That's how the entrance music went and that's what started my huge love for Pro Wrestling.  The music would come on, Howard Finkel would say, "From Venice Beach, California, weighing in at 302 lbs., the Hulkster, HULK HOGAN!!!!!!  Around that time, a chill would go through my skinny, little kid frame, because I knew the man that could destroy Superman, Captain America and Darth Vader in a Battle Royal was coming to the ring.  I'm an 80's child and a proud Hulkamaniac.  I'm proud to admit that I said my prayers, listened to my parents and took my vitamins.  I was there with my hero when the evil Hebner twins, the Million Dollar Man and Andre took our title away and I was there on the greatest night in wrestling when the Hulkster bodyslammed Andre, hit the Leg Drop and pinned him 1,2,3.  I was with my uncle at one of his friend's house who had something called a "satellite" and could watch the high priced wrestling shows that channel 6 didn't have.  When Hogan got the pin, I jumped from his couch and celebrated as my hero hit all the great poses as "Real American" blared on the Pontiac Silverdome sound system.  Hulk Hogan was the greatest wrestler of the greatest decade in wrestling and is the first member of the Vendetta Wrestling Hall of Fame.
"When it comes crashing down and it hurts inside, you gotta take a stand, it don't help to hide, if you hurt my friends, then you've hurt my pride, I gotta be a man, I can't let it slide, I am a Real American, Fight for the Rights of Every Man, I am a Real American, Fight for what's right, Fight for your Life!!!" I remember holding a Sports Illustrated issue sometime in the 1980's and it listed the top paid athletes. Along with Magic Johnson, Joe Montana and others, I saw Hulk Hogan's name.  Did I mention he was also on the cover of that issue?  I can go on for days about Hogan's title reigns, victiories and all, but the largest measure of Hogan's legend lies in where he took professional wrestling.

Until Hogan's rise to fame, professional wrestling was thought of as just a sport rednecks enjoyed while they gulped down beer and chewed tobacco.  The sheer fact that Hogan was making at least $1 million a year in the 1980's when top basketball, baseball and football players were making the same shows his impact on the sport.  Very few, if anyone else in wrestling was making money of that magnitude.  Vince McMahon basically invented the wrestling pay per view industry with Wrestlemania I, which headlined Hulk Hogan.  Hogan's marketability as an entertainer in an era when atheletes were athletes only is incredible.  When we saw Terry Bradshaw in Sunday's game, we didn't see or hear about Terry again until the next Sunday.  We could watch Hogan on Hulk Hogan's Rockin' Wrestling Cartoon or play with the Hogan action figure.  Hulk Hogan tranceded the "squared circle" and became a huge celebrity based on who he was and not just what he did.  Hogan was the first sports celebrity to make himself a human advertising agency. Before we knew what Air Jordan's were, kids wore Hogan t-shirts and caps, hung Hogan posters in their rooms and idolized the man that took wrestling to prime time.  Prime time is where we saw Saturday Night's Main Event; the WWF monthly pay per view quality show that aired in the 80's.  Most were headlined by a Hogan match against another larger than life personality.   Hogan was the classic good guy and even though he stood at 6'8 and weighed 302 lbs., he often faced much larger competitors by the likes of "Big" John Studd, King Kong Bundy, the One Man Gang and the aforementioned Andre the Giant.  The "Hulkster" was someone to be looked up too and a positive role model for all the kids.  As corny as it may sound, we all loved him because he was the greatest face in the history of wrestling.  He had no flaws and was a good guy to a fault.  He loved the kids and loved his country.  The old Hogan would have strived on the Americana following the 9/11 terror bombings.  He vanquished evil communist foes like Nikolai Volkoff and the Iron Shiek in the 80's and his character lived the words to "Real American."

At one time during Hogan's heyday, I questioned whether or not he would ever lose.  I remember watching only one clean pin in his WWF tenure and that came at the hands of the Ultimate Warrior at Wrestlemania. A classic end to a classic career would have been Hogan's retirement after dominating the WWF for 10 years. Instead he chose to go to the WCW to bring them out of the depths of HELL known as the weekly ratings battle.  Hogan became the leader of the nWo, which turned out to be the greatest angle in WCW's history.  They were not only competitive with the WWF, but dominated them for the better part of a year.  When the smoke cleared, the man that made the WWF also re-made WCW.

Hogan will always be criticized for his collection of moves and his much talked about "training regimen," but no one can argue his impact on the world of Pro Wrestling.  The next time Stone Cold cashes a royalty check for all the foam middle fingers and t-shirts, he should call Hogan and say "thanks."  When the Rock heads to Mann's Chinese Theater for the premiere of the "Scorpion King" and the reporters are shoving mics in his face asking how he feels, he should say "Thanks Hulkster."  When Vince McMahon wakes up in his mansion and sees Linda at 7:30am, he should rush downstairs and try to forget what she looks like with no make-up and then say "thanks Hogan." All hail Terry "Hulk Hogan" Bollea, the first inductee into the VENDETTA WRESTLING HALL OF FAME!!    -Brainbuster Brown