Biographies | WWE
Shawn Michaels is one of the veterans of professional wrestling no longer associated with WWE, having left the organization in March 2010. He started his career way back in 1988 as part of “The Rockers” and gradually became one of the true superstars of the professional game.
Though his wrestling accomplishments are many, Michaels is often remembered for the battle with Randy Orton (Unforgiven 2003). At the time, Michaels was billed as the Heartbreak Kid, but Orton was considered the up-and-coming young lion in the field. Many commentators at the time considered this the true beginning of Orton’s reputation as a Legend Killer.
Long Career
Shawn Michaels is the ring name of the man born Michael Shawn Hickenbottom in 1965. He worked under the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) banner from his debut in 1988 until he retired from competition in 2010. Before wrestling with WWE he worked with Mid-South Wrestling and the American Wrestling Association (AWA). He and partner Marty Jannetty won the AWA tag team title twice. They moved to the WWF, returned to the AWA and then ultimately signed on with WWF in 1988. Michaels remained for more than 20 years.Michaels was associated with the D-Generation X group for a time, a group of wrestlers that included Triple H and Chyna. He opened a wrestling school following a back injury but returned to the ring in 2002. One of the highlights of this second part of his career was the Unified WWE Tag Team title (with Triple H). Michaels has won the world-champion title four times and the WWF title three times. He won the Royal Rumble twice (1995 and 1996). He also holds the distinction of being the first wrestler to be named WWF Grand Slam Champion.
The Beginning
Shawn Michaels was born to the Hickenbottom family in Arizona. He also spent a short period of his youth in England due to the fact that his father was in the military. Biographical material for Hickenbottom notes that he grew up in Texas, where he began to be called by his middle name rather than his given first name.
Michaels played football in high school and attended college in Texas for a short time. But he knew from a young age that he wanted to be a wrestler, especially in the professional world that combined wrestling with entertainment. According to WWF/WWE history The Rockers (Jannetty and Michaels) were especially popular with women and children in the audience. They were often featured on pay-per-view and regular television shows.
Michaels wrestled as The Heartbreak Kid for several years in the early 1990s. He changed his ring personality slightly, becoming cockier and adopting the tag of “villain” in many of his matches. He was often referred to having “left the building,” an obvious association with the late, great Elvis Presley. He was WWF Commissioner for a time in the late 1990s but continued to wrestle actively for several more years. He returned to WWE action and was a popular attraction in events until his eventual retirement at the age of 45.
Edge Biography
There have been rumors about the death of the professional wrestler known as Edge. But more reliable reports indicate that Adam Joseph Copeland is alive and well. It seems he just wanted some time away from the wrestling spotlight. As Mark Twain once wrote, “New of my death have been greatly exaggerated.”
Copeland, now 36, was born in Canada in 1973. He wrestled under the World Wrestling Federation’s Raw brand and is a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler now. Edge was first an independent wrestler and grew in popularity during the mid-1990s. He was active in both individual and tag-team matches, eventually signing with WWF in 1997.
Getting an Edge
It was at this time that Copeland began using the ring name Edge. He won the Intercontinental title quickly, taking that championship in 1999. His tag-team success with Christian led to seven WWF Tag Team championships. While they become well-known and popular in Tables, Ladders, and Chairs matches, the partnership broke up in 2001. Copeland, as Edge, has been a world champion nine times. He was also King of the Ring in 2001 and has been successful in getting a few film and television appearances.
With WWF
Edge made his first television appearance in the late 1990s and appeared in pay-per-view action in August of that year. A staged feud with Gangrel ultimately led to an alliance called The Brood. That group became part of the Ministry of Darkness with The Undertaker in the lead. Edge battled his way to the top to take his first WWF Intercontinental championship in 1999.
Copeland, as Edge, became a popular wrestler with the fans and was very successful during the period from 2001 to 2004. This period involved some controversy with Christian, a match with Test in which Edge lost the Intercontinental title and a feud with Williams Regal. This period also included two key accomplishments in Edge’s career – tag team titles with Hulk Hogan and with Rey Mysterio.
Edge was a serious contender in the heavyweight division in 2005. He went on to take the WWE championship in 2006 and also fought a memorable match with John Cena. Edge and Randy Orton put together Rated-RKO, a tag team that soon held the team championship. Injury slowed Copeland’s activity for a short period but in January 2010 he was in the Royal Rumble match. Edge, who has been married and divorced twice, has been connected with steroid controversy within professional wrestling ranks. He remains a recognized superstar of professional wrestling in spite of the stories and rumors surrounding his personal life.
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