On this day – May 20, 2011, WWE Hall of Famer “Macho Man” Randy Savage (born Randy Mario Paffo on November 15, 1952), passed away at the age 58 after suffering a heart attack while driving with his wife in their Jeep Wrangler near his home in Seminole, FL. Savage, who was unresponsive hit a tree. His wife, Lynn Payne survived.
The heart attack, which was due to Atherosclerosis led to Savage losing control of his vehicle.
Prior to professional wrestling, Savage was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as a catcher right out of high school. He mostly played as an outfielder in the Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds farm systems. Savage’s last season in the minor leagues baseball was in 1974, when he played for the Class A Tampa Tarpons for the Reds organization. He played 289 games over four minor league seasons, batting .254 with 16 home runs and 129 RBI.
Savage entered the professional wrestling industry in 1973 and took the ring name Randy Savage at the suggestion of his longtime friend and trainer Terry “The Goose” Stephens and Georgia Championship Wrestling booker Ole Anderson, who said that the name Poffo did not fit someone who “wrestled like a savage”. Overtime, Savage decided that it was time to end what was his stalled baseball career and join his father and brother to wrestle full time. He wrestled his first match against Midwest Territory wrestler “Golden Boy” Paul Christy. Savage worked with his father and brother in Michigan, the Carolinas, Georgia, the Maritimes, and the eastern Tennessee territory run by Nick Gulas.
After a while, his father felt that his sons were not getting the pushes they deserved so he started “outlaw” International Championship Wrestling in the mid-American states. After the promotion disbanded, Randy and Lanny joined the Memphis scene, signing with WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler’s Continental Wrestling Association. Savage feuded with Lawler over the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship. He and Lanny also had feuds with WWE Hall of Famers The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express. Later in 1984, Savage turned babyface and joined up with Lawler against Jimmy Hart’s First Family alliance, only to turn heel again on Lawler in early 1985. The feud with Lawler ended after Savage was defeated by Lawler in a Loser Leaves Town match on June 7, 1985 in Memphis, Tennessee.
In June 1985, Savage moved on and signed with the WWF (now WWE). He made his WWF debut on the July 6 episode of Championship Wrestling, defeating local competitor Aldo Marino. Savage had a number of memorable feuds and matches in the WWF/E.
His on-screen performances with his wife, Miss Elizabeth, was a more of beauty and the beast type scenario during his heel run, made him more hated by the fans.
What made Savage a big star in the company was his run with the Intercontinental Title and his feud with Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat. An angle that was a match with Steamboat in which there was a ref bump and Steamboat had Savage beat with ref to make the full three count for the win. Savage to Steamboat and put his throat over the guardrail and came off the very top rope with a double axe-handle. He then began choking Steamboat, grabbed the ring bell and leaped off the top rope with it, smashing it into Steamboat’s throat.
Savage and Steamboat would go on to have one of greatest matches of all time at WrestleMania III which took place on March 29, 1987 in Pontiac, MI at the Pontiac Silverdome, in a match for the Intercontinental Championship.
Steamboat was successful in capturing the title from Savage.
After Savage won the King of the Ring in 1987 and being cheered, Savage would eventually turn babyface.
During an angle on Saturday Night’s Main Event. Savage was in the midst of a beatdown by the Honky and The Hart Foundation. Miss Elizabeth then entered the ring, trying to prevent Honky from hitting Savage with his guitar. Honky Tonk shoved her down and nailed Savage with the guitar. As the beatdown continued, Miss Elizabeth ran to the locker room and then came out with Hulk Hogan. When Hogan saw what was happening in the ring, he ran down to make the save, setting up a handshake that birthed the Mega-Powers.
In 1989, during a televised match, Hogan and Savage were facing The Big Bossman and Akeem. Savage inadvertently took out Miss Elizabeth when being tossed from the ring. Hogan carried her to the back and cried over her, leaving Savage by himself in the ring to take a beating in the ring. He then returned to the ring. Savage turned heel and laid out Hogan backstage. With his heel turn, Sherri Martel was brought in as Savage’s new heel manager. Sherri eventually turned on Savage and Elizabeth, who was shown watching the match concerned from the crowd entered the ring and physically threw Martel out of the ring. Savage and Miss Elizabeth reunited at WrestleMania VII, in what was one of the greatest moments in WWE history.
Savage then entered into a color commentary position, in building up his proposal and marriage to Elizabeth at the 1991 SummerSlam pay-per-view.
In October 1994, Savage left the WWF to sign with rival WCW. During his run in WCW, Savage had great feuds with Diamond Dallas Page, Hulk Hogan and among others. He would eventually turn heel and join the NWO. After WCW was acquired by the WWF in March of 2001, he did voiceover work, including Disney’s “Bolt.” He made also charity several appearances. He had a short stint in then TNA Wrestling and left due to creative differences. He had a long dispute with Vince McMahon and management. WWE had no interest in bringing him back and he no interest to return.
WWE released a DVD documentary, Macho Man: The Randy Savage Story, in November 2014. Despite a strained relationship over the years with the WWE, the DVD documentary featured interviews with Savage’s brother, Lanny Poffo and his mother, with Poffo giving insight to many of the rumors and denying some of the negative things other wrestlers said in the documentary about Savage, including his relationship with Elizabeth. Savage was never inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame during his lifetime.
Savage did eventually get inducted into the WWE Hall of Famer in 2015.
There is so much more that could be written. The above is a short overview of the storied career of “Macho Man” Randy Savage.
Share your favorite memories of Randy Savage in the comments section below.
Source: Wikipedia and its sources.
Below are some additional memorable moments from the jealousy storyline between Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage.