Hulk Hogan: Difference between revisions

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	In Feb 2005 Allure interview he said: "I used to be 6 ft. 7, but after knee, neck and back surgeries I'm now about 6ft 4.		In Feb 2005 Allure interview he said: "I used to be 6 ft. 7, but after knee, neck and back surgeries I'm now about 6ft 4.

			TEH HULK IS DED
	==Career==

	Terry Bollea was a standout in ]. He also spent ten years playing ] in several ]-based ] bands, including Ruckus and Infinity's End. Many of the wrestlers who competed in the Florida territory at that time would visit the bars in which Bollea was performing.

	Bollea's impressive physical stature soon caught the attention of wrestlers ] and his brother ]. Together, they convinced Bollea to give wrestling a try. Having been a wrestling fan since childhood, Bollea was eager to do so. He trained for nearly two years under the watchful eye of ], a hard-nosed taskmaster. According to Hogan, during their first training session, Matsuda sarcastically asked him, "So you wanna be a wrestler?" and then casually (and to instill respect, purposefully) broke Bollea's leg before Bollea could stop him.

	Bollea wrestled his first professional match in ] on ], ] under the name "The Super Destroyer". His opponent was ]. Terry went through a few different ] changes before becoming "Hulk Hogan"; along with "The Super Destroyer," he was also known as "Terry 'The Hulk' Boulder" and "Sterling Golden". Bollea would go on to win his first wrestling championships, the ] Southeastern Heavyweight Championships recognized in ] and ], respectively. In January 1979, Bollea even had an early shot at the ], whose holder was at the time generally recognized as the industry's best.

	===World Wrestling Federation (First run) (1979-1981)===
	On ], ], Bollea made his debut in the ] as a ]. He was given the name "The Incredible Hulk Hogan" by ], then the majority owner of the Capitol Wrestling Corporation (at the time, the parent company of the Federation). In his debut, Hogan wrestled three matches in ] during one of the Federation's marathon television tapings. Hogan was victorious in all three bouts, ] Harry Valdez in the first match, Paul Figueroa in the second, and Ben Ortiz in the third. One month later on ], Hogan made his ] wrestling debut, defeating ] in 11 minutes, 12 seconds.

	The later, official explanation for the "Hulk Hogan" moniker was that many considered Bollea to be physically bigger than ], who at the time was starring in the popular TV series '']''. McMahon also wanted him to be a tough, working-man brawler with a possible ] background at the same time, thus the name "Hogan." A deal was later struck with ] to use the "Incredible Hulk" name. In ], Bollea himself purchased the rights to the name "Hulk Hogan" shortly after a copyright dispute between Marvel and World Wrestling Entertainment prevented Bollea from being called Hulk Hogan in rebroadcasts of his matches.

	Hogan started out in the WWF as an arrogant heel, managed by ]. Hogan ] with then-WWWF (World Wide Wrestling Federation) World Heavyweight Champion ], "Mr. U.S.A." ], and ]. His feud with André culminated in a match at ] on August 9, 1980 in front of 36,295 fans, popularly called the ].

	In 1981, ] personally offered him a part in the ] '']''. Industry etiquette demanded that he first ask for his boss's (]) permission. McMahon, unlike his son (and future owner of the WWE) ] said no, believing that pro wrestlers should be pro wrestlers and not become actors. However, Hogan took the part anyway, expecting the role to dramatically increase his profile and earning potential. McMahon fired Hogan, who would not appear with the company again for several years.

	===American Wrestling Association===
	After filming his scene for '']'', Hogan made his debut in the ]-based ], owned and promoted by ]. Hogan started his AWA run as a heel, taking on "Luscious" Johnny Valiant as his manager, but AWA audiences loved the muscular Hogan, and soon the AWA's bookers were compelled to turn Hogan ].

	Hogan quickly became the AWA's top draw and feuded with world champion ], but AWA owner Gagne, a close friend of Bockwinkel's and a former college wrestler who emphasized mat skills over showmanship, was reluctant to give the less-technically skilled Hogan a run with the belt. On two different occasions, Hogan had been scripted to win the AWA Championship from champion ] and have it revert back to Bockwinkel by contrived technicalities (known as a ]). This was a common plot device, used to milk audience anticipation that the face would topple the heel "next time." But this time, the crowd reactions was so furious that only Bollea's pleas (on the ] system, in character as Hogan) kept them from rioting. Hogan, for his part, quickly grew frustrated with the AWA's backstage politics over the world title, and was upset with promoter Verne Gagne's demands for a percentage of his Japanese earnings in exchange for winning the AWA Championship.

	Over twenty years later, just prior to Hulk Hogan's ] induction in 2005, the revived AWA relented and acknowledged the legitimacy of Hogan's two title wins over Nick Bockwinkel, making him a two-time AWA champion.

	===New Japan Pro Wrestling (First run) (1980-1983)===
	A great deal of Hogan's early success was achieved in ]. Japanese wrestling fans were in awe of the gargantuan blond American, and nicknamed him "Ichiban" (which translates to "Number One"). Hogan first appeared in Japan on ], ], while he was still with the WWF. He would tour the country from time to time over the next few years, facing a wide variety of opponents ranging from Tatsumi Fujinami to ]. When competing in Japan, Hogan used a vastly different repertoire of wrestling moves, relying on more "scientific" (i.e., technical, more amateur style-seeming) looking traditional wrestling holds and maneuvers as opposed to the power-based (feats of strength), brawling style U.S. fans became accustomed to seeing from him. Another difference is that Hogan uses a running forearm lariat (Called the "Axe Bomber") as his finisher in Japan as opposed to the running leg drop that has been his traditional finisher in America.

