Hulk Hogan obituary
As the most recognisable face of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in the US, Hogan helped to build what had initially been a fairly parochial brand into a hugely lucrative phenomenon, watched on television by millions.
Though the wrestling was all fakery, Hogan held the WWF's title belt a number of times across those boom years, including over a four-year stretch in the mid-1980s. Thereafter he largely maintained his dominance, while switching between the WWF and various other competitions over the next two decades.
During a typical bout he would soak up blow after blow from his opponent until defeat seemed inevitable, only to suddenly snap into a fury that would turn the encounter around, often finishing things off with a trademark leg drop by bouncing off the rope, leaping into the air and then landing, leg first, on to his foe.
Perhaps his most acclaimed performance came during 1987 in the third iteration of wrestling's annual WrestleMania event, in front of 93,000 fans at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, where he won the world heavyweight championship against the 2.24m (7ft 4in), 220kg (35st) André the Giant, who was said to have been unbeaten in the ring for almost 15 years. The bout set pay-per-view television records at the time, and confirmed Hogan's position at the centre of WWF's money-making machine.
Hogan was born Terry Bollea, in Augusta, Georgia, the son of Ruth (nee Moody), a dance teacher, and Peter Bollea, a building site foreman. Growing up in Tampa, Florida, where he went to Robinson high school, he first worked as a dockworker while developing his showmanship as a bass guitar player in local rock bands.
After a short period at the University of South Florida, he dropped his studies in 1977 to pursue wrestling. Eventually taking the Hulk moniker, after the muscle-bound comic book character The Incredible Hulk, at 2m (6ft 7in) and 137kg (21st) he was certainly built for the name, to which he added the alliterative Hogan in 1979 when he joined the WWF. He came to wider attention in 1982 after a memorable appearance in the film Rocky III as the combative wrestler Thunderlips, who matches Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) in a charity fight.
Having initially been branded as a bad guy in the ring, by the mid-80s Hogan had been recast by the WWF as the opposite, and he was striding into the ring to the song Real American by Rick Derringer, fighting for national pride against sinister 'foreign' rivals such as the Iron Sheik, nominally representing Iran, and Nikolai Volkoff, supposedly appearing on behalf of the Soviet Union.
Soon the US was subject to a long period of 'Hulkamania' as Hogan reached even wider fame, selling out stadium events, commanding massive TV audiences and appearing in further wrestling-related film roles, including in No Holds Barred (1989) and Mr Nanny (1993), while also starring as a mercenary in the television series Thunder in Paradise (1994). He lent his name to video games, a chain of restaurants and a merchandising empire that was turning over $1.7bn by 1991.
In 1994, around the time he confessed that he had used steroids, Hogan moved to a new franchise, World Championship Wrestling (WCW), with whom he adopted a more villainous but equally popular persona. He was WCW's star performer for several years until returning to the WWF (by then renamed WWE) in 2002, after which he left and returned several times, wrestling for other entities in between.
He was still taking part in occasional bouts into his 60s, but by then was more frequently in the public eye for other reasons, including from 2005 to 2007 in the reality TV series Hogan Knows Best, which looked in on his family life.
In 2012 Hogan sued the Gawker website for posting a video of him having sex with a friend's wife, claiming invasion of privacy. Four years later a court awarded him $140m in damages, although he eventually settled for $31m as the website's owners filed for bankruptcy. In 2015 the release of another section of the same video showed him using racist language, for which he apologised unreservedly.
In recent years he had been a vocal supporter of Donald Trump, and last year he appeared at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, tearing off his top in typical Hulk style to reveal a Trump/Vance shirt underneath.
Hogan was married three times and divorced twice. He is survived by his third wife, Sky Daily, two children, Brooke and Nick, from his first marriage, to Linda Claridge, and two grandchildren.
