Kane (wrestler)

Early life

Jacobs was born in the Spanish town of Torrejón de Ardoz to a United States Air Force family that was stationed in Spain at the time of his birth. He grew up near St. Louis, Missouri. Jacobs earned a degree in English literature at Northeast Missouri State University, where he played both basketball and football.

Early career (1992–1995)

In the ring, Jacobs was first known as Angus King when he debuted in the St. Louis, Missouri area with the CSWA which was owned and run by Jacobs's childhood friend Mark Morton. Jacobs later moved south and began wrestling as Doomsday, appearing as the Christmas Creature in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA) and as Unabomb in Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW), where he held the SMW Tag Team Championship with Al Snow in a team called The Dynamic Duo. During his time in the USWA, Jacobs (as Doomsday) held the USWA Heavyweight Championship. Jacobs also worked for Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi under his real name. In 1993, Jacobs (as Bruiser Mastino) lost his only match for World Championship Wrestling (WCW) to Sting.

Early years (1995–1997)

Jacobs competed in his first World Wrestling Federation (WWF) bout as Mike Unabomb at the February 20, 1995 Raw taping, defeating Reno Riggins in a dark match. He wrestled intermittently as Unabomb through August.

Jacobs made his first television appearance with the company as Isaac Yankem, DDS, Jerry Lawler's private dentist, in a vignette on the June 26, 1995 episode of Raw. Placing emphasis on Jacobs's imposing height and weight, Yankem was portrayed as a monstrous figure whom Lawler had hired for the purpose of ridding the WWF of his longtime nemesis, Bret Hart. The character's in-ring debut occurred at a Superstars taping on August 15, where Jacobs lost to Hart by countout. At that month's SummerSlam event, Yankem was disqualified when he hung Hart by twisting him in the top and middle ropes by his neck. He lost to Hart in a steel cage match in the main event of the October 16 episode of Raw, and finally in a tag team match against Hart and Hakushi, in which he was partnered with Lawler, on the November 6 episode of the show. After his initial run with Hart, Jacobs's push dwindled and he was part of an unsuccessful team in an elimination match at November's Survivor Series. He participated in the 1996 Royal Rumble match in January and continued to headline occasional Raw tapings, albeit as a jobber to the stars. The remainder of Yankem's televised run through April included losses to The Undertaker, Jake Roberts, Marc Mero and The Ultimate Warrior. Jacobs was used on a series of live events in Kuwait in May, as well as a September tour of South Africa, after which the Yankem gimmick was retired.

In September 1996, play-by-play announcer Jim Ross introduced Jacobs as Diesel, and Rick Bognar as Razor Ramon, as part of a heavily criticized storyline mocking the departure of former employees Kevin Nash and Scott Hall respectively, while attempting to portray Ross as a disgruntled employee. The pair competed primarily as a tag team, losing a WWF Tag Team Championship match to titleholders Owen Hart and The British Bulldog at December's In Your House 12: It's Time. As Diesel, he lost to The Undertaker via disqualification in the main event of the December 22 edition of Superstars and scored a Shotgun Saturday Night victory over Marc Mero on January 11, 1997. Diesel and Ramon last appeared on television at the 1997 Royal Rumble, where he was the third-to-last participant. Jacobs continued to work sporadic live events as Diesel through April.

Storyline with The Undertaker (1997–2000)

From April 1997, the WWF "slowly and meticulously" built to the debut of Jacobs's new character. At In Your House 14: Revenge of the 'Taker, The Undertaker launched a fireball into the face of former manager, Paul Bearer, who had unsuccessfully attempted to assist his protege, Mankind to victory in their WWF Championship match. On the May 12 episode of Raw, Mankind reintroduced Bearer, whose face was heavily bandaged due to the burns The Undertaker had inflicted. The injury prompted Bearer to attempt to reunite with Undertaker after a long period of mutual hostility, using the ultimatum of revealing The Undertaker's "biggest secret". During the cryptic interview, Bearer likened the fire that had burned his face to a fire that had occurred during The Undertaker's childhood. When Undertaker continually refused to once again align with Bearer, Bearer began tormenting him by telling him that his long-lost brother, Kane (later revealed as Bearer's son and the Undertaker's half-brother), was coming to the WWF to challenge him. In the ensuing months, Bearer implied that The Undertaker had accidentally killed his family by starting a fire at their funeral home, with the exception of Kane, who was left physically and mentally scarred by the event. Undertaker claimed that Kane, a pyromaniac, was the one who started the fire and could not possibly have survived (however, this was exposed as a falsehood in October 1998 when Undertaker confessed to burning down the home, shortly prior to his 1999 gimmick as the "dark priest" of The Ministry of Darkness).

Jacobs made his re-debut as Kane at Badd Blood: In Your House on October 5, 1997, by using The Undertaker's signature Tombstone Piledriver to cost him the victory in the first Hell in a Cell match against Shawn Michaels. In keeping with the notion that Kane had been scarred by the fire – and to conceal Jacobs's identity – the character wore a mask, sported long hair, and wore red and black ring attire that almost covered his entire body. Kane and The Undertaker feuded with one another over the following year, during which time their history vis-à-vis one another was expounded. Jacobs won his first match as Kane against Mankind at Survivor Series. In weeks prior on Raw, Kane had randomly attacked other wrestlers including Ahmed Johnson, Road Warrior Hawk, The Hardy Boyz, Flash Funk, Crush and Cactus Jack/Mankind's alter ego, Dude Love. The Undertaker initially refused to face him, saying he would not fight his own "flesh and blood". After a brief partnership, Kane betrayed The Undertaker when he cost him the WWF Championship, as Kane interfered in his title match against Shawn Michaels at the Royal Rumble. After the match, Kane locked Undertaker in a casket and set it on fire, though it was later revealed that Undertaker managed to escape the casket without being seen before Kane set it on fire. This provoked The Undertaker into returning to face Kane at WrestleMania XIV on March 29, where Kane was defeated by Undertaker after three Tombstone Piledrivers. After the match Kane and Paul Bearer attacked The Undertaker. They continued to feud until Unforgiven: In Your House on April 26, when The Undertaker defeated Kane in an Inferno match. In this match, Bearer tried to help Kane by attacking Undertaker, but as Kane was retreating backstage Vader forced Kane back towards the ring and The Undertaker attacked them both by jumping over the ring ropes surrounded by fire before setting Kane's right arm on fire. Over the next few months, Kane and The Undertaker continued to feud, with more details of their history being revealed in the process.

