[81] During the match, Bearer inadvertently hit The Undertaker with the urn, allowing Mankind to incapacitate The Undertaker with his finisher, the Mandible Claw, and score the win. In this manner, he expressed his desires to take over the World Wrestling Federation, displacing its owner, Mr. McMahon. He made his return to action on December 14, teaming with Viscera in a losing effort against Kane and The Godfather at a house show in Coamo, Puerto Rico. The Brothers of Destruction overcame and dominated the six other wrestlers. [269] Madison Square Garden, regarded as the most famous venue in professional wrestling, also paid tribute to him. [39][43][40] Kane the Undertaker was characterized as a menacing derivative of the Wild West undertakers depicted in television westerns. On February 2, 1989, managed by Dutch Mantel, he was reintroduced as The Master of Pain, a former murderer. Among subtle details left over from his biker identity were his in-ring MMA style between his stances, strikes, and submissions; penchant to sporadically lower his tank top for a barechested appearance; celebrating victories with an arm-raised fist; etc. This Undertaker, however, played by Brian Lee (one of Calaway's real-life best friends)[68] was an impostor Undertaker (dubbed "The Underfaker" by fans)[69] rejuvenated by Dibiase's money rather than Bearer's urn. [360] The Undertaker himself called the match "a disaster" in 2020. "Wrestling's historical cards" (p.108109), 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. He graduated in 1983 and began studying on a basketball scholarship at Angelina College in Lufkin, Texas. He faced both Vader and Austin in a four-corners elimination match for the vacant WWF Championship at In Your House 13: Final Four, but Bret Hart won. Timothy was born in Houston, Texas to Frank and Betty Catherine on November 14, 1956. [124] This interference began a storyline with Flair, who declined a challenge to wrestle Undertaker at WrestleMania X8. PWI Staff. [76][74] While sporting the flashy bling around his neck, he repeatedly cost The Undertaker matches and attacked diehard Undertaker fans, dubbed "Creatures of the Night". [213] However, Bearer turned on him at Hell in a Cell to help Kane win once again in a Hell in a Cell match. "I was like oh wow, OK, erm what hospital did they send him to? In 1989, Calaway joined World Championship Wrestling (WCW) as a villain and adopted the ring name "Mean Mark" Callous, a name devised for him by Terry Funk. After losing to Kane in a No Holds Barred match at Night of Champions, Paul Bearer returned as Undertaker's manager on the September 24 edition of SmackDown. [109][110], To compensate for his lack of physical activity, Undertaker became increasingly overbearing and vocal, often mouthing off with a weirdness and making sinisterly smart-aleck remarks in promos and on commentary. [86] Following the event, Bearer bandaged up from fire burns, likened The Undertaker's assault to a past incident he described as The Undertaker's "deepest, darkest secret". [173] They battled again inside Hell in a Cell at Survivor Series, where Edge returned and interfered to help Batista retain the World Heavyweight Championship. [103] At Backlash: In Your House, Undertaker defeated Corporation member Ken Shamrock after interference from Ministry member Bradshaw. ", "WWE Chief Vince McMahon Is Still Making Gains", "Why the Undertaker is the world's greatest sportsman", "New Undertaker graphic novel set to dig deeper into career of one of WWE's biggest icons", "MAGIC, MEMORIES AND MANIA: Top 10 Undertaker Matches from Mankind to Punk to Michaels to Triple H, which finished first? He is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. [356] After his match at Crown Jewel in November 2018, Pro Wrestling Torch's Wade Keller wrote that Undertaker looked "brittle"[357] and Jason Powell of Pro Wrestling Dot Net said "they [Undertaker, Kane, Michaels and Triple H] need to accept their limitations, stop pretending they belong in main events, and stop acting like being in these main events isn't stealing the spotlight". At In Your House 12: It's Time, The Undertaker defeated The Executioner in an Armageddon Rules match even with Mankind heavily involved throughout the entire encounter. As for his siblings, he has four older brothers named David, Paul, Michael, and Timothy. Undertaker explained: "It was hard to go to the next day with the loss of my brother just as fresh as it could be, and then you know you're in a Boneyard match and everything is centred around buried and it's like man, it makes it