Mark William Calaway (also spelled incorrectly as either Callaway or Calloway) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, The Undertaker. Calaway is currently performing on the SmackDown! brand of WWE.
| Mark Calaway | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | March 24, 1965 Houston, Texas |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Texas Red The Commando The Master of Pain The Punisher Punisher Dice Morgan "Mean" Mark Callous Kane The Undertaker The Undertaker |
| Billed height | 6 ft 8 in (203 cm) |
| Billed weight | 285 lb (130 kg) |
| Billed from | Death Valley |
| Trained by | Don Jardine |
| Debut | 1984 |
As The Undertaker, Calaway has experienced considerable success. In addition to several title reigns, he is undefeated at the flagship WWE pay-per-view event, WrestleMania, having achieved 14 victories. Calaway is generally seen as a company loyalist and prominent "ambassador" for WWE; he is one of the company's longest-serving employees, having wrestled for WWE for over fifteen years.
Early career
He began his wrestling career in 1984 by training and wrestling at the Dallas Sportatorium in Dallas, Texas with Fritz Von Erich's World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW). Calaway would later go on to wrestle in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA), winning the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship and USWA Texas Heavyweight Championship. During the mid to late 1980s, he used several ring names: The Commando, The Punisher, Texas Red, The Master of Pain, Punisher Dice Morgan.
Mark Calaway had a short stint from late 1989 until late 1990 in the National Wrestling Alliance's (NWA) Jim Crockett Promotions. The NWA became World Championship Wrestling (WCW) during Calaway's time with them. While there, he was known as "Mean" Mark Callous and wrestled as part of the Skyscrapers tag team along with "Dangerous" Dan Spivey and later as a singles wrestler. His most famous match in WCW was against Lex Luger for the NWA United States Title (Mid-Atlantic version) at the 1990 Great American Bash, which he lost at the hands of Luger's finishing move, the Human Torture Rack. At the end of 1990, WCW declined to renew Calaway's contract, and he signed with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation (WWF).
World Wrestling Entertainment
1990-1991
Calaway debuted in the then-World Wrestling Federation on November 22, 1990 at Survivor Series 1990 as The Undertaker. For a short period during late 1990 and early 1991, he appeared on WWF programming as Kane The Undertaker. The name "Kane" was dropped soon afterward but was later recycled as the name of the Undertaker's (kayfabe) half-brother, Kane. The appearance of Undertaker was modelled on that of a mortician from old Western movies, with the character being supposedly impervious to pain and possessing supernatural powers such as teleportation and manipulation of flames and lightning. Very early on, the Undertaker switched managers from Brother Love to Paul Bearer. The Undertaker's entrance included a theme song that started with four menacing gongs followed by the mournful yet sinister funeral dirge. It was mentioned upon making his entrance that the Undertaker character was a man from Death Valley. The Undertaker slowly and deliberately approached the ring and entered by way of the steel steps. He always lifted his coat on the way up the steel steps and held down on the brim of his hat when bowing inbetween the ropes to enter the ring. However, Undertaker made more elaborate entrances to the ring as well, in which he was brought down the aisle in a funeral wagon accompanied by a vulture. Manager Paul Bearer was included in the Undertaker's entrances, leading the way and guiding the Undertaker while making freaky facial contortions and usually holding the urn up in the air. Once in the ring, Bearer then collected "his" Undertaker's full-length black trench coat, grey diagonal striped cravat, and stetson bowler hat with a grey crown, that the Undertaker wore for his entrances. The Undertaker was complete in a black cut-off shirt, tucked into black spandex tights, a pair of glossy grey leather fold-over gloves, and grey knee-high boot spats attached around his knee-high black boots.
Unlike most wrestlers at that time, the Undertaker was given a huge push for his debut. Ted DiBiase had been foretelling of a mystery partner for some time and therefore the mystery partner had to be special. Mark has even said how he felt a great deal of pressure for that debut because of the fuss that had been made about the mystery partner. At the Survivor Series 1990 Undertaker showed that he was impervious to pain, and eliminated Koko B. Ware and Dusty Rhodes in no time, before he got himself counted out, when he went after Rhodes. Mark didn't disappoint in playing the character and the Undertaker made a lasting impression with everybody. The fans truly recognized him as a heel. Throughout 1991, Undertaker's popularity began to grow rapidly, despite being a heel. The Undertaker even had an "undefeated" year, destroying such superstars as Tugboat, the Big Bossman, Jimmy Snuka, and Jim Duggan. It was at this time that Paul Bearer started bringing an urn to the ring that the Undertaker drew his powers from. Because the phenom's undefeated streak, he was ready for stronger competition.
Between December 1991 and September 1993, Undertaker did not lose a single match. It was the longest undefeated streak of the 1990s.
Taker had high-profile feuds with Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan. The Undertaker's brutal feud and matches with the Ultimate Warrior, unfortunately never appeared on pay-per-view. The Undertaker dominated the Ultimate Warrior in house show matches and on Saturday Night's Main Event. The Undertaker defeated Hogan at Survivor Series 1991 with assistance from Ric Flair to win his first WWF Championship (making him at the time, the youngest man to hold the championship at 26 years of age). However, the WWF was not ready for the Undertaker as champion so a rematch was set up only 6 days later in which Hogan would regain the title at This Tuesday In Texas.
1992-95
By 1992, the Undertaker had successfully went through just about all the babyfaces and was growing on the fans regardless of being a heel. For these reasons, the business and Vince McMahon decided to somehow turn his natural heel character into a fan-favorite. The WWF has stated that this was accomplished by making evil a good thing. Early in 1992, he fell out with his ally Jake "The Snake" Roberts, thus turning face. He defeated Roberts at Wrestlemania VIII and became the first man to kick out of Roberts' patented DDT. Much of his competition was poor throughout 1992 and 1993. The Undertaker's most extensive feuds at the time involved wrestlers managed by Harvey Whippleman, most notably Kamala and the Giant Gonzales. At Survivor Series 1992 the casket match (billed as a 'coffin match') was introduced for the first time. The Undertaker won the match, shutting the lid on Kamala. Regardless of the the feuds and introduction of the then-coffin match, Taker was not making as strong of an impression as he had made as a heel wrestler. Not only was his character losing interest from the fans but Calaway also had a lot of unfortunate things on his plate as well. He had suffered a back injury, his marriage was crumbling, he was experiencing depression issues, and was succumbing to a substance abuse problem. Things were getting worse for Mark and he desperately needed time off and that time would come after the pay-per-view which would air in January of 1994.
