Terrence Gene Bollea, best known as Hulk Hogan and Hollywood Hogan (born August 11, 1953 in Augusta, Georgia), is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is currently the star of the VH1 reality show Hogan Knows Best and is also performing for World Wrestling Entertainment on the RAW brand.

During his 1980s heyday wrestling for the World Wrestling Federation as the wholesome babyface character 'Hulk Hogan', Terry Bollea became one of the highest-drawing, most popular wrestlers in the history of the business. After flagging popularity, a steroid scandal, 'retirements' and lawsuits damaged his momentum in the 1990s, he jumped ship to the WWF's then-rival, World Championship Wrestling.

He later turned heel and became a sneering bad guy in July 1996, re-energizing and redefining his career as the greedy and manipulative villain Hollywood Hogan, eventually returning to face status and the WWE. During his long career, he appeared and starred in several movies and TV shows, and now busies himself with occasional World Wrestling Entertainment appearances and the management of the music career of his daughter, Brooke Hogan.

Hogan is now officially recognized as a fourteen-time World Heavyweight Champion, since his two American Wrestling Association title reigns were recently validated. His loyal fans are referred to as "Hulkamaniacs."


Early career
Early in life, Terry Bollea was a standout in minor league baseball, and also spent ten years as a rock musician, playing bass guitar in several Florida-based rock bands, including "Ruckus" and "Infinity's End." Many of the wrestlers who competed in the Florida "territory" (U.S. pro wrestling had long been divided into unlinked, individually-controlled statewide / regional promotions, until the WWF's 1980s national-scale rise drove many out of business) at that time would visit the bars in which Bollea was performing. Terry's impressive physical stature soon caught the attention of former top-drawing wrestler Jack Brisco and his brother Jerry, both of whom convinced Bollea to give wrestling a try. Terry had been a wrestling fan since boyhood and was eager to give it a chance, and trained for nearly two years under the watchful eye of legendary wrestler Hiro Matsuda, a hard-nosed taskmaster who casually (and to instill respect, purposefully) broke Bollea's leg during their first training session.

Terry Bollea wrestled his first professional match on August 25, 1977 as The Super Destroyer, defeating Don Serrano. In addition to the former, Terry also used other ringnames early in his career, including Terry 'The Hulk' Boulder, and Sterling Golden. In those formative years, Terry would go on to win his first wrestling championships, the National Wrestling Alliance Southeastern Heavyweight Championships recognized in Alabama and Tennessee, respectively. Terry even had an early shot at the NWA World Heavyweight Championship -- its holder generally recognized as the industry's #1 draw -- in March 1979, facing NWA kingpin Harley Race.


World Wrestling Federation: The First Run
On November 13, 1979 Bollea made his debut in the World Wrestling Federation and was given the name "The Incredible" Hulk Hogan by Vince McMahon Sr., then the majority owner of the WWF. In his debut, Hogan wrestled three matches in Allentown, Pennsylvania during one of the WWF's marathon television tapings. Hogan was scripted to win all three bouts, squashing Harry Valdez in the first match, Paul Figueroa in the second, and Ben Ortiz in the third. One month later on December 17, Hogan made his Madison Square Garden wrestling debut, defeating Ted DiBiase in 11 minutes, 12 seconds.

Hogan was managed by "Classy" Freddie Blassie during his first WWF run. The later, official explanation for the chosen name was that many considered Bollea to be physically bigger than Lou Ferrigno, who at the time was starring in the critically acclaimed TV series The Incredible Hulk. McMahon also wanted him to be a tough, working-man brawler with a possible Irish background at the same time, thus the name "Hogan." A deal was later struck with Marvel Comics to use the 'Hulk' name. In February 2005, Bollea himself purchased the rights to the "Hulk Hogan" stage name.

Hogan started out in the WWF as an arrogant heel, clad in a golden cape and managed by the late "Classy" Freddie Blassie. During his first run with the WWF, Hogan feuded intensely with WWWF (World Wide Wrestling Federation) World Heavyweight Champion Bob Backlund, "Mr. U.S.A." Tony Atlas, and a man he had met previously in the deep South, and would see much more of down the road in his career: the late 7'4", 520-pound André the Giant. Hogan and André would go on to clash in a historic match on August 9, 1980 in front of 36,295 fans in Shea Stadium in Flushing, NY. This was part of the WWF's Showdown At Shea event. In 1981, Sylvester Stallone personally offered him a part in the movie Rocky III. Hogan wanted to use this opportunity for a potential movie career, but industry etiquette demanded that he first ask for his boss' permission. Knowing that he could not refuse this opportunity (it could dramatically increase his drawing power / earning potential, since wrestling fans -- and promoters -- in each territory would want to see "the big guy from Rocky III in person"), Bollea took the part anyway. When McMahon Sr. found out (as Bollea knew he would), he fired Hogan from the WWF as a result.

