The WAWLI Papers No. 729 . . .

VIOLENT FRIDAY NIGHT

(Sunday Oklahoman, April 1, 1973)

By Phil Frey

Sure, Jack, we've all heard those putdowns from the straight dudes about what a fake show pro wrestling really is -- how it's just a bunch of fat freaks with hairy backs and gross gimmicks who practice making faces in their personal pocket mirrors.

How some villain named Dr. Z, who wears a mask and spits at little children, misses a drop kick toward Mr. Clean by eight inches and the turkeys at ringside go into Instant Lap-Up. They think this carnival is for real.

Give 'em an Oscar! More catsup blood for the screaming old ladies. Circusville. Boo! Hiss! Socko numbers like that.

Sure it's fake, but so what's wrong with a little show biz? For $60,000 a year -- net income -- might as well give the suckers what they paid $1.50 apiece to see.

Without sports-page coverage and only the tiniest same-day advertisement, pro wrestling attracts from 3,000 to 4,000 fans who get their jollies regular as clockwork at State Fair Park each Friday night.

The spectacle they see fits a can't-fail theatrical formula. Characters in the script include a bad guy with illegal weapons in his stretch trunks, a dummy referee who misses all the bad stuff that goes on whenever his back is turned and an All-American good guy who resorts to revenge only at the urging of screaming fans, and who finally triumphs like justice only about every other week.

The in-between matches when Mr. Clean gets stomped to death illegally by the villain or disqualified for some minor infraction by that stupid referee merely help set the stage for next week's grudge rematcdh, to which the infuriated faithful will most assuredly return.

But for all the biting, eye-gouging and hair-pulling, there's still some honest talent to this show biz carnival.

Why not ask two-time Olympian Danny Hodge of Perry or a half-dozen other former Oklahoma NCAA wrestling champs and Sooner football alums just how much fake there is in getting your eyebrow split open on the ring post or in being thrown over the ropes 10 feet down to the concrete? That's higher than jumping off a one-story house.

Ask them about the broken bones, the real blood, the bumps and bruises; about former wrestlers who will spend the rest of their lives hobbling around or with their necks in braces from pile drivers that crushed genuine vertebrae.

Ask them how they fake body-slamming 270 pounds of sweat-slick muscle; how they flip, kick, punch and get punched all over that ring four and five nights every week.

"I know some of these guys may look fat and sloppy, but they've got to be well-conditioned athletes to live this kind of life," said Hodge.

Hodge is an Oklahoma legend who is an admitted freak on wrestling and feats of strengths.

While at OU, where he was unbeaten and a national champ in 1955-56-57, Hodge entertained classmates by crushing apples and breaking pliers with one hand. He wrestled in his first Olympics at 19, was undefeated in the Navy, and won a medal in the '56 Olympics. In 1958 he won the U.S. Heavyweight Golden Gloves title, the only man ever to hold both national boxing and wrestling amateur titles.

He is the World Junior Heavyweight (under 225 pounds) Wrestling Champion, which he's won and lost five times during 13 years as a pro.

As a top attraction, Hodge earns from 8 to 10 per cent of the gate, or about $75,000 per year. And he's not the only Oklahoman to approach that stardom bracket.

Jack Brisco from Blackwell, a former NCAA champion at OSU, is a bigtimer on the Florida circuit and wrestled several months down under in Australia. His younger brother Gerald is doing almost as well.

Former OU footballers Wahoo McDaniel and "Cowboy" Bill Watts both perform regularly in Chicago and Madison Square Garden. Dale Lewis, an OU Olympian and NCAA champion, has his picture in all the wrestling magazines.

Most of them have been bad guys or employed other promotional gimmicks. Watts, who is the North American Heavyweight Champion, wears custom cowboy boots in the ring.

But Hodge is always Every Mother's Mr. Nice Guy. He signs autographs for fawning kids and star-struck 92-year-old great-grandfathers. Old ladies with their hair in rollers and shapely teenage lovelies bring along their cameras to take snapshots of each other kissing him on the cheek.

Yet, the heor worship is not unlike college football. It's just less sophisticated and on a lower income plane.

"Bruiser" Bob Sweetan is Hodge's philosophical opposite. The National Brass Knucks Champ says he'll break a guy's arm or leg when he can.

"In my first pro match I gave a guy a pile driver into the cement floor. It gave him a concussion and finished his career."

Sweetan is a 285-pound former Canadian lumberjack who played professional football for the Toronto Argonauts.

"My philosophy is to win at all costs. It's a tough business; only the strongest survive. It's not like football where you have a week to recuperate. I wrestle about four nights a week. You've got to get the other guy before he gets you.

"The more pain I inflict, the more I hurt the other guy, the better my psychological advantage next time. Same as in football -- you nail a guy hard enough and often enough, he's gonna give just a little next time you come his way."

A black head mask is Docter X's gimmick. He's a former bad guy now beloved by the fans. He won't give out his real name or his residence, because he has a quarter horse ranch and is afraid enemies might shoot his high-priced stock.

Besides anonymity, he says the mask protects his face and prevents cauliflower ears. But it didn't help him on a recent night in Oklahoma City. Sweetan, with illegal help from Jerry Miller, stomped him real enough to split an eyebrow about an inch.

Medical insurance for pro grapplers is at a premium. Broken bones and injuries are part of the game.

"One time I was hospitalized in traction and out of action for four and a half months when a guy gave me a Boston crab and jumped on my back," Hodge said. "I should have given up, but I was young. That hurt me real, real bad."

"When I first started I was black and blue all the time. Now I've found that hot showers and Vitamin C help keep the bruises down," said 24-year-old Mike George from St. Joe, Mo., who earned $15,000 for eight months' work during his 1972 rookie year.

"You take a lot of punishment in this business. I learn something new every time I get into the ring. So far I only wrestle about three nights a week. That's all I can take right now."

Although tempers frequently follow the pros back into the dressing room, any fighting there would bring a stiff fine plus possible suspension from the ring.

"When you don't wrestle, you don't get paid," Hodge said. "If a guy hurts you enough to put you out of action, that hurts your income for your family and you're gonna get even with him somewhere down the way.

"Plus tempers seem to get shorter as guys get older. They're afraid of losing their youth, and they try to hurt you. That's when the crippling stage comes in.

"Some of them hide illegal objects in their trunks and use them on you when the ref can't see. Sometimes they only pretend they do to infuriate the fans. It's frowned upon, but it helps them win matches, and you've got to win to wrestle main events where the money is."

Sweetan earned $4,800 for one night's work at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. "I don't wrestle for less than $250 a match. The last few years I've been average around $65,000 -- that's net!"

"I know one guy in New York who made $150,000 last year," Dr. X added. "We're in it to make our money and get out as quick as we can."

The preliminary boys offer other excuses for their $50 to $80 per night.

"It's a diversion from my regular routine and helps me keep in shape," said Bill "Red" McKim of Tulsa, who supplements his jobs as Tulsa deputy fire marshal and arson investigation teacher at Tulsa Junior College.

Like any sport loaded with hero worship, there are plenty of adoring women willing to help fight the loneliness of the road.

"The available girls are really a smorgasboard, but I'm a married man. I take my family along in a trailer," Sweetan said.

Main-events fly between matches in big cities. Hodge has been around the world nine times thanks to wrestle and to Japan six times as a pro.

Although doctors and businessmen can be found among the audience, the sport seems to attract mostly the blue collar and beer-stained T-shirt classes. Some of the most interesting sights (and occasionally, fights) are in the audience, which some wrestlers have learned to fear more than their opponents across the ring.

"In Tulsa, a guy pulled a policeman's gun and pointed it at my head," Dr. X said.

Sweetan took 38 stitches in his scalp last Christmas when a fan struck him with a steel folding chair. There's a big scar on his hip from a knife.

One of the worst incidents was at Oklahoma City's old Stockyards Coliseum when a man ran up and slashed Hodge and "Dandy" Jack Donovan across the thighs with a straight razor.

"I had 140 stitches. It was so deep they had to sew me up in three layers," Hodge said.

Over the years, several wrestlers have taken hard slams and never arisen from the canvas. In Oklahoma City, over-excited fans have keeled over dead from heart attacks.

"But I discourage wrestlers throwing each other out of the ring. That stops the action, plus a fan might get hurt. We carry insurance to protect fans but that's a good way to get sued," Promoter LeRoy McGuirk of Tulsa said.

McGuirk said "Irish" Mike Clancy, a Tulsa police officer and part-time wrestler, once had genuine blood in his eyes while running a gauntlet of irate fans back to his dressing room when a woman ran up and peered into his face.

"He thought she was his opponent trying to get him so he hit her right between the eyes and blacked them both. The judge ruled that she should have been in her seat, but I sure thought we were gonna lose our shirts in that suit."

Totally blind, McGuirk has never seen any of the wrestlers who have earned him a 2,000-acre ranch near Claremore and made him a millionaire from a sport over which he once reigned as national champ.

Minus the sight of one eye since childhood, he was a state high school champ at Tulsa and NCAA titlist at OSU. McGuirk turned pro while earning $21 a week as a sports writer for a Tulsa newspaper during the Depression. He wrestled over 3,000 professional matches and reigned 10 years as Junior Heavyweight Champ.

"It was more pure wrestling in those days. Some matches went on for two hours and you might get in one hold and stay there for 30 minutes."

Modern fans want more action and color, which McGuirk has been giving them since a 1951 car wreck cost him his other eye and turned him to promoting.

"You've got to give people a run for their money. That's what they come out to see. We tell guys to give action on their feet, not go down on the mat like in college and tie themselves in a knot.

"The contest part between most of these fellows has been settled a long time ago. They've wrestled either other before. They pretty well know who's best."

It was McGuirk who first put Gorgeous George on the road to starmdom, probably the most famous pro grappler of all time.

His name was George Wagner and he wrestled right here in Oklahoma. His sequined robes and long hair were a novelty back then. He hired a valet and went out to California when TV was first getting started and probably made $150,000 a year at his peak.

McGuirk now books about 40 different wrestlers for nearly 20 towns in five states, the majority in Louisiana and Mississippi. For some he puts on the whole program; for others he only books the card. His company also videotapes a bout in a Shreveport, La., TV studio and sells it in 16 other cities, including here. WKY-TV hosted the live match for over 10 years.

Novelties always draw customers. McGuirk has booked girls, midgets, bears, alligators and boxer vs. wrestler matches.

At over 500 pounds, Haystack Calhoun is one of the biggest wrestlers. If he turns professional, 450-pound Iowa State Olympian Chris Taylor is expected to earn $100,000 a year, "but I don't know who or what I could put him in against after the first two or three times," McGuirk said.

"I've matched men against bears. Hodge is so strong he's about the only one who can put a 500-pound bear on his its back. But those things are treacherous. During winter they want to hibernate and you can't do much with them.

"We've had fellows get the tips of their fingers bitten off."

That's almost as dangerous as being a referee. He catches it from both wrestlers and fans.

"Oh, sure, they (fans) beat on you and cuss you, but you just got to duck your head and try to avoid them," Leo Voss, McGuirk's assistant, said.

Voss wrestled professionally five years, then spent 30 more refereeing four to six nights per week until a car accident ended that, too.

"Referees don't have to use any tricks. You just call 'em as you see 'em. There's always somebody who don't like what you say."

Referees have their share of war wounds, too.

"One time in San Antonio a guy threw a bottle of beer and hit me in the head. It took 14 stitches and within 30 days cataracts were forming on my eyes from the shock," Voss said. "We've had fans get to excited they jump right in the ring, even women."