In January 1994, he challenged then WWF Champion Yokozuna and met him in two of the best known casket matches in WWF history at the 1994 Royal Rumble and Survivor Series 1994. The start of the Undertaker's feud with Yokozuna was the start of his rise as babyface. It was at this stage that the Undertaker began to really develop and add to his darkside persona. He began making extravagant, shuddersome interviews in which he was at a funeral home, constructing a giant casket especially for Yokozuna; his hair was becoming very long straight black hair, often used for mysteriously hiding his face, or for a striking hair-toss; he started showing up in the dark; he had supernatural abilities that allowed him to turn on lights through the uplifting of his arms; he played head games with his opponents having Bearer roll caskets to the ring to freak out the Phenom's enemies; he spoke to his opponents while absent via a PA system, etc. At the Royal Rumble in 1994, thanks to interference by over a dozen heel wrestlers, Yokozuna sealed Undertaker in the casket. The Undertaker's "spirit" appeared from inside the casket, warned that he would return, and then rose from behind the video wall. This began Undertaker's first hiatus.
The Undertaker's time off to deal with his personal problems was perfect for the company to figure out how to continue from the good way they left off at the 1994 Royal Rumble. They spent time creating more unrealistic, fantastical storylines that had to do with Undertaker's supernatural powers. The World Wrestling Federation had a great time planning up a fancy return for the Undertaker in order to keep fans interested in the character. Because no one had heard word or seen the Undertaker in such a long time, it was big news when Ted DiBiase started claiming that he was going to bring back the Phenom with the almighty dollar, as he did for the Undertaker's debut. Leslie Nielson even did a big investigation on the case. An Undertaker "clone" appeared after led by Ted DiBiase and played by Brian Lee. This led to the elaborate resurrection of the real Undertaker and an epic battle at SummerSlam 1994, where the real Undertaker was victorious. Taker came with updated colors to his attire as well, wearing new purple pocket flaps on his full-length black trench coat which now had a sleek appearance over his hips, a purple crown on his stetson bowler hat, purple diagonal striped cravat, purple fold-over gloves, and purple knee-high boot spats attached to his knee-high black boots. The character of the Undertaker was developed considerably particularly at Summer Slam 1994, but a little while afterwards as well. Taker started appearing out of clouds of smoke as the lighting would darken and then flash purple and blue; he would start rolling his eyeballs back; he got a lot more tattoos along his arms; he now had a goattee; he kneeled in a darkside stance and reached out towards the urn after he was victorious over his opponents, etc. All the ideas were successful and fans were intrigued by the storylines and remaking of the Undertaker. His popularity rising, Undertaker then battled various villains that a vindictive Ted DiBiase sent after him in attempt to get even from Summer Slam 1994. The first villian was Irwin R. Shyster, whome the Undertaker defeated at the 1995 Royal Rumble. During this match however, DiBiase got away with the urn with help from King Kong Bundy. At WrestleMania XI, the Undertaker repossessed the urn while kicking Bundy's behind in a brief match. However, Kama Mustafa retrieved the urn from Bearer while Taker was busy kicking Bundy's butt. By this time, the name "Undertaker" in purple letters as the image display for the Undertaker's entrances was replaced by the image of a slow movement scene through a graveyard. This added further chills to the Undertaker's entrances. As 1995 progressed, Kama who still had possession of the Undertaker's urn from the series of events at WrestleMania, really trampled on the dark side by melting it down into a big necklace. He also cost the Undertaker a chance at being crowned the 1995 King Of The Ring. The Undertaker faced Kama in a casket match as a result at Summer Slam 1995. After putting on a great match versus the Supereme Fighting Machine, the Undertaker finally came out on top, closing the lid on Kama. Several weeks later toward the end of 95', Taker was assaulted by Yokozuna and Mabel whome together crushed the Undertaker's face, leading to a period of absence. Undertaker returned by the 1995 Survivor Series, wearing a ghostly grey upper facemask. In actuality, the Undertaker was supposed to wear a facemask with brown straps running across. However, that facemask was rejected and used for Mankind's character a couple months later. Throughout his time with the upper facemask, Taker was unstoppable, even getting even with and recapturing the urn/gold chain from King Mabel who had got possession of it. This took place in December of 1995, at In Your House 5: Season Beatings, in which the Undertaker fought Mabel in a casket match.
1996
The 1996 Royal Rumble saw the unmasking of the Undertaker in a match against Bret Hart. The match was a fantastic one that swung back and forth due to the fact that both superstars were babyfaces and at the top, Hart slightly more than the Undertaker. Because of a brief run-in before the start of the match between the Undertaker and Diesel, Kevin Nash, a vindictive Diesel would end up costing the Phenom the WWF Championship. This was accomplished by pulling out the official as Taker was pinning Hart, having executed his Tombstone Piledriver. For this reason, Taker won by disqualification and the title could not change hands because of it. Diesel would then flip the Undertaker off before making his exit. After the Royal Rumble, Diesel added to the insult by costing the Undertaker a RAW rematch against Hart and various other matches. A vengeful Taker finally dished out his own form of punishment. He started playing mind games with Diesel that had never even been seen at the time. Taker did such things as burst through ring aprons in clouds of smoke and drag Diesel down under into the "depths of hell" costing Diesel a championship cage match versus Bret Hart, disappearing from place to place, and creating effigies of Diesel in actual coffins in order to mess with his head. It became a game of tit for tat as an extremely unafraid Big Daddy Cool Diesel would continue to provoke the Man From The Dark Side. Diesel annihilated the Undertaker character's home, the double-deep double-wide casket, and also assaulted manager Paul Bearer. At a special event in Madison Square Garden, Undertaker & Bret Hart would face Diesel and Shawn Michaels. Diesel's heel character got even more disgusting that night as he turned on his long time friend, Shawn Michaels. Undertaker's first time clashing in the audience would also transpire that night in Madison Square Garden, as things got out of hand between him and the Big Daddy Cool. At the 1996 Slammy Awards, Taker won an award for Greatest Hit and once again informed Diesel that he would "Rest In Peace." The very next night, although Diesel gave Taker a run for his money, the Undertaker was victorious at WrestleMania XII. Ironically, the Undertaker's match with Diesel was an exciting and high-energy match, something rare when both superstars are behemoths. An even more notable feud involving the Undertaker commenced the very next night when eerie deranged superstar, Mankind, made his debut. Mankind interfered in the Undertaker's match by assaulting him as he was polishing off Justin Hawk Bradshaw. For the next couple of months, Mankind would ambush and cost the Undertaker several matches. Mankind did such things as; close casket lids on the Undertaker during interviews while laying inside his coffin, then Mankind would proceed to push over the casket and hit it with weapons; hiding under the ring during Taker's RAW match versus the The British Bulldog, then reaching out from under the ring to clutch Taker's ankle, causing his disqualification by count-out; Mankind even came up from a casket to deliver his Mandible Claw on the Undertaker, costing him an Intercontinental Championship casket match with Goldust at the In Your House 8: "Beware Of Dog". Because of this, Goldust united with Mankind somewhat in tormenting the Undertaker. In order to emphasize Mankind's character, Undertaker wasn't responding much at this period in time, but was only tormented by the deranged one. The Undertaker clashed with Mankind for the very first time at the 1996 King Of The Ring. It was the first match Undertaker didn't make an entrance at, but instead was on the top corner buckle when the lights reappeared to ambush Mankind with a clothesline. Unlike ever before seen at the time, Undertaker started off the match by beating the living daylights out of Mankind with a lightning-fast fusillade of blows. However, Mankind won the encounter when Bearer inadvertently hit the Undertaker with the urn in an attempt to hit Mankind.