After defeating The Undertaker to win a shot at the WWF Championship, Kane won the title at the King of the Ring pay-per-view, defeating Stone Cold Steve Austin in a First Blood match after being helped by his "brother". Kane re-lost the title to Austin the next night on Raw. He formed a tag team with Mankind, with whom he won the WWF Tag Team Championship twice. After losing the titles and turning on Mankind, Kane formed a short-lived tag team with his "brother". The half-brothers fought one another for the vacant WWF Championship at Judgment Day: In Your House, with the match ending in a no contest; during the match, The Undertaker betrayed Kane for Paul Bearer, resulting in a double turn taking place, with Kane turning face and The Undertaker turning heel. Kane took part in the "Deadly Games" tournament for the WWF Championship at Survivor Series, but was eliminated by Undertaker in the quarter-finals. At Rock Bottom: In Your House, Kane interfered in the Buried Alive match between Austin and The Undertaker, by attacking Undertaker and cost him the match. As a result, The Corporation had Kane committed to an insane asylum.

In December 1998, however, Kane joined The Corporation in order to stay out of the insane asylum. He was later betrayed by The Corporation and thrown out of the alliance. Shortly afterward, Kane formed a tag team with X-Pac and acquired a girlfriend, Tori. While teaming with X-Pac, Kane evolved from being mute to aided speech through an electrolarynx to speaking unaided. He also became associated with D-Generation X (DX), the faction of which X-Pac was a member. His first unaided words were the DX slogan "suck it". The duo won the WWF Tag Team Championship twice. The tag team broke apart when X-Pac turned on Kane and rejoined DX. Kane and X-Pac then engaged in a lengthy feud against each other, which was exacerbated in early 2000, when Tori betrayed Kane and joined X-Pac and DX. The former partners' feud eventually ended at WrestleMania 2000, where Kane teamed with Rikishi to defeat X-Pac and Road Dogg. Shortly after WrestleMania, Kane suffered a hand injury that kept him out of action for a month.

Kane returned on the May 29 episode of Raw, when he helped The Undertaker and The Rock fight off the McMahon-Helmsley Faction. His involvement in this feud culminated in a main event match at King of the Ring against Vince and Shane McMahon, and then-champion Triple H. The Undertaker and Kane's rivalry resurfaced during the match, but they patched their relationship up soon after. Kane later turned heel by assaulting The Undertaker, leading to a match between the two at SummerSlam. The match ended when The Undertaker removed Kane's mask, causing him to flee the ring, covering his exposed face. Kane stayed in contention for the WWF Championship for the remainder of the year and ended 2000 in a feud with Chris Jericho; Kane defeated him at Survivor Series and again at Rebellion, but he ultimately lost to Jericho in a Last Man Standing match at Armageddon.

The Brothers of Destruction (2001–2002)

Kane turned face when he reformed his alliance with The Undertaker immediately before the Royal Rumble, in which he eliminated a then-record number of 11 wrestlers and was the runner-up, after being eliminated by Steve Austin. In early 2001, Kane competed for the Hardcore Championship, defeating Raven for the title at WrestleMania X-Seven in a match that also featured Big Show. Kane and The Undertaker began teaming as the "Brothers of Destruction" and in the course of the year, they feuded with Edge and Christian, Rikishi and Haku, and The Two-Man Power Trip. While feuding with The Two-Man Power Trip, Austin and Triple H broke Kane's left arm. At Judgment Day, Kane defeated Triple H to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship. He became the third Grand Slam Champion, and the first person to win the Grand Slam championship by winning the WWF, Intercontinental, Tag Team and Hardcore Championships. He lost the title to Albert on an episode of SmackDown!, following interference from Diamond Dallas Page.

During The Invasion, Kane and The Undertaker feuded with DDP and Chris Kanyon after Page began stalking The Undertaker's wife Sara. The feud culminated at SummerSlam, when Kane and The Undertaker defeated Page and Kanyon in a steel cage match, resulting in them holding both the WWF Tag Team and the WCW Tag Team Championships. Kane and The Undertaker defeated KroniK at Unforgiven, and both participated in the ten-man Winner-Takes-All match at Survivor Series as members of the victorious Team WWF. In 2002, Kane began a small feud with Big Show, after Kane single-handedly eliminated him at the Royal Rumble. Kane then began feuding with Kurt Angle, to whom he lost at WrestleMania X8. On March 25, the WWF was divided into two brands, Raw and SmackDown!, with Kane being drafted to Raw. Kane shortly feuded with the New World Order and began acting human by talking through his mask and referring to his fans as "Kanenites". In April, X-Pac crushed Kane's face with a chair and unmasked him, thus writing Kane off-screen. In actuality, he tore his biceps.

Unmasking (2002–2003)

Kane returned to the renamed WWE as part of the Raw roster in August 2002, with a new half-mask. On the September 23 episode of Raw, Kane won the World Tag Team Championship with The Hurricane after defeating Lance Storm and Christian. One week later, Kane won the Intercontinental Championship from Chris Jericho, despite interference from Triple H and Ric Flair. On October 7, Kane successfully single-handedly defended the World Tag Team Championship in a four-team Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, as The Hurricane had been attacked earlier that evening by Triple H and Ric Flair and was unable to compete. That match was later nominated as WWE's 2002 "Match of the Year". They held the title until the October 14 episode of Raw, where they lost to Christian and Chris Jericho.

