By Brian Niemietz
New York Daily News
CLEARWATER, Fla. — Professional wrestling star and actor Hulk Hogan is dead at 71.
Medics were dispatched to Hogan’s Florida home shortly before 10 a.m. Thursday in response to a cardiac arrest, the Clearwater Police Department said on Facebook. Hogan was pronounced dead at Morton Plant Hospital.
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Law enforcement officers and EMTs were reportedly spotted outside Hogan’s home as the wrestler was delivered to an ambulance via stretcher, according to TMZ, which first reported the wrestler’s death.
The outlet shot down rumors last month of Hogan being near death, claiming the star, born Terry Gene Bollea, had been hospitalized to address lingering neck and back issues and was otherwise fine.
Hogan was arguably the most famous wrestler of all time. He catapulted to super stardom after appearing as the fictional wrestler Thunderlips in the 1982 film “Rocky III” in which he tossed Sylvester Stallone out of a wrestling ring before Stallone’s Rocky Balboa returned the favor.
The bigger-than-life showman stood 6 feet and 7 inches, weighed around 300 lbs. and sported a trademark bleached blond mustache that matched his receding long blond hair.
He frequently referred to friend and foe alike as “brother” in the unmistakably deep voice that asked “Whatcha gonna do when Hulkamania runs wild on you?”