"Sometimes I get up there myself," said Lee Kalivoda of Wheatland, who in 235 years has rarely missed a Friday night match. The 260-pound truckdriver, who looks like he could raise a few lumps himself, yells nasties to the villain in Czechoslavakian and always buys the same two $3 first row seats on the aisle.

"I hardly ever bring anyone else with me. I just don't like to sit by some drunk," Kalivoda said. "Why do I like it? It's a good show, good entertainment. I ain't got nowhere else to go on Friday night."
_________________________________

WRESTLING LEGEND WALLY KARBO DIES

(Minneapolis Tribune, Friday, March 26, 1993)

By Pat Pheifer

Wally Karbo's name was synonymous with professional wrestling for more than 50 years.

His face, voice and mannerisms were familiar to generations of fans who watched All-Star Wrestling on Saturday morning television.

"Wally WAS wrestling to Minnesota," said Jesse (The Body) Ventura. "Wally's a legend."

Karbo, 77, of Bloomington, was having lunch with a friend Thursday when he suffered a heart attack. He was pronounced dead at Fairview Southdale Hospital in Edina.

In recent years he had been a commissioner of the Ladies Professional Wrestling Association, but he got his start in the business nearly 60 years ago as a kid straight out of parochial school.

Walter Joseph Karbo was born and raised in northeast Minneapolis, the son of Polish immigrants. He graduated from De La Salle High School in 1934 and was quite an athlete in his own right. He played basketball and was offered a scholarship to the University of Notre Dame, said his brother Mike.

Finances were tight, and he chose not to go to college. Instead, he started hanging around gyms with his next-door neighbor, Stan Mayslack, who wanted to be a wrestler. In time he met Tony Stecher, the top boxing and wrestling promoter in Minneapolis during the 1930s.

He worked for Stecher as an office boy/go-fer and eventually was offered a job as referee for out-of-town wrestling matches. By the time he was 23 or 24, he had refereed close to 8,000 matches, his brother said. During his lifetime it was closer to 25,000.

Soon he began organizing matches in Toronto, Winnipeg and the Dakotas and as far west as Denver. By the 1940s he had moved into the Twin Cities and elsewhere in Minnesota, and was one of the best-known promoters in the country.

"He was really well respected," Mike Karbo said yesterday. "He really was in love with it."

He and Verne Gagne were partners in the American Wrestling Association for more than three decades. The association's All-Star Wrestling debuted on TV in the early 1950s, and the matches continued across the country.

"He would talk in circles and he would garble his words and he would do all kinds of stuff that just endeared him to people," said David Lee, his attorney and longtime friend. "Wally would always treat people fairly . . . and they were loyal to him and vice versa."

Karbo never thought he was better than anybody else, said Ed Sharkey, a former wrestler turned trainer turned promoter.

"He wasn't a guy who wore a three-piece suit and sat in an office," he said. "He was one of the guys. He wanted to ride in the car with the boys. He wanted to go have a beer with the boys."

Karbo was to have received a lifetime achievement award at a Pro Wrestling America match on April 17, Sharkey said.

"I don't know what we're going to do," he said. "The whole wrestling community is just shattered."

Ventura said that he started wrestling for the association in 1978-79, but that he had watched Karbo on TV since he was a little boy.

"Wally was sly like a fox," he said. "A lot of people perceived Wally as not being real brainy, but Wally Karbo knew the wrestling business better than anybody who's been in it. Wally could recognize talent and who could draw money. He enjoyed life to the fullest."

Karbo sold his interest in the association in about 1984. He continued to promote women's wrestling until the day he died.

He also was known for his civic contributions. He had been honored for his work with the March of Dimes Variety Club Heart Hospital at the University of Minnesota and other organizations.

He visited his 100-year-old mother at a nursing home every day. When he had time, he found great joy in going on fishing and hunting trips with his buddies.

His wife, Viola, died five years ago. Besides his brother Mike, who lives in Bloomington, he is survived by a son, Steve, of Eden Prairie; a daughter, Mary Ann Duffee, of Bloomington; his mother, Anna, of St. Anthony; another brother, Ed, of Minneapolis; a sister, Wanda Hanigan, of Las Vegas, and four grandchildren.

Services will be held Monday at an hour yet to be decided, at St. Hedwig's Catholic Church, 129 29th Av. NE., Minneapolis. Arrangements are by the Kapala-Glodek Funeral Chapel in northeast Minneapolis.
_______________________________

REMEMBERING ILIO DIPAOLO, THE GENTLE GIANT

(Buffalo News, Friday, May 12, 1995)

By Gene Warner

The time for long-term grieving will come later, in the weeks and months ahead. On Thursday, Ilio Di Paolo's extended family gathered to reminisce and retell the anecodtes about the "gentle giant" who died Wednesday night.

There was the time, back in the 1950s, when he and his wife Ethel drove to a wrestling match in Toronto with only 11 cents in their pockets.

The time he ended an interview by picking up his interviewer and giving him an airplane spin.

The time he tried to teach a Japanese Rotarian how to sing, "I've Been Working On the Railroad."

The time he and Jim Kelly made up the rules for their bocce tournament.

All the stories had a common theme: Ilio Di Paolo was a character.

"He was such an outgoing person. He's the only one I knew who carried on a lengthy conversation with the greeter at Wal-Mart," said longtime close friend Pat Bonitatibus of Lackawanna.

"We've lost a truly giant citizen," said long-time sportscaster Ralph Hubbell, who once served as the propeller for a Di Paolo airplane spin. "He was all Buffalo. It seemed that everything he did was to benefit a community that had adopted him."

Di Paolo, 68, died Wednesday night, about half an hour after he was struck by a car while crossing Main Street in the Village of Hamburg.

The driver, an 18-year-old Orchard Park woman, told police that she never noticed Di Paolo until she heard a bang and then slammed on her brakes. Late Thursday, police said she probably wouldn't be charged.

Rain may have been a factor in Di Paolo's being struck just a few feet before he reached the curb on his way into a restaurant, police said.

"He was almost across the street," Detectgive Sgt. David Mammoser said. "Probably two or three more steps and he would have been home free."

The acciedent was the second traffic tragedy to strike the close-knit family. Six years ago, Di Paolo's daughter, Lisa, and her 5-year-old daughter, Tara Friedman, were killed.

"My father raised us as 'people' people," his son, Dennis, said Thursday. "He wouldn't want us to hide in our house and ask 'why?' He'd want us to be out (with friends and family)."

Through his two careers, as a pro wrestler and then as a highly successful restaurateur, Di Paolo got his strength from the same source.

As a wrestler, he thrived on the cheers of the crowd. As a restaurant owner, he'd invariably go from table to table, to field compliments about the food and the personal service.

"That was my father's strength: the people," Dennis Di Paolo said.

The elder Di Paolo loved to tell his stories, especially the one from the early 1950s, when he and his wife slept under a tree on their way to Toronto to a wrestling match with Fred Atkins.

"Eleven cents in our pocket," he'd tell his children. "That's what makes you hungry, when you have nothing."

Di Paolo's Old World accent, which he retained, was the source of plenty of jokes.

One day, the man who always rolled his Rs tried to teach a Japanese Rotarian how to sing an old American ditty, "I've Been Working On The Railroad."

"Here's this hulk of a man putting his arm around a Japanese man who's about 4 foot 9, trying to teach him how to roll his Rs," Bonitatibus said. "It was just hysterical."

The Buffalo Bills were one of Di Paolo's passions.

His restaurant became a second -- and sometimes first -- home for players and coaches. Ilio Di Paolo's caters dinner for the coaching staff and some front-office people four nights a week, and Di Paolo usually took the food over to Rich Stadium on Thursday nights.

So his weekly visit became a good-luck charm for the team, according to Scott Berchtold, director of media relations.

"Ilio Di Paolo . . . was such a dear friend to everyone in our organization, and he will be tremendously missed by all of us," General Manager John Butler stated Thursday. "It is always difficult to say good-bye to true friends, and Ilio was certainly that to the Buffalo Bills."

Di Paolo also became sort of a local adopted father for Bills quarterback Jim Kelly, who hails from the same kind of close-knit ethnic family, where hugs and kisses replace handshakes.

That's apparently why Kelly chose Di Paolos' restaurant to pop the question to his fiancee, Jill Waggoner, last November.

Kelly and Di Paolo held an annual all-day bocce tournament in Kelly's home. Dennis Di Paolo can remember Kelly's kidding suggestion for resolving any rules disputes:

"If anybody has any problems, to go Ilio or me. Ilio because he's Ilio, and me because it's my house."

Kelly and former Bills tight end Pete Metzelaars are among the players heading back to Buffalo for Di Paolo's funeral Saturday. And current and former staffers such as Ted Cottrell, Walt Corey, Chuck Lester and Bud Carpenter rushed to the family's side Wednesday night.

Di Paolo hosted a celebrity golf tournament each year and helped raise funds for the Leukemia Society, Cystic Fibrosis, the March of Dimes, and other charities.

He also was an active member of the South Shore Rotary Club, the Romulus Club and the Lake Erie Italian Club.

For all his civic activities, Di Paolo was named an outstanding citizen by 10 different organizations, including Hilbert College and the Rotarians.

"He always told us, 'Never say no. Do anything you can to help people out,'" Dennis said.

Surviving in addition to his wife, the former Ethel Martinez, and son Dennis, are another son, Michael; a daughter, Barbara; a sister, Joanna Phelan; and six grandchildren.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 8:30 a.m. Saturday in Our Lady of Sacred Heart Church on Abbott Road, Orchard Park, following a 7:45 prayer service at Colonial Memorial Chapels on South Park Avenue in Lackawanna. Entombment will be in Holy Cross Cemetery.

As his loved ones go through this weekend's rites of grieving, they won't forget Di Paolo's own thoughts on the subject.

"My father always stood for a strong family tradition," Dennis said. "You have your ups and downs, but you have to keep going."
___________________________________

The WAWLI Papers No. 730 . . .

CHAMPIONSHIP EMBLEM FOR WRESTLERS

(Associated Press, May 8, 1919)

CHICAGO -- A belt to cost $2250 to be emblematic of the world's wrestling championship is to be presented to the winner of the Wladek Zbyszko-"Strangler" Lewis match here May 19, it was announced today by the Coliseum Athletic Club. Most of the wrestling promoters of the country have contributed to the cost of the trophy, which, to become the private property of a holder, must be defended five times.
___________________________

STRANGLER LEWIS IS MARRIED

(Associated Press, May 8, 1919)

MERCER, Pa. -- Robert F. (Strangler) Lewis, the wrestler, was married here this afternoon to Dr. Ada Scott. The wedding was the culmination of a romance begun two years ago in San Jose, Cal., when Lewis suffered a broken leg in a wrestling bout and Dr. Scott, then a railroad surgeon, attended him.
__________________________

SIGEL KEEPS SUPERLATIVES FOR BUSINESS ONLY

(Houston Post, Monday, June 22, 1953)

By Harold Young

Morris Sigel has been the kingpin of wrestling in Houston so long a facetious customer once remarked that the Republic of Texas built the City Auditorium for his Friday night wrestling cards.

He has been around in the business for a long time -- probably longer than any other sports promoter in America. But so far as chronology is concerned, he has just started his 39th year. And, relatively speaking, that is infinitesimally less than the flick of an eye lash.

Forty-nine centuries before Morris Sigel was born in one of New York City's lower East Side tenements, not far from Fulton Street were his father kept a fish market and first met Al Smith, Egyptian sculpturers were decorating the walls of the tample-tombs of Beni Hasan, near the Nile, with scenes from wrestling matches and, incidentally, depicting most of the holds known to modern man. (Antiquarians may well cringe at this kind of stuff, but Homer probably was the world's first sports writer -- at least, he reported the wrestling bout between Ajax and Odysseus in the 23rd book of the Iliad.)