Hulk Hogan (Terry Gene Bollea), wrestler, born 11 August 1953; died 24 July 2025
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Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
How Hulk Hogan's family life fell apart: From hit reality TV show with his children to cheating scandals, leaked sex tapes and a bitter divorce - with third wife set to take staggering share of WWE icon's fortune after death
A larger-than-life character who became an undisputed legend of wrestling as a young man, Hulk Hogan captured the attention of the public in his later years for far different reasons. The maverick, who transcended his sport and became a household name across the globe, died last week at his home in Clearwater, Florida, after suffering cardiac arrest aged 71. He'd survived many a scandal in the years before his death and was arguably one of the most controversial figures in sporting history. There was a leaked sex-tape including a racist rant, an affair with his daughter's best friend, and political stances which turned even some the Hulksters' most avid fans against him. What left Hollywood Hogan 'heartbroken' in his final months, however, was a rift which tore him away from his family. At the time of his death, he hadn't spoken to his daughter Brooke for more than two years, with his ex-wife Linda accusing him of tearing his own family apart. 'We're in the worst mess,' she claimed in an astonishing video in March. But how did a family so close-knit, who once starred in their own reality show, become so fractured? Six foot 8in Hogan, born Terry Bollea, began his journey into wrestling in 1976 when he was scouted to enter the sport after idolising Dusty Rhodes and 'Superstar' Billy Graham during his youth. It wasn't until eight years later that the muscle mountain earned himself a full-time spot in the WWF, a platform which would shoot Hogan to stardom over the proceeding years. But 1983 wasn't only significant in terms of the Georgia-born wrestler's career - it was also the year he tied the knot with his first wife Linda. The pair hit it off immediately when they met two years earlier, as Hogan recalled in his 2009 autobiography: 'There was just something about Linda. She didn't care about the fame or the wrestling thing - she saw me, Terry, the person. That meant everything to me.' 'The good ol' days' in the 1980s, as Linda referred them in a tribute to Hogan following his passing, were indeed seemingly filled with love between the newly-weds. As the blonde behemoth rose to the top of Wrestlemania donning his iconic red and white costume, he and Linda were raising their two children, Brooke (born in 1988) and Nick (born in 1990). The family became the subject of interest from a number of production companies as the kids grew older and the popularity of reality TV boomed. After the astounding success of The Osbournes - which followed the late Ozzy Osbourne and his family at their Los Angeles home - Hogan was first pitched a television series in 2002, but turned the proposition down. The divisive superstar, then aged 50, agreed to allow cameras into his home three years later, with the first episode of the iconic 'Hogan Knows Best' airing in July 2005. The wrestler later revealed that he only agreed to the show in a bid help his children kickstart their own careers. 'I was offered lots of reality shows when I was making my career comeback against The Rock,' he told Fox News. 'But I kept saying no. Years later, it was my daughter's career and my son's racing career that we were thinking about it.' While warning his family 'what they were getting themselves into', Hogan hoped the series could show a different side to the bellowing wrestler the public had become accustomed to. 'They (fans) don't realise that I go to soccer games, play frisbee, watch The Lion King and start crying,' he candidly revealed in one of the show's early episodes. Producers tried to portray Hogan as a gentle giant, with the wrestler devoting himself to his daughter's career. Cameras would follow him and Brooke at label meetings, recording studios and their family home. But while Hogan may have thought he was helping his aspiring popstar spouse, viewers branded him overbearing and controlling. He monitored her phone calls, interrogated her boyfriends and, in one shocking scene, attached a tracker to her car. He seemed far more of a hinderance to Brooke's singing career than a help. The blundering blonde was often an embarrassment to his daughter as he tried to secure her a record deal. In one amusing scene, he even hired an airplane banner to send a message to American producer Scott Storch. 