Professional
wrestler,
referee,
writer and on-screen character.
Shane Brandon McMahon was born on January 15, 1970 in
Greenwich, CT, the first son of
Vince and
Linda McMahon. He grew up, as did many kids of wrestlers, on the road and backstage at WWF shows, watching and learning from his father. By the time Shane was 18, he was employed at
Titan Towers as one of the front office staff, and also worked as a junior
road agent.
Shane's first tastes of
WWF TV exposure came during the early Nineties. Although nobody knew his identity at the time, Shane was regularly called upon to play the part of one of the
unnamed WWF officials who broke up after-the-bell fighting or
feuding wrestlers. If you have the
Wrestlemania VIII tape, pop it in and check out the end of the
Ric Flair -
Randy Savage match. There's Shane, alongside the omnipresent '
blond balding glasses guy' trying to protect
Miss Elizabeth from Flair and
Mr. Perfect.
Shane rose quickly within the ranks of WWFE, taking responsibility for the
WWF Hotline, and then
WWF.Com. However, his on-screen appearances were few and far between, and never as 'Shane McMahon'.
This all changed when the red-hot
McMahon-Austin feud went into overdrive in the Summer of 1998. Shane was brought in as the young
protegé of his father. One episode of RAW saw Vince fire Austin...but Shane thought he knew better and re-hired
The Rattlesnake, to the anger of his father. Vince demoted Shane to the status of a lowly referee, and Shane made his first
face turn. However, come the final of the
Survivor Series '98
Deadly Game WWF Title tournament, Shane screwed
Stone Cold by refusing to count his pin on
Mankind. Shane had realigned himself with his father and was a founding member of the super-
over Corporation heel stable.
On the February 15, 1999 episode of
RAW, McMahon captured the
WWF European title in a tag match from
X-Pac. Shane feuded with the
DX member through to
WrestleMania XV, complete with vignettes introducing Shane's friends
Pete Gas,
Rodney,
Willie Green and
Joey Abs, all from the '
Mean Streets Of Greenwich'. Shane successfully defended the European title against X-Pac at WrestleMania in their '
Greenwich Street Fight', when
HHH and
Chyna turned heel on X-Pac and joined the Corporation.
Shortly after Wrestlemania, McMahon retired the European title, claiming he was retiring with a perfect record. He turned his attention to leading the heel super-stable The
Corporate Ministry.
At
Backlash '99, Shane officiated the
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs
The Rock WWF title rematch. During the match, a returing
babyface Vince McMahon knocked out Shane with Austin's custom-made
title belt. The next night, The Rock was kicked out of the Corporate Ministry and began his journey towards being the top babyface in the world. Shane and Vince McMahon served as special guest referees for the WWF title match between Austin and The
Undertaker at the ill-fated 1999
Over the Edge in Kansas City. Shane made a quick three count to allow The Undertaker to capture the WWF title.
Following the revelation that Vince McMahon had been in cahoots with Shane and the Corporate Ministry all along as '
The Higher Power', Shane and Vince McMahon defeated Austin in a handicap match to relieve him of his CEO duties at the 1999 King of the Ring. Shane's sister
Stephanie started dating
Test in the summer of 1999, which caused friction between the McMahon siblings, and led to Shane facing Test in a second "Greenwich Streetfight" at
SummerSlam. Despite losing the match, McMahon put in an impressive performance, which would bode well for his future matches - indeed, the SummerSlam match helped McMahon earn rookie of the year honors by
Pro Wrestling Illustrated for 1999. Shane turned face again shortly afterwards, teaming with Test to take on his former
Mean Street Posse comrades.
After an extended absence from television, Shane returned at
No Way Out 2000 to aid
The Big Show in winning his match against The Rock, thus earning Show a WWF title shot at WrestleMania. At
WrestleMania 2000, Shane was in The Big Show's corner in the
Fatal Four-Way main event, but his man was elimited early on.
After falling out with the Big Show, Shane was victorious in their
Falls Count Anywhere match, taking yet another set of big bumps. Capturing the
WWF Hardcore title, Shane set his sights on a feud with
'The Lethal Weapon' Steve Blackman, culminating in their spotfest at
SummerSlam 2000 - where Shane took a 35 foot back
bump to the floor from the
TitanTron.
After another hiatus to take booking duties for the Federation, Shane returned on the March 12th edition of RAW to defend his mother's honor, and attack his father. Their feud continued until Shane revealed that he had purchased
World Championship Wrestling on the final
Nitro. At
Wrestlemania XVII, Shane defeated Vince in a "Streetfight" match. Hardcore legend
Mick Foley served as the special guest referee. The highlight of the match occurred at the end when Shane gave his father a
Van Terminator from one side of the ring to the other.
Shane's last major match at the time of writing featured another insane bump as Shane defeated the Big Show in a "
Last Man Standing" match at
Backlash by elbow-dropping him from the top of the TitanTron.
Shane's role in the 'real world' of
WWFE has diversified greatly in the last 12 months. Alongside his booking duties, Shane is in charge of the WWF's overall internet strategy, including
WWF.Com,
WCW.Com and all their subsiduary websites. He is also very much the boss as far as the new
WCW arm of the business is concerned, in terms of managing the new WCW front office, all advertising and merchandising.
Shane must also be given credit for his part in the turnaround of the WWF's fortunes since 1997. It was at his suggestion that Vince took the gamble and tried the edgier, forward-thinking storylines that epitomised
WWF Attitude. WWF fans need not worry. Even when
Vinnie Mac finally hangs up his sports jacket and gulps his last
Gulp Of Fear,
Shane-O-Mac will be more than ample replacement.