The Big Flop - Celeb Fail: Hulk Hogan, Businessman with Ron Funches and Brian Posehn | 19

Episode Date: January 29, 2024

In the ring, Hulk Hogan is a legendary figure who helped turn sports entertainment into a global phenomenon. But in the boardroom, The Hulkster’s always been a loser, failing hard at everything from exploding grills, to ill-conceived box office bombs and highly questionable restaurants. There’s not an opportunity out there that Hogan won’t slap his name on, but Hulk has simply never had the brains for business, brother!Comedians Brian Posehn (The Big Bang Theory, New Girl) and Ron Funches (Gettin' Better, Black-ish) join Misha to pin down Hogan's failed commercial undertakings.Follow The Big Flop on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Big Flop early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to The Big Flop early and ad-free. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. It's 1995, and there's about to be a showdown in the world of professional wrestling. The WWF's weekly Monday Night Raw broadcast has had the ratings in a headlock for years, but a competitor has risen to challenge them. Enter WCW Monday Nitro. The rival wrestling company may not have the power of the WWF, but it's making big moves.

To start, WCW has recruited superstar Hulk Hogan. And here comes Hulk Hogan to taunt his opponent, Big Bubba. A commentator goes over to hear all the excellent put-downs. Except Hogan's not in the ring. He's in the Mall of America food court? All right, Michael Jordan's got his restaurant in Chicago. Coach Don Shuler of the Miami Dolphins, he's got a steakhouse. But WCW's own world heavyweight champion Hulk Hogan,

he's got pasta mania in the Mall of America. Who's the greatest wrestler in the world? Hulk Hogan! You know something, Eric Bischoff? Tonight on Monday Nitro, Pasta Mania has got all my Hulkamaniacs running wild. And I've eaten so many Hulkaroos and Hulkie-oos, I kind of feel sorry for Big Bubba, brother. Yes, you heard that correctly. Hogan is shoehorning a plug for his new restaurant,

Pasta Mania, into his wrestling introduction. Pasta Mania offers a taste of Hogan himself, literally. The pasta is rendered in Hulkster's own image, with some of the pieces shaped like Hogan flexing his quote-unquote 24-inch pythons. Sadly, this is far from the most embarrassing attempt Hulk Hogan makes to capitalize on his fame. Useless blenders, fire hazard grills, web hosting platforms, 900 numbers. He'll use his pythons to squeeze a buck out of anything. Inevitably, pasta mania crashes and burns. After only a few months in operation, the place shudders. And it's an early sign that Hogan might be a champion at wrestling, but as a businessman, he's a big loser, brother. Call now and get the Hulk-a-size Pum-X Power Gel, 4 ounces of concentrate, spray bottle, and 2 Pum-X erasers, over $120 worth of cleaning power for only $14.95.

Hey, Hulkamaniacs, you proved to the Hulkster that you're a true Hulkamaniac by renting my new movie, Suburban Commando, one of the greatest movies the Hulksters ever appeared in. Delicious panini sandwiches in five minutes. Fluffy, juicy hot dogs. Amazing. I'm so confident you'll love your Hulk Hogan Ultimate Grill. I'm not going to give you a 30-day money-back guarantee. I'm going to give you a 60-day money-back guarantee. You know why? Because I'm putting my name on it.

We are on a sinking ship. From Wondery and at Will Media, this is The Big Flop, where we chronicle the greatest flubs, fails, and blunders of all time. I'm your host, Misha Brown, social media superstar and currently holding one of my guests in a half-nelson at Don't Cross a Gay Man. And today, we're talking about Hulk Hogan's Money Mania. Hello, I'm Emily and I'm one of the hosts of Terribly Famous, the show that takes you inside the lives of our biggest celebrities. And they don't get much bigger than the man who made badminton sexy.

OK, maybe that's a stretch, but if I say pop star and shuttlecocks, you know who I'm talking about. No? Short shorts? Free cocktails? Careless whispers? OK, last one. It's not Andrew Ridgely. Yep, that's right. It's Stone Cold icon George Michael. From teen pop sensation to one of the biggest solo artists on the planet, join us for our new series, George Michael's Fight for Freedom. From the outside, it looks like he has it all.

