Hulk Hogan vs. Macho Man Randy Savage (Oct 1987 – Apr 1989)

Background

The Mega Powers began with a rescue. On the October 3, 1987 Saturday Night's Main Event, taped September 23 in Hershey, Pennsylvania, Randy Savage beat Intercontinental Champion The Honky Tonk Man by disqualification when Bret Hart broke up the pin.[22][1] Honky and the Hart Foundation then triple-teamed Savage, Honky shoved Elizabeth to the mat, and she ran backstage and came back with WWF Champion Hulk Hogan.[22]

Savage offered his hand, Hogan took it, and the three paraded around the ring.[1] Later that night, with Gene Okerlund backstage, Savage called them the Mega Powers for the first time, and Hogan said "the combination of 'Hulkamania' and 'Macho Madness' may become the most powerful force in WWF history."[1] The Observer had reported weeks earlier that the official Savage turn was coming at that taping, and when it aired, Meltzer called the angle the best thing the WWF had done all year.[25][26]

The next move was Hogan losing the title. On The Main Event on February 5, 1988, which drew 33 million viewers, a record for American televised wrestling, Andre the Giant beat Hogan with a crooked count from referee Earl Hebner, the twin brother of the assigned referee, Dave.[2][1] Andre handed the belt to Ted DiBiase, and WWF President Jack Tunney declared the title vacant and set a 14-man tournament for WrestleMania IV.[1]

Hogan was about to leave to film No Holds Barred, and stayed away from the company, with one exception, from WrestleMania IV through July.[8] Bruce Prichard has said there was debate over who should be the champion while he was gone, but that "Vince saw Randy as that next face of the company," adding that "the package of Randy and Elizabeth" made it attractive.[8] The Observer reported that the original plan for that same Main Event had Savage beating Honky Tonk Man for the Intercontinental Championship, but Honky refused to do the job.[27][9]

The Observer spent March 1988 working out the tournament's winner from clues. The brackets were rearranged after a week in a way that pointed to a Savage-DiBiase final, and a WWF Magazine caption calling Elizabeth "manager of the World Wrestling Federation champion Randy Savage" leaked the result so widely that ABC News ran it the night before the show.[29][30][31] Meltzer predicted Savage's reign would be short, since the company would want Hogan back on top for his movie, "because they don't make biographical movies about ex-champions."[28]

At WrestleMania IV on March 27, 1988 in Atlantic City, Savage beat Butch Reed, Greg Valentine, and the One Man Gang, while Hogan and Andre went out together on a double disqualification in the quarterfinals.[23] In the final, after Andre's interference, Savage whispered to Elizabeth and she ran to the back, returning with Hogan, who hit DiBiase with a chair while Savage was trapped in the Million Dollar Dream; Savage hit the flying elbow and pinned DiBiase at 9:17 to win the WWF Championship.[23][1]

Build-up

Savage drew as champion while Hogan was gone. The Observer reported in May 1988 that he was drawing already, including the second-biggest gate in the history of the Cow Palace, and that the main events on Saturday Night's Main Event were better with Savage than with Hogan.[33][32] By that July, Meltzer was writing that nobody was in a hurry to get the belt back on Hogan and that it probably shouldn't happen until WrestleMania V.[34]

SummerSlam 1988, on August 29 at Madison Square Garden, was Hogan's first TV match in three months and the Mega Powers' first televised match as a team.[23][1] Against the Mega Bucks, DiBiase and Andre, with Jesse Ventura as special referee, Elizabeth climbed on the apron and pulled off her skirt to reveal a one-piece swimsuit, and while the heels were distracted Savage hit the elbow and Hogan the leg drop on DiBiase.[23][4] When Ventura slowed the count, Savage slammed his arm down for the three at 13:57.[4][23] Prichard has said there was "push back about having Liz in the actual bikini."[8]

The WWF then started putting cracks in the team. Hogan began asking Elizabeth to come to the ring for his matches, which put her in harm's way and did not sit well with Savage.[3]

