The Passing of Hulk Hogan

 

Hulk Hogan was one of the biggest icons in professional wrestling.  He passed away Thursday July 24th, 2025.

When a celebrity, or sports figure passes away, that you have watched for so long, you think of the influence that they have had on your life, and the business that they were in.  So, when I reflect on his life, I think of the both positive, and negative, things in his life.

I have been a wrestling fan since I was a kid in my single digits.  Before I knew who Superstar Billy Graham, and Bruno Sammartino were, I was introduced to Hulk Hogan in the AWA (American Wrestling Association) out of Minneapolis.  It aired twice on the weekends here in Fargo, North Dakota.  There were so many colorful characters in the AWA, and the one who became the breakout star was definitely Hulk Hogan.  His matches with then AWA stars Dr. D David Schultz, Mr, Saito, and Nick Bockwinkle were so compelling, that it was almost impossible to not be sucked into his energy and enthusiasm.

Moving to the WWF (now WWE), is where his stardom really exploded.  Teaming up with Vince McMahon, who had just bought his company from his father, Vince McMahon Sr., Vince Jr. wanted to take his company national, and he saw his quarterback was Hulk Hogan.

Hogan had the charisma and character to draw in that crowd that the younger McMahon wanted.  Vince gathered the players to work with Hogan such as Roddy Piper, Paul Orndorff, King Kong Bundy, Big John Studd, Andre The Giant and more.  It was a recipe for success.

McMahon and Hogan made a very smart decision teaming up with MTV, and put on the first non music related show on MTV, with the help of 80's pop icon Cyndi Lauper.  The storylines that were created ushered in the very first WrestleMania in 1985.

With the success of the first WrestleMania, each WrestleMania seemed to get bigger and bigger.  WrestleMania 3, was Hogan's biggest match of his career with the then undefeated Andre The Giant, in front of a reported 93,000 people in rural Detroit Michigan.  Hogan's star would just rise higher and higher from there.

It is fair to say that without Hulk Hogan, there would be no WrestleMania, and professional wrestling would not be as big as it is today.  It has been said many times that Hulk Hogan is to wrestling what Babe Ruth was to baseball.  I agree.

The Hulkster wasn't without controversy however, which hurt his wholesome character that he portrayed telling the kids to train, say their prayers and eat their vitamins.  That did do damage to a career that many would sell their soul to the devil to have.

For me, I wasn't a big fan of the Hulk Hogan matches.  As I grew older, I saw many patterns of his matches, that it almost became predictible.  Any variations of his matches were a welcome surprise.  He did wrestle differently in Japan, and thanks to YouTube, it was nice to see.

Let's face it though.  Hogan, along with Vince McMahon Jr,. were the ones who made wrestling as big as it is today.  The brains of Vince McMahon, as well as the brawn and charisma of Hulk Hogan.  I do want to say thank you to the Hulkster for bringing popularity to the sports entertainment business that I still love to this day.

My sincerest condolences to Terry Jean Bollea's (Hogan's real name) family, friend and fans who lost a once in a lifetime personality. Rest in peace Hulk.  You will never be forgotten.