In the pantheon of professional wrestling, there is perhaps no figure as universally adored as Elizabeth Hulette, known to the world simply as Miss Elizabeth. During the World Wrestling Federation’s (WWF) golden expansion in the 1980s, she was the epitome of grace and class—a soft-spoken contrast to the screaming, steroid-fueled machismo that surrounded her. As the manager and real-life wife of “Macho Man” Randy Savage, she was half of the industry’s first power couple, a woman who could bring grown men to tears simply by reuniting with her estranged partner.
From the Spotlight to the Shadows
To understand the depth of the tragedy, one must recognize the height of the fall. In the 1980s, Miss Elizabeth was untouchable. She was “The First Lady of Wrestling,” a character who did not need to take bumps or cut screaming promos to command the attention of millions. Her wedding to Randy Savage at SummerSlam 1991 remains one of the most emotional segments in WWE history.
By the late 1990s, the landscape had changed. Elizabeth and Savage divorced in 1992. She eventually returned to the business in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), but the innocence of her character was gone. She was booked as a villain, turning on her allies and engaging in the rougher, edgier storylines of the NWO era. It was during this time in WCW that she began a relationship with Lawrence Pfohl, known professionally as “The Total Package” Lex Luger.
Luger was a physical specimen, one of the biggest stars of the decade. Like Elizabeth, he was a fixture of the main event scene. However, as WCW collapsed in 2001, sold for scraps to the WWF, both Elizabeth and Luger found themselves unemployed. The structure and adrenaline of the touring lifestyle vanished, replaced by the quiet monotony of suburban Georgia.
Without the distraction of the road, their relationship—and their habits—intensified. They opened a gym in Georgia, Main Event Fitness, attempting to transition into civilian life. But behind the doors of the townhouse they shared, a dangerous dynamic was brewing.
The Domestic Disturbance of April 19
The public’s first glimpse into the troubling reality of the Hulette-Pfohl household came just two weeks before Elizabeth’s death. On April 19, 2003, the Cobb County Police Department received a 911 call regarding a domestic dispute at the townhouse.
When officers arrived, they found Elizabeth Hulette with visible injuries. She had a cut lip, a bump on her head, and two black eyes. The physical evidence suggested a violent altercation. According to the police report, Luger admitted to hitting her.
Luger was arrested and charged with battery. He was released on a $2,500 bond. The incident made headlines in the wrestling world, shattering the privacy the couple had tried to maintain. It painted a disturbing picture of a relationship spiraling out of control.
Despite the violence, Elizabeth did not leave. As is common in cases of domestic abuse, the dynamics of dependency and control kept them together. They returned to the townhouse, where the isolation continued.
The Night of May 1, 2003
On the evening of May 1, 2003, less than two weeks after the battery arrest, Elizabeth and Luger were spending the night in their backyard. According to Luger’s subsequent accounts to police and in his autobiography, the couple was relaxing on the patio.
The setting was domestic, but the consumption was extreme. They were drinking vodka heavily. Alongside the alcohol, they were consuming significant quantities of prescription medication.
At some point in the evening, Elizabeth sat down to eat. According to Luger, she began to struggle. She started gurgling, her breathing becoming labored and erratic. Luger initially thought she was choking on food. He attempted to clear her airway, but she did not respond. Her eyes were dilated, and she fell unconscious.
Luger called 911. The recording of the call captures a chaotic scene. Luger, clearly distressed, told the operator that his girlfriend wasn’t breathing. He attempted CPR, instructed by the dispatcher, but his efforts were futile.
When paramedics arrived, they found the 42-year-old Elizabeth Hulette unresponsive. They rushed her to the WellStar Kennestone Hospital emergency room. Despite the efforts of the medical staff, she was pronounced dead.
The Autopsy and the “Drug Emporium”
The subsequent investigation by the Cobb County Medical Examiner’s office revealed the true cause of death. It was not choking. It was “acute toxicity.”
The toxicology report was staggering. Elizabeth’s blood alcohol content was 0.29—more than three times the legal limit for driving in Georgia. Mixed with the alcohol was a lethal cocktail of painkillers and sedatives. The report identified hydrocodone (an opioid) and alprazolam (Xanax) in her system. The combination of high-proof alcohol and respiratory depressants caused her body to simply shut down.
