History Trivia / HulkHogan

** As part of the nWo and during his Wrestling/{{WWE}} run in '02 he used Music/JimiHendrix's "Voodoo Child (Slow Return)"

* LyingCreator: Hogan is prone to repeating various anecdotes wherein 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 that surprising that events have become confused in the Hulkster's mind.

** During his first run in the WWF, Vince McMahon Sr. wanted Hogan to dye his hair red (since Hogan is an Irish surname). He refused because he was already balding at the time.

* FollowTheLeader: The bodybuilder look, the long blonde hair, calling people "Brother," and even the "Twenty-four inch pythons" catchphrase all came from Wrestling/SuperstarBillyGraham.

* OldShame: Hogan reportedly regrets doing ''Hogan Knows Best'', the reality show that he and his family starred in. While the success of the show helped [[CareerResurrection revive his slumping career somewhat]], it was a stressful shooting environment for the whole family, and didn't help his struggling marriage much, leading him to divorce from his wife less than a month after the show ended.

** During his first run in the WWF, Wrestling/VinceMcMahon wanted Hogan to dye his hair red (since Hogan is an Irish surname). He refused because he was already balding at the time.

** We ''almost'' had Hulk vs Stone Cold. Austin confirmed at a 2020 podcast that it was him who nixed the idea given that they weren't able to decide not the winner, but who was going to "carry" who. Hogan's lower back and knees were pretty much talcum even then and the Rattlesnake's neck never fully recovered of that fatidic piledriver in his match against Wrestling/OwenHart.

** If Hogan had stayed a bit longer in WWF in 1993, they were reportedly going to start him on a brief feud with Wrestling/GiantGonzales; Gonzales had even attacked Hogan during a match at one of the final house shows Hogan did before he left.

* OldShame:
** Hulk Hogan blames himself for the disastrous match he and Ultimate Warrior had at the 1998 ''Halloween Havoc'' and if one had seen it, they probably know why. The part that isn't Hogan's fault is that the next match, Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage vs Wrestling/{{Goldberg}}, called by some critics as the best match in the event's then eleven year history, was cut due to pay per view issues, meaning what was easily the worst match on the card was also the functional main event, making it that much more memorable.
** Hogan mentioned on one podcast interview how he regrets the way the nWo became inflated during the height of its popularity and mentioned, if he had to do it again, he'd make the nWo a three-man team like Wrestling/TheShield.
** Hogan has also stated that if there was one thing he could go back and change about his wrestling career, it would be his finishing move. Since Hogan was well-known for his huge arms, it made no sense for him to use a ''leg'' drop as his finishing move and he said he should have used something like the sleeper. The fact that the leg drop is likely the primary contributing factor to his hip and spine-related issues in his later years is also probably another reason he regrets using it. In Japan, he actually used the Axe Bomber (bent-arm clothesline) as his finisher instead, after once legitimately knocking out Wrestling/AntonioInoki with it.

* FanNickname:
** His Japanese fans call him "Ichiban" ("Number One" or "The Best").
** Hogan's detractors often refer to him as the "Orange Hobgoblin" and more recently [[Characters/WoodyWoodpecker "Wally Walrus"]]. Related to this, there were jokes that "the tanning bed was the only thing to pin Hulk cleanly."
** His finisher is commonly referred to as the "[[DoomyDoomsOfDoom Legdrop of Doom]]".

** We ''almost'' had Hogan vs Austin. Unfortunately, something (speculation is money issues or a disagreement on the winner) happened and the match did not take place.
*** You know what? Forget about the matches vs. Austin or Cena, according to Wrestling/JimCornette we almost got '''Hogan vs. Wrestling/BruiserBrody''' scheduled for ''[=WrestleMania=] V''. Unfortunately [[RealLifeWritesThePlot that never happened]].

*** The other version says that Vince Sr. arranged the no-showings or nixed the idea completly, given Sammartino almost got paralized by a botched Bodyslam perfomed on him by Wrestling/StanHansen on Apr. 26 1976, fearing the still green 6' 7'' / 303 pounds may have had injure or worse the still ailing former champion. Keep in mind this was 1980, two years before Vince Jr. took over, two years before the seeds of Hogan's rise to superstardom began (albeit in the rival AWA and NJPW) and roughly two and a half years before Hogan just knocked-out cold Wrestling/AntonioInoki accidentally and win the IWGP Heavyweight title.

