Inside the decades-long friendship between Trump and Hulk Hogan
Donald Trump and Hulk Hogan's paths first crossed at a wrestling event in the late 1980s at one of Trump's Atlantic City, New Jersey, hotels. The meeting kicked off a more than three-decade long friendship, marked by their career parallels: both were '80s celebrities who found greater fame in the world of reality television before wielding their influence in politics.
Just over a year before his death on Thursday, Hogan delivered a rousing speech at the Republican National Convention in July 2024 in Milwaukee during which he dramatically ripped off his T-shirt — to reveal another one bearing the Trump-Vance campaign logo — and endorsed his 'hero,' Trump.
Hogan said he was motivated by the attempted assassination of Trump days earlier in Butler, Pennsylvania.
'What happened last week, when they took a shot at my hero, and they tried to kill the next president of the United States, enough was enough, and I said: 'Let Trumpamania run wild brother. Let Trumpamania rule again, let Trumpamania make America great again,' Hogan said.
On Thursday, Trump mourned his 'strong, tough, smart' friend, who died of a heart attack in Clearwater, Florida. He was 71.
'We lost a great friend today, the 'Hulkster.' Hulk Hogan was MAGA all the way — Strong, tough, smart, but with the biggest heart,' Trump wrote on his social media site, using the acronym for his 'Make America Great Again' campaign slogan.
'He gave an absolutely electric speech at the Republican National Convention, that was one of the highlights of the entire week,' Trump said. 'He entertained fans from all over the World, and the cultural impact he had was massive.'
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