I haven't written up an obituary in a long time but with today's news, I needed to make one. Even if the deceased was a complicated individual.
Hulk Hogan has died. He was 71 years old.
I unequivocally wouldn't have been a professional wrestling fan if not for Hulk Hogan. I utterly adored him as a child. I bought his merchandise. I had his press-slamming LJN toy (still to this day!). In 1989, I was as hyped to see No Holds Barred as I was to see Batman. He was always my first pick to play as in WWF video games, from WWF Superstars on the Game Boy to WWF WrestleFest in the arcades to WWF Royal Rumble on the Genesis. I had a lot of fun seeing Suburban Commando in theaters. I spent a good deal of 1991 renting out the WWF PPV tapes to watch him clash with the likes of Sgt. Slaughter and The Undertaker. And then there was WWF WrestleMania VIII, an event that I was lucky enough to watch live on PPV in part because me and my family truly believed, like a total sucker, that Hogan was going to have his last ever match.
Even when my initial love of pro wrestling began to wane, I was still keeping track of Hulk's exploits, from Mr. Nanny to Trouble In Paradise to yes, him publicly admitting that he took steroids. I didn't tip my toe with his work in WCW until one day my beloved poppie proclaimed to me that Hogan was now a bad guy and teaming up with Diesel and Razor Ramon. That shocking development, plus one wonderful sleepover over 1997 Christmas vacation where my friend's neighbor brought WCW vs. nWo: World Tour to the Nintendo 64 festivities, got me back into pro wrestling. I once again was following his wrestling career, even though things weren't always great. I groaned at his endless promos and often poor matches (namely Hogan/Warrior II) but he could flip that switch and make me a Hulkamaniac again, especially when he came back to the WWF and faced The Rock at WWF WrestleMania X8. And I continued to follow him, from him winning the WWF Heavyweight Champion again, to being inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame, to Hogan Knows Best, to Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling, to his infamous running of TNA and beyond.
But even by 1998, I became more aware of the other side of Hulk. The tall tales. The ego. The politicking. The backstabbing. The union busting. Those ironclad contracts with creative control. His less than ideal behavior as a husband and father. And of course, the racism and his refusal to fully apologize for it.
Hulk Hogan/Terry Bollea was a very flawed human being. He caused a lot of pain to people beyond just his fans and since the beginning of the 1990's, his antics in and out of the ring became increasingly dubious and/or laughably awful. But he also helped change the art of pro wrestling. He sold sports entertainment to the masses and made it a definitive part of American pop culture. He didn't always practice what he preached but his performances in the squared circle made you want to jump to your feet, scream your lungs out, and instill in your soul to never give up when the going gets tough.
Hulk Hogan, brother, you will be greatly missed.