*** The other version says that Vince Sr. arranged the no-showings or nixed the idea completly, given Sammartino almost got paralized by a botched Bodyslam perfomed on him by Wrestling/StanHansen on Apr. 26 1976, fearing the still green 6' 7'' / 303 pounds Hogan may have had injure or worse the still ailing former champion. Keep in mind this was 1980, two years before Vince Jr. took over and also two years before the seeds of Hogan's rise to superstardom began (albeit in the rival AWA).

** Also during his first run in the WWF, there supposedly was a series of matches signed for Hogan to face Wrestling/BrunoSammartino, who in early 1980 was still one of the sport's top draws, if not the top draw. Sammartino, in an online interview, noted that these matches never took place because Hogan knew he would be beaten swiftly and surely in the ring. Which -- at this stage in the game in Hogan's career -- is likely true; indeed, Hogan no-showed for these events. What is unclear is who arranged for the no-shows, and one possible explanation is that it was Vince [=McMahon=] Sr. (still in charge in 1980), who knew that Sammartino was far-better conditioned and ring savvy than the (then) still relatively inexperienced Hogan, and that the elder Vince knew that Hogan's credibility as a serious if not dire threat to both Wrestling/BobBacklund, Wrestling/AndreTheGiant and future opponents -- and his overall credibility as a wrestler -- would be all but destroyed if a Sammartino-Hogan match were to have taken place. Keep in mind this was 1980, two years before Vince Jr. took over and also two years before the seeds of Hogan's rise to superstardom began (albeit in the rival AWA).

** Hogan has also stated that if there was one thing he could go back and change about his wrestling career, it would be his finishing move. Since Hogan was well-known for his huge arms, it made no sense for him to use a ''leg'' drop as his finishing move and he said he should have used something like the sleeper. The fact that the leg drop is likely the primary contributing factor to his hip and spine-related issues in his later years is also probably another reason he regrets using it.

** During his first run in the WWF, Vince [=McMahon=], Sr. wanted Hogan to dye his hair red (since Hogan is an Irish surname). He refused because he was already balding at the time.

** His Japanese fans call him "Ichiban" ("Number One" or "Th Best").

** Hogan's detractors often refer to him as the "Orange Hobgoblin." Related to this, there were jokes that "the tanning bed was the only thing to pin Hulk cleanly."

** His Japanese fans call him "Ichiban" (Number One).

** Forget the dream matches vs. Austin or Cena, according to Wrestling/JimCornette we almost got '''Hogan vs. Wrestling/BruiserBrody''' scheduled for ''[=WrestleMania=] V''. Unfortunately [[RealLifeWritesThePlot that never happened]].

** Hogan mentioned on one Podcast interview how he regrets the way the NWO became inflated during the height of its popularity and mentioned, if he had to do it again, he'd make the NWO a three-man team like The Shield.

** Prior to the release of the WWF's first ''Wrestling Album'', Hogan used Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" as his entrance theme, which he carried over from his 1982-1983 run in the AWA.

** In Japan, his entrance was announced by Maynard Ferguson's rendition to [[Series/BattlestarGalactica1978 Battlestar Galactica]]'s [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-ctXPybi0M theme]].
** As part of the nWo and during his Wrestling/{{WWE}} run in '02 he used Music/JimiHendrix's "Voodoo Chile (Slow Return)"

