Hulk Hogan’s ex-wife, Linda Hogan, shared a throwback photo with the WWE legend just days before his death.
The former wrestler died Thursday at the age of 71, after medics were reportedly called to his home in Clearwater, Florida. While a cause of death hasn’t been revealed, TMZ reported he experienced “cardiac arrest.”
Only days earlier, the former athlete’s ex-wife, Linda, reminisced about their happy days together, sharing a photo of herself and Hulk from 1996 on her Instagram.
She simply captioned the post: “The good old days !”
The throwback picture was of the pair at the NATPE Convention in Las Vegas. For the event at the time, Linda wore a black form-fitting gown, with matching elbow-length gloves, and had her hair in a ponytail. Her then-husband, who had his arm wrapped around her, wore his signature red and yellow wrestling costume.
Hulk, whose real name is Terry Bollea, married Linda in 1983 before they welcomed two children, Brooke, 37, and Nick, 36. However, Brooke has been estranged from her parents for nearly a decade.
The famous family also starred in their own reality show, Hogan Knows Best, from 2005 to 2007. The program ran for four seasons.
Linda filed for divorce from Hulk in November 2007, with the separation finalized in 2009.
“The war is over,” she told The Tampa Bay Tribune at the time, as reported by People. The interview came after she and her ex had a court hearing, where she gave him a friendly kiss on the cheek, in Clearwater, Florida, in 2009, to finalize the divorce.
“I still love him. He’s the father of my children,” she added. Hulk echoed Linda’s remarks at the time, telling The Tampa Bay Tribune: “When you’re married to someone for 23 years … you hope for the best …. We just got torn apart.”
However, Linda later made multiple claims about her ex-husband and how their split has affected their family.
In March, she posted a video on her Instagram Stories of herself crying, as reported by E! News, and said: “It’s been 15, however long years since I left Hulk Hogan, and my family is the worst mess.”
After accusing her ex-husband of being a “complete liar” and “sex addict,” she claimed that he was the reason why she’d been estranged from Brooke for eight years.
“Brooke doesn't talk to us,” she said. “She's had twins. She got married, she didn't tell us… She had a huge fight with Terry. I don't know how that reflected onto me, but she cut me out too.”
During an interview with TMZ days later, Linda clarified that she thought Hulk was “always a good father,” despite being “a s*** husband sometimes.”
“[He] spent probably over $3 million on Brooke's career, with no questions asked,” she said, before she emphasized that Hulk was “a fantastic person.”
“Our marriage didn’t work out, but what Brooke's doing to us is completely unprecedented, unexpected and unfair and not true,” she added. “Hulk Hogan, my ex, has been really distraught and saddened by her distance, just as I and her brother Nick have as well.”
In March, Brooke shared a statement about the estrangement from her family on Instagram, saying she has “separate reasons for going no contact with each of [her] parents.”
“No contact with my mom has nothing to do with my dad, and no contact with my father has nothing to do with my mother, “ she wrote. “This decision was made based purely on how they have each dealt with me my entire life.”
She also alleged that she was “extremely verbally and mentally abused” throughout her childhood, which allegedly turned into physical. However, she emphaized. that her remarks were “not pointed” at either of her parents.
Linda then shared a lengthy Facebook post to deny the claims from her daughter, saying she “by no means ever treated [Brooke] the way she’s painting it.”
After Hulk split from Linda, he was married to makeup artist Jennifer McDaniel from 2010 to 2021.
He is survived by his third wife, Sky Daily, whom he married in 2023.
Hulk Hogan skyrocketed to fame in the 1980s, bringing professional wrestling into the mainstream. He went on to become an eight-time WrestleMania headliner and six-time World Wrestling Entertainment champion, in addition to an actor and reality television personality.
Hogan was embroiled in controversy throughout his career, with a sex tape scandal and racist remarks clouding his reputation.
The former wrestler also became a fixture during President Donald Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign, appearing at the Republican National Convention to appeal to voters.
Weeks before his death, Hulk was celebrated by his son Nick in honor of Father’s Day.
“Had a great Father’s Day with the goat! Happy Father’s Day to all the awesome dads!” he wrote on Instagram, alongside a sweet throwback photo of Nick and Hulk.
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