tough. Hogan won the title back shortly thereafter, only to be stripped of the title due to the circumstances by which he won the match. This year, the shadow of death kept haunting him at key moments in his career . [30][31] PWInsider's Mike Johnson stated, "Undertaker using some of Jardine's style eventually morphed into this story that he was trained by Jardine. He lives outside of Austin. [185] Resulting from that, The Undertaker and Big Show faced each other in a match at No Mercy, where Big Show won by knockout. While maintaining his general character premise as death personified with accompanying alarmist tactics throughout all sagas of the Deadman,[296][297] each incarnation took on its own distinct appearance and characterization. The Undertaker attempted to marry Stephanie before sacrificing her in an eldritch ceremony conducted by Paul Bearer, but Austin was able to rescue her. The first, on the September 4 SmackDown!, against Kurt Angle, ended in a no contest, due to interference from Brock Lesnar. [314] The character's godlike powers were routinely put on display in these moments, triggering lights back to the arena either gradually or suddenly dependent on his either slowly or abruptly raised arms. After the match, The Undertaker chokeslammed Edge from the top of a ladder and through the ring canvas. [58] In storyline, however, WWF President Jack Tunney ordered a rematch between the two at This Tuesday in Texas six days later, where The Undertaker lost the title back to Hogan. Big Show (Casket Match)", "2009 WWE No Way Out: Voices and Chambers", "WrestleMania 25: The Most Disappointing WrestleMania of All Time", "WrestleMania Classics: What Made Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker so Great", "Shawn Michaels' 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania Entrance", "CM Punk def. ", "The Undertaker def. [146] Undertaker defeated Hassan at The Great American Bash to become the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship. However, accessing and securing an interview with McMahon was described by Calaway as a despairing task. However, fans may not know that The Phenom has siblings of his own. He married Mary Joan Flynn on 26 December 1941, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. He added that in his opinion, his fight against AJ Styles at WrestleMania 36 was "storytelling at its finest" and the "perfect ending" to his pro-wrestling career. According to a WWE spokesman, it "looked like a bad sunburn". [259], On April 8, 2019, edition of Raw, the night after WrestleMania 35the first WrestleMania in 19 years without his involvementThe Undertaker made his next appearance, interrupting and attacking Elias during one of his musical performances. The Undertaker recalled how heartbroken he was when he heard the news. The Phenom is quite popular within the WWE Universe for both his incredible gimmick and his in-ring skills. [281] Later that same weekend, Calaway made appearances on the entrance stage on both nights of WrestleMania. [208], The Undertaker then accepted Michaels's rematch offer, after initially declining, at WrestleMania XXVI in a Streak vs. Career match, where Undertaker was victorious and Shawn Michaels was forced to retire. [209] During the Rey Mysterio match, The Undertaker suffered a concussion, broken orbital bone and broken nose; he was visibly bleeding profusely on camera by the end of this match. [159][160], The Undertaker's next match was with then United States Champion Mr. Kennedy at No Mercy, but was disqualified in the match after he hit Kennedy with the championship belt. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. [190] Michaels also made the buildup to their WrestleMania encounter personal, repeatedly demonstrating his Christian objections to the demonic dark side nature of The Undertaker's Deadman gimmick, even creating his own heaven-esque bright side spin-off of what he felt The Undertaker's gimmick should be (Michaels having become a real-life born again Christian by this point in his career). [36] The new team gained some notoriety at Clash of the Champions X when they beat down The Road Warriors after their match. Though Ware also shared that he always admired Mark Calaway and perceived him as a great performer). [80] At that month's In Your House: Rage in the Cage, while Diesel was facing Hart in a steel cage match for the WWF Championship, The Undertaker delivered a surprise attack, emerging from a hole he had ripped through the ring canvas and dragging Diesel with him down under amid a cloud of smoke, allowing Hart the victory. [212], At