Hulk Hogan



""Whatcha gonna do, brotha, when the twenty four inch pythons run wild on you?!?!?""

His given name is Terry Gene Bollea. You know him better as Hulk Hogan. If the name doesn't ring any bells, you were either born in the past decade or you've been living under a rock for the past three decades. To put it simply: Hogan is the single most famous professional wrestler to ever lace up a pair of boots (as the second-most famous professional wrestler, Ric Flair, has reluctantly admitted).

That Other Wiki has an extensive article on his life and career (both in and out of the ring), so you can go check that out if you really need a refresher.

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"Hogan: "Well, brother, we're lightening the load around here. We're trimming the fat. We're thinning the herd. I mean, you know, it's pathetic. It's pathetic, that Dixie would let this company get in the shape it's in. It's her train of thought! Raven? Who hasn't had a damn shower or bath? Y'know, with RVD, and that whole crew out there? They meant to professional wrestling what Hulk Hogan, who sold out Shea Stadium? who put 94,000 people in the Pontiac Silverdome? Who slammed a 700-pound giant? They mean to professional wrestling what Hulk Hogan means?
 * Actually Pretty Funny: Thought this of Booker T's "We comin' for YOU, nigga!" moment.
 * Alliterative Name: Hulk Hogan, and "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan.
 * All-American Face: For fourteen years. Hogan became so synonymous with the role that his Face Heel Turn genuinely sent shock waves through the industry.
 * Arch Enemy: Andre the Giant, Sting, Ric Flair. Roddy Piper was Hogan's Arch Enemy during the early days of Hulkamania.
 * Attention Whore: He's well known for ALWAYS putting self in the spotlight, even when it's best he doesn't.
 * Badass Grandpa: Depends on who you ask, but Hogan can still be seen as one in some people's eyes.
 * Beard of Evil: Okay, it was a spray-painted on beard, but it definitely defined him as a Heel.
 * Wasn't really sprayed on, except perhaps very early in it's existence.
 * Big Bad: In WCW as "Hollywood Hogan", the leader of the New World Order. Of course when the nWo came to WWE, the nWo became hired thugs of WWE's Big Bad and owner Vince McMahon.
 * Big No: See Screw the Money, I Have Rules, below.
 * Blatant Lies: The IWC LOVES to say that Vince made Hogan, and that he'd be nothing without him. This is of course ignoring the fact that he was so over in Japan that he was called Ichiban, which means Number One, and that the phrase Hulkamania was first used in the AWA.
 * Hogan has been seen to do this himself with various anecdotes where the truth has been... blurred to say the least. Although in all due fairness, the man spent twenty-odd years traveling on a constantly exhaustive schedule in various nations as the biggest name in wrestling and spent a good deal of time having his body and head battered. Probably not all the surprising that events have become confused in the Hulkster's mind.
 * The biggest might be on the eve of his TNA debut when he declared he taught Vince McMahon how to work a wrestling business.
 * The IWC has a Running Gag meme based on this, where both the weight of Andre the Giant and the size of the crowd at Pontiac Silverdome at Wrestlemania III increase exponentially with each time Hulk recounts the event. This is only mildly exaggerated from what Hulk actually says.
 * Then Andre died the next day.
 * He partied with John Belushi all the time. In 1986.
 * He was able to work 400 days a year due to gaining time while crossing the International Date Line on flights from Japan and back.
 * He was fired from the WWF for appearing in Rocky III instead of going to work in North Carolina. Any interviews on MSG TV promoting the film and Hogan's role in it (or wrestling clips of Hogan jobbing to Tony Atlas after filming wrapped) are the figments of someone's imagination.
 * Hogan, while being pushed as a top Foreign Wrestling Heel in Japan, was told to wrestle to a draw with young boy and Olympic judoka Riki Choshu, and just kicked his ass instead.
 * Breaking the Fourth Wall: Actually, EATING the fourth wall would be a better description for Hogan's comments on the November 18, 2010 TNA ReAction.

"No wonder this company was in the shape it's in. It's time to get rid o' the trash, the garbage, the worthless piece of crap out here, and we started with Dixie Carter. Yeah, we're gettin' very real around here. We are so, real, it's unbelievable. Because, if you don't get over like I said, you're fired. If you don't draw number, if you don't entertain, if you don't put asses in seats, if you don't put the coinage in the piggy bank, you're fired. No more games. No more, "Kayfabe." "It's a work." "I've won 34 tag team belts." Who gives a damn, how many... fake belts you won!? If you don't draw money, you get fired around here. If you don't put asses in seats, you’re gone.""