In October, Kane began feuding with Triple H, leading to a match at No Mercy on October 20 in which both Kane's Intercontinental Championship and Triple H's World Heavyweight Championship were at stake. In the weeks preceding the match, Triple H claimed that, several years earlier, Kane had an unrequited relationship with a woman named Katie Vick. He claimed that after Vick was killed in a car crash, Kane had sex with her. Triple H later threatened to show video footage of Kane committing the act in question; however, the footage that finally aired showed Triple H (dressed as Kane) simulating mock sex with a mannequin in a casket; Kane's tag team partner The Hurricane responded the following week by showing a video of Triple H (rather, someone wearing a Triple H series of masks) getting an enema. The angle was very unpopular with fans, and was de-emphasised before the title match. Triple H defeated Kane at No Mercy, due to Triple H and Flair cheating, unifying the two titles. Two weeks after No Mercy Kane beat Triple H in a casket match, the title wasn't on the line.

Kane then formed a tag team with Rob Van Dam, with the duo eventually winning the World Tag Team Championship. After they lost their World Tag Team Championship to La Résistance at Bad Blood, Triple H offered Kane a spot in his stable Evolution. Raw co-general manager Stone Cold Steve Austin offered Kane the opportunity to face Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship if he rejected Triple H's offer; however, co-general manager Eric Bischoff insisted that if Kane lost the match, he would unmask. Kane accepted Austin's offer and went to challenge Triple H the following week in Madison Square Garden. Triple H won the match following interference from his stablemates, and on the June 23, 2003 episode of Raw, Kane removed his mask. He then turned heel and chokeslamed partner Van Dam, and defeated him at SummerSlam. The unmasking rendered Kane emotionally unstable, and in an interview with Jim Ross, Kane attacked Ross and set him on fire. He later attacked Linda McMahon on the Raw stage. This action sparked a feud between Kane and Shane McMahon, Linda's son, with Kane defeating Shane in a Last Man Standing match at Unforgiven and an ambulance match at Survivor Series. During the latter event, Kane also interfered in a Buried Alive match between Vince McMahon and The Undertaker, helping McMahon bury The Undertaker and win the match. The following month at Armageddon, Kane competed in a triple threat match for the World Heavyweight Championship against Triple H and defending champion Bill Goldberg, a match which Triple H won.

Storyline with Lita (2004–2005)

In January 2004, Kane took part in the Royal Rumble match. He was eliminated when he heard the bell toll from The Undertaker's entrance music, distracting and distressing Kane and enabling Booker T to eliminate him. Over the following weeks, Kane repeatedly insisted that The Undertaker was "dead", only to be met with various paranormal incidents such as a rainstorm localized over the ring in which he stood. The Undertaker finally returned at WrestleMania XX (again sporting his "Deadman" persona) with Paul Bearer at his side, defeating Kane.

After losing at WrestleMania XX, Kane fell in love with Lita, but was spurned. This led to him kidnapping Lita in May and asking her an unknown question, to which she replied in the affirmative later that month. On the same night, Kane won a 20-Man battle royal for a World Heavyweight Championship match against Chris Benoit at Bad Blood. Six days before Bad Blood in a tag team match between Kane and La Resistance against Edge and Benoit, Kane beat Benoit after muscling out of the Crippler Crossface and giving him a huge Chokeslam. Lita later announced that she was pregnant, with Matt Hardy her then-boyfriend both on- and off-screen, assuming that he was the child's father. On the June 21 episode of Raw, Kane claimed that he was the dad. The next week, he explained that he had impregnated Lita in order to continue his legacy and justified a vicious attack on Shawn Michaels several weeks earlier by claiming that Michaels had stood in the way of him winning the World Heavyweight Championship. In order to appease Kane, General Manager Eric Bischoff gave Kane a rematch with Benoit, instructing Benoit that he could only win by submission, whereas Kane could win the title by any means. Despite dominating much of the match, Kane again lost to Benoit. Following the match, Lita came to the ring and low-blowed Kane, who initially went to chokeslam her in revenge but stopped when he realized that she was trying to force him to cause her to miscarry their child.

Kane and Matt Hardy faced one another in a "Till Death Do Us Part" match at SummerSlam, with Lita obliged to wed the victor. Kane defeated Hardy, and "married" Lita on the August 23 episode of Raw. Although he was attacked by Hardy during the ceremony, he gained the upper hand and ultimately chokeslammed Hardy off the stage (in reality, Hardy needed time off because of a knee injury and later a staph infection). A week after the wedding, General Manager Eric Bischoff gave Kane and Lita the wedding gift of choosing any match that Kane wanted at Unforgiven. Shawn Michaels (who had his throat crushed by Kane) was chosen and defeated Kane in a no-disqualification match at the pay-per-view. The next night, on the September 13 episode of Raw, Kane accidentally fell on Lita during a match with the debuting Gene Snitsky, who hit him on the back with a steel chair, ostensibly causing Lita to miscarry. Kane turned face after he sought revenge against Snitsky for causing the death of his child. He lost to Snitsky in a steel chain match at Taboo Tuesday, and he was sidelined for several months after Snitsky crushed his larynx with a chair following the match. This attack was a repeat performance of the storyline where Kane "injured" Michaels in the same exact manner. The "injury" gave Kane time to complete his starring role in the film, See No Evil. Kane returned in January 2005, defeating Snitsky at New Year's Revolution. After WrestleMania 21, Kane and Lita reconciled with one another and began antagonizing Lita's rival Trish Stratus. This led to a match between Kane and Stratus' hired bodyguard Viscera at Backlash that was won by Kane.

