Keeping Owen Hart's magnificent legacy intact: Thank you AEW!

Owen Hart was a great wrestler. Owen Hart had a wonderful personality. Owen Hart was my friend.

On May 29, 2022, the memory of Owen Hart was elevated to new heights. At AEW Double or Nothing, two wrestlers were awarded specially made championship belts after winning the Owen Hart Foundation Men's and Women's Tournament finals.

The straps and a silver cup proclaiming their wins were presented by the head of the Foundation, Owen's widow Martha Hart. Millions of fans all over the world were able to witness Adam Cole defeating Samoa Joe, and in the women's division, Adam's girlfriend Britt Baker won over Ruby Soho in the finals of the tournament.

Martha Hart presented the valuable possessions to both Adam and Dr. Baker after a speech lovingly recalling her husband, who died in a ring accident on May 23, 1999. All of this echoed the love and appreciation for Owen Hart.

Witnessing the elation Martha, Adam, and Dr. Baker emoted and how the 14,000+ fans at the arena reacted so enthusiastically made me think of the good times I had with Owen. There is nothing like rewinding those memories.

Perhaps the most vivid reel that runs through my mind when thinking about Owen is our mutual love of contemporary country music. There was one singer, in particular, we both enjoyed. His name is Collin Raye. I first learned that Owen was a huge fan of his when I saw a photo of them together. At the time, besides being the editor of a wrestling magazine, I was a reporter for a country music magazine called "CountryBeat."

Through that media, I was able to get an interview with Collin. His son Jake was an avid wrestling fan. The conversation with Collin went from country music to wrestling and, of course, Owen Hart.

"We've become good friends. He talks to Jake and I and we really enjoy him," Collin told me during that interview.

Eventually, Collin's deep friendship would bring him to sing at Owen's funeral.

I recall going into the dressing room where Owen and some other wrestlers were at the world's greatest arena (in my opinion), Madison Square Garden. This was a few weeks after I interviewed Collin Raye. I told Owen all about it, and we started talking about Collin's hit songs (he has amassed nearly 50 top single selling recordings to date as well as albums and videos).

Owen asked what my favorite Collin tune was, and I told him, "One Boy, One Girl." At that point, he asked if I could sing a bit of it -- and remember, we were in a dressing room with other wrestlers. I never miss a chance to perform, and after the second or third line of the song, he joined me in a duet. We got a pretty nice round of applause and one or two who suggested we keep our day jobs!

Owen was known to be a prankster backstage, but I never saw him pull off any ribs on the other wrestlers. He was always a gentleman around me. I truly enjoyed his company.

Thank you, Tony Khan, for giving Martha Hart this loving platform to keep Owen's memory not only intact but able to keep adding more respect to his magnificent legacy.