	On ], 1983,. Hogan became the first International Wrestling Grand Prix tournament winner, defeating Japanese wrestling icon ] by knockout in the finals of a 10-man tournament featuring top talent from throughout the world. Hogan and Inoki also worked as partners in Japan, winning the prestigious MSG Tag League tournament two years in a row, in 1982 and 1983. Hogan's popularity in Japan was so great, he even recorded an album there - a forerunner to the World Wrestling Federation's "Rock' n' Wrestlin' Connection" of the mid-'80's.

	===World Wrestling Federation (Second run) (1984-1993)===
	]
	By 1983, ] had bought the World Wrestling Federation from his father, with a goal of turning the WWF into a nationwide company, using Hogan's charisma and name recognition as the top draw. Hogan made a dramatic return to the WWF at a TV taping on ], ], saving ] from a three-on-one assault. Hogan's turn was explained simply by Backlund: "He's changed his ways. He's a great man. He's told me he's not gonna have Blassie around." The storyline shortcut was necessary, because less than three weeks later, on ], Hogan won the ], pinning ] in ] ] . He became the first ever Southern-born WWF Champion in history. In Hogan's autobiography, he says that The Iron Sheik told him that ] had offered the Sheik $100,000 to break Hogan's leg during the title bout, but the Sheik correctly saw the potential for making millions working a feud with Hogan and refused. ], the son of Verne, now works as a WWE road agent and refutes the claim that such an offer was ever made.

	This title victory caused "Hulkamania" to sweep the WWF, as Hogan's popularity soared. He would frequently refer to his fans as "Hulkamaniacs" in his interviews, and would go on to introduce his three "demandments": training, saying your prayers, and eating your vitamins. Eventually, a fourth demandment (believing in yourself) would be added following his feud with ]. The vitamins demandment has been parodied to mean ] in recent years due to Vince McMahon's problems with a steroid trial in the early '90s.

	Hogan would remain WWF Champion for four years and 13 days (no wrestler has held the WWF Championship for longer than one year since Hogan's first title reign), overcoming such challengers as "Rowdy" ], ], ], and ], drawing record houses, ] buyrates and TV ratings in the process. He co-hosted ] on ], ] and even had his own ] ] during this lucrative run, titled '']''.

	On ], ], the ] took place at Madison Square Garden, featuring Hogan in a tag team main event, with ] his partner. Hogan would go on to headline seven of the first eight WrestleManias, from 1985-1992. In addition, Hogan made an appearance at ], first to tag with longtime friend Brutus Beefcake against Money, Inc. and later in the evening win the WWF Championship from Yokozuna to once again become the WWF Champion. Hulk Hogan would not again appear in the event until ], losing to ] in what was dubbed an Icon vs. Icon match. ] featured Hulk Hogan defeating Vince McMahon.

	In the fall of 1986, Hogan occasionally wrestled in tag matches with ] as '''Hulk Machine''' under a mask copied from ] character "]."

	A new storyline was introduced in early 1987: Hogan was presented a trophy for being the WWF Champion for three years. ], a good friend (who was seen pouring ] over him in the Madison Square Garden locker room in the interview scene following his title win) came out to congratulate him. Shortly afterwards, André was presented a slightly smaller trophy for being "undefeated in the WWF for 15 years." In actuality, André had suffered a handful of countout and disqualification losses in the WWF, but had never been pinned or forced to submit in a WWF ring. Hogan came out to congratulate André, but André walked out in the midst of Hogan's speech. Then, on an edition of "Piper's Pit" (an interview/skit segment hosted by "Rowdy" Roddy Piper), Hogan was confronted by ] when Piper had invited Hogan and Jesse Ventura invited Heenan and Andre the Giant. Heenan announced that his new protégé was André. Andre then challenged Hogan to a title match at ], ripping the t-shirt and ] off Hogan. Hogan was left in shock after André's challenge holding his torn shirt and cross.

	WrestleMania III, held on ], ] at the ] in ], an announced audience of 93,173,(commentator Jesse Ventura claimed 93,17''6'') witnessed Hogan successfully defend the WWF World Heavyweight Championship against André the Giant. The actual number of fans that attended WrestleMania III is not known, and many speculate that the number presented by the WWE is greatly inflated. The match would become the most famous of Hogan's career, and is often regarded as the biggest match in the history of the business, one which saw Hogan bodyslam the 520-pound ] before pinning his shoulders to the mat. The match was considered as being a "passing of the torch" between one of the biggest stars in wrestling of the 1970's, André, and the biggest star in wrestling of the 1980's, Hogan. Years later, Hogan stated that André was so heavy, he felt more like 700 pounds, and that if he had lost his balance performing the slam, he was sure that Andre's weight would have seriously injured him. Hogan also says that in lifting the super heavyweight, he tore a shoulder muscle, which causes one side of his back to be visibly smaller than the other.

	Hogan lost the belt in extremely controversial fashion to André on ]'s "]" on ], ], thanks to a convoluted scam involving "The Million Dollar Man" ] and "evil" twin referee ] (in place of the match's appointed arbiter, his twin brother ]). After André delivered a ] on Hogan, Hebner three-counted Hogan while his left shoulder was clearly off the mat. After the match, André handed the title over to DiBiase to complete their storyline business deal. As a result, the WWF Championship was vacated for the first time in its 25-year history, and all this in turn led to Hogan's on/off friend "The Macho Man" ] taking the vacant title in a tournament at ] a month later.

	'''Note''': The live primetime NBC broadcast of ''The Main Event'' on February 5, 1988, from Market Square Arena, Indianapolis,IN was the highest rated television show in American professional wrestling history, with a 15.2 rating. The Hogan-Andre rematch from February 5, 1988 can be found on the ] DVD.

