Word: This text discusses substance abuse, suicide and racial slurs.

When Hulk Hogan died on July 24, 2025, on the age of 71, the WWE icon left behind an advanced legacy, to say the least. Throughout his glory days in the course of the Eighties, Hogan (who was born Terry Bollea) just about singlehandedly remodeled skilled wrestling from a seedy sideshow to mainstream leisure for the plenty, changing into a pop-culture phenomenon within the course of. As a wrestler, Hogan wore many personas, from squeaky-clean position mannequin to nefarious villain, along with his mid-Nineteen Nineties heel flip revitalizing his profession when “Hulkamania” was on the wane. Proper till the tip, Hogan remained probably the most recognizable professional wrestler on the planet.

Through the course of his profession, Hogan branched out by starring in motion pictures and rode the wave of actuality TV along with his collection “Hogan Is aware of Greatest,” which chronicled the day-to-day lives of him and his household. Wrestling, nevertheless, was at all times his bread and butter, and he equipped his providers for numerous corporations as he exited and returned to Vince McMahon’s WWE quite a few occasions through the years.

His private life, nevertheless, was typically messy. Hogan was frequently dogged by controversy and scandal, starting from his admission that his large muscle tissues got here from anabolic steroids to the salacious intercourse tape that resulted in a lawsuit towards the Gawker media empire that introduced him a number of tens of millions. Actually, because the years progressed, Hogan’s sample of unsavory conduct eroded his recognition, shifting the main focus from his spectacular achievements to his many, many missteps. To seek out out extra, learn on for a have a look at the tragic lifetime of WWE celebrity Hulk Hogan.

Whereas viewers tuned in to the healthful antics of Hulk Hogan, spouse Linda, and teenage youngsters Brooke on hit actuality present “Hogan Is aware of Greatest,” actuality intruded in a horrific method simply weeks after the collection’ fourth season concluded. In October 2007, the wrestler’s son, Nick Hogan, was arrested after the automobile he was driving crashed, leaving his good friend, navy veteran John Graziano, in crucial situation.

Not solely did that spell the tip of “Hogan Is aware of Greatest,” the accident additionally resulted in Nick being hit with a number of legal costs, together with reckless driving involving severe bodily harm. On the time, authorities indicated that these costs might escalate if Graziano did not survive. Nick entered a plea of no contest and was sentenced to eight months behind bars; he was launched after serving simply 5 months.

Graziano did survive, however was left paralyzed and in a everlasting vegetative state. His mother and father sued the Hogans, with the lawsuit finally settled out of courtroom. Whereas the phrases of the settlement weren’t initially disclosed, it was later revealed to be within the neighborhood of $5 million. In keeping with stories, after hospital payments and authorized charges have been paid out, the quantity left over for Graziano’s lifelong care was simply $1.5 million. To say that the Graziano household was dissatisfied by the end result was an understatement. “It is appallingly low,” the household’s lawyer, John Trevena, advised the Tampa Bay Occasions of the settlement quantity. “I used to be shocked. It is a tenth of the worth I had anticipated.”

Weeks after Nick Hogan’s near-fatal automobile crash and the next cancellation of “Hogan Is aware of Greatest,” TMZ reported in November 2007 that Linda Hogan had filed divorce papers to finish her marriage to Hulk Hogan. Whereas the authorized paperwork obtained by the outlet did not specify a purpose for the cut up, that turned crystal clear the next February, when Christiane Plante — greatest good friend of the couple’s daughter, Brooke Hogan — revealed that she’d had a torrid affair with the WWE star.

Plante advised the Nationwide Enquirer that the Hogans’ marriage was basically over on the time of her dalliance with the married wrestler. Nevertheless, she claimed to be consumed with guilt and realized that her actions had destroyed her friendship with Brooke. “I’ll by no means have the ability to totally forgive myself for this,” she mentioned, through As we speak.com. “I’ve misplaced an incredible good friend.”

