Hulk Hogan - the most iconic wrestler ever to grace T.V. screens
Hulk Hogan dominated the world of wrestling in the 80s and 90s. He was immensely popular and is regarded by many as the greatest wrestler to ever feature in a match. A large number of wrestling enthusiasts can fondly remember watching Hogan during wrestling matches and being mesmerised by his screen presence. He became the most popular wrestler ever and also tried his hand at acting, very unsuccessfully it must be said. After appearing in a few horrendous films and a relatively popular television show, Hogan returned to wrestling for his second shot at fame. He had another stab at television by recently appearing in a reality show about his life and his family. He will always be remembered as one of the all time greats in the wrestling world.
Hulk Hogan, the global icon was born Terry Gene Bollea on August 11, 1953 and his early life was nothing to write about. It was when he was working at a bar in Florida and was practising to his hand at music that he started to become friendly with a few wrestlers who frequented the bar. He met two brothers who were heavily involved in the wrestling industry, and they got him training with legendary wrestling trainer, Hiro Matsuda. A story goes that Matsuda once broke Terry’s leg in training and was very impressed when the future wrestler returned to train again as soon as his leg had healed. He started featuring in small independent wrestling promotional matches and slowly his fame grew. He really got a shot at the big time when he was approached by Vince McMahon Sr.
In the early 80s, Vince McMahon Sr. approached Terry and offered him a spot on the newly formed WWWF wrestling franchise. He played a bad character during his time at the company and it was McMahon Sr. who gave Terry the name Hulk Hogan, which stuck with him throughout his career. He then had a falling out with the owner of the WWWF over the fact that Hogan wanted to do a small movie role. The film was Rocky III and McMahon Sr. wanted the wrestler to focus on his wrestling. Hogan did the film and was fired from the wrestling franchise. After completing the film, he joined small wrestling outfit AWA and made a name for himself as a good guy on the back of his popularity from the movie role. It was during this time that the wrestler ventured into Japan and wrestled in that country as well. During the same period WWWF was sold by McMahon Sr. to his son Vince McMahon Jr. and the direction of the company changed. Hogan was once again approached by the renamed WWF, and he became one of their main attractions. It was during this time that his popularity reached sky-high levels, and he became the most famous wrestler on the planet. He was the highest paid and most widely featured wrestler for the WWF and this started the ‘Hulkamania’ trend that has lasted till this day. He continued to enjoy a lot of success in the ring but after many years of being the top billed wrestler, executives at the company thought it was time for him to step out of the limelight and give other wrestlers a chance at glory. As this would have meant a pay cut, Hogan decided to leave the WWE, as it had become, and focus on other things in his life.
Hogan has had a love hate sort of relationship with films and television over the years. In the 90s he made a string of movies that flopped very badly at the box office. But he also made a television show at the same time that became very popular. In recent years he has been seen again on TV in a reality show called Hogan Knows Best, which was shown on MTV. It was one of the highest rated shows on its debut and all subsequent seasons were also very popular. It was cancelled suddenly when news broke that Hogan had an affair with a friend of his daughter, and his marriage broke down. He has recently been seen in the TNA wrestling franchise in a wrestler, part owner, celebrity type role.
Hulk Hogan has captivated audiences in one way or the other for many years. His charisma and screen presence brought him a legion of fans and made him very wealthy. He seems to be the type of entertainer who cannot stay out of the limelight, as he is still wrestling at the age of 57 with a replaced hip and numerous knee surgeries. We will continue to see the big man in one form or the other for many years to come.
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