Lita later turned on Kane and started an on-screen relationship with her real-life boyfriend at the time Edge, after helping Edge win the Gold Rush Tournament Finals on the May 16 episode of Raw by giving him his Money in the Bank briefcase to hit Kane with. This would lead to a feud between Kane and Edge. Kane was able to defeat Edge at Vengeance, despite interference from Snitsky. The feud ended when Edge defeated Kane in a Stretcher match on the July 25 episode of Raw. Lita's allegiance with Edge resulted from the couple's real-life affair while she was still romantically involved with Matt Hardy. Hardy was later rehired and Kane was dropped from the angle, with Matt and Edge having a feud over Lita.

Teaming with Big Show (2005–2006)

Kane returned to WWE television on October 17, 2005, winning an eighteen-man battle royal. As a result of his victory, he, along with Big Show and Shawn Michaels, was featured in an Internet poll to decide who would receive a shot at the WWE Championship at Taboo Tuesday. In the weeks before Taboo Tuesday, Kane and Big Show teamed together on several occasions. The poll was won by Michaels, and Kane and Big Show teamed together to face Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch, defeating them for the World Tag Team Championship. The duo successfully retained their championship throughout the remainder of 2005, during which time they engaged in an inter-promotional feud with members of the SmackDown! brand. On December 12 episode of Raw Kane beat Triple H in an Elimination Chamber Qualifying match, then Kane participated in the Elimination Chamber at New Year's Revolution but he was eliminated by Cartlito and Chris Masters. He and Big Show feuded with Carlito and Chris Masters throughout early 2006, culminating in a successful title defense at WrestleMania 22 on April 2. The following evening, Kane and the Big Show lost the World Tag Team Championship to Spirit Squad members Kenny and Mikey. One week later, Kane and Big Show faced Spirit Squad members Johnny and Nicky in a rematch for the title, but were disqualified after Kane "snapped", ostensibly due to "voices in his head".

In subsequent weeks, Kane began attacking anyone who mentioned the date May 19. During the match between Kane and Big Show at Backlash, Kane's voice began echoing throughout the arena saying "May 19", "It's happening again" and "They're all going to know" leaving Kane visibly shaken. Big Show then struck Kane with a chair, resulting in a no contest. On May 19, Kane appeared on SmackDown! as John "Bradshaw" Layfield's hand-picked opponent for Rey Mysterio. After both the aforementioned voices and mask video began playing, Kane chokeslammed both Layfield and Mysterio before leaving the ring. On the following episode of Raw, he claimed that May 19 was the date on which his mother and adopted family were killed in a fire. The voices continued to the May 29 episode of Raw, when Kane was confronted by the source of the voice, an impostor Kane (Drew Hankinson); wearing Kane's old mask and ring attire, he chokeslammed Kane during his match against Shelton Benjamin for the Intercontinental Championship. Kane and the look-alike continued to fight one another in subsequent weeks, leading to a match between the two being scheduled for Vengeance, in which the real Kane lost to the impostor. On the June 26 episode of Raw, Kane threw the impostor out of the arena and removed his mask, saying "I believe that this is mine". Kane was absent from WWE television for two months thereafter as he toured Europe to promote See No Evil. Kane returned at SummerSlam, attacking Umaga, who was interfering in the D-Generation-X versus Mr. McMahon and Shane McMahon tag-team match. Upon his return, he faced his former partner Big Show for the ECW Championship in a losing effort. Soon after, Kane would engage in a major feud with Umaga that concluded on October 9 in a Loser Leaves Raw match, which he lost.

ECW Champion (2006–2009)

On October 13, Kane moved to Smackdown for the first time since the 2002 brand extension. On November 3, Kane reunited with The Undertaker as The Brothers of Destruction to defeat Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) and Mr. Kennedy. Kane continued a feud with MVP competing in several gimmick matches. The end result of the feud was an Inferno match at Armageddon; Kane won by setting MVP's back on fire which resulted in first degree burns. Kane continued to have matches throughout the year with MVP.

On the SmackDown! before the Royal Rumble, Kane was involved in a six-man elimination over-the-top-rope battle royal, with King Booker, MVP, The Miz, Chris Benoit and Finlay. This match went to a no contest as The Undertaker interrupted after Kane had been eliminated and punished by the remaining opponents. At the Royal Rumble, Kane eliminated King Booker, but Booker re-entered the ring and eliminated Kane. A couple weeks later on SmackDown!, while receiving the key to the city in his hometown of Houston, Booker was attacked by Kane starting a feud between the two. At No Way Out, Kane defeated King Booker. On February 23, Kane lost to King Booker in a Falls Count Anywhere Money in the Bank Qualifying match after interference from The Great Khali, sparking a feud between the two. Prior to WrestleMania 23, Kane started to walk around with a hook, similar to the hook he used as Jacob Goodnight in See No Evil. At the event, Kane was defeated by Khali. During the match, in homage to Hulk Hogan slamming André the Giant twenty years earlier at WrestleMania III, Kane picked up Khali for the first time and body-slammed him to the mat. After WrestleMania, he began to feud with William Regal and Dave Taylor. The Boogeyman then joined the feud, teaming up with Kane. On the May 4 episode of SmackDown!, Kane competed in a number one contender's match for the United States Championship held by MVP. Kane lost due to interference by Regal and Taylor. On the May 25 episode of SmackDown!, Kane competed in a fatal four-way number one contender's match for the World Heavyweight Championship which was won by Batista. Kane then entered a short feud with Mark Henry. Kane was defeated by Henry in a Lumberjack match at One Night Stand due to interference from lumberjacks Kenny Dykstra and Chavo Guerrero and then took a short hiatus.