SummerSlam, The Undertaker returned to confront Kane and Rey Mysterio, only to be attacked with a Tombstone Piledriver by Kane. [73] Throughout most of 1995, Undertaker feuded with members of Ted DiBiase's Million Dollar Corporation. He also featured on the final episode of Undertaker: The Last Ridewhere Mark Calaway can be seen reminiscing about his late brother. The storyline intensified as the two tried to get into the head of one another with dark mind game tactics and use of caskets, leading to a handicap casket match at No Mercy, in which The Undertaker lost to Randy and his father "Cowboy" Bob Orton. The Undertaker has four elder brothers, named David, Michael, Paul and Timothy. On February 18, 2022, it was announced that The Undertaker would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2022. Developing a comedy horror smart mouth during this time, elements of The Undertaker's trash-talking biker identity (that he would eventually introduce in 2000) began peeping out during this phase of his career. Among the many ways this was showcased was The Undertaker's maneuver of raising up from a taken down supine position into a high Fowler's position, dubbed "the sit-up" (often accompanied by his sharp hissing sound). [380] A special Undertaker-themed version of WWE 2K14 was released in 2013. Angle pinned The Undertaker due to interference by Austin. Professional wrestler The Undertaker Family With Father, Mother, Brother, Wife, Son & Daughter Photos 2017 HD.Mark William Calaway, better known by the ring. "It was in the middle of all this stuff going on, WrestleMania you know, when everything is perfect it's hectic and stressful but now I have to call all my brothers and let them know and then call my mother.". [119], The Undertaker then challenged Kurt Angle for the WWF Championship at Survivor Series. The Undertaker returned at Unforgiven on September 16, defeating Henry. He revealed that he was preparing for one of his matches when his niece called and told him that her father, Timothy, had a heart attack. Ever since the fire, Kane had been awaiting to exact vengeance on his older half-brother. In this appearance, The Undertaker signaled for a title shot by using his supernatural powers to collapse the wrestling ring that Angle stood in as a means to spook him. These ambitions culminated into a rivalry between The Ministry and The Corporation, ultimately resulting in a match between Undertaker and Corporation enforcer, Big Boss Man. This edition of WrestleMania is noteworthy in that it produced the first mention of The Undertaker's historic WrestleMania-winning Streak, acknowledged on commentary by Vince McMahon as Undertaker made his entrance: "The Undertaker, on his way to the ringa man who's never lost at WrestleMania. [83], Following his WWF Championship win at WrestleMania 13, Paul Bearer attempted to rejoin The Undertaker as his manager. At first, he was a heel, but later turned face, around WrestleMania VIII (1992). [49] He was a participant in the 1991 Royal Rumble match which was won by Hulk Hogan. (While the novel nature of this match was heavily influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic at its most acute during this time period, even standard matches of this wrestling era were narrative-heavy in order to counter awkward silence of audience absence, which was enforced by then pandemic laws.) Undertaker defeated Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle in a triple threat match to become the number-one contender for the renamed WWE Championship and challenged Brock Lesnar for the title at Unforgiven that ended in a double disqualification. Apart from that, in the final episode, Mark Calaway announced his retirement. The Street Profits, Bobby Lashley vs. Sami Zayn in champion vs. champion matches, Team Raw vs. His actions led to the return of the real Undertaker at SummerSlam, defeating the impostor and appearing as a reincarnation of his Deadman gimmick, one of a more shadowy, mysterious and secret presence. On January 23, 2023, The Undertaker made an appearance at the Monday Night Raw 30th Anniversary special, Raw is XXX. The confusion allowed Undertaker to surprise Lesnar with a low blow and apply Hell's Gate, in which Lesnar passed out. [19] He attended Waltrip High School, where he was a member of the football and basketball teams. [256] Three weeks later, The Undertaker defeated Rusev at WWE's Greatest Royal Rumble event in a casket match. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. "Wrestling's historical cards", p. 8889. 