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Love him or hate him, there's no denying that Hulk Hogan has always been a master at the business of promoting himself. When Hogan was at the height of his popularity, nobody could envision the merch-moving, ticket-driving "Hulkster" ever turning his back on the fans that helped make him a star. But by 1996, the time had come for him to embrace the dark side. In one of the more shocking heel turns in wrestling history, Hogan told the fans to "stick it," at WCW's Bash at the Beach, and adopted the "Hollywood" persona, proving he was just as effective at being hated as being cheered.
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But during a recent appearance on "Barstool Rasslin'," Hogan claimed he had wanted to turn "Hollywood" six years earlier when he was still wrestling for Vince McMahon and the WWE.
"I wanted to turn into a bad guy after the Warrior beat me [at WrestleMania VI]," Hogan said. "At the end of the day, I went to Vince and said, 'Well, I don't mind putting the Warrior over, but what's next?' And Vince said, 'I don't really know. I think your red and yellow run's over.' I said, well, number one, I disagree. But number two, if you feel that way and you're the boss, let me do something different. Let me turn on him. Let me be 'Hollywood' Hulk Hogan. And he said it wouldn't work."
In recent years Hogan has shown just as much skill for dropping tall tales as he did leg drops, so fans will have to take his claims with a grain of salt. According to WWE executive Bruce Prichard, the company did have an interest in turning Hogan heel in 1993, but those plans never came to fruition, and despite his recent remarks, Hogan has previously stated he was reluctant to turn heel at all.
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