At Survivor Series on November 24 in Richfield, Ohio, Savage pinned the Red Rooster and DiBiase, and Hogan pinned Haku for the last fall, after Elizabeth took the handcuff keys from Slick to free Hogan from the ropes.[23] After the match, Savage looked upset at Hogan celebrating with Elizabeth, and Ventura played up Savage's anger in a post-match interview.[23][1] The Observer's review of the 29-minute match said it all came down to Savage shooting Hogan a dirty look at the end, which set up the WrestleMania main event.[35]

Saturday Night's Main Event XIX, taped December 7, 1988 in Tampa and aired January 7, 1989, turned it up.[23][11] Savage told Hogan he had his back, then watched from a dark corner of the locker room with Gene Okerlund. While the Twin Towers beat on Hogan with the referee down, Elizabeth ran back to find Savage, who kept saying Hogan would be okay and that he "had this covered."[11][23]

Hogan lost by disqualification when Big Boss Man hit him with the nightstick, and when Boss Man grabbed Elizabeth and cuffed her hand, Savage ran out with a chair and cleared the ring.[11] Ventura noted on commentary that the minute Elizabeth was in trouble, Savage came running, and that he smelled "a rat" in the Mega Powers.[11] Elizabeth then got upset with Savage, and he grabbed her when she tried to leave with Hogan.[11]

At the Royal Rumble on January 15 in Houston, Hogan threw out Savage and Bad News Brown together at 38:48.[24] Savage argued with Hogan until Elizabeth came to the ring and got the two to shake hands; backstage, Savage told Okerlund that cooler heads had prevailed, then argued he should have won the Rumble.[24] The Observer reported that the heat died once Hogan and Savage were out of the match.[36]

The Main Event II, live on NBC from the Bradley Center in Milwaukee on February 3, 1989, drew 20,000 fans and an 11.6 rating.[24] Akeem threw Savage through the ropes and onto Elizabeth, knocking her out, and Hogan carried her to the trainer's room, leaving Savage to fight the Twin Towers alone for several minutes.[1][3] When Hogan came back and reached for the tag, Savage slapped him and walked out with the belt, and Hogan won the match by himself at 22:00.[1][24]

Backstage, Savage was yelling that as champion he was tired of taking a back seat to Hogan and Elizabeth. When Hogan arrived, Savage accused him of trying to steal both Elizabeth and the belt, hit him in the face with the title, and threw Elizabeth aside before Brutus Beefcake and officials pulled him off.[1][3][24] The Observer reported that reaction was split, with Meltzer panning Hogan's acting but raving about Savage as the jealous madman.[37]

The build ran through the spring. Hogan told Okerlund he had no lust for Elizabeth and wanted a title shot; Savage showed edited footage he said proved otherwise, and Hogan answered with the full clips.[24][1] The Observer reported that Elizabeth was sent home until WrestleMania to sell the injury, and on the March 11 Saturday Night's Main Event she announced she'd be in a neutral corner.[38][24] At a February 17 house show in St. Louis, Savage came out before Hogan's cage match with Big Boss Man and took Elizabeth backstage with him.[24]

The Matches

WrestleMania V took place April 2, 1989, at the Atlantic City Convention Hall, promoted as Trump Plaza, and was billed as "the Mega Powers Explode."[3] It drew 18,946 fans, 17,500 of them paying, with Donald Trump at ringside and Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura on commentary.[24] It went head to head with WCW's free Clash of the Champions VI on TBS.[3]

Savage wrestled hurt. He had been hospitalized with an infected elbow and checked himself out to work the match with a heavy bandage on it, and the Observer reported that he skipped a planned tour of Italy afterward to have the staph infection drained.[5][44] Elizabeth stood in a neutral corner, and early on Savage hid behind her while Hogan chased him around the ring.[3]