 

American Wrestling Association
After filming his scene for Rocky III, Hogan made his debut in the Minnesota-based American Wrestling Association, owned and promoted by former nine-time AWA World Heavyweight Champion and two-time NCAA Champion Verne Gagne. Hogan's first AWA match took place on August 1, 1981 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he defeated Tony Leone and Chuck Greenlee in a handicap match. Hogan started his AWA run portraying his heel character from the WWF, but AWA fans reacted much differently to Hogan. The audience couldn't get enough of the muscular Hogan, and soon AWA bookers (the underlings of the promoter, responsible for figuring out profitable match-ups and the matches' details) were compelled to turn Hogan face. On May 28, 1982, Rocky III premiered in theaters nationwide. Hogan's role in Rocky III was "Thunderlips: The Ultimate Male", a buffed, egotistical pro wrestler who took on Stallone's Rocky Balboa in a wrestler vs. boxer charity match. The role would garner international media attention for Hogan, and soon he was riding the crest of a wave of popularity, the likes of which had rarely been seen before for a professional wrestler. The seeds for what would become the cultural movement known as Hulkamania were planted.


World Wrestling Federation: Hulkamania Runs Wild
Hogan, now a face, was a great box-office success in the AWA, and was lured back to the World Wrestling Federation in late 1983 by Vince McMahon, Jr. after he bought the organization outright from his father. Hogan had been growing increasingly frustrated with the AWA's backstage politics, which kept the AWA World Heavyweight Championship out of his reach, despite blatantly obvious fan demand for him to "win" it. On two different occasions, Hogan had been scripted to win the AWA Championship from heel champion Nick Bockwinkel and have it revert back to Bockwinkel by contrived technicality. This was a common plot device in the business -- especially in territories much smaller and less lucrative than the AWA at that time -- done repeatedly to milk audience anticipation that the face would topple the heel 'next time'. In a spring 1983 show in Minneapolis (the AWA's home market), this same plot played out, as it had profitably done before. But this time, Gagne had greatly underestimated his fans' anticipation; after the 'badguy-retains-title-via-technicality' routine had played out, fan displeasure was so strong, only Bollea's pleas (on the PA system, in-character as Hogan) kept them from rioting (this outcome was officially overturned by the AWA board in April 2005 -- over 10 years after Gagne's company had stopped doing live shows -- thus making Hogan an officially recognized "two-time former AWA World Champion"). Hogan was also upset with promoter Verne Gagne's demands for a percentage of his Japanese earnings in exchange for the AWA Championship. McMahon, Jr. wanted to turn the WWF into a nationwide (and then worldwide) entity, leveraged on Hulk Hogan's charisma, body, and name power. Hogan would become one of the most popular wrestlers ever, with his loyal fans known as "Hulkamaniacs."

Hulk Hogan played the role of an honest and courageous hero, encouraging children to "train, say their prayers and take their vitamins". Hogan made a dramatic return to the WWF on January 3, 1984 during a marathon TV taping in Allentown, Pennsylvania, saving Bob Backlund from a three-on-one assault at the hands of the Wild Samoans. Weeks later on January 23, Hogan won the WWF Championship for the first time, pinning The Iron Sheik in New York's Madison Square Garden. McMahon's "Hulkamania" marketing strategy had been launched.

Hogan would remain WWF Champion for four years and 13 days, overcoming such challengers as André the Giant, "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, Rowdy Roddy Piper and King Kong Bundy, drawing record houses, PPV buyrates and TV ratings in the process. He co-hosted Saturday Night Live on March 30, 1985 and even had his own CBS Saturday morning cartoon during this lucrative run, titled Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling, in which he was voiced by Brad Garrett.

Hulk Hogan strikes a familiar pose.On March 31, 1985, the inaugural WrestleMania took place at Madison Square Garden, featuring Hogan in a tag team main event, with Mr. T his partner. Hogan would go on to headline the first nine WrestleManias, from 1985 to 1993.

A new storyline was introduced in early 1987: Hogan was presented a trophy for being the WWF Champion for three years. André the Giant, a good friend (who could also be seen pouring champagne over him in the Madison Square Garden locker room in the interview scene following his title win) came out to congratulate him. Shortly afterwards, André was presented a slightly smaller trophy for being "undefeated in the WWF for 15 years." In actuality, André had suffered a handful of countout and disqualification losses in the WWF, but had never been pinned or forced to submit in a WWF ring. Hogan came out to congratulate André, but André walked out in the midst of Hogan's speech. Then, on an edition of Piper's Pit, Hogan was confronted by Bobby Heenan. Heenan announced that his new protege was André. André then challenged Hogan to a title match at WrestleMania III, ripping the t-shirt and crucifix off of Hogan.