But behind the trademark dark sunglasses is a man in turmoil. George is trapped in a lie of his own making, with a secret he feels would ruin him if the truth ever came out. Follow Terribly Famous wherever you listen to your podcasts, or listen early and ad-free on Wanderie Plus on Apple Podcasts or the Wondery app. On our show today, we have a comedian, actor, and host of the Get In Better podcast and a wrestling superfan who recently made his own pro wrestling debut. It's Ron Funches. Welcome to the show. Thank you for having me, Misha. I'm so excited. I'm ashamed that this podcast isn't

a video one because I wish people could see how your eyebrows move while you... It's a beautiful word. Well, also today we have a comedian, actor, musician, and host of Nerd Poker here to nerd out on his lifelong passion for pro wrestling. It's Brian Posehn. Welcome. Hey, thanks for having me. Brian, did you have a favorite wrestler growing up? Rowdy Roddy Piper. He took over like when I first got into what they were calling then, that's like the early days. So that was WWF. I grew up in the Bay Area, and my mom was actually really cool, a single mom.

And she would wrestle with me, and she took me to see Bay Area wrestling. So there was these guys, Moondog Main and Pat Robertson. Oh, Pat Patterson? Pat Patterson. Pat Patterson was the Bay Area guy. So he was the first one. And my mom and I would wrestle on her bed and I'd get to be like Greasy Spoon

or Pat Patterson or Moondog Mane. And then once Hogan was getting huge, he was like one of the first ones I saw. So Ron, without saying the word sex tape, what's your general impression of Hulk Hogan? Legendary wrestler who is not a good person.

But in wrestling that seems like what makes you good at it. So those things. Well, for most people today, Hulk Hogan is an extremely fit relic of the past, a muscle memory, if you will. But in the 80s and 90s, he was a star, not just of wrestling, but of all pop culture.

He was born Terry Gene Balea. He grows up wanting to be two things, a baseball player and a bass player. An injury ruins his pitching career in high school, and because Balea plays bass at a bar where wrestlers hang out, he makes some new friends. And Balea starts wrestling too in 1977. And he's got talent, but he needs a name. And he workshops a couple such as Terry Boulder and Sterling Gordon. So it made me think, what makes for a good wrestler name? Well, it depends on the era.

Back in the 80s, it was like, what is your job? And now that's who you are. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So you could be a baseball player. Big boss man. Yeah, I'm a cop. Yeah, exactly. yeah, yeah. So you could be a baseball player. Big boss man. Yeah, I'm a cop. Yeah, exactly. I'm a cop.

And the Undertaker, I embalm you. Yes. You know, it's lots of things like that. And then later, it's just an extension of yourself, you know? A great name is like Stone Cold Steve Austin, where you know he's not taking no crap. He's Stone Cold. Or Andre the you know he's not taking no crap. He's Stone Cold. Or Andre the Giant. It says it all right there.

As long as it sums it up, I think. Now they got a lot of bad names because they just use a lot of porn, porno star type names where you're just mixing things and they're just like, I'm Kiki Braxton or Flame Monroe. Yeah.

And a lot of the times it just sounds like a dude's name, like Seth Rollins. I don't know if he made that up, but it doesn't sound made up. It sounds like it's just his given name, or I don't know if Kofi Kingston is a made-up name or not,

but they don't have that cool Rowdy Rowdy Piper. That's an amazing name. Before you even see the guy, you're like, oh, he's rowdy. He's crazy. Yeah. What would your wrestling

names be or i guess what is it since one of you has been in the ring what was your wrestling name oh i just went by ron funches it's a fun name yeah it's a fun name yeah but you didn't go rumbling ronnie or no just ron you know before i've been ron the reckless negro funches and that's been fun that's just a fun time because you're just like, it invokes a lot of things. Like, he's going to come in and still pause and take your women, you know? It sets the table nicely, yes. Well, B'Leah appears on a local talk show alongside Lou Ferrigno, TV's The Incredible Hulk. And people notice B'Lea is actually bigger than Ferrigno,

and so B'Lea starts wrestling as the Hulk. In 1979, when B'Lea joins the WWF, Vince McMahon, the promoter, suggests adding Hogan to the name. And while it's not enough to ward off a legal battle with Marvel, the name sticks and the rest is history. So measuring at 6'7", 300 pounds, Hogan is a giant hulk of meat. His trademark yellow and red uniform kind of makes him look like a hamburger smothered in sauce, which is probably intentional. Yeah, very delicious.