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. The Undertaker then went on to defeat Big Show in a casket match at Survivor Series and again in a steel cage match by submission on the December 5 edition of SmackDown to end their feud. [39], Among routes Calaway took to land a meeting with McMahon was trying to convince individuals acquainted with McMahon or already existing WWF talent to recommend him into the WWF, such as Hulk Hogan, Paul Heyman, and Bruce Prichard, crediting the latter two for arranging the meeting at McMahon's mansion. [41] After leaving WCW, he briefly returned to the USWA to participate in a tournament to determine the new USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion; Calaway defeated Bill Dundee in the first round, but lost to Jerry Lawler in the quarterfinals. "[317], After a hiatus, Calaway made a return in 2000 in which he expanded on The Undertaker gimmick with a human form of the character. In 2012, their child was born. [215] Following WrestleMania XXVII in 2011, The Undertaker would take on a more part-time role within the company; he would not have another match on Raw or SmackDown until 2013. We found 9 entries for Timothy Calaway in the United States. This followed with Bearer allowing Mankind to take hold of the urn, thus winning this match. Under the character's alter ego, he is a semifictional smack-talking, redneck biker, thoroughly absent of his fully fictional Deadman zombie-like traits and wizardry. The angle elicited national attention in the New York Post, TV Guide, Variety and other major media outlets. 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. [199] The Undertaker successfully defended the title against CM Punk on the October 23 edition of SmackDown, in a fatal four-way match at Bragging Rights against Punk, Batista and Rey Mysterio and in a triple threat match against Chris Jericho and Big Show at Survivor Series. It was reported that Hassan sustained serious injuries and had to be rushed to a nearby medical facility, writing Hassan off television. [283][284] Often, these alarmist tactics were morbid and applied the use of props that reflected demise as the consequence of a wrestling match against him: caskets (sometimes personalizing casket designs to represent his opponents),[285][65] body bags,[286] corpse-like effigies,[284] cemeteries,[286] hearses. He received the Wrestling Observer Newsletter's Best Gimmick award from 1990 to 1994. That's the key element of it: the end is at hand for whoever's going to be standing in that ring waiting for me to come down. Born on March 24, 1965. ", "What's at Stake When John Cena Wrestles Brock Lesnar at 'SummerSlam', "Paul Bearer on managing Undertaker vs Hogan, Giant Gonzales, Jake Roberts & more", "Undertaker: 25 Defining Moments for 25 Years in WWE (section 15 of 25)", "Best moments and memories of SummerSlam", "Undertaker: 25 Defining Moments for 25 Years in WWE", "WWE's Looking Back At Legends: Best Feuds Of the Biggest Stars in PPV Era, Ep. Notable Alumni: University Of St. Thomas (Texas) The Undertaker, however, lost the title at Vengeance to The Rock in a triple threat match that also involved Kurt Angle. [81] As a result, the first ever Boiler Room Brawl (Mankind's specialty match) was booked between the two at SummerSlam. [112] The Undertaker was advertised on the Armageddon promotional poster to return, but meanwhile also tore his pectoral muscle, taking him out of action for almost eight months. [282], Under his undead, funereal, and macabre horror-themed gimmick, in which The Undertaker is subtitled "The Deadman", he routinely took to alarmist tactics to disrupt the focus and confidence of his rivals. Bearer later verified this with DNA test results). One final ride together, old-timer!!![279]. Tim attended school in Houston. The Undertaker demanded and was awarded a spot in the six-man Hell in a Cell match for the WWF Championship at Armageddon. [233], In February 2015, Bray Wyatt began a series of cryptic promos which led to Fastlane, where Wyatt challenged Undertaker to a match at WrestleMania 31, which Undertaker accepted. His older siblings are David Calaway, Michael Calaway, Paul Calaway, and Timothy Calaway. 