Back in the realm of modern perspective, it goes without saying that the Allen brothers, the founders of Houston, and the City Auditorium both antedate Morris Sigel and the Sigel wrestling cards to which several thousand fans now trudge faithfully 50 weeks out of the year, winter and summer.

Some promoters in the country may close down or go outdoors in the summer, but Houston fans are impervious to heat, as well as a lot of other things. In the summer, Mr. Sigel extravagantly advertises 30,000 pounds of ice in the City Auditorium's cooling system. But all that ice really amounts to is water down the drain. Even he admits, "It's psychological, I guess. Put 4,000 people in that place and it gets hot."

Mr. Sigel figures that he has had six million paying customers in 38 years and has staged at least 7,500 wrestling cards. Only two Sigel shows have been canceled. Once when the bayou flooded clear up to Travis Street -- Sigel customers bear with him in many things, but he has never tried to cajole them to take a rowboat to the City Auditorium.

And the week Texas City blew up, he canceled. It was too appalling even to think of going on.

Despite 38 years in the business, Mr. Sigel is by no means an old man. He is only 54 and won't be 55 until Oct. 31. He started with his brother, Julius Sigel, who died in 1942.

For years promotion was strictly a sideline for Morris Sigel and he spent almost 16 years with the Kirby Lumber Co. as an invoice clerk. It didn't appear so then, nor even so for several years, but while he was an invoice clerk, a very lucky thing happened to him -- he was fired. If that hadn't happened he might this day be looking forward only to 65 and social security. When he was fired he turned to fulltime promotion with his brother Julius.

Since that day he has made a fortune. For a man who operates in a business that can match Hollywood and the circus for superlatives, he can be surprisingly sotto voce about Morris Sigel -- "I've accumulated a little nest egg."

"I am just a beat-down, old wrestling promoter," he said another time during conversations about his career.

He had a heart attack in 1952 and it was touch and go for a month or more -- that might explain why he calls himself old at 54.

Unfriendly business competitors -- he operates in a world where outraged anguish is frequently the common tone of voice -- would be the first to deny that he is beat-down; that is if they could be assured they were not talking for publication.

Undoubtedly if they were to be quoted, they'd say they had Morris Sigel on the run. Currently in Texas there is what the newspapers call a wrestling war. It has many angles -- wrestling talent, among other things.

Mr. Sigel operates the Texas Wrestling Agency, which books wrestling cards for other promoters. Most of the big promoters of the country operate these wrestling agencies, and Morris Sigel is one of the big promoters of the country. It pains him to hear it, but Mr. Sigel is frequently called the czar of Texas wrestling -- it is an epithet, not a compliment.

In fact, a would-be Houston competitor once filed an antitrust suit against him -- "But the judge threw it out of court," he explains.

The current war is a little too lengthy for this dissertation. There is talk of this wrestler and that wrestler going over to the rival booking agencdy that has been organized in North Texas, but there appears to be little chance that any competitor is going to sink the doughty little warrior of Houston.

A hillbilly wrestler who carried a sack of possums around with him started Morris Sigel on the road to fortune -- and Mr. Sigel has never forgotten him, nor that wrestler, Leo Daniel Boone "Whiskers" Savage, forgotten Morris Sigel. When Sigel was sick in the hospital with his heart attack, Whiskers drove from Florida to give "Morris a hand in his scuffle." There is an extravagant warmth about friendships in the wrestling business.

Some 20 years ago Whiskers Savage drew the customers into the City Auditorium as no man ever had. In those times when money was scarace, Whiskers was the difference.

Sometimes, to hear Mr. Sigel talk about Savage, you'd be tempted to think Whiskers invented wrestling -- if not money. Of course, he did neither.

Less extravagantly, Mr. Sigel will never forget that, in a sense, Whiskers enabled him to sit in his home to gaze on the bucolic peace of a picture by Wattead, an 18th century French genre painter whose canvases also hangin the Louvre.

Mr. Sigel might admit he is a gourmet -- or was until his doctor put him on a diet that reduced the former 200-pound bulk on his small frame some 30 pounds -- but he would shy at art connosseur. The pictures in his home at 11006 Memorial Drive, he insists, are Mrs. Sigel's -- also the Louis XVI antiques as well as the Dresden China.

Down at his office in the Milam Building -- clustered with pictures of wrestlers, for the most part -- Mr. Sigel has a card index on the Houston records of every man who has ever wrestled for him in the past 20 years or more. He'll grab any card you want out of that file in a jiffy, but he is surprisingly shy and reticent about the pictures and antiques in his home. Well, he did admit that one piece of Dresden was 400 years old. Mr. Sigel confines his bragging to his wrestling cards, a strictly accepted business practice in the trade.

Mr. Sigel actually fits no conventional picture of a sports promoter. He could still pass for the invoice clerk. The quality of his clothes is several cuts now above what an invoice clerk could afford, but color and style are conservative.

Many wrestling promoters of the country are former wrestlers, but Mr. Sigel has never lifted a hand in athletic endeavor. He once did put a headlock on a dummy rubber head Strangler Lewis used to carry with him for workouts when he was still active in wrestling.

"The thing had springs inside that an ordinary man couldn't mash down," he says. "Strangler used to squeeze it flat for exercise. I tried it once but hardly made a dent."

Julius, his brother, was an amateur boxer, but Morris never had a boxing glove on, even in fun. When the family lived on Dallas Avenue and Gillette Street where Papa Sigel had a corner grocery for years, Julius had a prize ring behind the house but it held no lure for Morris.

The family moved to Houston in 1909 when Morris was 9 years old. Brothers of his father, who was Isaac Sigel, were in Texas in business and their reports on the country and its business prospects decided Mr. Sigel on a move to Texas.

Morris Sigel quit school in 1911 when he was 13 and went to work as office boy for The Houston Post at $3 a week. That really was only one of three jobs. When he finished work at The Post, he would hurry home and help in the grocery store.

His other job was helping his brother Julius, who had become a shoe-string fight promoter. When the wrestling impresario of the day died, the Sigel brothers moved into that field.

Nothing has survived so steadily and so sturdily barbed humor, satire -- and even scorn from detractors -- as wrestling. Twenty million paid admissions to wrestling matches in this country last year. Mr. Sigel's matches draw approximately 200,000 a year, which is as many, if not more, than the St. Louis Browns draw some years to their major league ball games.

If Bill Veeck, who is something of a promoter himself, were to ask Morris Sigel for advice, the Houston impresario would undoubtedly suggest a wrestling card with every home ball game. Mr. Sigel already knows what wrestling can do for a poor box office. In the early years of the Houston Fat Stock Show, when crowds were slim, he put on shows at the stock show, without cost to the show, to stimulate attendance.

Mr. Sigel is always ready to bring wrestling to the aid of a civic or public enterprise. Two wrestling shows during World War II sold $30 million in bonds. Mr. Sigel's showmanship is already a legend in the wrestling business, but he outdid himself at the first of the bond shows, wedding as it were for a night at least the dissimilar arts of symphonic music and wrestling.

The symphony set and the wrestling crowd mingled that night in the City Auditorium as the Houston Symphony Orchestra, then under the direction of Ernst Hoffman, played a diverting accompaniment to the ring antics of the wrestlers.

Currently wrestlers shepherded by Paul Boesch, who has all but given up wrestling to serve as Mr. Sigel's publicty chief and man-of-all-work, are the backbone of the Houston Police Department's safety program among the children of the city. If you wonder where the next decade's adult wrestling fans are coming from, attend a fun club meeting of a neighborhood theatre some Saturday morning and watch the wrestlers at work with this business of safety.

The children love wrestling and the whole realm of wrestling loves the children. Mr. Sigel himself nurses an ambition to found a boys' ranch -- something similar to Boys Ranch at Tascosa, near Amarillo. That institution, incidentally, was founded by Cal Farley, former wrestler.
_____________________________

WRESTLER TOM THUMB DEAD

(Hamilton, Ont., Spectator, October 24, 1981)

BRANTFORD (CP) -- Services were held yesterday for William (Billy) Bowman, a four-foot-tall midget wrestler known around the world as Major Tom Thumb.

Mr. Bowman died Wednesday at Brantford General Hospital at age 65. He was billed as one of the four original midget wrestlers in the world.

He began his wrestling career in the early 1940s with partners Little Beaver, Fuzzy Cupid and Sky Low Low.

His 20-year career took him to wrestling rings in Canada, the U.S., Europe, Japan, South America and Australia.

Born in England, he moved to Brantford with his family when he was 12 and returned to the city in 1962 afrter he retired from the ring.
_____________________________

TOM CASEY, 70, CHAMPION ROWER, WRESTLER

(Boston Sunday Globe, May 26, 1985)

By William P. Coughlin

In 1940, The Boston Globe sports pages carried a challenge: "The Famous Casey Brothers of Boston would race any crew in the United States."

That was quite a gauntlet to toss before the proud society of Boston and Cambridge rowing circles by sons of Irish immigrants.

Steve (Crusher) Casey of Cohasset, former world professional wrestling champion (1938-48) recalls:

"A Philadelphia crew took us on, but backed out . . . Then Russell Codman, former Boston fire commissioner under Mayor Jim Curley, himself a national champion, came forward and said, 'I will row the three Casey brothers and beat them in single sculls . . . '"

Tom Casey won that race. Jim Casey came in second. Steve Casey finished third. Codman was fourth.

Tom Casey, then virtually unknown to Codman, would move a rowing shell in the fastest time ever seen then on the Charles River -- under a minute for the quarter-mile dash. Singly and with his brothers, Tom Casey would win every race he entered thereafter, at the then unheard of pace of more than 40 strokes a minute -- a pace that would not become commonplace in rowing for three more decades.

"Nobody," Steve Casey said, "ever beat Tom when he was rowing."

Thomas Casey of Boston, one of those seven famous Irish-born brothers from a family of rowing champions and nationally famous wrestlers, died Friday in Youville Hospital in Cambridge. He had suffered a stroke three years ago. He was 70.

Steve Casey unveiled the Casey secret of success as an oarsman and in wrestling rings in a telephone interview yesterday.

"You cannot beat youth," he said. "I was oldest. I was 17. We were racing these guys that were 30 or 35 years old. They underestimated our youth . . . they underestimated our teamwork. You can't beat a brother team's teamwork . . . The reason we were called 'The Famous Caseys' is because we never lost a boat race."

His brother Tom started wrestling around 1934 in Southern Ireland and England, and with his brothers had also qualified in rowing single sculls in the 1936 Olympics at Berlin -- the year Jesse Owens beat back the pride of Hitler's youth in track and field events.

Steve Casey remembers somewhat bitterly:

"The five Caseys were disqualified by the England and Ireland Olympic Association because they said that two, Paddy and Jim, took money for a wrestling match in South London. They barred us all from racing in the Olympics. Paddy and Jim swore they didn't take any money . . . "

Casey recalled how they got started.

"We'd come from Kerry County. My father, Michael, and my uncles -- my mother's two brothers, John and Pat Sullivan -- were rowers, too." His mother, Steve Casey said, was the former Bridget Sullivan, a distant kin of the famed bare-fisted heavyweight Boston prizefighter, John L. Sullivan.

"Uncle Pat was the skipper of Cornelius Vanderbilt's yacht in Newport, Rhode Island," Casey said. "One day he told Vanderbilt he could get a crew to win the world rowing championship. Vanderbilt said, 'If you can get them, I'll pay their way to Newport to train' . . . That's how it started."

