Hulk Hogan vs. Andrè the Giant - "The Bodyslam Heard 'Round the World" cover art

Hulk Hogan vs. Andrè the Giant - "The Bodyslam Heard 'Round the World"

Hulk Hogan vs. Andrè the Giant - "The Bodyslam Heard 'Round the World"

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 March 29, 1987. The Pontiac Silverdome. 93,173 screaming fans witness the impossible as Hulk Hogan lifts all 520 pounds of André the Giant above his head and slams him to the canvas. It's the moment that transformed professional wrestling from regional carnival act to global phenomenon. But behind this iconic image lies a carefully orchestrated betrayal—a friendship destroyed by jealousy, ambition, and the ruthless vision of Vince McMahon. From the calculated destruction of a brotherhood to the mainstream explosion of WrestleMania III, this episode explores how Hulk Hogan and André the Giant created the template for every wrestling feud that followed.

We trace Hogan's genius for manufacturing conflicts that felt achingly real—from his wars with Randy "Macho Man" Savage to his shocking heel turn in WCW, from boardroom battles that killed companies to a sex tape scandal that destroyed a media empire. Through exclusive research and insider accounts, we reveal how the man who perfected the art of fake fighting eventually found himself in real battles he couldn't bodyslam his way out of. Just days after Hogan's death at 71, Marcus Reid examines the complicated legacy of wrestling's most iconic figure—a man who played a hero so convincingly that 30 million people believed in Hulkamania, but whose real-life feuds exposed the dark contradictions between Terry Bollea and the character that consumed him.

This is the story of how personal conflicts became a billion-dollar business, why the best rivalries blur the line between fiction and reality, and what happens when the cameras stop rolling but the feuds never end. The irresistible force meets the immovable object. Heroes become villains. Friends become enemies. And in the end, the only thing real about wrestling is the damage it leaves behind.

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