Very tasty. And he does promote a ludicrous amount of red and yellow foods in his life. So besides this trademark yellow and red, and of course his signature mustache, are there any other costume features that you remember from watching Hulk Hogan wrestle? Oh, the bandana. He's got a bandana to cover up his full head of luscious hair. That wispy golden luxe. The pre-ripped t-shirt. There's nothing funnier to me than coming out and showing somebody you're a tough guy

by wearing a shirt that's already been kind of ripped. And then you've finished the job. But without Hulk Hogan, there would be no Dwayne the Rock Johnson or Jesse the Body Ventura or John no-nickname Cena. Hogan is such a superstar that a WWE profile credits him for taking wrestling, a once regional sport, and turning it into an international phenomenon. a once regional sport and turning it into an international phenomenon. Hogan makes wrestling so big that it breaks into like every corner of pop culture. People can't get enough of his weird charisma and he seamlessly crosses over into mainstream entertainment. Like this is the era of Hulkamania, an umbrella term for his brand that covers everything from his fans to the crappy products that he will go on to endorse. So at the height of his popularity, he is featured on multiple covers

of Sports Illustrated and People, for example. He does cameos on SNL, MTV, The Tonight Show, and even artist Andy Warhol is a fan of the Hulkster. I mean, I was a Hulkamaniac. I had his action figure when I was growing up. I didn't understand why he was so great, but I just knew that I loved Hulk Hogan. It's just the way he spoke. He had such a commanding way of talking to you and a nice rhythm to it. And just the way he looked.

Yeah, I think we were all Hulkamaniacs at that point. I know I was. He was what got me into pro wrestling. Well, and his heels were such obvious heels. He was like always the good guy on the stage, you know, because he was fighting literally a Russian that we were fighting at the same time in the 80s and fighting oil guys. And, you know, so all these villains that were presented to us on the news, he was beating them up right in person. All of this popularity comes with that sweet, sweet paycheck. I mean, Hulk is making bank. In the late 80s, Hogan says he was earning

$10 million a year as a wrestler, but he wants more. And so Hulk Hogan, businessman, is born. So what kind of businesses do you think makes sense for a pro wrestler to pursue? Make a gym, maybe a wrestling training school. That seems fun. Food. Selling ice creams. I was thinking some slippery body oils.

Yeah, I like that too. Hair wetner. Hair wetner. Pre-ripped t-shirts. Yeah, I like that too. Hair wetner. Hair wetner. Pre-ripped t-shirts. Yeah. But the fact is, Hogan will put his name on just about anything. Appliances, supplements, restaurants, even random websites. And it will be my absolute pleasure today to share with you all the many ventures of Hulk Hogan, businessman.

So, are we ready to get into it? I'm so ready. First, let's start with the most obvious move for a famous face, showbiz. And not just acting, music, too. So Hogan, he's actually a pretty talented bassist. And he's been open about his lifelong dream of having a music career. And he releases an album called Hulk Rules in 1994. Oh, we've heard it.

I know we've both heard it. And here is but a brief taste of this gloriously terrible album. Can you feel the music? Can you feel the beat? You don't need drugs to move your feet. When a hero tries to push on you, just tell him what you're gonna do. I wanna be a Hulkamaniac and have fun with my family

and friends. Why'd you stop it? I wish that style of rap would come back. I'm rapping, rapping, yes I am. I'm rapping, yes I am. It's so bad. And everybody thought they could do it. I loved it.

I know me too. My favorite part was like his advice on avoiding drug dealers. Tell that drug dealer what you're going to do. So what do we think? Do we think the chances of Hulk's career taking off are good or? I don't hear the bass. He should have had a funky bass line. Yeah. Where was the funky bass solo So in 2003, when Metallica is looking for a new bassist, he actually tried to get an audition.

No way. Yeah. Can you imagine Hulk Hogan and Metallica? Sadly, he never hears back. So the music thing never gets off the ground, unfortunately. Sadly, he never hears back. So the music thing never gets off the ground, unfortunately. Leaving his music career behind, Hogan tries his hand at TV. Infamously, he stars in a Baywatch knockoff, Thunder in Paradise, in 1994.