However, the medical examiner’s findings were only half of the story. When police searched the townhouse following the 911 call, they discovered a stockpile of controlled substances that the media later described as a “drug emporium.”
Authorities found over a thousand pills in the residence. The stash included OxyContin, Xanax, Vicodin, Soma, anabolic steroids (Testosterone, Saizen), and synthetic growth hormones. It was a pharmacy’s worth of illicit substances, indicative of deep, systemic addiction issues for both occupants of the house.
Luger’s Legal Jeopardy
While Lex Luger was not charged with the death of Miss Elizabeth—the medical examiner ruled it an accidental overdose—he faced severe legal consequences for what was found in the home.
The sheer volume of narcotics led the police to charge Luger with 13 counts of felony drug possession. The “Total Package,” once the face of American strength, was booked into the Cobb County Jail. His mugshot, showing a bloated, confused man, was a stark contrast to the chiseled superhero who had slammed Yokozuna on the USS Intrepid just a decade earlier.
Because of the drugs found, Luger faced the possibility of significant prison time. The tragedy of losing his partner was compounded by the collapse of his own life. The investigation revealed that the lifestyle of the 1980s wrestling road crew had followed them home, festering in the quiet suburbs until it turned fatal.
The Burial and the Fallout
Elizabeth Hulette was buried in her hometown of Frankfort, Kentucky. The funeral was a small, private affair. The wrestling world mourned, but there was also a palpable sense of anger directed toward Luger.
Randy Savage, Elizabeth’s ex-husband and the man most associated with her career, was reportedly devastated and furious. In interviews following her death, Savage did not mince words, blaming Luger for the environment that led to her demise. The animosity between Savage and Luger, which had been a professional rivalry for years, became a permanent, real-life hatred.
Luger eventually pleaded guilty to the drug charges. He was sentenced to five years of probation and fined. The judge ordered periodic drug testing. This legal leash would later lead to further complications for Luger, including a violation of probation in 2005 that resulted in a brief incarceration.
The Pattern of Tragedy
The death of Miss Elizabeth serves as a grim case study of the “wrestling tragedy” archetype. It involves performers who achieve immense fame and adrenaline highs at a young age, only to struggle with the silence and physical pain of retirement.
Elizabeth was not a wrestler in the traditional sense; she did not take physical bumps. Yet, she was not immune to the culture. The pressure to maintain a certain look, the grueling travel schedule of the 80s and 90s, and the proximity to a partner dealing with his own physical demons created a toxic environment.
The domestic abuse incident in April 2003 is a critical component of the narrative. It highlights the volatility of her final days. She was not just a victim of addiction; she was a victim of a violent domestic situation. The bruises found on her face two weeks before her death were a warning sign that went unheeded by the broader world until it was too late.
Lex Luger’s Redemption and Reflection
In the years following Elizabeth’s death, Lex Luger’s life continued to spiral before hitting a turning point. In 2007, he suffered a spinal stroke that left him temporarily quadriplegic. Confined to a wheelchair and stripped of his physical prowess, Luger underwent a spiritual conversion.
In his autobiography and subsequent interviews, Luger has taken responsibility for his lifestyle during that period. He has admitted to being a bad influence and living a life of excess. While he maintains that he did not force Elizabeth to take the drugs that killed her, he acknowledges that the environment he helped create was lethal.
He has spoken about the night of her death with a sense of haunting regret, describing the helplessness of watching the person he loved fade away in his arms while waiting for an ambulance that arrived too late.
The Legacy of the First Lady
Today, WWE history tends to focus on the bright spots of Miss Elizabeth’s career: the shoulder ride at WrestleMania IV, the reunion at WrestleMania VII, and the wedding at SummerSlam. She is remembered as the angelic figure who brought humanity to the Macho Man.
However, the full story requires an acknowledgment of the darkness in Marietta. It is a story of how the wrestling business often fails to prepare its stars for life after the bell rings. Elizabeth Hulette was a woman who navigated a shark tank of an industry with dignity, only to drown in the private chaos of retirement.
Her death remains one of the most sobering chapters in wrestling history, a reminder that behind the curtain, the “First Lady” was a human being struggling with pain, abuse, and addiction, ultimately succumbing to the very demons the industry often swept under the rug.