A Casey niece, Amy Marr, was carrying on the family tradition yesterday in Worcester, rowing in a crew of eight for Phillips Academy.

As wrestlers, the Casey brothers took on the best, all over the country. They had turned pro in 1935 after the Olympics episode and were wrestling for the late Paul Bowser. Many a donnybrook involving the Caseys was seen at the old Mechanics Building, the Boston Arena, Boston Garden and New York's Madison Square Garden.

Steve recalled one such ring "war" when three Caseys, Steve, Tom and Jim, wrestled the three Dusek brothers, Wally, Ernie and Emil, in Boston Garden.

"Now that was a Donnybrook, between the Caseys and the Duseks. It was a draw."

Tom retired from wrestling when he was 50, his wife of 42 years, Bernadette (Theriault) said yesterday.

Besides his wife and his brother Steve, Mr. Casey leaves five brothers, James of Houston, and Patrick, Michael, Daniel and Jack of Ireland and England; a sister, Margaret Hawley of Manchester, England; and several nieces and nephews.

A funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. Tuesday in St. Anne's Church, St. Stephen street, Boston.
_______________________________

GRAPPLER FIGHTING BATTLE OF HIS LIFE

(Ft. Lauderdale News, June 26, 1992)

By Gary Stein

I imagine anybody who ever met him has a favorite story about Buddy "Nature Boy" Rogers.

This is a man who left an impact when he passed through your life.

Which is where my very favorite Buddy Rogers story comes in.

It happened three years ago, in a sub shop in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, near Rogers' home.

It seems Buddy had gone in there and encountered a 29-year-old, 200-pound jerk who was harassing a waitress and using foul language.

Rogers told the guy to stop, and the fellow responded by calling Buddy an "old man" and tossing a chair.

Buddy responded by bashing the guy until he yelled "uncle" and the cops came.

"I pushed him against a weall, and he picked up a chair and threw it at me," Rogers said a day later. "Then I unloaded. I gave him a shot and he must have flown five feet into a refrigerator. Then I nailed him in the stomach and he flew into the kitchen.

"That guy couldn't hurt me. I could be dead six months, and they could stand me up, and I'd still be able to beat him."

Yeah, I guess the guy who tossed the chair didn't realize the incredible sculpted, 220-pound Rogers was 68 at the time.

I guess he didn't realize Buddy Rogers was one of the most famous wrestlers ever.

And I guess the guy never called anybody an "old man" again.

I have talked to Rogers several times since that incident, which received national attention, and he's always a delight.

"I don't care where we go, everybody knows him," his wife, Debbie, told me. "It's unbelievable. He's just so well-loved."

Buddy and I would talk about the days when he would wrestle in front of crowds of 40,000 or more in stadiums around the country.

We would talk about how he developed the Figure Four Grapevine hold and how he had little use for today's professional actors who pass themselves off as wrestlers.

Not that Buddy lived in the past. The last time we talked, in fact, he mentioned how he wanted to apply for a spot on a state wrestling commission and how he was concerned about wrestlers taking steroids. He told me how he was swimming daily to keep in shape.

But we did talk about the past a lot, at my insistgence. I remembered seeing him wrestle on TV when I was a kid, and I loved his bigger-than-life stories.

"Worst I ever got hurt was against Killer Kowalski," he once told me.

"He attacked me from behind, knocked me down, stomped all over me. Broke my right tibia."

And that, friends, was before the match started.

"Nobody could ever believe his age," Debbie told me on Thursday. "They thought he was maybe 55. He was always so strong."

Which makes it even harder to accept that, right now, Buddy "Nature Boy" Rogers is fighting for his life in Holy Cross Hospital.

Seems Rogers, who had a quadruple bypass and hip surgery years ago, suffered a stroke on Monday, then had a massive stroke after being admitted to the hospital.

For the past couple of days, there has not been much movement. And not a great deal of optimism, although he has been moved out of intensive care.

"He is such a fighter," said Debbie, who was in show business before she met Buddy.

"I talk to him. I was at his bed, and I said, 'Buddy, if you understand me, squeeze my fingers twice.' He was able to do that.

"He's just one of a kind."

And right now, everybody who's got any kind of Buddy Rogers story is pulling strongly for him.
____________________________

'GORGEOUS GEORGE' ARENA, 84

(Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, Sunday, July 19, 1992)

By Seth Borenstein

George "Gorgeous George" Arena, a 1940s-era wrestler who pranced around in full-length silk robes and had his wavy platinum-blond mane set between falls, died on Thursday in Boca Raton after a lengthy illness.

He was 84.

One of the celebrities of early televised wrestling, Mr. Arena played the primping bad guy who crowds loved to root against.

The Gorgeous George image, the brainchild of promoter Harold Bogello, made Mr. Arena famous and rich.

He wore robes of satin and ermine, and three-inch platform heels, and had combs and brushes everywhere. Before men ever considered going to anyone but a barber, Mr. Arena would got to a town's beauty parlor to have his hair dyed and set.

His valet would spray him in the ring with cologne.

"It was a whole cosmetic routine we did," said his son, Gilbert, who was his father's valet.

"I always had to look like I stepped out of the pages of Esquire," Mr. Arena told Sunshine magazine in 1984. "When I'd come into a town for a match, I'd take my valet with me to a restaurant in the center of town. We'd have our own silverware that the valet would carefully wipe off. Then he'd read the menu to me; I couldn't dirty my hands with it, see. Well, I already knew what I was going to order before I went in. It was all a show, get me?"

And the show was designed to agitate the working-class audiences to root against Gorgeous George, his son said.

Mr. Arena was born in Chicago in Sept. 13, 1907. He grew up in Racine, Wisc.

Mr. Arena was stricken with polio when he was 12 and was on his back for 22 months. A physical fitness fanatic late into his 70s, Mr. Arena used exercise to build up his strength. During his wrestling days he had a 56-inch chest and 19-inch arms.

Mr. Arena moved from Racine to Milwaukee to wrestle in bigger shows and then hit the big time in Chicago, his son said.

Mr. Arena said he first wrestled as Gorgeous George in 1932. At least half a dozen other men wrestled under the same name, before television, but Mr. Arena was the original Gorgeous George, his son said.

Mr. Arena would wrestle every day, traveling from town to town and selling cars and doing odd jobs to make extra money -- until he hit it big in television.

Mr. Arena told Sunshine that he made $480,000 in 1951, wrestling 327 nights that year. But much of that money went to his accessories and more than 100 robes. Later in his career he became Baron Arena, his son said.

His last wrestling match was in Puerto Rico in 1970.

Mr. Arena moved to Delray Beach in 1971 and sold patio furniture part-time, his son said.

He was a member of the Masonic Lodge in Milwaukee.

Mr. Arena is survived by his wife, Celia, of Delray Beach; a daughter, Patricia Kozik of California; and two sons, Gilbert Arena and Col. Darrell Arena, both of California; 10 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be private.

(ED. NOTE -- A good deal of the above article is pure crap, fabricated by Arena and his son. The reason he became known as Baron Arena was simple: Gorgeous George (Wagner) sued him in Chicago, won the case and was legally awarded the use of the name, "Gorgeous George.")
_______________________________________________

The WAWLI Papers No. 731 . . .

PROMOTER SCHULER GOES AFTER WRESTLERS

(San Francisco Bulletin, April 20, 1917)

Frank Schuler has additional evidence to introduce when the matter of whether he overpaid Santel and Joe Stecher comes up in court next week. Said evidence consists of a letter from Joe Hetmanek, manager of Stecher, wherein due acknowledgment is made that Stecher was paid $150 too much.

Hetmanek expresses his willingness to make a settlement, but asks that Schuler recompense him for the expense incurred of bringing his party up from Los Angeles and then taking it back when the Stecher-Irsa match fell through. Schuler has always been willing to pay Hetmanek for the trip from Los Angeles. The trip, Hetmanek figures, cost $147. Which means that Schuler will have $3 coming to him.

The letter is regarded by Schuler as conclusive proof that he made a mistake in figuring the percentages when settling with the wrestlers, and if the court takes the same view Santel must pungle up $175, the amount Schuler maintains he overpaid him.

Hetmanek also has something to say in his letter as to the recent defeat of Stecher by Caddock.

He states that Stecher's poor showing was due to lack of condition. "It was a good lesson for Joe," Hetmanek writes. "He has learned that one hour a day is not enough work. Caddock is a good wrestler, we are not trying to belittle him, but when he and Stecher meet again there will be an entirely different story to tell."

The fight of Frank Schuler on the one hand, and Charley Newman and Harry Foley on the other, is on in earnest.

Schuler has made a deposit of $50 for the use of the Civic Auditorium the night of May 29. He expects, says Schuler, to stage Earl Caddock with some other good wrestler.

Newman and Foley have applied for use of the auditorium for May 28, the night before Schuler's, their card being Zbyszko and "Strangler" Lewis.

Therefore we may see two big matches in quick succession.

Farmer Stanton, the 240-pounder who wrestles Santel for Newman and Foley the night of April 24, is due to arrive in San Francisco this evening. Meanwhile Newman and Foley are working for a Santel-Walter Miller match. Miller seems inclined to accept the offer of Santel to meet him a straightaway two and a half-hour match at 175 pounds, ringside, and if the match is arranged it will be staged May 1.
_____________________________

FARMER STANTON FALLS PREY TO AD SANTEL

(San Francisco Bulletin, April 25, 1917)

By Marion T. Salazar

Farmer Stanton, recommended by Ed Smith, "the great wrestling authority" of the Hearst paper in Chicago, as a wrestler whom it would take a world's champion to beat, lasted a little over an hour with Ad Santel at Dreamland Rink last night, and Santel, as Joe Stecher showed, is not a world's champion.

Santel took the first fall in 36 minutes 48 seconds with the help of his old "horse trick" -- the same trick with which he almost seriously injured Konstantine Roumonoff.

Stanton had straddled Santel's back and was attempting to ride him around the ring. Santel let himself fall backward, and Stanton, thinking quicker than did Roumonoff, succeeded in breaking the fall a little and saved his head from bouncing off the floor, but he wasn't quite quick enough to prevent Santel from getting a full nelson on him, and before he could twist away both his shoulders were flat and Referee Charley Andrews was patting Santel as the winner of the first fall.

The second fall Santel took with a semi-head scissors after 29 minutes 11 seconds of slow wrestling.

Santel, feeling that he was master, took no chances in effecting the second fall. When he returned to the ring after the first fall he went to work on Stanton, allowed the Easterner to tire himself out, and pinned him at the first opportunity.

Stanton's shoulders were seen to be bridged just off the floor as the referee gave Santel the third and final tap, thus leaving the impression in the minds of some of the fans that the second fall had not been properly scored, but Referee Andrews ruled that Stanton was down the required three seconds, and as Stanton made no complaint it was taken for granted that he was.

Stanton, to give him his due, is not a bad sort of wrestler. He proved himself a strong fellow, and, for a man weighing over 200 pounds, remarkably quick on his feet. But his skill was not that of the 185-pound man who opposed him.

Two incidents aside from the wrestling were features of the show. The first was the "comeback" of Santel as a local favorite.

Hooted out of the ring by a boxing crowd last Friday night, there was some question as to the sort of reception he would receive when next he stepped into the ring to wrestle.

The crowd, if it was the same that hooted Santel, simply reversed itself. It began cheering the instant Santel left his dressing room and started to make his way down the aisle, and it wasn't just cheering; it was loud, boisterous cheering, accompanied by waving of hands and of hats, and it was two or three minutes from the time the noise started until announcer Kammerling obtained sufficient quiet to make the introduction. Then there was more cheering, and Santel, who has been wearing a frown ever since his supposed fall from grace, smiled his old smile and bowed his thanks again and again.

