Lex Luger is one of the most successful wrestlers of the past 30 years. The Total Package is the subject of the latest Biography: WWE Legends, premiering on A&E this Sunday night at 10/9C.
WWE has released a few teaser clips from the episode, including one of Luger telling a captivating story about how he chose his in-ring name.
Lex Luger Name Origin
Lex Luger is objectively a great ring name. Lawrence Pfohl had the look, the athleticism and the charisma to back it up. According to Luger, he came up with the name less than an hour before his debut match.
Right before his television debut for Championship Wrestling from Florida (1985), he was sitting in the office and they asked what his wrestling name would be. He replied that he didn’t have a ring name. With his in-ring debut fast approaching, everyone began scrambling of what to call him.
Lex raised his hand timidly and said, “I’ve got a name.” His favorite television show at the time was Magnum P.I. Everybody just called him Magnum. If Tom Selleck could be called Magnum, Lex figured, “I should be called Luger,” after the German firearm.
They asked if he had a first name, he took a moment and replied, “Lex,” an homage to comic book supervillain Lex Luthor.
In a humorous humble-brag, he quipped, “It kind of worked out pretty good.”
Hall of Fame Bound?
Despite a storied career that includes 2 World Heavyweight title reigns in WCW, Luger is one of the biggest names who is not part of the WWE Hall of Fame.
Luger was on bad terms with WWE for many years due to the abrupt nature of his departure in 1995. At the time, he had been working for WWE without a contract. To the dismay of his former boss Vince McMahon, Luger shocked the world by making a surprise appearance on the debut episode of WCW Monday Nitro. It was the first shot fired in the Monday Night War.
Many legends have advocated for WWE to bestow this honor on Luger, including Jim Ross and Mick Foley.
Jim Ross said, “If they want to tell stories and they want a visual, Lex is obviously, thank God, still alive. Here’s a guy that will be rolled onto the stage to tell his story, he’s in a wheelchair. If you’re looking for a story, this could be a great story and a story of success because Lex found true happiness in his faith. I think that he’ll be in and I think it will be a great induction, I truly believe that. I think that some old wounds just don’t heal as quickly as others when you embarrass the company to some degree.”
Luger recently told Sports Illustrated that he’d be so honored by a WWE Hall of Fame induction, “I might pop out of the [wheel] chair for that. I would take that chance if that moment comes. That honor would be the cherry on top of my career.”
Catch Biography: WWE Legends on A&E Sunday nights at 10/9C.