Randall Mario Poffo (November 15, 1952 – May 20, 2011),[1][5] better known by his ring name “Macho Man” Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler and actor best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He also had a short run with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and is a ten-time world champion: a two-time WWF Champion,[6] four-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion,[7] three-time ICW World Heavyweight Champion and one-time USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion.[8] Also a one-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, WWE has named Savage the greatest champion of all time and credited him for bringing “a higher level of credibility to the title through his amazing in-ring performances.”[9] Aside from championships, Savage is the 1987 WWF King of the Ring and the 1995 WCW World War 3 winner. For much of his tenures in the WWF and WCW, he was managed by his real life wife, “Miss Elizabeth” Hulette.[1] Savage was recognizable by wrestling fans for his distinctively deep and raspy voice, his ring attire (often comprising sunglasses, a bandana or head band, flashy robes, and a cowboy hat), intensity exhibited in and out of the ring, and his signature catch phrase (“Ooh yeah!”).[1] The WWE has said of Savage, “Few Superstars were as dynamic as “Macho Man” Randy Savage . His style — perfectly punctuated by his entrance music, ‘Pomp and Circumstance’ — was only outshined by his performances in the ring.”[2] Contents 1 Personal life 2 Career 2.1 Early career 2.2 World Wrestling Federation (1985–1994) 2.2.1 Early heel push (1985) 2.2.2 Intercontinental Champion (1986–1987) 2.2.3 The Mega Powers (1987–1989) 2.2.4 Macho King and “retirement” (1989–1991) 2.2.5 Return and feud with Jake “The Snake” Roberts (1991–1992) 2.2.6 Feud with Ric Flair 2.2.7 Teaming with Ultimate Warrior 2.2.8 Color commentator, various feuds and departure (1993–1994) 2.3 World Championship Wrestling (1994–1999) 2.3.1 Sporadic feuds (1994–1996) 2.3.2 NWO member (1997–1998) 2.3.3 Feuds for the World Title and departure (1998–1999) 2.4 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2004–2005) 2.4.1 In ring return and departure (2004-2005) 2.5 WWE DVD collection (2009) 2.6 WWE Defining Moments and WWE All Stars Video Game 3 In wrestling 4 Championships and accomplishments 5 Career outside of wrestling 5.1 Acting career 5.1.1 Television 5.1.2 Film 5.1.3 Animated series/films 5.1.4 Music 6 Death 7 References 8 External links Personal life Poffo was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Judy and Angelo Poffo. His father was Italian American and his mother was Jewish.[10] His younger brother is former professional wrestler Lanny Poffo, better known by his ring names “The Genius” and “Leaping Lanny Poffo.” He is a graduate of Downers Grove North High School in a suburb near Chicago, Illinois. He attended Southern Illinois University and graduated in 1971. He later moved to Lexington, Ky and lived there for many years.[11] Savage married Elizabeth Ann Hulette on December 30, 1984. She later became his valet in the WWF; however, they separated in the summer of 1992 and their divorce was finalized on September 18, 1992. Elizabeth Hulette was found dead in the home of professional wrestler Lex Luger on May 1, 2003, from a drug overdose. According to a 2003 shoot interview with Savage’s brother, Lanny Poffo, Savage had no animosity towards Luger, and felt that Elizabeth brought about her own death due to her drug use. On May 10, 2010, Savage married his long time girlfriend, Lynn Payne, making it his second marriage. Career Early career Savage was a second-generation professional wrestler; his father Angelo Poffo was a well-known wrestler in the 1950s and 1960s, who was featured in Ripley’s Believe It or Not! for his ability to do sit-ups for hours on end.[10] Randy’s brother Lanny had a moderately successful career as a wrestler, too, most notably under the names “Leaping Lanny Poffo” and “The Genius.”[10] After college, Randy was a minor league baseball outfielder[12] in the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, and Chicago White Sox farm systems.[3] He injured his natural (right) throwing shoulder at one point so he learned to throw with his left arm instead. The team was managed by Jimmy Piersall.[13] Randy’s last season was 1974, when he played for the Tampa Tarpons.[12] Savage first broke into the wrestling business in 1973 during the fall and winter of the baseball off season.[1] His first wrestling character, “The Spider Friend”, was similar to Spider-Man.[1] He later took the ring name Randy Savage at the suggestion of Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW) booker Ole Anderson, who said that the name Poffo didn’t fit someone who “wrestled like a savage”.[1] Savage eventually decided to end his baseball career and become a full time wrestler, working with his brother and father.[1] He wrestled his first match against Midwest territory wrestler the “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.[4] After a while, his father felt that his sons were not getting the pushes they deserved so he started the “outlaw” International Championship Wrestling (ICW) promotion in the mid-American states.[3] Eventually, ICW disbanded and Randy and Lanny entered the Memphis scene, joining Jerry Lawler’s Continental Wrestling Association (their former competitors). While there, Savage feuded with Lawler over the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship. He also teamed with Lanny to battle The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express; this feud included one infamous match on June 25, 1984 in Memphis, where in the storyline, Savage injured Ricky Morton by piledriving him through the timekeeper’s table, leading to the Express winning by disqualification. Later in 1984, Savage turned babyface and allied with Lawler against Jimmy Hart’s First Family stable, only to turn heel on Lawler again in early 1985 and resume the feud with him over the title.