Two decades of destruction – Glenn Jacobs

It is very rare for a character to get immortalised in the world of professional wrestling, instead of the man that portrays the character. The Hulk Hogans and the Undertakers are known because of their characters, and also as individuals. Every wrestling fan knows about the man behind the Undertaker persona, similar to Hulk Hogan. And when the character reaches the crescendo, and becomes one of the greatest characters in the history of the industry, due credit is given to the man who pulls the strings, but very rarely, the character surpasses the individual, and that is only due to the brilliance of the puppet master. Such a man exists in the WWE, and is very popular among the fans. Most of the WWE Universe and the fans don’t know who Glenn Jacobs is, but when you mention the ‘Big Red Monster’ Kane, everyone knows who he is.

Glenn Jacobs has been in the industry for over 2 decades, and is considered to be one of the best big men in the business. They say it takes the brilliance of an individual to captivate people in an otherwise unrealistic world. Although people don’t buy a Terminator-esque character in the real world, Kane managed to intimidate as well as intrigue the fans with his character. Not only that, but Glenn Jacobs performed under various monikers in the WWE. A lot of people would be surprised to know that Jacobs has a degree in English literature! Glenn also has the distinction of being one of only three people to have held the WWE, World and ECW titles, with the other two being The Big Show and the ‘Straight Edge Massiah’ CM Punk.

Glenn started out in the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) under the name of Isaac Yankem, a deranged dentist who wanted to hurt people. Although his initial feud was against the main star of the company, Bret Hart, Yankem’s push came to a halt soon, and he later portrayed the character of ‘Fake Diesel’, a stooge of a heel Jim Ross, which also didn’t go well in the company. Glenn was noticed by Jim Ross and Jim Cornette during his early days, impressing them with his big physique and his quick movement, which was unheard of back in the day. This brought Glenn into the WWF, and later, he was repackaged as The Undertaker’s half – brother, Kane.

Kane’s debut has arguably had the most impact in the history of professional wrestling! And his storyline with the Undertaker and Paul Bearer is one of the greatest storylines in the history of the business, something which no one else can boast about. His initial feud with The Undertaker received rave reviews, and the character of Kane was received tremendously by the WWF/E fans. Very soon, he became the top heel in the company, and went on to win the WWF Championship, albeit it was only for a day. But Kane became an indestructible monster that was feared by everyone in the company, and he showed his skills by playing his character to perfection. It has often been said by many that only Glenn could do justice to the character of Kane, and no one else could have played the character so well. This, along with Glenn’s impressive athleticism made him a main-eventer in the WWF in a relatively short time.

Glenn was involved in some of the best feuds in the WWF history, starting with the one against The Undertaker, and then against the likes of D Generation X, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock. But perhaps, the most notable part of the early 2000s was Kane forming a tag team with his half-brother, The Undertaker, to form the most dominant team in the history of professional wrestling, known as ‘The Brothers of Destruction’. True to their name, they took on numerous tag teams and defeated them, but they disbanded soon only to pair up a few times later. By this time, Kane became an invaluable asset to the WWF/E and Vince McMahon. There was a rumour that Kane was chosen to be the first person to break the Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania, but Glenn turned it down, saying the streak wasn’t meant to be broken!

Kane also held the WWE Intercontinental title, WWE Tag team titles and the World Heavyweight championship, making him the only the 3rd Grand Slam champion, and the 8th Triple Crown Champion in the company. Apart from that, Kane also holds the record for the most number of eliminations in the Royal Rumble! Glenn Jacobs is also arguably one of the most underrated talents in the history of the company. In spite of having a great character, and being one of the best big men in the history of the industry, Kane only held the WWF/E title once, and the World title on one occasion. When we write down the names of all the great legends, Kane’s name will be in the top 10. Not only did he sacrifice a better part of his life for the wrestling industry, but he has also given his everything for the wrestling fans. It’s hard to imagine an intelligent, caring man behind the mask of one of the most violent individuals in the history of professional wrestling!

Kane’s persona of being a demented, sick individual led to some of the most shocking moments in the history of the industry. Everyone who witnessed the path of destruction of the Big Red Monster will not forget what he had done, and why he is feared. Starting from electrocuting a person’s private parts to setting people on fire, Kane has done all the unthinkable things, which led to him being known as ‘The Devil’s favourite demon’. Although Kane has since become ‘family friendly’, the true essence of the Attitude Era was personified by Kane. Since then, he has become one of the most famous professional wrestlers of all time, and is currently one half of the Unified tag team champions in the WWE. Growing up, Kane was the person I feared the most, but since then, he has become one of my favourites. It’s safe to say that Kane and The Undertaker are the two most respected individuals in the wrestling industry. Kane is still in the best shape of his life, which is nothing short of impressive, and if all the stars align, we might get to see one last championship run for Kane, which will please all of his ‘Kanenics’.

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