18 years ago today ‘Hulkamania’ officially announced a campaign to take over the country.
November 26, 1998, Hulk Hogan made an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and announced two things: his “retirement” and his plan to run for President of the United States in the 2000 election.
[Hogan] “I had to come to the crossroads here. I’ve accomplished everything I’ve wanted to do in wrestling. My family is secure. I’ve had a great career. I wanted to come on [The Tonight Show] and officially announce my retirement…”
“All good things must come to an end. I had a great career. The fans have been great. I love you guys and thanks for sticking with me. And this really helps me segue into being the next president of the United States.”
The ‘announcement’ comes at the 3:16 mark:
Although the entire thing was proven to be a publicity stunt in which Hogan returned to wrestling just a month later, it appears fans never forgot what Hogan said on Leno that night.
There were campaigns popping up for him to run for the presidency again this year. He did tell TMZ he wanted to be Donald Trump’s running mate.
Possibly the only reason Hogan may truly have believed he was a legitimate candidate?
This.
Josh Helmuth is the editor of Crave Sports.
Photo: Getty