Linda, nevertheless, disputed Plante’s characterization that she and her husband have been via when he cheated, and insisted the actual purpose they obtained divorced was his infidelity. “When Linda found Hulk had [an affair] with Brooke’s greatest good friend, Christiane Plante, she made the choice to name it quits on the wedding,” her publicist, Gary Smith, advised E! Information in an announcement, accusing the Hulkster of making an attempt injury management by placing his personal spin on the state of affairs. “Hulk has even implied that the VH1 hit present, ‘Hogan Is aware of Greatest,’ was the reason for cut up in his marriage,” Smith added. “Virtually each assertion that comes out of Hulk’s mouth is a diversionary tactic to deflect consideration away from the actual purpose Linda filed for divorce, two phrases: HULK’S CHEATING!”

Hulk Hogan’s divorce from Linda Hogan rapidly turned nasty. Actually, Hulk and Linda Hogan’s divorce was a messy (and dear) affair. Affidavits filed by the dueling spouses lifted the curtain on their prodigious spending, indicating that whereas the professional wrestler could have been making a fortune, he and his household had been burning via that cash at a breakneck tempo. In these affidavits, Hogan claimed he was price $32 million and was spending a whopping $38,000 per 30 days on authorized charges. Additionally revealed was how a lot Linda spent on a month-to-month foundation, an quantity that included $7,000 on clothes, $7,500 for housekeeping, and roughly $1,700 on jewellery.

So how a lot did Hulk Hogan lose in his divorce? When the mud settled, it was Linda who walked away with the lion’s share of the money. In keeping with the St. Petersburg Occasions (through USA As we speak), Linda was awarded in extra of 70% of their shared liquid belongings (estimated at just below $7.5 million), together with a 40% stake in Hulk’s corporations, and a lump-sum payout of $3 million that was described as a “property settlement.” The one silver lining for the wrestler was that he saved his assortment of classic vehicles and was not required to pay any alimony.

In the meantime, the shady facet of the Hogan household emerged in Linda’s 2011 memoir, “Wrestling The Hulk: My Life Towards the Ropes,” by which she accused him of being bodily abusive towards her all through their marriage, allegedly dragging her by her hair and even choking her. He fired again by suing her for defamation; as CBS Information reported, his lawsuit claimed that her allegations “uncovered him to mistrust, hatred, contempt and mock.”

Previous to his spouse’s tell-all, Hulk Hogan wrote his personal ebook, “My Life Outdoors the Ring.” In that tome, he claimed to have been blindsided by Linda’s divorce submitting. “I virtually begged her, ‘Please, do not file. Our son’s simply had this accident — if we do that now, it will make us appear to be the Britney Spears household. Please, do not file for divorce,'” he wrote.

It was at that time that he started sinking right into a extreme despair, hitting a degree so low that he started significantly considering taking his personal life. He discovered himself holding a gun, his finger on the set off, as he stared at himself in a mirror for 2 steady days. “A gun was in my hand and my finger was on the set off and I was considering, it could simply be really easy,” he wrote.

Simply as he was steeling himself to tug the set off, his telephone rang. On the opposite finish of the road was Laila Ali, daughter of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali and his co-host on the TV collection “American Gladiators.” Listening to her voice as she expressed her concern for him all of the sudden made him notice the gravity of what he was making ready to do. “For some purpose, that telephone name snapped me out of it,” he added. “I can not clarify why … Laila Ali saved my life.”

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Having been cleaned out in his divorce, by 2011, Hulk Hogan’s monetary state of affairs was way more precarious than followers might have presumably imagined. Hogan spilled the beans throughout a 2011 look on “Good Morning America,” revealing that he was teetering on the sting of chapter and had been pressured to scale down his life-style significantly. “[I lost] a whole bunch of tens of millions. There have been homes being purchased, vehicles being purchased, holidays for members of the family … There have been eight, 9, 10, 11 of them transferring into our home,” he mentioned, as reported by Slam! Sports activities.

