FARGO (KVRR) – One of the most notable professional wrestlers in Minnesota is remembering his days with wrestling icon Hulk Hogan, who died Thursday at age 71.
Jim Raschke, of Hastings, Minn., better known as Baron von Raschke, wrestled alongside Hogan when the Hulk was first brought to Minnesota by the Minneapolis-based AWA in the early 1980’s.
“At that time, he was kind of green. I always got along good with him in the ring. He was a real showman,” Raschke said. “He came up with a lot of showbiz stuff. It worked for him in sensational fashion. He could really read the needs of the crowd as far as dressing and getting his hair and his mustache dyed, wearing t shirts that he could rip off.”
Raschke says Hogan was originally supposed to be a “heel” during his wrestling days in Minnesota, but when crowds started cheering for the Hulk, his image had to be quickly re-invented. Raschke says Hogan was able to launch his career at the end of pro wrestling’s Golden Era and successfully found a way to thrive in today’s modern era of glamor, bodybuilders and pyrotechnics.
Hogan, whose real name was Terry Bollea, was one of the most famous wrestlers in WWE’s long history. He was the main draw for the first WrestleMania in 1985 and was a fixture for years, facing everyone from Andre The Giant and Randy Savage to The Rock and even WWE co-founder Vince McMahon.
Comments