As the weeks went on, the Undertaker's feud with Mankind grew more intense. Basically all their matches with other wrestlers would end up in disqualifications, due to them interfering on each other's matches. They even started to take their battles out into audiences and backstage areas which was much more shocking and unconventional at that time. Things got even more interesting and out of hand when the two warred into the boiler room areas of different arenas. As a result, it became a place of comfort for Mankind and he recognized boiler rooms as his home. All these events would lead up to the first ever Boiler Room Brawl match between the two at SummerSlam 1996. It was the most bizarre match that the WWE had ever put on at that point in time. Taker nearly won the violent boiler room brawl by using the ropes to fling Mankind off the edge of the ring apron. However, when Taker reached for the urn, Bearer hit him with it, allowing Mankind to incapacitate the Undertaker with the mandible claw. Paul Bearer then handed the urn to Mankind, thus giving Mankind the win. Bearer had betrayed Undertaker and now become Mankind's new manager. Paul Bearer's betrayal of the Undertaker for his arch nemesis turned Taker into a much more no-nonsense athlete. Instead of wearing a hat, tie, and trench coat, and slowly walking down the aisle, he strided to the ring. Without waisting time walking up steel steps and slowly bringing up lights anymore, he'd step directly onto the ring apron, fling his arms up to instantly bring up lights, and proceed by making short work of his opponents in a much more aggressive style. In fact, he ended his long feud with Goldust the very next month at In Your House Mind Games. The Undertaker's feud with Mankind was brought back into play the next month at In Your House: Buried Alive. This event debuted the Buried Alive Match, in which Undertaker defeated Mankind. The dead man pulled off stunts he had never done before in the match up such as diving over security rails from out of the audience to ringside and jumping off the top rope onto Mankind all the way to ringside at 300 pounds plus. Steel steps were brought into the ring for the first time as weapons. Although this match saw a couple of firsts, it also saw a very big last occurence. It marked the final time the Undertaker would appear in purple eyeliner beneath his eyes, purple leather gloves, and knee-high purple boot spats which were coming unloose throughout the brutal buried alive and boiler room brawl encounters. It was the attire he wore for the two years that he started to rise as a babyface. Although Goldust was out of the story, Mankind had no trouble finding himself more aid. A new enemy named "The Executioner" attacked Undertaker after the buried alive match. The 1996 Survivor Series, saw a strikingly different, much more technically sound Undertaker in all black silk material. Undertaker defeated Mankind at the event, but The Executioner beat Undertaker down so he couldn't get hold of Bearer. The In Your House: It's Time event saw Undertaker defeat The Executioner and take out Mankind. His feud with Mankind and Bearer over, Undertaker then pursued the WWF Championship.
1997
At the final Slammy Awards which took place in March of 1997 just before WrestleMania, the Undertaker had won three times for Best Tattoo, Best Entrance Music, and Highest Magnitude. Just as he did to Diesel, he informed the psychopathic Sycho Sid that he would capture his championship and force him to "Rest In Peace" the next night. Undertaker protected his WrestleMania winning streak and won a second WWF Championship from Sid at WrestleMania 13. The Undertaker fought Sid in his classic grey and black outfit that he'd debuted with. After that WrestleMania and over the rest of that year, Undertaker would start wearing a new all black attire that was uniquely altered in different gothic-styled symbols for his every appearance. He wore fingerless gloves and black leather boots. He also entered the ring in a bat-like leather full-length cape. Not long after Wrestlemania 13, did his former manager Paul Bearer reappear, threatening Undertaker by uttering the word "fire" a number of times to control him. This led to Mankind setting the Undertaker's eye on fire. As a result, the two battled and had quite the encounter at In Your House Revenge Of The Taker. This was a match in which Mankind was unmasked for the very first time due to the Undertaker ripping it off. Mankind was even sent head-first through the Spanish announcer's table. Regardless of the obvious error after the match's completion involving Mankind not being able to turn on a lighter so as to set Bearer's face on fire, the match still made it's mark. Although the Undertaker had ended his feud with Mankind for at least that time, Bearer was still holding a secret over the Undertaker's head and even used it to blackmail him and treat him like dirt throughout mid 1997. He began to manage the Undertaker again, but did so tyrannically and to the Undertaker's reluctance. Although Undertaker had to deal with Bearer, he was still successful in his matches such as his title defense versus Faarooq at the 1997 King Of The Ring. Due to the Undertaker refusing to put up with Bearer anymore, Paul finally revealed that the Undertaker had burned his family's house, killing everyone inside but his brother. He said that Undertaker's brother was still alive, waiting for revenge all these years. Undertaker responded by saying that it wasn't his fault and that his brother could not have survived. Meanwhile, a number of wrestlers pursued Undertaker's title, such as Vader, whome Taker had somewhat of some unfinished business with from that year's Royal Rumble. The Undertaker successfully defended his championship and ended any feud he had with Vader at In Your House Canadian Stampede. After a very hard fought championship match versus the formidable Bret Hart at SummerSlam 1997, referee Shawn Michaels accidentally hit Undertaker with a steel chair shot meant for Hart. Hart, who'd spit at Michaels, dodged the chair shot. Due to a pre-match agreement stating that if Michaels didn't call the match directly down the middle he would be fired, he had no choice but to make the three-count in favor of Hart, costing Undertaker his WWF Championship. Although the chair shot seemed accidental, Michaels would violently repeat the action a couple more times very purposefully in the oncoming weeks on RAW is WAR. This initiated Michaels first heel turn in a long time as he united with a new group called D Generation-X in order to take out the Phenom. The Undertaker had his chance at revenge against HBK who had it a long time coming at In Your House: Ground Zero. A big fuss was made about the match being a first time ever because both Shawn Michaels and the Undertaker were two of the WWF's finest athletes. Michaels had a reputation of out-wrestling big men like the Undertaker. However, the Undertaker had a history of out-performing and out-wrestling most men his size and a strikingly different wrestling style from them as well. However, due to the total lack of order and complete and utter disregard for rules, the match was a no-contest. Although Undertaker wasn't satisfied with the match, he certainly got the last word in by performing an incredible running dive over the top rope, landing on Shawn Michaels along with numerous other superstars at ringside. Because of what transpired at Ground Zero, Undertaker would square off against Michaels in the first ever infamous Hell in a Cell match In Your House: Badd Blood. The cell's intended purpose was to prevent Michaels from being aided by the constantly interfering D Generation-X members, and making sure that Michaels had no way of escaping the wrath of the Undertaker. Undertaker and Michaels had an amazing showdown and tested each other like no other wrestlers could. Many believe this encounter to be the most shocking match of 1997. Undertaker has stated that although he lost the match, it was one of the matches he was most proud of in his career. When Undertaker seemingly had the match in hand, Undertaker's "brother" Kane, brought in by Paul Bearer, made his debut, ripping off the door to the cell and then giving Undertaker a tombstone piledriver, Undertaker's trademark finisher. Shawn Michaels then covered Undertaker for the pin. As the year came to a close, Kane would continuously assault and challenge the Undertaker. However the Undertaker wouldn't retaliate, reluctant to face his brother. It didn't stop Kane from constantly attacking Undertaker. Bearer provoked matters by wailing rude comments like, "You done made your grave dead man. You'll burn in hell. Yes, yes, yes!" He taunted the Undertaker as to how he was just being a coward and basically speaking on behalf of the Big Red Machine whose character didn't have the ability at the time.
