Episode 113 – Catch in a Jacket

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In this episode, I discuss an odd arrangement for a catch-as-catch-can wrestling match in 1881. I also recommend a compilation Chicago wrestling card from 1950-1951 and review one of Sam Muchnick’s cards after the formation of the National Wrestling Alliance.

Update

The Wrestling Observer 1985 book (affiliate link) on Amazon

Main Content

On March 31, 1881, Clarence Whistler wrestled Henry Moses Dufur in an odd catch-as-catch-can wrestling match in front of 200 fans at New York’s Turnverein Hall. Even though it was a catch wrestling match, both men wore jackets.

The promoters used the jackets and rules to try to even the competitive playing field between Whistler, a Greco-Roman wrestler with catch-as-catch-can experience, and Dufur, a collar-and-elbow wrestling specialist. Collar-and-elbow wrestlers wore jackets like judo or sambo players.

The arrangement led to an interesting three-out-of-five-falls match.

Recommendation

Compilation Chicago card from 1950 and 1951 on YouTube

One Fighting Championship 37 from November 7, 2025 on Prime Video (affiliate link)

Review

Sam Muchnick card on Friday, March 4, 1949, after the formation of the NWA. The card at Kiel Auditorium drew 9,577 fans.

Jack Pesek wrestled Jack Steele

Jack Pesek was the son of John “The Nebraska Tigerman” Pesek. Pesek defeated the villainous Steele in what the St. Louis Star and Times called “a ho-hum” match. Steele wrestled until 1972. Pesek defeated Steele with three football tackles and a body slam in 16 minutes, 1 second.

Babe Kasaboski, Tug Carlson, and Ken Kenneth had a six-man tag match with Lou Newman, Jim Wright, and Bill Zimovich

At one point, all six men and both referees were in the ring. Tug Carlson, who later wrestled as Lord Carlton, took the two falls to lead his team to victory. Carlson defeated “Wild Bill” Zimovich for the first fall with a kangaroo kick and body press in 7 minutes, 29 seconds. “Big” Jim Wright pinned Carlson with a body slam in 9 minutes, 58 seconds. Carlson pinned Wright with his own body slam for the third fall and match in 7 minutes, 4 seconds.

Abe “King Kong” Kashey wrestled Don Eagle

Kashey, a nationally known heel, wrestled Verne Gagne in Gagne’s professional debut. Don Eagle was the son of Chief War Eagle, a professional boxer and wrestler. Don Eagle was found dead at 40 years of age in 1966 at his home on the Caughnawaga Indian Reservation in Kahnawake, Quebec. Police ruled the shooting an accident.

Kashey and Eagle wrestled to a 30-minute draw setting up a potential rematch.

Main Event: Orville Brown defending the National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship against Bobby Bruns

Orville Brown, who also promoted in Wichita, Kansas, was the first NWA World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion. A vehicle accident in November 1949 forced 41-year-old Brown into retirement. In this match, the 40-year-old Brown, who turned 41 on March 10, 1949, was the heel.

Bruns threw Brown out of the ring 8 times during the match. Brown used a headlock to pin Bruns at 33 minutes, 4 seconds to take the only fall in the one fall match.

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