On the July 6 episode of SmackDown!, General Manager Theodore Long announced that Kane would face Edge for his World Heavyweight Championship at The Great American Bash. After Edge was attacked and injured by Kane and the title was vacated, Batista faced Kane in a number one contender's match. During the match, new World Heavyweight Champion The Great Khali interfered by attacking Batista; the match was ruled a no contest and both men were ruled the number one contenders, and were scheduled to face Batista in a triple threat match at The Great American Bash. Khali retained the title after pinning Kane for the win. Kane later teamed up with Batista on the August 18 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event to defeat Khali and Finlay. Kane then entered a storyline with Finlay, which led to a match at SummerSlam, which Kane won after chokeslamming Finlay. They continued to feud on SmackDown, which included Kane losing to Finlay in a number one contender's tournament after interference from Hornswoggle.

Kane then made an appearance on the October 16 episode of ECW as the hand-chosen partner of ECW Champion CM Punk, helping him defeat John Morrison, The Miz, and Big Daddy V in a three-on-two handicap match. In retaliation, Big Daddy V attacked Kane on the October 19 SmackDown, igniting a feud between the two. The two continued to battle in the following weeks. Kane was voted to face the defending champion MVP for his United States Championship at Cyber Sunday, which Kane won by countout and thus did not win the title. After this, he continued to feud with Big Daddy V, with the two ending up on opposite teams at Survivor Series, where Kane's team won. Big Daddy V eventually began to team with Mark Henry, while Kane teamed with CM Punk. The feud concluded at Armageddon, where Kane and Punk lost to Big Daddy V and Henry after Big Daddy V pinned CM Punk.

In a battle royal before WrestleMania XXIV, Kane won by last eliminating former rival Mark Henry, earning a match for the ECW Championship against Chavo Guerrero later that night. Kane defeated Guerrero in the fastest-ever WrestleMania match with a record-setting eleven seconds to win the ECW Championship. Shortly after winning the championship, Kane officially joined the ECW roster. At Backlash, Kane successfully defended the ECW Championship against Guerrero. He then continued teaming with CM Punk to earn a WWE Tag Team Championship match at Judgment Day, which the duo did not win. As part of the 2008 WWE Draft, Kane moved to the Raw brand, making the ECW Championship exclusive to Raw. Kane lost the ECW Championship to Mark Henry at Night of Champions in a triple threat match that also involved Big Show.

On the July 26 episode of Raw, Kane was denied a World Heavyweight Championship match at The Great American Bash leading him to attack commentators Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler turning heel in the process. At The Great American Bash, Kane interfered and attacked both the champion CM Punk and the challenger Batista. In September, Kane began a feud with Rey Mysterio that lasted through Survivor Series. On the March 2 episode of Raw, Kane pinned Mike Knox in a triple threat match, also involving Rey Mysterio, to earn a spot in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXV, a match ultimately won by CM Punk. During the 2009 draft Kane beat The Brian Kendrick for a draft pick and, later in the night, was drafted back to SmackDown. There, Kane feuded with CM Punk and defeated him to cap it off at Backlash. He then took a break to tour India and also heal injuries, returning at The Bash to assist Dolph Ziggler in his match with The Great Khali by hitting Khali with a steel chair, allowing Ziggler to win. This started a feud with Khali, whom he defeated at SummerSlam and in a Singapore Cane match at Breaking Point. Alongside Chris Jericho, Kane was co-captain for the victorious Team SmackDown at Bragging Rights. Kane then unsuccessfully challenged Jericho in a number one contender's match for an opportunity to face World Heavyweight Champion The Undertaker and Big Show in a triple threat match at Survivor Series.

World Heavyweight Champion (2010–2011)

At WrestleMania XXVI, during the Money in the Bank ladder match, Kane was unsuccessful in claiming the briefcase as Jack Swagger won the match. Over the next few months, Kane was involved in sporadic singles matches on episodes of SmackDown, including a loss to CM Punk in May in a qualifying match for the World Heavyweight Championship match for the Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view event. On the June 4 episode of SmackDown, Kane stated he had found his brother The Undertaker in a "vegetative state" over Memorial Day weekend and vowed revenge on whoever was responsible. Due to The Undertaker's injury, a battle royal was held to determine his replacement for Fatal 4-Way, which Rey Mysterio won by last eliminating Kane. Kane participated in his fourth Money in the Bank ladder match at its first eponymous pay-per-view. He won the match, and cashed in his Money in the Bank contract later that night and defeated Rey Mysterio (who had just defeated Jack Swagger) to win the World Heavyweight Championship, thus making Kane the first wrestler in WWE history to win the WWE Championship, the ECW Championship, and the World Heavyweight Championship. He became the first wrestler to cash in the Money in the Bank contract on the same night it was won and also holds the record for the fastest cash in at 47 minutes. On the next SmackDown on July 23, Kane accused Mysterio of putting The Undertaker in a vegetative state; Mysterio countered the accusations, claiming that Kane himself was the perpetrator. At SummerSlam, Kane retained the World Heavyweight Championship against Mysterio, and following their match, The Undertaker appeared. Kane was revealed as The Undertaker's attacker, reigniting their feud. He successfully defended the World Heavyweight Championship against The Undertaker, in a No Holds Barred match at Night of Champions. On the following episode of SmackDown, a casket was brought to ringside by druids to reveal the return of Paul Bearer, supporting The Undertaker. At Hell in a Cell, Bearer turned on The Undertaker, and allied himself with Kane, who retained the World Heavyweight Championship with Bearer's help. At Bragging Rights, Kane defeated Undertaker in a Buried Alive match to retain the title again after help from The Nexus, ending their feud. Kane then rekindled his feud with Edge, who, on the October 28 episode of SmackDown, was named the new challenger to Kane's World Heavyweight Championship at Survivor Series. On the November 12 episode of SmackDown, Edge kidnapped Bearer and started to play mind games with Kane, trying to psychologically wear him down before their title match. At Survivor Series, Kane retained his title after the referee determined the match a draw due to both men pinning each other at the same time. As Edge still had Bearer in his captivity, Kane agreed to a rematch at the next pay-per-view. On December 3, Edge defeated Kane in a non-title match to win the right to determine the stipulation for the title match; Edge chose a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match. The following week, Kane accidentally injured Bearer, believing it to be another hoax by Edge, and Bearer was written out of the storyline. At TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, Kane lost the championship to Edge, in a four-way Tables, Ladders and Chairs match, also involving Mysterio and Alberto Del Rio. Kane received his rematch for the World Heavyweight Championship on the January 7, 2011 episode of SmackDown in a Last Man Standing match, but was unsuccessful.

