The history of professional wrestling has no shortage of brothers, cousins, and other family members who were related to notable professional wrestlers but did not reach the heights of their more famous counterparts. Joining wrestlers like Horace Hogan, David Flair and Greg Gagne is “Leaping” Lanny Poffo, the brother of Macho Man Randy Savage.
Of course, fans know the story of Randy Savage, who rose to fame in the mid-1980s. WWE and became not only a megastar, but a pop culture icon. Lanny Poffo was there too, and fans of the time certainly remember her antics. Let’s take a look at Poffo’s life and career and what modern fans should know about him.
10 A second generation fighter
One of the most hidden facts about Lanny Poffo and his brother is that they are actually second-generation talents. His father was Angelo Poffo, a wrestler and promoter who made his debut in 1949 and spent much of his career as a midcarder.
Born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in 1954 and raised in his father’s birthplace of Downers Grove, Illinois, Lanny Poffo’s in-ring debut came in 1974, wrestling for the Atlanta-based All-South Wrestling Alliance. . Lanny spent much of his early career teaming up with his father.
Founded in 1978 and with shows in several southern states, Angelo Poffo’s International Championship Wrestling was not affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance and regularly competed against it, earning the label of being an “outlaw promotion”.
Lanny Poffo would join ICW a year after his debut and enjoy much success there, capturing numerous titles, including three ICW Heavyweight Championship reigns, and would share the ring with his brother on multiple occasions, often fighting for said title. .
8 Tagged with his brother
However, Lanny Poffo didn’t just compete with Randy Savage, they also teamed up. In 1983, Savage moved from ICW to Memphis’ Continental Wrestling Association, followed by Poffo in mid-1984. There, they teamed up as a duo and entered into a rivalry with one of the top tag teams of the 1980s, The Rock’ n’Roll Express.
Savage and Poffo’s time together in the CWA would last for about a year, with rivalries against Eddie Gilbert and Tommy Rich and the Fabulous Ones before Randy Savage signed with WWE in mid-1985.
7 Became “Leaping” in WWE
Lanny Poffo immediately followed his brother into WWE and made his television debut in mid-July 1985, though their family relationship was never mentioned in kayfabe.
While Randy Savage was establishing himself as a major badass, “Leaping” Lanny Poffo was a billboard middleman known for throwing Frisbees at fans and reciting poetry that often made fun of the villains he was up against. Poffo wrote the poems, and this particular talent would come into play several times throughout his life.
6 The first WWE star to do a Moonsault
When it came to in-ring skills, even as a supporting actor as he was during this run, Lanny Poffo stood out among the rest of the WWE roster, many of whom were power wrestlers.
Poffo, on the other hand, displayed an impressive amount of athleticism for his time, and is credited as the first wrestler to execute a Moonsault in WWE. However, he did not innovate in the movement; that honor is attributed to Mando Guerrero, brother of Eddie Guerrero.
5 Repackaged as The Genie
In the spring of 1989, Lanny Poffo underwent a sea change in which he was repackaged as a new character, The Genius. Clad in a graduation cap and gown, the overconfident genius pretended to be an intellectual superior like Damien Sandow a quarter-century later.
With the revamp, Poffo began appearing on television more, enjoying feuds with Koko B. Ware, Jim Powers, and a feud with Brutus Beefcake that ended with Beefcake cutting The Genius’s hair. But his greatest moment would come in an episode of Saturday Night Main Event when he earned a countout victory over Hulk Hogan.
4 worked as a manager
That aforementioned win over Hogan would be impossible without Mr. Perfect, who The Genius aligned with after his heel turn. Poffo basically became Mr. Perfect’s manager and occasionally tag team partner, though The Genius was often referred to as a “consultant” to the more successful star.
However, Mr. Perfect was not Poffo’s only client. After he ended his alliance with Perfect, The Genius went on to manage The Beverly Brothers and occasionally joined them in six-man tag team matches.
3 Signed with WCW for five years
Lanny Poffo would leave WWE in 1992, eventually signing with rival World Championship Wrestling in 1995 at the urging of his brother. Randy Savage wanted to give his brother the Gorgeous George gimmick that Savage had bought from the influential legend, but for some reason this never came to fruition.
In fact, despite training and bleaching his hair for the role, Lanny Poffo was never seen on WCW television, despite being signed to a contract and receiving paychecks for some five years. Reportedly, Poffo only wrestled one match for the company, a dark match on an episode of WCW Saturday night.
two Active in business in the 2010s
After his WCW contract ended, Lanny Poffo took several years out of the sport in the early 2000s. In January 2005, Poffo made his return to wrestling as part of the nostalgia show. FightGatheringand continued to wrestle in independent shows until 2020.
In addition to appearances at the 2015 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony and accompanying Jay Lethal to the ring at the proto-AEW show all insidePoffo also did some commentary for New Japan Pro-Wrestling and Ring of Honor.
1 He is also a published writer
As mentioned above, Lanny Poffo’s penchant for poetry and limericks came into play with the publication of two books of poetry, many of which were intended to steer children away from drugs, alcohol, and tobacco.
In spheres more relevant to wrestling, Poffo collaborated on a comic book biography of himself for Inverse Press and has written several articles for the website. pro wrestling stories. Several of her articles for the latter are responses to documentaries about his brother, including dark side of the ring Y A&E Biography episodes about him.