	Together, Hogan, Savage, and manager ] formed a partnership known as ]. Savage played an instrumental role in Hogan's character development. However, the Mega-Powers would soon implode from within, due to Savage's burgeoning jealousy of Hogan and his paranoid suspicions that Hogan and Elizabeth were "more than friends." A feud between Hogan and Savage began, which culminated in Hogan beating Savage for his second ] at ] on ], ]. Hulk Hogan earned $1.8 million for his match against "Macho Man" Randy Savage at WrestleMania V{{fact}}.

	Hogan's second run lasted a year, during which time he starred in his first movie, '']''. The movie was the inspiration of a feud with Hogan's co-star in "No Holds Barred," ], who appeared at wrestling events as his movie character, Zeus. Zeus was a ] who was "jealous" over Hogan's higher billing and now wanted revenge. However, Hogan was easily able to defeat Zeus in a series of matches across the country during late 1989, beginning with a tag team match at ].

	Also during his second run, Hogan won the ], last eliminating ]. He dropped the title to ] ] on ], ] at ]. It was the first time in over seven years that Hogan suffered an uncontroversial pinfall defeat. That title match was notable in that the two wrestlers were both faces, and Hogan graciously handed Warrior the belt and shook his hand at the conclusion of the match, remembered as one of the most sportsmanlike displays in WWF history.

	Hogan soon became embroiled in a heated feud with the 468-pound ], a mountain of a man who gained infamy by crushing Hogan's ribs in a sneak attack on "]" in May 1990. On TV, announcers explained that Hogan was depressed over his injuries and his WrestleMania VI loss to The Ultimate Warrior and both took such a huge toll on his fighting spirit that he wanted to retire. Viewers were asked to write letters to Hogan and send postcards asking for his return (they got a postcard-sized picture in return, autographed by Hogan, as a "thank you"). Hogan returned by ] and dominated Earthquake in a months-long series of matches across the country. His defeat of this overwhelmingly large foe would cause Hogan to add a fourth demandment: believing in yourself. His name also changed: '''The Immortal Hulk Hogan'''.(In his AWA/WWWF days his name was '''The Incredible Hulk Hogan'''.)

	On ] ], Hogan stood up for the USA against ]-sympathizer ], outwitting him for his third ] at ]. Hogan lost the title to ] at the ] on ], ], in an infamous bout marred by interference from ]. Just six days later, Hogan regained the title in a match held on a special pay-per-view named ], but due to the controversy surrounding both matches, the title was again declared vacant.

	In the ], Hogan was eliminated by storyline friend ] and failed to regain the championship. In the ensuing five months, Hulk Hogan announced he was contemplating retirement from wrestling and would 'bow out' after his match against Sid at ] on ], ]. Hogan eventually won the match via disqualification due to interference by Sid's manager Harvey Whippleman. Hogan then was attacked by ], who actually was supposed to cause the DQ but was late, and was saved by the returning Ultimate Warrior.

	Hogan returned to the WWF in January 1993, helping out his friend ] in his feud with ]. Hogan scooped his fifth WWF Title on ] of that year, overcoming ] in an impromptu bout at ] only moments after Yokozuna's defeat of ]. At this point, everything was looking good for Hogan; he had the ] once again and it seemed like Hulkamania was back. However, this was not the case at all.

	At the first annual ] pay per view, Hogan defended the championship against the former champion, Yokozuna. It was Hogan's first title defense since he first defeated Yokozuna at WrestleMania IX. During the course of the match, Yokozuna amazingly kicked out of Hogan's signature leg drop. The hard-fought bout came to its close when a "Japanese photographer" (actually a disguised Harvey Whippleman) got on the apron and distracted Hogan, before shooting some sort of fireball out of the camera and into Hogan's face. This was followed by Yokozuna hitting a leg drop on Hogan for the pin. After his victory, Yokozuna proceeded to give Hogan a Banzai drop amidst the crying children and cursing adults. As Yokozuna celebrated, Hogan was helped back to the locker room by ringside officials, as he clutched his face. Hulkamania had seemingly taken its final breath.

	Hogan departed the WWF two months later after a series of bouts against Yokozuna on the Hulkamania European tour. An impending ] scandal led to Vince McMahon deciding to phase out large, muscular wrestlers such as Hogan and give the top spots to smaller, more technically sound wrestlers such as Bret Hart. After Hogan left the WWF, he decided to concentrate on movies and TV and take time off from professional wrestling.

	===World Championship Wrestling (1994-2000)===
	In June 1994, Hogan was expensively lured back to the ring by ]'s ], which was the WWF's main competitor at the time. When Hogan signed with WCW, officials (namely, ], who convinced Hogan to join WCW in the first place) hoped that they could relive the glory days of Hulkamania, but everyone involved also knew it would be tough to convince many loyal, old-school WCW fans of Hogan's worth, particularly the ] that were traditionally anti-WWF. Hogan was also at this time given ]. Hulk Hogan's contract signing on ] was held at ] in ], following a red-and-yellow ticker tape parade.

	Hogan won the ] in his debut match, overcoming ] in a genuine 'dream' match on ]. After tussling with Flair, ], and the ] for the next eighteen months, Hogan dropped the belt and began to only appear occasionally on WCW shows. WCW fans were clamoring for younger, more exciting international stars such as ] and ] and were growing tired of seeing Hogan's "red-and-yellow good guy" persona they had seen for ten years in the WWF. This led to one of the most talked about moments in wrestling history in the summer of 1996.

	The buildup to this began when ] and ] both left the WWF in early 1996 and returned to their old employer, WCW. They were portrayed as "Outsiders" and quickly announced their intent to "take over" WCW, with the help of an unnamed third member of their team (initially rumored to be either Ultimate Warrior, ], ], or ]). At the ] PPV held at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, FL on July 7, 1996, Hall, Nash and their partner were scheduled to face the WCW trio of ], ], and ]. The third partner did not begin the match, and, after Luger left the match due to an "injury", some assumed that he would be the "third man."