Kane competed in the 2011 Royal Rumble match, the largest Royal Rumble match in history, and was the 40th and final person to enter the match, Kane eliminated Ezekiel Jackson, but then he was eliminated. Kane competed in the 2011 Elimination Chamber match, eliminating Drew McIntyre and Big Show before being eliminated by Edge. The following month, Kane reunited with the Big Show against a common enemy, The Corre turning face in the process. Kane and Big Show began challenging them for the tag team titles and saving other wrestlers from their attacks. At WrestleMania XXVII, Big Show and Kane teamed with Santino Marella and Kofi Kingston to beat The Corre. The next week, a rematch took place, under two of three falls rules, which Kane's team won. On the April 22 episode of SmackDown, the duo defeated Corre members Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater to win the WWE Tag Team Championship, their second championship as a team. Big Show and Kane then started feuding with the New Nexus. After defending the titles against CM Punk and Mason Ryan at Over the Limit, Kane and Big Show lost the championship to Michael McGillicutty and David Otunga on the following day on Raw. The team disbanded after the match, as Big Show suffered an injury. Kane participated in the second annual SmackDown Money in the Bank ladder match but the match was won by Daniel Bryan. On the July 22 episode of SmackDown, Kane was attacked by Mark Henry, who injured his leg with a steel chair. WWE reported the attack had fractured Kane's fibula, likely to sideline him for five months.

Re-masking and Team Hell No (2011–2013)

Beginning in November 2011, WWE began airing vignettes featuring Kane and a burning red mask, and ending with the words Kane Resurrected appearing on screen. Kane returned on the December 12 episode of Raw wearing a metallic mask and new ring attire inspired by the incisions of a postmortem human body after an autopsy. He interrupted the main event between Mark Henry and John Cena, attacking Cena before removing the metallic mask to reveal a new red mask and turning heel once again. Kane continued to attack Cena in the following weeks, claiming he wanted Cena to "embrace the hate" from Cena's detractors, rather than try to "Rise Above Hate", as Cena's T-shirt proclaimed. Kane also attacked and injured Cena's ally Zack Ryder. Kane and John Cena fought to a double countout at the Royal Rumble. On February 19 at Elimination Chamber, Cena defeated Kane in an Ambulance match to end the feud. In March, Kane initiated a feud with Randy Orton by attacking him. Kane later explained that he needed to feel like a monster again, and believed that defeating Orton would allow him to do that. Orton retaliated in the following weeks, leading to a match at WrestleMania XXVIII, which Kane won. In a rematch on the following SmackDown, Orton defeated Kane in a No Disqualification match. After Kane attacked Orton and his father, "Cowboy" Bob Orton, the pair faced off at Extreme Rules, in a Falls Count Anywhere match, which Orton won by utilizing a steel chair. In the next PPV Over the Limit Kane beat Zack Ryder.

Kane then engaged in a three-way feud with WWE Champion CM Punk and Daniel Bryan after Bryan interfered in a non-title match between Kane and Punk to frame Punk for attacking Kane with a steel chair. On the June 1 episode of SmackDown, a WWE Championship match between Kane and Punk ended in a double disqualification after Bryan attacked both men. On the June 4 episode of Raw Kane beat CM Punk in a non-title match, and on the June 22 episode of Smackdown Kane beat Daniel Bryan Meanwhile, Bryan's jilted ex-girlfriend AJ turned her affections to both Punk and Kane. The feud culminated in a triple threat match at No Way Out, where Punk retained the WWE Championship after AJ distracted Kane. At Raw 1000, Kane turned face, when he was saved by his brother The Undertaker from an attack by Jinder Mahal, Drew McIntyre, Tyler Reks, Curt Hawkins, Hunico and Camacho. At SummerSlam, Kane was defeated by Bryan.

As a result of Bryan and Kane's issues, AJ enrolled them in anger management classes hosted by Dr. Shelby and they were later forced to compete in a "Hug it Out" match. At the arrangement of Dr. Shelby and AJ, the two adversaries formed a team whose constant infighting during matches inadvertently resulted in them defeating The Prime Time Players (Titus O'Neil and Darren Young) to become the number one contenders to the WWE Tag Team Championship, and defeating champions Kofi Kingston and R-Truth to win the title at Night of Champions. Kane and Bryan made their first successful title defense the following night on Raw, defeating the former champions in a rematch. The following week on Raw, "Team Hell No" was chosen as the official team name via a Twitter poll. Team Hell No entered a feud with Team Rhodes Scholars (Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow), and successfully defended the championship against them on multiple occasions. On the November 26 episode of Raw, both Kane and Bryan were assaulted by The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns). Team Hell No allied with Ryback to face The Shield, but lost a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match at TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs. Further successful title defenses against Team Rhodes Scholars and 3MB (Drew McIntyre and Heath Slater) followed throughout December 2012 and January 2013. On the February 11 episode of Raw, Kane defeated Dolph Ziggler to earn the final spot in the number one contender Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship, but was the second man eliminated from the match at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view. On April 7 at WrestleMania 29, Team Hell No defeated Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston in another successful title defense. Following WrestleMania, Team Hell No rekindled their rivalry with The Shield after they saved The Undertaker from The Shield. On the April 22 episode of Raw, Team Hell No and The Undertaker were defeated by the Shield in a six-man tag team match. Kane and Bryan then faced members of the stable in both tag team and singles competition, but were mainly unsuccessful. On May 19 at Extreme Rules, Kane and Bryan lost the WWE Tag Team Championship to Shield members Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, ending their reign at 245 days. Team Hell No lost their rematch against Reigns and Rollins on May 27.

