There have been many King of the Ring winners, but none managed to capture the bravado and display sheer exuberance like “Macho Man” Randy Savage. Savage won the coveted tournament in 1987. His coronation, however, would have to wait till the September 30, 1989, episode of WWF Superstars. ‘The Macho King’ had defeated Jim Duggan for the King of the Ring title on September 23.
Macho Man shows up, Marge Schott shows him the door
Many fans may not know, but Savage found himself in a rather peculiar situation two nights prior to his victory over Duggan. As CBS Sports’ Senior Manager of Production Denny Burkholder recalls, Savage showed up at the Cincinnati Reds booth on September 21, 1989. Of course, who wouldn’t notice a jacked dude wearing purple and gold tights with a crown on his head at a baseball game?
It didn’t take the Macho Man much time to get all the attention of fans and players alike, with ‘Eric the Red’ Davis flexing his muscles at the soon-to-be ‘Macho King’. Then, (now-former) Reds owner Marge Schott registered her protest by sending her nephew Stephen H. Schott to have Savage removed from the booth.
The pressing demand was, at first, met with retaliation by Marty Brennaman, who said: “Don’t you ever try to intimidate me again. And if you have something to say, say it yourself!” (h/t espn1530).
Davis, on the other hand, would criticize Schott’s actions publicly. “Macho Man is a celebrity,” he said. “If it had been somebody from pet control, Schott wouldn’t have minded.” He continued, “She says she wants to entertain the fans and then she deprives them of this?” (h/t Matt Snyder of CBS Sports).
Here’s a bit of trivia for those unaware: Savage (as Randy Poffo) was actually a minor league baseball player before his in-ring days. He had his final season as a player with the Reds organization in 1974 before transitioning to wrestling full-time. The rest, as they say, is history.
Becoming The Macho King
Savage introduced fans to his Macho King gimmick on Sept. 30. The coronation segment saw ‘Mr. Perfect’ Curt Hennig, Bobby Heenan, and the Brain Busters (Arn Anderson And Tully Blanchard) in the ring. Savage’s real-life brother Lanny Poffo (aka The Genius) read the proclamation. The “Million Dollar Man” Ted TiBiase presented The Macho King with a scepter, while Sherri became “Queen Sherri.”
Savage would continue to wrestle under The Macho King gimmick till 1991. He’d drop it shortly after suffering defeat at the hands of The Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VII.
Also read: Macho Man Randy Savage’s Best Matches In WCW
