- André "The Giant" is the biggest and greatest superstar
this business has ever known.
- Not a man alive can beat me in the squared circle.
- If I had my way, I was gonna chop
this giant down.
- He didn't want anybody around him that he didn't like.
- You're the reason I got into professional wrestling.
- "The Giant" just attacked our Wheaties Boy.
What's going on?
- What are you doing, André?
- And welcome to WrestleMania III.
- The rivalry between Hulk Hogan and André "The Giant"
is the most important rivalry of all time, bar none.
- Look at this.
- He slammed him.
[clapperboard sound]
- This rivalry has just escalated into a war.
- When two legends collide, their rivalry stays pinned
in our minds forever.
This is where we break down the legendary stories behind the
greatest rivalries of all time.
I'm Freddie Prinze Jr., and this is WWE Rivals.
- If any one man who can defeat André it's this man, Hulk Hogan.
- Today's rivalry is the one that started it all.
Hulk Hogan and my favorite of all time André "The Giant".
This is the first huge rivalry that WWE had.
It is arguably the greatest.
The foundation that those two men built is very much the
foundation that all wrestlers stand on today.
- When I saw Hogan and André-- [sighs]
You know, as a young man, you know,
wanting to get into the business
that's unattainable, because you see two giants.
- The most iconic moments in WWE history consist of
André "The Giant".
- I mean you have a bigger-than-life character,
a giant who had never been defeated in 15 years.
I mean as a kid, I was scared to death for Hogan,
I thought André was gonna kill him.
- Almost tore the ring down.
- We had to have the perfect foe for the perfect babyface.
I mean, Hogan is once in a lifetime man.
We'll never see anything like Hogan again, and André was an
incredible guy, a tough guy, a strong guy, and could drink
massive amounts of wine.
[laughter]
- André "The Giant".
- Wow.
- André as a superstar.
- And there he is.
The Eighth Wonder of the World.
- Oh, my goodness.
- He was the biggest and greatest superstar this business
has ever known and ever will know.
- Look at this mass of humanity here.
[bell rings]
- He's the one that laid the groundwork for Hulk Hogan,
for Stone Cold Steve Austin, for The Rock, for anybody else
that walks through these doors of the WWE Universe.
It wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for André "The Giant".
- André "The Giant", ladies and gentlemen, for the benefit of
you who do not know, he's the only undefeated
superstar in professional wrestling.
- Lights out.
- Your winner, André "The Giant".
- Just exactly how tall are you?
André, how much do you weigh?
- I remember the first time I saw André "The Giant".
I just remember looking at his leg,
it looked like the hip and ass
end of a Clydesdale.
I was like, "Oh my god."
He was just the largest biggest human being I'd ever seen.
- Fans take a look at this.
Can you believe that?
Perhaps even let's compare it to the size of my head.
André the-- [chuckles]
- The interviews that I did with André were kind of
vignettes, they weren't really actual interviews.
We would trade sports coats, they looked like
the drapes at a Ramada Inn.
The weather does get chilly periodically.
My word, it looks like a topcoat, I can't believe it.
- [chuckles]
- This is unreal.
- [chuckles]
- André you're the best.
- And he had these custom-made shoes, size 22 or 3.
A big guy.
[table slamming sound]
- Uh, some of them
- I'm sorry.
- Oh, no problem.
- Now, Studd gonna try to body-slam him.
Uh-oh, no way.
- Has anybody ever lifted you and body-slammed you?
- No.
- Not only did people want to see this mammoth of a man,
but they wanted to see what a 7'4"-
-500 pound human being could do in a wrestling ring.
- And kaboom.
- He was a great wrestler.
- Look at that strength.
What a phenomenal individual.
- Look out.
- Whoever has wrestled you ever has always had
trouble getting you down.
Is that the secret to beating André "The Giant"?
[chuckles]
- There's the friendly smiling giant.
- André and I we were friends.
You know, in WrestleMania I, sat on André "The Giant"'s lap
and actually fell asleep at the WrestleMania after-party.
You felt this unbelievable energy from him.
He had such a presence, such a connection to people.
- Big heart loves people, loves kids.
Everybody loves him back.
- André "The Giant" is the most recognizable superstar in the
sport, and at that same time, a young Hulk Hogan is just
breaking into the wrestling business.
- 1976 I was playing in a rock and roll band, and I told them,
I said, "I'm quitting playing music,
I'm gonna be the greatest
professional wrestler that ever lives."
