Combat Sports Historian and Martial Artist
General William Tecumseh Sherman of Civil War fame had deep roots in St. Louis stretching back to 1843. As a soldier, the US Army assigned Sherman to Jefferson Barracks. Sherman was also involved in St. Louis businesses as the St. Louis Street Railroad Company President until he left St. Louis for the Civil War in 1861. After the war,
3 times over the last 150 years, martial artists created more modern versions of older martial arts. Unlike many prior systems, the innovators of these modern martial arts chose to share this information with outsiders and spread their arts around the world. Jigoro Kano’s dissemination of Judo is the best case study for how to develop and spread a martial
Stanislaus Zbyszko was born Stanislaw Jan Cyganiewicz on April 1, 1880 in Jodlow, Poland, which was part of the Austria-Hungarian Empire. Zbyszko chose the ring name Stanislaus Zbyszko because it was the name of a fictional Polish knight. An article in the Walla Walla, Washington newspaper, The Evening Statesman’s on Tuesday, February 8, 1910, publicized Zbyszko’s university and intellectual accomplishments.
The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s early silent films. Hitchcock filmed an adaptation of the Marie Belloc Lowndes story and play based on the Jack the Ripper murders. Hitchcock directed the film in 1926. It was released in February 1927 in London. It did not make it to the United States until
On April 5, 1920, Frederick Charles Smith, also known as “The Red-Headed Bandit”, walked into the Easton-Taylor Trust Company at 4474 Easton Avenue. Smith had a revolver in each hand and demanded money from the cashier. Fearing for his life, the clerk promptly dropped $15,309 in a sack. John Lanigan, the bank’s president, sat in his office off the lobby
George Hackenschmidt (1877-1968) was a world record holding weightlifter and World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion before wrestling was prearranged and lifters were using steroids. Hackenschmidt achieved a level of greatness due to several factors. He achieved a high level of physical fitness. His physical condition allowed him to be the most successful wrestler of his era. A few wrestlers may have been
I previously wrote about an incident in which a Detective Sergeant for the St. Louis Police was shot during a robbery attempt. Unlike a number of other incidents in Gilded Age St. Louis history, Detective Sergeant James Martin King’s home in January 1920 still exists. The home is still in excellent condition. 4973 Lotus Avenue was the home of Sgt. King in
Sherlock Holmes in The Pearl of Death (1944) is the ninth of fourteen movies in the series starring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes. In this film, Holmes is battling archcriminal Giles Conover, played by Miles Mander. Conover is attempting to steal a valuable pearl from the British Museum. He is aided in his crimes by accomplices Naomi Drake and The
On a cold January night in 1920, the deadliest year for St. Louis Police, kicked off violently. Two not so-bright robbers attempted to rob one of the largest and bravest officers on the St. Louis Police Department. St. Louis Police Detective Sergeant James Martin King was walking to his home at 4973 Lotus Avenue via N. Kingshighway Boulevard, when two
I first heard about Chang Apana in a featurette on one of the Charlie Chan DVD sets. I knew a real life detective inspired Earl Derr Biggers to create Charlie Chan. I did not know who the man was. Chang Apana was that man. Chang Apana (born Ah Ping Chang) on December 26, 1871 on the island of Oahu was