Did you know? Cucumbers are actually fruits, not vegetables? That's not even the most interesting trivia about cucumbers. With the knowledge that The Undertaker, the man who struck fear into the hearts of WWE fans and opponents for 30 years, is actually afraid of them in real life.
That's quite the fact, to be honest. Now, we all know that The Phenom's a character that Mark Calaway played... to perfection. Let's be honest, as he'll likely go down as the greatest WWE superstar persona in history. Even then, it's hard to imagine somebody as big and intimidating as The Dead Man being afraid of something like cucumbers. So here we go!
The Undertaker Has Himself Confirmed This
There are a lot of myths circling around the wrestling industry which simply aren't true. When it comes to the story of The Phenom's fear of cucumbers though, there's no chance of it falling into that category simply because of the fact that he himself has admitted to it in public.
While promoting his WWE Network documentary series, Undertaker: Last Ride a few years back on Barstool Sports' Pardon My Take Podcast, he pretty much confirmed that he wasn't the biggest fan of cucumbers... especially sliced.
While The WWE Hall of Famer claimed that he wasn't actually scared of cucumbers, he admitted that he would probably leave the room if somebody had brought one in at that moment.
Owen Hart Pranked The Undertaker By Using His Fear Of Cucumbers Against Him
Among the biggest pranks in the history of the wrestling business are owed to the late, great Owen Hart, some of which are still remembered fondly and recounted to this day. And it looks like the youngest of the Hart brothers didn't have any problems using The Undertaker's fear for cucumbers for a bit of fun.
The story's that Owen once put cucumbers in The Dead Man's iced tea, which The WWE Hall of Famer didn't realize until he'd drank it completely. This prank apparently led to The Phenom throwing up all over the restaurant that they were in.
Stories go that Hart would put cucumbers in his boots... and The King of Harts would also wrestle him with cucumber slices in his tights, then produce them when he had The WWE Hall of Famer in a headlock. As a result, he'd have to either face his fear or break character... and we all know how serious Calaway's always been about his character! immick
Where Did This Fear Of Cucumbers Originate?
The fear of cucumbers certainly seems to be a pretty rare phenomenon, to the point that there does not even seem to be a particular name for the phobia. But then again, The Undertaker's a rare individual.
He stayed in character for almost 30 years, and it is only in the past few years that he has pulled back the curtain and given the fans a look into the life of Mark Calaway, breaking kayfabe. As a result, there's still not a lot that's known about The Dead Man and his personal life, with one of those things being the origins of his fear of cucumbers.
In an interview before his death in 2013, Paul Bearer, wrestling legend and The Undertaker's manager for a long time in the WWE, had speculated that it had something to do with when he was a kid and was perhaps made to eat them, when he did not want to.
This Fear Makes Him Feel A Little Bit More Human
Having played The Undertaker character with such believability for all these years, it's easy for fans to lose sight of the fact that at the end of the day, Mark Calaway's also a performer like everybody else on the roster. The fun story of somebody like him being afraid of cucumbers is just a reminder to fans that he isn't really The Deadman.
The WWE Hall of Famer's one of the last guys in the business who maintained kayfabe, before finally deciding to give it up in recent years and later retiring from in-ring competition.
The words 'legend' and 'greatest of all time' gets thrown around in wrestling a little too often these days, but somebody like The Undertaker qualifies for those accolades.
He entered the WWF in 1990 as a main event player and remained at the top of the card till his final match in the company, against "Phenomenal" AJ Styles at WrestleMania 36. Along the way, he'd go on to win multiple world championships and dominate his opponents. Only if they knew that all they needed was a cucumber.
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