Legendary comedian and vintage automobile collector Jay Leno discussed his experience wrestling Hulk Hogan and shared insights on the parallels between wrestling and show business during his appearance on Marc Summers Unwraps.
The Hogan Wrestling Experience
Leno described participating in a charity wrestling event with Hulk Hogan, emphasizing the rehearsed and performative nature of the spectacle:
“I wrestled Hulk Hogan. We did—I did it for charity at some dome. We had 100,000 people. So it was all staged, I’m assuming, because you rehearsed for six weeks. I run this way, you throw me this way… To this day, people go, ‘Jay, I know wrestling is fake, but I could tell, man, you were pissed.’ I go, ‘No, I wasn’t… No, you can’t. Don’t you understand? It’s not real. We’re pretend.’… We’re acting. It’s stupid.”
During another recent episode of his podcast, host Marc Summers recalled his own experience with the Hulkster.
“I did a personal appearance with him, and we were going to the airport together. His deal was anytime he did a personal appearance, he had to have a yellow Rolls-Royce… And he says to me as we’re driving to the airport in a yellow Rolls-Royce, ‘I hate being recognized.’ Well, he’s got the bandana on and he’s wearing the tights, right?”
Andy Kaufman and Career Boundaries
During his chat with Leno, Summers prompted a broader discussion by mentioning Andy Kaufman’s involvement with wrestling. Summers remarked:
“My feeling was when he [Andy Kaufman] went into the wrestling thing, he kind of crossed the line and I kind of think his career was over with after that. I don’t know where he was going to go from that…”
Leno noted the performative element in both wrestling and entertainment:
“Wrestling was wrestling, you know.”
Their conversation highlighted the blurred boundaries between reality and performance in both comedy and wrestling. Leno drew a direct parallel between acting for an audience—whether in the ring or on stage—and the public’s willingness to believe in the spectacle.
Relive the night Jay Leno stepped in the ring with Diamond Dallas Page against the nWo’s Hollywood Hogan and Dennis Rodman: