Combat Sports Historian and Martial Artist
https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/b7uzv9/Episode_30abul2.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadIn this episode, we discuss the Dick Shikat double-cross
Who is the greatest legitimate professional wrestler to wrestle in the United States? How do
Rarely does one fundamentally alter their profession but Stanislaus Zbyszko did just that on April
Tom Hyer won the American Bare Knuckle Prizefighting Championship in 1841. Like most prizefighting champions
On Monday, December 13, 1920, Ed “Strangler” Lewis won the first of six World Heavyweight Wrestling Championships from Joe Stecher. The fact he won the title from his biggest rival and business enemy must have been particularly satisfying. A year before this match, Stecher and Lewis met in a match lasting over three hours. Lewis made a mental error in
Frederick William Johannpeter (1839 – 1915) was my second great grandfather on my mother’s side. He died 4 months before the birth of his grandson, Gilbert P. Ellis, who was my grandfather. Since he died before my grandfather was born, I had very limited information on him, when I started researching the family history. Grandpa didn’t have any verbal history
When the 1915 New York International Wrestling Tournament restarted in October 1915, a mysterious masked man sat at ringside demanding an entry into the tournament. Prior to the masked man’s arrival, the tournament had been lightly attended. The attraction of the masked man sitting at ringside attracted both fan and newspaper interest. Crowds started showing up for the matches. After
On March 21, 1941, United Artists released the third Topper film (affiliate link), Topper Returns (1941). Roland Young plays Cosmo Topper, a middle aged businessman with the unique gift of seeing ghosts stuck in this world. This film is set in a large country home. The film begins with Gail Richards, played by Joan Blondell, and Ann Carrington, played by
Before reading Gangs of St. Louis: Men of Respect by Daniel Waugh, I knew and wrote about Robert Creed and his brother Thomas murdering St. Louis Police Officer George Geisler on Halloween Day 1920. What I didn’t know was Robert Creed was a member of the Cuckoo Gang, an ultra violent criminal organization in the 1920s. Robert Creed was the
In late 1902, Harvey Parker, a professional wrestler who began wrestling in 1900, travelled to St. Louis to challenge the local wrestling community. Parker may have thought St. Louis to be an easier town than “Farmer” Burns territory in Chicago and Iowa. However, Parker would discover two capable wrestler in St. Louis, George Baptiste and Oscar Wasem. By 1902, George
During March 1891, George Baptiste travelled from St. Louis to Detroit to take part in a catch-as-catch-can wrestling tournament. While primarily a Greco-Roman wrestler, Baptiste would compete in the dominant American style of catch-as-catch-can. The 26-year-old Baptiste was an accomplished amateur and professional wrestler. Entering the Detroit tournament, Baptiste had lost only one match as a professional. The year prior,
On November 10, 1924, Mrs. A.W. Stickney was leaving the St. Louis Country Club, when she was approached by two African-American men. The lighter skinned man told Mrs. Stickney to turn over her jewels or he would take them from her. Fearing for her safety, Mrs. Stickney handed the man her jewelry, valued at $17,000.00, and $85.00 in cash. Mrs.
Murder by the Clock (1931) was a YouTube recommendation I watched over my recent vacation. The film starts pretty slowly but was interesting by the end. Murder by the Clock only runs 75 minutes, so it easily watched in one sitting. The film tells the story of the widow Mrs. Endicott, who knows her life is coming to an end,
When I started martial arts in my mid-twenties, I thought my skill level would always continue to improve even as I aged. Since I regularly lifted weights, performed cardio and stretched, I thought I could battle Father Time to a draw. Like so many combat athletes before me, I discovered Father Time beats us all. Whether we want to face