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“I Stole Their Red and Yellow”- Real Reason Why Hulk Hogan Wore Red and Yellow During His First Stint With WWE

Rishabh Singh
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Hulk Hogan

Hulk Hogan stole the Red and Yellow colors from McDonald’s to form his ‘Hollywood Hulk Hogan’ character.

Wrestling fans who grew up in the 80s know how powerful the aura of Hulk Hogan was. The Hulkster made his debut in WWF in the year 1980. After establishing himself as a mainstay in wrestling, Hogan garnered a huge fan following.

A lot of work went into building the sensational character of Hulk Hogan. The Twelve-time World Champion is recognized for his work in WWE and WCW. 

During his popularity in the 80s, Hulk Hogan became every fan’s favorite superhero. From having 24 inches pythons(biceps) to the hype in his entrance music, his style left nothing to be desired. A part of his unforgettable and lively appearance was the colors that he represented.

Real Reason Why Hulk Hogan Wore Red and Yellow During His First Stint With WWE

A video put together by FOX Sports entitled “The Story Of Hulk Hogan” featured the origin story of the man in red and yellow. Hogan liked the color yellow after watching Randy Savage’s father Angelo Poffo in the ring. Poffo wore canary yellow trunks and he had a glorious tan. Hogan admired his character in “tan and yellow”. 

“I always remembered Randy Savage’s father, Angelo Poffo, when I was a kid growing up in Tampa,” Hogan said. “Sometimes, Angelo was in the main event and sometimes a tag match, but whenever he came out he had this unbelievable tan, kind of like a Hulk Hogan tan. He always wore those canary yellow trunks. It didn’t matter if he had a great or bad match, I just remembered how good he looked in the ring with that tan and yellow.

As Hogan struggled to find his colors, he was suggested to adopt Red and Yellow by his manager Jimmy Hart. Hart revealed on Carson and Leno and Saturday Night Live that he wanted Hogan to emulate the colors of the restaurant McDonald’s as it was gaining popularity in The US at the time. 

Hogan stated, “I gotta give props to McDonald’s, I stole their red and yellow, it worked forever, and the fans just dug the colors.”

Adorned with the colors of McDonald’s, Hulk Hogan was portrayed as a patriot taking up arms with The Iron Sheik and Volkoff. In 1984, Hogan won his first-ever World Championship after defeating Sheik. Hogan continued to captivate his fans with his larger-than-life persona until the early 90s.

Hulk Hogan’s shocking heel turn

During the early 90s, specifically 1991, fans got bored of Hogan’s character. In his WWE Championship match against the Undertaker, Hogan was booed even though he was a baby face.

The Hulkster then jumped ship to WCW. However, even there he couldn’t manage to get the crowd to root for him. He riled up the crowd when he shockingly turned heel, joined the likes of Kevin Nash and Scott Hall, and formed NWO. 

His heel turn was taken so seriously that it made the national news. As good as he was as a babyface, he was just as diabolical as a heel. NWO soon became the most dominant faction in WCW.

After the end of WCW, Hogan was seen in WWE in both ‘Hollywood’ and ‘NWO’ gimmicks. One of his iconic matches as a heel in WWE was against The Rock at WrestleMania 18 where the Brahma Bull reigned supreme.

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About the author

Rishabh Singh

Rishabh Singh

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Rishabh has been a pro wrestling aficionado for two decades. As a gullible seven-year-old kid he believed that his dad could only be defeated by The Undertaker. His love for pro wrestling is visible in his writing. Over the years, he took inspiration from his favorite wrestling icons and adopted fitness lifestyle. He is a big proponent of exercise. Besides that, he is a movement coach, a Steelmaceflow artist, and a Krav Maga instructor.

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