	After Luger was taken out, Hall and Nash began to beat on Sting, neutralizing him on the outside and leaving Savage alone in the ring. Almost immediately afterwards, Hogan came to the ring, making his first appearance in several weeks.

	Many expected him to replace Luger and attack Hall and Nash. However, in one of the most shocking moments in wrestling history, Hogan leg dropped Randy Savage and declared himself to be Hall and Nash's partner, with the trio comprising what Hogan dubbed the ] of professional wrestling. The aftermath had fans littering the ring with garbage, with one jumping the rail in an attempt to attack Hogan, and Hogan cutting an interview with an angry ].

	In the interview, Hogan further cemented his heel turn, claiming that he made WWF, that he had become bored with his character as it was, and that from then on he was in it for himself. He also said that he was tired of the fans' dumping on him after all he'd done for them, and that it was because of him that he and the rest of the fans - and for that matter, all the wrestlers - were there that night. He then declared that he, Hall, and Nash were going to take over WCW and destroy everything in their path. The interview was regarded as being one of the most important in wrestling history, and Okerlund later stated that the audience was so furious, he got a bloody nose from being hit by a beer can thrown in the ring.

	]
	Hogan soon dyed his beard black and renamed himself '''Hollywood Hogan'''. Hogan managed to redefine the heel character: rather than the traditional "bad guy" Hollywood Hogan gave birth to a more realistic, ] villain, with none of the usual wrestling ] and devices. Some have placed Hollywood Hogan as one of the best and most effective heels in pro wrestling history.

	After defeating ] at ] on ], ] by hitting him with the WCW title belt, Hogan held the WCW World Heavyweight Championship for most of 1997, save for a several day reign by Luger. He would spray paint black letters "NWO" across the title belt as well and scribble across the nameplate. During this period, Hogan grappled with Roddy Piper, Randy Savage, and many more. The ever-expanding nWo gang concurrently became the hottest concept in wrestling, too, helping WCW to achieve 83 straight Monday night ratings victories over the WWF. The black-and-white nWo T-shirt also became one of the highest-selling pieces of wrestling merchandise ever during 1997.

	Hogan then lost the belt to Sting in a hugely-hyped, eighteen-months-in-the-making match at ] in December 1997. The event was also the highest-drawing PPV in WCW's history. Wrestling fans and pundits were disappointed in "The match of the decade" because the match's length and ending didn't justify the buildup. The ending had to be re-worked because Hogan, with a Creative Control clause in his contract, wanted to beat Sting, whom the bookers had already decided would win. In order to keep the booking plans in place and to appease Hogan, it was decided that Hogan would beat Sting after an alleged "fast count" by referee ]. WCW's newly contracted Bret Hart would accuse Patrick and have the match restarted with Sting winning by submission. This finish was executed at StarrCade, and after a rematch the following night on '']'', the title became vacant. Hogan and Sting would wrestle again at SuperBrawl in February 1998, with Sting coming out victorious.

	After this, Hogan developed a rivalry with former friend (and recent nWo recruit) Randy Savage. The heat culminated into a steel cage match at ], which ended in a no contest. Savage would take the world championship from Sting at ] in March, while Hogan's match at Stampede had him and Kevin Nash taking on Roddy Piper and the Giant in the first-ever ]. Marking the breakup of the original nWo, Hogan would betray Nash by hitting him with the bat and then challenged Savage the following night for his championship. This no disqualification match included two crucial points of interference: The first came from Kevin Nash, who entered the ring and powerbombed Hogan. The second came from Bret Hart, who turned heel that night by jumping in after Nash to attack Savage and preserve the victory for Hogan, who regained the WCW Championship.

	Hogan defended the title until July of that year, when WCW booked him in a match against fast rising newcomer ], who had yet to lose a match in the company. Hogan dominated most of the match, but became cocky toward the end as he continued to legdrop the challenger. Eventually, his luck ran out, and Goldberg was able to take control. After a final bit of interference by Curt Hennig was thwarted by ] at ringside, Goldberg was able to hit a ''']''' and a ''']''' on Hogan and pinned him to gain his first and only ].

	The rest 1998 Hogan spent wrestling ] matches with buddies. His second tag team match with ] pit them against ] and ] at ], and at ], he and ] lost to Page and ]. Hogan also had a highly hyped rematch with Ultimate Warrior (then, known simply as "Warrior") at ], where his newly revealed nephew ] would aid his victory.

	On the ] episode of '']'', Hogan officially announced his retirement from professional wrestling as well as his candidacy for ]. The campaign had footage aired on ''Nitro'' of Hogan and Bischoff holding a press conference, making it appear legit. In the long run, however, both announcements were false and merely done as a ] attempting to draw some of the hype of Jesse Ventura's Minnesota gubernatorial win back to him.

	After some time off from WCW, a still "retired" Hogan returned to ''Nitro'' to challenge Kevin Nash for the WCW title. He controversially regained the WCW title in what would later be dubbed the ]. This reformed the previously broken up nWo branches - ] and ] - which began feuding with ] and a ruthless ].

	He was soon cheated out of the WCW Championship to ] at ] 1999 in a ], ]. Strangely enough, a heavily bleeding Flair would win via pinfall thanks to biased referee ]. During that match, however, Hogan began to show some signs that a face turn was imminent, showing off some old tactics like his "Hulking up" no-sell.

	Hogan would wrestle the following month in one more world title match, facing Flair, Sting, and ] in a fatal four way match. Page ended up on top, winning his first ever world championship, and Hogan would be carried out of the ring injured and disappear for several months.

	On July 12, 1999, Hogan made his grand return as a full fledged face and accepted a challenge from Savage (who had gained the world title at Bash at the Beach the night before). Thanks to interference from Nash (who had lost to Savage), Hogan became champion again. Gaining fan support, however, his nWo look would gradually recede through the shaving of his black beard and the removal of the red "NWO" from his title belt.