"Hogan: I got one thing to say about six sides: you had it, and it only got you so far. Now we're takin' ya all the way, Jack! No more eight sides, no more six sides, no more stinkin' playpen rings!"
 * Calling Your Attacks: After the Big Boot, Hogan would often do the ear-cupping thing to the crowd before going for the legdrop.
 * Catch Phrase
 * "Well, let me tell you something, brother..."
 * "Well, you know, Mean Gene..."
 * "Whatcha gonna do, brother? Whatcha gonna do when Hulkamania runs wild on you?"
 * The "24 inch pythons"
 * Celebrity Toons: Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling, in which he was played by Brad Garrett.
 * Charlie Brown From Outta Town: Hogan's Mr. American persona.
 * Cheap Heat
 * Cool Mask: Hogan's Mr. America mask.
 * Darkskinned Blonde: Just look at the picture.
 * Defeating the Undefeatable: One of the only people to ever defeat Andre the Giant by pinfall. Anyone who manages to beat Hogan cleanly is considered to have done this. In fact, the list of people who have beaten Hogan cleanly can be counted on your fingers, and still have room left over.
 * Dude, Where's My Respect?: His Freudian Excuse for his infamous Face Heel Turn. See Motive Rant below.
 * Evil Costume Switch: Hogan switched out his famous yellow trunks and boots for black-and-white tights with a lightning design airbrushed on when he joined the nWo.
 * Face Heel Turn: One of, if not then the, most famous example in wrestling history. Hogan - the ultimate All-American Face, who taught kids to train, say their prayers, take their vitamins and believe in themselves - turned his back on the fans at Bash At The Beach 1996, once more becoming one of wrestling's top draws (this time, as a Heel).
 * Fan Nickname: Hogan's detractors will often refer to him as the "Orange Hobgoblin". His finisher is common referred to as the "Legdrop Of Doom".
 * Finger-Poke of Doom: Hogan was one of the two men involved with the actual Trope Naming match. Veteran announcer Gorilla Monsoon once quipped that Hogan "doesn't know the difference between a wristlock and a wristwatch."
 * Finger Wag: Part of his Five Moves of Doom.
 * Finishing Move: The nigh-infamous Leg Drop; originally used as a way for Hogan to take pressure off a dodgy knee, it eventually became the Finisher we all know.
 * In Japan, Hogan uses a running clothesline known as the Axe Bomber, mostly due to fan demand after he legitimately knocked out Antonio Inoki with said clothesline.
 * Five Moves of Doom: Hulk Up, Punch, Punch, Punch, Irish Whip, Big Boot and Leg Drop.
 * Follow the Leader: The bodybuilder look, the long blonde hair, and even the "Twenty-four inch Pythons" catchphrase all came from Superstar Billy Graham.
 * Game-Breaking Injury: Potentially. Hogan had spinal fusion surgery in late 2010, which might very well end his active wrestling career permanently.
 * To put this in perspective, this was the same surgery Edge had in 2003 that led to his retirement. Edge was 29 at the time and lasted eight more years, probably against better judgment. Hulk Hogan was nearly twice that age.
 * Heel: Hogan's "Hollywood" persona, used during his time in the nWo.
 * Heel Face Turn: Following the huge crowd reaction to Hogan when the nWo came into the WWF, Hogan was quickly moved out of the group and turned back to a face role. He did a similar turn twenty years earlier in the AWA, to the point where when he returned to the WWF, he was brought in as a straight-up babyface.
 * Hot-Blooded
 * Implausible Deniability: "I am not a steroid abuser and I do not use steroids." His drawing power arguably never reached the same peak afterwards. He's since been more honest about his past abuse.
 * Large Ham: Even in real life if people stop paying attention to him, he will do something to get the cameras pointed his way.
 * Motive Rant: What ended the Bash at the Beach PPV when Mean Gene demanded to know what Hogan was doing joining the NWO. Hogan's response pointed out that he had done everything a good guy should and the fans had turned their backs on him for it. Had some elements of a Worked Shoot as part of it.
 * Never My Fault: A fan posted on Hogans Facebook page that Hogan was one of the people responsible for the demise of WCW. Hogan shot back with this. Dick move, Hogan.
 * Extremely unlikely that Hogan was the real author of that comment. And if he was, it was almost certainly a worked public "shoot" comment, something Hogan has been known to do.
 * New World Order: One of the founding members, with Kevin Nash and Scott Hall.
 * Won't Work On Me: When Hulking Up.
 * Obviously famously no selling Vader's powerbomb (a powerbomb that has legitimately given concussions and broken backs).
 * He also kicked out of Goldberg's Jackhammer, though that was due to Kevin Nash being late to the ring to break up the pin.
 * Not Cheating Unless You Get Caught: Hogan employed this trope both as a heel and a face, but chiefly in his "Hollywood" heel persona.
 * One of Us: Most likely a subversion, but Nintendo did call him in to host the Pokémon National Championship in 2006 and crown the winner.
 * He's a huge fan of Kinnikuman, though that does make sense...
 * Open Mouth, Insert Foot: The end result for Hogan of Sting foiling his latest attempt at a Ten-Minute Retirement scam to get away from the Icon.
 * Popularity Power: Years after the height of his popularity and success in the industry, Hogan is still wildly popular, especially outside of America.
 * The Hulkster's so well loved, he actually managed to get THE ROCK booed when they fought at Wrestlemania 18... and Hulk was a heel then!
 * Power Stable: The New World Order, aka the nWo. Also, Immortal.
 * Precision F-Strike: At Bash at the Beach 2000, Hogan faced Jeff Jarrett in a WCW Championship where Jarrett immediately took a dive for Hogan. Annoyed, Hogan shot off with, "That's the reason why this company's in the damn shape it's in, because of BULLSHIT like this!"
 * Punch-Punch-Punch Uh-Oh: Hulking up always started with the opponent punching at the Hulkster to no avail. This was used against him at least once when he squared off against The Giant at Hog Wild.
 * Put on a Bus: This happened with Hogan and his Mr. America persona due to Hogan having a falling out with Vince McMahon (over money, apparently).
 * Real Men Love Jesus
 * Screw the Money, I Have Rules: Invoked during the start of Hogan's feud with Ted DiBiase in the 80's where Hogan was offered a substantial amount (Never verified but DiBiase said it would have made "The crowd's head spin.") for his title. Hogan's understated response?
 * "HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL NNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!"
 * Small Name, Big Ego: It might be more of a case of Big Name Bigger Ego but Hogan nevertheless is notorious for refusing to lose cleanly in matches against opponents he should logically lose to such as Shawn Michaels and Randy Orton. This led to him becoming a Boring Invincible Hero after his initial rise as a superstar.
 * Smug Snake: Hogan as a heel is somewhere between this and a Generic Doomsday Villain. While Hogan could and often did beat anyone that came to take his championship, he often did it with illegal help and was so smug about it that the crowd was hoping somebody would just take the damn thing away from him. Enter Sting and later Goldberg.
 * Sobriquet: The "Immortal", and/or "Hollywood".
 * Strictly Formula: The end of his matches follow the same basic formula.
 * Take That, Audience!: When revealing the standard four-sided ring to replace TNA's unique six-sided one, the crowd roundly booed him and chanted "WE WANT SIX SIDES!" His response:


