Writing about the anniversary of the formation of the New World Order back in 1996 and how old you must feel for having lived through it and remembering it has become an annual affair, but this one’s a true milestone. On July 7, 1996, exactly 20 years ago today, Hulk Hogan revealed himself to be the “third man” at Bash at the Beach, leg-dropped Macho Man Randy Savage, turned his back on his Hulkamaniacs and, more or less, changed wrestling forever. Brother.
If you’ve never seen it, head back to a time when most of us hated Hulk Hogan for being a lousy invulnerable turncoat, and not all the other stuff.
20 years ago today, Bobby ‘The Brain’ Heenan ruined the biggest swerve in wrestling history like 10 seconds before it happened. “YEAH BUT WHOSE SIDE IS HE ON?” Dusty Rhodes’ “wh … what are you talking about” still sounds a hell of a lot like, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING, BOBBY, SHUT THE F*CK UP.” I guess that’s the moment you choose to give yourself when you’ve been saying “Hulk Hogan is actually an evil jerk” for a decade.
“What do we do now?”
For our extended thoughts on how Hogan’s heel turn and the birth of the nWo changed wrestling, please consult our Best and Worst of Nitro column starting with the July 8, 1996, edition and follow it all the way through until the end. We’ll cover at least 600 instances of Hogan standing in the ring, explaining why and how.
