a WWF TV taping in the early 1980s, he was cutting one of these promos when Vince McMahon cut him off and reminded Steele that his gimmick was the "Animal", and for an animal, he was "making too much sense". Incensed, Steele did a second take of nothing but garbled and incoherent syllables ("Duhh-dahh"). Steele did this deliberately and out of pure frustration, thinking that McMahon would acquiesce and allow Steele to cut his normal, eloquent promos. Much to Steele's shock, McMahon replied, "That's exactly what I want!", and this would remain Steele's interview style for the rest of his WWF run. Steele started to fully cultivate his gimmick of a menacing imbecile. Steele eventually became one of the more popular and recognizable wrestlers during most of the 1980s professional wrestling boom. He turned face during Saturday Night's Main Event I when his partners in a six-man match, Nikolai Volkoff and The Iron Sheik, abandoned him to their opponents, Ricky Steamboat and the U.S. Express (Barry Windham and Mike Rotunda), leading to Steele being taken under the wing of the Express' manager, Capt. Lou Albano, who consoled him following the loss. His most famous feud was in 1986 against "Macho Man" Randy Savage, after Steele developed a crush on Savage's valet, Miss Elizabeth. The feud was meant to last only a couple of months (and end with Steele being disappointed), but it proved so popular with fans that it continued well into 1987. Steele later laughingly recalled Savage's jealousy regarding Elizabeth, his real-life girlfriend, and said he assured Savage that he had a daughter older than Elizabeth and that his infatuation was just for the show. During Savage's Intercontinental Championship match against Steamboat at WrestleMania III, Steele—who was in Steamboat's corner—twice interfered in the match. First, he took the ring bell from Savage as he attempted to use it off of the top rope. Secondly, after Savage kicked him and took the bell back, Steele shoved Savage off of the top rope, allowing Steamboat to roll up Savage for the pin to win the championship. In 1988, Steele began carrying a stuffed animal named "Mine" to the ring. He participated in the Wrestlemania IV Battle Royal but was outside of the ring the whole time. According to Steele, he suffered a knee injury at a house show prior to the event, which was the reason he didn't get in the