
20 years ago, 'Hogan Knows Best' premiered. Read our 2005 interview with Hulk Hogan
Hogan lived a lot of lives before his death Thursday at 71. He was a professional wrestler who helped transform the WWE into a lucrative cultural behemoth. He appeared in TV shows and movies — including 'Rocky III' — and provided voices for video games. His victory in his lawsuit against Gawker Media essentially killed the powerful online news and gossip purveyor and heightened tensions around press freedoms and privacy rights. A racial slurs scandal saw the WWE cut ties with him, and though the organization later welcomed him back into the fold, he pursued new pro wrestling ventures. Of late, he was somewhat of a political figure, too, embracing President Donald Trump and even speaking at the 2024 Republican National Convention.

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New York Times
a minute ago
- New York Times
A Royal Send-off for Ozzy Osbourne, Prince of Darkness
It's a ceremony fit for royalty. A regal carriage. A procession through crowd-lined streets. A brass band playing. And throngs of devoted, likely tearful, admirers paying their respects as the coffin passes. It's time to say goodbye to the Prince of Darkness. On Wednesday, such a tribute is planned for Ozzy Osbourne, a founder of the pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, in Birmingham, England — his hometown — ahead of a private family funeral. As part of the event, which is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. (8 a.m. Eastern), Osbourne's family is to visit the Black Sabbath Bench, a tourist attraction that has become a place of pilgrimage. It's the third time this month that fans have descended on Birmingham for an Ozzfest of sorts. On July 5, they flocked here for Osbourne's final concert at a soccer stadium just a few minutes from his childhood home. Last week, the black-clad, tattooed throngs returned after the singer died at age 76. Now, they're back for his funeral procession. Some had rushed across borders to make it in time. Niclas Sundsborn, 53, a maintenance worker from Sweden, said that after learning about the procession on Tuesday, he and a metal-loving friend had each spent about $1,300 on plane tickets to fly to Britain. Sundsborn said that his own family 'probably think I'm mad' for spending that much, but that Osbourne was 'an icon.' In Britain, mourners typically take to the streets in large numbers only for the death of queens or kings. After John Lennon died in 1980, some 20,000 fans gathered in Liverpool for a vigil, but few other artists have provoked such devotion. There was no procession for David Bowie's death, in 2016. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.

Associated Press
a minute ago
- Associated Press
Birmingham, the home of metal, to honor Ozzy Osbourne as his hearse makes way through city
BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — The 'home of metal' is gearing up to honor one of its most cherished sons. Thousands of Black Sabbath fans will pay their respects Wednesday to frontman Ozzy Osbourne as his hearse makes its way through the streets of Birmingham, the English city where he grew up and where the band was formed in 1968. The hearse carrying Osbourne, who died last Tuesday at the age of 76, will make its way down Broad Street, the city's major thoroughfare, to the Black Sabbath bench, which was unveiled on the Broad Street canal bridge in 2019. Family members are expected to watch the cortege, which will be accompanied by a live brass band. Since his death was announced, fans have made pilgrimages to sites around Birmingham, which has over the decades embraced its reputation as the birthplace of heavy metal. Among his peers, Osbourne was metal's godfather. 'Ozzy was more than a music legend — he was a son of Birmingham,' said city official Zafar Iqbal. 'We know how much this moment will mean to his fans.' Broad Street closed to through traffic early Wednesday morning and will only reopen after the funeral finishes. Buses and trams have been diverted. Osbourne and his Black Sabbath bandmates, Terence Butler, Tony Iommi and Bill Ward, were recently awarded the Freedom of the City in recognition of their services to Birmingham. The group has been widely credited with defining and popularizing the sound of heavy metal. Osbourne was the band's frontman during its peak period in the 1970s and was widely known as the 'Prince of Darkness.' His antics, on and off stage, were legendary, and often fueled by copious amounts of drinks and drugs. Sabbath's story began in Birmingham in 1968 when the four original members were looking to escape a life of factory work. Their eponymous debut album in 1970 made the U.K. top 10 and paved the way for a string of hit albums, including 1971's 'Master of Reality' and 'Vol. 4' a year later. They went on to become one of the most influential and successful metal bands of all time, selling more than 75 million albums worldwide. At their final show on July 5, 42,000 fans watched the band perform for the first time in 20 years at Villa Park, home of the city's biggest soccer club Aston Villa, with Osbourne seated on a black throne. Osbourne had been in poor health in recent years, especially after he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2019. Osbourne, who also had a successful solo career, found a new legion of fans in the early 2000s reality show 'The Osbournes' in which he starred alongside his wife Sharon and two youngest children, Kelly and Jack.


CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
Democratic senators heated debate on law enforcement benefits legislation
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The episode also featured cameos by late night talk show hosts including Jimmy Fallon, Jon Stewart, John Oliver and Seth Meyers. 01:24 - Source: CNN Malcolm-Jamal Warner's impact on Black community Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner, best known for his role as Cliff Huxtable on 'The Cosby Show,' has died at age 54 in a drowning accident in Costa Rica where he was on vacation with family, according to authorities. Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department told CNN that Warner was swimming Sunday at Playa Grande de Cocles in Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the ocean, where the Red Cross later declared him dead. CNN's Lisa Respers France reports. 00:59 - Source: CNN International visitors to US will pay new fee CNN's Richard Quest explains how the Trump administration enacted a bill that will require international visitors to pay a new 'visa integrity fee' of $250 dollars. 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