Tag: Catch-as-Catch-Can Wrestling

Since its emergence as a spectator sport in the second half of the 19th Century, promoters and wrestlers were under a cloud of suspicion that they were working their matches.  While professional wrestling would eventually consist almost exclusively of staged exhibitions, many, if not most, of the matches were legitimate contest prior to 1915. Promoters and wrestlers went to great

In early 1915, Sam Rachmann promoted the New York International Wrestling Tournament with the intention of replacing retired World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Frank Gotch.  Rachmann believed no one could defeat Aleksander “Alex” Aberg, Rachmann’s handpicked successor to Gotch, in Greco-Roman wrestling. Rachmann’s challenge was catch-as-catch-can was the dominant wrestling style in America.  To get around this challenge, Rachmann recruited international

In 1922, future World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Jim Browning began his career in Kansas.  Browning moved from his hometown of Verona, Missouri in 1921 to train for a professional wrestling career.  Tom Law, the Wichita, Kansas promoter, oversaw Browning’s training. By May 1923, Browning was already in the main event at smaller shows.  On an Augusta, Kansas card, Browning wrestled

On March 3, 1922, Ed “Strangler” Lewis regained the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship from Stanislaus Zbyszko. This event marked the beginning of one of the most dominant professional wrestling combines in history. Manager Billy Sandow, World Champion Ed “Strangler” Lewis and training partner/promotional genius Joseph “Toots” Mondt, known as the “Gold Dust Trio”, dominated the sport for the next six

In the early 1920s, Billy Sandow convinced Georgia promoter Tom Law to move to Wichita, Kansas and develop the area for future wrestling shows.  The American Midwest would be a significant revenue generator for the Gold Dust Trio, which Sandow led with World Champion Ed “Strangler” Lewis and promotional genius Joseph “Toots” Mondt, in the 1920s. Law would produce two

In 1894, Martin “Farmer” Burns was preparing to wrestle Evan “Strangler” Lewis for the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship.  While Burns was entering his prime, Lewis had been on top of American professional wrestling for 5 years. Lewis also wrestled a viscous style with an emphasis on submission holds.  Burns would have to be prepared for a tough contest, which could

Verona, Missouri is a small town in southwest Missouri.  Never exceeding 900 residents in it’s history, only 438 or so people called Verona home in 1926.  Yet, a professional wrestling card was held in the town on Monday, March 22, 1926. Without the widespread use of automobiles or roads built to handle them, travel would be very difficult in 1926. 

On Friday, February 17, 1922, World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Stanislaus Zbyszko wrestled a handicap match against Francois Lemarque and up-and-coming star Jim Londos.  Londos was still a few years away from becoming the biggest box office draw in professional wrestling but he was the most popular wrestler in St. Louis. While Londos only stood about 5’06” or 5’07”, he possessed

On Sunday, December 17, 1906, Kansas City, Missouri once more proved itself to be a hotbed for professional wrestling as 8,000 fans crammed Convention Hall to watch the rematch between Frank Gotch and Fred Beell.  Beell won the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship from Gotch three weeks earlier in New Orleans, Louisiana. Gotch claimed the loss to be a fluke, while