Ron, as a big Hogan fan, I know you've got to remember this show. Can you give us a rundown of what this show was about? Sure, I'll do my best. Hulk Hogan is some type of military agent who has a boat, but it's not a regular boat. Oh, no, this boat is full of gadgets and electronics. I think it can talk, but I'm not sure. That might be Knight Rider. But basically, oh, yeah, that's it. It's Knight Rider on water.

That's all it is. It's Hulk Hogan in an electric boat that does fun stuff. And then there's a lot of explosions. And then sometimes the boat's got to go deeper on land than you think that it should be able to. But there's always a fun ramp. And so something happens and they jump it and then the boat's okay. And Hulk Hogan has sex with a woman

that he shouldn't, who should never speak to him. Well, people were definitely harsh on the show. One review called it television for action fans who can't handle the subtle nuances of Baywatch Nights. Baywatch Nights for all of the uninitiated, is Baywatch set at night and it has ghosts. That's a bad review. I don't believe that review.

I mean, that was a great time back in my teenage years watching WCW Nitro and then watching Thunder in Paradise. Watching Xena Warrior Princess. Loved Xena. Top it off with Xena. Come on. You were having a great evening. Oh, yeah. Well, the review also goes on to say that Thunder in Paradise is stupid, sexist, and embarrassing.

So it really wasn't a great review. But let's watch this clip where an impossibly beautiful rich lady throws herself at Hogan. You have to marry me. Wait a minute. Let me get this straight. You're willing to pay me to marry you? If you don't get the money, you lose your boat. If I don't get married, I lose my hotel. I thought you were the hopeless romantic who would never marry for anything but true love.

And that is exactly what I'm doing. Don't look so smug. I love my hotel. He looked pretty smug. He's very smug. He did look very smug. I wish everybody listening could have seen the smug face. It really needed a wah-wah.

They needed a comedic sting. So, Ron, what do you think now? Are you still into this show? Yes, most definitely. I want to know where this plot line goes. Full jean outfit, jeans, and then matching jean bandana. It was beautiful. Yeah, it's a good look.

How could you not fall in love with him? I don't even think she cares about the hotel. There's no way he's 6'7 there either. No. He's like 6'3. I've met a lot of wrestlers now, and I am legit, as Ron can tell you, I am 6'6, but I'm also 6'6.6. I'm the height of the beast. I'm so metal.

I've met these guys. The only guy, Big Show, Big Show is bigger than me, but he's the only dude. And not by a lot. He's supposed to be like Shaq height, 7'2". And Shaq, I've never felt so shadowed by somebody. I walked by him in a Tower Records years ago, and it got dark. You know what I mean? But having him stand next to me, I suddenly went,

wow, now I know how everyone feels standing next to me. Well, unfortunately, The Shadows also fell on Thunder in Paradise as it only ran for one season. But Hogan's movie career is slightly more prolific than his work in music and TV, but no more laudable. He makes some crowd-pleasing cameos in big movies like 1982's Rocky III as a character called Thunder Lips and in Muppets from Space. But his starring roles, they're excruciating. A movie called No Holds Barred opens in 1989. It has an incomprehensible plot about wrestling and only makes $16 million at the box office. And as someone who's done a lot of movie flops on this podcast, $16 million is not great, even in the 80s.

Wow. They got my $4 at the time. Yeah, for sure. I got a little extra. I got a VHS copy in the closet. I saw that in Sacramento at the Birdcage Walk. Oh my gosh. I remember, yes.

I love it. So currently though, it stands at a 10% on Rotten Tomatoes. That's good, right? Yeah, that's just 10% bad, right? That's just 10% of it's rotten, 90% good. And you know, it wasn't just the writing. Hogan takes the heat for his performance. So Brian, could you please read this bit from a critic review? To watch him is to behold the craft of acting placed in a half Nelson and gleefully choked to death. Damn.

Poetry. That's rough. But his follow-up is Suburban Commando in 1991, which also stars Christopher Lloyd, Shelley Duvall, and Elizabeth Moss in her first film role. Seen it. You did? Yeah, I was just going to ask. Yeah, so far he's two for two with hits. For those of you who did not see it, in it Hogan is an interstellar warrior

who crash landed on Earth. This movie does even worse, taking in a meager $7 million at the box office. However, great news, it's slightly better on Rotten Tomatoes at 15%. Wow. Progress.