	On August 9, 1999, he started the night dressed in the typical black and white, but after a backstage scene with his son, Hogan came out dressed in the traditional red and yellow for his main-event 6-man tag team match. Injuries and frustrations were mounting up however, and he was absent from TV from October 1999 to February 2000. In his book ''Hollywood Hulk Hogan'', Bollea said that he was asked to take time off TV from newly hired head of creative ] ] and not told when he would be brought back at the time. Despite some reservations, he agreed to do so. On October 24, 1999 at the ] Pay-Per-View in Las Vegas, Hogan was to face Sting for the ] (which he had lost to Sting at ] the previous month, when Sting beat Hogan by cheating and had turned heel in the process). However, Hogan came to the ring in street clothes, laid down for the pin, and left the ring.

	Soon after his return to WCW TV in February 2000, Hogan began feuding with Lex Luger, Ric Flair, and ]. Then, at ], Hogan was involved in a very controversial, real-life incident with Russo. Hogan was scheduled to wrestle ] for the ]. Hogan felt that he should win because he suspected Russo wasn't going to use him in any future storylines. At that time Hogan still had several months left on his contract and was obligated to appear at more Pay-Per-Views, so he invoked the clause in his contract that gave him creative control over all the finishes of his matches. According to Hogan, it was the only time he ever used that clause in his tenure with WCW. Russo was furious at Hogan because he did not think that Hogan should be the champion.

	Unbeknownst to Hogan, Russo told Jarrett to lie down in the middle of the ring and asked Hogan to pin him straight away. A visibly confused Hogan complied with a foot on Jarrett's chest after getting on the microphone and telling Russo "''That's why this company is in the damn shape it's in, because of bullshit like this!''" Russo responded by coming out and saying that "''from day one, that I've been in WCW, I've done nothing... nothing... but deal with the bullshit of the politics behind that curtain''" and that since Hogan refused to ] to Jarrett, a new WCW World Heavyweight Championship would be created, setting the stage for a title match between ] and Jeff Jarrett later that night.

	Hogan was never seen or mentioned on WCW television after the event (except for the final Nitro broadcast and overall WCW event, on March 26, 2001), and he filed a ] lawsuit against Russo soon after, which was eventually thrown out of court. Russo later revealed that the Bash at the Beach incident was in fact a ]. However, since WCW could no longer afford to pay Hogan for any more Pay-Per-View appearances, Hogan was never called back and kept off WCW television (which put the wheels in motion for the lawsuit).

	===XWF (2000-2001)===
	From July 2000 to November 2001, Hogan was out of the public eye. He had been dealing with self-doubt and ] following the Vince Russo incident, wondering if what Russo had said about him was true. Hogan was also dealing with the death of his father Peter Bollea in December 2001, which he took very hard. Fans at the time had largely agreed with Russo's sentiments, feeling that Hogan was "washed-up" and had been holding down younger talents for too long. Hogan wanted to prove his detractors wrong and show them that he still had another run or two left in him.

	In the months following the eventual demise of WCW in March 2001, Hogan underwent surgery on his knees in order for him to wrestle again. As a test, Hogan worked a match in ] for the XWF promotion run by his longtime handler ].

	===World Wrestling Entertainment (Third run) (2001-2003)===
	Hogan defeated ] in this match and felt healthy enough to accept an offer to return to the WWF in February 2002. At '']'' 2002, Hogan returned to the company that had made him a ] icon, returning as leader of the original nWo with Hall and Nash, in the process costing ] a chance at becoming the WWE Champion against Chris Jericho in the main event. Soon after, he fought a memorable match against ] at '']'' on ], ]. This was Hogan's only '']'' match fought as a ], but the record ] crowd of 68,237, cheered wildly for Hogan, effectively turning him ] during the match. The Rock cleanly won the contest but befriended Hogan at the end of the bout and helped him fight off Hall and Nash, who were upset by Hogan's conciliatory attitude. Rumors had it that match actually billed as Austin-Hogan affair but at that time Austin having had problems with WWE management and with Hogan as well so he opted to be out of the projected storyline.

	After the match, Hogan was a definite face again, though he continued wearing black and white tights for a few weeks after ] until he resumed wearing his signature red and yellow tights. He was still known as "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, notibly keeping the Hollywood Hogan style blonde mustache with black beard while wearing Hulkamania-like red and yellow tights. He had a month-long reign as ] in the spring of 2002 after defeating ] at '']''. During Hogan's title reign of 2002, the World Wrestling Federation changed its name to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), thus marking Hogan as the last ever WWF champion and as the first champion under the new company name.

	Hogan lost the belt to The Undertaker at ] which means that 'Taker's first, and to date last, reigns as champions began by beating Hogan.

	The following month, at ], Hogan faced ] for the first time, in a match which Angle won with his Ankle Lock submission. While Angle was billed as being the first person to defeat Hogan via submission, Lex Luger had actually done it on WCW Monday Nitro to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship in 1997 and later that year Sting did as well. Angle's win was only Hogan's first defeat via submission on WWE programming.

	On 2002's ] edition of ''Smackdown!'', Hogan teamed with ] to defeat ] and capture the ] for the first time in history. They celebrated by waving the American flag as the overjoyed audience sang along to Hogan's classic theme song "Real American."

	After an angle with ], which saw Lesnar hand Hogan his most convincing defeat in history in August 2002, Hogan went on hiatus. He returned in early 2003 to battle the Rock once again and defeated ] at '']'' in a match billed as "20 years in the making." He then had another run as Hulk Hogan (with the old "Hulk Rules" logo being revived and altered as "Hulk ''Still'' Rules") and later, the mask-wearing spoof superhero '''Mr. America'''.

