship with NJPW. In January 1983, he made a second tour with NJPW, competing in its New Year Golden Series.

Neidhart teamed twice with King Kong Bundy for Georgia Championship Wrestling in November 1983. From September 1983 to February 1984, he worked for Mid-South Wrestling, where he and Butch Reed held the Mid-South Tag Team Championship for two and a half months. The new team was dubbed the Hart Foundation and was managed by Jimmy Hart (no relation to Bret). They made their pay-per-view debut at WrestleMania 2, where they were the last two eliminated from a 20-man battle royal by André the Giant.

The Hart Foundation reformed full-time in March 1990 in Las Vegas. The Rockers defended the WWF Tag Team title against Power and Glory (Paul Roma and Hercules) on November 3, 1990. Shortly after November 3, the WWF decided to not air the title change and that the title would revert to the Hart Foundation. In his book, Shawn Michaels claims that the Hart Foundation had politicked to keep the title. The WWF has never officially recognized The Rockers' reign. The Hart Foundation soon reignited their feud with Jimmy Hart via his team, Rhythm and Blues (Honky Tonk and Valentine). Jimmy Hart once again cost The Hart Foundation the tag titles at WrestleMania VII, in a match with his new team, The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobs and Jerry Sags), when he distracted the referee, allowing Sags to knock out Neidhart with his motorcycle helmet. This resulted in him being replaced in the 1991 Survivor Series by Sgt. Slaughter.

Neidhart returned once more on the December 1, 1991 episode of Wrestling Challenge, teaming with Owen Hart (Bret's younger brother) as the New Foundation, defeating the Executioners (Executioner #1 and Executioner #2).

Various promotions (1992–1994) After leaving the WWF in February 1992, Neidhart wrestled a handful of matches on the independent circuit, including two bouts for Eastern Championship Wrestling (ECW). Beginning in August 1992, he made three tours with New Japan Pro-Wrestling: The G1 Climax in August (losing in the first round to Kensuke Sasaki), the Super Grade Tag League II in October (teaming with Tom Zenk and finishing with 0 points) and Battle Final in December. After losing to Maxx Payne at a house show in Kokomo, Indiana, on October 7, Neidhart left WCW.

Various promotions (1996–1997) After leaving the WWF once more, in October 1996 Neidhart wrestling in England for Hammerlock Wrestling. In December 1996, he began appearing with the New York-based independent promotion Ultimate Championship Wrestling. In March 1997, he appeared with the Sacramento, California-based National Wrestling Conference. Neidhart was part of Team Canada at Survivor Series in Montreal, teaming with The British Bulldog, Doug Furnas and Philip Lafon defeated Team USA Vader, Goldust, "Marvelous" Marc Mero and the debut of "The Lethal Weapon" Steve Blackman (Bulldog was the sole survivor, Neidhart was pinned by Vader).

Neidhart wrestled his first return match for WCW on the January 20, 1998 episode of WCW Saturday Night, defeating Wayne Bloom. In February 1998, Neidhart formed a tag team with the British Bulldog, who had also departed the WWF following the Montreal Screwjob. Neidhart and British Bulldog wrestled primarily on WCW Saturday Night and WCW Thunder, facing tag teams such as The Public Enemy, The Destruction Crew, High Voltage, nWo Japan, Sting and Lex Luger, and Brian Adams and Curt Hennig. In September 1998 at Fall Brawl '98: War Games, Neidhart and the British Bulldog defeated The Dancing Fools in a tag team match.

Neidhart's final televised match for WCW was on the September 26, 1998 episode of WCW Saturday Night where he and the British Bulldog lost to Stevie Ray and Vincent. Neidhart went on to wrestle on house shows until being released from WCW in October 1998.

On Raw XV, the 15th-anniversary WWE Raw special on December 10, 2007, Neidhart returned to WWE for the first time since 1997, and participated in the 15th Anniversary Battle Royal, eventually making it to the final five before being eliminated by Skinner.

Neidhart's last known match was on March 5, 2016, when he teamed with Koko B. Ware and Frankie the Pizza Guy as they defeated Nikolai Volkoff, Clay Dasher and Shawn Andrews at a BCW event in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Professional wrestling style and persona Neidhart usually wrestled in pink attire and the Hart Foundation tag team was nicknamed "The Pink and Black Attack". It popularized the Hart Attack finisher maneuver.

Other media On April 6, 2010, WWE released Hart & Soul: The Hart Family Anthology on DVD, which is a three-disc set featuring a documentary on the Hart wrestling family (including Neidhart) as well as 12 matches. Neidhart's daughter Natalie was featured as a main cast member on the reality show Total Divas, and he made appearances on the show along with his wife.

Neidhart was arrested on September 6, 2010, and charged with two counts of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, two counts of trafficking illegal drugs, one count of burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, and one count of third-degree grand theft for property stolen between $300 and $5,000. He was arrested after becoming aggressive with police after ingesting multiple pills outside a gas station. In March 2012, he was sentenced to five months and 29 days in jail. During his sentencing, he was arrested and held in contempt of court. Neidhart completed two stints in rehabilitation paid for by WWE. As he went to touch it, he "turned weirdly as if he were about to dance", then fell against the wall and floor. At the time, his wife stated his doctors believed he may have had Alzheimer's disease. WWE later paid tribute to Neidhart on their website.

Championships and accomplishments Championship Wrestling from Florida NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Florida version) (1 time) NWA United States Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (1 time) – with Krusher Khruschev Canadian Pro-Wrestling Hall of Fame Class of 2022 – as a member of the Hart Foundation Legends Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame (2011) Memphis Championship Wrestling MCW Southern Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with The Blue Meanie Mid-South Wrestling Mid-South Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Butch Reed Professional Wrestling Federation PWF Heavyweight Championship (1 time) Pro Wrestling Illustrated Ranked No. 61 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1994 Ranked No. 189 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003 Ranked No. 37 of the top 100 tag teams of the PWI Years with Bret Hart in 2003 Pro Wrestling Ohio PWO Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Greg Valentine Top Rope Championship Wrestling TRCW International Heavyweight Championship (1 time) Universal Wrestling Alliance UWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time) WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2019) - as a member of The Hart Foundation Wrestling Observer Newsletter Feud of the Year (1997) with The Hart Foundation vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin Canadian Wrestling Hall of Fame Individually With the Hart family