Hart | |
---|---|
Current region | Calgary, Alberta |
Earlier spellings | Hardt |
Etymology | German meaning Hard. Spoken with Irish Ulster Scots dialects. |
Place of origin | Canada |
Members | |
Connected members | |
Connected families | Billington family |
Distinctions | Wrestling family[1] |
Traditions | Professional wrestling Sunday dinner |
Estate(s) | Hart Mansion |
See also: Scotch-Irish Canadians |
The Hart wrestling family, sometimes known as the Hart dynasty,[2] is a mainly Canadian family with a significant history within professional wrestling.[3] The patriarch of the family was wrestling legend Stu Hart (1915–2003).[4] An amateur and professional wrestling performer, promoter and trainer,[5] Stu owned and operated his own wrestling promotion, Stampede Wrestling. He also trained some of the most well known stars in wrestling history including "Superstar" Billy Graham, Fritz Von Erich, Chris Benoit, and his own sons Bret Hart and Owen Hart.[5]
All of Stu's eight sons were wrestlers and two of them, Bret and Owen, achieved considerable fame and success in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE),[3] with many of the WWF's biggest storylines in the mid-1990s being built around Bret and Owen and their brothers-in-law.[6][7] The family is closely associated with Canada in the North American wrestling landscape and its Canadian heritage has often been emphasized in wrestling storylines, even to the point of overt opposition to American culture, but most of its members also have American citizenship through the family's American matriarch, Helen Hart.
As of 2024, the only Hart actively wrestling in WWE is Stu's granddaughter Natalie "Natalya" Neidhart, but Bret makes occasional guest appearances while WWE employs Dungeon graduate Tyson Kidd (also Neidhart's husband) as a producer.[8]