** After the stink about his steroid use started hitting real media, he did a complete 180, trying to explain that the show format didn't allow him to tell "the whole truth." After this, former Hogan role model "Superstar" Billy Graham would admit to using steroids with Hogan, and former friend David Schultz would not only admit the same, but also buying them from him as well. He admitted to thirteen years of steroid abuse in Vince [=McMahon=]'s 1994 drug distribution trial[[note]]In which they had him dead to rights for distribution (ironically, to [=McMahon=]), but offered him immunity since they felt he had the dirt on Vince (he didn't)[[/note]], and has generally been candid about past use. Although Hogan would remain one of the most popular wrestlers in America for a long time afterwards, his numbers (house show, TV, pay-per-view) took a nosedive almost immediately after the show hit the airwaves, and never really reached the same peak of popularity.
** He was re-signed to the WWE on a legends deal, including making appearances at Wrestlemania 30 and 31, however, in July 2015, he was "[[BadNewsInAGoodWay future endeavoured]]" after audio surfaced of a racist rant he made during his infamous sex tape with Heather Cole.
* ScrewedByTheNetwork: Wrestling/JerryLawler is among the few wrestlers who is allowed to work both for WWE and whoever else he wants to so long as it doesn't conflict with him getting to Raw, but in 2007 WWE decided to deprive Corey Maclin's version of Memphis Wrestling of Lawler since Hogan was going to be on the show as well. Maclin died before he could successfully prove violation of the Sherman antitrust act.

* WagTheDirector:
** The consensus among modern wrestling fans is that yes, Hogan is very much a prima donna, both onscreen and in RealLife.
--->''"Who sold out Shea Stadium? Who put 94,000 people in the Pontiac Silverdome? Who slammed [[Wrestling/AndreTheGiant a 700-pound giant?]]"''.

** He was on top in the [[Wrestling/AmericanWrestlingAssociation AWA]] for two years, and while they might not have had the national reach of the WWWF at the time, they still had a pretty good chunk of the country. Plus Hogan was in ''Rocky III'' while in-between deals with the [=McMahons=]. If Verne hadn't wanted a cut of his royalties, who knows where things could have went?
** 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.
** We ''almost'' had Hogan vs Austin. Unfortunately, something (speculation is money issues or a disagreement on the winner) happened and the match did not take place.
*** Hogan's entire ''career'' could have been perceived much differently from the get go in the US. The man was trained by Hiro Matsuda who was not only a great technical wrestler, but a legitimate shoot fighter who ''broke Hogan's leg'' the first day he'd come to his wrestling camp to see if Hogan had the desire to really be a wrestler. Hogan came back and Matsuda trained him to wrestle a very technical style, but American promoters wanted him to wrestle like a generic big guy wrestler. Hogan still used his more technical style in Japan, and in 1993 just after winning his fifth WWF World Title had a match with [[Wrestling/KeijiMutoh The Great Muta]] that saw him use an ''ENZUIGIRI'' on the man. When American fans finally got to see this side of Hogan when that match among others of his days working in Japan popped up on [=YouTube=], many of Hogan's detractors had their jaws firmly planted somewhere in the lower levels of their homes. One can only guess what might have happened if Hogan had been able to use the style Matsuda trained him to use in the US.
** Wrestling/{{Kane}}'s gimmick? It was originally pitched as Wrestling/TheUndertaker's gimmick by Brother Love but Hulk Hogan had already talked Vince into the Undertaker gimmick, supposedly thought up by Pat Patterson, who most certainty got it from the AWA. (Vince originally wanted Undertaker to hatch from the gooker's egg so whether Patterson/Hogan or Love got their way, it was good they were around to stop that...unless you're Hector Guerrero)