'YO STORCH, SIGN MY DAUGHTER ALREADY, SHE'S THE BOMB!', it read. The series garnered a huge wave of attention, but it ultimately came crashing down as quickly as it rose to prominence. Hogan Knows Best was cancelled after four seasons in 2007 amid the breakdown of Hulk and his wife Lisa's 26-year marriage over the bombshell accusation that he had cheated with his daughter's best friend, Christiane Plante. A 'furious' Linda filed for divorce after learning of her husband's adultery, which came after rumours of various flings circulated. The pair's relationship had reportedly been on the rocks for years, with Linda admitting 'sometimes they hated each other' during the filming of Hogan Knows Best. Hogan however denied allegations of cheating in his 2009 My Life Outside The Ring autobiography, despite Christiane confirming she and the sporting icon had enjoyed a brief romance. 'My relationship with Hulk began at a time when he and Linda privately knew their marriage was ending,' she said in an interview with the National Enquirer. 'She had left him already, although no official papers had been filed. He is a good man, good father, and good friend, and he and I grew close at a time when he was going through a very difficult period. It seemed right then, but I know it was wrong.' The scandalous affair marked the beginning of Hogan and his daughter's long-lasting feud, with Brooke taking to MySpace accusing her father of 'betrayal'. Linda claimed the wrestler had enjoyed a romance with Brooke's best friend (pictured with Brooke in 2006) Linda filed for divorce just days after learning of Hulk's affair, which the wrestler denied (pictured together in 2006) 'When your best friend and one of your closest family members that you have loved unconditionally since your first day on this earth, betray you together, you could MAYBE find it in yourself to forgive today,' she posted. 'But you will NEVER forget the hurt they caused you and how it hurt the people who mean the most to you.' Linda and Hulk's divorce was finalised two years later in 2009. As part of the settlement, she took a huge portion of her former lover's riches. Linda seized 70 per cent of their liquid assets, 40 per cent ownership of Hulk's various business and the couple's £2.23million Florida home. But the confirmation of their divorce was far from the end of Hulk - who moved on just a year later with his second wife Jennifer McDaniel - and Linda's troubles in court. Hulk accused his ex-wife of being an abusive alcoholic who threatened to beat their son with a wine bottle in his 2009 memoir. By this time, news of 48-year-old Linda's new 'toyboy' Charley Hill, just 19, had been made public. Her new lover also sparked a fiery response from Brooke, who accused her mother of 'smoking all her cares away and having a play-date' in her 2009 song Dear Mom... Two years later however and it was time for Linda to have her say in her own autobiography, aptly titled Wrestling the Hulk: My Life Against the Ropes. The reality star claimed she lived in fear of Hogan killing her in one of his drug-fueld rages during their marriage. She wrote: 'He tore my shirt, held me down on the bed with his hands around my throat. I was afraid he would kill me in one his rages.' Linda said she chose not to speak about the alleged abuse prior to the memoir as she didn't want to end her husband's glittering career at the forefront of WWE. In a bombshell allegation, she also accused Hogan of engaging in a sexual relationship with his fellow WWE star Brutus Beefcake - something the two wrestlers vehemently denied. The accusations of abuse prompted a lawsuit from Hogan, who sued for defamation claiming the abuse 'exposed him to distrust, hatred, contempt and ridicule.' The lawsuit was however dismissed in 2012 - the same year Hulk's biggest controversy surfaced. It came when gossip blog Gawker posted a sex tape of Hulk and Heather Clem, the wife of his then-best friend Bubba the Love Sponge, which had been taken in 2006 without the star's knowledge. Hulk, who said he'd been given the blessing of his pal ahead of the sexual encounter, claimed the video was taken at a 'low point' during his and Linda's crumbling marriage. But what was most damning about the leaked video was that it captured a racist rant from Hogan about his daughter dating a black man. In 2015, several publications reported transcripts from court documents in which the blonde hunk could be heard saying: 'I mean, I'd rather if she was going to f*** some n*****, I'd rather her marry an eight-foot-tall n***** worthy a hundred million dollars! 'Like a basketball player. I guess we're all a little racist. f*****g n*****!' Hogan sued Gawker, the publication who released the sex tape, and eventually agreed to a $31million (£23.4m) settlement (pictured with his lawyers in 2012) The tirade seriously tainted the WWE legend's legacy, with him chucked out of the franchise and admitting he was left 'at an all-time low'. 