1998
The Undertaker's 3rd and final encounter with Michaels would be in the return of the casket match for the WWF Championship at the 1998 Royal Rumble. The double-deep, double-wide casket that hadn't been seen since it's destruction by Diesel, was rebuilt and completely spray-painted with words and symbols having to do with Shawn Michaels, representing it as his final resting place. By the arrival of the 1998 Royal Rumble, Taker was led to believe that he and Kane had been united to some extent because they had aided each other in weeks prior on Raw. However after an outstanding casket match performance by Taker and HBK, Kane would stun everyone by costing the Undertaker the win by chokeslamming him in the casket and closing the lid. He even went so far as to padlock the lid and set the whole casket on fire afterward. However, the Undertaker was gone when the casket lid was opened. The Undertaker spent a great deal of time absent. This allowed some time to emphasize Kane's amazing strength and to show fans that this time Taker was in for a challenge. Kane exhibited all the supernatural powers that his brother was known for using in intimidating his opponents. Kane made trouble with and took out any and everyone, even WWE camera crew and officials, as Bearer constantly mentioned that the Undertaker was destroyed and never to return. Finally, the Undertaker stunned everyone with a dramatic return. He did a super fast version of his trademark sit-up and super fast head turn, toward Kane and Bearer, out of a bolt of flames from a filthy and shabby coffin, symboling the burnt up casket he disappeared from. It was Undertaker's way of telling everyone "it's on now" and that he wasn't going to decline to fight his brother as he had been ever since Kane's debut. A wrathful Taker started up his notorious mind games with his brother during the next several weeks, continuously foretelling of the pain and suffering that Kane would soon experience. At WrestleMania XIV The Undertaker defeated Kane after Kane manhandled Taker and proved to be no easy competition. It took 3 Tombstone Piledrivers for Taker to get the victory over Kane. Surprisingly, the Undertaker performed the match in somewhat of an energetic, light-heavyweight style. In a heart-stopping performance, Taker also defeated Kane in the first ever Inferno Match, where the ring was surrounded by fire and the only way to win was to set your opponent on fire. This is a match that Mark still rolls his eyes about due to the danger that Kane and him were put in decided by the powers that be (Vince McMahon), similarly to the situation regarding the tragic death of Owen Hart. In an interview, Mark recalls how he felt it was so hot and the heat was taking up so much oxygen that made the fighting conditions next to impossible. However, Mark still proved himself. The Undertaker also managed to do his circus-like walk across the top rope with the flames unexpectedly shooting upward throughout the match. Like a bat out of hell, Taker even performed a risky running dive over the top ring rope and flames onto Kane and Vader at ringside. This is a move that his opponent, Glen Jacobs, has stated he was marveled by simply because of the size of the Undertaker. Undertaker's longtime feud with Mankind was rejuvenated when, on an episode of Monday Night RAW, Mankind cost the Undertaker a match against Kane. Undertaker then had a Hell in a Cell match with Mankind at King of the Ring 1998. In one of the most memorable matches in professional wrestling history, Undertaker threw Mankind off the roof of the sixteen foot cell onto the Spanish announcers' table below. He then chokeslammed Mankind through the roof of the cell into the ring and finally finished the match by back dropping and chokeslamming Mankind onto a pile of thumbtacks. The Undertaker performed this match while sporting a legitimate broken foot. In the first five minutes after the match restarted, the Undertaker says that Mankind was out on his feet and he was continuously telling Mankind that they should just end it. The Undertaker says it was easily the most grueling match of his career. He states that he thought he had ended Mankind's career and paralyzed him after tossing him off the roof of the cell. (For more, see Hell in a Cell - Undertaker vs. Mankind.)
By July of 1998, the Undertaker had become one half of the WWE tag team champions for a short period of time with Stone Cold Steve Austin. Be that as it may, there were suspicions of the Undertaker being in cahoots with his heel brother, Kane, in order to rid Austin of the WWE Championship. In attempt to gain the WWE championship, Undertaker faced Stone Cold Steve Austin at 1998's Summer Slam. In yet another remarkable and ironic high-risk display from a larger athlete, the Undertaker performed a leg drop from the top corner turnbuckle onto Austin who was all the way on the announcer's table at ringside. Many thought that the Undertaker would have Kane interfere in the match proving their alliance against Austin. However, Taker sent his brother back to the locker room and thusly fought the match fairly. Although Undertaker certainly had his moments throughout the match, Austin successfully defended his WWE championship against him fairly. Defeating Undertaker while playing by the rules as well was very rare given that Undertaker was still in his babyface era. However, that would begin to end after SummerSlam. For the first time in 7 years, the Undertaker began showing heel characteristics around September of 1998. This is when Taker and Kane exposed the fact that they were in cahoots to rid Austin of his championship for big-time heel, Vince McMahon. At In Your House Breakdown, when the Undertaker, Kane, and Austin fought in a triple threat match for the title, both Taker and Kane pinned Austin at the same time, and the title was declared vacant. At In Your House: Judgment Day, where he fought Kane with Austin as the Special Referee, the Undertaker began to undergo an even more ominous transformation. Paul Bearer and Taker both hit Kane with a chair, signifying that Taker had reunited with Bearer. However, Austin refused to count the fall and attacked the Undertaker, counting out both men.
As 1998's end drew closer and closer, fans started to slowly but steadily see an even more evil, heel Undertaker, as he began to prophesize a Ministry of Darkness whose wrath would soon be unleashed on the World Wrestling Federation. Exactly what Taker planned to do with this Ministry was not yet known. Undertaker started aiming for the now-vacant WWF Championship again, participating in a "Deadly Games" tournament at Survivor Series. Undertaker defeated Kane but ultimately lost to the Rock by disqualification. After Survivor Series, Undertaker turned his attention to Austin for what happened at Judgment Day, bashing him in the head with a shovel. Vince McMahon scheduled a Buried Alive Match between Undertaker and Austin in December 1998 at In Your House: Rock Bottom. In the weeks leading up to Rock Bottom, Undertaker attempted to embalm Austin alive and even crucified him. Undertaker lost the match due to interference from Kane.
