“Little Demon” Unable to Beat Whistler

joe-acton

Joe Acton was one of England’s best wrestlers during the 19th Century. 151-pound Acton went through England’s middleweight ranks before plowing through the heavyweights. After beating the best England had to offer including Tom Cannon, Acton decided to test his abilities in the United States. Joe Acton settled in Philadelphia at Arthur Chamber’s Champions Rest during the summer months of

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St. Louis Wrestler Surprises Gotch

oscar-wassem

Frank Gotch holds the title of America’s greatest legitimate professional wrestler. Gotch competed in mostly legitimate contests with a few pre-arranged or “te travay” matches thrown in the mix. Pa 1904 oswa 1905, no one could really beat Gotch unless he allowed it. In the early years of his career, Gotch was not so dominant. He dropped matches to his mentor,

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Fred Beell Overcomes Old Champ

fred-beell-light-heavyweight

Sou Oktòb 20, 1906, Fred Beell proved dynamite comes in small packages. Beell, light heavyweight wrestling champion, defeated former American heavyweight champion Dan McLeod. Beell parlayed an active 1906 into defeats of former American Heavyweight Champion Dan McLeod and current American Heavyweight Champion Frank Gotch. Beell won the American Middleweight (Light Heavyweight) Championship but remained out of the spotlight until

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Americus Beats Charley Olson

americus-gus-schonlein

Sou Novanm 7, 1908, Charles Olson met “Americus” Gus Schonlein for the World Light Heavyweight Wrestling Championship. The match proved to be as exciting as observers suspected it would be but it ended in controversy. Olson stood 6’01” but weighed only 170 liv. Born Max Flaskamp in Krefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia in 1879, he took the name Charles or Charley Olson

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Gotch Easily Beats Raicevich

jan-raicevich

Giovanni Raicevich stood only 5’07” tall but weighed a muscular 220 liv. Raicevich carried pro bodybuilder type muscle 50 years before the steroid era. Sepandan, when it came to wrestling, Raicevich’s skill set was not quite as developed as his physique. Raicevich was one of many foreign wrestlers, who traveled to America to take on Frank Gotch after he defeated

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Christmas Night Wrestling Fiasco

stanislaus-zbyszko-1909

Sou Nwèl lannwit 1911, Stanislaus Zbyszko met Giovanni Raicievich in a much-anticipated heavyweight wrestling bout. Zbyszko, who was campaigning for a rematch with World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Frank Gotch, agreed to throw Raicevich 3 times in 90 minutes or be declared the loser. As the men entered the famed Madison Square Garden in New York City, Zbyszko was clearly the

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Strangler” Headlocks Caddock for Win

trangler-lewis-formation-enbesil

EdStrangler” Lewis se youn nan pi gwo luteur pwofesyonèl ak chanpyon mondyal tout tan. Lewis’ signature move was the stranglehold, ki Lewis te kòmanse itilize kòm pwomotè ak luteur te fè tranzisyon lit pwofesyonèl nan yon egzibisyon ki te prepare oswa "te travay". Lewis orijinèlman te itilize fèmen figi devan oswa toufe guillotine. Lewis 'omonim Evan "Strangler" Lewis te fè fas a fèmen devan oswa

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Matsuda Wins First Match

matsuda-ak-roeber

Sorakichi Matsuda originally trained in sumo wrestling. When Matsuda decided to become a catch-as-catch-can wrestler, he was forced to travel to the United States. Professional wrestling would not become popular in Japan until the middle of the Twentieth Century. Upon arriving in the United States in 1883, it took Matsuda a few months to secure a match. He finally secured

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