Poffo was born in Columbus, Ohio, the elder son of Judy and Angelo Poffo. His father was Italian American and his mother was Jewish; Poffo was raised Roman Catholic. Angelo was a well-known wrestler in the 1950s and 1960s, who was featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not! for his ability to do sit-ups for hours on end.

In June 1985, Savage signed with Vince McMahon. Billed as "the top free agent in pro wrestling", Savage's first appearances on Tuesday Night Titans featured several established managers (including Bobby Heenan, Jimmy Hart, and "Classy" Freddie Blassie) offering their services to Savage. He eventually declined their offers and chose Miss Elizabeth as his new manager. His gimmick was a crazed, ego-maniacal bully who mistreated Miss Elizabeth and threatened anyone who even looked at her. He made his pay-per-view (PPV) debut at The Wrestling Classic on November 7, 1985, participating in a 16-man tournament. He defeated Ivan Putski, Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, and the Dynamite Kid before losing by a countout in the finals to Junkyard Dog.  In late 1985, Savage started a feud with then Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion Tito Santana over that title. Santana beat him on October 19, 1985 at San Juan, Puerto Rico. The November 2, 1985 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event, he unsuccessfully challenged Santana for the title (Savage won the match by countout, but not the title because the title did not change hands by countout). In a rematch on the February 24, 1986 (taped February 8) episode of Prime Time Wrestling, he won the WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship at the Boston Garden by using an illegal steel object stashed in his tights to knock out Santana. Early in his WWF career, Savage also won three countout victories (the first at the Spectrum in Philadelphia and the other two at Madison Square Garden) over his future tag team partner WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan (although the belt did not change hands due to the countout) as well as engaging in feuds with Bruno Sammartino and George "The Animal" Steele. During this time, Savage also formed a tag-team with semi-retired wrestler come color commentator Jesse "The Body" Ventura, who would remain a vocal supporter of Savage until Ventura left the WWF in mid-1990, except during Savage's period as a face.  Savage's feud with Steele began on the January 4, 1986 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event, when Steele developed a crush on Miss Elizabeth. At WrestleMania 2, Savage defeated Steele in a match to retain his Intercontinental Heavyweight Title. He resumed his feud with Steele in early 1987, culminating in two Intercontinental Heavyweight title matches, both won by Savage.  Savage wrestled Ricky Steamboat at WrestleMania III in the Pontiac Silverdome. After 19 two-counts, Steamboat pinned Savage (with help from George Steele, who pushed Savage from the top rope seconds before he was pinned) to end his near 14-month reign as Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion. The match was extremely choreographed, as opposed to the "on the fly" nature of most wrestling matches at the time. Savage was a stickler for detail, and he and Steamboat laid out and rehearsed every spot in the match prior to WrestleMania, at his home in Florida. The match was named 1987's Match of the Year by both Pro Wrestling Illustrated and the Wrestling Observer. Steamboat and Savage were seen cheering with and hugging other wrestlers after the match. Answer this question using a quote from the following article:

what happened in 1985?
Savage signed with Vince McMahon. Billed as "the top free agent in pro wrestling