Historische Wrestling Stories/Artikel

[Nefercheperur]

Daily Oklahoman
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
10 October 1953

Life of a Wrestler Agrees With Gagne

New York, Oct. 9 – (AP) – Vern Gagne is a burly, handsome young man with an engaging smile and a brace of muffin ears that well, you might say they are the earmarks of his profession.

Gagne is a professional wrestler, and before you start sneering just remember you’d be sneering at $100,000 a year. That’s his annual gross take, so he can say to a lot of big-name baseball players and golfers and other sports performers: “Move over, po’ folks, and make room for a plutocrat.”

We look on pro rassling with a jaundieed eye; as something that should be covered by a drama critic, or better yet, a blanket. So it’s always a surprise to find that the performers on the whole are highly intelligent, well-spoken gentlemen when not engaged in their simulated mayhem.

Gagne is no exception. He’s a college graduate (Minnesota), a former member of the Olympic team, and was a good enough football player to be chosen for the All Star game in Chicago and to take a fling at pro football.

“Always wanted to be a wrestler,” he said. “I came from a small town in Minnesota where wrestling was popular. While in school I won the NCAA heavyweight title twice, the National AAU title, and in 1948 went to London with the Olympic Team.

“I went as a Greco-Roman wrestler. We didn’t know anything about that type of wrestling, and were withdrawn before we made a spectacle of ourselves.

“In 1949, I took a shot at pro football, signed with the Green Bay Packers. Got $6,000 for about six months work. Now I average about $2,000 a week.”

Pro wrestling is a lot tougher than football,” Gagne says.

“I never got hurt badly playing football, although I got one of these ears in football. Since becoming a pro wrestler, though, I’ve had fingers broken, teeth knocked out, a chipped knee and a broken nose. However,” he added philosophically, “the money is good.”

If Gagne is a brain, his manager is a super-brain. He is Jim Barnett, who was graduated from Harvard and then earned a master’s degree in English at the University of Chicago.

Barnett intended to be a teacher, and he looks the part. If you were to pick a man from a crowd whom you would rate as the last man to manage a wrestler, Barnett would be that man.

“I met Vern through a friend, and we became close friends,” Barnett explained. “I just sort of drifted into the managing end.”

Note: A letter to Harvard in January 2005 revealed that Barnett was, in fact, not a student prior to attending the University of Chicago. This seems to be nothing but wrestling lore.

[Nefercheperur]

Daily Oklahoman
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
15 September 1964

Obituaries:

Tulsa
Krauser, Karol Karl, 52; services are pending with Fitzgerald Funeral Home. He died Friday in Salt Lake City, Utah. He had been a professional wrestler 28 years. Survivors include his wife Zosia; three sons, including Tommy and Richard; two daughters, Katherine Louise and Pola; his father; two brothers, and three sisters.

[Nefercheperur]

The Daily Oklahoman
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
31 May 1960

Ellis Bashara Services Set

Norman – Graveside services for Ellis Bashara, University of Oklahoma football player and wrestler of 1931-32-33, will be at 3 p.m. Teusday at the IOOF cemetery here.

Bashara, associated with a supply company at Houston, died of a heart attack there Friday.

He is survived by his wife Jessie and two sons, Wayne, 19, and Mike, 11; his mother, Mrs. D.A. Bashara, Norman, and three sisters, Mrs. Mary Moudy, Hayward, Calif., Mrs. Ollie Humphreys, and Mrs. Joe Kendall, Riverside, Calif.

In 1933, Bashara made the all-Big Six team at guard and also was chosen on an all-time Oklahoma eleven selected by former sports editors of The Daily Oklahoman. In 1926-27-28, he played for Coach Dewey “Snorter” Luster’s Norman High School Tigers.

A well-remembered Sooner wrestler, he became a prominent pro wrestler and also played pro football with a Memphis team, wrestling twice a week and playing football on Sunday.

At Houston, he was prominent in developing Little League baseball in which both his sons participated.

[Nefercheperur]

Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles Times
28 June 1953

Correction! Zbyszko Farms in Missouri

Correction! A recent item in this column stated that Stanislaus Zbyszko, one of the greatest grapplers of all time, was raising apples on a farm in Old Orchard, Me.

An obliging reader writes in as follows:

"You are right about Stan Zbyszko being a farmer. But you're wrong about the locale. Stanislaus, who is now 73, and his kid brother Wladek, a youngster of 58, own a 210-acre farm just outside of Savannah, Mo. I know, because I was a neighbor of theirs.

"They own 100 head of hogs, which keeps them plenty busy. As a sideline, Stanislaus loves to work with bees. He has five hives. Stan weighs about 240, 10 pounds more than his left when he beat Strangler Lewis for the title back in 1921.