1999
In 1999, Undertaker returned and remained heel from where he had left off, forming the Ministry of Darkness. The prophecy had come true. The Undertaker also stated that he was taking orders from a "Higher Power." Eventually the Ministry would merge with Shane McMahon's Corporation heel stable to form the Corporate Ministry. The merger occurred after a spot where Undertaker had Stephanie McMahon, Shane's own sister, in one of her earliest on-screen appearances, bound to a crucifix and prepared to marry her to take control of the WWF, but Stone Cold Steve Austin broke the wedding up. Undertaker went on to defeat Austin for the WWF Championship at Over the Edge 1999, with help from Shane McMahon, who was the referee for the match. Two weeks later, it was revealed on Monday Night RAW that Vince McMahon, who seemingly hated Undertaker for trying to sacrifice his daughter and even formed an uneasy alliance with Austin to help defeat Undertaker, had indeed been Undertaker's "Higher Power" all along. Vince had used Undertaker's services and sacrificed his own daughter just to get to Austin. After Undertaker lost the title back to Austin and then a First Blood Match at Fully Loaded 1999, however, his relationship with the McMahons dissolved, and the Corporate Ministry disbanded.
He faced Big Bossman at Wrestlemania in a Hell in a Cell match, defeated him easily and also hung him after the match. This clip can be found on the WWE Website.
Undertaker then started aiming for the WWF World Tag Team Championship, teaming with The Big Show. The team feuded with the likes of Kane, Road Dogg, X-Pac, Mankind, and The Rock. Undertaker was scheduled to perform at Unforgiven 1999, contending for the WWF Championship. However, he suffered a groin injury, knocking him out of action for several months. The last angle that he worked on for over seven months showed him losing interest in working for the World Wrestling Federation.
2000
Undertaker's gimmick was modified when he returned in 2000 at Judgment Day 2000, in line with wrestling's change to a more realistic approach. His gimmick became that of an intimidating biker, first referred to as the "American Bad Ass" due to his new entrance music the Kid Rock song of the same name. He later changed his entrance to Limp Bizkit's song "Rollin'." Unlike many gimmick changes with little to no explanation, this was generally well-received by fans and by Undertaker as well, since it reflected his real-life personality.
At Judgment Day 2000, the new Undertaker took out all the members of The McMahon-Helmsley Faction as a big-time face turn. He went on to continue targeting their leader, WWF Champion Triple H. At King of the Ring 2000, Undertaker teamed with the Rock and Kane to defeat the team of Triple H, Shane McMahon, and Mr. McMahon. Afterwards, he teamed with Kane to go for the WWF World Tag Team Championship. They defeated Edge and Christian, earning the right to face them the following week for the tag titles. However, Kurt Angle interfered in the match to help Edge and Christian retain the titles. At Fully Loaded 2000, Undertaker pinned Angle following his new finishing move the Last Ride.
Kane turned on the Undertaker by giving him two chokeslams following Undertaker's August 14, 2000 Monday Night RAW match against Chris Benoit; Kane refused to explain his assault. At SummerSlam 2000, Undertaker took off Kane's mask, but Kane managed to hide his face. Kane allied with Chris Benoit for the next couple of weeks as Undertaker allied with the Rock. At Unforgiven 2000, Undertaker was about to win the WWF Championship when he performed a chokeslam on Benoit. However, Kane took Undertaker out, allowing the Rock to score the pinfall victory over Benoit.
Undertaker took another hiatus but returned after a few weeks to challenge Kurt Angle for the WWF Championship at Survivor Series 2000. Undertaker gave Angle the Last Ride and thought that he had won the match, but the referee recalled the match as the man whom he had pinned was not Kurt Angle but rather his real-life look-alike brother Eric Angle. Kurt had been hiding under the ring, and while Undertaker argued with the referee, Angle came out from under the ring and rolled up the Undertaker for the win. Angle later explained it all at the next night's episode of RAW. Undertaker demanded a rematch and got it at Armageddon 2000 in a six-Man Hell in a Cell Match. However, Undertaker was unable to win the match.
2001
In 2001, Undertaker reunited with Kane as the Brothers of Destruction and contested for the WWF World Tag Team Championship again. The successful duo defeated Rikishi and Haku in a brutal First Blood Match. They would then get a shot at the Tag Titles at No Way Out 2001, facing champions Dudley Boyz, Edge and Christian in a Tables Match. The Brothers of Destruction dominated the entire match, and nearly had the match won until Rikishi and Haku interfered.
After the feud with Rikishi and Haku ended, Undertaker had a WWE Hardcore Championship match with Raven on SmackDown!. However, because WrestleMania X-Seven was around the corner and Triple H did not have an opponent for the event, WWE nixed the idea of the "dream feud" between Raven and Undertaker and instead pitted Undertaker against Triple H. Undertaker defeated Triple H at WrestleMania X-Seven, a match that came about because of Triple H boasting of all the men he had beaten and Undertaker saying that Triple H hadn't beaten him yet. Afterwards, Undertaker and Kane continued to focus on Intercontinental Champion Triple H, who would soon make a surprise alliance with WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin. After the duo injured Kane's arm in a Hardcore Match against Rhyno, the pair was granted an opportunity to face Steve Austin and Triple H at Backlash 2001 if they first defeated Edge and Christian in a no-disqualification Match. Despite interference by Steve Austin and Triple H, Undertaker and Kane managed to win the WWF Tag titles and the right to face The Two-Man Power Trip tag team of Austin and HHH. At Backlash 2001, Triple H pinned Kane after using a sledgehammer, making himself and Austin the new WWF Tag Team Champions.
With Kane injured, Undertaker began targeting Steve Austin and his WWF Championship. On an episode of RAW, Undertaker was told by police officers that his wife Sara had been involved in a car accident. Undertaker arrived home, only to find out that it was all a set up by Austin. At Judgment Day 2001, Undertaker lost to Austin after Triple H interfered with his sledgehammer, allowing Austin to pin Undertaker and retain the championship.
As part of the infamous 2001 Invasion angle, the Undertaker's next opponent was Diamond Dallas Page. Page, a former WCW champion, was so eager to be a part of the Invasion that he allowed himself to be portrayed as a lecherous stalker, obsessively following the Undertaker's wife Sara (the modified voice used in the footage was later found to be Vince McMahon). At SummerSlam 2001, Undertaker and Kane defeated Page and his partner Chris Kanyon in a Steel Cage Match to unify the WCW Tag Team Championship and WWF Tag Team Championship. They were the first team to hold both the WCW and WWF tag team titles.