Savage controlled long stretches, hitting a double axe handle off the top rope for a near-fall and working an armbar and a chinlock.[3] Hogan came back with clotheslines, elbow drops, and a big boot, then cornered Savage with punches and sent him to the floor.[3] When Hogan lifted Savage to ram him into the post, Elizabeth stepped in to stop it, Savage slipped free and rammed Hogan into the post instead, and referee Dave Hebner sent Elizabeth to the locker room.[3]

With Elizabeth gone, Savage hit another double axe handle, a hotshot, an elbow to the throat on the apron, and a knee drop for a near-fall.[3] He climbed to the top and hit the flying elbow, but Hogan kicked out at two.[24] Hogan hulked up, then hit punches, the big boot, and the leg drop for the pin at 17:54 and his second WWF Championship.[24][3] Savage's reign had lasted 371 days.[5]

The Observer wasn't impressed with the finish. Meltzer gave the match two and three-quarter stars, called it good but said the finish was flat, and argued it was a mistake to pin Savage clean when he was selling out arenas every night.[43] He reported that most of the feedback he got rated the Rockers against the Twin Towers as the best match on the show.[44] Meltzer also complained afterward that Savage had been pinned by the leg drop without Hogan hooking the leg, which he thought made Savage look foolish after announcers had spent years insisting a pin needed the leg hooked.[44]

The angle continued after the cameras went off. In footage the WWF aired the next week, Okerlund was getting ready to interview Elizabeth when Savage and Sensational Sherri interrupted, and when Hogan stepped in, Sherri distracted him so Savage could hit him with a steel chair.[24] On TV on April 15, Savage announced Sherri as his new manager, saying she was "more gorgeous than Miss Elizabeth could ever be."[24]

Aftermath

The Observer liked how the WWF handled the split: pairing Savage with Sherri made him look like the villain and kept Elizabeth aligned with Hogan for when she returned.[44] Savage beat Jim Duggan for the King of the Ring title in September 1989 and became "The Macho King," with Sherri as "Sensational Queen Sherri."[5]

The Hogan and Savage rematches did not keep up. The Observer reported that a Hogan-Savage show at Madison Square Garden drew only 16,000, that rematches were dropping steadily at the house shows, and that Savage's pre-WrestleMania matches with the Ultimate Warrior had outdrawn his rematches with Hogan.[45][46] West Coast shows were the exception, with legitimate sellouts in Los Angeles and Sacramento.[47] On the house show circuit, Elizabeth now came out in Hogan's corner, slapping Savage and swinging Sherri's purse at her.[24]

Hogan's second reign lasted until WrestleMania VI. Through 1989 he feuded with Zeus, his co-star from No Holds Barred, including a tag match with Brutus Beefcake against Zeus and Savage at SummerSlam, before losing the title to the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VI.[6][24] Savage lost a mixed tag match to Dusty Rhodes and Sapphire on the same show, then lost a retirement match to the Warrior at WrestleMania VII in March 1991, after which Elizabeth came out of the crowd to fight off Sherri and reunite with him.[5]

Savage beat Ric Flair for the WWF Championship at WrestleMania VIII on April 5, 1992, after a build in which Flair claimed Elizabeth "was mine before she was yours."[5][7] In real life the couple had separated, Elizabeth's last WWF appearance came on April 19, 1992 in England, and they divorced that August.[7][5]

In WCW, Hogan and Savage were partners again before Hogan turned on Savage at Bash at the Beach on July 7, 1996, dropping the leg on him three times to form the nWo.[1] Their first one-on-one match in six years came at Halloween Havoc 1996.[13] Hogan later beat Savage for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on Nitro in April 1998 and again in July 1999.[6]

Behind the Scenes

The Mega Powers storyline sat on top of a real marriage. Randy Savage, born Randy Mario Poffo on November 15, 1952, married Elizabeth Ann Hulette on December 30, 1984.[5][7] The WWF didn't advertise it. When a newspaper asked the WWF's PR department in 1989 whether the two were married, it said no, and when the paper found their 1984 marriage certificate in Kentucky, the WWF said it had meant the characters weren't married.[40]

