Terry Bollea, known as professional wrestler Hulk Hogan, testifies in his case against the news website Gawker in St. Petersburg, Florida March 7, 2016.
REUTERS
Hogan, 62, wearing his trademark black bandana and a massive silver cross, was filmed having consensual sex with the wife of a friend.
"I was completely humiliated," Hogan, one of America's most famous entertainment wrestlers, told the court.
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The handlebar-mustached performer -- whose real name is Terry Bollea -- says his privacy was violated by the publication of the one-minute, 41-second steamy encounter.
The sex video was posted by the online news and entertainment site Gawker, the defendant in the suit.
Hogan's friend, radio personality Bubba "the Love Sponge" Clem, had an "open marriage" and wanted his wife to have sex with the wrestler, Hogan testified.
After several entreaties, Hogan said he finally agreed, not realizing that the encounter was secretly recorded.
The trial is expected to last several weeks.
Hogan insists that the posting of the video harmed his personal and professional reputation. It was seen online some seven million times, his attorney said in court.
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"This man stood there naked, and exposed, to the world," said his lawyer, Shane Vogt.
"This was a pornographic video that was secretly recorded without Mr Bollea's consent, and they knew it."
A lawyer for Gawker, Michael Berry, insisted however that the recording and posting of celebrity photos and video -- even salacious ones -- goes with the territory when one is a star.
"The public is fascinated with sex tapes. That's the way it is today," Berry said.
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