Wrestling Icon Hulk Hogan Dead at 71

In what may be one of the least expected headlines I’ve ever had the responsibility to write, WWE Hall of Fame wrestler and truly iconic persona Terry “Hulk Hogan” Bollea has passed away at 71 years old. Though an official cause hasn’t been given, initial reports by TMZ claim paramedics rushed to his Clearwater, Florida home to address a “cardiac arrest”.

Having been a wrestler since 1977, Bollea was there for the meteoric rise that WWE (then known as WWF) took in the early 80s. As the main babyface for a generation, Hulk Hogan was the unstoppable force known for taking down bad guys left a right. It didn’t matter who it was, fans around the world rallied behind “Hulkamania,” resulting in untold millions in merchandise sales and catapulting Bollea to superstardom. His matches with legends like Andre “The Giant”, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, The Rock… hell, even Mr. T… will go down in the annals of as some of the best of all time.

When he wasn’t shining in the ring, he grew to become a massive star outside the squared circle. His silver screen credits include Rocky III, Suburban Commando, and Mr. Nanny, while his TV roles included Randolph J. “Hurricane” Spencer in Thunder In Paradise, Boomer Knight in Walker, Texas Ranger. The man was everywhere.

Yet like most insanely popular figures, there were plenty of warts to go with his crisp image as a highly marketable persona. Back in 1986, just ahead of Wrestlemania 2, fellow wrestler Jesse “The Body” Ventura was actively trying to unionize the wrestling business that was so bad at taking care of its talent. Though efforts were made, it never materialized once then-owner Vince McMahon got word of what was going on.

Years later, Ventura and the rest of the world learned that it was Bollea that ratted the entire unionization effort out to McMahon. Hell, the guy admitted to it himself.

But that’s not the only black mark on Hogan’s reputation. Back in 2015, the WWE cut ties with Hulk Hogan, removing him from the Hall Of Fame after a sex tape featuring Hogan included some extremely racist comments he said about his daughter dating a black guy.

According to a transcript published by the National Inquirer at the time, Hogan was recorded saying:

“I mean, I’d rather if she was going to f*ck some n—-r, I’d rather have her marry an 8-foot-tall n—-r worth a hundred million dollars! Like a basketball player…I guess we’re all a little racist. F–king n—-r.”

He eventually won a lawsuit against Gawker for publishing the sex tape and he was reinstated into the WWE Hall of Fame, but the reputational damage was severe. So much so that during the WWE’s first episode on Netflix, the guy was booed off stage trying to shill his shitty beer. That reaction could also have been the result of his appearance at the Republican National Convention where he ripped his shirt off in support of Donald J. Trump, however.

Then there’s the fact that the man couldn’t help but lie about everything. The dude just couldn’t help himself. There were the funny little fibs about how he somehow miraculously wrestled 400 days in one year (he justified that by saying he traveled to Japan a lot and the time differences made up those extra days), how he’d once outdrank John Belushi though the actor had died years before the story allegedly took place, that Elvis Presley was a fan…

But then you’ve got the lies that make you scratch your head and wonder why he thought that was a good idea. In one instance, he claimed that Lars Ulrich asked him to audition for the open bass player spot in Metallica when Jason Newsted left — a point that the entire band’s disproven. Then there’s the whole fib about Andre the Giant being 600 pounds when Hogan famously bodyslammed him in Wrestlemania III or the one where he said Mike Tyson was too scared to get in the ring with him.

We’re talking about a compulsive liar that he once personally invited a Make-A-Wish kid to see him at SummerSlam ’92 but when he went out to wrestle, that seat was empty. Somehow, he knew the kid had passed away in that moment and he went on later to record a song that featured the line “I guess there will be an empty seat when I wrestle at Wembly.” The only problem was that he wasn’t scheduled to wrestle at SummerSlam ’92, nor had he never wrestled in Wembly, so those were two falsehoods on the back of an allegedly dead child that may or may not exist.

The list of lies goes on and on and on…

There’s a lot that could be said about the man. Was he a perfect person? No. No one’s perfect, but when it comes to his legacy and eventual lionization among fans, it’s important we know the truth:

Terry “Hulk Hogan” Bollea was a liar, a racist, and a union buster/scab that raised up an entire industry while actively working to keep everyone around him down. We’ve all got the immortal words of the great Iron Sheik to fall back on now.

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