Back in the 1980's, was synonymous with professional wrestling.  Even today, the Hulkster's popularity remains strong.  While Ric Flair is arguably the greatest wrestler of all time, Hogan is arguably the most popular of all time

Hulk Hogan's first dream was to be a rock star.  He performed in a band called Infinity's End at a Florida nightclub frequented by wrestlers.   Hogan also worked out at a gym frequented by wrestlers.  At the time, Hogan worked at a bank and claims to have looked over wrestlers' bankbooks which gave him further inspiration to become a wrestler.

After meeting with Mike Graham, Florida was told he could try out with Hiro Matsuda.  The first day of his training session, Matsuda broke Hogan's ankle.  Hogan did not give up and after his ankle healed, he continued training until he began his career.

The early years saw Hogan wrestling in Georgia and Memphis promotions as Sterling Golden.  Then in 1980 Bollea was hired by Vince McMahon Sr. to appear in the World Wrestling Federation and renamed Hulk Hogan.  Legend has it that McMahon wanted Hogan to have an Irish name and that the Hulk name came from Hogan's resemblance to the Incredible Hulk, a fairly successful television show at the time.  Hogan worked as a heel in the WWF and was managed by "Classy" Freddie Blassie.

During his time in the WWF, Hogan was put into a program against WWF champion Bob Backlund as well as a feud with Andre the Giant.  Few men were even close to Andre's size but Hogan's height and powerful build made him seem like a legitimate threat to Andre.  The two collided at the famous Shea's Stadium show in 1980 (headlined by Bruno Sammartino vs. Larry Zybysko in a cage).   Andre pinned Hogan but suffered a beating at Hogan's hands afterwards.  While the match was by no means a classic, it featured Hogan slamming Andre, an event rarely seen. 

While he was in the WWF, Hogan received an offer to appear in the movie Rocky III as Thunderlips, a wrestler who would have an exhibition match with the film's title character.  Vince McMahon Sr. refused to let Hogan take the role but Hogan took it anyhow and was fired.  His appearance in the film would help Hogan develop the national exposure that would later on make him a household name.

After the WWF, Hogan wrestled in New Japan Pro Wrestling before working for the American Wrestling Association (AWA).  Although he debuted as a heel, Hogan won the fans over with his incredible charisma and larger than life look.  Hogan's appearance in Rocky III served to increase his popularity even more. He turned babyface and began challenging AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel for the world strap.  At the time, Hogan was an incredible draw but AWA owner Verne Gagne refused to put the title on Hogan because he did not think he was enough of a wrestler to hold the belt.  Night after night, Hogan would seem to defeat Bockwinkel for the title only to have the decision reversed on a technicality.  Fans grew frustrated with the screwjob finishes.  They weren't the only ones.

Hulk Hogan's appearance in Rocky III and the mainstream celebrity it brought caused some to speculate whether or not the Hulkster was going to stay active as a wrestler or pursue a career in Hollywood.  The December 1982 issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated examined this question.  Hogan would find himself torn between Hollywood and wrestling for the rest of his career as he tried to juggle the success of wrestling with his ambitions in Tinseltown.

While Verne Gagne didn't realize what he had in Hulk Hogan, the promoters at New Japan Pro Wrestling did.  When it came time to crown a new IWGP champion, Hulk Hogan was entered into the twelve man tournament for the belt and he went on to defeat Antonio Inoki in the finals. The many North American fans who have never seen Hogan's matches in Japan would probably be amazed at how good Hogan's Japanese matches could be.

By the end of 1983, Hogan had soured on his experience in the AWA.  Despite drawing incredible crowds to his matches, Hogan knew he would never hold the AWA TItle.  Vince McMahon Jr. capitalized on Hogan's dissatisfaction and signed him to the WWF. 

At the time, Vince McMahon was moving to make the WWF into a national promotion and he felt he needed a new type of champion to make his national expansion work.  Hogan came in shortly after Bob Backlund had lost the WWF Championship to the Iron Sheik. Hogan debuted on WWF tv when he ran in to save Bob Backlund from a 3-on-1 beating from the Wild Samoans.  Hogan told the crowd that he was back but that he had changed his ways and had a new attitude.  Fans eagerly welcomed the babyface Hogan.

In early 1984, Bob Backlund was scheduled to have his rematch with the Iron Sheik.  However the combination of injuries from his title loss and his attack by the Samoans sidelined Backlund and Hogan replaced him as the challenger.  While January 23, 1984 was not the birth of Hulkamania (Hulkamania had already been running wild in the AWA), it was the start of a new era in professional wrestling.  That night in Madison Square Garden, Hogan defeated the Iron Sheik and helped launch Vince McMahon's national expansion of the WWF. 

From the day that Roddy Piper entered the WWF, he and Hulk Hogan seemed set on a collision course with each other.  Hogan quickly became the WWF's #1 babyface and Piper quickly became its #1 heel.  Things came to a head when Piper attacked Captain Lou Albano and Cyndi Lauper at an awards presentation in Madison Square Garden. 

Hogan challenged Piper to a match which quickly escalated into a media event known as The War to Settle the Score.  The match was broadcast live on MTV and it helped the WWF in its goal to reach a mainstream audience.  During the match, the referee was knocked out and things got out of hand as Piper received outside assistance from Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff.  Fortunately for the Hulkster, tv star (and former bodyguard) Mr. T came to Hogan's aid and prevented a bloodbath.

