Before anyone freaks out: Hulk Hogan was my hero for many years. We lost this professional wrestling icon at the age of 71 on Thursday, July 24, 2025. His real name was Terry Bollea. A more detailed obituary appeared in this New York Times article that gave a more in-depth history than I can.

Yes, he was human. Yes, he made mistakes that we won’t cover here beyond the simple acknowledgment that he made them. It’s a shame he never got a chance to do that one last face reveal to make up for some of those mistakes.

Those were the days. Thanks, Hulkster.

Say whatever you want about the guy, he knew how to ignite a crowd. In the 1980s and 1990s, he was the face of the WWF/WWE. His theme song was the embodiment of heroism. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t pull a heel turn to save his life in the early days. He was always my favorite.

Then, the mid 1990s happened. Hogan moved over to WCW, and gave birth to the Hollywood Hogan years and my favorite wrestling cadre of all time: the New World Order (of Wrestling.) Even though it was the ultimate heel turn, I was still rooting for the Hulkster. Behind the scenes Hogan was coaching and the mastermind behind a young wrestler named Bill Goldberg. The hundred win streak followed by a title match with the Hulkster was one of the best events in pro wrestling history.

My dad used to rent a VCR just so we could watch Wrestlemania. I mean the first one. We got to see some of the greatest matches of all time together. We kept that tradition going for years. It was kind of a tradition with Dad and I. Good times.

A couple of strange Hulkster related tangents come to mind. My Warhammer 40,000 Space Ork army featured my Warboss, Space ‘Ulk ‘Ogan. He was even doing the famous finger point. “What’cha gonna do, bruddah? What’cha gonna do when Orkamania and the Big Green Tide rolls over you?”

My World of Warcraft years were marked by a Warrior named Hogan. There was a skin for the humans that made it easy to look just like the Hulkster. There was a belt that looked an awful lot like the Heavyweight title belt. I just had to do it.

When I start getting fired up online, my pro wrestler persona comes out. I’ve done it here on the blog a few times now. I drop into a character that’s a combination of Hulk Hogan and one of my other heroes, Macho Man Randy Savage. Now, I’m way past my physical prime, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to let anyone talk trash about me or the people I care about. “If you hurt my friends, then you hurt my pride. I gotta be a man. I can’t let it slide…”

Thank you for being here. Keep training, saying your prayers, and eating your vitamins. Back to the usual hijinks tomorrow.