There were five of us in the band, and four of them
were laying on the floor laughing
and they thought it was hilarious.
- Word got around that I was running my mouth
that I wanted to be a wrestler.
So I was lifting weights and working out.
I thought I was in great shape, and Mike Graham said,
"Look if you want to be a wrestler I will set you up with
was set you up with Hiro Matsuda,
and he's gonna give you a tryout."
And the first thing Matsuda did was he got me in the ring and
broke my leg right away.
- Hiro Matsuda is a Japanese wrestler who came
to the United States.
- There's the mentor Hiro Matsuda.
There he is.
- But he was notoriously tough, and if he got any sense that a
student didn't take the business seriously he would make
an example of that person, and that's exactly
what he did to Hulk Hogan.
- Hogan didn't quit that day.
It's not like Hogan got his leg broken and went home crying.
Hogan broke it in a tough way.
- About three and a half, four months later I came back
and had a different type of attitude that no one was
gonna hurt me again.
- Making his first appearance in this arena here is
The Incredible Hulk Hogan.
- That's the word for this man.
Incredible. He's just that.
- Wow.
- When Hulk Hogan first came to WWE he was bronzed and
charismatic, and even when he was a villain people
wanted to see him.
I mean, I remember him in that purple cape, he's with classy
Freddie Blassie was his mouthpiece.
- The man is just unbeatable.
Never been defeated.
- It's a new decade.
1980, you are looking at the new king of professional wrestling.
- You felt, "Wow, this is a real bad dude."
- Mr. Vince McMahon, being introduced now,
the promoter at Madison Square Garden.
- My relationship with Vince Sr. was it felt like
he took a special interest in me and I just remember he had
the half-reading glasses and he like
he always clicked quarters together and just kind
of looking over the glasses
looking at me, you know, when he talked to me, and he was looking
for an opponent for André "The Giant" at the time.
- Introducing in the corner to my right
The Incredible Hulk Hogan.
[audience booing]
- And here in the corner to my left André "The Giant".
[audience cheering]
- It's gonna be a great one.
[bell rings]
- Here we go.
- If any one man who can defeat André is this man.
- André making-
- No, but he's indeed an extremely strong man.
Almost tore the ring down.
- I had a manager named Freddie Blassie.
I used to wear a black armband, and Freddie Blassie
gave me a piece of metal.
- Hey, look at this.
Blassie just slipped something-
-in Hogan's elbow there. he got it there.
- He slipped something in.
- He absolutely did.
- Coming with a Hogan hammer.
- Like whacked him in the head like a clothesline.
But I hit him in the forehead.
- And there he goes.
He just slipped it out.
- André is cut and cut badly.
- The last thing you wanna do is piss a 7'5",
500 pound giant off.
- Hogan was the bad guy, the heel, and André was our
babyface good guy that everybody loved because
he was larger than life.
And they had a match at Shea Stadium, and it killed.
- Before the WrestleMania era, the Showdown at Shea was
a special series of matches that occurred at Shea Stadium
in Queens, and that was the home of baseball's New York Mets.
- Shea Stadium was the biggest of the big.
Well, at the time, Shea Stadium,
I really wasn't André's favorite person.
I think a lot of it had to do with me being young,
and I-I don't think I was arrogant,
but I was almost kinda like a-a smaller dog
nipping at his heels, driving him crazy.
And I didn't mean to be, but I just didn't know any better.
André was in really, really, really great shape
and he was very fast.
So if you try to pull anything and hit him, you get away
from him, he'd catch you.
So, that's just how it was.
He was the boss.
- The giant picks him up.
There it is. The winner, André.
- It was this start of a a rivalry that would
last quite a while.
- This capacity crowd up for one of the great matchups.
- André "The Giant" against Hulk Hogan
That's a main event in any arena.
- Look out, here it comes.
- My goodness.
- I was real full of myself when I was younger.
- Is this arrogance?
Look at this.
- I was afraid of him, but then after we made physical contact,
I became delusional.
In my mind, I thought I could beat this guy.
I knew I wasn't as big as him, but I thought I was because
I was in really good shape and I was very strong
when I was younger.
- Well, guess who's boss? [chuckles]
- And he just beat the crap out of me.
- Hogan's gotta be saying, "What did I do now?"
- When Hulk came in, he had a little bit of notoriety
I don't care if you're the king on the hill.
