Rating:  Summary: The most entertaining bad book I've ever read Review: Simultaneously this book is both one of the most poorly told story I've ever read, and yet one of the most entertaining as well. Really, don't read this as Hogan's life story. Yeah, it is, but it reads much much better as a collection of wrestling stories that Hogan relates as if you were sitting next to him for a lazy Sunday.The Andre stories are priceless, and some of the AWA stuff is very interesting, and even though there's the "Hogan retelling of the truth" rumours abounding about this book, its still very readable. Be forwarned though, even with chapters of less than 2 pages at times, Hogan still manages to blow it and give away the punchline halfway through. You'll be shaking your head at it in amazement I'm sure, but still laugh out loud now and then as well. Wrestling fans will get a real kick out of the book regardless, and non fans might even enjoy it as well, but that's pretty iffy. Bottom line, recommended, especially for the random stories. It never seems bad in that sense of the word, even if it really is.
Rating:  Summary: Maybe more stuff should have been covered, but not bad Review: Terry Bollea, known to most of the rest of the world as Hollywood Hulk Hogan, has had quite a 25 year career in the world of professional wrestling. Having finished his new book in one day, I know there are parts of his career he hasn't spoken of here, but most of it was not that important anyway. In this, he tells of how he dreamed of becoming a rock star (one of the things people don't know about Hogan is he's quite a good bass guitarist) as a boy, but changed his mind gradually as he started meeting wrestlers in the 70's, from his humble beginnings in Memphis, home to the legendary Jerry "The King" Lawler--a particularly interesting story there was how he was in Chicago on a card where Lawler and comedian Andy Kaufman were wrestling, he passed Kaufman in the hallway and said a quick hello just to be friendly. One look at the young bohemeth next to him and the extremely shy Kaufman acted like he was ready to wet himself--to his Japanese exploits where he'd became friendly with his idol, the late great Andre the Giant (known for having a large heart he called everyone boss), to his rocky roads with promoters Vince McMahon, Sr., whom he'd upset by going to do Rocky III for Sylvester Stallone, and Verne Gagne, who seemingly did everything he could to try to control Terry's career, to his road to superstardom in the WWF in the mid-1980's. He has some particularly interesting stories about Richard Beltzer, Mr. T, Cyndi Lauper, Christopher Lloyd, Sylvester Stallone, and of course WWF head Vince McMahon, Jr., whom he's had a rocky relationship with over the years but has finally buried the hatchet. But surprisingly, everyone who ever thought that Terry Bollea the person was nothing like Hulk Hogan the character should read this book, because he provides a valid explanation for just about everything I've ever heard about him that makes him seem so bad. For instance, I'd heard he wrote a song about a little boy who died of cancer in 1992 that was not about the boy but about how the boy was a Hulkamaniac who died. He provides an explanation that while the album might have seemed like an egofest (and from what I've heard of it, it certainly did from where I sat), the profits from it went to the boy's family, who were having trouble paying his medical bills. I don't know how true this is, but unless I get solid evidence that it isn't, it's good enough for me. One final thought: I had thought Hogan had reached his lowest in 1997 and 1998 when WCW had made him team with NBA star Dennis Rodman. He explains here that he did not actually want to, but he thought it would be good for the company. Rodman, in turn, was always late to shows and was drunk as a skunk when he finally did show up 75% of the time (if you watch Bash at the Beach 1998, that much is painfully obvious), and besides that his ring skills were not worth what they were paying him. He said he vowed never to work with Rodman again, but was forced to a year later when they made them team up again. They brought Rodman in again a year later, but Hogan (wisely) refused to work with him a third time. According to him, he hasn't heard from him since. Good read for wrestling fans.
Rating:  Summary: Good Light Reading But Some Half Truths Indeed Review: The bio of wrestler Hulk Hogan was undoubtedly a good easy read. The Hulkster definitely presents himself in an overly positive light where he could do no wrong and revolutionized the industry from many aspects. I doubt that it was totally Hulk's idea to form the NWO as well as that he brought the Undertaker into the WWE. Nonetheless, the stories about Andre The Giant were indeed both heartfelt and amusing. Andre never weighed more than 500 lbs. Certainly not the 700 Hogan exaggerates. The book is fairly well-balanced between Hulk's appearances in movies, wrestling, childhood stories, wife stories, intimate details about some wrestlers, and publicity stunts. He admits his own vulnerability with helecopters and his general wrestling abilities. His charisma certainly overshadowed his general ability to perform high risk maneuvers in the ring. In conclusion, its good to get Hulk Hogan's perspective on the wrestling scene. He undoubtedly was a major force in revolutionizing this form of sports entertainment and his views are duly noted. However there are numerous anecdotes where Hogan runs off at the mouth too much. However, its all worth an amusing chuckle especially when the reader can distinguish between fact and fiction.