The Undertaker continued to fight for the World Wrestling Federation, with his brother Kane there to assist him. Undertaker was seen considerably upset at Chris Jericho and The Rock feuding, when they were meant to be on the same side. At Survivor Series 2001, Undertaker was scheduled to team up with Kane, The Rock, Jericho, and Kurt Angle to take on The Alliance's "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Booker T, Rob Van Dam, Shane McMahon, and a surprise WWF defector, which turned out to be Kurt Angle. The Big Show was chosen in place of Angle. At Survivor Series, Undertaker helped eliminate Shane McMahon and took out the four remaining members. However, Angle pinned the Undertaker thanks to the interference of Stone Cold Steve Austin. The Rock would win the match for Team WWF.
After the Alliance was defeated, the Undertaker turned heel once again by forcing commentator Jim Ross to kiss Vince McMahon's buttocks. This was the beginning of a new persona for the Undertaker, he cut his famous long hair and now called himself Big Evil. Undertaker stated that there were many people out there that don't know the meaning of respect. He continually repeated the fact that he had been in the WWF for eleven years and went onto feud with Rob Van Dam. At Vengeance 2001, The Undertaker won a match against Van Dam to capture the WWF Hardcore Championship. He went on to feud with the Big Show, but Show failed to capture the Hardcore Title.
2002
At the 2002 Royal Rumble, rookie Maven eliminated The Undertaker by dropkicking him from behind over the top rope. Undertaker did not take this well and went on to beat Maven into a bloody pulp. The Rock then poked fun about Undertaker's elimination at the Royal Rumble on an episode of Smackdown!. The Dead Man then chokeslammed Rock during his match with Kurt Angle, costing The Rock the Number 1 Contendership for the Undisputed Championship. Maven challenged Undertaker to a match for the Hardcore Title, but Undertaker lost thanks to interference from The Rock, which led to him getting tombstoned on a limo by The Dead Man. 10 Days Later, the two faced off at No Way Out, which resulted into Undertaker losing due to interference from co-owner of the WWE Ric Flair. Afterwards, Undertaker challenged Ric Flair to a match at WrestleMania X8. When Flair declined, Undertaker assaulted Flair's son David. Flair finally accepted and Vince McMahon made the match a No Holds Barred match. Undertaker won with a Tombstone Piledriver despite interference from Flair's long-time friend Arn Anderson.
Undertaker defeated Steve Austin at Backlash 2002 to win the #1 contender spot to the WWE Undisputed Championship, thanks to referee Ric Flair. Later on the night he helped Hulk Hogan win his title match against Undisputed Champion Triple H. This led to a feud between the Triple H and Undertaker. At Insurrextion 2002, Triple H defeated The Undertaker. After weeks of mind games which involved Undertaker's prized motorbike, Undertaker defeated Hulk Hogan at Judgment Day 2002 after using a steel chair and performing a second Chokeslam to win the WWE Undisputed Championship.
Undertaker renewed his feud with Triple H, which involved Kurt Angle. At King of the Ring 2002, The Rock made his return. He was planning to help Triple H, but accidentally caused Triple H's loss. The Undertaker was a fighting champion. Unlike stereotypical heel champions, he placed his title on the line, anytime and anywhere. One of his notable title matches was on RAW, facing Jeff Hardy in Undertaker's first Ladder Match. After the match, he raised Jeff's arm as a sign of respect, turning face once again. Furthering the point of Taker being a fighting champion, he went on to defend the title again that week, on SmackDown in a match against Kurt Angle. As Angle had a triangle choke on Undertaker, Angle's shoulders wound up on the mat for a three-count just when Taker tapped out. Due to the draw that occurred, Undertaker retained. Undertaker would lose his title at Vengeance 2002 to The Rock, who pinned Kurt Angle in a Triple Threat Match.
After pinning Test at SummerSlam 2002, The Undertaker started going for the WWE Championship again, now held by Brock Lesnar. The title match at Unforgiven 2002 ended in a double-DQ. The feud carried over to No Mercy 2002. Undertaker decided the match would be inside Hell in a Cell. His feud with Lesnar involved his wife Sara. Despite Taker entering the ring with a broken arm and finishing the match a bloody mess, he managed to overpower Lesnar, until Lesnar countered his Tombstone into the F-5. This was seen as one of the rare examples of the Undertaker losing a match without his opponent having to resort to cheating. Shortly after this match, the Big Show attacked the Undertaker on an episode of Smackdown and threw him off the stage.
2003
The Undertaker returned at the Royal Rumble drawing number 30, but was unable to win the match. He was eliminated by Brock Lesnar, which he was the last person to be eliminated in The Royal Rumble. At No Way Out 2003 he faced the Big Show. Despite interference by A-Train, Undertaker managed to win via submission. After the match ended, Show and A-Train proceeded on beating The Undertaker. Nathan Jones would then come in Taker's aid, saving him from assault by Big Show and A-Train. The Undertaker began to train Nathan Jones to wrestle, and the two were due to fight Big Show and A-Train in a tag team match at WrestleMania XIX. However, due to a lack of crowd response to Jones as well as obviously lacking many of the basic wrestling skills, Jones was left out of the match, leaving The Undertaker to defeat them alone, with minor assistance from Jones at the end. Jones later quit WWE.
Undertaker would go on to feud against heel characters such as the Full Blooded Italians (which then consisted of Nunzio, Johhny Stamboli, Chuck Palumbo), John Cena, A-Train, Brock Lesnar, and Big Show. He would have two WWE Championship opportunities during the year.
The first, on the September 4, 2003 SmackDown!, was against Kurt Angle. Lesnar interfered and attacked both of them, so the match would be a no contest. This led to next week's show, where Lesnar would beat Angle for the title in an Iron Man match. The second was at No Mercy 2003, between Taker and Lesnar in a biker chain match. Thanks to interference from the FBI and light tricks by Vince McMahon, Lesnar won his second straight No Mercy WWE Title match against Taker.
At Survivor Series 2003, Undertaker lost his Buried Alive Match against Vince McMahon when Kane interfered. He was not seen for a while after that, and Kane claimed that the Undertaker was dead and buried forever.
2004
In the weeks leading up to WrestleMania XX, Kane would be haunted by vignettes hinting towards an Undertaker return. The first was during the Royal Rumble, during which Undertaker's gong rang, hinting towards his return at #13. A distracted Kane (#12 entrant) was eliminated from behind by Booker T. Spike Dudley then appeared as the real #13, but was destroyed and in effect eliminated by Kane before even making it to the ring.
The eerie messages would continue on, pointing further and further towards an Undertaker Deadman comeback to challenge Kane at WrestleMania. At first, they were mere Titantron messages, though the incidents soon consisted of examples such as rain from the ceiling, the descent of two of the Undertaker's burning TX crosses, and the ring rising a foot off the ground.
At WrestleMania XX, the Undertaker would finally return in the Deadman gimmick, again accompanied by Paul Bearer, and defeated Kane. This gimmick could be best described as a hybrid of the classic Undertaker and American Bad Ass gimmicks. Three months later, Paul Bearer was kidnapped by The Dudley Boyz at the direction of Paul Heyman, who then took "control" of Undertaker in the storyline. At the June 2004 pay-per-view The Great American Bash 2004, Undertaker buried Bearer in cement after winning a handicap match against the Dudley Boyz, as a means of removing his "weakness" so that Heyman or others could no longer control him. Fans were later told that Bearer was "seriously injured", following which William Moody (Bearer) was taken off television.
