OT-RIP Hulkster

[Richard Noggin]

Long live Iron Sheik!

[SABRES 0311]

Show me someone who hasn’t messed up hard a couple times in their life and I’ll show you a liar who just wasn’t caught.

RIP Hulkster. Loved wrestling until they got to the PG era. As imperfect as he was, Hogan is a childhood hero to a lot people around the world.

[spndnchz]

9 hours ago, SwampD said:

Who are you talking to?

Ppl who don’t know I guess

[pastajoe]

Another great entertainer whose personal life decisions ruined his public reputation.

[Mr Peabody]

Back in the heyday of WWF they’d come to Syracuse 2-3 times a year.  My ex-wife’s grandmother loved it and thought it was real.  I took her to a couple shows and the last time got great seats in folding chairs about ten rows back.  She was an Italian immigrant who spoke English quite well but a tad broken.  During one match Adrian Adonis was pummeling someone and she stood on her chair and started yelling “he cheating, he cheating, Ronnie that sumofanbitch is cheating”.  Next thing I know she’s off her chair and running toward the ref screaming he’s cheating.  My wife had to go get her and she was so pissed off shaking I was worried - she was at least mid 70’s.   I didn’t dare take her to any more shows.  RIP Rose, wonderful lady. 

[clink]

20 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

I go back and forth on this. As a kid in the 1980s, I loved it.  Early to mid 90's, totally stopped watching it and thought it was one of the worst things to watch.  Late 90's and early 2000's, I was watching it every single Monday night and Thursday, almost without fail and probably my favorite thing to watch. Since then?  I have turned in on 5-10 times in the past 5 years or so and Just can't get into it at all.

I have gone from superfan to not caring, back to superfan and now find no appeal in it.  

BTW, I understand the appeal of Hulk Hogan and his longevity probably puts him over the top as the most popular, but I think SC Steve Austin, during his peak, was possibly as popular or more so than Hogan at his peak....at least in the arena. Hogan probably had more action figures and saturday morning cartoons that broadened his appeal, but being in the arena to see both of them wrestle, it was deafening when Austin came out, more so than Hogan...and people acted even more crazy when the 'glass shattering' happened compared to the first few notes of 'I am a real American'.

Without Hogan blazing the trail, does Austin ever get that sizeable an audience to shine in front of? 

 

[mjd1001]

49 minutes ago, clink said:

Without Hogan blazing the trail, does Austin ever get that sizeable an audience to shine in front of? 

 

Maybe, maybe not, but it doesn't change the fact that Austin had a shorter, but actually higher 'peak'.

I'm not trying to diminish Hogan, the WWE would likely not have gained popularity without him. However, they were already gaining popularity by the time he came around (making the production more family friendly/moving to Saturday morning and saturday niight broadcasts, etc.) and they had plenty of other stars to market that were very popular (Savage, Andre the Giant, Jesse Ventura, Roddy Piper, Brett Hart, Ultimate Warrior, and others.)

Hogan was the biggest star of the 80s, but the world of wrestling was going to grow with our without him, the question is simply 'how fast'?

[shrader]

28 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

Maybe, maybe not, but it doesn't change the fact that Austin had a shorter, but actually higher 'peak'.

I'm not trying to diminish Hogan, the WWE would likely not have gained popularity without him. However, they were already gaining popularity by the time he came around (making the production more family friendly/moving to Saturday morning and saturday niight broadcasts, etc.) and they had plenty of other stars to market that were very popular (Savage, Andre the Giant, Jesse Ventura, Roddy Piper, Brett Hart, Ultimate Warrior, and others.)

Hogan was the biggest star of the 80s, but the world of wrestling was going to grow with our without him, the question is simply 'how fast'?

I think they would have gone national on someone else’s back if he wasn’t around. But that doesn’t really change anything. All that matters is what did actually did happen and that was Hulkamania. 

[That Aud Smell]

RIP.

Hulk Hogan leaves behind a complicated (complex?) legacy, I guess.

One thing's for sure: The dude was an absolutely phenomenal entertainer. IMO, he was incredible to behold and electric to experience when at the peak of his powers. A force of nature.

[That Aud Smell]

ON THE OTHER HAND, I have just now perused some apparently credible accounts (Twitter, Reddit) from people who say they knew him in and around the Clearwater area. And I will say: There are a lot of people out there who will recount in great detail why they feel that Terry Bollea was a jerk.

[SABRES 0311]

5 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

ON THE OTHER HAND, I have just now perused some apparently credible accounts (Twitter, Reddit) from people who say they knew him in and around the Clearwater area. And I will say: There are a lot of people out there who will recount in great detail why they feel that Terry Bollea was a jerk.

Well let me tell you somethin brother!!!

[JohnC]

4 hours ago, Mr Peabody said:

Back in the heyday of WWF they’d come to Syracuse 2-3 times a year.  My ex-wife’s grandmother loved it and thought it was real.  I took her to a couple shows and the last time got great seats in folding chairs about ten rows back.  She was an Italian immigrant who spoke English quite well but a tad broken.  During one match Adrian Adonis was pummeling someone and she stood on her chair and started yelling “he cheating, he cheating, Ronnie that sumofanbitch is cheating”.  Next thing I know she’s off her chair and running toward the ref screaming he’s cheating.  My wife had to go get her and she was so pissed off shaking I was worried - she was at least mid 70’s.   I didn’t dare take her to any more shows.  RIP Rose, wonderful lady. 

I read your post and it brought me back to my childhood when my Italian immigrant relatives, including my mother, would watch wrestling on TV and curse in Italian at the bad guys and the referees. To them, this was real. Their favorite wrestler of course was Ilio DiPaolo from Abruzzi (sic), Italy. He owned a successful restaurant called by his namesake. It should be noted that Buffalo was on the wrestling circuit with regular capacity crowds at the Aud.

[That Aud Smell]

4 hours ago, SABRES 0311 said:

Well let me tell you somethin brother!!!

full marks - i chortled

[kas23]

5 hours ago, That Aud Smell said:

ON THE OTHER HAND, I have just now perused some apparently credible accounts (Twitter, Reddit) from people who say they knew him in and around the Clearwater area. And I will say: There are a lot of people out there who will recount in great detail why they feel that Terry Bollea was a jerk.

He was as a jerk? Well, that settles it! Cancel away (I guess). 

[That Aud Smell]

11 minutes ago, kas23 said:

He was as a jerk? Well, that settles it! Cancel away (I guess). 

that’s the spirit! #nuance