That's all you want as a craftsman. That's really all you want. See yourself incrementally get better. Yeah. Yeah, just get better. You should have a podcast called that. Yeah. And then comes 1996,

when the world collectively seems to want muscly Christmas movies. This is the year of Schwarzenegger's jingle all the way. And coming in with counter-programming is Hulk Hogan's holiday romp, Santa with Muscles. He's got muscles and he's Santa. He's not fat Santa. Get out of here. Santa's in shape now. Yeah.

The synopsis for this movie was insane. Ron, you said you know it. Do you remember the plot of this movie? Oh, not at all. I don't recall there being a plot. I was just Hulk Hogan wearing a Santa outfit with the sleeves cut off. I thought that was it. Well, we have a synopsis.

So how about you read it for the listeners? Sure, why not? in a Santa outfit with the sleeves cut off. I thought that was it. Well, we have a synopsis. So how about you read it for the listeners? Sure, why not? Muscle-bound Blake Thorne has made a vast fortune marketing health food and health supplements. He once was a nice fellow, but as his wealth increases, well, he becomes increasingly self-centered and decadent. One day he gets in a great paint gun fight that goes too far.

Who hasn't? Blake escapes the cops by running into a shop and what? Wait a second. Quickly donning a Santa suit and pretending to be Saint Nick. Oh, classic. Oh, this is a classic movie. A head injury causes Blake to suffer amnesia, and an opportunistic elf decides to convince Blake

that he is indeed Santa. This leads Santa to help save an orphanage. Oh, my God. Oh, there's a lot going on in that movie. Damn. I know. If you were a studio exec and you got that pitch, what would you say? I guess back then you'd have been like, I'm coked up.

Let's do this. Yeah. Well, if you think that Suburban Commando flopped at $7 million, Santa with Muscles had a domestic gross of $200,000. Oh, okay. So. It's an art house. It's an art house film.

Now, did you see that one? I did not see that one. I don't think I saw Santa with Muscles. I'm hoping we get to another one that I did see. We're part of the problem, Ron. We weren't true fans. We didn't go with them to the third movie. So Hogan clearly isn't the next Schwarzenegger or Stallone.

Hollywood just isn't the gravy train that Hogan hoped it would be. So maybe an actual gravy train could work? That is to say, a restaurant? If Hollywood Hulk was the appetizer course, Culinary Hulk is the entree. Hogan's first attempt at being a restaurateur results in 1995's Pasta Mania. Love Pasta Mania. Opened in Minneapolis' Mall of America at the height of Hulk's popularity.

opened in Minneapolis' Mall of America at the height of Hulk's popularity. Pasta Mania is a fast food pasta joint built around a simple mix-and-match menu with delicacies from all around the world. Swedish meatballs, beef stroganoff, pasta mexicana, and nuggets. Plus, he has specialties like Hulk's Power Pasta, Hulkaronian cheese, and Hulkios for the kitties. The pasta is shaped like Hulk Hogan, like his face, his full body, him flexing. But how is the Hulk going to get the word out about his new restaurant? Well, on WCW Monday Nitro, of course, he's got the perfect opportunity. So let's watch

the master at work as he shoehorns a promo into his taunts of another wrestler named Big Bubba. Oh, I love this one. And when I'm done dragging him around the Mall of America and all my pasta maniacs are tearing their WCW shirts off, brother. I'm going to give Big Bubba a dose of my Hulkaroos up there, and then I'm going to body sign them again. You know, with little Hulkamaniacs like that, pasta maniacs all around the Mall of America, Big Bubba, you better tighten up that waistline, brother, because the Hulkster's slim and trim trim I've been eating my pasta mania and what you gonna do in the mall of America brother when Hulk Hogan pasta mania and all my pasta maniacs run wild on you what's he gonna do I love it it's one of my favorite things is how much he pushed

it as a health food item of like come come to the mall before you go shopping. Get your macaroni and cheese in. Yeah, load up on carbs. Fit and trim. Just get a healthy full of pasta. Just a real jerk move. Yeah. He wants pasta mania to stick so hard.

So hard. He loved it. Theia to stick so hard. So hard. He loved it. The gusto he puts behind it. But he really loves pasta. It was a co-star in his sex tape where he talked about how much lasagna that he downed. And to this day, it always stuck in my head. We're just like, wow, who does that? Who eats that much lasagna and then films themselves having sex?