When somebody else comes in that you think might be a threat,
there's always that situation of you going,
"Well, I'mma see what this kid's really made of,
and see if he should really be in this business."
- The human peacock also known as Hulk Hogan.
Do you like those colors?
They're all of the colors.
Proud as a peacock.
- André, I think he really took Hulk to school.
- He plays a little rock n' roll on Hulk Hogan's he--
Hulk-Hulk Hogan's head.
- André knew what he was doing, but if something went wrong,
he will let you know and whack the hell out of you.
- Hulk Hogan was very raw as a talent.
They had a term for it back in the locker room
with the old timers, the kid's green.
- It's as most new arrivals are,
and they can be stiff in the ring.
What that means is that sometimes they hit somebody
a little harder than they should.
- Around the ropes and a mighty hit.
Oh, André says, "I'm in trouble."
- Throughout the early '80s, Hulk Hogan, André "The Giant"
had match after match all over the East Coast, tore it up.
But then, it became international.
- When André got the opportunity to be in the ring
with Hulk Hogan, and this happened a lot in Japan.
André was going to season him, shall we say.
- André beat the daylights out of him.
You know, of course, it was just tough love.
- Finally, I understood he was trying to help me, you know,
because he saw something in me that kinda like nobody else saw.
I think André pretty much kept me pointed in the right
direction when I could've taken off the wrong way
a bunch of times.
- André had a lot of respect for Hogan of who he was,
and that was very important to this because André
would not have been as generous if he hadn't.
- I mean, I flown out of JFK with him to Japan.
I don't even know how many times because we were on a lot of the
same tours together.
It was hard to watch because I always knew
he was never comfortable.
If you can imagine there was never a chair,
there was never a bed, good luck getting in the car.
- André learned early in his life he had acromegaly,
which is a disease that makes your body grow
and continue to grow.
That's why he had the giant features.
Huge limbs, the-the giant hands.
It is a-a cruel condition because your body can't
handle the stress to that size.
I mean, he broke his ankle getting out of bed.
- While André's health was starting to deteriorate,
Hogan was enjoying the success of Rocky III.
- Everybody knows that Hulk Hogan is big and strong,
but did you know that he had a part in the movie Rocky III?
- The movie Rocky III created an awareness, you know.
It was a like a shot of adrenaline
to the whole wrestling world.
- When you had thunderlips out there in the flesh, baby.
Oh, my God.
He look like he's freaking nine feet tall against Stallone.
- You know something Mean Gene, everything positive comes from
the heart, and I'm all heart, daddy, and that's the way
I've been thinking.
My goals in my life have changed.
- Hogan actually started out as a bad guy,
but his conversion to truth, justice and the American way
has been both effective and lucrative.
- If you look in history, most of the bad guys become
the best babyfaces, you know, because people love to hate 'em,
then they love to love 'em.
- Your winner in all-star wrestling,
and look at these muscles.
- André even knew it.
André was a good judge of what's going on, what's good,
what the people like, Hogan-
-drew interest, he drew moolah, money honey.
- Welcome to Madison Square Garden.
This is for the World Wrestling -- Heavyweight Championship.
- Hulkamania begins at Madison Square Garden.
I use to get, like, emotional whenever
they would show that clip.
- Hulk Hogan, he drops the big leg on him.
He's down for the cover, hook of the leg.
One, two, he got him.
- It's the ultimate changing of the guard moment.
- We have a new champion.
- Have you ever seen anything as beautiful as this Mean Gene?
This belt is part of yours too.
It's everybody out there-
- Oh, oh, oh, oh.
- That celebration in the locker room,
André pouring the champagne on Hogan's head.
- André "The Giant" congratulating
the new Heavyweight Champion of the world.
- It really hit home seeing André seemingly so happy
for Hulk Hogan's achievement.
- What we fans didn't know at the time was that this moment
was really just the beginning of the next phase of their rivalry.
- It's everybody out there's--
- Oh, oh, oh, oh.
- That moment for me, it changed the landscape
of wrestling, I think, forever.
- Remember, at that point in time,
this is when the WWE took off.
- Wrestling not the Olympic variety,
but professional wrestling.
It's always been popular, but lately, it's been emerging
from second-rate arenas to attract a whole new
generation of fans.
[knocking]
- Beat it or I'll call the brute squad.
- I'm on the brute squad.
- You are the brute squad.
- André was a media star.
- Start it up.
- 106B, Take 3
- Princess Bride for André humanized him.