The other feature of the show as furnished by George Costello, the "Belgian Tiger," who has been caged up or retired or something for the past year or so and suddenly got the idea that he would like to challenge the winner.

So the "Tiger," acting on his idea, sneaked into the ring just after the introduction of the main eventers.

A policeman saw the "Tiger" and jumped in and grabbed him. Then Harry Foley, who, with "Enchilada" Charley Newman, was promoting the show, came tearing into the ring and gave the policeman a helping hand in shoving the "Tiger" out through the ropes.

The ring had just been clared for action when the "Tiger" sneaked in again.

But this time he didn't linger quite so long. Four husky policemen, some of the biggest and finest looking on the force, grabbed the "Tiger" by the coat collar and the seat of the pants and gave him the grand rush. The last seen of the said "Tiger" he was being run out the front door spitting and scratching and yelling that he could throw all the Santels and Farmer Stantons that could be piled into the ring with him.

He'd show some of these wise guys, declared the "Tiger" as he landed out on the sidewalk, whether he is a "set-up."

Santel, who is being sued in court by Frank Schuler for $175, which the last named alleges he overpaid him in the Stecher match, encountered some more financial troubles just before he entered the ring. He was waited upon by an internal revenue man and asked whether he had paid the State his income tax. Santel replied that he had not been asked to do so. The revenue man then fixed a date for today at which time he and Santel will discuss the matter.

Three preliminaries preceded the main event. Al La Vance undertook to throw Carl Shultz in fifteen minutes and failed. Not only did Vance fail, but he had much trouble holding his own. Two or three times Schultz almost had the pig knuckle hold on him, and if Schultz could have gotten that pig knuckle hold on him once, just once, it would, of course, have been all off with Mr. Vance.

Billy Roumonoff, middleweight, took two straight falls from Jim Morgan of Oakland, the first in 6 minutes, 31 seconds, the next in 3 minutes, 39 seconds. Both falls were scored with the head scissors.

The third prelimnianry was won by Earl Strubley, a middleweight, over Charley Kelly.

The crowd was fair-sized -- plenty large enough to demonstrate that wrestling is a long way from dead in San Francisco and that high-class matches are certain to draw big.
___________________________

WHAT PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND ABOUT WRESTLING

(San Francisco Bulletin, June 1, 1917)

By Marion T. Salazar

"Wrestling," remarks Jack Curley, "is different than boxing; most people don't understand that, and that's why there is so much talk about set-ups and hippodroming.

"Take the case of Zbyszko. He is a world-famous wrestler. Supposing, we'll say, that the people of San Jose or of Fresno want to see him perform.

"Towns of that size cannot afford a world's championship match; still their people want to see Zbyszko. They can do but one thing -- get the best man they can afford to wrestle him.

"Zbyszko knows, and the crowd knows, and the other wrestler himself knows, that Zbyszko will win. But still an exhibition of that kind gives the people of Fresno or of San Jose the chance to see Zbyszko.

"Maybe Zbyszko can pin his man in ten minutes or less, but most of the times he won't do it, for the people want to see him demonstrate his holds; they want to be given a little run for their money. When people get to understand wrestling, they won't be so harsh in their criticisms.

"Boxing contests must all be bonafide, for the man who loses gets beaten up; but wrestling is different. I should judge that 60 per cent of all wrestling matches are exhibitions. The championship matches are for the larger towns."

--------------------------------

Wladek Zbyszko turned into Powell Street from Geary with Jack Curley puffing at his heels.

"Say," panted Curley, "how far is it from the Cliff House to the St. Francis Hotel through Golden Gate Park?"

"About two miles," replied Harry Foley; "a little more if you follow the winding roads of the park."

"Aren't you mistaken?" asked Curley. "Isn't it much farther than that?"

"No," said Foley; "it's not more than three miles, anyhow."

"Well," said Curley, "there's something wrong; perhaps the change of air affected me. I thought I'd walked about eight or nine miles! Tomorrow I'll have Zbyszko walk to and from the Cliff House. He ought to walk at least five miles."

Curley will learn when he reads this that from the Cliff House to the St. Francis is over six miles, but perhaps by that time Zbyszko, poor little guy, will have been made to walk his twelve miles and over.
_______________________________

WHY STRANGLER LEWIS HATES ZBYSZKO

(San Francisco Bulletin, June 11, 1917)

By Marion T. Salazar

Billy Sandow and "Strangler" Lewis, in their chagrin over not getting all the money that was promised them for the match with Zbyszko, are telling a few things on their fellow wrestling folks.

They told, for instance, of the confidential talk they had with Santel and Nick Daviscourt, wherein they were informed of Santel's failure to train for either Stecher or Plestina.

Then they had something to say of Plestina. This Plestina, they said, went to a Chicago paper not so long ago and gave it a confession, one like Philadelphia Jack O'Brien once gave, wherein he said that most his wrestling matches had been crooked.

But, declared Plestina, from then on he was going to "wrestle straight."

On the strength of that confession Plestina was given a match with Bill Huckoff, and said Huckoff pinned Plestina in two shakes of a lamb's tail, whereupon Plestina, who had been advertised for that particular match as a reformed wrestler, one of the very few straight ones in the business, explained his defeat with the statement that he had faked -- that he let Huckoff pin him.

---------------

"People may think it's the bunk when I say I don't like Wladek Zbyszko," says Strangler Lewis, "but when they do they're wrong, for Zbyszko is the one man in all the world that I thoroughly dislike.

"I have wrestled Zbyszko three times, counting the last time in San Francisco, and I took a dislike to him the first time I wrestled him, in Detroit, when he tried to gouge out my eyes and was disqualified.

"His attempts to blind me were so dleiberate, so dirty, that when the match was over, and we had gone to the dressing room, a sergeant of police very obligingly turned his back while I went over and took a punch at Zbyszko.

"I don't hold grudges against people; life is too short for that. But I can never stomach Zbyszko. Every time I see him I want to fight."
___________________________

(ED. NOTE -- Steve Baldwin of Memphis dug up a series of old Strength & Health magazine articles that have relevance for WAWLI readers. Thanks to Steve, and thanks to Scott Teal, for passing them along. The first segment appears below, with future WAWLI Papers to contain the remainder of the articles. These were published in 1944.)

STRONG MEN OF WRESTLING - PART ONE

(Strength & Health, month unknown, 1944)

By Jules Bacon

Weight lifters rank among the greatest grapplers of all time. Among the champion wrestlers or the leading championship contenders, we find the names of the following wrestlers who built their physical power and kept themselves in condition through weight lifting and weight training: George Hackenschmidt, George Lurich, Jim Londos, Stanislaus and Wladek Zbyszko, Otto Arco, Dick Shikat, Ray Steele, Everett Marshall, Alexander Aberg, Gustav Fristensky, Mat Simmer, Mare Christol, Ivan Padoubny (the Russian Giant, 6 feet 6 inches in height and 255 in body weight), Henry (Milo) Steinborn, Paul Pons, Karl Pojello, Hans Steinke, Jesse James, Tony Massimo, Hans Kampfer and Sandor Szabo.

In recent years wrestling has drawn most of its stars from weight lifting and from football. The football players were agile, powerfully developed fellows who succeeded mainly through their speed and football tactics. The weightlifters who went into wrestling were powerful, brawny, muscled men with beautiful, symmetrically developed bodies and bulging Hercules-like biceps.

The football players who attained stardom in the ring were usually big football stars, frequently All-American men who had exceptional physical ability. Playing football and the training which led to stardom in that sport built them into powerful, rugged fellows. Pushing a heavily loaded sled of rocks around the field as football linemen do is one of the best developers known, as it puts all the muscles of the body into action, particularly the powerful and large leg, hip and back muscles.

These football stars were splendid physical specimens when they first became ring performers, but they did not last long when once they became professional grapplers, unless they then learned that weight training provided the quickest and best way to not only keep in condition but to continue to build the strength and agility required of champion wrestlers. Joe Savoldi, Wayne Munn, Sammy Stein, Everett Marshall, Jim McMillen and Gus Sonnenberg were famous football players who made good in the ring. Wayne Munn and Everett Marshall trained considerably with weights.

Nat Fleischer, editor of the Ring magazine, as well as a score of books which deal with the subject, a man who is to wrestling and boxing what Bob Hoffman is to weight lifting, was once asked if weight lifting exercises were necessary if one was to become a successful wrestler. His answer was, "No, but the best wrestlers come from the ranks of the weight lifters" and he "never knew of a leading wrestler who did not train with weights." In my opinion it would seem that weight training, then, is necessary if a wrestler is to reach and remain at the top.

The weight lifting wrestlers are stars for many more years than the football wrestling stars. Zbyszko won the world's title for the last time at 57, Henry Steinborn is still the strongest man in wrestling, and he has been one of the world's leaders for over a score of years and is now 52. Other wrestling weightlifters kept in action until they had as much of the coin of the realm as they needed and then retired to other endeavors.

Many experts, including the famous promoter, Jack Curley, have said that George Hackenschmidt was the greatest wrestler of all time. It's true that he lost twice to Frank Gotcvh, but twisting, punishing toe holds, and rough tactics upon a formerly injured leg of Hackenschmidt caused him to capitulate in both of these bouts. Although this is permissible in modern grappling bouts it can hardly be called wrestling. So Hackenschmidt is considered to be the greatest of all time of the men who really wrestled. The records and life story of Hackenschmidt are well known to readers of this magazine, his contribution to the world's physical training and right living literature, the "Way to Live in Health and Physical Fitness," often advertised in the pages of this magazine, has been read by hundreds of thousands of readers.

George Hackenschmidt was an exceptional man. One would believe that he must have been born with a dumbell in his hand, for at the age of 14 he was not only the winner of championships in gymnastics, which proved him to be the best gymnast of his age in Europe, but he could lift a dumbell weighing 36 pounds overhead 21 times with the left hand and 16 with the right. At the age of 18 he was champion of Russia in cycling, and that fall he trained much harder than ever with weights and began setting records. At that age he lifted 145 pounds overhead with one hand 12 times, 155 pounds ten times, 198 pounds three times and 210 pounds once. Lifting the weight slowly from the ground in a style then known as curling, he lifted 125 pounds with the left hand. At the age of 18 Hackenschmidt met Lurich, and wrties as follows about the meeting:

"In September, 1896, I made the acquaintance of a professional athlete, weight lifter and wrestler, named Lurich. He was only a few years older than myself, had been a professional wrestler for a year and was touring the Eastern Provinces with a small company. Lurich challenged all comers to wrestle with him and various members of our club came forward, but were all without exception defeated by him. I hyad shown very little taste for wrestling up to that time and had wrestled very seldom, being more partial to work with heavy weights. Still I wrestled several times with Lurich who even then was a very good wrestler, though as I quickly recognized, scarcely my equal in strength. (As frequently related, Lurich established and still holds the world's record in the one arm continental jerk, two hands to the shoulder, one arm jerk overhead, at 266 pounds, so it's interesting to note that George Hackenschmidt found himself to be much stronger than Lurich.)

Hackenschmidt wrote: "Although from the date of my first great success in the wrestling ring onwards, I had less and less time to train for weight lifting records, I nevertheless used the weights in my training regularly so that in January, 1899, I pressed a bar weighing 279 3/4 pounds with two hands."