WrestleMania III, held on March 29, 1987 at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, set a North American indoor attendance record for any sporting event. A crowd of 93,173 fans witnessed Hogan successfully defend the WWF World Heavyweight Championship against André the Giant. The match would become the most famous of Hogan's career, one which saw Hogan bodyslam the 520-pound Frenchman before pinning his shoulders to the mat. The match was considered to being a "passing of the torch" between one of the biggest stars in wrestling of the 1970s, André, and the biggest star in wrestling of the 1980s, Hogan. Years later, Hogan stated that André was so heavy, he felt more like 700 pounds.

Hogan lost the belt in extremely controversial fashion to André on NBC's "The Main Event" on February 5, 1988, thanks to a convoluted scam involving "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase and "evil" twin referee Earl Hebner (in place of the match's appointed arbiter, his twin brother Dave Hebner). The WWF Championship was vacated for the third time in its 25-year history, and all this in turn led to Hogan's on/off friend "Macho Man" Randy Savage taking the vacant title in a tournament at WrestleMania IV a month later.

Together, Hogan, Savage, and manager Miss Elizabeth formed a partnership known as The Mega Powers. As fate would have it, the Mega-Powers would soon implode from within, due to Savage's burgeoning jealousy of Hogan and his paranoid suspicions that Hogan and Elizabeth were "more than friends." A feud between Hogan and Savage began, which culminated with Hogan beating Savage for his second World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania V on April 2, 1989. Hogan's second run lasted a year, during which time he starred in his first movie, No Holds Barred, and won the 1990 Royal Rumble Match, last eliminating Mr. Perfect. He dropped the title to Intercontinental Champion The Ultimate Warrior, on April 1, 1990 at WrestleMania VI.

Hogan drops an elbow on King Kong Bundy during a 1987 title defense.Hogan soon became embroiled in a heated feud with the 468-pound Earthquake, a mountain of a man who gained infamy by crushing Hogan's ribs in a sneak attack on "The Brother Love Show" in May 1990. The injuries Hogan suffered in the attack, coupled with his loss to The Ultimate Warrior, took a toll on Hogan's fighting spirit. Hogan started considering retirement for the first time in his career. His "Hulkamaniacs" soon began a massive letter-writing campaign, begging their hero to return from his injuries and take down Earthquake once and for all. Fueled by the positive vibes of his "Hulkamaniacs", Hogan returned to the ring again, and trounced Earthquake in a months-long series of matches around the country.

On March 24, 1991, Hogan stood up for the USA against Iraqi-sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter, outwitting him for his third WWF World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania VII. Hogan lost the title to Undertaker at the Survivor Series on November 27, 1991, in an infamous bout marred by interference from the legendary "Nature Boy" Ric Flair. Just six days later, Hogan regained the title in a match held on a special pay-per-view named Tuesday In Texas. In the ensuing five months, Hulk Hogan announced he was contemplating retirement from wrestling and 'bowed out' against Sid Justice at WrestleMania VIII on April 5, 1992. He later reconsidered, and was back in the ring within a year.

A lot of fictitious rumors surround the Hulk Hogan sensation, employed in part by the WWF and later WCW to sensationalize and hype up their star name. Hogan dyed his hair platinum blonde and wore a bandana. His usual colors were yellow and red; as a heel they were black and white. One statistic about Hogan that did stand, at least at the time, was that he had the largest arms in professional sports, a title he legitimately held only for a few years. Hogan's "24-inch pythons" were the most commonly used phrase in reference to his arms.

Hulk Hogan's incredible crossover popularity led to several television and movie roles. Along with 1982's Rocky III, he starred, as mentoned above, in No Holds Barred (1989), as well as Suburban Commando (1991), Mr. Nanny (1993), Santa with Muscles (1996), and 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998). He made two appearances on The A-Team (in 1985 and 1986), and starred in his own TV series, Thunder in Paradise, in 1994.

Hogan returned to the WWF in January 1993, helping out his longtime friend Brutus Beefcake in his feud with Money Inc.. Hogan scooped his fifth WWF World Heavyweight Championship on April 4 of that year, overcoming Yokozuna in an impromptu bout at WrestleMania IX. He lost the title back to Yokozuna in June 1993 at King of the Ring after a camera exploded in his face, temporarily blinding him, and departed the WWF two months later. An impending steroid scandal led to Vince McMahon deciding to phase out large, muscular wrestlers such as Hogan and give the top spots to smaller, more technically sound wrestlers such as Bret Hart. After Hogan left the WWF, he decided to concentrate on movies and TV, and take time off from professional wrestling.