To that point, I really think, you know,
people just saw him as this freak giant.
But you watch that movie, I'm telling you, knowing André,
and then seeing that movie, that was him.
That was really André "The Giant".
- André was huge, and he basically set the stage for me.
♪
- Welcome, Hulk Hogan.
- You are right-right here, but you're still bigger than
all the kids in the third grade, right?
- Where'd you get that picture?
- That's yours, it's not mine.
- Hogan is now the American eagle.
- He was the biggest draw in wrestling.
- Train, say your prayers, eat your vitamins,
be true to yourself, true to your country,
be a real American, woo.
- At that time when Hulk was on the rise,
he was the biggest thing out there.
Hulk Hogan needed an opponent that matched his star power,
that matched his ability to draw people.
There was only one wrestler who could do that,
that was André "The Giant".
- Enter "Rowdy" Roddy Piper.
- 1987 and I'm still alive.
- One of the greatest talkers ever.
- And possibly the most important Pit
I have ever done in my life.
- He had a great segment called Piper's Pit,
which all the old-school fans remember.
- Ladies and gentlemen, would you please welcome the
heavyweight champion of the world, Hulk Hogan?
- The 8th Wonder of the World, 7' 4, 500 pounds,
André, whoa, 'The Giant".
- But André comes in with Bobby Heenan.
He is the single greatest heel manager in the history
of the universe.
- Wait, what's going on here?
Hold on, man.
What are you doing with him?
- Bobby Heenan is the bad guy manager that all wrestling bad
guy managers aspired to be.
- He's sick and tired of you and what you stand for.
Did you ever once, once in your life offer him
a championship match?
- You're the reason I got in professional wrestling.
You're like a god for me, a role model.
You can't be here with him, man.
Even though you came out here with him you don't have
to leave with him.
- And then André has had enough
and that's when everything changed.
- André, please no.
It's not happening.
- We're in the Pit, André, Hogan and myself,
I can see what's going on.
You can feel it once you get in here.
- You can't believe it?
Maybe you'll believe this, Hogan.
- And then André crosses the line.
This was one of the greatest turns and a heartbreaking
one at that.
- Here's where the match gets.
When André ripped the cross off he had torn the skin
and Hogan was bleeding.
I got one more thing to say like every time you think you get all
the answers I change the questions and the most important
thing to say was you're bleeding.
- It's not-- André, come back, man.
You don't have to leave like this.
What is he doing?
- You're bleeding.
It's hard to get a promo stronger than that.
"The Giant" just attacked our Wheaties boy
What's going on?
I don't know but we better get the ticket.
- Tell me yes or no are you or are you not gonna fight him at
WrestleMania III for the World's Heavyweight Championship?
Yes or no?
- Yes.
[crowd cheering]
- Gentlemen, Gentlemen, please?
We are here for the most auspicious signing for any
heavyweight title match in history as you all know.
- You don't forget how somebody makes you feel and when you
think about André "The Giant" basically turning into the
world's biggest bad guy, I mean can you imagine
watching as a little kid?
- You never once gave this man an opportunity.
Now he's got that opportunity.
- Sign it if you're gonna sign it.
Everything he did was spot on.
He made it work.
Not me, he did.
- I'd gave you anything, man.
- Now I was an André fan.
So my heart didn't break when this happened,
however most peoples did.
- As far as I'm concerned it's not signed in ink.
It's signed in blood.
- I don't think André could have been that super heel back
then if it wasn't for Heenan by his side.
- You're in some deep trouble, Mr. Hogan.
I can't stand you.
Matter of fact I hate you.
Those are pretty strong words but that's
how I feel right here.
Myself and André "The Giant" we know that Hulkamania is dead.
- World Wrestling -- Officials have announced that
WrestleMania III will be held at the beautiful Silverdome
in Pontiac, Michigan just outside of Detroit.
- After buying the company from his dad,
it was clear early on that Vince McMahon was a visionary.
- The World Wrestling -- presents
the wrestling extravaganza of all time, WrestleMania.
- You had WrestleMania I, which is a huge success.
We had Liberace there, Muhammad Ali,
all these great stars.
WrestleMania II probably not considered as much as success.
So you had to hit the ball out of the park in WrestleMania III.
- You think about what Vince was trying to do then.
Put 90,000 people into a stadium.
He had to have something huge to do it.
- There hasn't been a match of this magnitude ever,
not only since I've been around professional wrestling but ever.
