Attitude Era

The Attitude Era was a major era of professional wrestling within the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE), succeeding the New Generation Era. The Attitude Era was characterized by adult-oriented content, which included increased depicted violence, profanity, and sexual content, as well as disregarding the "good guys versus bad guys" formula in favor of unpredictable and shocking storylines, in a significant shift from the "traditional" and family-friendly output that the WWF had produced up until that point. The Attitude branding officially lasted from November 9, 1997, at Survivor Series 1997, to May 6, 2002 (renaming of WWF to WWE), and was succeeded by the Ruthless Aggression Era.

The era was spearheaded during the Monday Night War when WWF's Raw went head-to-head with rival World Championship Wrestling's (WCW) Nitro in a weekly battle for television ratings. As part of the change, the WWF also rebranded its flagship show (which became Raw Is War), redesigned the arena setups, and later introduced the "scratch" logo and officially referred to and promoted the "Attitude" name. The Attitude Era was a highly successful period for the company with television ratings, merchandise sales, and pay-per-view buy rates for the WWF reaching record highs and it also came at a time of a general shift in American television moving away from family-friendly to "edgier" content, with the WWF pushing the limits of what was deemed acceptable for television. Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Sycho Sid and Stone Cold Steve Austin were among the wrestlers that ushered in the Attitude Era, with events such as Hart's explicit rant, the formation of D-Generation X and the Montreal Screwjob being key points of evolution to the Attitude format. However, Hart and Sid both left the WWF at the dawn of the era, and Michaels retired soon after.

Steve Austin would go on to become a major superstar of the Attitude Era and was joined by many new stars including The Rock, Triple H, Kane, Mick Foley (in various personas), Chyna and Kurt Angle, whereas The Undertaker continued to be popular as a veteran, and the company's chairman Vince McMahon would form a villainous persona out of himself, involving his real-life family in storylines. The Austin–McMahon feud was one of the longest-running and most prominent rivalries of the era. WWF also signed a number of wrestlers who left WCW during this boom period, including Chris Jericho, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, and the Big Show. In addition, the WWF Women's Championship was reactivated in September 1998 after years of dormancy, and most of the company's female talent, such as Sable, Sunny and Stacy Keibler during this time period were marketed as sex symbols booked in sexually provocative gimmick matches (e.g., "bra and panties", bikini, lingerie, etc.), whereas prominent female stars such as Chyna, Lita, and Trish Stratus were presented as serious wrestlers. The era also saw the resurgence of tag team wrestling, namely The Hardy Boyz, The Dudley Boyz, and Edge & Christian, who were featured in several destructive, physical and stunt-filled Tables, Ladders and Chairs matches during this era. Distinguished stables that were established in this era include D-Generation X, Nation of Domination, The Corporation, Ministry of Darkness, Corporate Ministry and The Brood, and had developed major rivalries among each other. Also, the Hardcore Championship was established in November 1998, a chaotic division involving no disqualification, falls count anywhere matches that would start ringside and then would be taken outside, with blunt weapons involved.