The latest episode of “ARN” with Arn Anderson and Conrad Thompson is an “Ask Arn Anything” episode. This show covers questions from Arn’s career in WCW, WWE, and beyond.
Here are a couple of highlights from this week’s show:
Arn was asked if there was a difference between Hulk Hogan in WWF and Hulk Hogan in WCW?: “I don’t think so. Hulk is Hulk 24 hours a day. Ric Flair is Ric Flair 24 hours a day. There’s some guys that no matter what environment they are in or what the scenario is, they are that guy because they really are that guy. I don’t think Hulk Hogan has been Terry Bollea for a long, long time. I think he’s been Hulk Hogan from the first time he strapped it on. He became that guy and has continued to be that guy. I know his business thoughts and concepts were pretty much the same. As far as his business head goes, I think that when the NWO thing hit, and it was such a culture shock and it flamed up, I mean it literally was like a nuclear blast on the wrestling business, he became that other guy, Hulk Hogan. He was a different guy. There was a viciousness in that guy. From taking off that weight belt and beating David Flair half to death with it, that wasn’t Hulk Hogan. That was Hollywood Hogan. He switched characters. He went pretty dark pretty quick which means he had been thinking about it for some time. I don’t know how natural that would be because the red and the yellow, the vitamins and prayers were part of who he was for a long time. He was very successful.”
Arn was asked what his thoughts were on having weight divisions in wrestling and if the cruiserweight champion is the equivalent to the heavyweight champion?: “I’ve always been a proponent that height and weight are not as important as performance and ability to connect with the audience and get over. There might have been a part of me before I stepped through the ropes with Ricky and Robert that had an idea in my head just like everybody else did on what a wrestler was supposed to look like and what a bad ass was supposed to look like at that time. There were a lot of them in the business. When you go in the dressing room and you’re walking around with Billy Jack Haynes, Barbarian, Warlord, The Steiners, The Road Warriors, all these guys and monsters like Ron Simmons, you had it in your head, those guys are killers. But when you step in the ropes with The Rock ‘N Roll Express, and you see how they can go out and sell and get over, never die, staying in the fight, keep fighting, and the connection they had with the audience forever, for me, took that height and weight what I thought was right, out of the quotient. So I don’t have any height or weight parameters for myself and I hope the business has moved ahead just like it has for the women’s division and a lot of other things in a positive way. I hope we have forever forgotten how much a guy weighs or how tall he is. It’s what he brings to the table.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit ARN (Arn Anderson’s podcast) with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription
