On a recent edition of “The ARN Show,” WWE Hall of Famer Arn Anderson discussed Hulk Hogan’s departure from WWE in 1994, The Hulkster potentially coming to WCW, and more.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On how the business has changed because of Hulkamania: “The business became Hulk Hogan lunchboxes, ice creams, cartoons, merchandise, cartoons, you name it, how it morphed to where it is now. And everything in between.”
On 1984 being a transitional year for wrestling: “I was sitting there for that year, 1984. I was living on the beach in Pensacola. I had met Erin, I was having the time of my life. But we would watch that show, and we would go, ‘Holy smokes, what a spectacle.’ And when it really became something concrete that I could put — I mean, because we’re watching it just like wrestling fans, you know? We were living down in Pensacola, we were watching the show. And it’s like, ‘Okay. You know, I see all how everything is morphing, and how it’s getting more exciting, and it’s bigger and all the quality. I guess you would just call it — you know, the video packages and everything. Production was at a different level. I mean, it was like, when it became real for me when the Tonga Kid who at that time was down in and wrestling Jerry Stubbs and myself with Scott Armstrong and Johnny Rich. They were the Rat Pack. And we were wrestling those guys, and he got the call to go to New York. And I’ve told the story on this show and probably every other show: after he got the call, he went to New York, a couple of weeks went by. And it was either Afa or Sika, no disrespect. But he came down to the building in Pensacola, he came into the locker room and asked if he could see me in the bathroom. You knew what that meant, right? So I was fixing to killed pretty much. I mean, those days, if somebody said ‘I need to see in the bathroom,’ you better go in there swinging. Yeah, somebody has planned this and there we go.
“And he called me, and he said, ‘The kid called from New York. He’s been up there a couple of weeks. I just wanted to thank you.’ He said, ‘You’re one of the guys you know responsible for helping him so much. He made $3,000 last week.’ His weekly check at that time, and this position with Continental would have been worth about $500. That’s when it became real to me. It was a concrete number. And he’s only been up there a couple of weeks. It’s not like — I mean, that’s first match money. And those days, you know, opening match money. That’s when it became real to me. I went, ‘Holy s**t, maybe we better look at this in a different way.’ What does it take to get up there and all this.”
On Hulk Hogan’s WWE departure in 1994: “That’s huge. Because I mean, there was — when you built a company that exploded like WWF and that’s your center point. In your mind, you think ‘There is no way Vince will ever let him leave? He [Vince McMahon] will make it right, whatever that number is. They will work this out because I don’t think it will want to leave because that setting only exists with WWF.”
On whether he heard Hogan was in talks with WCW: “Not sure about it. I just kept thinking he was using that as [a bargaining chip]. Because Ted Turner had the money. It wasn’t like it couldn’t happen. I was looking at more on the side that Vince would work it out with Hogan. It was just, they’re using it as a bargaining chip.”
On whether he spoke with Ric Flair about Hogan coming in: “Ric knew he would work with Hogan; it was going to help the company. It was going to help. Ric could see, you know, he could see the benefit and work with Hogan as a flagship for WCW. And what that would do for business. Yeah, we talked about that. I was still a little skeptical.”
On whether he thought Hogan would change WCW’s business as much as he did: “I’m not sure I got that in-depth into my thinking. I was thinking that if they had to take a little bit of a haircut, because he was making so much they would just eat that for now with the idea that it’s going to change the company totally. The perception of — and they would make it up down the road. That’s the only thing that makes any sense. ‘Here’s what you want.’ ‘Okay, but we’re going to have to double what the house or the buys from last time.’ You know, if that’s the case, I don’t know that the expectations could be that that can happen, even into having a conversation about it. You’re gonna walk in and double our business right away? If that’s the case, day one, if he doubles the business. He’s worth whatever you want to add everyone.”
