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Wife says Hulk's 'violent' mood swings a 'nightmare'

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Hulk Hogan, who is involved in a bitter divorce from his wife, Linda Bollea, says he would never resort to violence.

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By KEITH MORELLI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 16, 2009

Updated: 04/16/2009 02:35 pm

TAMPA - In a telephone interview this morning on the "Bubba the Love Sponge" radio show, former professional wrestler Hulk Hogan tried to rein in the damage sparked by his quote in a Rolling Stone magazine article.

Hogan, who is in the middle of a protracted, bitter divorce from his wife of 23 years, Linda Bollea, told the magazine during a recent three-day interview that he understood what O.J. Simpson went through. Simpson, the former pro football star and actor, was acquitted of killing his ex-wife and her friend in the 1990s. He later was found responsible for their deaths in a civil suit.

Hogan's Rolling Stone quote, which was made public Wednesday, is:

"I could have turned everything into a crime scene, like O.J., cutting everybody's throat," he is quoted as saying. "You live half a mile from the 20,000-square-foot home you can't go to anymore, you're driving through downtown Clearwater and see a 19-year-old boy driving your Escalade, and you know that a 19-year-old boy is sleeping in your bed, with your wife. ... I totally understand O.J. I get it."

The quote spawned a response from his estranged wife and her attorney:

"Hulk thinks he can do whatever he wants, to whomever he wants, whenever he wants," Linda Bollea said in an e-mail statement issued through her attorney. "He is your classic narcissist who demands total control and will go to any extent necessary to get it. His violent and scary mood swings have been my nightmare for too many years. I hope for the sake of our kids that he gets the psychological help for himself and the safety of others.

Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, said on the radio show this morning that the quote was part of a larger conversation that was not printed.

Hogan has lived in the Tampa Bay area for decades and is a frequent guest on the "Bubba the Love Sponge" show. He said this morning that he had not seen the story in Rolling Stone, which is scheduled to hit newsstands this week.

"I spent three days with the writer," Hogan told Bubba. "We talked about being positive. We talked about me planning on the greatest 10 years of my life coming up."

Hogan said the reporter asked him how he is weathering the withering divorce case.

He told the writer that he has run the gamut of emotions, from rage to depression to resignation. That's when the O.J. comments surfaced, he said.

"Twenty years ago, I would have thought to beat the wife's boyfriend up," he said on the show today. "That's the first thing men think about whenever there's a divorce. The way things are nowadays, you can't do that. I don't have a white Bronco, I'm not a killer."

He said he has often used the Simpson reference in discussing his divorce as a metaphor for the frustration and rage he occasionally feels.

But he never resorted to violence and wouldn't, he said.

"I took the high road," Hogan said. "I walk in the spirit of Christ."

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760.

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