"Two years ago, Stan offered to meet both Primo Carnera and Argentina Rocca on the same night. The offer still stands, but he says he'll keep it open for only two more years. He says it would be too hard for him to get in condition when he's 75 years old."

Popular Ref

Cecil Payne is one of the most popular mat referees of the Southern California staff. He graduated from Fullerton High School in 1937. He was a two-letter man - one in football and one in boxing.

The same year he won the middleweight championship in the Golden Gloves here when he beat Vic Nardoni, who is now in the bail bond business with his brothers.

Payne had eight pro fights. He liked it, but his wife didn't. She won the decision. He quit the ring. One night at Wilmington the wrestling referee didn't show up. Cecil filled in to help the promoter. Fans liked him so much the State Athletic Commission put him on the staff.

"It takes three men to make a great wrestling match," says Payne. "two good wrestlers, and a referee who can handle any situation."

Top Lancaster Show

Louie Miller, one-time grappling great turned promoter has an outstanding program lined up for Lancaster natives Thursday night, featuring Primo Carnera. Back in '35, Louie lost a toughie to Hugh Nichols for the world's light-heavyweight title. Nichols is also a promoter now, handling the Legion Stadium and San Diego Colisum.

Larry Hamilton, a newcomer from St. Joseph, Mo., has attracted the fancy of Southland mat filberts. Larry is only 22 years old and is an army veteran. He served in the MPs.

Hombre Montana and Bobby Managoff are going great in Honolulu rings. Al Karasick, a wrestler star of yesteryear, runs the sport in the islands.

Despite the curls and perfume, Gorgeous George is a pretty fair matster. Before becoming GG, he was George Wagner and holder of the Pacific Coast light-heavy diadem.

Jules Strongbow follwers now can catch the giant Indian twice a week on their video sets. Jules holds forth at the Hollywood Legion on Monday and has his own show on Wednesdays. The latter program is called "Ramona and Jules at Home."

Of course, pretty Ramona is Mrs. Strongbow.

[Nefercheperur]

Council Bluffs, Iowa
Council Bluffs Nonpareil
2 Januar 1948

Amateur Fights Scheduled for Tuesday Night

Council Bluffs will have some amateur fights Tuesday night, Ralph Hayes, local promoter announced Friday.

The night bout card has been lined up as a tune-up for several of the local Glove aspirants.

Hillside club of Omaha will furnish most of the opposition for the Bluffs kids on the Tuesday card. Bluffs team will be made up of a combination of battlers from the American Legion and Blue Star teams. Both teams have been training under Hayes.

Heavyweight feature will see Ed (Junior Bearcat) Wright in action. Young Wright, son of the famous Bearcat of former days, is a South Omaha boy, but he will be fighting with the Bluffs team Tuesday. He does not intend to enter Golden Gloves competition this year. Reason for having him on the card, Hayes explained, was that there is no heavyweight on either of the other teams.

[Nefercheperur]

Minneapolis Tribune
Minneapolis, Minnesota
30 September 1934

Sports fans of Minneapolis, especially wreslting enthuslasts, perhaps never heard of a wresling promoter named Al Haft of Columbus, yet he is one of the most successful in the bussiness.
Haft cannot compete for important matches with such noted promoters as Jack Curley of New York, Paul Bowser of Boston, Tom Packs of St. Louis, Lou Daro of Los Angeles, Al Schuler of San Francisco and Tony Stecher of Minneapolis, but he has amassed a comfortable fortune by staging matches in all of the largest cities of Ohio, especially in Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, Toledo, Akron and Lima where his shows draw well.
Columbus sports writers tell me Haft is worth around $250,000 and owns one of the finest homes in this city.

[Nefercheperur]

Victoria (BC) Times
Victoria, British Columbia
24 November 1966

Mighty Chief Thunderbird Dies; Gained Fame as Wrestling King

Chief Thunderbird, one of the most famous of British Columbia's native sons, is dead.
Jean Baptiste Paul, who gained world-wide fame as Chief Thunderbird, died Wednesday in St. Joseph's Hospital. He was 71.

Hereditary chief of the Tsartlip Indians at Brentwood, "The Chief" gained his greatest fame as a professional wrestler but was outstanding in several sports.

Right up until he was hospitalized two weeks ago, Chief Thunderbird was a familiar figure as various district sporting events, particularly soccer and football.

Just as he stood out in the wrestling ring, "Bapti Paul" was easily recognized as a sports fan because of his booming, gravel voice. A staunch supporter of Island teams, he was quick to berate referees for anything he considered a poor call. His booming tirades were laced with a wit that entertained everybody.

A proud individual, The Chief was always proudest of the fame that he brought to his native B.C. while wrestling in all corners of the world.

Chief Thunderbird, grandson of noted chief Ben Paul, gained world-wide fame early. Attending the Tacoma Indian School in Washington, he won letters in eight sports — an amazing feat that was described in the Strange as it Seems feature.