[1] This ended when Lawler beat Savage in a Loser Leaves Town match on June 8 in Memphis, Tennessee.[1] World Wrestling Federation (1985–1994) Early heel push (1985) In June 1985, Savage signed with Vince McMahon’s World Wrestling Federation (WWF). One of Savage’s first appearances was on Tuesday Night Titans, in which several established WWF managers (including Bobby Heenan, Jimmy Hart, and “Classy” Freddie Blassie) offered their services to Savage.[3] He eventually declined their offers and chose Miss Elizabeth as his new manager.[3][4] His gimmick was a crazed, egomaniacal bully who would mistreat Miss Elizabeth and threaten anyone who even looked at her. He made his pay-per-view (PPV) debut at The Wrestling Classic on November 7, 1985, participating in a sixteen man tournament. He defeated Ivan Putski,[14][15] Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat,[14] and the Dynamite Kid[14][15] before losing by a countout in the finals to Junkyard Dog.[14][15] Intercontinental Champion (1986–1987) Savage (right) in a wrestling match. In late 1985, Savage started a feud with Intercontinental Champion Tito Santana over that title. On the November 2, 1985 edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event, he unsuccessfully challenged Santana for the title (Savage won the match by countout but not the title because a title does not change hands by countout).[16] In a rematch on the February 24, 1986 (taped February 
edition of Prime Time Wrestling, he won the WWF Intercontinental title at the Boston Garden by using an illegal steel object stashed in his tights to knock out Santana.[17][18] Early in his WWF career, Savage also won two countout victories in Madison Square Garden over his future tag team partner WWF Champion Hulk Hogan (although the belt did not change hands due to the countout) as well as engaging in historic feuds with Bruno Sammartino and George “The Animal” Steele.[4] Savage’s feud with Steele began on the January 4, 1986 edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event, when Steele developed a crush on Miss Elizabeth.[19] At WrestleMania 2, Savage defeated Steele in a match to retain his Intercontinental title.[20] Another major title challenger was Jake “The Snake” Roberts, with whom he battled to a double disqualification on the November 29, 1986 edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event.[21] He resumed his feud with George Steele in early 1987, culminating in two Intercontinental title matches, both won by Savage.[22][23] Savage wrestled in what is widely considered to be one of the greatest matches in North American wrestling history when he faced Ricky Steamboat at WrestleMania III in the Pontiac Silverdome. The match was the culmination of a long and bitter feud (which saw Savage crush Steamboat’s larynx), and featured tremendous athleticism and in-ring storytelling. After nineteen two-counts, Steamboat pinned Savage (with help from George Steele, who pushed Savage from the top rope seconds before he was pinned) to end his near 14 month reign as Intercontinental champion.[24][25] The match was extremely choreographed, as opposed to the “on the fly” nature of most wrestling matches at the time.[1] Savage was a stickler for detail, and he and Steamboat laid out and rehearsed every spot in the match prior to WrestleMania, at his home in Florida.[1] The highly influential match was considered an instant classic by both fans and critics and was named 1987′s Match of the Year by both Pro Wrestling Illustrated and the Wrestling Observer. Steamboat and Randy Savage were seen cheering with and hugging other wrestlers after the match.[4][1] The Mega Powers (1987–1989) Main article: The Mega Powers Savage won the King of the Ring tournament later in 1987.[26][27] As the fans were drawn toward his charisma and in-ring ability, he began to turn face, becoming less hostile towa
‘macho man’ savage dead at 58
Randy “Macho Man” Savage, the professional wrestler known for his raspy voice, the sunglasses and bandanas he wore in the ring and the young woman named Read the rest
pro wrestler randy ‘macho man’ savage dies in car
Pro wrestling superstar Randy “Macho Man” Savage died after having a heart attack while driving his Jeep Wrangler, Fox News confirms. The accident happened Read the rest
macho man randy savage dies in car accident at 58
All-time pro wrestling great Randy (Macho Man) Savage died in a Florida car wreck Friday morning after suffering an apparent heart attack behind the wheel Read the rest
randy ‘macho man’ savage dead at 58
Tampa Bay, Fla. — Pro wrestler Randy “Macho Man” Savage, 58, was killed Friday morning in Florida when the Jeep he was driving jumped a median and hit a tree, the Read the rest
police wrestler known as randy ‘macho man’ savage
Randy “Macho Man” Savage, the professional wrestler known for his raspy voice, the sunglasses and bandanas he wore in the ring and the young woman named Read the rest
quot;macho manquot; randy savage dies in car accident
(CBS) Professional wrestler “Macho Man” Randy Savage has died. He was 58. The wrestling legend died in a car accident on Friday in Tampa, Fla. His brother Read the rest
former wrestler ‘macho man’ randy savage dead after
Former well-known wrestler ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage died Friday morning after having a heart attack while driving in Seminole. According to the Florida Read the rest
macho man randy savage dies in car accident
Macho Man Randy Savage — one of the greatest wrestlers of all-time — died today in a car accident in Tampa, Florida TMZ has learned. TMZ spoke with Read the rest
randy savage wikipedia the free encyclopedia
Randall Mario Poffo (November 15, 1952 – May 20, 2011), better known by his ring name “Macho Man” Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler and actor best Read the rest
the official macho man website
The official home of Macho Man on the web. Read the rest