On the June 14 episode of SmackDown, Kane, Bryan and Randy Orton ended the Shield's unpinned/unsubmitted streak in televised six-man tag matches. Kane unsuccessfully challenged Dean Ambrose for the United States Championship three days later at Payback and the following night on Raw. On the July 8 episode of Raw, Kane beat Christian in a Money In the Bank qualifying match, then he was attacked and injured by the debuting Wyatt Family, removing him from his scheduled match at Money in the Bank. Kane returned three weeks later, losing to Bryan. Following the match, he was attacked again by The Wyatt Family, setting up a Ring of Fire match at SummerSlam against Bray Wyatt. Kane lost the match, following interference from Erick Rowan and Luke Harper, and after another attack, he was carried out of the arena by The Wyatt Family. The storyline was put in place to allow Jacobs time off to film See No Evil 2.

The Authority (2013–2015)

Following a two-month hiatus, Kane returned at Hell in a Cell on October 27, attacking both The Wyatt Family and The Miz. The next night on Raw, Kane turned heel again as he pledged allegiance to Stephanie McMahon by handing her his mask, and reinforced his loyalty the next week by aiding members of The Authority. As part of his character change, he appeared unmasked and wore a suit and tie to fit in with the corporate ideology of The Authority, and was given a fictional role as "Director of Operations". Kane participated in the 2014 Royal Rumble, and was eliminated by CM Punk. He re-appeared later during the match, eliminating Punk to tie the record for most eliminations in the Royal Rumble match; however, his thirteen-year-old record for most eliminations in a single Rumble was broken by Roman Reigns. Kane then involved himself in The Authority's feud with Daniel Bryan, which included Kane booking himself in a match with Bryan on the February 17 episode of Raw and interfering in the Elimination Chamber match between Bryan and Randy Orton at Elimination Chamber.

Following WrestleMania XXX, after Kane and The New Age Outlaws lost to The Shield, Kane was berated by Stephanie McMahon and told to find the "Big Red Monster" that he was before. He retrieved his mask that same week, attacking Big Show following Main Event. On the April 21 episode of Raw, Stephanie McMahon announced Kane as the number one contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Extreme Rules, prompting Kane to attack champion Daniel Bryan and his wife Brie Bella. Kane lost his title match to Bryan at Extreme Rules. At Money in the Bank, Kane helped Seth Rollins win his Money in the Bank contract, but he was unsuccessful in capturing the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in a ladder match against seven other superstars. At Battleground, Kane took part in a Fatal 4-Way match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against John Cena, Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns, but Cena retained the title.

On the August 4 episode of Raw, after Kane lost to Roman Reigns in a Last Man Standing match, he once again removed his mask and gave it to Stephanie McMahon. The following week on Raw, Kane resumed his role as The Authority's Director of Operations. At Survivor Series, Kane was part of Team Authority in the main event, and was eliminated by Dolph Ziggler, who ultimately won the match for Team Cena. After Survivor Series, he began feuding with Ryback, which led to a chairs match between the two at TLC, where Ryback emerged victorious. On January 25, 2015, at the Royal Rumble, Kane eliminated four superstars, thus surpassing the record for most overall eliminations in the Royal Rumble match. At Fastlane, Kane, Big Show, and Seth Rollins defeated Dolph Ziggler, Erick Rowan, and Ryback, after Kane pinned Ziggler. Kane participated in the 2nd Annual André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31, and was eliminated by Cesaro. At Extreme Rules, Kane served as the "gatekeeper" for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship steel cage match between Seth Rollins and Randy Orton, which Rollins won by escaping the cage. At Payback, Kane secured his role as Director of Operations by helping Rollins retain his title in a Fatal 4-Way match against Dean Ambrose, Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns. At Money in the Bank, Kane participated in the Money in the Bank ladder match, which was won by Sheamus. On the July 13 episode of Raw, Kane was injured by Brock Lesnar, who smashed his ankle with the steel ring steps. Following the attack, Rollins berated Kane and kicked his injured ankle.

Return of the Demon & Hiatus (2015–2016)

Kane returned at Night of Champions as his "Demon" persona, preventing Sheamus from cashing in his Money in the Bank contract and attacking Seth Rollins, thus turning face in the process. Kane appeared as both his "Demon" and "Corporate" personas and continued his feud with Rollins, defeating him in a lumberjack match on the October 12 episode of Raw. "Demon" Kane lost his WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Rollins at Hell in a Cell, and as per the stipulation, "Corporate" Kane was fired from his role as Director of Operations.

Following Hell in a Cell, Kane reunited with The Undertaker to feud with The Wyatt Family. At Survivor Series, The Brothers of Destruction defeated Bray Wyatt and Luke Harper in a tag team match. On the December 21 episode of Raw, Kane defeated Wyatt by disqualification after being attacked by the rest of The Wyatt Family, whom then went on to defeat Kane, The Dudley Boyz, and Tommy Dreamer in an eight-man tag team match. The next night on SmackDown, Kane teamed up with The Dudley Boyz and Ryback to take on The Wyatt Family in a losing effort. At Tribute to the Troops, Kane competed in a 16-man tag team match in a winning effort. Kane entered the 2016 Royal Rumble match at #7, and eliminated R-Truth before being eliminated by Braun Strowman. The next night on Raw, Kane lost to Wyatt. At Fastlane, Kane teamed with Big Show and Ryback to defeat The Wyatt Family in a six-man tag team match. The next night on Raw, in a rematch from Fastlane, Ryback would turn on Kane and Big Show leading to a Wyatt Family victory. Leading up to WrestleMania, Kane would continue teaming with Big Show, with the duo scoring victories over Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel on the March 22 episode of Main Event and March 28 episode of Raw. At WrestleMania 32, Kane participated in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and was the runner-up, being eliminated by eventual winner Baron Corbin.