After this time Hackenschmidt set what were then world's records of 386 press on back without bridge. He put up 269 1/4 pounds with one hand to win a wager of a pair of trousers which was to be given to him after he beat Sandow's world's record of 255 1/2 pounds, snatched 256 pounds with both hands, clean and jerked 235 pounds with one hand, pulled in clean to the shoulders a weight weighing 361 pounds. This compared with Louis Cyr's world record in the clean and jerk of 347 pounds at that time, snatched a bar weighing 197 1/2 pounds with one hand which at the time was a world's record. Hackenschmidt's records were usually made in impromptu fashion but were carefully checked and weighed as he was a stickler for accuracy in weight lifting.

George Hackenschmidt was a great all-around athlete, powerful as shown by his weightlifting records, agile as proven by his record of over 20 feet in the running broad jump -- at one time he jumped one hundred times over a table with his feet tied together, magnificently built as proven by the wonderful photos he left for us, his physique at the age of 18 we believe to have been unequalled before or since, a great wrestler as proven by the experts who consider him to have been the best of all time, an intelligent man as he became a writer on philosophy, and a teacher of psychology at a French university.

In 1938 when he visited this country just before the war, he was 60 years of age and still a splendid physical specimen. Weight lifting brought George Hackenschmidt a very rich reward. It permitted him to become a great wrestler and well acquainted with the crowned heads of Europe and of England, he was invited to the White House by President Theodore Roosevelt, and numbered among his friends many of the world's most famous and highest placed men.
_______________________________________

The WAWLI Papers No. 732 . . .

VARIOUS RESULTS FROM BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA

(Strelich Stadium, promoter Steve Strelich)

Wednesday, Feb. 4, 1942

Gorilla Ramos beat Billy Varga, Kenny Ackles beat Paul Bozzel dq, George Dusette drew Jimmy Lott, Charley Laye beat Mike London dq (referee Tiger McGee)

Wednesday, Feb. 11, 1942

Kenny Ackles beat Danny McShain, Gorilla Ramos beat Mike London, Yukon Jake beat Milt Olson, Charley Laye drew Wes Crothers (referee Pat O'Brien)

Feb. 18, 1942

Gorilla Ramos beat Mike London dq, Ken Ackles beat George Dusette, Jimmy Lott beat Billy Varga, Wes Crothers beat Yukon Jake dq (referee Bull Montana)

Feb. 25, 1942

Gorilla Ramos drew Danny McShain, Kenny Ackles beat Mike London, Bob Kenniston beat Gus Johnson, Sammy Kohen drew Milt Olsen (referee Jack Allen)

March 4, 1942

Gorilla Ramos beat Danny McShain, Billy Weidner beat George Saleem, Sammy Kohen drew Charley Laye, Bob Kenniston drew George Dusette

March 11, 1942

George Wagner beat Sammy Kohen dq (referee Wild Red Berry), Jimmy Lott beat George Dusette, Wild Red Berry beat Mike London,

Bob Kenniston beat Billy Weidner

March 18, 1942

Wild Red Berry beat Sammy Kohen (referee Benny Ginsberg), Gorilla Ramos drew George Wagner, Jimmie Lott beat Bob Kenniston dq, Charlie Laye beat Prince Omar
__________________________________

CROWD HOWLS AS KENNISTON WINS OVER BERRY

(Bakersfield Californian, Thursday, March 26, 1942)

By Max Mayhem

For downright action, underhanded buffoonery and athletic promenading, there is nothing like a tag-team match among wrestlers and Bakersfield fans found out last night that this form of sport between such mat artists as Monte LaDue, Danny McShain, Jimmie Lott and Gorilla Ramos is highly entertaining. The theory of the thing is that two wrestlers meet in the ring and wrestle and when one is tired, he can exchange with his partner outside the ring, if he can touch his partner's hand. However, referee Jack Allen often had four wrestlers in the ring at once and two fights going on at the same time due to the inability of Monte LaDue and Danny McShain, as individuals and as a team, to recognize the theory of anything less elemental than survival of the fittest.

Gorilla and Jimmie won the first fall after bulling through a series of swats, buttws and kicks administered by the LaDue-McShain team either outside or inside the ring. There was no wrestling to it but a great deal of shennigans in the corners and a complete disregard for decorum or referee Allen's authority.

By the simple process of getting two fights started at the same time and keeping referee Allen on his back most of the time while they could indulge in their sportsmanlike strategy, McShain and LaDue won the second fall.

McShain and LaDue won the third fall by the same tactics coupled with the employment of brute force either outside or inside the ring without regard for regulation. However, the Lott-Ramos team objected to this high-handed piracy and, as Lott kicked referee Allen out of the ring, he and his partner went at it again and completely subdued the villains, much to the hysterical relief of the crowd.

It is indeed regrettable that while Lott was kicking referee Allen out of the ring, he did not kick him also out of the arena so that his brigandage would ahve been prevented from extending, as it did, into the main event homicidally unpopular.

Sergeant Bob Kenniston won both falls of the main event over Wild Red Berry in less than 15 minutes, due to the careful deliberation and almost as deliberate myopia of Mr. Allen. Berry never had a chance. The crowd stood on the benches and howled for nearly 30 minutes about it but Steve Strelich, the genial and heartwarming promoter, promised to protest to the state commission and thus mollified them somewhat.

George Wagner defeated Charley Laye in two straight falls, using a half crab on the second and an arm lock on the first.
_____________________________

March 25, 1942

Bob Kenniston beat Wild Red Berry, Danny McShain-Monte LaDue beat Gorilla Ramos-Jimmy Lott, George Wagner (later Gorgeous George) beat Charley Laye

Wednesday, Jan. 2, 1946

Danny McShain drew Vic Christy, The Hatchetman drew George Dusette, Pete Mehringer beat Ali Pasha (looks quite a bit like the early-day Soldat Gorky, aka Wolfman), Lee Grable beat Johnny Stiles

Jan. 9, 1946

Ted Christy beat Danny McShain (stopped via cuts) (referee Mickey McMasters), Jesse James beat The Hatchetman, Ernie Piluso beat Paavo Ketonen, Mike Nazarian drew Pete Mehringer (A - 1,500, capacity)

Jan. 16, 1946

Ted Christy beat Danny McShain, Jesse James drew George Dusette, Morris Shapiro (later The Mighty Atlas) beat Pete Mehringer

Ali Pasha vs. Leo Wallick

Jan. 23, 1946

Ted Christy beat Wild Red Berry (referee Bobby Coleman), Jesse James beat Morris Shapiro dq, Leo Wallick beat Buck Davidson,

Mike Nazarian vs. Bob Corby (A - 1,500)

Jan. 30, 1946

Ernie Piluso-Jesse James beat Danny McShain-The Hatchetman (referee Cecil Payne), George Dusette drew John Swenski, Dick Trout vs. Mike Nazarian

Feb. 6, 1946

Ted Christy beat Ernie Piluso, John Swenski beat Morris Shapiro dq, Bob Corby beat Pete Mehringer, Herb Parks drew Jack Kiser
____________________________

POLICE HALT BLOODY WRESTLING MATCH, WOMEN SWOON

(Bakersfield Californian, Thursday, February 14, 1946)

By Bob Lauritzen

Wild Red Berry completely lost his Irish temper last night during the main event of Steve Strelich's weekly wrestling card, slugged Ted Christy into near-unconsciousness, nigh kayoed referee Ted Grice, fought with the police, indirectly caused two members of the weaker sex to faint, chased ring officials and a radio announcer into the recesses of the V Street arena, finally had himself escorted from the gladiators' square into his dressing room, and, incidentally, lost the match.

What was billed as a revenge affair for Berry against Christy turned into a gory mess. The wild Irishman, irked beyond reason by choking and hair-pulling tactics applied by Christy, initiated a slugging spree that started blood flowing from Christy within 10 minutes.

In that time, Berry had thrown Christy from the ring, followed him into the throng of spectators, crawled back, kicked Christy out as Ted attempted to get back, finally retreated to a neutral corner while referee Grice got Christy back into things, and then tied his opponent between the ropes and slugged him into ground chuck, losing the first fall on disqualification after 15 minutes of anything but wrestling. Anticlimaxing this unorthodox demonstration, two female spectators fell into dead faints, and were attended to by club physician Dr. Robert P. Haring.

Christy by that time was gushing a stream of crimson from most parts of his physiognomy and before the bell opening the second fall was rung by timekeeper Ed Helm, he found himself again at the questionable mercy of Berry's fists.

Helm, ringside seat occupants and Hal Brown, radio commentator, desserted their too-close proximity for the safer realms of the aisles as Berry chased Christy again into the open, and Wild Red gained the ring only at the forceful suggestion of City Police Officer Floyd Stanton and his uniformed six feet of brawn. While arguing with Grice over tactics, Berry was assaulted from behind by Christy who had sneaked back into the ring, and was flopped under a body press for the second fall in less than two minutes after the first fall had ended. Then as the crowed milled around the two prostrate women, the ring, the referee and Christy, Berry beat his russet-haired chest in defiance to everyone in general and was finally dragged to his dressing room by Stanton.

Jesse James was declared the winner in a semi-final bout when his opponent, Bob Corby, was disqualified by Grice for slugging. Each had won a fall prior to the sudden end, Corby with a reverse toe hold in 11:21 and James with a dropkick and body press in 4:05.

Jack Kiser flopped Buck Lipscomb in a preliminary, using a modified crab hold, and Mike Nazarian was soundly trounced by Leo Wallick in 9:30 of the opener, Wallick applying a neckbreaker to the grimacing Mike.
_____________________________

Feb. 13, 1946

Ted Christy beat Wild Red Berry dq (referee Ted Grice), Jesse James beat Bob Corby dq, Jack Kiser beat Buck Lipscomb, Leo Wallick beat Mike Nazarian

Feb. 20, 1946

Danny McShain beat Ted Christy, Jesse James bet The Hatchetman, Leo Wallick beat Hank Metheny, Herb Parks beat Duke Keomuka (A - 1,500)

Feb. 27, 1946

Jesse James-Vic Christy beat Morris Shapiro-Danny McShain, Leo Wallick beat George Dusette, Herb Parks beat Johnny Stiles

March 6, 1946

Danny McShain beat Vic Christy, Jesse James drew Leo Wallick,

Morris Shapiro beat Jack KIiser, Duke Keomuka beat George Dusette

March 13, 1946

Ted Christy beat Danny McShain dq, Vic Christy drew Leo Wallick,

Dick Trout beat Herb Parks dq, Bob Corby drew Mike Nazarian

March 20, 1946

Danny McShain-Leo Wallick beat Ted Christy-Vic Christy, Jesse James drew John Swenski, Pierre LaBelle beat Mike Nazarian

March 27, 1946

Dick Trout beat Danny McShain, Jesse James beat Leo Wallick dq, Pierre LaBelle beat Bob Gregory, Jack Vansky beat Pete Mehringer

Wednesday, Jan. 8, 1947

Joe Lyman-Billy Varga beat Martino Angelo-Tony Morelli (referee Cecil Payne), George Dusette beat Leo Wallick dq, Gus Johnson drew Paavo Ketonen

Jan. 15, 1947

Martino Angelo beat Joe Lyman (world lightheavy title defense), Leo Wallick beat Joe Wolfe (sub for Billy Varga), George Dusette beat Tony Morelli dq, Andy Tremaine beat Mike Nazarian

Jan. 22, 1947

Leo Wallick-Ted Christy beat Martino Angelo-Tony Morelli (referee Bull Montana), Morris Shapiro drew George Dusette, Andy Tremaine beat Herb Parks

Feb. 5, 1947

Karol Krauser-Gorilla Ramos beat Tony Morelli-Leo Wallick (referee Jack Allen), Juan Hernandez beat Monte LaDue, Gus Johnson beat Karl Gray

