In all of the coverage of the Hulkster settling with the Graziano family, nobody seemed to notice that he announced a new endorsement deal the same day.

For Rent-A-Center.

With Hogan having done so few deals like this in the past and how "rent to own" companies come of as mildly questionable at best, the timing of this sure is...interesting.

He joins Troy Aikman, who was already doing ads for the company and somehow seems less out of place even though he has a high profile broadcasting gig.

The press release (which includes lines like "Hulk Hogan has stayed relevant because people like and respect what he stands for. That's the affiliation we are leveraging for our current customers and target prospects.") and the commercial itself (where Hogan essentially teaches Aikman how to be more charismatic) are both awesome.

Nick Hogan's car after crashing it

View full size photo »

TMZ.com reports that Hulk Hogan has sensibly settled out of court the lawsuit filed against him and his son Nick by the Graziano family.  The lawsuit came about after Nick crashed his car while allegedly racing against another driver, leaving his passenger John critically injured with a cracked skull and bad brain damage, injuries he will never fully recover from, thus necessitating the need for life long nursing home care.  Hogan was in a tough position legally given that he apparently bought the small amount of alcohol found in his son's system after he crashed the car.  It also didn't help that Hogan was taped in prison saying to his son Nick that God had laid some heavy shit on John Graziano because of the things he was into, with Nick agreeing he was a negative person.  No wonder Hogan wanted to avoid a media circus!

Hulk Hogan isn't just about the Big Boot and Legdrop anymore.

View full size photo »

Pro wrestling has always been seen as a rather incestuous industry; since Vince McMahon took over the reigns of WWE all of those years ago, wrestling hasn't really strayed from his formula. It makes sense because it worked, and it worked for a very long time. If you watch current MMA, boxing, kickboxing or pro wrestling, you can be sure the presentation has a lot to thank from Vince McMahon as well as the promoters he shamelessly stole ideas from and re-branded as his own. The only problem is, the pro wrestling formula is arguably quite dated. Stars like Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock were all enough to keep fans interested and building new fans.

The problem is now the current fanbase has dwindled a bit. It happens, it was expected, but the problem is the fans who grew up watching wrestling who will fondly talk about Papa Shango cursing the Ultimate Warrior and Stone Cold flipping off the boss before showering him in beer and giving him a Stone Cold Stunner have moved on. While fans do grow out of wrestling, the problem is when they reproduce and start a family, they won't flip on the television to WWE and reminisce with their children as to the crazy grapplers they loved growing up and support their fandom. Instead, they will most likely be tuning into UFC and telling their kids about when Chuck Liddell knocked Tito Ortiz into oblivion or the epic encounters between Chuck and Randy Couture.

Hulk Hogan, of all people, has been described as a guy who holds onto his legacy and is resistant to change. So it is surprising to look at his recent interview with Fanhouse on how he views MMA and wants to learn from it.

"MMA is spanking the WWE as far as the pay-per-view stuff," Hogan told FanHouse on Tuesday. "Dana White and the UFC has done an amazing job, and it's all about timing. The UFC was ready to close its doors, they were losing a ton of money, they were going under, they were getting ready to go out of business, and then they did a reality show called, The Ultimate Fighter. They developed the characters; they made people care about the fighters; the people found out who the fighters were; they breathed life into the fighters. That's what I want to do with TNA. They've got the best talent in the world down there, but no one is breathing life into the characters."

Not only will Hogan be appearing on TNA television in a role he describes as, "the Vince McMahon of TNA," he also said that he will be running the show creatively behind-the-scenes. It is there that the 56-year-old will look to emulate what the UFC has been able to accomplish over the past decade. 

"I have learned a ton of stuff from MMA, watching them," he said. "They remind me of TNA. Ton of talent, but no one has put that Frankenstein, shock the monster, breathe some life into the characters. I learned a ton from MMA, and I get along great with Dana White -- he's awesome."

Carrying on the proud tradition of WCW, TNA announced that they, in partnership with the BUBBA THE LOVE SPONGE radio show, are holding a parade in honor of Hulk Hogan's debut in TNA. The parade will be held at Margaritaville in City Walk at Universal Orlando on January 3rd.

More photos » John Bazemore - AP

Browse more photos »

In a recent interview, Hulk Hogan claimed that the only two credible news sources left in America are People Magazine and Larry King.  You may ask yourself how he arrived at this improbable conclusion.  Well, what you don't know is that Hulk Hogan, like his contemporary and dear friend Richard Nixon, keeps a remarkably detailed "enemies list" and brother, if you're the media, you'd better try your best to not get on it.  (Possible repercussions associated with inclusion on Hogan's enemies list may involve -- but are not limited to -- 24-inch pythons, the power of Hulkamania, and running wild on you.)