At the moment, Hogan and his second spouse — he married Jennifer McDaniel in late 2010 — have been attempting to embrace a extra modest way of life, one thing that he mentioned they’d been succeeding with. “They’re getting higher,” he mentioned of his monetary woes, revealing that he and his spouse have been now dwelling in a rental house. “I am not dwelling in abundance,” he conceded. “However I am completely satisfied now. [Money] helps get via the day, it helps make issues simpler, however it’s nothing to do with being completely satisfied.”

Through the 2010s, one in every of Hulk Hogan’s closest buddies was Todd Clem, a radio shock jock generally known as Bubba the Love Sponge. The lads have been tight, with Hogan even serving as greatest man when Clem tied the knot with spouse Heather. One night time whereas visiting the couple, Hogan accepted Heather’s supply — together with her husband’s approval — to take him to mattress. They obtained all the way down to enterprise, however Hogan did not notice that their lovemaking was being recorded through a hidden digicam put in within the bed room.

That intercourse tape wound up on the Gawker web site in 2012, six years after it was recorded, inflicting all method of embarrassment for Hogan. He blamed his buddies for the tape — which was recorded with out his information — winding up on the web. “He feels completely betrayed,” Hogan’s lawyer David Houston mentioned, as reported by the New York Day by day Information. Hogan sued Gawker for violating his privateness, searching for $100 million — and gained; the jury within the case finally awarded him $140 million in damages (later diminished to $31M in a settlement). 

Hogan additionally sued Todd and Heather Clem for his or her position in leaking the intercourse tape to Gawker. That go well with was ultimately settled; whereas the phrases of the settlement weren’t publicly disclosed, it apparently included a provision requiring Bubba the Love Sponge to subject an apology on his radio present. “It’s my perception that Hulk isn’t concerned, and has not ever been concerned, in attempting to launch the video, or exploit it, or in any other case achieve from the video’s launch in any method,” he mentioned, as reported by E! Information.

In 2015, forward of the Gawker trial, Hulk Hogan’s notorious intercourse tape sparked an entire new scandal when a recorded dialog with Heather Clem wound up within the fingers of the Nationwide Enquirer and sister website RadarOnline. In that tape, Hogan bemoans the chance that his daughter, Brooke Hogan, may be sleeping with Black males. “I imply, I’m a racist, to a degree,” Hogan mentioned, liberally peppering the dialog with the N-word. “I assume we’re all just a little racist,” he added.

The backlash hit like a tsunami, so damaging that WWE immediately minimize ties with Hogan by terminating his contract. In the meantime, he was faraway from the WWE Corridor of Fame, with all traces of his existence eradicated from the WWE web site. Harm management was required, and Hogan issued a groveling apology. “Eight years in the past I used offensive language throughout a dialog. It was unacceptable for me to have used that offensive language; there is no such thing as a excuse for it; and I apologize for having finished it,” Hogan mentioned in an announcement to Individuals. “This isn’t who I’m,” he added. “I’m dissatisfied with myself that I used language that’s offensive and inconsistent with my very own beliefs.”

Including insult to harm, toy producer Mattel issued a tweet confirming they have been halting manufacturing of Hulk Hogan motion figures, and all Hogan-related merchandise. In the meantime, Hogan had develop into so poisonous that key U.S. retailers — together with Goal, Walmart and Toys R Us — yanked all of its Hogan-branded merchandise off cabinets.

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Shortly after his divorce was finalized, 57-year-old Hulk Hogan married his second spouse Jennifer McDaniel, who was 20 years his junior. The nuptials passed off in December 2010, proving to be considerably distinctive in that the marriage needed to be interrupted when a scuffle broke out between a Hogan worker and a persistent paparazzi. The wedding weathered Hogan’s sex-tape scandal and his racist-language controversy, however Hogan’s second try at wedded bliss finally did not stand the check of time. In 2021, he filed for divorce after practically 11 years of matrimony. 