	'''Mr. America''' was another Hulk Hogan alter-ego. Mr. America was actually Hulk Hogan in ], wearing a mask. He used Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme music. He was the subject of a story line after Hollywood Hulk Hogan was forced by his boss ] to sit out the rest of his contract after he won at '']'' because McMahon wanted Hulkamania to die.

	On ] ] Mr. America debuted on ] on ] in which Vince appeared and claimed that Mr. America was Hulk Hogan in disguise, Mr. America shot back by saying, "I am '''not''' Hulk Hogan, brother!"(lampooning Hogan's use of "brother" in his promos)

	The ] continued through the month of May, with a singles match between Mr. America and Hogan's old rival Roddy Piper at '']''. ] was also involved in the feud on the side of Mr. America. Vince tried desperately to prove that Mr. America was indeed Hulk Hogan but failed at all attempts. Mr. America even passed a ] test.

	Mr. America's last WWE appearance was on the ], ] edition of ''SmackDown!'', where ], ] and ] defeated Mr. America, ] and ] in a six-man tag team match when Show pinned Mr. America. After the show ended, Mr. America unmasked to show the fans that he was indeed Hulk Hogan. The next week, Hogan quit the WWE due to frustration with the creative team. On the ], ] edition of ''SmackDown!'', McMahon showed the footage of Mr. America unmasking as Hogan and "fired" him. For several months afterwards, WWE hyped up The Big Show as the man who retired Hogan at Madison Square Garden (where the six-man tag team match was held), in order to give The Big Show some more credibility. In a twist of irony, The Big Show was first discovered by Hogan himself and in 1995 was pushed as a major threat to Hogan's ] Championship reign.

	The Mr. America gimmick came under fire briefly from Marvel Comics, who anointed it a rip-off of ], citing costume similarity. (The single star on the mask was also a trademark on Captain America's chest piece.) This was also adding fuel to the fire over the rights to use the Hulk Hogan name, as because of the problems, the WWE was forced to edit out all references to the "Hulk Hogan" name and started to refer to Hogan under the "Hollywood Hogan" name he used in WCW.

	It wasn't long until Hogan and Vince's uneasy truce with one another blew apart, with Hogan being unhappy with payoffs for his matches shortly after his comeback under the Mr. America gimmick. Vince decided to terminate Hogan's contract and Hogan left the WWE in ]. Many in the industry thought that Hogan would never again work for Vince McMahon.

	===New Japan Pro Wrestling (Second run) (2003)===
	A few months afterwards, Hulk Hogan worked a match for ], beating ] at the ''Ultimate Crush II'' event.

	===Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ===
	According to various reports, Hulk Hogan was approached by ] in 2003 regarding appearing at a planned event tentatively titled ], a three hour pay per view event in October meant to be the annual WrestleMania alternative. Hogan willingly took a guitar shot from Jarrett during a press conference in Japan to hype the storyline, but withdrew from negotiations citing knee problems that would require surgery and would prevent him from wrestling. Rumor has it that the knee problems were merely a cover, as Hogan wasn't willing to lose to Jarrett at Bound For Glory, but in any case, the deal was never finalized .

	Hogan continued an amicable relationship with the company, however, and visited with friends off-camera backstage. On November 7, 2004, Hulk Hogan and ] crossed paths backstage at a ] event in ]. Savage had been going on numerous media outlets for many months, promoting his rap album and was also challenging Hogan to a real fight "anytime anywhere", to which Hogan had not responded. Reports say that Hogan approached Savage to shake his hand. Savage did not shake his hand and had several choice words for Hogan. Hogan then asked Savage if he "wanted to step outside." The two were then separated, but many witnesses{{citation needed}} say Savage didn't seem too keen on accepting Hogan's request. There has been a rift between the two former best friends for many years, even before this incident. It is speculated that the rift was influenced by different factors, such as Hogan pulling out of a ], ] nightclub deal in historic ] with Savage as well as a charity match the two were to do for children with ]; Savage gave him until December 24, 2004, to accept the deadline, and donated a check in Hogan's name when he did not show. Savage has also publicly stated he believes Hogan sabotaged his career and possibly even his marriage to ]. An urban legend exists that Savage and Hogan engaged in fisticuffs before ], resulting in the black eye Hogan sported at the event, though Hogan refuted the claim in his autobiography, attributing the eye injury to a verifiable jet-ski accident.

	===WWE Hall of Fame===
	In 2005, weeks before ], it was announced on all WWE programming that the Hulkster would be inducted on that year's ]. This signalled Hogan's return to WWE. On ], ], Hogan was inducted by actor and friend ]. Hogan was applauded for several minutes before he was able to make a speech.

	At WrestleMania 21 on ], 2005, the "American Patriot" Hogan came out to rescue ], who was being attacked by the two Arab-American performers, ] and ]. Some of the build-up to Hogan's induction into the Hall of Fame and preparation for this angle were shown on the first season of '''Hogan Knows Best'''.

	===World Wrestling Entertainment part-time wrestling (Fourth run) (2005-)===
	The next night on ''RAW'', Hassan and Daivari came out to confront and assault fan favorite ]. The following week, Michaels approached ''RAW'' General Manager ] demanding a handicap match with Hassan and Daivari. Bischoff refused but told Michaels if he found a partner he would be granted a tag-team match. Michaels then made a plea for Hulk Hogan to come back and team with him. On the ] episode of ''RAW'', Hassan again led an attack on Michaels until Hogan appeared to make save Michaels and accept his offer.

	At the '']'' pay-per-view Hassan and Daivari lost to Hogan and Michaels, with Daivari being pinned. Hassan would blame and attack Daivari for the loss the next evening on ''RAW''.