Cageside Seats was somehow able to obtain a portion of Hogan's Media Enemies List and it's certainly revealing to find out how certain media outlets have wronged "The Immortal" Hulk Hogan in the past.  Take a gander:

• Huffington Post - Quoted me as calling John Graziano "a drooling vegetable" when I actually said "gibbering retard" -- don't even bother checking your facts, you jabronies!
• Nightline - Ted Koppel refused to include me in his live episode from Jerusalem.  What a bush-league operation, man!
• National Enquirer - Refused to print my suggestions that I be nominated for John McCain's running mate in lieu of Palin.  I've cut the Enquirer boys a lot of slack in the past, but enough is enough, brother!
• Forbes - Declined to write an article regarding my challenging the Forbes 400 to a winner-take-all, battle royal Yappapi Indian Death Strap Match!
• TMZ - Waving a gun around while my testicles hang out of my Speedos at Fort Lauderdale not even worth a mention?!?!  What makes that "Twilight" dude so special?!?!
• The Christian Science Monitor - Kept telling me my editorial espousing my "Four Demandments" was inappropriate regardless of whether they were a secular publication.
• Fox News - Hannity rolled his eyes at me that one time.
• Entertainment Weekly - Not making the "Hot List" despite having a hit show?!  a D MINUS for "Brooke Knows Best"?!  Fascists.
• TV Guide - No, TV Guide, Jeers to YOU!!!!  JEERS TO YOU!!!!
• Xinhua News Agency - Hulkamania banned in China?!?! Fine, I didn't want to go there anyway.  I already wrestled Genghis Khan at the national Chinese Palace in 1987 in front of ten million people, that territory's burnt out, brother.
• Hustler - I don't care what anybody says, brother, that Nancy Benoit pictorial was in poor taste

Fascinating stuff, to be sure!

More photos » John Bazemore - AP

Browse more photos »

Well that didn't take long.  Here's the official press release from Hogan's camp!

HULK HOGAN JOINS TNA WRESTLING
Legendary Wrestler and Pop Culture Icon Returns To The Ring With Fast-Rising Wrestling Organization
 
“Hulkamania” is back! The biggest name in professional wrestling history, Hulk Hogan, is joining Total Non-Stop Action Wrestling (TNA), the fastest rising wrestling organization in the world and home to one of cable television’s highest rated shows for young men, TNA iMPACT!  The announcement was made today by TNA Wrestling in conjunction with Spike TV at a press conference held in New York City.
 
“Hulk Hogan is one of the world’s top pop culture icons and the biggest superstar in the history of professional wrestling.  We are truly excited to welcome him into the TNA family,” said Dixie Carter, President of TNA Wrestling.  “Our goal is to become the world’s biggest professional wrestling company.  Hulk defines professional wrestling and we look forward to partnering with him in a variety of ways as we continue to grow TNA globally.”
 
“I’m thrilled to be jumping back into the world of professional wrestling,” said Hogan.  “My fans have been asking me to return to the business for many years on a full time basis, but the timing or the opportunity has never been right until now.  TNA Wrestling is a great company with an already excellent fan base, business and broadcast partner.  I firmly believe now is the time for some change at TNA as they are positioned to jump to the next level in their development and I’m here to work with Dixie to help make that a reality.”
 
Through Hogan’s partnership with Bischoff Hervey Entertainment Television, the deal with TNA was negotiated by longtime Hogan colleague Eric Bischoff.  Additionally, BHE TV has inked a first-look deal with TNA and will be working with the organization to develop new programming extensions of the TNA brand.
 
“Hulk Hogan adds yet another level of star power that positions TNA iMPACT as Spike TV’s version of ‘Must-See TV’ on Thursday nights,” said Kevin Kay, president of Spike.
 
Hogan most recently penned an autobiography with Mark Dagostino, “My Life Outside The Ring” with St. Martin’s Press

It's going to be real interesting to see what this ends up meaning for TNA. Will ratings spike?  Will he finally be the piece they need to truly be seen as serious competition to WWE?  Probably not, but certainly stranger things have happened.  We'll now get to see some dream matches like Hogan vs. Sting, Hogan vs. Nash, Hogan vs. uh....Hernandez? 

The world of professional wrestling could certainly use some shaking up.  I'm not sure if this is going to be something big in the long run, but I'm sure Vince McMahon's not too happy about this today.

"The Immortal" Hulk Hogan turns 56 today! Happy birthday, brother! Please wish the Hulkster well in our comments section.