That's wild. So the people who taste the food at Pasta Mania say it's terrible, even for fast food in a mall. So Pasta Mania closes within just a few months. Hogan returns to the restaurant game in 2013 by licensing his brand to Hogan's Beach in Tampa. It's described as a family restaurant and nightclub. How can it be both? Bring your kids or don't. Yeah, this place is weird, although it is in Florida, so maybe it's normal there. I mean, the decor includes a mechanical shark ride, volleyball courts, fire pits, and tiki huts, and often features the DJ work of Nick Hogan visit Hogan's Beach. And details from this article include the Nets are conspicuously missing from the volleyball courts, and the patrons are smoking from hookahs made out

of Grey Goose vodka bottles. It sounds wild. Do they have the boat from Thunder in Paradise there? If they do, it sounds like a great time. So actually, this entire paragraph is worth a read. So, Brian, if you want to do the honors. My friend and I walked into Hogan's Beats through the shining-ass hallway that connected it to the Best Western. Of course. Wow. It was lined with glass cases filled with Hulkamania memorabilia, lunchboxes, figurines, keychains, stickers, and pogs. Mounted in the corner, a TV played a loop of old wrestling footage. For no discernible reason, the video's announcer kept repeating, America! A statue of Hogan's Beach is still open? Oh, yes. I certainly think it is.

Most definitely. No, of course not. It closed in 2015. No, that best question was leveled years ago. It's an empty parking lot right now. But does the Hulkster stay pinned by bad reviews and financial instability? No. No, he gets back up and he opens another restaurant.

Hogan's Hangout in December of 2020. Not even COVID stops him. Oh, by the way, Nick Hogan is DJing there, too. So he's got another gig. Well, of course. Is he on the ones and twos? He's on the aux, mostly. Yeah.

Most shockingly, this one is still open. And at the time of this recording, it's got a 3.2 on Yelp. That's not bad. Out of, what, 20 or 100? Yeah. So if you think licensing your name to tacky bars is embarrassing, let me tell you, brother, the products that Hogan has endorsed over the years are more humiliating than being scoop slammed. Now, things like acting and opening restaurants, that takes time.

But you know what's easier? Slapping your face on a product. Yeah, it is. And there are so many products that the Hulk tried to hawk. So to go through them, let's play a game called Hulk's Money Mania. You will decide if the product I'm describing is money, meaning something Hogan enthusiastically endorsed, or mania, meaning it's too crazy even for the Hulk. So the first one, a plastic blender. Why don't you put it there? For protein shake?

Oh, I'm sure, yeah. Things of that nature? Put your steroids in there? Yeah. Yes, absolutely. Yes, he did. The Hulk Hogan Thunder Mixer. According to one review, it isn't even strong enough to crush ice. Here's the thing, though. Hogan Thunder Mixer. According to one review, it isn't even strong enough to crush ice. Here's the thing, though. Hogan could have endorsed what eventually became the George Foreman grill.

According to Hogan, he and Foreman shared an agent who offered him the choice of the grill or the mixer. But George snagged the grill first, which netted him millions. Damn. I think Hogan's lying a little bit because I think he had the option. He turned down the grill.

Then they went to form it. For a plastic blender. All right, next one. An electric grill. Money or mania? Yeah, he tried his own. Yeah, sure. If he was mad about the other grill, he went back and had another grill.

Why not? Absolutely. He couldn't resist and ended up also endorsing his own grill called Hulk Hogan's Ultimate Grill. This grill got recalled for catching fire. That's pyro, if anything. All right, last one. A website hosting company. Oh, sure.

Sure, why not? Yeah, I trust it. I would trust all my security to the whole thing. Ding, ding, ding. Hostamania promised to help you leg drop your competition and become the WWW World Champion in no time. And we actually have a clip from a Hostamania ad. Other companies try to confuse you with bait and switch pricing.

But in the end, they're just a bunch of sissies. Hostamania. It's easy, brother. Wow. Wow. Throw it around sissy like it's 1978. Like, oh, man. It's not even people. It's this corporation. That was really wrong-headed.

Oh, AOL? A bunch of sissy. A bunch of sheaded. Oh, AOL? A bunch of sins? A bunch of sins. Yeah, yeah. I mean, so all of these were real, because there's no point in making anything up for Hogan, because he is beyond parody, and clearly nothing is too crazy for Hogan to endorse.