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. Tim was very. [342][343], Wrestler Big Show named The Undertaker as the greatest professional wrestler of all time,[344] while Mark Henry and WWE chairman Vince McMahon have called him their favorite. [28][29] While never trained by Jardine, Calaway was an admirer of his work and would emulate Jardine's top rope walk. Taker said: "It was probably the last ring before it was going to send it to voicemail and I hit it and I said, 'Hey, What's going on?' The music fit the character. [133] The Undertaker disappeared for some time following this match, with Kane claiming that he was "dead and buried forever". Calaway's acceptance speech, hailed by media outlets as matchless and beyond compare, was motivational and shared his collection of self-reflections and life philosophies for success. [358] His subsequent match with Goldberg at Super ShowDown in June 2019 was also widely pilloried, with Bryan Rose of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter calling it "sad more than anything". [374] In February 2021, Calaway shared that he would endorse Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson if he were to ever run for president, expressing that he felt Johnson could be the great "uniter" and ease the United States political divide.[375]. [95] At Fully Loaded: In Your House, The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Kane and Mankind to win the WWF Tag Team Championship. [239], While the crowd gave Undertaker an ovation after his loss to Lesnar, he was attacked and captured by The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan and Braun Strowman), who carried him away from the ring. Mark William was born in the city of Houston, Texas. The Undertaker went for the pin, but Austin refused to count the fall, attacked The Undertaker and counted out both of them. "Undertaker admits to setting Kane on fire". Other than his music being played, The Undertaker was not reported to have any association with the affair.[377][378]. [85] The accidental chair shot led to Michaels feeling betrayed by the now booing WWF fans, and quickly becoming heel. Mark Calaway brother: For years on end, WWE fans believed that Undertaker (Mark Calaway) and Kane (Glenn Jacobs) were actual half-brothers. In the process of being assaulted, Bearer was deprived of his urn by the Corporation. 21 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003, This page was last edited on 26 February 2023, at 23:47. siblings: David Calaway, Michael Calaway, Paul Calaway, Timothy Calaway. [67], Following the death angle at the Royal Rumble during The Undertaker's absence, the WWF promoted reported sightings of him through video clips of random people claiming to have seen him. The Undertaker initially denied his then ex-manager Paul Bearer's charges of him committing the arson murder of his family (The Undertaker would not confess to these intentional acts of arson until a year and a half later from his initial denials, in latter 1998). This was a, Calaway announced his retirement on June 21, 2020, during the final episode of. [245] After weeks of random physical confrontations and mind games exchanged between the pair, Undertaker defeated Shane McMahon at WrestleMania 32. Through giving The Undertaker the ultimatum of revealing his deepest, darkest secret to the world, Bearer was able to reunite with him as manager and protg. At WrestleMania, after Elias confronted Cena and was beaten down, The Undertaker's hat and coat appeared in the center of the ringwhere he had left them the previous yearand was struck by lightning. Triple H and Shawn Michaels at, This was a Hell in a Cell match with Shawn Michaels serving as the, The match was taped between March 25 and 26, aired on April 4. [76][66] In August, Undertaker settled the score with Kama, defeating him in a casket match at SummerSlam. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time,[11] Calaway spent the vast majority of his career wrestling for WWF/E, and is best known for his critically acclaimed "Deadman" Undertaker gimmick, for which he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2022.[12]. The coffin was struck and dismantled by a lightning bolt, revealing a lied out Undertaker who sat up in a fury state and challenged Kane to do battle with him. Later that night, after Undertaker and Lesnar brawled throughout the arena and had to be separated, a rematch was scheduled for SummerSlam in August, where Undertaker controversially defeated Lesnar. With this twist in the storyline, Mr. McMahon scheduled a Buried Alive match between The Undertaker and Austin at Rock Bottom: In Your House. ", "Pruett's Blog Flashback: The Undertaker's Streak Series Part Three - The American Bad Ass Years & The Deadman's Return - WrestleMania XVII - WrestleMania XX", "The Undertaker vs. Bray Wyatt: Keeping Deadman off TV Makes Match More Effective", "Historical Dictionary of Wrestling - Page 306", "The Undertaker vs. British Bulldog WWE Championship Match: Nov. 30, 