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Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Way Back WhensDay: Hulk Hogan's Rock N Wrestling

Junkyard Dog voiced by James Avery
By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents

I've written about Hulk Hogan's Rock N Wrestling Cartoon before, but the recent passing of actor James Avery has inspired me to write again.  Avery is best known for his role as "Uncle Phil" on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air and the voice of Shredder on the animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series. A little known fact, Avery was the voice of the Junkyard Dog on WWF inspired cartoon.

Hogan & Friends
I thought Avery did a pretty good job of sounding like JYD.  I've included an episode featuring the Dog at the end of this blog.  Sadly now, both of these talents are gone.  May they both rest in peace.

The cartoon aired two seasons on CBS and featured Hogan, who was voiced by Everybody Loves Raymond's Brad Garrett. Other superstars besides Hogan and JYD included Andre the Giant, Hillbilly Jim, Roddy Piper, Iron Sheik, Moolah, and Wendi Richter.  I don't know why the real wrestlers didn't provide the voices for their animated alter egos, but there were live action skits in between the cartoons.

I was in 7th grade when the show finally debuted. I was outgrowing cartoons, but I was sure to get up each Saturday morning in 1985 and 86 and watch.  I picked up a copy with a couple of episodes on VHS years ago.  Watching those cartoons bring back great memories, even though they're cheesy as you can imagine.

I'm looking forward to the soon-to-be released animated Scooby Doo film with WWE talent.  I believe it's the first animated endeavour the company has embarked on since Hulk Hogan's Rock N Wrestling was cancelled nearly 30 years ago.



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