The Attitude Era was a period in World Wrestling Federation (WWF) (known now as WWE) and professional wrestling history that began during the later half of the 1990s and ended in the early 2000s. The era was marked by a shift to more adult-oriented programming content, which was accomplished by a number of different ways, including an increase in the level of depicted violence and the incorporation of sexually suggestive, horrific, or otherwise politically incorrect characters and storylines created for shock value. Similar to the 1980s professional wrestling boom, the Attitude Era was a surge in the popularity of professional wrestling in the United States as television ratings and pay-per-view buy-rates hit record highs. The Attitude Era derives its name from the "Attitude" slogan that accompanied the WWF insignia from 1997–2002.
The era saw several wrestlers rise to stardom, including Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, Kurt Angle and Mick Foley; established WWF stars The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels continued their main-event prominence. Wrestlers such as Chris Jericho, The Big Show, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero - who were unhappy with their employment in rival promotion World Championship Wrestling (WCW) - jumped ship to the WWF to make names for themselves. Other main-event wrestlers who first rose to prominence during the Attitude Era include Kane, Edge, Christian, and the Hardy Boyz. The era also saw an increase in the McMahon family's on-screen presence, starting with CEO Vince McMahon's creating a heel persona of himself following the Montreal Screwjob.
No specific events or dates define the start or end of the Attitude Era, but it is generally held to have started by 1997 during the Monday Night Wars between the WWF and WCW, and ended officially at Wrestlemania X-Seven. Since the end of the Attitude Era, and in particular since 2008, WWE has done away with much of the adult-oriented programming content introduced during the Attitude Era and returned to more family friendly programming.
Read more about The Attitude Era: Overview, Initiation, The Austin Vs. McMahon Rivalry, The Rock, The Brothers of Destruction Saga and The Ministry of Darkness, See Also
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