Feb. 12, 1947

Gorilla Ramos beat Martino Angelo (nontitle), Karol Krauser beat Morris Shapiro, Gus Johnson beat Pierre LaBelle,

Mike Nazarian beat Joe Wolfe

Feb. 19, 1947

Marinto Angelo beat Billy Varga (world lightheavy title defense), Gorilla Ramos drew John Swenski, Juan Hernandez beat Bob Corby, Jimmy Lee drew Mike Nazarian

Wednesday, January 7, 1948

Enrique Torres beat Mike Mazurki (California heavy title defense) (referee Cecil Payne), Angelo Savoldi beat Paavo Ketonen (sub for Billy Varga), Gene Stanlee vs. Pete Mehringer, Tommy Nilan vs. Billy Venable

Jan. 14, 1948

Enrique Torres beat Antone Leone, Angelo Savoldi beat Billy Varga (sub for Gene Stanlee), Jackie Nichols beat Bob Corby, Cy Mackey drew Tommy Nilan

Jan. 21, 1948

Lord Blears-Leo Wallick beat Angelo Savoldi-Martino Angelo, Tony Morelli beat Jackie Nichols, Mike Nazarian drew Buck Davidson (rare appearance wrestling with shoes)

Jan. 28, 1948

Sandor Szabo beat Willie Davis, Tony Morelli drew Leo Wallick, Whitey Whittler beat Morris Shapiro, Paavo Ketonen drew Tommy Nilan (referee Joe Woods)
_______________________________

NATURE BOY AIDED IN WIN BY MR. X

(Bakersfield Californian, Thursday, Jan. 20, 1949)

They had a gala time at Strelich Stadium Wednesday night -- "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers and his valet, Mr. X, and Golden Boy and his second, Frank Gonzales.

The bout ended with all four at each other's throats!

The winner, however, was "Nature Boy" who body slammed Golden Boy in 7:05 of the first heat and did a repeat body slam and body press in 4:30 of the second heat.

It was during the final fall that "Nature Boy's" faithful servant, Mr. X, intruded long enough to release Golden Boy's hold on his master. This, of course, irritated Gonzales no end. When it was all over, each of the quartet had taken his turn at bouncing off the canvas.

"Gorgeous Billy" Darnell pinned Ivan the Terrible in 21:52 of the first heat with a running drop-kick and did a repeat performance in 11:02 of the second heat.

The Demon successfully defended his world's heavyweight title against Izzy Becker, who proved too light for his rougher and more aggressive opponent. The Demon applied a step-over toe hold in 10:48 for the first fall and halted the hobbling Becker in 15 seconds of the second heat.

Red Koko, using his humorous drop-kick tactics, held the Super Swedish Angel to a draw in one of the preliminaries.

The Zebra Kid and Gonzales wrestled to a draw in the first preliminary.

During intermission, a March of Dimes collection was asked for by promoter Steve Strelich and it fairly rained coins for 10 minutes. A total of $362.00 was collected, which was enough to encourage Strelich to wrestle himself for a few quick -- but not so gentle -- falls.
_________________________

BULGING BLIMP BUMPS PIERRE LaSARTES

(Bakersfield Californian, Thursday, Jan. 6, 1949)

It took the Blimp, 640 pounds of bulging blubber, approximately five minutes and 36 seconds to dispose of Pierre LaSartes, a mere will o' the wisp at 240 pounds, Wednesday night before 1,200 howling fans in Strelich Stadium.

Tussling before an overflowing throng, which overflowed into the aisles, the Blimp subdued LaSartes in 3:48 of the first fall after the French Clutch unsuccessfully attempted a flying scissors. All the Blimp had to do was to fall on the prostrate LaSartes as the fans roared with delight. Officially it was a steamroller body press.

The second fall came a lot sooner as LaSartes, who failed to learn his lesson by trial the first time, sailed through the air in another attempted flying scissors only to find himself buried under the ponderous mess of flesh -- the Blimp, by name. When the Blimp rolled off LaSartes it was all the Frenchman wanted to see of the walking mountain that -- or any other -- night.

In the semi-windup spot, a rough-and-tumble affair took place between The Demon, 265 pounds of ugliness, and Gorgeous Billy Darnell, 203 pounds of male beauty, with the Demon retaining his world's heavyweight championship belt.

After a merry-go-round of elbow smashes, the Demon pinned Darnell in a stepover toehold in 12:20 of the first fall as Darnell slumped to the canvas with a wrenched knee.

The second heat was all Darnell as the ailing grappler returned to tug on the Demon's beard after the latter had all but taken a bite out of Darnell's leg. Darnell picked the Demon up, spun him around several times in an airplane spin, then applied a body press in 7:55.

The match and the title belt went to the Demon in 9:04 of the closing fall as Darnell's airplane spin turned out to be his Waterlook when the Demon fell on him.

In the preliminary bouts, the Zebra Kid body-slammed Golden Boy to the canvas in 20:05 after several showy, but ineffective hand presses.

Ivan the Terrible and Frank Gonzales grunted their way through 20 minutes of throwing each other out of the ring, finally settling for a draw.

Just before the main event came on, Jimmy (The Greek) Londos, one of the mat world's great immortals, climbed into the ring and said a few words. The Greek, needless to say, looked good, considering the number of years he's been touring various arenas.
______________________________

Wednesday, January 5, 1949

Blimp beat Pierre LaSartes, The Demon (Jack O'Brien) beat BillyDarnell (world heavyweight title defense), Zebra Kid (George Bollas) beat Golden Boy, Ivan the Terrible drew Frank Gonzales (Jim Londos appeared in the ring) (A - 1,200)

Wednesday, January 19, 1949

Buddy Rogers w/Mister X beat Golden Boy, Billy Darnell beat Ivan the Terrible, Death Valley Demon beat Izzy Becker (world heavyweight title defense), Red Koko drew Super Swedish Angel (Tor Johnson), Zebra Kid (George Bollas) drew Frank Gonzales

Wednesday, January 26, 1949

Buddy Rogers w/Mister X beat Frank Gonzales, Zebra Kid beat Super Swedish Angel, Billy Darnell beat Red Koko, Pierre LaSartes drew Sheik Lawrence

Wednesday, February 2, 1949

Buddy Rogers w/Mister X beat Billy Darnell, The Demon beat Golden Boy (world heavyweight title defense), Zebra Kid drew Sheik Lawrencde, Red Koko beat Pierre LaSartes

February 9, 1949

Billy Darnell beat Sheik Lawrence (world junior heavy title defense), Blimp beat Red Koko, The Demon beat Carlos Mojica (world heavyweight title defense), Ivan the Terrible beat Zebra Kid, Golden Boy drew Johnny McShain

January 12, 1949

Billy Darnell beat Sheik Lawrence, Blimp beat Zebra Kid (unmasked as George Bollas), The Demon beat Frank Gonzales, Ivan the Terrible drew Golden Boy, Red Koko drew Pierre LaSartes
______________________________

DAVE LEVIN READY FOR ALL COMERS

(Associated Press, July 9, 1936)

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Dave Levin, 23-year-old claimant of the world wrestling championship, is ready to take on all challenging aspirants to the title that went along with his victory over Ali Baba.

Here yesterday with his manager, Joe Mondt, to discuss a possible match with local promoters, Levin exspressed willingness to meet Everett Marshall, another claimant to the crown. Tom Packs, matchmaker, said a match between the pair in St. Louis late this summer depends upon the final word of Billy Sandow, Marshall's manager, who is vacationing in New York state.
_________________________________

NEWSPAPER AD FOR FRESNO SHOW

(Fresno Bee, August 5, 1936)

WRESTLING TO-NIGHT

Prices: 40c, 85c and $1.15

The Thrilling Rematch Hundreds Asked For

TEXAS BILL SLEDGE vs. RAY STEELE

Valdez vs. Helwig--D'Collelmo vs. Jonathan

Thesz vs. Metheny--Borders vs. Silva

RYAN'S AIR-COOLED AUDITORIUM

For Reservations Tel. 2-1323
__________________________________

DUTCH HEFNER SUFFERS IN CLEVELAND

(United Press, August 20, 1936)

CLEVELAND -- Edward (Dutch) Heffner, Sherman, Texas, was taken unconscious and with two broken ribs to a hospital last night after he was thrown from a ring in a match with Everett Marshall, La Junta, Colo, heavyweight wrestler.

Heffner, recovering from a headlock, was gripped in a flying mare and thrown out of the ring.
____________________________________

A BUSY NIGHT FOR TITLE CLAIMANTS

(Associated Press, September 29, 1936)

DETROIT -- Everett Marshall, Denver, Colo, claimant of the heavyweight wrestling championship, tossed Ali Baba, colorful former holder of the title in the feature match of a card here last night.

Marshall took the only fall of the ninety-minute limit affair, although Ali Baba tossed him from the ring several times, once into the lap of Billy Sandow, his manager.

Marshall weighed 218, Baba 205.

PHILADELPHIA -- In a match that laste dlong past midnight, Dean Detton of Salt Lake City defeated Dave Levin of Jamaica, L.I., early today to gain Pennsylvania recognition as the world's heavyweight wrestling champion.

Detton, weighing 202, ended two hours and five minutes of strenuous wrestling by application of a tenacious toe hold that forced Levin to quit. His face contorted with agony. Levin signaled the referee he had had enough. The easterner weighed 195.

Jim McMillen, 220, Antioch, Ill, drew with George Zaharias, 237, Pueblo, Colo, in a 45-minute semifinal bout.
___________________________

AND STILL MORE FROM THE TITLE ASPIRANTS

(United Press, October 1, 1936)

LOS ANGELES -- Vincent Lopez of Idaho and Mexico today claimed a share of the world's wrestling championship as a result of his two-fall victory over Dave Levin of Brooklyn here last night.

The Mexican made his claim despite the fact that Levin lost a one-fall match to Dean Detton of Salt Lake City at Philadelphia a few nights ago, pointing out that one-fall championships were not recognized in California.

Meanwhile Levin was preparing to protest the Lopez win last night on grounds that he had lost one fall when ringsiders prvented him from entering the ring after both he and Lopez had fallen into the audience.
______________________________

SPORT THINKS

(Fresnos Bee, January 22, 1942)

By Ed Orman

Ed (Strangler) Lewis has started wrestling again . . . The Glendale tavern keeper is campaigning in the East, where the game is flourishing more than in some other sectors . . . The Strangler must be in his 60s, but probably can beat most of the present day crop at that . . . Incidentally, the top drawing card Fresno can boast of in some time is Vincent Lopez, the burly Mexican . . . He will return to the local arena tonight to tackle another old favorite, Hardy Kruskamp, and if Al Dermer does not lure the fans with this one, the DAV promoter will not know what will turn the trick.

(ED. NOTE -- As Ed Lewis grew older, the sportswriters of the time seldom came close to guessing his true age, perhaps due to his expanded bulk of the late '30s and '40s, but more likely due to the fact that he seemingly had been around forever. Here, Ed Orman thinks he must have been in his 60s but Lewis, in fact, was 51.)
_________________________________________

The WAWLI Papers No. 733 . . .

LORD LANSDOWNE SLIPS INTO DEFEAT

(Stockton Daily Evening Record, Wednesday, Apr. 8, 1936)

To the surprise of many, Lord Percival Lansdowne, the cocky cockney of the wrestling ranks, was handed the short end of the decision in his main event match with Count Tsutao Higami, welterweight champion of Japan, before a goodly crowd of cheering fans at the Civic Memorial Auditorium Arena last night.