- Is there already animosity building between the two of you?
- As far as aggressive feeling it-it's just been, uh,
the way André has changed.
- At the time of WrestleMania III André
was not in good shape physically.
His back was really bad.
- It was a heck of an ask to ask André to do what he did.
I know he was in a lot of pain.
Now that I've had 10 back surgeries I know the type
of pain he was in.
I had a conversation the night before with Vince,
we were worried about it.
Took Vince's legal pad and I said this is plan A,
but if you tell him I did this he's gonna kill me because
he always leads the match.
He doesn't need to really take a bump but if he does go down,
he needs to be near the ropes so we can cover that he's hurt.
I wrote the legal pad, gave it to Vince he's,
"Well, I'll talk to André about it."
- In the business we knew how temperamental André could be
as you can't read this guy's mind and he sure
as hell isn't gonna tell you.
- Oh my gosh.
I mean people were coming from all over the world
for this particular WrestleMania.
- Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the magnificent Silverdome.
and welcome to WrestleMania III.
- In the dressing room, André wanted me to sit next to him
and, you know, when you're sitting next to a Giant
for 10 hours that drinks two fifths of Crown Royal.
As you're sitting there and he keeps handing you shots of Crown
Royal, it's really hard to dump 'em when he's watching you
because there's no way I could have drank what he gave me
to drink and walk to that ring.
It would have never happened.
So every time he wasn't looking at me I dumped that sucker.
- Power against power right now.
These guys are enormous, whoa.
- Well, you know, Hogan and I were tight back then.
I said, "What are you doing?"
And he goes, "We don't know yet."
And I went, "What?"
- Look at here.
I got my- I got my WrestleMania shirt right there,
went down and got it.
- Come on, Jess.
- Macho Man bombs away.
- He got it.
- He nails him with it.
- I said, "André, what do you wanna do out there?"
"Don't worry."
"Hey, André, what do you think man?
You think, uh, I go up or go down?"
"Don't worry."
I said, "How's your back, you know?"
He says, "My back is good."
He has had a couple of fifths of Crown Royal in him.
I said, "What do you think about a body slam?"
He goes, "No."
Okay, I won't worry.
- Just one hour away from his moment of destiny.
- Well, you know they said it was my last ride, man.
Yesterday when I finished hanging and banging,
when I jumped on the Harley, man, as I went through the
intersection, as I headed for the mountains some of the
nonbelievers in the gym said, "See you later Hulksterman.
This is your last ride."
- I go out again and wouldn't you believe it
there's Hulk getting another a cup of coffee and I went,
"Hulkster, did you find out anything?"
"Nope it looks like, uh, André is gonna call it in the ring."
So, you don't know if you're winning the title.
He goes, "Nope.
Gonna call it in the ring."
I went, "Oh my God."
- This is the main event of the evening.
It is for the World Wrestling -- Heavyweight Championship
scheduled for one fall with a one-hour time limit.
- The night the stars came out.
Everybody want to be a part of that.
Everybody want to see the spectacle and to wonder more
than anything what's gonna happen.
- You could be looking at the next Heavyweight Champion
of the world.
- And now his opponent, he is the World Wrestling --
Heavyweight Champion.
- It was so big, you know, I just stayed focused on what
was around me, the ringside.
I didn't even wanna really take in what was going on.
It was so overwhelming.
The first time ever in my career I went to the ring I didn't know
who's gonna win or lose.
[bell ringing]
- Look at the look of disdain on the face of André.
- In the very beginning of the match it was a perfect shot with
André kinda looking down at him and Hogan looking up.
- The irresistible force meeting the immovable object.
- You look at that and go my God, this is big fight feeling.
- He's up, he's Hulking up right now.
- I really don't think Hulk Hogan get enough credit
for how much drama he brought to that whole situation.
- Yes.
- Oh, big right hand blocked by the champion,
and the Hulkster unloading.
Going for a slam.
- I was worried because I didn't know if I could get
him up to tell you the truth.
- Oh, he almost got him up.
- Oh.
- Oh, he collapsed.
One, two.
- Was that two or was that three?
- Two count only.
- Hogan went for a body slam early in the bout and he may
have injured his back.
- Right when the match started,
I was going to try to pick him up.
When I went to do what I needed to do,
he couldn't help me.
I knew then, this-this could be a problem.
- And hurt that lower back area, for sure with that extreme
weight of André "The Giant".
