Jimmy Hart reacts to Netflix docuseries 'Hulk Hogan: Real American': 'I was just floored'

Jimmy Hart believes WWE fans will love watching the new Netflix docuseries Hulk Hogan: Real American. On3 recently spoke with Hogan’s longtime manager, who shared his reaction to watching the first episode of the four-part docuseries.

“I was just floored. I couldn’t believe how great it was,” Jimmy Hart told On3. “These guys took seven or eight months to put this together. It was one of Hulk’s last times on camera doing all this. They really dug deep into it. And I know if Hulk could watch it now, he’d be so happy with us. It’s great.”

Hulk Hogan: Real American looks at the life and career of Hulk Hogan, who died last year. The docuseries features Hogan’s last interview, and he talks about the ups and downs of his life in the ring and outside of it.

Hart is also featured in the series, as he was Hogan’s manager throughout nearly his time in pro wrestling. The 82-year-old talks about how he first met Hogan, which was through another wrestling legend, Jerry “The King” Lawler. That was before Hogan was in WWE (WWF at the time) and Hart was wrestling manager. But when Hart made the jump to pro wrestling, they had their share of memorable experiences, including WrestleMania III.

Jimmy Hart looks back at a memorable moment with Hulk Hogan

“I really love WrestleMania III because at that time we were wrestling in Coliseums and stuff, maybe 20,000-25,000 people. And this is the first time we had a chance to go to the Silverdome. And to sell that out, that was going to take a lot of work. Then they scared us before we got there because they said, ‘Just to let you know, you know the Pope’s coming in the week before. What?’

“And then the Rolling Stones coming in. We went, ‘What?’ And all of a sudden, Hulk asked me, he goes, ‘Jimmy, what do you think?’ And I said, ‘You know, Hulk, I think we might can outdraw the Pope, but I don’t know if we’re going to outdraw the Rolling Stones.’ He goes, ‘Well, thanks for the confidence.’ He goes, ‘I’m the main event.’ I said, ‘Well, okay.’ And then we did, though. We had 93,000-plus people, so we outdrew both of them. That was a big turning point in our company back then.”

WrestleMania III made Hogan a bigger star than he already was, and he maintained that stardom in WWE throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. Most would argue that if Hogan didn’t become the star that he became at the time, pro wrestling, specifically, WWE, wouldn’t be where it is today, which is broadcasting its first WrestleMania on ESPN.

What if Hulk Hogan retired in the 1990s?

But what if Hogan retired from wrestling in the ’90s? That is something that he discusses in the docuseries, but Hart knew it would have been a mistake.

“He’d have been so unhappy because up until his passing away, we would talk after we’d do some project, he goes, ‘I miss the wrestling business.’ He said, ‘I just think I got cut short with my eight back surgeries and my knee replacements and my shoulder replacements and everything,'” Hart said.

“And I said, ‘Hulk, man, look at all we’ve done. Man, we’ve been everywhere in the world. Thousands and thousands of people have come to see us. 93,000 in the Silverdome, and you’ve done the movies, you’ve done the talk shows, you’ve done everything.’ I said, ‘There’s not another André the Giant you can fight. There’s not another Rowdy Roddy Piper you can get in the ring with. There’s no Randy Savage.’ I said, ‘Let’s just fade off into oblivion and just be happy about all this.’ And he said, ‘Yeah, I guess you’re right.'”

All four episodes of Hulk Hogan: Real American premiere on Netflix on Apr. 22. The series is directed by Bryan Storkel, and two-time WWE Hall of Famer Triple H (Paul Levesque) is one of the executive producers.