Smith Hart On How Much The Hart Family Received From Owen Hart Settlement, Vince's Original Offer
In the video above, Smith Hart – the oldest brother of Bret and Owen – talks about the division in the Hart family over the Owen Hart settlement.
Smith claims that Vince McMahon apparently offered his father, Stu Hart, $93 million to settle the case and avoid going to trial and delaying the process. Smith noted that as part of the deal, Vince would also buy Stu's acreage and make a shrine for Owen, and possibly even buy Stu's mansion and turn it into a museum. Neither the shrine nor the museum ended up happening.
Smith claims that Bret convinced Stu not to take the settlement, and said that they would get more money and bury Vince in the process by not settling. Smith said that in the end by not taking the original offer, the Hart family got $2 million while Owen's widow, Martha, got $30 million divided three ways for herself and her children [Editor's note: Other reports state that Martha Hart received approximately $18 million].
Smith noted that out of the $2 million the Hart family received, the legal fees were not paid as promised so they had to pay for those out of pocket. He said that after expenses, when you divide the rest by 10 children, it "doesn't amount to very much." Smith said that Martha and Bret "are the affluent ones in the family [while] the rest of us are all back to zero."