Image via Complex Original
Most people, when they hear the song “Pomp and Circumstance,” will think of graduation—of hundreds of robes and caps plodding together in unison. But all self-respecting professional wrestling fans immediately think of something quite different. They see a loud, muscular, dangerous looking dude. They hear a gravelly, deep voice that alternates between screaming and hissing. Visions of flying elbows dance in their heads. Because “Pomp and Circumstance” is "Macho Man" Randy Savage’s entrance music. And there was no one more badass, more unique, more charismatic, and more talented to ever lace up a pair of boots.
This year, the WWE is correcting a longstanding wrong. They’re inducting Savage into the WWE Hall of Fame, and paying tribute to a man who, along with Hulk Hogan, shaped professional wrestling into the global phenomenon that it is today. In honor of the late high flyer, we’re taking A Look Back at Randy Savage’s Hall of Fame Career—the matches, promos, commercials, and feuds that made him an '80s and early '90s icon. He was taken from us way too soon, but the beat goes on.
All in the Family
Date: 1978
Macho meter: UH-HUH!
The Macho Man is actually a second-generation wrestler. His dad is Angelo John Poffo, a wrestler from the '60s and '70s who held the NWA United States Heavyweight belt and the NWA World Tag Team Championship Belt. Poffo started International Championship Wrestling, a promotion based out of Kentucky, which competed with NWA promotions on a regular basis. It was here that a young Randy Savage cut his teeth, often teaming up and squaring off against his younger brother Lanny. In a little over five years, however, the family owned operation shut down, and Savage would move on to bigger, better things.
The King Meets the Macho King
Date: 1985
Macho meter: YEAHH!
Savage hit the Memphis circuit, where he met up with WWE Legend (and Andy Kaufman bitchslapper) Jerry "The King" Lawler, and joined up with Lawler’s CWA promotion. It was here that Savage really started getting people’s attention as a high flyer and consummate athlete. He concluded his Memphis run with a "Loser Leaves Town" match against Lawler. Their paths wouldn’t cross again until seven years later, when Lawler would also sign with the WWE as a heel commentator.
Introducing the Lovely Miss Elizabeth
Date: 1985
Macho meter: YEAHH!
Savage signed with the WWE soon afterwards, and he introduced us to his manager and real life wife, Miss Elizabeth. A beautiful brunette with doe eyes and elegant gowns, Elizabeth was the "damsel in distress" for the Macho Man’s early storylines. A jealous Savage would always come to her rescue (whether she needed it or not!), and it remains one of WWE’s most convincing, compelling love angles. Any fan of the WWE knows that a match is more than the sum of its physical moves. It’s about telling a compelling story, and Miss Elizabeth was a perfect catalyst for so many of professional wrestling’s classic tales.
The Greatest Professional Wrestling Match of All Time
Date: 1987
Macho meter: OOOH YEAHHH!!
This is it: Steamboat versus Savage at Wrestlemania III. The greatest professional wrestling match of all time. It has been said so many times, by so many people, on so many occasions. It’s gotten to the point where every now and then, you’ll have someone who wants to be a contrarian.
But no. This is the pinnacle of what professional wrestling can and should be. The athleticism, the grace, the speed, the beautiful arm drags. The selling on both sides. And much of the praise for this classic belongs to Savage. He was an obsessive perfectionist, and unlike some old school wrestlers, who might improvise and call spots in the ring, Savage insisted upon practicing the entire match beforehand, multiple times, to make sure it was perfect.
The Cream of the Crop
Date: 1987
Macho meter: OOOH YEAHHH!!
Before Bray Wyatt, before C.M. Punk, before The Rock, the Macho Man owned the mic. He was a cross between Animal from The Muppet Show and the Ultimate Warrior on amphetamines, and Mean Gene’s sour, serious face was the perfect foil. Every Macho Man promo was an event unto itself. They were always intense, always funny, and always incoherent. What does it all mean? “Nobody knows what it means, but it’s PROVOCATIVE! Gets the people GOING…”
Champion of the World
Date: 1988
Macho meter: OOOHYEAHHH!!
Ted Dibiase was THE villain to hate in the late 80’s—a greedy one percenter who just didn’t give a damn about you, or me, or anyone else. But when he tried to buy the WWE Championship belt from Andre the Giant, it set up a classic elimination tournament at Wrestlemania IV. Savage met DiBiase in the finals, and with the help of Hogan and a well-timed chair shot, Savage won the WWE title for the first of two times. Savage and Hogan became fast friends, and would go on to dominate the WWE as the Mega Powers.
The Mega Break-Up
Date: 1989
Macho meter: YEAHH!
But there was trouble in paradise. After a strong, dominant run, the cracks started showing, and they formed around (you guessed it!) the lovely Miss Elizabeth. In a case of art imitating real life, Savage became insanely jealous, and began worrying that Hogan would steal Elizabeth away from him. The tensions simmered for months, but they finally boiled over at The Main Event, when Miss Elizabeth was injured at ringside, and Hogan carried her backstage. Things got a bit convoluted from there. But to cut to the quick, Savage decked Hogan with the belt, which set up an epic showdown at Wrestlemania V.