- By 1987, André was much heavier than he had been in
those earlier years, and this was also complicated by the fact
that André was wrestling with a back brace.
So not only do you have the weight of that brace,
but I'm sure that Hulk Hogan did not want to throw André
on the wrong spot and perhaps injure him permanently.
- Hulk absolutely took care of André in the ring.
He knew where he was, what physically André was enduring.
- He needs to be near the ropes, you know,
so he can cover that he's hurt.
- You alright?
- Don't need to go jumping off the top rope.
It's already there.
Let's just tell a great story and do whatever finish.
- André picked him up with ease and plants him.
[yelling]
- But André made it as good as it possibly could've ever been.
- André with a shoulder block.
Oh, what a chop by André.
- Those guys went out there and they created something special.
They created something that's lifelong lasting.
- And it's the Hulk with a right hand and another one.
Off the ropes.
- Oh, he dropped him.
- He dropped the big guy.
He's hulking up, Jess.
- I don't know if he's got enough left in him.
- That adrenaline could do wonders.
- I remember him coming at me.
He comes at me "Slam."
What?
And I didn't know what to do except step into him.
Put him right here and I went, "Oh, my God."
- Look at this.
- He slammed him.
- I don't believe it.
I don't believe it.
- Hulk dropping the big leg over for the cover.
- It's over.
- Unbelievable.
- I've never heard it so loud.
It was just a roar.
It would be like a freight train coming through your living room.
- Wrestling fan or not, everyone knew André "The Giant".
7'5, 500 pounds picked up and body slammed in the middle
of the ring in front of 93,000 people.
That moment could never be replicated.
- It was different than anything that's ever happened.
He didn't have to do that.
He could've been André and retired undefeated.
Who the hell's going to beat him.
Greatest moment ever in my life as far as my career,
it has to be that WrestleMania without a doubt.
It was just the right time, the right people, the right place.
It was just perfect.
- So the rivalry isn't over yet.
We have a very interesting controversial match.
- André "The Giant", he has not been in a wrestling ring since
he was robbed because of poor officiating and because of the
likes of one man, Hulk Hogan.
- Early in the WrestleMania III match, there's a moment where
Hulk Hogan tries to body slam André "The Giant", and referee
Joey Marella counts one, two, three, and then very quickly
says, "No, his shoulder was up."
Which it was.
- Was that two or was that three?
- Two count only.
- Ooh, that was close, Gorilla.
- But then that allowed André "The Giant" and
Bobby "The Brain" Heenan to insist, "We beat Hulk Hogan,
but because of backstage politics, we were screwed
out of the championship."
- Hogan is literally helpless.
I'll tell you what, Hogan better never ever step into the ring
with this man again.
- We had to figure out a way to extend this.
They're still drawing massive numbers.
- You didn't believe me when I said that I would buy
the World Wrestling -- Heavyweight title.
I went out and I bought the eighth wonder of the world,
André "The Giant".
- Ted DiBiase, "The Million Dollar Man"
is the guy that we've all interacted with.
The guy that's made a ton of money, God knows how,
and feels like he can rub it in your face.
And if you have a problem with it, well,
he'll just buy you off.
- When I became "The Million Dollar Man",
I had to go over the top.
Everybody hates somebody who bullies people
with their wealth.
- I buy what I want, and I want the World Wrestling
-- Heavyweight title.
- Working with André, that was the-the first big deal
when I was starting out.
He was a great guy.
He was really a great guy.
- André "The Giant" and Hulk Hogan have a second meeting
on the Main Event.
The WWE Championship is on the line.
- Hulk Hogan may wear the belt for now, but after tonight,
that belt will fit as easily around André's waist
as the giant's hands fit around Hogan's neck.
[laughs]
- The Main Event was huge in the fact that professional
wrestling had not been on national television,
and that scope since the '50s.
- Welcome everyone to the Main Event.
Welcome to the largest television audience in World
Wrestling -- history.
- 33 million people tune-in.
Even today, if a network gets 10 million people to watch a show,
they're ecstatic.
Hulk Hogan and André "The Giant" they were this phenomenon.
- The Hulkster draws the line.
He wants André "The Giant".
Here comes André.
Oh, yeah.
- Listen to these fans.
André spins the Hulkster around.
Suplex right on top of him.
- He's on him.
- One, we got two, that's it.
We got a winner.
He got him.
The referee counted three.
We've got a new World Champion.
- Hogan kicks out at one.
He's looking to the crowd, "You had to have seen it."