On the June 27 episode of Raw, "Corporate" Kane declared his intention to run SmackDown, but Stephanie McMahon rejected his offer. Later that night, "Demon" Kane defeated The Miz by countout in an Intercontinental Championship match. A week later, Kane was a member of Team USA in a 16-man tag team elimination match against the Multi-National Alliance, which Team USA won. On July 19 at the 2016 WWE draft, Kane was drafted to SmackDown. On the same episode, Kane was scheduled to face Kevin Owens but the match was ruled a no-contest when Sami Zayn interfered and attacked Owens during his entrance. On the first episode of SmackDown "Live" on July 26, Kane competed in a battle royal to determine a number one contender for the WWE World Championship but was ultimately unsuccessful as he was one of the last competitors eliminated.

At Backlash, Kane would be the replacement opponent for Bray Wyatt, after Wyatt had attacked his originally scheduled opponent, Randy Orton, before the event started. Kane would defeat Wyatt, after interference by Orton. Their feud continued as Kane won another match by countout on the 4th October episode of "Smackdown". On the 11 October episode of SmackDown Live, Kane teamed up with Orton, only to mysteriously vanish and have Harper in his place, enabling Wyatt to defeat Orton and win the match. A week later, after Orton defeated Harper by disqualification, Kane would appear in a casket to help Orton attack Wyatt and Harper. On the 25 October edition of SmackDown Live, during Kane's No-Disqualification match against Wyatt, Orton betrayed Kane by attacking him with an RKO, allowing Wyatt to win the match. On the November 1 episode of SmackDown, Kane lost to Orton in a No Disqualification match after interference from Wyatt. A week later, Kane was unveiled as the tag team partner for Dean Ambrose and James Ellsworth for their match against The Wyatt Family, where they lost after Ellsworth was pinned by Wyatt. On the 900th episode of SmackDown Live, The Undertaker returned. As he was leaving, Kane would join him on the stage as the show went off the air and did their signature arm raise pose. At Survivor Series, Kane defeated Luke Harper on the kick-off show.

Kane defeated Harper in a rematch on the November 29th 2016 episode of SmackDown Live before taking time off to concentrate on work outside of the ring.

Other media

Jacobs made his film debut as "Jacob Goodnight" in the first production of WWE Studios, See No Evil, which was released on May 19, 2006. Jacobs has also made an appearance in the film, MacGruber, alongside fellow WWE wrestlers Montel Vontavious Porter, Chris Jericho, The Great Khali, Mark Henry, and Big Show. See No Evil 2, also starring Jacobs, was announced in August 2013 and was released on October 21, 2014.

Kane appeared on a special WWE episode of The Weakest Link in March 2002, and won by beating out Bubba Ray Dudley in the final round. The money won was donated to Jacobs's chosen charity, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, in Memphis, Tennessee. He also appeared on Smallville series episode "Combat" as Titan alongside former WWE Diva Ashley Massaro. The episode was aired on March 22, 2007. Kane was also featured in a Chef Boyardee commercial in which he attempts to eat while wearing his mask.

The Kane character was featured in the fourteen-issue Undertaker comic book produced by the now-defunct Chaos! Comics in 1999. The character only spoke once, in the Undertaker Halloween Special, which tied into the single issue Mankind comic book produced by the same company. A book written by Michael Chiappetta detailing the origins of Kane titled Journey into Darkness: An Unauthorized History of Kane was released in 2005. WWE released a three-disc anthology titled, The Twisted, Disturbed Life of Kane on December 9, 2008. The DVD consists of Kane's greatest feuds and rivalries during his first ten years.

Jacobs hosted a podcast titled The Tiny Political Show under the pseudonym Citizen X from March 16, 2007 to March 13, 2008. Jacobs also ran a blog called The Adventures of Citizen X at AdventuresOfCitizenX.com from 2007 until July 17, 2011, though its last update was made on May 28 earlier that same year. However, the website has since been relaunched with its first update appearing on July 1, 2012. Jacobs is a contributor to LewRockwell.com.

Jacobs and his wife own an insurance company, The Jacobs Agency, in Tennessee.

Personal life

Jacobs has been married to Crystal Maurisa Goins since August 23, 1995 and together they have two daughters. He is actively involved in libertarian politics and publishes his views via a blog. Jacobs supported Texas Congressman Ron Paul for President in 2008. He is a member of the Free State Project and delivered a speech at the organization's 2009 New Hampshire Liberty Forum. He has also spoken at the Ludwig von Mises Institute, an anarcho-capitalist think-tank for promoting the Austrian school of economics.

In an interview with The Tom Woods Show libertarian podcast, Jacobs mentioned Woods, Harry Browne, Ron Paul, John Stossel, Peter Schiff and Murray Rothbard as his political influences and stated he is "theoretically a Rothbardian", but does not believe that a stateless society would be achieved in his lifetime. Some Tea Party affiliated groups attempted to recruit Jacobs to run in the 2014 Republican U.S. Senate primary in Tennessee against Sen. Lamar Alexander.

Outside of wrestling, Jacobs also works as an insurer and he and his wife own an Allstate agency in Knoxville, Tennessee. In a July 2015 interview for Realtor.com, the website of the National Association of Realtors, Jacobs indicated that the couple's obligations to their insurance business led them to place their Jefferson City home up for sale. The home, built in 2005, was an hour's drive from the agency and both Jacobs and his wife eventually became tired of the commute.

In May 2016, Jacobs said he was "seriously considering" a run as a Republican for the Knox County mayoral seat in 2018, but would make a final decision after the 2016 presidential election. In March 2017, Jacobs announced that he was officially running for the mayoral seat of Knox County as a Republican.

In wrestling

Championships and accomplishments