After defeating The Dudley Boyz, he challenged WWE Champion John "Bradshaw" Layfield to a championship match. After his unsuccessful attempt at SummerSlam 2004, Undertaker chokeslammed Layfield through the top of his limousine. At No Mercy 2004, Undertaker and Layfield competed in a "Last Ride" match. Undertaker lost after Heidenreich interfered. This led to a match against Heidenreich at Survivor Series 2004, which Undertaker won.
After taking care of Heidenreich, Undertaker focused on the WWE Championship once again. Along with Eddie Guerrero and Booker T, he challenged Bradshaw to a championship rematch at Armageddon 2004. The match turned into a Fatal Four Way, which Undertaker nearly won before Heidenreich interfered once again.
2005
This led to the signing of a Casket Match between Undertaker and Heidenreich at Royal Rumble 2005. Undertaker would taunt Heidenreich with caskets, which Heidenreich was afraid of. In a SmackDown! Handicap Match against Heidenreich and Paul Heyman, Undertaker sealed Heyman in one of the caskets brought to the ring by Undertaker's druids. Despite interference from Gene Snitsky (which was cancelled out by Kane, who was hiding in the casket), Undertaker sealed Heidenreich in a casket for the victory.
The Undertaker defeated Randy Orton at WrestleMania 21 after Orton challenged him on RAW, claiming that he would defeat Undertaker and thus end his WrestleMania winning streak. It was billed as "Legend vs. Legend Killer" and included interference from Orton's father, legendary wrestler "Cowboy" Bob Orton. In actuality, Calaway is believed to have requested this match due to his antipathy towards the original plans for him, which would have seen him teaming with Kane to face Gene Snitsky and Heidenreich.
Following WrestleMania 21, Undertaker took a two month hiatus from wrestling, linked to the birth of his second daughter with wife Sara, Gracie Calaway, in late May 2005. He returned for the June 30 episode of SmackDown! in the SmackDown! Championship six-way elimination match. However, he was met by Muhammad Hassan, who tried to use a chair on him. He took the chair and hit Hassan instead, getting disqualified. Hassan was counted out as he ran to the back away from him. On the July 7 episode of SmackDown!, general manager Theodore Long put Muhammad Hassan in a match against The Undertaker at The Great American Bash 2005, and Hassan's manager Daivari in a match that night against The Undertaker. Daivari was squashed easily, after which Hassan began to pray on the ramp, summoning five masked men to the ring. The masked men beat up the Undertaker into submission, choking him with a piano wire. Afterwards, Hassan placed the helpless Undertaker in his Camel Clutch submission.
At The Great American Bash, The Undertaker defeated Muhammad Hassan following a chokeslam, despite further interference from the masked men. Following the match, The Undertaker fought off Daivari and the masked men and chokeslammed Hassan onto the stage before removing a floor panel and giving Hassan a Last Ride through the hole to the ground below. As a result of the win, The Undertaker became #1 contender to the World Heavyweight Championship, held by Batista. However as Batista lost his match against John "Bradshaw" Layfield via disqualification on that same night JBL felt he should remain #1 contender. On the following SmackDown!, Undertaker lost a #1 contender match against JBL (The first pinfall loss Undertaker suffered since Brock Lesnar at No Mercy 2003), due to interference from Randy Orton, who revealed he had been drafted to the SmackDown! roster. With this, Undertaker resumed his feud with Orton.
At SummerSlam 2005, Undertaker and Randy Orton had a WrestleMania rematch, which Randy Orton won when Bob Orton distracted the Undertaker. After weeks of buildup involving Undertaker and the Ortons taunting each other with caskets, Undertaker lost to Randy Orton and "Cowboy" Bob Orton in a Handicap Casket Match at No Mercy 2005. After the match the Ortons poured gasoline on the casket and set it on fire. WWE.com reported that after the charred casket was opened it was discovered that The Undertaker had vanished. The Undertaker made a dramatic return at the 2005 Survivor Series, emerging from a burning casket while Randy Orton was celebrating being the sole survivor of the main event match.
Despite an attack involving Eddie Guerrero's lowrider on the November 29, 2005 SmackDown! special, Undertaker returned on the Friday SmackDown! show to haunt Orton and to set up a Hell in the Cell match between Orton and the Undertaker at Armageddon 2005, which Undertaker won with a Tombstone Piledriver. Calaway then took a short hiatus after the pay-per-view.
2006
At the 2006 Royal Rumble on January 29, 2006, Undertaker returned during Kurt Angle's celebration of his title defense against Mark Henry. He entered on a white horse and made his intentions known by destroying the ring with lightning bolts. On the February 10 edition of SmackDown!, Undertaker returned to the ring and fought Mark Henry. After a chokeslam to the 400-pounder, the match ended with MNM attacking Undertaker and with Kurt Angle making the save.
Undertaker lost his match with Kurt Angle at No Way Out 2006 after a grueling thirty minute bout. It looked like Undertaker would take away the gold with a triangle choke (a move that he tried to put Angle away with three years prior in a match on Smackdown that ended in a draw) but Angle shifted his weight into a jackknife pin. Undertaker cornered Angle after the match, and after a staredown, told Angle that he had his number and that he wasn't finished with him yet.
The Undertaker had his No Way Out rematch for the World Heavyweight Championship against Angle on the March 3, 2006 edition of SmackDown!. Undertaker had the match won until Mark Henry, along with Daivari, attacked him from behind, costing him the title. Henry's attack concluded by splashing the Undertaker through the announce table. Undertaker challenged Mark Henry to a Casket Match at WrestleMania 22 on SmackDown! the following week. The two made a confrontation at Saturday Night's Main Event, leading to the Undertaker taking Henry out with a big boot and giving Daivari a chokeslam and then a Tombstone on the top of a casket.
At WrestleMania 22, Undertaker defeated Mark Henry to become 14-0 at WrestleMania. During a rematch against Mark Henry on the April 7, 2006 edition of SmackDown! which resulted in a no contest, The Great Khali made his SmackDown! debut, brought to the ring by Henry's manager Daivari and began an assault on the Undertaker that left him out cold. The Undertaker was not seen in person for several weeks after that. However, on the May 5, 2006 edition of SmackDown!, Teddy Long delivered a challenge from Undertaker to Khali for a match at Judgment Day, Khali accepted. Undertaker lost the match after receiving a series of blows that ended with a big boot to the head. The Undertaker has not been on TV since, even declining to appear on Piper's Pit. However, the Undertaker has faced Mark Henry and The Great Khali in 2-on-1 dark matches at house shows and after ECW/SmackDown! tapings. On the June 23rd edition of Smackdown, the Great Khali interfered in a match between Tatanka and Simon Dean. After decimating both competitors, Khali impersonated the Undertaker by doing his signature "darkness pin" and snake-like tongue protrusion. This action would send announcer, Michael Cole, into a state of fury as he went on and on about Khali having the audacity to mock the Undertaker.