He also put together a string of 20 boxing victories — nine by knockouts — in his youth, and rang up 30 consecutive wrestling victories after his pro debut in Seattle.
Even at school, The Chief was so adept at wrestling that he had no difficulty in beating his instructors.

He is survived by his wife, Julia; three sons — Harvey Andrew (Jack), Roy and Carl; three daughters — Mrs. Gordon (Juanita) Underwood, Mrs. Maurice (Jeanette) Barrett and Mrs. John (Freda) Cooper; a brother, Paul; his sister, Mrs. Elsie Roney, and 29 grandchildren.
Prayers will be offered in Sands' "Memorial Chapel of Chimes" Friday at 8 p.m. Mass will be held in Our Lady of the Assumption Church, West Saanich Road, Saturday at 10 a.m.

[Nefercheperur]

St. Joseph News-Press
St. Joseph, Missouri
9 May 2007

Former wrestler, sheriff dies at 83

The imposing figure took pride in being a tough guy.

Sonny Myers, a burly local wrestler and former Buchanan County sheriff, died Monday at age 83. Mr. Myers led a diversified life as a carnival brawler, title wrestler, traveling amusement show owner, car dealer, and Wal-Mart greeter.

The lifelong St. Joseph resident started on the killing floor of Swift's packinghouse. One day in 1943, St. Joseph wrestling promoter Gust Karras approached the 6 foot, 2 inch strapping man at the YMCA and proposed a wrestling career. Throughout the next 40 years he became known for moves like the headlock, drop-kick, and his trademark clincher move - the sleeper hold.

"Everybody wanted to see him put the sleeper hold on guys," former News-Press sports editor Bill Scott said. "He came up behind and grabbed 'em. I don't know if he actually put them to sleep, but the crowd thought so."

Mr. Myers became tag-team heros with wrestler Larry Hamilton on Friday and Saturday nights.

Any kid growing up in St. Joseph in the 1950s and 1960s remembers Mr. Myers as a childhood hero, said Pat Conway. The 59-year-old's favorite memory was Mr. Myers matched against the bleached blond bad guy "Rip Hawk."

"He'd get on his knees and cry, and the crowd would be screaming, but the good guy (Mr. Myers) would not hit him," Mr. Conway said.

Wrestler Harley Race climbed through the ropes of the squared circle and grappled with Mr. Myers more than a few times.

"Sonny was probably the best of the best when it came to the clean side of wrestling," Mr. Race said.

Bob Slater, News-Press managing editor at the time, remembers the two-term Buchanan County sheriff's unforgettable handshake and imposing presence. During his two terms in the 1970s, Mr. Myers followed his own rules, which sometimes landed him in hot water with politicians, he said.

One Saturday night, he busted into long-tolerated illegal cockfighting in southern Buchanan County and arrested 35 people.

"The magistrate court was overflowing Monday morning," Mr. Slater said. "Sonny was not one of the good ole boys."

He would later train young wrestlers, including World Wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, wife Elaine Myers said. He died Monday following a two-month illness - an old man unbeaten by life, she says.

"He didn't realize his own strength, even to the end," Mrs. Myers said. "He died a gentle giant."

[Nefercheperur]

The Daily Northwestern
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
2 Februar 1905

Cleveland, O., Feb. 2. – Tom Jenkins has made up his mind that wrestling does not pay. "I am thinking of retiring," he said. "The fact that the public has been, swindled so often by fixed wrestling bouts that where formerly there were dollars in the game there are only pennies now. A wrestler has to work hard all the time, much harder than pugilists, and his compensation is much smaller. I am convinced that this is unfair, and I am going to quit the game.”


Info: Tom Jenkins hat 3 Tage vor seinem Match gegen Frank Gotch 1905 an einen Ruecktritt gedacht?!?! Jenkins trat erst 1908 zurueck, und auch wenn Jenkins damals (1905) wahrscheinlich garnicht an einen Ruecktritt dachte, so ist es schon sehr interessant das drei Tage vor dem Match mit Gotch ein Artikel herausgebracht wurde, indem ueber ein Retirement von Tom Jenkins gesprochen wird, und das auch noch in Zusammenhang mit “Fixed“ aka worked Wrestling Matches.

[Nefercheperur]

Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles, California
24 June 1974

Haystacks is no needle; he'd better keep a pitchfork handy

Haystacks Calhoun, a 6-4 Wrestler who weighs 600 pounds and wears a size 12 eeeee shoes, recently got a letter from his first wife, who divorced him and remarried.

"she wrote me saying her husband's a hell's angel and in the pen for armed robbery," said haystacks, "and that she was gonna get me --soon's he's outta jail."

is he afraid?

"wa-a-l," he said. "let me put it this way. ah'm too big to hide. 'n too fat to run. so 'ah only one chance. to satnd and fight."