Hulk Hogan was larger than life in wrestling, pop culture and sports collectibles hobby
When I attended my first National Sports Collectors Convention in 2021, I was astonished at the lineup of legendary athletes scheduled to sign autographs at the five-day show.
Wait ’til Saturday, I was told.
When I checked out the TRISTAR Autograph Pavilion on Wednesday, I looked at the big board listing all the athletes scheduled to appear and I was in awe. Day after day, some of the biggest names in sports history, including dozens of Hall of Famers, were scheduled to sign in Chicago.
Wait ’til Saturday, I was told.
When the doors opened on Thursday, a hoard of autograph seekers flooded the autograph pavilion, creating long lines of ambitious fans and collectors looking to grab sigs from their sports heroes. I couldn’t believe the lines for such big names as Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, Chipper Jones, Emmitt Smith, and Barry Sanders.
Wait ’til Saturday, I was reminded.
When Saturday finally arrived, the crowd nearly doubled, with photo and autograph lines snaking through the pavilion and onto the collectibles show floor.
Most of them came to see one man.
Hulk Hogan.
The colorful, larger-than-life character who put professional wrestling on the map arrived to great fanfare. When he walked through the backstage curtain with fellow wrestling legend Ric Flair, they might as well have cranked up “Real American” or “Voodoo Child” because the crowd was already stoked.
Wearing a black Hollywood Hogan T-shirt and black bandana, Hogan posed for photos with Flair and then inked autographs for hundreds of fans, signing everything from action figures and championship belts to a pair of his bright yellow wrestling boots.
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Though the show featured some of the biggest names and most famous athletes in sports, none matched the star power and attraction of Hogan and Flair, who seemed more like superheroes than celebrities, giving the show a Comic-Con feel.
Terry Bollea, 71, passed away on July 24 after a brief illness. As Hulk Hogan, he was widely regarded as the biggest star and one of greatest performers in the history of professional wrestling. An actor, entrepreneur and pop culture icon, Hogan created one of the most popular and influential characters in sports entertainment, with his rabid Hulkamania fanbase attracting a worldwide following.
Hogan rose to prominence in the 1980s, helping WWE (then WWF) become the hottest wrestling promotion in the country. He headlined Wrestlemania 1, the debut of WWE’s biggest event, and his main event against Andre The Giant in front of an announced crowd of 90,000-plus at Wrestlemania 3 is considered one of the most significant moments in wrestling history.
Hogan left WWE in 1993 to pursue a movie career, but returned to wrestling in 1994 as Hollywood Hulk Hogan, briefly pushing Ted Turner's rival WCW past WWE as the top wrestling promotion. Hogan returned to WWE in 2002 and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005.
Just as he did outside the “squared circle,” Hogan transcended sports and sports entertainment, even at the largest sports collectibles show in the country.
“He’s such a larger-than-life figure, it’s weird just to be in the same room with him,” said Brett Kowalski, one of many fans who traveled for hours just to see Hogan in Chicago in 2021.
Tige Washko of Livonia, Mich. drove four hours just to get a photo with Hogan and Flair. He called the experience “a dream come true.”
Hogan was not only a wrestling and pop culture icon, he also had a huge impact on the hobby. His 1982 Wrestling All Stars “rookie” card set a wrestling card record last year, selling for $132,000 at Heritage Auctions, while his 1982 Cosmos “rookie” went for $51,600 in 2022. His 1985 Topps WWF card has also topped five figures and an eBay seller listed a PSA 10 for $950,000 on the day of his death.
Hogan memorabilia also attracts top dollar. A pair of his signed yellow boots sold for $66,000 at Goldin in 2023. A quick search on the day of his death showed hundreds of Hogan items for sale. A signed championship belt was going for $6,000, while a signed, match-used turnbuckle was listed for $3,799. Hogan-signed WrestleMania tickets were listed for $20,000-$25,000.
As I watched a legion of fans and collectors pay hundreds of dollars for a photo, an autograph or just a moment with Hogan, it suddenly dawned on my why hobby insiders had told me to “wait ’til Saturday” in Chicago.
Hulk Hogan was in the house and at a huge card show packed with fired-up Hulkamaniacs there was no one bigger.
— Jeff Owens is editor of SCD. You can reach him at jowens@sportscollectorsdigest.com.
Jeff Owens is the editor of SCD.