Jake "The Snake" Roberts has a cancerous tumor behind his knee ... and the wrestler says it's slowly growing into his muscle -- so he needs emergency surgery to remove the growth. Roberts tells TMZ ... he noticed a tumor behind his knee the size of a half dollar last month so he had it tested ... and on Friday doctors told him the test came back positive for cancer. Jake says he's scheduled to go under the knife Tuesday morning ... and after a few weeks off -- he'll make his return to Jersey Championship Wrestling on March 14th -- cancer, or not. Jake adds, "If the devil can't defeat me, cancer doesn't stand a chance in hell! Pray for sick children who face this horrible disease 'cause The Snake will be just fine." As for his upcoming induction into the WWE Hall of Fame ... the wrestler says nothing will stop him from getting to New Orleans for the ceremony. Read more http://www.tmz.com/2014/02/23/jake-the-snake-roberts-cancer-tumor-knee-surgery/
Snake is amazing. "Wallowing in the muck of avarice" is the greatest promo of all time. Few wrestlers understood ring psychology and audience manipulation like he did. He is one of the greats. And yet he led such a difficult and troubled life. Abused as a child, addiction to drugs, alcoholism, estrangement from his family, depression... For a guy who never looked the part and had so much going against him he did remarkably well in the business (for a time) and made a lasting impression on a generation of wrestling fans.
If you haven't seen Beyond the Mat, Roberts is heavily featured. Gripping documentary. Also gives you a glimpse into the theory that the film The Wrestler is based off Roberts' life.
For those unaware, Roberts has been living with DDP for the last year in some kind of clean living/yoga rehab and he's really turned his life around. I think the WWE has been cautiously waiting for him to be straight before they took him back.