In contrast to Hogan’s divorce from his first ex-wife Linda Hogan, his parting from McDaniel was finished quietly and, apparently, amicably. Actually, their cut up had taken place so secretly that the divorce seemingly flew beneath the radar — a lot in order that when images of Hogan and his new girlfriend, yoga teacher Sky Day by day, appeared on social media, she was incorrectly recognized as McDaniel. Hogan issued a tweet to appropriate the file. “I’m formally divorced, sorry I believed everybody already knew,” he wrote.

McDaniel didn’t exit the connection empty-handed. TMZ obtained authorized paperwork associated to the divorce, which detailed some phrases of the settlement. One stipulation referred to as for Hogan to purchase McDaniel a brand new automobile, paid for in full, whereas McDaniel additionally held onto a house they’d bought collectively in Palm Isle, Florida. As in his earlier divorce, Hogan paid no alimony, as an alternative making a one-time cost to McDaniel, of an undisclosed sum. Lastly, the settlement additionally included a non-disparagement clause, prohibiting both of them from talking ailing of the opposite. 

As Hulk Hogan grew older, his previous caught up with him. A long time of wrestling had taken their toll on his physique, which resulted in quite a few surgical procedures. “I’ve had, like, 25 surgical procedures within the final 10 years. Ten of them have been again surgical procedures,” Hogan revealed throughout a chat with controversial social media persona Logan Paul throughout a 2024 look on Paul’s “Impaulsive” podcast. These surgical procedures, he added, additionally included changing each his knees and each hips.

Hogan blamed his battered physique on the antiquated wrestling rings when he first started his professional wrestling profession within the late Seventies, which have been way more punishing than these in use as we speak. “André [the Giant] used to inform me, ‘Boss, do not fall down. You will not get again up.’ It was like a 22-foot boxing ring that had lumps in it, boards sticking up — it was horrible,” Hogan recalled.

In the meantime, it is attainable that the anabolic steroids he’d taken to develop big as a younger wrestler could have been a think about his eventual demise from cardiac arrest, provided that steroids have been discovered to contribute to the danger of coronary heart assaults. Days earlier than Hogan’s demise, his former good friend Bubba the Love Sponge advised listeners about disturbing stories he’d heard that the wrestler’s well being had deteriorated and he was at demise’s door. “They’ve gone so far as they’ll go on the hospital,” Bubba mentioned of these stories indicating the tip was close to. “They’re preserving him comfy in his house in a hospital mattress.”

In October 2023, Hulk Hogan walked down the aisle for a 3rd time, tying the knot with Sky Day by day. As TMZ reported, the ceremony was small and intimate, but there was one obtrusive absence: the groom’s daughter, Brooke Hogan. She later took to Instagram (she subsequently took her account non-public) to handle the obvious rift together with her father. “As a substitute of leaving it to hypothesis, I made a decision it is higher to close all of it down right here,” she wrote, through Yahoo! Leisure. “I’ve chosen to create far between myself and my household, and am specializing in individuals and issues that heal my coronary heart and align with my very own private beliefs, objectives, and values.”

As time handed, the tragic particulars about Hogan’s relationship with daughter Brooke started to emerge. A supply confirmed to the Day by day Mail that Hogan and his daughter had not been on good phrases within the years main as much as his 2025 demise, a state of affairs that saddened the wrestler immensely. “There was just a little pressure along with his daughter and their relationship that had taken fairly the emotional toll, however he at all times thought he would ultimately have the ability to rectify that,” the supply mentioned. 

Sadly, that by no means occurred; Brooke was nonetheless estranged from her father when he handed away. A supply advised TMZ that they hadn’t spoken in years, that their remaining dialog had taken place just a few weeks earlier than his 2023 marriage ceremony. That supply additionally claimed that her husband, hockey participant Steve Olesky, had unsuccessfully tried to intervene in hopes of bringing father and daughter collectively; Hogan’s response to these overtures was described as “chilly,” and he by no means made any efforts to satisfy her two kids.