Hulk Hogan obituary: Larger-than-life character and wrestling giant

Hulk Hogan, the two-time WWE Hall of Fame wrestler who has died aged 71, will be remembered by many as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time before his star faded.

The American, who rose to prominence during the mid-1980s and resurrected his career a decade later, became a star after performing in the WWE, then the WWF, and WCW in the 1980s and 1990s with his skyrocketing popularity helping him crossover to television and films before scandal and controversy later marred his legacy.

He is often remembered for his trademark blonde handlebar moustache and red bandana during his initial Hulkamania run in the mid-1980s, in which he was portrayed as the good guy (known in the industry as a face) as he came out to the theme song Real American.

He later sported a darker black-and-white theme with his days in the villainous faction known as the nWo (New World Order) where he played a bad guy (called a heel) in WCW in the late 1990s.

For his involvement in professional wrestling, Hogan was twice inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame — once in 2005 and again in 2020 as a founding member of the nWo. He was also a member of the International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame class of 2021.

Born Terry Bollea on August 11, 1953, in Augusta, Georgia, he grew up with an interest in sports by playing baseball as a child. He drew interest from scouts before an injury ended his career.

His first foray into wrestling began after he met Jack and Gerald Brisco, both wrestlers, at a gym in Florida. The brothers were impressed with Hogan’s physique and asked Hiro Matsuda to train him in 1976.

Training with Matsuda for more than a year, Hogan’s first wrestling match took place against Brian Blair in the promotion Championship Wrestling from Florida in 1977. However, he took a hiatus afterwards, becoming the manager of the Anchor Club in Cocoa Beach, Florida.

After a meeting with Ed Leslie (later known as wrestler Brutus Beefcake), Hogan was inspired to give wrestling another chance — this time convinced to work as a tag team with Leslie called The Boulder Brothers. They joined Continental Wrestling Association in Memphis.

During an appearance on a local talk show, Hogan sat beside Lou Ferrigno, star of the television show The Incredible Hulk. Hogan actually looked bigger than Ferrigno, and he soon adopted “The Hulk” into his wrestling persona, performing as Terry “The Hulk” Boulder.

After competing in various wrestling promotions, wrestler Terry Funk introduced Hogan to the World Wrestling Federation (now known as WWE) owner and promoter Vince McMahon Senior, who was impressed with Hogan.

He wrestled his first match in the WWF by defeating Harry Valdez in Championship Wrestling in 1979 and appeared at Madison Square Garden, New York, against Ted DiBiase. He began in-ring feuds with Bob Backlund and Andre the Giant before competing in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, where he earned the nickname “Ichiban” (number one).

After the WWF took new ownership under McMahon's son, also called Vince, who bought the company in 1982, Hogan returned and became the face of the company. He defeated the Iron Sheikh in 1984 to win his first WWF World Heavyweight Championship at Madison Square Garden, with ringside announcer Gorilla Monsoon proclaiming afterwards: “Hulkamania is here!”

Hogan would build on this as part of his character, referring to fans as “Hulkamaniacs” during interviews and introducing his three demands: training, saying prayers and eating vitamins.

The next year he competed in the main event of the first WrestleMania in 1985, teaming up with Mr T to defeat “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and “Mr Wonderful” Paul Orndorff, beginning a trend of where he headlined seven of the next eight WrestleManias.

His star power rose throughout the 1980s; he was the most requested celebrity for the Make-A-Wish Foundation children’s charity and featured on covers of Sports Illustrated, TV Guide and People magazines. He also had his own Saturday morning cartoon called Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling.

In 1993, after a steroid scandal hit professional wrestling, Hogan left the promotion to take time off. He ventured into acting, starring in his own television show, Thunder in Paradise, which was cancelled after one season.

He returned to New Japan Pro Wrestling before signing with World Championship Wrestling, also known as WCW, in the mid-1990s. In his debut match against Ric Flair, he won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.

At Bash at the Beach in 1996, Hogan turned heel for the first time in his 15-year career as he sided with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, forming the New World Order and going by "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan. The nWo maintained popularity throughout the late-1990s as the faction grew to include more wrestlers but also helped heat up the Monday night ratings war between WCW and WWF.

After the WCW was bought by WWF in 2001, Hogan, Hall and Nash rejoined the WWF in 2002 at No Way Out. The trio soon shared a feud with The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin — leading to an anticipated “Icon vs Icon” match between The Rock and Hogan at WrestleMania X8.

While Hogan was supposed to be the heel, he was heavily cheered on by the crowd of more than 60,000 at the SkyDome in Toronto, Canada. Although he ultimately lost the match, his career resurged as he turned face and returned to his old signature red and yellow tights in the following weeks.

Hogan would continue being involved with pro wrestling with stints in the WWE, Impact Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling and Memphis Wrestling throughout the next decade. His last match took place during an Impact Wrestling show in London where he teamed up with Sting and Bully Ray to take on DOC, Devon and Mr Anderson in 2013.

Outside the ring, Hogan had legal issues throughout the years. In 1994, he testified in the trial of McMahon Senior admitting to taking anabolic steroids but stating that McMahon had neither sold nor ordered him to take them. In 2012, he sued Gawker after a private tape was released, eventually settling for $31 million.

However, one of the biggest backlashes he faced came in 2015 after the National Enquirer and Radar Online released a racist rant recorded on tape. The WWE immediately cut ties with him and Hogan apologised for his remarks.

“This is not who I am. I believe very strongly that every person in the world is important and should not be treated differently based on race, gender, orientation, religious beliefs or otherwise,” he said at the time announcing his departure from the WWE.

Hogan later made a televised apology where he pleaded forgiveness for his comments. Afterwards, a number of black wrestlers later expressed their support including wrestlers Booker T, Mark Henry and Big E.

In 2018, Hogan returned to the WWE appearing as the host of the inaugural Crown Jewel event in Riyadh. He’s appeared in numerous events for the company since including co-hosting WrestleMania 37 in 2021 and appearing at WWE Raw is XXX that celebrated the 30th anniversary of Raw in 2023.

Hogan’s final WWE appearance came on January 6, during the company’s Netflix debut of Monday Night Raw at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. Accompanied by longtime friend and former manager Jimmy Hart, Hogan was met with a chorus of heavy boos from the crowd — a sharp contrast to the adoration he once commanded during his “Hulkamania” days.

The hostile reception reflected growing backlash over his controversial social and political stances, particularly his outspoken support for US President Donald Trump, as well as the lingering shadow of his past racist remarks.

Outside of wrestling, Hogan was also involved in television and film. He found success on the reality show Hogan Knows Best, released in 2005 and aired for four seasons. He also has credits in films such as Rocky III (1982), Mr Nanny (1993) and 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998).

He is survived by his ex-wife Linda Claridge and their children, Brooke and Nick.

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