It's an old rule in TV that when a show becomes a hit, copycats follow. Thus, when Baywatch became a smashing success in the early 1990s, many "beach, babes and bikinis" series were aired. Baywatch creator Douglas Schwartz decided to do one of his own and reached out to Hulk Hogan, then leaving WWE, to create Thunder In Paradise.
Hogan played R.J. "Hurricane" Spencer, a former Navy SEAL running a private business with buddy Bru (Chris Lemmon). The pair had a souped-up speedboat to help in freelance mercenary jobs. Spencer also cared for his adoptive daughter Jessica at an island resort with Carol Alt as the bartender and Patrick Macnee as Jessica's disapproving grandfather.
The series only lasted a single season in 1994, with episodes still airing when Hogan joined WCW. However, it has a bit of a cult following as one of the cheesiest shows in an already cheesy time. Here are ten things to know when watching Thunder in Paradise to see how Hogan's attempted TV stardom only led to more success in wrestling.
10 The Pilot Movie Had A Different Setup
A standard practice in the 1990s was a show to have a "TV movie" as a possible pilot. For Thunder In Paradise, it was set up in a direct-to-video film where the plot was a bit different. One twist featured was that Jessica's mother, Megan, was in danger of losing the hotel unless she got married.
Hearing Spencer needed money, they cooked up a fake marriage with the idea of Megan running the hotel while Spencer went on missions. When the show was picked up for a full season, it was explained that the pair wound up truly falling in love, but Megan died in a car accident, leaving Spencer as a single dad. That had Macnee becoming a regular character to keep an eye on Jessica and shifted up the show.
9 It Was Going To Be On CBS
Believe it or not, this show was originally going to be on a network. Intrigued by Hogan's name getting attention and wanting their own Baywatch-style success, CBS worked with Italian company Reteitalia to co-fund the pilot for $2 million. Reteitalia was so confident that they ordered 13 episodes before the pilot was even finished.
But when CBS saw it, they felt the show wouldn't last and backed out of more episodes. Thus, Reteitalia went the syndication route, feeling they had a hit on their hands. It turned out CBS was right to pass on this, yet it's amazing to know how close Hogan came to being a network star.
8 It Has The First Hogan-Sting "Battle"
This was a pretty big deal for wrestling fans in 1994. One of the show's recurring villains was Hammerhead, a former ally of Spencer until he turned evil and now wants to kill him. Cast in the role was Sting, under his real name of Steve Borden.
Seeing the longtime hero of WCW playing the bad guy was exciting, and he was actually good at it. Thus, the first-ever Hogan-Sting confrontation happened on a speeding boat and later in an underwater prison. Sting was fun as the bad guy clashing with Hogan.
7 Hogan Has A Replica Scarab
Besides Hogan, the real star of the show was the boat itself. The "Thunder" was supposed to be a high-tech machine with animation showing it turning into an armored craft with cannons, machine guns and nearly indestructible. The real boat was a simpler affair, not as fast as its on-screen counterpart.
When the show was canceled, the boat, nicknamed the "Razzle Dazzle," was bought by Richard Hammond and used in The Grand Tour with another model bought by a private businessman. Hogan has admitted to having his own detailed replica of the Scarab made for himself to drive to relive his "Hurricane" days.
6 It Had A Bad Video Game
As surprising as it sounds, this show had its own video game. Well, "game" is pushing it. It was more of an "interactive movie" created for the ill-fated Phillips CD-i system and brought together footage from a couple of episodes.
The idea was at various points, gamers would have to make commands so Spencer and Bru would shoot enemies or fire at boats with badly animated explosions put in. There was a bit of new footage of Hogan talking to the player put in, but like many games of its type, it flopped hard with gamers. It seems fans could barely take watching the show, let alone play it.
5 Several Wrestlers Are In It
Sting isn't the only pro wrestler to make an appearance on this show. Hogan's enemy-turned-ally manager Jimmy Hart has a recurring part as "Jimmy," a local bartender/shop owner.
Hogan's old buddy Ed Leslie naturally popped up in a few roles with Fred Ottoman (Typhoon/The Shockmaster) as a bad guy. Jim Neidhart, Jorge Gonzalez (Giant Gonzalez) and Hercules also dropped in. There was even Terry Funk as a goofy trucker Hogan has a friendly rivalry with. At least Hogan got some wrestling pals to spice up the show.
4 The "Exotic Locales" Were Disney World
If the locations on the series look familiar, there's a good reason. The actual pilot had scenes at the resort hotel filmed at St. Bart's, but when it was picked up for series, the producers had to save money. Thus, scores of the "worldwide" locations are really Walt Disney World.
The main resort is the Grand Floridian; an "underwater prison" is the Living Seas pavilion at Epcot; "London" is the United Kingdom at World Showcase; an "island" was Typhoon Lagoon; and a "distant foreign land" is the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. So don't be surprised you see something with Mickey Mouse in the background in some scenes.
3 Chris Lemmon Claims It Killed His Career
As the son of legendary Oscar-winning actor Jack Lemmon, Chris Lemmon had a few doors open for him in Hollywood and a decent career in movies and TV. His turn as Bru was a high point of the series with his humor and good action scenes.
However, Lemmon has gone on record in interviews as openly stating the show killed his career. Casting directors refused to take him seriously after this and Lemmon's work has been straight-to-DVD fare and the occasional TV guest shot. It's likely he and Hogan aren't that close now.
2 George Foreman Was Going To Star
One of Hogan's famous "tall tales" is how he was in line to promote a brand of grills but had to bow out, so George Foreman became wealthy with them. Hogan also claims he and Foreman were to face off in a charity boxer vs wrestler match but there is no evidence of that.
However, Foreman has confirmed he was in line to play Bru in the show, which would have been an interesting dynamic for the elder former boxer as a Navy SEAL. Foreman had his own short-lived sitcom for ABC in the works and the scheduling conflict led to him bowing out in favor of Chris Lemmon, robbing fans of the Hogan-Foreman tag team.
1 Hogan Wanted A Second Season Until WCW Came Calling
Despite the so-so ratings, there was a possibility for the show to get picked up again for another season. Hogan had some ideas for it, which would have involved bringing in Mr. T as another old friend of Spencer along with a female martial artist and renaming it "Thunderforce." A big turn would have been Hammerhead turning into a good guy to aid them.
But while filming the last episodes, Eric Bischoff went to Hogan with a big offer from WCW. Realizing that was a better offer than a second season that might go nowhere, Hogan agreed. Had Thunder in Paradise lasted one more year, WCW might have looked a lot different.