Nadelhaft, Matthew. 1995. Death, Religion and Wrestling: A Serious Undertaking. CJAS (1:1). Death, Religion and Wrestling: A Serious Undertaking By MATTHEW NADELHAFT STANDING six feet, ten inches tall and weighing three hundred and thirty pounds, Mark Calloway 1 is a physical specimen impressive to the point of being frightening. As the Undertaker, a popular mega-star of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he crosses the line from impressive to terrifying. His massive appearance is but part of his presence. The Undertaker's entrance into the arena is a spectacle both campily funny, like much of big-time wrestling, and somehow awesome. All big-name wrestlers of the WWF stable enter the ring to some sort of fanfare. A recent world champion, Macho Man Randy Savage, 1 enters the ring to "Pomp and Circumstance" in brightly- colored clothes and cape and stands on the ring-posts to pose for the adoring crowd. Most "good guy" wrestlers jog or run down the aisle from the dressing room to the ring, slapping hands with and being touched by the lucky spectators. "Bad guy" wrestlers gloat and taunt the crowd. The Undertaker, on the other hand, does not interact at all. If the entrance of wrestlers into the ring functions to "establish the nature of their relationships to the audience," as Mazer suggests (Mazer 1990: 100), then the Undertaker immediately presents himself in a powerful non- relationship to the audience. He is cold and aloof, but not in a gloating, self-absorbed way. 2 The audience is simply not there for him. He walks very slowly and deliberately down the center of the aisle, out of the reach of the audience. His head is bowed, his eyes hidden beneath the rim of his dark hat. His arms are motionless at his side. Most popular wrestlers choose to enter the ring with loud rock music blaring. The Undertaker's 2 entrance is set to dark, slow, ponderous music. It begins with the tolling of ominous bells as he enters; the lights go down and he then walks to the ring accompanied by a funereal organ dirge. As he enters the ring the organ dies away, and he removes his long, dark coat and his hat—his gaze fixed on his opponent—as the bells toll again. Doubtless, on paper, the entrance of the Undertaker sounds pompous and silly. Yet it very 3 effectively creates the desired atmosphere, and the desired relationship with the crowd. It must be remembered that a very large segment of the audience at any major wrestling event is young children. For these fans, the Undertaker's entrance is "spooky" and "gives them chills" (Interview). He does not look human to the young fans I interviewed. He is not meant to. http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cjas/11/11.html (1 of 16)11/21/2005 4:05:21 PM Nadelhaft, Matthew. 1995. Death, Religion and Wrestling: A Serious Undertaking. CJAS (1:1). Indeed, the Undertaker's performance—in and out of the ring—is crafted to be inhuman in every 4 respect. It is significant, then, that his eyes are hidden, for the eyes are, by popular and literary reckoning, "windows to the soul," "the mirrors of emotion," etc. But as the Undertaker makes his way into the ring, his eyes are hidden in shadow, lest any humanity be revealed. During his matches, whenever the cameras move in for a close up, the Undertaker's eyes are rolled up into his head, showing just the whites. The effect is "gross" to my informants, and unsettles me a bit, too. The Undertaker's skin is a dead white, enhanced perhaps with make-up. Certainly the dark circles around his eyes are artificial. His hair is long and dark, and he is covered, except for his powerful arms, in black. To top it off, the Undertaker wrestles in grey leather gloves. Despite—or perhaps because of—his terrifying appearance, the Undertaker is tremendously 5 popular. Watching the crowd during his entrance reveals looks both of delight and of horror, or perhaps disbelief. He invariably receives a loud and excited standing ovation, with flashbulbs popping away. Scanning the crowd one can pick out any number of Undertaker t-shirts and waving, hand-held tombstones bearing the Undertaker's name and the letters "R.I.P." Young children actually do look scared (I have even seen tears), but still everyone cheers. The purpose of this paper is to explore these contradictory feelings for the Undertaker. By discerning what the Undertaker represents in the complicated symbolic system of the WWF it is possible to understand his reception. It is obvious that the Undertaker is a personification of death. He is made to seem inhuman 6 precisely to be effective in this role. The Undertaker is surrounded by death symbols. He enters the arena preceded by his manager, "Paul Bearer," who holds