Caddock and W. Zbyszko Wrestle to Draw

earl-caddock

Earl Caddock had a relatively short but storied professional wrestling career in the late 1910s and early 1920s.  Making his professional debut in 1915 after winning three AAU National titles in amateur wrestling, Caddock only wrestled professionally until 1922.  However, he would be recognized as world champion after defeating Joe Stecher in April 1917. Caddock would lose the title back

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The Bashful Bachelor (1942)

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On March 19, 1942, RKO Radio Pictures released the second film starring the Old Time Radio comedy team Lum and Abner. The Bashful Bachelor (1942) starred Chester Lauck as Lum Edwards and Norris Goff as Abner Peabody, the owners of the Jot’Em Down Store in Arkansas. In this film (affiliate link), longtime bachelor Lum Edwards wants to become a hero

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Ned O’Baldwin Shot

ned-obaldwin-prizefighter

In early March 1873, bare knuckle prizefighter Ned “The Irish Giant” O’Baldwin was preparing for a potential match with Jem Mace, who claimed the World Bare Knuckle Prizefighting Championship.  However, before O’Baldwin could face Mace, he served as a second for a friend and fellow prizefighter named Hicken. Professional fighting in the 19th Century enjoyed a poor reputation outside of

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John Berg Wins Light Heavy Championship

john-berg

John Berg was a good enough wrestler to beat Martin “Farmer” Burns twice but was mostly thought of as a good lighter wrestler.  Berg held the World Light Heavyweight Wrestling Championship in the late 1910s and competed for the Middleweight Title, which was contested at 158 pounds.  Berg missed weight by four pounds but won the match. Berg wrestled in

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Why I Studied the Martial Arts I Have

me-breaking-1996

We included four or more martial arts in our academy’s curriculum.  When I look at these arts, I see a distinct reason that I studied each one.  These arts cover striking, grappling, ground fighting and a practical self-defense weapon, the cane. I started studying Shotokan karate in the Fall of 1994.  I switched to Taekwondo with my nephew in the Spring of 1995.  Taekwondo brought

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Boss Butler and the St. Louis Machine

col-edward-boss-butler

When it comes to machine politics and organized crime, Kansas City has always outshone St. Louis.  Kansas City’s Pendergast political machine helped land Harry S. Truman in the White House.  Kansas City was also home to several high-profile gangland shootings.  St. Louis’ last organized crime leader was arrested for playing cards. We did have a Democratic party political machine around

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