1991", "William Moody, 58, Pro Wrestling's Paul Bearer, Dies", "America Under Construction: Boundaries and Identities in Popculture", "WWE WrestleMania 34: The Undertaker Vs. [65] The feud culminated in a WWF Championship casket match at the Royal Rumble in January 1994. He feels he was saved from severe injury by applying water to his hair, and altering his attire from a sleeveless to a sleeved jacket, just minutes before the accident. Siblings: Timothy Calaway, David Calaway, Michael Calaway. The Undertaker promised to make someone famous and did so when he performed a chokeslam on Rikishi from the roof of the cell into hay-filled cargo bed of a truck. [134], In the storyline leading up to WrestleMania XX, Kane was tormented by horror-themed mind games, paranormal activities, and spooking vignettes proclaiming The Undertaker's Deadman return. [140] After a two-month hiatus, Undertaker returned on the June 16 edition of SmackDown!, but lost to JBL due to interference from Randy Orton, revealed as a new draft switch to SmackDown!. [87] In the duo's final feud in late 2009 through 2010, Kane emerged victorious in all of their matches. [244] Vince later decided that should The Undertaker lose the match against Shane, it would be his final match at WrestleMania. In this then new form, he took on a Goth appearance and persona, with a brash, rebelling, Championship-driven mean streak (perhaps to better fit in with the then-budding, more adult-oriented Attitude Era). Resulting from that, this very first edition of The Undertaker's series of Deadman incarnations[39][43] has been distinguished in external media as "The Old West Mortician". [315] WWF Composer Jim Johnston embellished on the Chopin march, using the historic melody as a pre- and post-chorus to a main chorus of bell tolls, along with an original transition section to the song of a slow, lugubrious instrumental feel. [327] Some of his nicknames were not identity specific but used for The Undertaker gimmick in general, such as "The Phenom".[325][328]. [57] However, due to the controversial endings of the two title matches between The Undertaker and Hogan, the title was vacated from Hogan the next night by Tunney. Bearer raised Kane after the fire, having him institutionalized from the date of the fire into adulthood. [145] Hassan later delivered a promo to the live crowd for the July 14, 2005, edition of SmackDown!, but when UPN announced that the segment would be edited, WWE decided to host the video of the segment on its official website. On the September 23, 1999, edition of SmackDown!, Mr. McMahon threatened that he would remove Undertaker from the Unforgiven main event if he refused to participate in a casket match against Triple H. Undertaker retorted that he did not care and maybe he would not be participating in anything WWF any longer, from there walking out on the WWF. As part of the angle, Undertaker had his Ministry members fight his battles, carry out his evil wishes and do all his dirty deeds. PWI Staff. After WrestleMania X, Ted DiBiase introduced an Undertaker back to the WWF. 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. [84] However, the following month, The Undertaker managed to win the WWF Championship for the second time by defeating Sycho Sid at WrestleMania 13. In the episode, Undertaker revealed that while he was preparing for his last bout at WrestleMania 36, he received a phone call from his niece, who informed him that her dad Timothy Calaway had suffered a heart attack. Catherine Calaway. [255] In the months prior to WrestleMania 34, John Cena challenged The Undertaker to a singles match. The Boneyard match would also win WWE's Half-Year Award for best Cinematic Match, as well as winning the Slammy Award for 2020's Match of the Year. Did a WWE legend just take a shot at Sami Zayn's physique right here? "Wrestling's historical cards" (p. 100101). 2007 Wrestling almanac & book of facts. [9] Many wrestlers and other public figures paid tribute to him on their social media pages. [141] Even with help from his father, Orton lost as The Undertaker improved his WrestleMania record to 130. Returning assistant-General Manager Theodore Long declared a triple threat match for the title between the three men at Armageddon, which Edge won after interference from The Major Brothers. He has three siblings. [298], The earliest of The Undertaker's Deadman incarnations (nicknamed in external media as "The Old West Mortician" to distinguish from his other Deadman incarnations[44]) depicted him as a menacing derivative of the Wild West undertakers in television westerns.