Rating:  Summary: Hogan certainly can tell some Tall Tales! Review: The book starts out with a truly emotional story of a chubby Terry Bollea (Hogan), then it gets truly ridiculous. I do not mean to insult this book or the man Hulk Hogan himself, but this book has so many untrue stories and things that never happened - even a casual fan of wrestling can know that some of these things never happened. It is a definite must read for any fan of wrestling (love him or hate him), simply to chuckle at Hogan's tall tales, such as Hogan meeting a "Make a Wish" kid before he was to wrestle at Summer Slam 1992. Hogan wrestled his match, but was unable to find the kid sitting in the crowd. When he returned backstage he discovered the child had died before seeing Hogan's match; Hogan was so touched, he wrote a song about it and released it on the Hulk Rules album. Too bad the entire story is false (Hogan never even wrestled at SS92). In the book Hogan talks about steroid usage, his feud with Andre the Giant (10 years before WM3), how he got the role in Rocky 3, his match with the Rock at WMX8, beating up Ricky Choshu in Japan, the end of his WCW career, why he became a villain and much more. It is extremely enjoyable to read because of the tall tales and you can indeed finish the book in a matter of hours with the book's huge pictures and large text. The entire book should be filed under fiction or comedy.
Rating:  Summary: Absolutely fun and splendid read from the Hulkster! Review: The Hulkster with plenty of help from an awesome Star Trek and sci-fi writer named Micheal Jan Friedman that is. I can't vouch for whether everything in this book is the 100 percent gospel truth, but it is one heck of a good yarn and fun read that let's you in Hulk's mind through most of his career. Any wrestling fan and Hulk Hogan fan should pick this up immediately, along with Rowdy Roddy Piper's book. Two gems!
Rating:  Summary: A great read... Review: There is no denying that Hulk Hogan played a big role in making what the wrestling industry is today. He's been around long enough that this book not only serves as a sight into the life of Terry Bollea, but it also serves as a good account of how wrestling has evolved since the '70s, as well as some of the reasons for WCW's going under. Since Hogan co-writes it himself, it tends to make an easier read for most people (whereas professional writers can be rough for casual readers, guys like Hogan identify easier with the normal person).
The book covers Hogan's career through it's ups and downs, from his personal to his professional. Other reviewers keep bashing Hogan saying that he's full of himself throughout the book but Hogan admits that he isn't the best physical specimen out there and explains that he was always nervous about things and doubted himself often. So, in truth, he gives a good neutral viewpoint about what he did manage to do right, and his many screw-ups that he regrets now. Hogan just comes off as a regular guy who's life is more complicated then most people give him credit for.
He also covers many issues and defends himself from personal attacks coming from everywhere, from the media to viewers like the ones that visit this site. He addresses verbal attacks from Vince McMahon, Bret Hart, Vince Russo, and many more. The only real downside is that the book was written too early. Hogan should've waited a while longer until his wrestling career was actually finished so that it wouldn't just drop off at the end.
Aside from that, the only real reason for a wrestling fan not to by this book is if they really hate Terry Bollea (like a few people that visit here apparently do), but even if you aren't a Hulkamaniac, this is a good purchase for the goings-on of the industry. It's well written and despite what people will tell you, Hogan presents an educated and experienced viewpoint (not an egomaniacal one).
Rating:  Summary: No detail or depth... Review: This book can be described as a "rough outline of a great wrestling career". Half of it seems to be consisted of pictures and it had the feel that it was written in 3-4 days (exaggeration, hope you get the point). It never went into depth about any of it's content. Take Foley's or Lawler's books, for example. They are BOOKS. They take a topic and tell you their thoughts and feelings on any subject it covers. Hogan's book simply mentions a topic (steroids) and skims over it for maybe 2-3 pages and says, so 2 years later I made this movie. The "best" part was when the book described how Hogan didn't think much about Vince Russo. The bad part, like I said, it was just a couple of pages and it moved on. This book was a missed opportunity. It COULD have been and SHOULD have been a bit of an encyclopedia of a mega-star that wrestled in the two largest American companies (WWF-WWE, and WCW). Instead, what was produced was what seemed like a rush job. If you like Wreslting, but Mick Foley's books, or Jerry Lawler's.
Rating:  Summary: HOGAN FANTASY Review: This book is total Hulk Hogan fantasy land. Any Wrestling fan who saw the wwf in the 1980s will know full well that most of Hogan`s tales are fabrications and out and out lies. If there was ever any doubt about Hulk Hogan`s obsessive ego and self indulgence then this book settles it. It is nothing more than a big joke from cover to cover. Dont bother read Bobby Heenan`s instead.
Rating:  Summary: One Great Book Review: This book rocks like all the other books written by WWE stars. I couldn't put this book down!
Rating:  Summary: Egomania is running wild Review: This book was better than I thought it would be. I thought I knew a lot about Hulk Hogan, but the book reveals details about his life that I was not aware of. Plus it is interesting to get Hulk's perspective on the well known events in his life. But it gets annoying sometimes the way he puts himself over so much. Like when he says that every kid he ever talked to about Jesus accepted Christ as his/her Savior. Or when he claims that every one of his movies made money. Or his outrageous claim that even though Bruno Sammartino vs Larry Zbyszko headlined "Showdown at Shea", Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant was the only match people really cared about. Also, I noticed a few factual errors (Steven Spielberg didn't direct Gremlins 2). But it is still an interesting read, and Hulk's fans should enjoy it.
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