	Hogan then appeared on the ] 2005 edition of RAW as the special guest of ] on his talk-show segment "Carlito's Cabana." After being asked questions by Carlito concerning his daughter ], Hogan proceeded to attack Carlito. This was then followed up by an appearance of ], who made comments about Brooke, which further upset Hogan. Hogan was eventually double teamed by Carlito and Angle but was saved by Shawn Michaels. Later that night, Shawn Michaels and Hogan defeated Carlito and Kurt Angle in a tag match. During the post match celebration, Michaels delivered ] to Hogan and walked off. The following week on ''RAW'', Michaels appeared on "]" and challenged Hogan to face him one-on-one for the first time. Hogan appeared on ''RAW'' one week later and accepted the challenge. The match took place on Sunday, ] 2005 at '']''.

	The match between Hogan and Michaels was the main event of the night, and the two collided in a battle billed as "Legend vs. Icon." The match went back and forth, with two referees getting "knocked out" and Michaels using a steel chair to try to gain an advantage. Even after Michaels hit his Sweet Chin Music, Hogan still kicked out and mounted some offense against Michaels, finally hitting him with the legdrop and scoring the victory. Michaels extended his hand to him, telling him that he "had to find out for himself," and Hogan and Michaels shook hands. Michaels left the ring to allow Hogan to celebrate with the crowd.

	Hulk returned on the ], ] edition of '']'' with his daughter Brooke. During the show, ] flirted with the Hulkster's daughter, later on the show ] challenged Hulk to a match at '']''. At ] Hogan defeated Orton via pinfall.

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	==Television and movie roles==		==Television and movie roles==

Revision as of 23:47, 12 November 2006

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Terry Gene Bollea

Born	August 11 1953 Augusta, Georgia
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	The Super Destroyer Sterling Golden Terry Boulder Hulk Hogan Hulk Machine Hollywood Hogan Mr. America
Billed height	6 ft 7 in (201 cm)
Billed weight	285 lb (128 kg)
Billed from	Venice Beach, California
Trained by	Hiro Matsuda
Debut	August 19 1977

Hulk Hogan (born Terry Gene Bollea, August 11 1953 - November 12 2006), is an American professional wrestler and entertainer. He is one of the most successful and popular wrestlers in history, with a large penis, long standing fanbase called "Hulkamaniacs". He currently stars on the VH1 reality show Hogan Knows Best.

Personal information

Born in Augusta, Georgia, Hogan was the third child of Italian-American couple Pete and Ruth Bollea. He had an older brother, Allan Bolea and an older half brother from Ruth's first marriage, Kenneth Wheller. Hogan attended the University of South Florida and graduated with a Masters Degree in Medicine. Hogan met his wife Linda Claridge in a restaurant in Los Angeles, and they married in 1983. They have two children, Brooke and Nick. In April, 2005, the family bought a new $12 million bayfront estate in Miami Beach, Florida so their children could pursue singing and acting careers. The Miami Beach home, in the trendy North Bay Road neighborhood, is the site of filming of the VH1 reality series "Hogan Knows Best."

Main article: Hogan Knows Best

Hogan currently stars in an American reality television show, which is centered around his family life, in the spirit of such shows as The Osbournes. The show follows the lives of the Hogan family and Hogan's efforts to help his children establish show business careers of their own. Former professional wrestler "Nasty Boy" Brian Knobbs, a longtime friend of Hogan's, has appeared on several episodes. Terry is the workout buddy and frequent guest of Bubba The Love Sponge on his Howard 101 Sirius Radio Program and is going to be Bubba's best man.

In Feb 2005 Allure interview he said: "I used to be 6 ft. 7, but after knee, neck and back surgeries I'm now about 6ft 4.

TEH HULK IS DED

Television and movie roles

Hulk Hogan's crossover popularity led to several television and movie roles. Along with 1982's Rocky III, he starred, as mentioned above, in No Holds Barred (1989), as well as Suburban Commando (1991), Mr. Nanny (1993), Santa with Muscles (1996), and 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998). He made two appearances on The A-Team (in 1985 and 1986), and starred in his own TV series, Thunder in Paradise, in 1994. He also appeared in Walker Texas Ranger. Along with Roddy Piper, Hogan lent his voice for a stop motion animation skit on an episode of Robot Chicken, where he led a team of classic wrestlers (in actuality, most of the figures used are from the WWE Classic Superstar line; including Sgt. Slaughter, The Iron Sheik, Jimmy Hart, and King Kong Bundy) however excluding the yet unmade Randy Savage and Lanny Poffo called Hogan's Heroes through an adventure based on the TV show.

Other media

Hollywood Hulk Hogan made cameo appearances in Muppets from Space as "Man in Black" and in Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Theatrical version) as himself. Hogan also appears in Spy Hard, gets tagged in when Leslie Nielsen's character is getting beaten up, and then rips his shirt off and throws a few punches. Hogan has also starred in a few movies which are infamous for being in IMDB's Bottom 100, including Mr. Nanny and Santa With Muscles. Hogan as also been in some of the WWE SmackDown! video games Hogan was portrayed as being offered the role of Zeus on an episode of Hogan Knows Best and was shown during the filming of the movie.

Hogan released a music CD, Hulk Rules, as Hulk Hogan and the Wrestling Boot Band.

The music video for Dolly Parton's wrestling-themed love song Headlock on my Heart features Hogan as "Starlight Starbright."

Hogan has also influenced characters in other media:

In the Taito Pro Wrestling game Mat Mania, the character Golden Hulk was designed as a combination of Hulk Hogan and Bruiser Brody. (Note his wild hair and fur-covered boots, both Brody trademarks. The Japanese version of the game, called Exciting Hour, calls the same character Blues Bloody)
In Capcom's Street Fighter III, the character Alex is loosely based on Hulk Hogan. His pre-fight entrance has him ripping his shirt like the "Hulkster" himself and his special pre-fight entrance with Hugo (who resembles André the Giant) having a stare-down as a reference to the Hogan-André stare-down at Wrestlemania III.
In SNK's World Heroes, the character Muscle Power was modeled on Hogan's character when he wrestled in Japan. He uses Hogan's "Number One!" catchphrase that he used there as well as his Japan-exclusive finishing move the Axe Bomber, a massive clothesline. (Starting with World Heroes 2, however, the character no longer had Hogan's trademark mustache).
Hulk Hogan was also the spokesperson for the Legends of Wrestling video game.
The Japanese series Kinnikuman has a British wrestler named Neptuneman who looks similar to Hulk Hogan.
In the Dead or Alive games, Bass Armstrong is clearly modeled after Hogan.