The Dream Fight
Date: 1989
Macho meter: YEAHH!!
Hogan versus Savage at Wrestlemania V. No, it wasn’t a master class in technical wrestling, but everything—the jealousy, the anger, the competitiveness—peaked at the Trump Plaza, in front of close to 19,000 fans. The match ended like most Hogan matches do, with a "Hulk Up," a Big Boot, and a Leg Drop, but star power and backstory were more than enough to propel this match into the stratosphere.
Macho Madness Goes to Parts Unknown
Date: 1991
Macho meter: YEAHH!
You’ve probably noticed that Savage tends to lose at Wrestlemania. But that’s because the man’s a team player. Unlike many of his colleagues, who would refuse to put the new guy over (we’re looking at you, Hogan), Savage knew what the fans wanted. At Wrestlemania VII, Savage jobbed to the Ultimate Warrior, a future WWE Legend on his way up. The best wrestlers know how to sell a loss just as well as a win, and Savage was a class act in this regard.
Defending His Lady's Honor
Date: 1992
Macho meter: OOOH YEAHHH!!
They don’t call him "the dirtiest player in the game" for nothing, but Ric Flair really outdid himself in the lead up to Wrestlemania VIII. Flair spread the worst rumor possible, at least from Savage’s perspective—that before Elizabeth was with him, she was with Flair. The Nature Boy backed this up with doctored photos and threats that he would reveal nude photos. That part never did come true, much to many fans’ chagrin, but the intensity of the match itself made up for it.
Snap Into a Slim Jim!
Date: 1993
Macho meter: YEAHH!
In hindsight, there was no better possible spokesman for Slim Jims than the Macho Man. It’s beef jerky, which is certainly the manliest, most macho snack ever created. Tons of kids bought the sticks of ‘mechanically separated’ meat (for real — check the ingredients) in droves. One negative though — every kid was sorely disappointed when he ‘snapped into a Slim Jim,’ and the room didn’t explode.
Return of the Macho Man
Date: 1995
Macho meter: YEAHH!
Eventually, Macho Man had enough of being a WWE commentator, and he left the announcer’s table to join up with WCW. It didn’t take very long for the Macho Man to make an impact—he got tied up in another feud with Ric Flair, winning the WCW Heavyweight belt for the first time at World War 3, and then again at Nitro a couple of months later. Half a year later, however, everything changed. Savage was on the receiving end of a Hogan leg drop, a shocking heel turn that sparked the nWo, and kicked off the Monday Night Wars against the WWE.
Slobberknocker at Halloween Havoc
Date: 1997
Macho meter: OOOH YEAHHH!!
Randy Savage and Diamond Dallas Page had one of the most memorable rivalries of the late '90s. DDP won the No Disqualification match at Spring Stampede, and Savage won the Falls Count Anywhere match at The Great American Bash. The rubber match was this brutal display at Halloween Havoc—a Las Vegas Death Match that abruptly ended when DDP took a bat to the ribs.
The Final Title Run
Date: 1999
Macho meter: UH-HUH!
The Macho Man’s fourth title run was short—a single damn day, before he lost the title back to Hogan. It was a final disappointment for the Savage faithful—as intense and dedicated as he was, it seemed as though the brass (or Hogan himself) were hesitant to let him run with the ball. He wrestled his final match in WCW in 2000, and then disappeared for four years. He resurfaced at TNA in 2004, but left after a couple of months due to health problems. And this time, he never stepped into a ring again, which was probably for the best. Maybe he only signed with TNA because his rap career failed...
Spittin' Bars?!
Date: 2003
Macho meter: UH-HUH!
Yeah. This happened, and we all stood by and let it happen. Randy Savage cut an entire rap album, including a diss song targeted at Hulk Hogan. But again, there’s something about the Macho Man’s charisma that gives the worst ideas some entertainment value. After all, we’re talking about a guy who made dressing like a Las Vegas cowboy seem cool. This album is more funny than cringeworthy. Give it a spin—it may not be a five mic classic, but it’s entertaining as all hell.
Savage and WWE Squash the Beef
Date: 2011
Macho meter: YEAHH!
For years, the Macho Man disappeared from public view. He was one of those celebrities who, when he decides to retire, actually does it. But in 2011, we were shocked to see Randy Savage on video, cutting a promo for the WWE All-Stars video game. It was the first time that Savage had worked with the WWE in over a decade, and even though his beard had turned completely white, he still had the same intensity. Unfortunately, Savage died later that year in a car accident (brought on by a heart attack), and fans were left with the aggravating question of what could have been.
In the Hall of Fame, Finally
Date: 2015
Macho meter: OOOH YEAHHH!!
This was so overdue, that it became something of an embarrassment. How could the WWE have a Hall of Fame, and not induct the Macho Man? For years, the rumors swirled. Some were worse than others—the worst one was that Macho Man had banged an underage Stephanie McMahon. But finally the truth came out—the WWE had invited Macho Man to be inducted numerous times, but he had declined, because he wanted his entire Poffo wrestling family to be inducted alongside him. But today, now that Savage has passed away, the Poffo family made the difficult decision to go against his wishes—to induct Savage by himself, so that the fans could celebrate his career. And what a career it was.
