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A legend has passed. Well-known celebrity names are often controversial, and Terry “Hulk Hogan” Bollea certainly had his controversies. It does leave me with a sense of sadness that his final appearance for a company he was a major architect in building was such a negative experience. The circumstances surrounding that appearance were what they were, but we also didn’t know it would be the last time we’d see him on WWE television.
I’m not here to judge a man today; that’s not my role in life. I am here to judge and appreciate art, and I consider professional wrestling to be the greatest art form. His contributions are innumerable whether you watched a match of his in your fandom or not. Hogan gave much to the industry, including his body.
In his time on Earth, there were many things to celebrate about the art he left behind.
Crossover Appeal
Two weekends after Hulk Hogan’s death, the company Hulk helped put on the map is holding its annual SummerSlam event. On it, we see a scheduled tag team match of Randy Orton & Jellyroll vs. Drew McIntyre & Logan Paul. The Hulk Hogan influence is heavy here. The first WrestleMania featured Randy’s dad, Bob Orton Jr. It was also built around the celebrity appeal of a new star in Hulk Hogan attracting new fans teaming with television star and lover of mothers everywhere, Mr. T.
After that show, the change in wrestling to a glitzier, mainstream-friendly, and polished product was established. WrestleMania became synonymous with pro wrestling events. Before that, you’d see someone like Andy Kaufman come into a territory. While legendary, Andy was not mainstream. He was alternative comedy before it had been identified as such, and at one time was even cast out of the cast of Saturday Night Live by audience vote, saying he wasn’t even ready to be Not Ready for Prime Time. Many outside stars would dip their toes into this fantasy sport-world with varying degrees of respect and success, but it started with Hogan.
Building a Myth
“I took that big, nasty, stinking giant and pressed him over my head…”
As a child, I hadn’t seen WrestleMania III, but I had heard Hulk Hogan cut a promo. The wrestling moniker of “never let the truth get in the way of a good story” was rarely more accurate than in the case of Hogan. There was enough truth there to let it pass. He did slam Andre the Giant. I guess his feet may have been above Hulk’s head when he was ducking down to lift, but pressed him over his head? That sounded really cool to me as a child who hadn’t seen the moment. Some of us are older than streaming.
This was Hulk building his legend. It was a time where if wrestling was in a different area than your territory, it meant that it may not even have existed. It’s not like Pro Wrestling Illustrated had a print run like Life Magazine. Wrestlers created a narrative to be seen as larger than life. He was the world’s strongest hero to many children simply because he was portrayed as such. It was about making the prior moment legendary and create anticipation for the next moment. It’s sales, he was a product, and he was a damn good one. Not because he was the strongest, biggest, or best wrestler. It was because he knew who he was and who he aspired to be as a brand.
Reviving WCW
Give me any chance to talk about WCW days and I will. That’s what broke me into wrestling. I liked the Light Heavyweight Division of its time, the Dangerous Alliance and how they antagonized Sting, and the hardcore wrestling style of Cactus Jack. When I moved to a new city where WCW wasn’t available in syndication, I tried the WWF Superstars show on a Saturday morning. I saw The Undertaker of that era, a car repossessor, and a Native American stereotype while moving to Oklahoma and having a grandfather who had taught me respect for their cultural history. It wasn’t for me.
When I came back to having the ability to watch WCW, Hulk Hogan had arrived from the WWF. I was skeptical, but gave it a shot. Never growing up a Hulkamaniac, I had some fun with his run, getting my first chance in real time to root for Hulk Hogan. It got a little corny with those Dungeon of Doom vignettes. People who ask how I watch schlocky B-horror have no idea the terrible television I was raised on.
What I did notice in my return to fandom was that the crowds had changed. Younger and more fans in general starting to show up to venues. Then, came the heel turn. I didn’t watch the WWF, but I understood how big of a moment this was and how this would redefine Hulk Hogan as a character.
What he did throughout all of this was give me more years to enjoy my favorite wrestling. WCW rose to heights it likely wouldn’t have because of the acquisition of Hulk Hogan.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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How to Emote a Crowd
If you are a young professional wrestler and you don’t study Hogan matches, you’re only hurting your career. The man didn’t go hold for hold. He had no flashy moves from the top rope. His matches weren’t long cinematic performances. We can list all of those things, or we can look at the fact that despite that, there has never been a more recognizable star that has ever come from this world.
Don’t look at the hold itself, but look at when he does the hold. Watch what he does before the hold, as well as right after. The way he looks to a crowd or a camera at just the right moment, the crowd is waiting to support the man with a simple pose.
His promos, while passé now and from another era, also knew how to sell tickets. Whether you have 15 seconds of TV time or 15 segments where the NWO would come out on Nitro, the man knew how to maximize his time. Even during his heel days, it bugged me at the time but now that I’ve been around a little longer, I look back at the genius of the time he lost to Roddy Piper at Starrcade clean.
The next Monday on Nitro he bragged about beating Piper. We knew it didn’t happen, but his heel nature would not sell it in front of a crowd or a camera. Then the WCW announcers had a chance to sell replays of the Starrcade show, so you could see what actually happened if you’d missed it.
Genius.
The World Wrestling Federation
The wrestling industry was around before there was a WWF, but a post-WWF wrestling world changed it all. There were the two men the most responsible for the company we enjoy as WWE being a true entertainment powerhouse, and those were Vince McMahon and his star wrestler who had to perform the vision in Hulk Hogan.
The man’s character and title runs were what influence today the television we watch and enjoy, or enjoy complaining about for too many of you. The action figure boom happened because kids wanted a Hulk Hogan toy. Then you had to have someone for him to fight and to team up with. You also had to have a ring. LJN, other wrestlers, and even Mattel today all had Hogan to thank for the one that companies wanted for brand deals.
That popularity on the toy shelves made many of us young children of the era curious about the product, and for so many, Hulk was what hooked them, and many of us for life. Whether it’s a small part of someone’s mosaic or you became a professional wrestler after seeing a Hulk Hogan match, he has had more impact in more peoples lives than we will ever truly realize.
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