** Also during his first run in the WWF, there supposedly was a series of matches signed for Hogan to face Wrestling/BrunoSammartino, who in early 1980 was still one of the sport's top draws, if not the top draw. Sammartino, in an online interview, noted that these matches never took place because Hogan knew he would be beaten swiftly and surely in the ring. Which -- at this stage in the game in Hogan's career -- is likely true; indeed, Hogan no-showed for these events. What is unclear is who arranged for the no-shows, and one possible explanation is that it was Vince [=McMahon=] Sr. (still in charge in 1980), who knew that Sammartino was far-better conditioned and ring savvy than the (then) still relatively inexperienced Hogan, and that the elder Vince knew that Hogan's credibility as a serious if not dire threat to both Wrestling/BobBacklund, Wrestling/AndreTheGiant and future opponents -- and his overall credibility as a wrestler -- would be all but destroyed if a Sammartino-Hogan match were to have taken place. Keep in mind this was 1980, two years before Vince Jr. took over and also two years before the seeds of Hogan's rise to superstardom began (albeit in the rival [=AWA=].
** Greg Gagne has stated that his father intended to make Hulk the AWA champion and work a program with Andre in 1984 that would have seen at least one match aired nationally on {{Creator/CBS}}. Hogan didn't know this, as Verne was not one to share his future plans outside of his circle, so a frustrated Hogan went to the WWF instead.
** Hogan has stated on both ''Talk is Jericho'' and ''The Steve Austin Show'' that he wanted to turn heel, attack the Ultimate Warrior and become "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan after losing to Warrior at [=WrestleMania=] VI. Vince vetoed the idea, not thinking Hogan could pull off being a heel (despite Hogan having been a heel for most of his career before his second run in WWF). Imagine what would have happened if Hollywood Hogan came about during the Hulkamania heyday...
** Forget the dream matches vs Austin or Cena, according to Wrestling/JimCornette we almost got '''Hogan vs. [[Wrestling/BruiserBrody Brody]]''' scheduled for Wrestlemania V. Unfortunately [[RealLifeWritesThePlot that never happened]].

* MarthDebutedInSmashBros: WWE fans love to say Vince made Hogan, and that he'd be nothing without him. This is of course ignoring the fact that he was so popular over in Japan that he was called Ichiban, which means Number One, and that the phrase Hulkamania was first used in the [[Wrestling/AmericanWrestlingAssociation AWA]].

** "OBSERVE THIS, BROTHER!" Hogan burned a copy of ''Wrestling/TheWrestlingObserverNewsletter'' on ''WCW Wolrd War 3 1995'' after they alleged that Wrestling/RandySavage had hurt his arm. (It turned out Savage really did hurt his arm, by the way, as noted by the obvious bandages he wore that night.) So, this happened in November 1995:

** "OBSERVE THIS, BROTHER!" Hogan burned a copy of ''Wrestling/TheWrestlingObserverNewsletter'' on ''WCW Wolrd War 3 1995'' after they alleged that Wrestling/RandySavage had hurt his arm. (It turned out Savage really did hurt his arm, by the way, as noted by the obvious bandages he wore that night) So, this happened in November 1995:

** Hogan's detractors often refer to him as the "Orange Hobgoblin", and joke that "the tanning bed was the only thing to pin Hulk cleanly."

** "OBSERVE THIS, BROTHER!" Hogan burned a copy of ''Wrestling/TheWrestlingObserverNewsletter'' on live TV after they alleged that Wrestling/RandySavage had hurt his arm. (It turned out Savage was actually injured, by the way.) So, this happened in November 1995:

###Hogan won the following ''WON'' awards for 1995 (published a few months after this promo): Most Overrated, Worst Major Wrestling Show (''Uncensored'' which he headlined), Worst Feud of the Year (vs. the Wrestling/DungeonOfDoom), Most Unimproved, Most Obnoxious, Readers' Least Favorite Wrestler, Worst on Interviews, and Most Embarrassing Wrestler.

** Hogan's detractors often refer to him as the "Orange Hobgoblin". (The tanning bed was the only thing to pin Hulk cleanly in those days.)
** His finisher is common referred to as the "[[DoomyDoomsOfDoom Legdrop Of Doom]]".

* BreakupBreakout: During their Wrestling/{{N|ationalWrestlingAlliance}}WA and Wrestling/{{A|mericanWrestlingAssociation}}WA days, Terry Bollea and Ed Leslie were a tag team of UnrelatedBrothers, known alternately as Terry & Ed Boulder and Hulk & Dizzy Hogan. Hulk Hogan, of course, became Hulk Hogan. Ed Leslie became best known as either [[Wrestling/BrutusBeefcake Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake]], or "that guy with no talent who only has a job because he's best friends with Hulk Hogan." In Ed Leslie's defense, he gained quite a bit of popularity after his HeelFaceTurn in '87 and he became a decent wrestler in late '89, and, unlike HHH, his connection to Hogan wasn't apparent at the time. Unfortunately, his para-sailing accident in 1990 put an end to all that and anything after really was riding Hogan's coattails.