WrestleMania winning streak
The Undertaker has won every match that he has wrestled at WWE's flagship pay-per-view WrestleMania, defeating:
- Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka (WrestleMania VII in 1991)
- Jake "The Snake" Roberts (WrestleMania VIII in 1992)
- Giant Gonzales (WrestleMania IX in 1993) (by disqualification)
- King Kong Bundy (WrestleMania XI in 1995)
- Diesel (WrestleMania XII in 1996)
- Sycho Sid (WrestleMania 13 in 1997 for the WWF Championship)
- Kane (WrestleMania XIV in 1998)
- Big Boss Man (WrestleMania XV in a Hell in a Cell Match in 1999)
- Triple H (WrestleMania X-Seven in 2001)
- Ric Flair (WrestleMania X8 in a No Disqualification match in 2002)
- A-Train and Big Show (WrestleMania XIX in a Handicap match in 2003)
- Kane (WrestleMania XX in 2004)
- Randy Orton (WrestleMania 21 in 2005)
- Mark Henry (WrestleMania 22 in a Casket match in 2006)
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Tombstone Piledriver (Kneeling belly to belly piledriver)
- Last Ride (Elevated powerbomb)
- Chokeslam
- Heart punch (WCW)
- Iron claw (pre-1995)
- Signature moves
- Old School (Arm twist ropewalk chop)
- T.C.B. (Takin' Care of Business) (Dragon sleeper)
- Choke (1990s)
- Flying clothesline
- Fujiwara armbar
- Guillotine leg drop
- Reverse STO
- Running big boot
- Running DDT
- Running leg drop
- Sidewalk slam
- Snake eyes
- Suicide dive
- Triangle choke
- Managers
- Nicknames
- The Advance Man for the Grim Reaper
- The American Bad Ass
- Big Evil
- The Deadman
- Deadman, Inc.
- Dead Man Walking
- The Emissary of Death
- The Lord of Darkness
- The Man From The Dark Side
- The Minister of Darkness
- The Pale Destroyer
- The Phenom
- The Prince of Darkness
- Red Devil
Championships and accomplishments
- 1991 Feud of the Year against the Ultimate Warrior
- 1998 Match of the Year against Mankind
- PWI ranked him # 2 in the PWI Top 500 in 2002 (his highest ever ranking).
- PWI ranked him # 21 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003.
-
- Defeated Jerry Lawler on April 1, 1989 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA
- Lost to Jerry Lawler on April 25, 1989 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA
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- Won title by forfeit on October 5, 1989 in Dallas, Texas, USA
- Lost to Kerry Von Erich on October 20, 1989 in Dallas, Texas, USA
-
- Defeated Chuck Palumbo & Sean O'Haire on August 7, 2001 in Los Angeles, California, USA
- Lost to Booker T & Test on September 25, 2001 in Dayton, Ohio, USA
-
- Defeated Hulk Hogan on November 27, 1991 in Detroit, Michigan, USA
- Lost to Hulk Hogan on December 3, 1991 in San Antonio, Texas, USA
- WWF Championship (2)
- Defeated Sycho Sid on March 23, 1997 in Rosemont, Illinois, USA
- Lost to Bret Hart on August 3, 1997 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
-
- Defeated Mankind & Kane on July 26, 1998 at Fresno, California, USA
- Lost to Mankind & Kane at August 10, 1998 at Omaha, Nebraska, USA
- WWF Championship (3)
- Defeated "Stone Cold" Steve Austin on May 23, 1999 in Kansas City, Missouri, USA
- Lost to "Stone Cold" Steve Austin on June 28, 1999 in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (2) (with The Big Show)
- Defeated Kane & X-Pac on August 22, 1999 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
- Lost to Rock 'n' Sock Connection on August 30, 1999 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (3) (with The Big Show)
- Defeated Rock 'n' Sock Connection on September 7, 1999 in Albany, New York, USA
- Lost to Rock 'n' Sock Connection on September 20, 1999 in Houston, Texas, USA
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (4) (with The Rock)
- Defeated Edge and Christian on December 18, 2000 in Greenville, South Carolina, USA
- Lost to Edge and Christian on December 19, 2000 in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (5) (with Kane)
- Defeated Edge and Christian on April 17, 2001 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA
- Lost to The Two-Man Power Trip on April 29, 2001 in Chicago, Illinois, USA
- WWF World Tag Team Championship (6) (with Kane)
- Defeated Diamond Dallas Page & Chris Kanyon on August 19, 2001 in San Jose, California, USA
- Lost to Dudley Boyz on September 17, 2001 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA
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- Defeated Rob Van Dam on December 9, 2001 in San Diego, California, USA
- Lost to Maven on February 5, 2002 in Los Angeles, California, USA
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- He is a member of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (inducted in 2004)
- 1991 Best Heel
- 2001 Most Overrated Wrestler
- 5-Star Match: vs. Shawn Michaels (WWF In Your House: Badd Blood, October 5, 1997: Hell in a Cell)
Personal life
Calaway is of Irish and Native American descent. One of the five sons of Frank and Catherine Calaway, his four brothers are David, Michael, Paul and Timothy. He graduated from Waltrip High School in 1983 in Houston, Texas, where he played for the school basketball team. He attended the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas and later graduated from Angelina College in Lufkin, Texas. He went on to study a degree in Sports Management at Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was also a member of the basketball team.
He married his first wife, Jodi Lynn, in 1989. The couple had a son in 1994, before divorcing in 1999. Calaway met his second and current wife, Sara, at a WWF autograph signing in San Diego, California, and eventually married her in a ceremony in St. Petersburg, Florida on July 21, 2000, in which his best man was friend and wrestler, Brian Lee, the same man that posed as the fake Undertaker in 1994. As a wedding gift to Sara, Calaway had his wife's name tattooed onto his throat and says this is the most painful tattoo he has ever had. In November 2002, the couple's first daughter, Chasey Chirie Calaway, was born. In May 2005, the couple had a second daughter, Gracie Naomi Calaway. Calaway has since had his two daughters' names also tattooed onto his neck. Calaway, Sara and their two daughters currently live on a ranch in Bastrop, Texas.
Aside from wrestling, Calaway has many hobbies and interests. He collects Harley-Davidson motorcycles, and purchased his first brand new motorcycle after defeating Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship at the 1991 Survivor Series. He enjoys listening to heavy metal bands such as AC/DC,Black Sabbath,Guns N' Roses,and Metallica. His "American Bad Ass" persona closely reflected these aspects of his personality, and was partially inspired by them. Calaway also enjoys country music and blues music. He is also a big fan of the Mixed Martial Arts, boxing and basketball.
See also
External links
