Well, as Parade highlighted, Hogan claims that he tried to join the legendary rock band, Metallica, and was prepared to leave life as a wrestling icon behind to do so. “When Metallica was looking for a bass player, I called and never heard a word back from them either,” he told the Chicago Tribune in 2009.

Hulk Hogan evolved from a sports entertainer to lifestyle brand through authenticity and expansion, with recent ventures that included a beer brand and freestyle wrestling organization.

For a generation of fans, Hulkamania was real. But the wrestling god of their youth turned out to be a mere mortal who leaves a complicated and sometimes ugly legacy