Savage's protectiveness of Elizabeth is a recurring theme in other wrestlers' accounts. George Steele wrote that Savage "was the most jealous man I had ever met" and that "there were times when he would lock her in the dressing room."[17] The Ultimate Warrior said Savage "was very protective of her and did not allow a line leading to over-friendly contact," but added that "when it came to his marriage he was disciplined and controlled."[17] Bushwhacker Luke has said Savage would confront anyone he caught looking at Elizabeth.[15]

Lanny Poffo has pushed back on that picture. "My brother did not lock Elizabeth in the dressing room," he said on his podcast, explaining that Elizabeth had her own dressing room because she was a woman: "There was never a lock on Elizabeth's door. Nobody had the balls to open the door. So they assumed it was locked."[21] Poffo said the real problem between Savage and Steele was that Savage was tired of working with him.[21]

Prichard's account is different again. He has said Savage often traveled alone with Elizabeth or his brother, but that he also traveled with Prichard and "liked to go out and have a good time as much as anybody."[8] On the build itself, Prichard has said "we gave you Randy's version of things, and then we gave you Hulk's version of things. Neither one was right. Neither one was wrong."[8]

The friction between Hogan and Savage wasn't all scripted. Even with Savage as champion, the company played Hogan's music when they came to the ring together, and Hogan's habit of asking for Elizabeth at ringside fed Savage's suspicion.[14] Hogan has said working with Savage was "intense," and that Savage would call him at three or four in the morning to talk about wrestling.[14]

Hogan told Steve Austin's podcast in 2019 about a house show in Paris where there were no ring steps, so he reached over the top rope and lifted Elizabeth into the ring by the armpits. "He was so angry," Hogan said of Savage. "The match sucked; we had a horrible match."[14] The Observer's April 1988 view of the arrangement was that the WWF wouldn't move Hogan aside for Savage, joking that Savage couldn't hail a taxi without Elizabeth getting Hogan's permission first.[31]

The marriage didn't last. Hogan has said that in 1992, while he was filming Mr. Nanny in Miami, Elizabeth stayed with him and his wife Linda, and that Savage flew down when he couldn't reach her and burst into Linda's room shouting "Where's Elizabeth?"[14] On Radio WWF in October 1993, Savage told Jim Ross that Elizabeth and Linda Hogan "were very, very, very best friends," that Elizabeth "was either out with his wife, Linda, or hiding out right over there at their house," and called Hogan "selfish to the umpteenth degree."[16]

Elizabeth went to WCW in 1996 and later lived with Lex Luger. On April 19, 2003, police were called to a domestic dispute at their townhouse in Marietta, Georgia, where they found her with two bruised eyes and a cut lip, and Luger was charged with battery.[7] On May 1, 2003, Luger called 911 to report she wasn't breathing; she was pronounced dead at WellStar Kennestone Hospital at 42, of acute toxicity from painkillers and vodka, and her death was ruled an accident.[7]

Hogan and Savage went about ten years without speaking. Hogan has said they ran into each other at a doctor's office while Hogan was dealing with repeated back surgeries, talked on the phone afterward, and planned a barbecue at Savage's mother's house; Lanny Poffo has said the reconciliation came about a month before Savage's death.[18][14]

Legacy

WrestleMania V drew a reported 767,000 pay-per-view buys, a 58 percent increase over WrestleMania IV and a figure the WWF didn't surpass for another ten years.[8][12] The Observer had reported before the show that pay-per-view companies expected around 700,000 buys.[41] Prichard has called it "one of the greatest buy rates and biggest gates that we ever had in the history of the business."[8]

