The cause of death has not been revealed.
“Arriving in WWE in 1985 alongside his brother, ‘Leaping’ Lanny Poffo was one of the first high-flyers in WWE,” WWE wrote on its web site. “While he achieved some success as a fan favorite reading his own poetry and throwing Frisbees to the crowd, he reached new heights as The Genius while managing Mr. Perfect [Curt Hennig]. WWE extends its condolences to Poffo’s family, friends and fans.”
Poffo was the son of professional wrestler Angelo Poffo, and the brother of WWE Hall of Famer Randy “Macho Man” Savage (real name Randy Poffo). At one point Angelo and Lanny Poffo were NWA tag-team champions together. He also competed in a tag-team with his brother in ICW, a promotion founded by their father. Savage was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by his brother in 2015.
Lanny Poffo made his professional wrestling debut in 1974 in the All-South Wrestling Alliance territory in Georgia. He passed through various NWA promotions throughout the following decade. At this time, wrestling outlets were largely regional.
Poffo gained notoriety when he joined Vince McMahon’s WWE (then called the WWF) in 1985. He performed there as “Leaping” Lanny Poffo and with a gimmick as “The Genius” through 1992. He signed with WCW in the mid-1990s and received paychecks from the company, but was only booked for at most one un-televised match.
“LANNY POFFO MY BROTHER. I LOVE YOU FOREVER. GIVE NIKOLAI [VOLKOFF] RANDY AND [MISS] ELIZABETH HUG FOR ME,” tweeted the Iron Sheik, a former in-ring opponent of Poffo’s.
The son of Angelo Poffo and younger brother of WWE Hall of Famer “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Lanny Poffo had a style all his own. Arriving in WWE in 1985 alongside his brother, “Leaping” Lanny Poffo was one of the first high-flyers in WWE. While he achieved some success as a fan favorite reading his own poetry and throwing Frisbees to the crowd, he reached new heights as The Genius while managing Mr. Perfect.
WWE extends its condolences to Poffo’s family, friends and fans.
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