The War to Settle the Score settled nothing.  Instead, it led to a tag team match between the teams of Hulk Hogan/Mr. T and Roddy Piper/Paul Orndorff.  The match became the cornerstone of an event promoted as Wrestlemania, an all-star card that would be broadcast on closed circuit television.  The event was heavily hyped by the WWF and the Hulkster began making appearances all over television including an appearance on Saturday Night Live with Mr. T.

At Wrestlemania, the Hulkster and Mr. T defeated the team of Piper and Orndorff after outside interference by "Cowboy" Bob Orton backfired.  Wrestlemania was a huge success, partly due to Hogan's incredible popularity and it cemented his position in the WWF as their top attraction.

Piper would remain a thorn in Hogan's side over the next year with neither man getting a pinfall victory over each other.  However Piper was far from the only challenger to Hogan's WWF Title. Hogan faced the Magnificent Muraco, Randy "Macho Man" Savage, and Terry Funk just to name a few.  With each title defense, Hulkamania seemed to grow bigger and bigger and the WWF fed off of his success as the WWF received mainstream popularity. 

As a result, professional wrestling returned to network television for the first time in decades.  NBC began airing ninety minute specials known as "Saturday Night's Main Event" (SNME) ,  For fans used to watching syndicated shows that featured mostly squash matches, the show was something they wouldn't want to miss.  SNME was a big hit for NBC.

It was on one of the SNME specials when Hulk Hogan faced his next big challenge.  During a match with the Magnificent Muraco, Hogan was ambushed by King Kong Bundy, a massive 450 pound wrestler whose Atlantic City Avalanche allowed him to quickly dispatch of opponents (and to pin them with a five count rather than three count, so devastated were they by Bundy).   Bundy delivered several of his body splashes to Hogan, injuring Hogan's ribs. Bundy then challenged the injured Hogan to a championship match at Wrestlemania II and as if wrestling injured wasn't enough, Hogan would have to face Bundy in a steel cage!

The match was signed for Wrestlemania 2, a pay-per-view card that featured matches broadcast from three different cities.  There was some question as to whether or not Hulk Hogan could even wrestle due to his injuries but Hogan defied doctor's orders to face Bundy.  At Wrestlemania 2, Hogan defeated Bundy and escaped the steel cage.  He even got to dish out some punishment to Bundy's manager Bobby "the Brain" Heenan.

Hulk Hogan's rise to superstardom in wrestling during the 1980's was nothing short of amazing.  Hogan was constantly in the news and he graced many the cover of Pro Wrestling Illustrated such as the January 1986 cover (left).

Hogan continued to face all challengers but then he faced a challenger who had been his childhood hero and later on, his friend.  For some time Andre the Giant had been gone from the WWF after Jack Tunney suspended him for no-showing a match.  Eventually, Tunney reinstated Andre the Giant and fans welcomed their hero home.  However fans noticed that Andre was different.  Gone was the gentle giant and Andre seemed fixated on Hulk Hogan’s WWF Title.  Then in a shocking turn of events, Andre the Giant teamed up with longtime nemesis Bobby Heenan and challenged Hulk Hogan to a match at Wrestlemania III during a segment on "Piper's Pit".  Hogan was devastated by Andre's challenge.  The two had always been friends but in the world of professional wrestling, friendship often takes a back seat to championship gold or is even tossed out the window. Despite his many successful title defenses, Hogan was considered by many to be the underdog against Andre the Giant.  In fact, the WWF even went to the trouble of having a special title belt made to fit around the ample waist of Andre.  Wrestlemania III would go on to set an outdoor attendance record and become the most successful wrestling event of its time, largely due to the hype surrounding the Hogan/Andre match. Hogan struggled against Andre during the match.  The Hulkster came out strong and attempted to bodyslam Andre early on in the match, a desperate move that led to Hogan injuring his back.  Andre capitalized on Hogan's mistake and began working over his back.  Andre punished the Hogan for much of the match, relying on power moves such as the bearhug to wear Hogan down.  Eventually though, Andre gave Hogan the opening he needed and Hogan ralled back and bodyslammed Andre the Giant.  As Andre lay stunned, Hogan finished him off with his legdrop finisher and scored the pinfall victory over Andre.

Hogan slams Andre the Giant

Hogan gets the 1-2-3 on Andre at Wrestlemania III

However Andre the Giant was far from finished with his attempt to defeat Hogan.  "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase helped Andre in his quest to win the title by supplying a fake referee counted Hogan's shoulders down for a three count (even though Hogan had lifted a shoulder up at two).  After winning the WWF championship, Andre handed the title to Ted DiBiase but WWF President Jack Tunney ruled that by giving away the title, Andre had forfeited it.

A tournament was then held to determine who would be the next WWF champion.  The Hulkster was paired off against Andre the Giant and the two battled to a double count-out.  Randy "Macho Man" Savage went on to win the WWF title.  For the first time in three years, the Hulkster was without the WWF title!

While the Hulkster didn't have the WWF title, he still was in the spotlight.  Shortly after winning the WWF title, Randy Savage began feuding with Ted "Million Dollar Man" DiBiase and Andre the Giant.  Savage was no match for both wrestlers so he teamed with Hulk Hogan, forming a tag team known as the Mega Powers.  The Mega Powers were a dream team and went on to defeat DiBiase and Andre at SummerSlam.