They were considered two of the beautiful people in professional wrestling.

Elizabeth Hulette, aka The Lovely Elizabeth, was the queen of the grappling world as the demure valet of Randy "Macho Man" Savage.

Larry Pfohl's handsome looks and chiseled physique helped him become a headliner as Lex Luger less than a year after his 1985 debut for Championship Wrestling from Florida.

But the death of Hulette eight days ago, and Pfohl's subsequent arrest on drug-possession charges, ultimately may be remembered as one of the ugliest chapters in wrestling history.

Hulette, 42, died May 1, shortly after police were called to the Marietta, Ga., townhome of Pfohl, who was her real-life boyfriend. Pfohl is not considered a suspect in her death, but a police search of the residence resulted in him being charged with 14 different drug-possession counts under the state's controlled-substance policy.

Among the drugs allegedly found at Pfohl's home were muscle-enhancing substances like anabolic steroids and large quantities of prescription medications. Thirteen of the 14 counts against Pfohl are felony charges, with the Cobb County (Ga.) district attorney's office investigating whether the drugs were for personal use or distribution.

Pfohl, 44, had two other legal problems before his arrest. He was charged with battery on April 19 after allegedly striking Hulette in the face, leaving her with two black eyes. Two days later, Pfohl was arrested for driving under the influence after rear-ending another vehicle. Pfohl's license had already been suspended for failure to attend a court hearing.

After a football career that included a brief stint at the University of Miami in the late 1970s, Pfohl held the World Championship Wrestling title on two occasions and also received a major push from World Wrestling Entertainment.

After WCW was purchased by WWE in March 2001, Pfohl drifted from the industry, except for an overseas tour last November for the World Wrestling All-Stars.

Hulette's rise to prominence came in a Beauty and The Beast role as the valet for Savage (real name Randy Poffo), who was her real-life husband for roughly seven years until their 1992 divorce.

Unlike the top female performers of today, Hulette became wildly popular without showing excessive skin and wrestling on only a handful of occasions.

Hulette kept her modesty and perspective in an industry where those qualities are far too rare. In a 1994 interview, Hulette said she wanted to separate from Poffo so badly that she moved to South Florida without the bulk of her wrestling earnings.

Hulette took a job selling clothes at Aventura Mall, where she admitted some customers did a double-take but most failed to make the wrestling connection.

Even after returning to wrestling in 1996 with WCW, Hulette still worked part-time the next year at a friend's South Beach clothing store.

Toxicology reports will take at least another three weeks to complete, but some of Hullete's friends fear her death may be drug-related. If so, Hulette would join such performers as "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig, Brian Pillman and Rick Rude on the list of ex-WCW and WWE stars to have died in that manner.

It also would draw even more mainstream media attention to the rash of young deaths that have afflicted the industry.

In other wrestling news from the police blotter:

The 27-year-old daughter of The Iron Sheik (Hossein Khorsow Vaziri) was strangled last Saturday by her live-in boyfriend in their Atlanta-area apartment, according to a report in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Charles Warren Reynolds, 38, confessed to the murder and told police that he and Marissa Jeanne Vaziri, who didn't work in the wrestling business, were drinking and taking pills before he assaulted her.

Hossein Vaziri, who was listed as 60 by the newspaper, has wrestled for more than two decades. He is most famous for his 29-day reign as WWE champion that began with a December 1983 victory over Bob Backlund and ended with a loss to Hulk Hogan that ushered in WWE's "Hulkamania" era.

A woman who was allegedly stalking WWE star Kurt Angle and his family is under arrest in Detroit, according to Pittsburgh media reports.

Deann Siden, 34, is accused of following Angle across the country and threatening his family through telephone messages. Siden allegedly claimed she was pregnant and Angle was the father, but Pittsburgh-area police say there was no relationship between the two.

Angle is currently out of action, recovering from neck surgery. While the injury was originally considered career- threatening, Angle has made so much progress that he is expected back in the ring next month.

Upcoming shows

WWE's Smackdown roster is coming May 25 for a non-televised show at the South Florida Expo Center at the South Florida Fairgrounds, 9067 Southern Blvd., West Palm Beach. Tickets are $45, $35 and $20 and are on sale at all Ticketmaster outlets. Tickets will not be on sale at the arena's box office until the day of the show. ...

Billy Fives vs. Scoot Andrews and ex-WWE grappler Dennis "Mideon" Knight vs. Antonio Banks headlines an IPW Hardcore Wrestling show at 7:30 p.m. May 24 at the Palladium Athletic Village, 3367 N. University Drive, Davie. IPW also has debuted a weekly TV show at 2 a.m. Saturdays on WBFS-TV (Ch. 33). Call 954-585-4792 or visit www .ipw-hardcore.com. ...

Scott "Raven" Levy, Jerry Lynn and "Dr. Death" Steve Williams are among the performers to appear on a loaded Major League Wrestling show June 20 at the Fort Lauderdale War Memorial Auditorium, 800 NE Eighth St. Tickets are $30, $15 and $10 and available through Ticketmaster. Call the arena box office at 954-828-5380 or visit www.mlw.com. ...

Hack Myers vs. Dave Johnson will headline a Four Star Championship Wrestling show at 7:30 p.m. next Friday at the Hallandale Cultural Center, 410 SW Third St. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for seniors and children younger than 12. Call 954-268-2098, 954- 579-8696 or visit www.fscw .net. ...

Jonah and Justin from Tough Enough 3 are two of the participants in an eight-man Hardkore Championship Wrestling tournament June 21 at the Davie Bergeron Rodeo Arena, 6591 Orange Drive. Call 954-460-2645 or visit www .hardkore.web1000.com.

Q & A

Q. What is the injury status of Batista? -- Jeff Foster, Fort Lauderdale