aloft the Undertaker's icon—a funeral urn. 3 Bearer also carries a black body-bag, into which the Undertaker zips the unconscious body of his defeated foe. During Paul Bearer's "talk show" 4, "The Funeral Parlor," the Undertaker rests or hides in a coffin, in which receptacle hapless guests often wind up. During matches, during interviews, and in his entrance, the Undertaker's behavior is crafted to 7 create an image of death personified. His fighting style is perfectly choreographed and executed to this end. His gaze is always fixed upon his opponent, whom he pursues slowly and inexorably about the ring. The only word that can apply to the Undertaker's progress towards an opponent is stalking, and I am sure that precisely that image is intended. Though he moves slowly and deliberately, the Undertaker wastes little time. Most wrestling matches begin as both wrestlers test each others' strength and prowess with some kind of hold, but the Undertaker opens with a kick or blow that instantly puts his foe at a disadvantage. The Undertaker's matches are crafted to display his great strength—by moves such as lifting his victim into the air, holding him at arms' length and strangling him—and his athletic ability, which is amply demonstrated by his uncanny ability to walk along the top rope while holding his foe in an armlock, and by his ability, if thrown from the ring (in the rare matches that present such a struggle), always to land on his feet outside the ring, "displaying inhuman balance" (WWF Magazine June, 1992: 26) http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cjas/11/11.html (2 of 16)11/21/2005 4:05:21 PM Nadelhaft, Matthew. 1995. Death, Religion and Wrestling: A Serious Undertaking. CJAS (1:1). Strength and agility are not the only attributes displayed by the Undertaker during his matches. 8 When he wrestles well matched opponents, no matter what he is hit with, the Undertaker never displays any pain. He is emotionless, tireless and intractable. He is rarely knocked to the mat and, when he is, he slowly rises up like Frankenstein's monster on a slab. It is through the combination of Mark Calloway's great athletic ability, his pretty fair acting 9 ability, and the careful choreography of WWF matches that the Undertaker is effective as a death symbol. The children I interviewed got the message, declaring that he does not look human, that he "makes you think of someone who's just come back from the dead" (Interview). This message, that the Undertaker is a personification of death, is supported by the "analysis" of the WWF and the many wrestling fan-magazines. The World Wrestling Federation produces and inspires a great many publications and programs, 10 all of which are part of the overall wrestling project. It is not so much a sport as an athletic, continually unfolding story-line. The wrestlers are characters in an ongoing dramatic universe. The storylines of this universe are advanced in matches and other encounters between the characters. Interviews, talk shows, commentary and fan-zines exist, like some vast and extravagant "Soap Opera Digest," to keep the audience informed of plot developments, to prepare them for further twists, and to hammer home the important points of the stories. In these forums, the messages about the Undertaker come through loud and clear. The 11 Undertaker, we are told, is not human: he is Death. A recent WWF Magazine devoted solely to the Undertaker is introduced thus: The Undertaker has loomed over the World Wrestling Federation with foreboding presence ever since the first time he somberly strode down the aisle to the ring. He walks with death. The aura of the tomb surrounds him. He seems invulnerable to physical harm and totally lacking in emotion. He seems possessed of incredible physical powers. He is a huge man of awesome strength, yet he can balance on the top rope like a tightrope walker. With all these qualities, he has captured the imagination and interest of countless fans the world over. Fear has its own fascination. And the Undertaker is fear itself (WWF Wrestling Spotlight Volume 16: 1). http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cjas/11/11.html (3 of 16)11/21/2005 4:05:21 PM Nadelhaft, Matthew. 1995. Death, Religion and Wrestling: A Serious Undertaking. CJAS (1:1). The Undertaker's matches are choreographed to display his "inhuman" abilities, and work hand in 12 hand with commentary about him. During one entrance, a commentator (Vince McMahon, the mogul of the WWF) mentioned a "feeling of respect" that comes over the spectators at the Undertaker's entrance. His partner, "Mr. Perfect," disagreed: "it's a cold, clammy feeling and I'm not comfortable with it" (Prime Time Wrestling.