Hulk Hogan on AOL
June 9, 2000
Just two days before his match against Billy Kidman at the Great American Bash
| Peoplmagmc: | Welcome Hulk Hogan! Thanks for chatting with us tonight. | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Cool... Glad to be here. I love it | |
| Peoplmagmc: | Let's go to our first question... | |
| Question: | What do you think of the WWF now, compared to when you were there? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | I think they had to reinvent themselves with the changing times and they made a statement by doing the porno type wrestling and the Jerry Springer type wrestling but now they've pulled back and they have a pretty solid product. | |
| Question: | What do you feel about Vince Russo? Do you feel he is pointing WCW in the right direction? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | I feel that he basically got us out of the starting gate with the right new direction but now it's time to expand the creative team in the same direction. | |
| Question: | Hulk, I've been a huge fan every since WrestleMania 2. Your the only reason I watch wrestling. My question is how's your knee feeling and how much longer do you see yourself in the wrestling business? Good luck this Sunday, I'll be there cheering you on! | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Right now my knee is excellent because I have found the Fountain of Youth. I had surgery and for the last 8 months my knee has been killing me. It's been bad during conversations and focusing on someone's eyes all I could think about is how my knee hurts. I then met a group of Canadians from Accelerate Health Care and I signed some paperwork which released them from liability and they began treating me with a laser gun which was not approved by the FDA of the U.S. It penetrates deep into the knee and heals on a cellular level and has taken all the chronic pain out of my joints. It's given me a chance to make the muscles around my knees even stronger than ever before. I've got the spring back in my step and my knee feels great. | |
| Question: | After all of these years in wrestling, what kinds of changes have you seen and do you think they are good or bad? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Well the changes are there are more people than ever watching wrestling and are dialed into this type of entertainment. The bad news is the talent and a lot of the people that run the wrestling business are taking shortcuts and the actual art of wrestling and performing is fading away quite rapidly. The talent is basically going through the motions on command and they don't feel the movements or the matches in their soul. | |
| Question: | Who was your favorite competitor in the ring? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Without a doubt it has to be the Macho Man Randy Savage. He's the consummate professional and I made tons of money with him | |
| Question: | Hollywood, if you don't win the match with Billy Kidman on Sunday and you do retire from WCW are you going to negotiate with Mr. McMahon about a suitable contract before you actually retire from the world of wrestling? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Well
first off I will win the match but if by some
freak act of nature I lose I'll head my Lear jet straight for RAW. |
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| Question: | After you beat Kidman, when do you plan on retiring? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | I'll probably retire when I quit making $15 or $20 million a year. | |
| Question: | Who was your toughest opponent? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Without a doubt, Andre the Giant. | |
| Question: | what do you consider your most classic match over the years? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Without a doubt it has to be WrestleMania 3 with Andre. People don't know the ramifications of what really happened. Andre was in so much pain with his back he could barely get off the electric cart and walk into the ring. I sat in the dressing room with him maybe 8 hours before the match watching him drink maybe 20 bottles of wine and I drank maybe 2. I kept asking him "what are we going to do". All he told me was "don't worry I'll tell you in the ring". There was much more to the story than meets the eye. | |
| Question: | In all of your career, you have wrestled many great superstars. Is there anyone (in any federation) that you would really enjoy getting in the ring with before you retire? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Yes. I think I would like to wrestling Antonio Inoki one time without all the political BS involved. I'd like to wrestle him one time when he was not the boss of the company and was just one of the normal wrestlers and see what would happen. | |
| Peoplmagmc: | Hulk, we have some questions from fans who want to know about what it feels like to be the subject of an A&E Biography special. Feel like a legend? | |
| HulkWCW1: | First I was worried. I thought maybe that they thought I was going to either die or retire. I always forget how big the character of Hulk Hogan really is. When I actually sat back and watched the biography when it was finished I realized why the Hulk Hogan character made history. You forget how much stuff you've done, how many stars you've brushed up against and how many lives you've touched. It took Biography to put that all together into the big picture. | |
| Question: | What does it take to rise to the top of the world of professional wrestling? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | It
takes making wrestling your number 1 priority in
life. It's easier if you don't have a family and
you don't have a job and you haven't spent years dedicated to another career. It's easier to make the sacrifice if you are free as you can be. I made the sacrifice before I had a family and before I had kids. |
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| Question: | What year did you start your wrestling career? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | I started in 1977. | |
| Question: | Thank you for giving us your time Hulk, I am a loyal fan of yours going on 19 years. I was wondering of all the great things you've accomplished throughout your career, what else can you see yourself doing before you retire? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Well before I retire there has to be a logical ending to the story and that doesn't mean winning the match or having a logical ending to the storyline created by Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo. The logical ending means leaving wrestling in a better state of affairs than when I entered wrestling. | |
| Question: | Do your children ever watch your matches. If so, how do they respond to seeing this image of their dad? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | My children watch me once in awhile. My son Nicholas is really getting into it but they know what it's all about and they understand why they do what I do. Children are smarter than the adults. | |
| Peoplmagmc: | Hulk, we have a lot of questions about your Hollywood career and a possible career in politics. Any plans? | |
| HuIkWCW1: | Well I came back from LA this morning so I had no sleep last night. I met with Paramount about a new movie, Tomb Raider. Also about a remake of Rollerball. Things just keep coming my way and I have to decide when I want to make the final transition. | |
| Peoplmagmc: | Thanks
for joining us tonight, Hulk. Any final thoughts
for the audience? |
|
| HuIkWCW1: | Yes.
I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I'm
almost back to the barn. The new Hollywood Hogan, the baby face, the good guy, I promise will be very exciting and will rock your world one last night. |
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| Peoplmagmc: | Thanks so much for taking the time to join us for this chat. And thanks to the audience for some great questions. | |