My buddy Matt over at Dinosaur Dracula has a great brand new article up as part of his “Deadsites” series covering things that were offered at the Hot Topic website in 1998 that is well worth checking out!
It’s a real time capsule of what was popular and cool back then.
I love that someone decided to create and sell an El Santo shirt of all things.
And remember, you always want people to know that you’re nWo 4 Life- even when it’s dark out! So you’d better get that Glow In The Dark nWo shirt!
How many of you Crappers had at least one of these shirts pictured up there? C’mon, let’s see some hands (or comments)!
The Hit Man was upset because he wanted an El Dandy t-shirt.
El Dandy?! But he’s a cruiserweight!
Only in his body size but not in his heart.
Don’t be fooled by his stocky physique – oh wait – that’s Silver King
Before I scrolled down to the comments, I was wondering how long it would take for the first El Dandy mention. Boom. First comment nailed it. Well done, John.
I still have my Austin Class of 3:16 shirt somewhere in a box in my closet. That and my Hulkamania bandana are the only wardrobe items I’ve ever purchased related to wrestling (unless the CM Punk wrist-bands bundled with the DVD set count). I have butt-loads of everything else, but never thought wearing it was the best move for my public image.
1998 I was in middle school I had the original NWO shirt and a wolfpac shirt. I also had a dx shirt and a WWF shirt that had most of the AE main stars on it as well as a special new years shirt which featured Austin. At that time I saw many people wearing wrestling shirts so it wasn’t something to be ashamed of. I was at WrestleMania 28 and there I picked up a retro Austin 3:16 like the 1 pictured but with 1 skull as well as an Undertaker shirt and a shirt promoting the end of an era match.
I remember how WWF stuff used to completely line one of the walls of Hot Topic back then. I think I had picked up one of those Stone Cold Steve Austin pewter dog tags there.
Back in 1998 I wore DX and nWo. Looking at that list now…I’d wear El Santo.
I had that glow in the dark now t-shirt.
I had one of the Stone Cold DTA t-shirts. I thought I was the cat’s meow in that shirt.
I remember the nWo glow-in-the-dark shirts, too. I hated that they would glow in the dark, and never owned an nWo shirt because I could never find a plain old, be-dark-in-the-dark version.
I miss those prices. Still, the classic Macho Man purple shirt rules them all, brotha’.
I absolutely had the NWO glow in the dark t-shirt!!! For some bizarre reason I still remember that I wore that shirt on my very first day of work at my current job.. which was in December 1999.. to which everyone who worked there then proceeded to call me “Meng” for the next several years…
I managed a Hot Topic at the time. Dennis Rodman “Rodzilla” tees went on clearance. I bought about 20 for $.55 each and gave them to my family for Christmas. My grandmother was thrilled.
Plus I had the Santo shirt!
I had a Steve Austin shirt from Hot Topic around this time, but it’s not on that screengrab. The front of it had like a Sheriff’s badge with the rattlesnake on it & said below it, “I don’t have a problem with Authority…” and then on the back it said, “I AM THE AUTHORITY!” – Stone Cold Steve Austin
I thought it was a badass shirt at the time. I wore to school the day after I bought it & was clearly mistaken. Nobody in my wrestling circle liked that shirt.