Long before viral weddings and shock TV moments, there was that one unforgettable night when Dolly Parton walked down the aisle… to marry Hulk Hogan — on live television. It wasn’t a dream, and it wasn’t a sketch. It was glitz, sequins, spandex, and Southern charm colliding in the most wonderfully chaotic stunt pop culture had ever seen. Decades later, fans are still asking: Did that really happen? Oh, it did — and it was glorious.

While Dolly Parton and Hulk Hogan were never actually married in real life, they did tie the knot in a funny and delightfully cheesy TV skit.

In the premiere of Dolly, Dolly Parton’s ABC variety series which aired September 27, 1987, she introduced a music video for her song “Headlock on My Heart.”

The song was her playful response to tabloid rumors about dating a 300‑lb wrestler.

The video features Hogan, billed as “Starlight Starbright,” decked out in his red-and-yellow wrestling gear, triumphing over “Iron” Mike Sharpe, then sweeping Dolly off her feet with an in-ring wedding ceremony.

The skit plays up Dolly’s fangirl obsession and Hogan’s over-the-top wrestling persona, she even screams “Starlight Starbright!” from the crowd as he wrestles.

Dolly sang: He’s got a headlock on my heart / It was a take down from the start / I love the heart that beats beneath his massive golden chest / I guess you could say he’s pinned me down for a lifetime

Dolly Parton & Hulk Hogan (Photo by Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)

Dolly Pitches The Idea To Hulk

In his 2002 autobiography, Hulk Hogan recalls that Dolly Parton personally called his house to pitch the segment.

During the call—and later on set—she gushed about how much she adored him, leaving the wrestling star puzzled by her enthusiastic praise. Eventually, he realized the over-the-top flattery wasn’t about hidden motives, it was simply Dolly being her warm, larger-than-life self.

“When I first got there and she kept telling me she loved me, I thought I was something special,” Hogan wrote. “I thought she was genuinely a big fan. Then I saw she told everybody she loved them, from the cameraman to the key grip to the other 80 guys walking around the set. Apparently, that’s her style.”

Watch the hilarious music video below.

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