'Please forgive me,' the 12-time world champ pleaded - both to America as a whole and to his daughter Brooke, whose boyfriend was the focus of the then 62-year-old's racist tirade. 'If anybody should have disowned me it should have been her,' said Hogan. 'I was upset about something that happened between her and her boyfriend.' Just days after the video sent shockwaves through the world of Showbiz, Hogan filed a lawsuit against Gawker claiming emotional distress and invasion of privacy. He was secretly being backed by billionaire entrepreneur Peter Thiel, who is thought to have paid for the lawsuit in the first place. Theil allegedly involved himself with the aim of destroying Gawker, a publication which outed him as homosexual in 2007. And Hogan managed to do just that, with a Florida jury awarding him $115million in compensatory damages and $25m in punitive damages. Both parties however later agreed to a $31m settlement, which left Gawker bankrupt. While dealing with the tainting of his public image, Hulk was too contending with the the breakdown of his relationship with his daughter in the years before his death. Following his scandalous affair with her best-friend and a number of 'separate reasons', Brooke ultimately became estranged from her father in 2023. She had supported Hulk through 'almost 25 surgeries' as his health declined in his latter years, but the wrestling icon apparently 'didn't want' her by his side anymore. 'All of a sudden he didn't want me at surgeries... everything started getting covered in a thick veil,' she wrote in a tribute to her father following his death. 'We never had a "big fight". My father and I never "fought". It was a series of private phone calls no one will ever hear, know, or understand.' Brooke and Hulk had their final conversation over the phone a couple of weeks before he married his third wife Sky Daily in 2023. On that call, Brooke expressed her love and concern for him - telling Hogan that he shouldn't be working so hard due to his declining health. Despite her pleas for him to enjoy more of his life, those requests fell on deaf ears. The pair didn't speak again. Despite multiple attempts from her husband, Steven Oleksy, to fix their relationship, including when Brooke almost died in childbirth in January of this year, Hulk 'responded coldly and never made an effort to meet Brooke's kids,' per TMZ. The final public rift in the Hogan family came just a couple months before Hulk's death when his ex-wife Linda accused him of being a 'complete liar' and 'sex addict'. She too claimed that the family was in 'the worst mess'. Brooke later retaliated, hitting back at her mother by alleging that her father was not the only reason behind the shocking family divide, claiming she was 'verbally and mentally abused' during her childhood. Hulk's daughter Brooke (centre) is thought to have removed herself from his will in 2023 (pictured with Linda and Hulk in 2004) After Brooke's stunning response, Linda then took a dramatic U-turn by defending Hogan and branding her daughter a 'narcissist.' The family didn't get the chance to reconcile before Hogan passed away earlier this month. A source told the Daily Mail in April that he was 'heartbroken' over the deterioration of his and Brooke's relationship. Both Brooke and Linda paid tribute to their father following his passing, with his daughter hailing their 'deeper than words connection' and his former wife of 26 years admitting 'I loved Hulkster more than he loved me!' His son Nick, who took a neutral stance on the fallout and spent time with his father in his final years, also paid tribute. He wrote: 'Thank you for being the best dad in the world and thank you for being my best friend. I love you so much Big Dog and will miss you forever.' The question that now persists is, who will inherit Hulk's fortune? He's estimated to have left behind an estate worth around $25million, which includes high-value assets such as his $11.5m Clearwater mansion and a number of business ventures including his Hogan's Hangout restaurant and the recently launched Real American Beer. Under Florida's spousal elective share statute, Hogan's third third wife Sky is entitled to 30 per cent of his assets despite the couple only being married two years. It remains unclear where the rest of the fortune will land but, according to TMZ, Brooke won't inherit a penny. The 37-year-old mother-of-two reportedly asked to be removed from Hogan's will in 2023 over fears she would be caught in a bitter financial battle in the wake of her father's death. Brooke, who apparently did not trust anyone in the wrestler's inner circle, said she's never been motivated by her father's fortune.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Real reason why Hulk Hogan was estranged from daughter Brooke revealed by her husband