In an interview on the Tonight Show, Hogan acknowledged that the George Foreman grill was originally offered to him, but he failed to respond in time, and thus allowing Foreman to use his endorsement. This was backed up by an episode of Hogan Knows Best, in which his wife Linda and the family were worried about Hogan's wrestling career (after watching a bloody match between Hulk and Shawn Michaels at SummerSlam 2005) and pleaded with him to take up a career in marketing. Hulk explains about turning down the Foreman grill, and his choice to invest in a shake-mixer instead, saying that whenever he thinks about investing in something "big", he thinks about what happened with the grill and the shake-mixer.

Wrestling facts

Finishing and signature moves

Atomic Leg Drop / Hogan Leg Drop / Hollywood Leg Drop (Leg drop)
Axe Bomber, aka the Hogan Hammer (Crooked arm lariat)
Hulk Up Combination (After doing his Hulking Up Taunt, he will point his finger at the opponent and shake it. Then the opponent goes for a punch but Hogan blocks it and punches the opponent's head three times. Then he irish whips the opponent to the ropes and when he runs back Hogan gives him a big boot to the face. Usually after he will clap his hands twice then put his hand to his ear to the three sides of the ring where the audience is, then do his signature leg drop)
Body slam
Big boot
Bear Hug
Hogan Punches (a series of punches, three lefts followed by a right)
Atomic Drop
Side headlock
Back body drop
Back rake - As Hollywood Hogan
Face rake - As Hollywood Hogan
Rolling crucifix armbar (In New Japan Pro Wrestling)

Managers

Theme songs and entrance music

Hogan's earliest entrance music was Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger," the chart-topping song from Rocky III. It was replaced by the theme song to Hogan's animated series Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling (which was an edited version of Bonnie Tyler's song "Ravishing" from her Secret Dreams & Forbidden Fire album) and later by his best-known entrance theme, a track called "Real American" performed by Rick Derringer. The accompanying music video for "Real American," featuring clips from Hulk Hogan's various WWF matches, Hogan riding his motorcycle, and stock footage of various forms of crashing (i.e. buildings and airplanes) intersecting between footage of Hogan playing guitar in front of a blue screen (with various American landscapes and the American flag projected on it), was critiqued on Beavis and Butt-head.

However, as the WWF owned "Real American" Hogan could not use it when he made the jump to World Championship Wrestling, instead he used the song "American Made," from the Hulk Rules album until he joined the nWo and began using their theme, and later the Wolfpac theme. During his time in the nWo he also used "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and then used it again for his "Hollywood Hulk Hogan" run in WWE.

Towards the end of his last WWE run, when he wore a mask and was known by the name Mr. America, he once again made his entrance to "Real American". Upon his return in 2005 for the WWE Hall of Fame induction, WrestleMania 21 and subsequent appearances he also uses "Real American."

Signature taunts

Wrist twist to cupping the ear
Flexing Arms
Hulking Up
Rapidly pointing at his opponent
Finger Wag

Championships and accomplishments

World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment

WWF/E Championship (6 times) (Sixth and final reign was as WWE Undisputed Champion)
WWE World Tag Team Championship (1 time) (with Edge)
Royal Rumble winner (1990)
Royal Rumble winner (1991)
WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2005)

World Championship Wrestling

WCW World Heavyweight Championship (6 times)

American Wrestling Association

AWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)

National Wrestling Alliance

2 time NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (2 times)

Note: One in Southern division and one in North division.

New Japan Pro Wrestling

1983 International Wrestling Grand Prix tournament winner

Awards

Hogan is one of the very few to be inducted into both the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (2003) and the WWE Hall of Fame (2005).

He was on the cover of Sports Illustrated in April 1985. Next to the swimsuit issue, the magazine was the year's best seller. He is one of only two professional wrestlers to ever appear on the cover of SI; the other is Danny Hodge.

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked him # 1 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003.
He was also ranked twice in the best tag teams of the "PWI Years." He was # 44 with Antonio Inoki and # 57 with Randy Savage.
Hogan has appeared on the cover of Pro Wrestling Illustrated Magazine more times than any other wrestler (a total of 81 times, including the 25th Anniversary issue.)
PWI ranked him #1 in the 1991 PWI 500.

Hogan also won numerous PWI Awards over the years:
- PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler 1983, 1999
- PWI Comeback of the Year 1994, 2002
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year 1985, 1989, 1990
- PWI Wrestler of the Year 1987, 1991, 1994
- PWI Most Hated Wrestler of the Year 1996, 1998
- PWI Match of the Year 1985 (with Mr. T vs. Paul Orndorff & Roddy Piper at WrestleMania),
- PWI Match of the Year 1988 (vs. André the Giant on NBC),
- PWI Match of the Year 1990 (vs. Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VI)
- PWI Match of the Year 2002 (vs. the Rock at WrestleMania X8).
- PWI Feud of the Year 1986 (vs. Paul Orndorff).

Wrestling Observer Newsletter

He is a member of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (inducted in 1996).
1982-1991 Best Babyface
1985-1991 Most Charismatic Wrestler
1985-86,1994-1998 Most Overrated Wrestler
1986 Feud of the Year (vs Paul Orndorff)
1997 Best Box Office Draw

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