Prichard has said the build was "done to perfection because there were so many small nuances that were done through an entire year to build up to that angle."[8] The storyline played out over more than a year, from the October 1987 handshake to WrestleMania V.[10][9] Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked the Mega Powers number 57 of the 100 best tag teams of the "PWI Years" in 2003.[1]

Not everyone agreed with the result. Through March 1989 the Observer argued that the title should stay on Savage, since his title defenses were selling out across the board while Hogan sold out on his own name, and that the switch could wait for a bigger rematch at SummerSlam.[42] Meltzer wrote that Savage was selling out every arena he headlined after the heel turn, with near-record gates in St. Louis, Madison Square Garden, and Chicago, and later blamed the clean finish at WrestleMania for falling house show numbers.[39][46]

Randy Savage died on May 20, 2011, after suffering a heart attack while driving his Jeep Wrangler in Seminole, Florida, and crashing into a tree.[19][5] His wife Lynn, whom he had married the year before, was in the passenger seat, and he was 58.[5][19] An autopsy found an enlarged heart.[5]

Hogan tweeted: "I'm completely devastated, after over 10 years of not talking with Randy, we've finally started to talk and communicate."[20] Savage was posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2015.[5]

See Also

Sources & Further Listening

1. Mega Powers — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mega_Powers
2. WWF The Main Event — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWF_The_Main_Event
3. WrestleMania V — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WrestleMania_V
4. SummerSlam (1988) — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SummerSlam_(1988)
5. Randy Savage — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Savage
6. Hulk Hogan — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hulk_Hogan
7. Miss Elizabeth — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Elizabeth
8. "The Summer of Savage: Inside the Macho Man's explosive run to the top of WWE 30 years later" (oral history with Bruce Prichard interviews) — CBS Sports. https://www.cbssports.com/wwe/news/the-summer-of-savage-inside-the-macho-mans-explosive-run-to-the-top-of-wwe-30-years-later/
9. "30 Years Later: Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage — The Greatest Story in History" — FanSided. https://fansided.com/2019/04/02/30-years-later-hulk-hogan-vs-randy-savage-greatest-story-in-history-wrestlemania-5/
10. "Mega Powers Explode: Long-Term Storytelling Done Right" — WrestleZone. https://www.wrestlezone.com/features/legends/1072851-mega-powers-explode-long-term-storytelling-done-right
11. "WWF Saturday Night's Main Event – January 7th, 1989" — Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/09/16/wwf-saturday-nights-main-event-january-7th-1989/
12. "Every WWE Pay-Per-View Buyrate" — WrestleTalk. https://wrestletalk.com/stats/every-wwe-pay-per-view-buyrate/
13. Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage major matches ranked — TheSportster. https://www.thesportster.com/wrestling/hulk-hogan-vs-randy-savage-major-matches-ranked/
14. "Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage's On-Off Friendship Revealed" (quoting Hogan's 2019 Steve Austin podcast and 2020 WWE interview) — Pro Wrestling Stories. https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/hulk-hogan-randy-savage-mega-powers-explained/
15. "Details on Macho Man Randy Savage confronting WWE Hall of Famer for looking at Miss Elizabeth" (Bushwhacker Luke interview) — Sportskeeda. https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe/news-nobody-looks-liz-details-macho-man-randy-savage-confronting-wwe-hall-famer-looking-miss-elizabeth-exclusive
16. "Long-lost 1993 radio interview where Randy Savage blasted Hulk Hogan over Miss Elizabeth divorce" (Radio WWF transcript) — Wrestling News. https://wrestlingnews.co/wwe-news/long-lost-1993-radio-wwf-interview-where-randy-savage-blasted-hulk-hogan-over-miss-elizabeth-divorce-finally-surfaces/
17. "Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth: Their Tragic True Story" (quoting George Steele's autobiography and the Ultimate Warrior) — Pro Wrestling Stories. https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/randy-savage-miss-elizabeth/
18. "Hulk Hogan reconciliation with Randy Savage" — Sportskeeda. https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe/news-hulk-hogan-reconciliation-randy-savage
19. "Macho Man Randy Savage dead" — TMZ. https://www.tmz.com/2011/05/20/randy-savage-car-accident-macho-man-dead-dies-died-killed-wwe-wrestler-florida/
20. "Hulk Hogan 'devastated' by 'Macho Man' Randy Savage's death" — CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hulk-hogan-devastated-by-macho-man-randy-savages-death/
21. "Lanny Poffo Puts Jerry Lawler, Pat Patterson, and George Steele On Blast" (The Genius Cast podcast) — Fightful. https://www.fightful.com/wrestling/lanny-poffo-puts-jerry-lawler-pat-patterson-and-george-steele-blast-previous-comments-about-randy
22. 1987 WWF results (television, pay-per-view and house shows) — The History of WWE. https://www.thehistoryofwwe.com/87.htm
23. 1988 WWF results (television, pay-per-view and house shows) — The History of WWE. https://www.thehistoryofwwe.com/88.htm
24. 1989 WWF results (television, pay-per-view and house shows) — The History of WWE. https://www.thehistoryofwwe.com/89.htm
25. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 09.14.87 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–09.14.87," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/07/31/wrestling-observer-flashback-09-14-87/
26. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 10.12.87 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–10.12.87," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/08/04/wrestling-observer-flashback-10-12-87/
27. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 02.22.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–02.22.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/08/27/wrestling-observer-flashback-02-22-88/
28. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.07.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.07.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/08/30/wrestling-observer-flashback-03-07-88/
29. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.14.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.14.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/08/31/wrestling-observer-flashback-03-14-88/
30. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.21.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.21.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/09/01/wrestling-observer-flashback-03-21-88/
31. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 04.04.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–04.04.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/09/03/wrestling-observer-flashback-04-04-88/
32. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 05.09.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–05.09.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/09/08/wrestling-observer-flashback-05-09-88/
33. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 05.16.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–05.16.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/09/09/wrestling-observer-flashback-05-16-88/
34. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 07.11.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–07.11.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/02/05/wrestling-observer-flashback-07-11-88/
35. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 12.04.88 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–12.04.88," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/02/28/wrestling-observer-flashback12-04-88/
36. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 01.23.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–01.23.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/05/wrestling-observer-flashback01-23-89/
37. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 02.13.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–02.13.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/08/wrestling-observer-flashback02-13-89/
38. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 02.20.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–02.20.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/09/wrestling-observer-flashback02-20-89/
39. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.01.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.01.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/11/wrestling-observer-flashback-03-01-89/
40. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.13.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.13.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/13/wrestling-observer-flashback03-13-89/
41. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.06.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.06.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/12/wrestling-observer-flashback03-06-89/
42. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 03.20.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–03.20.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/14/wrestling-observer-flashback03-20-89/
43. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 04.10.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–04.10.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/17/wrestling-observer-flashback04-10-89/
44. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 04.17.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–04.17.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/18/wrestling-observer-flashback04-17-89/
45. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 05.08.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–05.08.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/21/wrestling-observer-flashback05-08-89/
46. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 05.15.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–05.15.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/22/wrestling-observer-flashback05-15-89/
47. Wrestling Observer Newsletter, 05.22.89 — issue recap, "Wrestling Observer Flashback–05.22.89," Scott's Blog of Doom. https://www.blogofdoom.com/2016/03/23/wrestling-observer-flashback05-22-89/

Further Listening

• Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard — Mega Powers episodes, WrestleMania V episode
• 83 Weeks with Eric Bischoff — WrestleMania V retrospective, Hogan-Savage dynamic in WCW
• The Lapsed Fan — WrestleMania IV and V deep dives (multi-part)
• Grilling JR with Jim Ross — discussions of the Savage-Hogan dynamic and Elizabeth's role
• Dark Side of the Ring (Season 1, Episode 3) — "The Match Made in Heaven" on Savage and Elizabeth