After I finished my last entry in this blog, I had the next few mapped out in my head. For the first time, a few of them were going to have a general arc. And that arc would be very much about the Macho Man. I am getting to the point in my pay per view journey where Macho Man became a HUGE part of the success of WWF. At least for a couple of years. Well, I still plan on writing those entries, but the sad news of "Macho Man" Randy Savage's passing earlier today makes me feel as if I have to derail a bit and write a general reflection/tribute on one of the true greats of the business.
I don't get phased easily by "celebrity" deaths. But when I was walking to lunch today and got the text that the Macho Man had died, I have to say I was stunned. I've stated over and over again here that I have been a WWF/E fan basically my entire life. I probably saw Macho Man on my TV once a week for at least 5-6 years. With the absolutely absurd amount of wrestlers passing at a too young age, it SHOULDN'T have come as a surprise. But it did. And as silly as it sounds, I felt like a piece of my childhood had just been yanked from me.
I'm sure a ton will be written about Randy Savage in the wake of his death, so I will try not to delve too far into the realm of cliche here. That having been said, it's interesting to consider what made Macho Man one of the all time greats. It is probably fair to say that he faltered for the last few years of his career (look, we're being honest here), but man...for a period of maybe 2-4 years, there was arguably no one better.
His in ring work was certainly a part of it. He was a fine mat based wrestler but was also decidly more aerial than a lot of the musclebound bodybuilder types in WWF at the time. I remember one spot in particular that he did nearly every match. He would have his opponent's neck draped across the top rope, and then hit the ropes and do a running leap over the top rope to the floor, thereby creating the effect of crushing his opponent's throat across the rope. I remember thinking then (and now while I rewatch these shows) that this was an incredibly agile move compared to the standard punch/kick stuff a lot of the matches on those cards had to offer. Basically, while he may not have been revolutionary in the ring, he was just very very good, and different enough to really stand out at the right time. According to written accounts, he also developed a reputation at this time for being a relentless perfectionist. He wanted to choreograph all of his big matches thoroughly and completely. Legend has it that before his match with Ricky Steamboat, which I discuss in an earlier entry, he had Steamboat down to his house in Florida several weeks before the match to begin preparing. I'm not sure if this was a huge factor in his success, but I'm quite sure it probably didn't hurt. Ultimately (at least to me), none of his great matches during the peak of his success looked OVERLY prepared. Just well written and tight.
Everyone who is REALLY familiar with the Macho Man knows it was his charisma that sky rocketed him to the top though. He was loud, wore bright outfits, entered the ring to the strains of the graduation anthem "Pomp and Circumstance" and when Macho Man spoke YOU LISTENED. Even though, as a couple of the promos I've posted prove, sometimes it wasn't clear what on Earth he was talking about. But I guess that's what people talk about when they say someone has "it". You can't turn away even if you don't quite understand what is going on. They have far too much charisma. That was Randy Savage to a tee.
Of course, like a lot of professional wrestlers, he also had some epic flameouts. When he came on the scene in the WWF, he was managed by his real life wife, Miss Elizabeth. Elizabeth was also an important figure in wrestling, being easily the most popular female in the business up to that time, and arguably still one of the most popular of all time. But that's a topic for another entry. Eventually, Randy and Elizabeth got divorced, and it seemed to really signal a fork for them both. He landed in WCW after his amazing WWF run, but its' kind of tough to pinpoint many great Macho Man WCW matches. He still cut some great, whacky promos, but (to me at least) the fire seemed to go out a bit at that point in terms of his matches and work. And then of course, as anyone who follows ironic internet trends knows, he decided to record an ill advised rap album in 2003. But once again, even though it was certainly about as far from good as a rap album can be, it was still entertaining in a (VERY) weird sort of way. That was just the Macho Man. not everything he did was "good", per se, but he was never ever boring. He will be sorely missed by all true wrestling fans. Rest in Peace Brother. OHHHHHHH YEAAHHHHH. BOW TO THE KINGDOM OF THE MADNESSSSS.
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