His lordship,one of the best drawing cards the local club has had in several months, seemed headed for victory in the deciding fall when the Count suddenly slapped on a Nagasaki double-cross to slip Lansdowne's shoulders to the mat for the required three-second interval.

The first fall also went to the Japanese when he reversed an airplane spin to topple the Englishman in 20:40. A Duke of York special won for Sir Percival in 10:30 and then Higami finished the evening's entertainment in 10:05. The competition was fancy, but clean, and the crowd seemed to like it.

The big uproar of the night was supplied by Ted Christy and "Dude" Chick, the roaming cowboy from Cheyenne, who waged war in the semifinal with "Dude" winning on a foul after the pair had split the first two falls.

Taking a leaf out of the dirty book of Joe Malcewicz, Christy entered the ring with tape wrapped around his wrist, for the purpose of brushing it against Chick's eyes, which he did. The ringside fans were so aggravated by this procedure that referee Nick Povolos had to disqualify Christy to prevent a riot.

After the match, Ted and the referee nearly came to blows in the dressing room, the wrestler claiming that the match was supposed to be on an "everything goes" basis. He demanded another shot at Chick with another referee operating.

"Red" Lyons of Gilmore, Tex., won a rough-house match from "Tuffy" Cleet of Chicago in 20:15 with a leg lock. "Red Pants" Kohen, Jewish funny man, won his bout from Dave Reynolds in 14:15 and "Husky" Bird made good against "Gorilla" Poggi in 9:55, maintaining his local undefeated record against 150-pound opponents.
____________________________

Tuesday, April 7, 1936

Tsutao Higami beat Lord Lansdowne, Dude Chick beat Ted Christy dq, Red Lyons beat Tuffy Cleet, Sammy Kohen beat Dave Reynolds, Husky Bird beat Gorilla Poggi

Tuesday, April 14, 1936

Dude Chick beat Red Lyons, Sammy Kohen drew Stacey Hall, Tetsuro Sato beat Billy Hassan, Wildcat McCann drew Johnny Stote

Friday, April 24, 1936

Dude Chick beat Ted Christy, Count Tsutao Higami drew Stacey Hall, Cecil McGill beat Tiger Tsakoff, Johnny Stote beat Sammy Kohen dq
______________________________

WRESTLING HEAVIES BACK

(Stockton Daily Evening Record, April 27, 1936)

Bill Hunefeld, Stockton wrestling promoter, announced today that he was going back to the heavyweight grapplers this week with an all-star program, scheduled for Thursday.

Hardy Kruskamp and Jake Patterson, two of the most popular big fellows to perform in Stockton in past seasons, will hold the top spot.

The chances comes after the light-heavies have been given a month's trial.

"I intend to alternate the two kinds of wrestlers," explained Hunefeld today. "I think the people like it better that way, as they will have a change of faces. I will put on the wrestlers who will give me the best card."

Patterson, just back from a world tour, has been wrestling sensationally in other California cities during the past few weeks. Kruskamp recently came back from Australia.

On the same card will be Charley Santen, the wrestling aviator, against "Wee Willie" Davis; George Pencheff of Australia against Jack Wagner, the Omaha "killer," and Al Pereira of San Jose against an opponent to be named.
________________________________

FURNITURE AND REFEREE TAKE HEAVY BEATING

(Stockton Daily Evening Record, Friday, May 1, 1936)

The Civic Auditorium knew that the heavyweight wrestlers were back on the job last night. There was more broken furniture, bloody noses, torn shirts and body punishment handed out during the course of the evening's program than there has been in many a week hereabouts.

The evening's biggest uproar occurred when Jake Patterson, the battling Marine from Syracuse, N.Y., was disqualified for knocking Hardy Kruskamp, the Ohio State star, into the third-row seats with a swift kick in the "kisscus."

The pair had split the first two falls and the match was fast developing into the best brawl seen hereabouts in a long time, when Walter Dyreborg suddenly ruled that Patterson had exceeded the bounds of propriety and lifted Kruskamp's hand in token of victory.

That decision cost Dyreborg his shirt. When he came back into the ring to make the verdict official, Patterson pounded on him, shredded his clothes and sent him sprawling in the middle of the ring. Dyreborg responded with a drop kick and it was Pat's turn to sprawl.

Dyreborg left the ring at this juncture and didn't come back to face the bloodied Marine, who stood on the platform charging highway robbery and downright cheating.

The defeat may have cost Patterson his chance to meet Joe Savoldi in the main event of next Thursday night's show as it had been announced before the bout that the winner would meet "Jumping Joe" in Stockton next week.

Patterson, bigger and stronger than when he was here before, seemed to be holding his own with Kruskamp until the referee stepped in to stop the fun.

The finish, however, was popular with the fans, most of whom seemed to be pulling for a Kruskamp finish. One of the boldest ringsiders challenged the fire-eyed Patterson with his fists, but a pair of husky policemen escorted him out of danger.

Patterson won the first fall with a Syracuse squeeze in 19:10. Kruskamp evened the match with a drop kick in 4:55 and then the finish came in 3:50.

In a gruelling semi-windup, Wee Willie Davis and Charley Santen struggled to a 45-minute draw without a fall. Both men tossed each other around freely.

Ivan (sic) Pencheff, the Bulgarian from Australia, took Jack Wagner to the cleaners in 18:55 and Tommy "Stubby" Nilan, another Anzac, turned out to be one of the hits of the show with his 25-minute draw with big Al Pereira.

Nilan is a shorty, but he displayed the strength of a Hercules by tossing Pereira into the air like a rubber ball and catching him as he came down, as it were.
______________________________

May 7, 1936 Stockton

Joe Savoldi beat Jake Patterson, Charley Santen beat Al Pereira, Tommy Nilan beat Stanley Sitkowski, Leo Narbares beat Danny Winters

May 14, 1936 Stockton

Hardy Kruskamp beat Willie Davis dq (referee Artie Beal), Charley Santen drew Jake Patterson dcor, George Wilson beat Brother Jonathan, Tommy Nilan beat Nelson Davis

May 21, 1936 Stockton

Jake Patterson beat Willie Davis, Hardy Kruskamp drew Charley Santen, Tommy Nilan beat Ed Helwig, George Wilson beat Mike Strelich (A - 2,000)

Friday, May 29, 1936 Stockton

Willie Davis beat Jake Patterson, Tommy Nilan drew Charley Santen, Mayes McLain (sub for Brother Jonathan) drew Mike Strelich, Ed Helwig beat Fred Brayson

Thursday, June 4, 1936 Stockton

Willie Davis beat Tommy Nilan, Jake Patterson drew George Pencheff, Ed Helwig drew Charley Santen, Hardy Kruskamp beat Nelson Davis (referee Joe Gardenfield)

Friday, June 12, 1936 Stockton

Willie Davis beat Hardy Kruskamp dq (referee Harry Atwood), Ed Helwig drew Charley Santen, George Pencheff beat Tommy Nilan, Charley Santen beat Mike Strelich

June 19, 1936

Hardy Kruskamp beat Harry Jacobs (sub for Charley Santen), Bronco Valdez beat Ed Helwig, Bob Jessen beat Fred Brayson, Ted Sarris drew Mike Strelich

Thursday, June 25, 1936

Jake Patterson beat Hardy Kruskamp cnc (referee Artie Beal), Benny Ginsberg drew Rusty Westcoatt, Bill Sledge beat Ed Helwig, Bronco Valdez beat Mike Strelich

July 2, 1936

Jake Patterson beat Hardy Kruskamp (referee Fred Minden), Bronco Valdez beat Benny Ginsberg dq, Bill Sledge beat Bob Jessen, Frank Malcewicz drew Leo Narbares

July 9, 1936

Jake Patterson beatBenny Ginsberg, Hardy Kruskamp beat Rusty Westcoatt, Frank Malcewicz beat Mike Strelich, Bill Sledge beat Harry Jacobs

July 16, 1936

Ted Cox beat Jake Patterson, Hardy Kruskamp drew Bill Sledge, Ray Steele beat Bronco Valdez, Frank Malcewicz beat Bob Jessen
____________________________

AMMONIA IN THE EYES -- TED COX'S NEW HOLD

(Stockton Daily Evening Record, Friday, July 24, 1936)

The ammonia eye spray! Add that one to your list of favorite wrestling "holds."

Ted "King Kong" Cox used it quite effectively to squelch Jake Patterson in the third and deciding fall of last night's main bout at the Civic Auditorium.

Taking a big swig out of his ammonia and water bottle just before the bell rang for the third fall, Cox squirted his mouthful directly into Patterson's eyes when the pair met in the center of the ring.

Temporarily blinded, the fighting Marine fell easy victim to Cox's socking follow-up, and the fall was over in 15 seconds. Cox took the first fall in 11:40, after a slugfest, and Patterson retaliated with a reverse slam to even the match in 5:35.

Advertised as a "horror bout," the match was the roughest on the card with Cox doing plenty of damage by brushing his taped knuckles across Patterson's yes.

In the semi-windup, Ray Steele, recognized among mat men as one of the world's greatest, took care of Harry Jacobs in straight falls with a step-over toe hold. Steele won in 12:35 and in 20 seconds.

Matchmaker Hunefeld may match Steele with Cox on the next program.

Brother Jonathan won the whiskers championship by flooring Baron Benny Ginsberg for the count in 13:55

In the opener Louis Thesz, 22-year-old Hungarian heavyweight from St. Louis, held "Butch" Helwig of Lodi to a draw.
_______________________________

July 23, 1936

Ted Cox beat Jake Patterson, Ray Steele beat Harry Jacobs, Brother Jonathan beat Benny Ginsberg, Lou Thesz drew Ed Helwig

July 30, 1936

Ray Steele drew Ted Cox nc (referee Joe Gardenfield), Black Mauler (sub for Hardy Kruskamp) beat Mike Mazurki, Brother Jonathan beat Harry Jacobs, Lou Thesz beat Bronco Valdez

August 6, 1936

Ted Cox beat Ray Steele, Brother Jonathan beat Ed Helwig, Black Mauler beat Benny Ginsberg, Fred Meyers beat Harry Jacobs
____________________________

COX, RATTLESNAKE JONATHAN AROUSE INTEREST

(Stockton Daily Evening Record, August 11, 1936)

Promoter Bill Hunefeld has commenced dusting off a lot of ringside chairs that he hasn't had to use in a long time as interest dcontinues to grow in Thursday night's match between Ted "King Kong" Cox and Brother Jonathan, who will be escorted into the ring with his pet rattlesnake, Old Ben, from Texas.

Hunefeld says he has had enough inquiries for tickets to indicate it will be the biggest wrestling turnout of the year.

"It's funny," says the promoter. "Some people are asking me to change their regular seats so that they will be as far away from the rattlesnake as possible, while others want to change so that they can get nearer to the snake to see how he acts during the match."

Cox professes to have utter contempt for the rattler and threatens to throw it out of the ring if Brother Jonathan insists on tying the reptile to his ringpost.

Ted also expects to make good use of the adhesive tape on his knuckles which he handled with good effect against Ray Steele in his last two previous bouts here.

Four other bouts will be on the card, with interest centered on the affair between the Black Mauler and Hardy Kruskamp in the semifinal and "Gentleman" Jack Washburn and Hugo De Collelmo in the special.
_____________________________

TED COX WINS OVER JONATHAN IN SNAKE BOUT

(Stockton Daily Evening Record, August 14, 1936)

Bill Hunefeld's combined snake race, waterfront brawl and wild animal show went over like the man in a barrel went over Niagara Falls last night, with Ted "Bulldog" Cox and the Masked Mauler both emerging with dubious decisions in their favor in the two feature events on the