Combat Sports Historian and Martial Artist
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When Wladek Zbyszko travelled from the United States to Brazil for a lucrative tour on
Who is the greatest legitimate professional wrestler to wrestle in the United States? How do
On April 3, 1908, American Wrestling Champion Frank Gotch met World Wrestling Champion George Hackenschmidt
Uncle Oscar Von Burg and Aunt Dorothy Von Burg nee Mosblech were my grandparents’ closest friends. Grandma Ellis and Aunt Dorothy were sisters separated in age by about a year and a half. Grandpa Ellis and Uncle Oscar became close friends when they were dating the sisters. Neither Uncle Oscar nor Grandpa danced, so they would escort Grandma and Aunt
On April 7, 1939, Twentieth Century-Fox released the seventh of eight Mr. Moto “B” movies. Mr. Moto in Danger Island begins with Mr. Moto on a ship headed to Puerto Rico. Mr. Moto, played by Peter Lorre, and several passengers are watching a wrestling match. Twister McGurk, played by Warren Hymer, is wrestling Sailor Sam, played by Ward Bond. Mr. Moto
On November 7, 1890, Chief of Detectives William Desmond brought in Pat Kennedy, a low-level St. Louis crook, who was suspected of stealing 20 cents from a cigar store on North 9th Street. A 3rd District St. Louis Police Officer captured Kennedy after he robbed a Miss Minnie Mullaney at 16th Street and Franklin Avenue. Kennedy proved a first-rate coward,
Despite its worldwide popularity and it’s rank as the most popular martial art in the United States, (TKD) is beginning to lose some of it’s luster due to its perceived lack of success in Mixed Martial Arts. (MMA) is the biggest thing to hit the martial arts world since Jigaro Kano decided to go to a colored and black belt system to denote rank within his school,
In July 1854, the World Bareknuckle Prizefighting Champion John Morrissey, who also severed as Tammany Hall enforcer, challenged William “Bill the Butcher” Poole to a no holds barred street fight. The result was a terrible beating and several month recovery for John Morrissey. Morrissey would have likely won a bareknuckle prizefight with Poole, a part-time prizefighter himself. Morrissey made a
Arthur C. Clemmings was born on Thursday, April 3, 1913 in St. Louis, MO. At the start of World War II, Uncle Art enlisted in the United States Army as a private. He was assigned as a semi-skilled metal worker. His term of enlistment, which began on September 2, 1942, was for the duration of the war plus six months.
Orange Rank is the next step on the path to obtaining a 1st Degree Black Rank in the Zimmerman Self-Defense System. You will continue to learn new techniques and start to figure out what you are naturally good at and what you need to work on more. Orange and Green Ranks sometimes trouble students because the novelty of training in
William T.”Willie” Egan took over “Egan’s Rats” on the death of his older brother Tom in 1919. Thomas “Snake” Kinney and his childhood friend and brother-in-law Tom Egan formed St. Louis’ criminal organization in the late 1800s. Both Kinney and Tom Egan were saloon keepers and Democratic politicians. They employed “the Rats” for political slugging and other criminal activities. Thomas
On July 26, 1854, the bare knuckle champion John Morrissey met occasional bare knuckle fighter William Poole in a no rules street brawl. What followed would be the worst five minutes of John Morrissey’s life. On October 23, 1853, the 22-year-old Morrissey beat Yankee Sullivan for the world bare knuckle championship in a disputed decision. Sullivan actually knocked Morrissey out
Sam Hill, a Seattle businessman, brought Professor Yoshiaki Yamashita to the United States in 1902. Professor Yamashita intended to help spread Dr. Jigoro Kano’s relatively new martial art of Judo. Accompanying Professor Yamashita was his student Mitsuyo Maeda. Maeda would go on to teach Carlos Gracie in Brazil. The Gracies modified the techniques into the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Over