Brooke Hogan stopped speaking to her father, late WWE legend Hulk Hogan, because of the way he treated her - not because of his new wife, Sky Daily. That is according to Brooke's husband, former NHL star Steven Oleksy, who has lifted the lid on the estrangement in the years before Hogan's death last month. The wrestling icon suffered a cardiac arrest and passed away at the age of 71. By then, Hogan had gone nearly a decade without speaking to Brooke, 36. The family rift spilled into the open earlier this year but now Oleksy has opened up on why Brooke turned away from her dad. He told PEOPLE that it was 'not the case at all' that Brooke cut communications because she disapproved of his new marriage to Daily and accused Hogan of pushing that false narrative. 'My wife will say it — it had nothing to do with his new wife. It had to do with the way he treated (Brooke),' Oleksy said. 'It was a situation where she loved her dad very, very much.' But Oleksy claimed that Brooke paid a heavy price for standing by her father, who found himself at the center of several scandals - including when he used racial slurs in reference to Brooke's ex-boyfriend. That support had 'really taken a toll on her,' her husband said. Oleksy and Brooke tied the knot in June 2022 without Hogan. Oleksy claims that the wrestling legend told him he 'doesn't do weddings or funerals anymore.' And the final straw, according to Oleksy, was a 'series of phone calls' between father and daughter when 'there were some things said, and a lot of mistruths.'
Scottish Sun
9 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Hulk Hogan's funeral plans revealed in official death certificate after wrestling star's death at 71
THE details of Hulk Hogan's funeral have been revealed after his official death certificate was released. The wrestling legend is set to be cremated, with a ceremony to be held in Clearwater, Florida. Advertisement 3 The details of Hulk Hogan's funeral have been revealed Credit: Splash 3 The wrestling legend is set to be cremated Credit: Getty 3 The wrestling legend died at his home on July 24, 2025 Credit: Getty This is the city where Hulk Hogan, whose real name was Terry Bollea, had been living at the time of his death. His death certificate also shows that his memorial service is set to be held at Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park and Funeral Home, which is also in Clearwater. It also lists his official cause of death as natural causes. And a spokesperson for the the Pinellas County Forensic Science Center today told Page Six: "I'm not aware of when Mr. Bollea will be cremated, only that we've received a request for cremation approval." Advertisement Records from the Pinellas County Forensic Science Center obtained by The U.S. Sun reveal he died from an acute myocardial infarction. Hogan had been dealing with significant health issues for months. It is unclear whether Hogan's cremation will be in a public or private funeral. The wrestling legend died at his home on July 24, 2025 aged 71. Advertisement Clearwater cops and fire crews were called to his estate just after 9:50am, police told to The U.S. Sun. He received CPR and was taken to hospital, where he was declared dead. Cops said at a press conference that Hogan had experienced a "serious medical related issue". Their statement from the day reads: "Clearwater Fire Department and Clearwater Police Department personnel responded to a medical call at 9:51 a.m. today in the 1000 block of Eldorado Avenue on Clearwater Beach. Advertisement "The nature of the call was for a cardiac arrest. A 71-year-old resident, Terry Bollea, also known as Hulk Hogan, was treated by Clearwater Fire & Rescue crews before being taken by Sunstar to Morton Plant Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased." In a heartwrenching statement after his death, his wife Sky said: "He had been dealing with some health issues, but I truly believed he would overcome them." "I had so much faith in his strength. I thought we still had more time." She added: "He was a believer in Christ, and I take comfort knowing his soul is at peace and he's been welcomed home." Advertisement Former WWE supremo Vince McMahon paid tribute to Hogan, calling him the greatest WWE superstar of all time. "He was a trailblazer, the first performer who transitioned from being a wrestling star into a global phenomenon." More to follow... For the latest news on this story, keep checking back at The U.S. Sun, your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, sports news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures, and must-see videos. Like us on Facebook at TheSunUS and follow us on X at @TheUSSun