 * Take That, Critics!: At the 1995 World War 3 PPV, Hogan (alongside Sting and Randy Savage) burns a dirtsheet, which he calls "a ragsheet", telling Gene Okerlund to "Observe this!", which is a shot at Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, and then proclaiming, "The Internet's got all the scoops!" Little did he know that those words would come back to haunt him.
 * It's even funnier than that; they changed the booking of the show after Meltzer got word of it in order to swerve him. Meltzer had the changes in the issue the week before the PPV.
 * Ten-Minute Retirement: Just when you think Hogan's had his last match... During one such retirement, he announced he was running for president.
 * Totally Radical: Dude.
 * Underwear of Power: Hogan's famous yellow trunks.
 * Verbal Tic: Brother! Also "Dude!" A running joke on /wooo/ when Hogan is mentioned is the phrase "brotherdudejack", a combination of some of his most-used tics.
 * Vitriolic Best Buds: Randy Savage (in the ring and Real Life, at least for a while. Probably not anymore. DEFINITELY not anymore.)
 * What Could Have Been: In the event that Hogan didn't want to be the third man of the NWO, another was set up to take his place. Who was it? Sting.
 * What Have I Become?: After his match with Sting at the climax of the Immortal angle, Hogan performs a Heel Face Turn and turns on Immortal. Next Impact, he explained he'd realized he'd pretty much become nothing more than a thug and he didn't like it.
 * Worked Shoot: "These two men right here, came from this great big organization up north. Well, who knows more about that organization, brother?"
 * "That's the reason why this company's in the shape it's in, because of bullshit like this!"
 * Writing Around Trademarks: Hogan's changeover to the ring name "Hollywood Hulk Hogan" was WCW's way of getting around royalty payments to Marvel Comics; the announcers started calling him simply "Hollywood Hogan", which cut down on the amount of times "Hulk" was used, which cut down on the royalty payments. Eventually, Hogan simply bought the rights to use the name himself.