In a really odd change of pace, the documentary opens up with news reports covering Randy Savage’s death and Lanny Poffo talking about the brother he lost. It set the tone of the DVD as a somber recap of “The Macho Man’s” life. A short summary of Angelo Poffo’s career and life gives a great look into what Savage would strive for during his career. After a 4-year run in the minor leagues, Savage gave up on his dream to be a professional ball player to pursue a career in pro-wrestling.
Its pretty surprising to hear that the last thing to fall in place for the “Macho Man” character were his promos. He wasn’t comfortable with the camera in his face and it’s easy to see in some of his early interviews. Before long that problem was laid to rest and in 1985, Savage was recruited for the WWF bringing his new wife Elizabeth with him. While she was not the first choice for Randy Savage’s manager, one screen test in Connecticut was all it took for Vince McMahon to green-light the “Macho Man”/Miss Elizabeth pairing.
A great addition to the documentary was the bonus video footage that was added before & after some of his promos. You get a brief glimpse into the real Randy as he would be getting ready for an interview and be nervous as hell. Or after when he’d be selling an injury until he was back behind the curtain. It might seem small but it showed the reality of a time when everything seemed glossy and over the top.
The true controversy comes forth when discussing the off-screen relationship between Savage and his wife at the time, Miss Elizabeth. Many of the officials or Superstars of the era (Pat Patterson/Ted DiBiase) all share stories of Randy’s obsession and paranoia when it came to his wife. There’s numerous stories of Savage getting Elizabeth her own dressing room where she changed by herself, walked to the ring during Savage’s match & returned to seclusion after. One such story by Jimmy Hart recalled how Randy Savage had a week-long house show loop where Elizabeth was left off. He apparently bought enough frozen dinners for Elizabeth to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner during the entire time Randy was gone so Elizabeth didn’t have to leave the house. Lanny Poffo, Savage’s brother, denies all of these claims and stands by the idea that Elizabeth was allowed to leave the house, have friends and live her own life. Unfortunately, it was Randy’s paranoia that led Elizabeth to file for divorce & disappear from Savage’s live a few years later. It was separation from Elizabeth and the toll it took on the “Macho Man’s” psyche that trigger his move to commentary.
After a year behind the mic, Randy Savage felt he was ready to get back into the ring and even laid out a 2-year storyline to wrap-up his career against a strong, young upstart named Shawn Michaels. It was the denial of this feud that led him to not resign with the WWF and move to WCW.
The hardest part to watch was Randy’s friends and former co-workers talk about the “Macho Man’s” death. Just seeing, and hearing, the pain in so many men’s faces and voices is enough to easily bring a tear to your eye. It gets even harder when Hulk Hogan reveals that a month after Savage’s death, Hogan returned to the doctor he and Savage shared for a checkup. It was then that the doctor told Hogan about how Savage denied a heart test just a month earlier that would have shown the heart defect that caused Savage’s heart attack. If he had taken the test, Randy Savage may still be alive today and not dead at the age of 58.
A little more than 90 minutes long, “Macho Man: The Randy Savage Story” is one of those DVDs that should be sitting on every wrestling fans’ shelf. If there is any doubt in anyone’s mind that Randy Savage will never get into the WWE Hall Of Fame, this documentary will put that talk to rest. A great tribute to the man as well as the wrestler we all knew and loved, “Macho Man: The Randy Savage Story” is an absolute 5-star BUY.
Match Listing For Discs 2 & 3:
Intercontinental Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat
Superstars • November 22, 1986
Lumberjack Match for the Intercontinental Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Bruno Sammartino
Boston Garden • February 7, 1987
Intercontinental Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat
Maple Leaf Gardens • February 15, 1987
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. “The King” Harley Race
Philadelphia, PA • September 18, 1987
Six-Man Tag Team Steel Cage Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage & Strike Force vs. Honky Tonk Man & The Hart Foundation
Boston Garden • March 5, 1988
WWE Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase
Boston Garden • July 9, 1988
Harlem Street Fight for the WWE Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Bad News Brown
Hamilton, Ontario • January 16, 1989
WWE Championship Match
Hulk Hogan vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Madison Square Garden • April 24, 1989
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. “Rowdy” Roddy Piper
Miami, FL • January 22, 1990
WWE Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Shawn Michaels
Munich, Germany • April 14, 1992
WWE Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. The Ultimate Warrior
SummerSlam • August 31, 1992
WWE Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair
Prime Time Wrestling • September 14, 1992
WCW Television Championship Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Arn Anderson
WCW Saturday Night • January 28, 1995
Steel Cage Match for the WCW Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair
WCW Superbrawl VI • February 11, 1996
Las Vegas Sudden Death Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Diamond Dallas Page
WCW Halloween Havoc • October 26, 1997
There’s also some Blu-Ray Exclusives:
Lumberjack Match for the WWE Championship
Hulk Hogan vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Madison Square Garden • February 17, 1986
Winner is the King of WWE
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan
Madison Square Garden • October 28, 1989
“Macho Man” Randy Savage & Sting vs. The Blue Bloods (Lord Steven Regal & Earl Robert Eaton)
WCW Saturday Night • September 9, 1995
“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Booker T
WCW Nitro • December 15, 1997
Blu-Ray Exclusive Stories
- Ambidextrous?
- Card Shark
- Fearing the Savage
- Getting into the WWE
- Snake Fixed?
- A Safety Net
- Hundred Dollar Bill Guy
- Jerusalem
- Highly Competitive
- No Days Off
- Cowboy Hats
- Part of the Team
- Shifting Gears
- Very Generous
- Thanksgiving Call
- Walking Away
- Michael Schmidt
- Macho Tip
