Remembering the WWF: In Your House PPV Concept

One of the most intriguing ideas at the time was the concept of the "In Your House" pay per view series from the World Wrestling Federation. On Mother's Day 1995, the WWF would debut the new PPV event. The setup was synonymous with the name. The stage looked like the front of a house, and this was back before the grand entrances you see now. There wasn't a massive video wall, or spectacular firework entrances you see with some of the stars today.

It was basic and simple, and it gave the focus on what was happening in the ring. Bret Hart pulled double duty for the inaugural event, dedicating the night to his mother up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. His first opponent would be Japanese import Hakushi. Led by Shinja, Hakushi's body was riddled with tattoos and he was a high flying aerial star. However his air attack wasn't enough for Bret, who managed to put him down for the victory. He would later go on in the event and lose to long-time rival Jerry "The King Lawler. Bret and Lawler had been feuding for the better part of two years, when Lawler started verbally berating Bret's family both on air and when they would attend live WWF events.

The In Your House event would continue over the next couple of years, filling in monthly spots that were not taken up by the long-running classic events such as the Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, and of course WrestleMania.

Early matches from the PPV series included the first-ever Triple Header Match, as WWF Champion Diesel teamed with long-time friend and then-WWF I-C Champion Shawn Michaels. They faced the WWF Tag Team Champions (Owen Hart & Yokozuna) with all four titles on the line in the match. There was also a classic and brutal bloodbath in December of 1995, as Bret Hart defended the WWF Championship against his brother-in-law British Bulldog., and a 1996 battle between The Undertaker and Mick Foley in the first ever Buried Alive match.

However there were also matches that made fans really scratch their heads. There was a Hog Pen match featuring future WWF Champion Triple H, and a Crybaby Match featuring Scott Hall (better known then as Razor Ramon). The Hog Pen match featured an actual hog pen, and the loser would be the one who was thrown into the muddy pit. The Crybaby Match saw the loser being dressed in a diaper and given a bottle.

After awhile, In Your House took on surnames. It began in April of 1996, with "Good Friends, Better Enemies." It was highlighted by Shawn Michaels defending his newly won WWF Championship against former friend-turned enemy, Diesel.

Eventually, the IYH concept was tossed aside for gimmick events and other ideas, but during its run it was one of the more enjoyable events of its era. For the longtime fans, it is a nostalgic look at wrestling just before the sparks started flying in the Monday Night Wars.