The crowd's sitting there, "We saw it."
- He can't believe it.
He's saying it was only two.
He's-- He can't be giving the title to André.
- You tried to steal.
- Yeah, you tried to steal from Hulk Hogan.
- He's-- He can't be giving the title to André.
He can't be.
He's going to present it.
He presents it to André, raises his hand.
- We have new World Champion.
- Uh, that was just a ceremonial thing, uh,
for André just to have the championship around
his waist just one time.
André definitely didn't need a-a championship,
but he always had the title of champion-
- Right.
-in this business.
- Even André's got a price?
What a no good stinky giant.
- Everybody's got a price.
[laughs]
- As a fan watching the Main Event, it was such a shock
seeing André hand the championship to
"The Million Dollar Man".
André had just won the championship moments earlier,
and he just gives the belt away.
- How much did he pay you for that belt?
[laughter]
- Never in my wildest dreams "Mean" Gene would I think
that I would get ripped off by a penny-pinching,
two-timing referee.
Look at the shoulder.
The referee is paid off, brother.
Look at the hundred dollar bills falling out of his pocket.
- I know you're disappointed, Hulk Hogan.
Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura, back to you.
- Hulkamaniac.
- And Alfred, I know you are excited about the steel cage
match featuring Hulk Hogan and André "The Giant".
- Sure, without a shadow of a doubt the most dangerous match
in professional wrestling today is a cage match.
In one corner, you have André "The Giant"
who's in excess of 500 pounds.
In the other corner, you have the greatest wrestler
in the world, Hulk Hogan.
- There will be a winner in this one when one
of the opponents goes over the top of the steel cage.
[crowd chants "Hogan"]
- They needed an exclamation point for this rivalry
between André and Hulk.
I think people sensed that this was probably
it between these two.
Some very gifted athletes, a lot of times they may have
a-a unbelievable injury they're suffering through.
And somehow they rise to the next level,
which separates them from everybody else
who can't do what they do.
That was one of those nights for André.
Because if you saw him backstage and how he moved,
you would've thought, "How in the world is this guy
going to get into the ring and participate
in a steel cage match?"
And yet, he did it.
Once he got in there, you could just see it.
He changed.
- There was an exclamation. to that rivalry.
That was it.
- He came out with a big heart.
And he could have said no, he didn't need to do this
but André showed up and-and did his job.
- They said early on in his life that maybe there was
a treatment that can make him stop growing.
I think in some ways André knew that's what made him who he was.
- Most extraordinary athlete of this or any other generation
ladies and gentlemen.
- And then he also felt that it was God's plan.
And he never pursued anything that might change that.
God, he loved this business and gave everything to it.
What is the saddest parts about that whole thing is that
in the end with André just being this hunched over,
obviously in pain person, André had nothing else.
That was his-his life.
- What does the future hold for André "The Giant"?
- Well what it is, the doctor said you'll be better than ever.
We never know.
- And I think about that, I get emotional too.
Like I-I just think about seeing him those days.
And just like I felt like, "Don't go out, André.
Don't go out there."
- He just didn't know what to do with himself.
He goes, "I'm still living but I don't feel like living anymore."
So he passed shortly after that.
- One man was magic. he was an actual giant.
We didn't need CGI.
He literally existed.
And the other was our hero that we believed in.
He told us to say our prayers so we did, eat our vitamins
so I ate Flinstone's vitamins.
That's the power that these men had.
- It really set the tone for WWE from that moment on--
Yeah.
- -about good versus bad.
- Yeah.
- And-and why that's so important in storytelling,
especially within our company.
- For the superstar today, if they're thinking about being
big-time superstars, they better be thinking about
André "The Giant" and Hulk Hogan and how do I attain that?
- Yeah.
- And there again, that's a tough hill to climb.
- There's never going to be two characters that were built
that way for so long.
- André has proven himself worldwide.
If Hulk Hogan can defeat André "The Giant",
he will become the biggest man literally as well as
figuratively in pro-wrestling today.
- The credibility André had, the credibility he bestowed upon
me in such a beautiful storyline that was real.
- We're seeing what this guy is really made of.
That he is the greatest professional athlete
in the world today.
Look at this.
- He slammed him.
- Unbelievable.
- I could feel it when he warmed up to me.
I could feel it when he started liking me.
I could feel it when he had respect for me.
He didn't do that with anybody.
[grunt]
That was a different -different time.
That's for sure.