WCW was closed. The places for wrestlers to find a way to make a living doing what they loved had dried up. The wrestling boom was over, from a competition-standpoint. The Macho Man Randy Savage was no spring chicken when he was forced into retirement, nor was there truly an option for him to go elsewhere, given his distance with WWE's Vince McMahon. Looking for work, Randy Savage took some unusual detours along the path he was used to, including releasing a hip-hop album (which featured a Hulk Hogan diss track), and appearing as Bonesaw in the Spider-Man motion picture. Unfortunately for Randy, this appearance in the film would put a permanent hamper on his abilities to perform in a wrestling ring, as he provided his own stunts in the picture and landed roughly on his neck in a scene where he took a bump into the corner. His neck would never be the same, and after a brief appearance in TNA circa 2005, Savage had to call it quits due to his health. Randy was a talented wrestler but, according to many of his colleagues, something of a control freak. We fondly recall his on-screen marriage with Ms. Elizabeth, but behind the scenes it's said hed lock her away in dressing rooms so the other wrestlers would not look at her. Hed even teach her how to climb between the ropes without showing too much skin through meticulous methods that would make even Stanley Kubrick blush. Randy loved Liz beyond compare, but he drove her away with his off-kilt and emotionally-abusive ways of expressing affection. Likewise, his life-long feud with Hulk Hogan, whom he felt held him down throughout his career, boiled over into storylines where Randy was constantly denied his big win due to Hogans backstage political savvy and creative control in WCW. The important take-away from the retirement of Macho Man Randy Savage is that the man found peace. He remarried his long-time girlfriend from better days gone by. He had a wonderful family life with his parents and brother, "The Genius" Lanny Poffo. He made amends with his rivals like Hogan, and he acknowledged the mistakes he made in younger years. Macho Man died a happy man who understood and accepted the turns his life took, which is really the only thing any of us can ask for when our time comes.
David McCutcheon is an American freelance journalist and writing consultant. Over the course of sixteen years, he has written for the likes of IGN, Future US, GamesRadar, PlayStation Magazine, Shout! Factory, and many others in the fields of video games, movies, and more. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri with his wife. You can find him on Twitter @ZoopSoul.
