Wrestling - What Hulk Hogan Does?

[Pratham]

I have heard time and again from wrestling fans as well as wrestling personalities, that if you mention wrestling to a random non-wrestling fan on the street, he will say "Wrestling? Isn't that what Hulk Hogan does?"

I dont think this is true at all. Hulk Hogan was and is a huge name in wrestling. No doubt. But in what age were people referring to wrestling as what Hulk Hogan does? If you go to any school across the world and ask all the students to name one wrestler, I doubt even 1% of them would say Hulk Hogan. Most would probably say John Cena or Randy Orton. Same way you ask people from 15-30, and they'll probably name Stone Cold, The Rock or The Undertaker.

Ask anyone above 30 and Hulk Hogan's name will be mentioned a fair few times. But around as much as Stone Cold, John Cena, The Rock and The Undertaker's.

So, why do wrestling fans and wrestling personalities think that non-wrestling fans directly associate pro-wrestling with Hulk Hogan.

I dont know how it is all over the world, but the top 5 names of pro-wrestlers in India are John Cena, The Rock, Stone Cold, The Undertaker and Khali (What can I say? He's Indian). Hulk Hogan isn't even in the picture. Mainly because I think just like many parts of the world, pro-wrestling wasn't popular or even shown on television in India until the mid 90s.

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

I think you answered your own question. It's an age difference, as well as sometimes a nationality difference. People remember wrestlers from the time they watched it the most. For a lot of people, that was the 1980s, and those people are in their late 30s to 40s now. Folks in their 20s and early 30s are more likely to say Stone Cold or the Undertaker. The Rock is a special case because of his current popularity as a movie star.

 

[Mustang Sally]

It's an age difference, as well as sometimes a nationality difference.

True. A few years ago, I recall an 85-year-old family member being asked if he knew of any wrestlers. He wasn't a fan, but still answered "Gorgeous George." It was an age thing; the 50's was the era he knew best.

Remember too, Hulk Hogan got mainstream coverage in the era he was popular. Non-wrestling fans that saw "Rocky III" or even watched Jay Leno could have become aware of Hogan, even having never watched pro wrestling on TV.

 

[TootsieBear]

I recall hearing this phrase but not knowing where I heard it from. Hulk Hogan is an all time great performer, and he is legendary to fans and non wrestling fans alike. How long has Hulk Hogan been performing and on top no doubt.

For me personally I'll be more nostalgic with performers like The Rock, Stone Cold, Paul Heyman, CM Punk, Edge, Chris Jericho, Mick Foley, and Triple H. Even though I like wrestlers like Kane and the Undertaker. The ones I listed have always stood out and told good stories.

 

[Tyrant25]

My class and I recently watched a documentary called "Tough Guise." The documentary is pretty much about how the media portrays masculinity, and they showed some popular "tough guys" like Sylvester Stallone in Rambo and John Travolta/Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction. The part that interested me was when they showed Goldberg and the amount of people in my class that recognized him. I don't know if they're hiding anything but from my knowledge, I'm the only wrestling fan in my class. That got me thinking that yes, non-wrestling fans DO know who Hogan is but know many other less popular guys as well. Hogan is a huge enough name to be recognized by any non-wrestling fan, young or old. There's no need to discredit Hogan's popularity.