World Wrestling Entertainment: The Comeback
From July 2000 to November 2001, Hogan was extremely quiet and out of the public eye. He had been dealing with self-doubt and depression following the Vince Russo incident, wondering if what Russo had said about him was true. The majority of the Internet wrestling community at the time had largely agreed with Russo's sentiments, feeling Hogan was "washed-up" and had been "holding down younger talents" for too long. Hogan wanted to prove his detractors wrong, and show them that he still had another run or two left in him.

In the months following the eventual demise of WCW in March 2001, Hogan underwent surgery on his knees, in order for him to wrestle again. As a test, Hogan worked a match in Orlando, Florida for the XWF promotion run by his longtime handler Jimmy Hart. Hogan defeated the late Curt Hennig in this match, and felt healthy enough to accept an offer to return to the WWF in February 2002. Inititally, Hogan returned as leader of the original nWo with Hall and Nash. Soon after arriving, he fought a memorable match against The Rock at WrestleMania X8 on March 17, 2002. This was Hogan's only WrestleMania match fought as a heel, but the crowd cheered wildly for Hogan, effectively turning him face during the match. The Rock cleanly won the contest, but befriended Hogan at the end of the bout and helped him fight off Hall and Nash, who were upset by Hogan's conciliatory attitude.

After the match, Hogan was a definite face again, and had a month-long reign as Undisputed Champion in the spring of 2002 after defeating Triple H at WWE Backlash. After an angle with Brock Lesnar in August 2002, Hogan went on hiatus. He returned in early 2003 to battle The Rock once again and defeated Vince McMahon at WrestleMania XIX. He then had another run as Hulk Hogan (with the old "Hulk Rules" logo being revived and altered as "Hulk Still Rules") and later, the mask-wearing spoof superhero Mr. America.


Hall of Famer
Hogan was inducted by Sylvester Stallone, into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 2, 2005. The Hulkster was greeted with a loud standing ovation which lasted several minutes prior to his acceptance speech. During his speech, Hogan was interrupted more than once by fans chanting "One more match!" The following night at WrestleMania 21, Hogan gave them a teaser of things to come, saving Eugene from an attack at the hands of Muhammad Hassan and Khosrow Daivari. On May 1, 2005, Hogan gave the fans what they had asked for, when he teamed with Shawn Michaels to defeat Hassan and Daivari at Backlash.

On the June 27 edition of RAW Hogan was announced as the mystery tag team partner of WWE Champion John Cena and Shawn Michaels in a match against Chris Jericho, Christian and Tyson Tomko.

Hogan then appeared the following week on the July 4 edition of RAW as the special guest of Carlito on his talk-show segment, Carlito's Cabana. After being asked disrespectful questions by Carlito concerning his daughter Brooke Hogan, Hogan proceeded to attack Carlito. This was then followed up by an appearance of Kurt Angle who made more dirty comments about Brooke, which further upset Hogan. Hogan was eventually double teamed by Carlito and Angle, but was saved by Shawn Michaels. Later that night, Shawn Michaels and Hogan defeated Carlito and Kurt Angle in a tag match. During the post match celebration, Michaels delivered Sweet Chin Music to Hogan and walked off. The following week on RAW, Michaels appeared on Piper's Pit and challenged the Hall of Famer to face him one-on-one for the first time. Hogan appeared on RAW one week later and accepted the challenge. The match took place on Sunday, August 21, at SummerSlam.

One thing that Hogan and Michaels had in common prior to the event is that at SummerSlam, the two of them had never lost in a one-on-one match scenario. That would change on August 21, 2005.

The match between Hogan and Michaels would turn out to be the main event of the night, and the two collided in a battle of Legend vs. Icon. The match went back and forth, with two referees getting knocked out and HBK using a steel chair to try to gain an advantage. Even after hitting his Sweet Chin Music, Hogan still kicked out and took it to Michaels, finally hitting him with his legdrop and scoring the victory. HBK extended his hand to him, telling him that he "had to know," and Hogan and Michaels shook hands. Michaels left the ring to allow Hogan to celebrate with the crowd.


Legacy
Today, Hulk Hogan is semi-retired from wrestling, appearing for occasional matches with WWE and managing the singing career of his teenage daughter Brooke Hogan. A reality series featuring Hogan, Brooke, wife Linda, and son Nicholas, titled Hogan Knows Best, premiered on July 10, 2005, on VH1. The pilot episode was the highest-rated reality show debut in VH1 history.

Hulk Hogan's career is filled with legendary performances against a wide variety of opponents, ranging from newcomers to some of the greatest champions ever. His impressive physical prowess, charismatic personality, and ability to work an audience have helped him achieve true icon status in the sport of professional wrestling. The late WWE Hall of Famer Gorilla Monsoon summed it up best several years ago: "They broke the mold when they made this man! There will never be another Hulkster in the history of our great sport."