Well, there's really only one business decision where Hulk Hogan came out on top. Porno. Pardon the pun, because yes, this is about the sex tape. Yeah. So are we familiar? Oh yeah. What a master play.

So for everybody else, in 2015, a portion of a 2007 sex tape was leaked by Gawker, a popular gossip site. It featured Hogan having sex with the wife of his best friend, a radio shock jock who legally changed his name to Bubba the Love Sponge. Well, Hogan feels like he was being set up by Bubba. So Hogan sued Bubba for filming it and Gawker for releasing

the video without consent. Because of the suit, court documents revealed a transcript of the full sex tape. The contents of said tape did not make Hogan look good. Anyone remember why? Because of how much lasagna he had. The lasagna. Yeah, his lasagna consumption. That's where we all turned on him. Too much.

No, he threw around some words that you're not supposed to ever use, ever, ever, ever. He's a bad dude. Yes, it of course was because of a bunch of racist stuff. The all-American hero Hulk Hogan was suddenly a real-life heel. He was fired from the WWE immediately, and the owners of Hogan's Beach cut ties, although they wouldn't admit why and said it was time for a rebrand anyway. But Hogan received a $31 million settlement settlement and Gawker was sold for parts. So he finally made some real money, I guess. He did. R.I.P. Gawker. But suing them, I mean, it was Hogan's savviest move.

Yeah. Are there any like silver linings that you can think of when it comes to Hulk Hogan's business career? That $30 million. Well, for him. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, for real. It's a testament that, you know, you could be mediocre at most things.

Just keep plugging away. And eventually. You'll get a lawsuit. You're doing something horrible. Yeah. You'll be able to turn it around to your favor. Even if you were the bad person the whole time. Yeah, part of me was like, how does he sleep at night?

And I'm like, well, on a pillow made of money. Yeah, very comfortably, I'm sure. You know, I can't overstate how much of a cultural impact Hulk Hogan had on generations of Americans. Despite his many efforts to branch out, his biggest successful brand has always been himself. And whatever we think of his disastrous public blunders, his politics, and obviously his business decisions, he resonates with people. And his fans love him, and they continue to love him. So he had that going for him.

He did. and they continued to love him. So he had that going for him. He did. So now that you both know about Hulk Hogan, businessman, would you consider his hustling game a baby flop, a big flop, or a mega flop? I'm gonna go with baby flop just because overall he was always pretty successful.

And a lot of these things are side quests. Yeah, I think a lot of big celebrities get to that level and people come up with things and they put their next six months into that and hope that it pans out. I think guys like Snoop Dogg have had like ups and downs outside of their music career. Things that they try to make a little money off of. It's like any business adventure. It either goes or it flops. It's not like he was like, I'm a filmmaker, and this is my craft, and I'm going to be the best at it. And he was terrible. He's just like, of course you're terrible at it. Of course you put out bad songs. But you kept moving forward and who else would?

And I would. If they asked me to, I'll put out a rap song tomorrow. Well, thank you so much to our incredible guests, Ron Funches and Brian Possein, for joining us here on The Big Flop. And thanks to all of you for listening. We'll be back next

week with Woodstock 99, a music festival with an audience of mostly angry white dudes living out their Lord of the Flies fantasy. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. If you like The Big Flop, you can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+.

Join Wondery in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short survey at wondery.com slash survey. The Big Flop is a production of Wondery and Atwill Media, hosted by me, Misha Brown. Produced by Sequoia Thomas, Harry Huggins, and Drew Beebe, with support from Tina Turner. Written by Anna Rubinova. Engineered by Andrew Holtzberger. Our managing producer is Molly Getman. Our executive producers are Kate Walsh and Will Malnati for At Will Media. Legal support by Carolyn Levin of Miller, Korzenik, Summers, and Raymond. Producers for Wondery are Matt Beagle and Grant Rudder. Senior Story Editor is Phyllis Fletcher.

Managing Producer is Joe Florentino. Music Supervisor is Scott Velasquez for Frizzin' Sink. Our theme song is Sinking Ship by Cake. And Executive Producers are Lizzie Bassett, Morgan Jones, and Marshall Louis for Wondery. We are on a sinking ship. for wondering.