Hulk Hogan, the superstar who took professional wrestling to stratospheric heights, passed away this past week at the age of 71. While Hogan leaves a complicated legacy outside of the squared circle, there is no doubt that his impact on sports entertainment may never be matched.

The opening chords of Rick Derringer’s hard-rock guitar would play over the arena sound system. Instantly, 20,000 Hulkamaniacs — and many more as wrestling’s popularity and stadium size exploded — rose to their feet in a frenzy to catch a glimpse of Hulk Hogan storming toward the ring.

Hulk Hogan became inextricably tied to "Real American" when he adopted the track as his theme song at the peak of his WWE career.