Combat Sports Historian and Martial Artist
Films and television shows based on combat sports such as boxing, wrestling, or martial arts or starring combat sports athletes.
Joe Stecher capturing the world wrestling championship from Earl Caddock is the oldest professional wrestling film in existence. Tragically, promoters filmed the biggest matches of the 1910s and 1920s including the second Frank Gotch-Georg Hackenshmidt match, but they rotted in storage areas. Camera operators filmed Ed “Strangler” Lewis vs. Wayne “Big” Munn, Stecher vs. Stanislaus Zbyszko, and the reunification match
Willard “Wild Bill” Longson was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on June 8, 1906 but spent most of his adult life in St. Louis, Missouri. After beginning his career as a professional wrestler in 1931, Longson found himself working for Tom Packs in St. Louis. He never really left as it would be his home base for the remainder
Broadcast companies were looking for content during the early days of television. Besides older movies and some broadcast company productions, sports were a source of programming for many television stations. The Dumont Television Network was one of the powerhouse networks in the beginning of the Golden Age of Television. One of their most popular programs was wrestling and the star
Peter Lorre reprises his role as Mr. Kentaro Moto, Interpol Agent, in Mr. Moto’s Gamble (1938). James Tinling directed this film and Charlie Chan in Shanghai (1937). Tinling’s participation caused Lorre to portray Mr. Moto more like Inspector Chan with a little jujitsu thrown in. In this film, Mr. Moto teaches a criminal investigation class to several budding investigators including
Marvel Studios released the series Iron Fist on Netflix on March 17, 2017. The series based on the Marvel comic about Danny Rand, a young man presumed to have died in a plane crash. Rand is rescued as a child by monks, who teach him martial arts in the Himalayas. The series contains a number of great martial arts fight scenes.
RKO Pictures brought the Dick Tracy comic strip character to the big screen on December 1, 1945. While the film is definitely a “B” film meant to be first on the double bill, it still would have been of interest to the many fans of the popular comic strip. Chester Gould created the strip in October 1931 for the Detroit
On January 26, 1934, United Artists released Palooka (1934), a feature film based on the popular comic strip. Stuart Erwin plays Joe Palooka but Jimmy Durante steals the show as his manager Knobby Walsh. Joe Palooka is the son of former world boxing champion Pete Palooka. When Joe was a baby, his mother Mayme, played by Marjorie Rambeau, takes him
On July 7, 1939, Twentieth Century-Fox Films released the final Mr. Moto “B” film starring Peter Lorre as Inspector Kentaro Moto. Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation finds Mr. Moto accompanying the Queen of Sheba’s Crown from its discovery in an Egyptian archaeological site to a San Francisco museum. Mr. Moto suspects the arch criminal Metaxess, who authorities believed was dead, intends
Monogram Pictures released So’s Your Aunt Emma! (1942) on April 17, 1942. Zasu Pitts stars as Aunt Emma Bates. In her youth, Aunt Emma was engaged to up-and-coming professional fighter Jim O’Banion. Her sister didn’t approve of the match, so they sent her on a trip to break up the couple. Aunt Emma regretted it and starts following the career
Twentieth Century – Fox Film Company released the fourth Mr. Moto film, Mr. Moto Takes a Chance (1938), on June 24, 1938. Lou Breslow and John Patrick set the film in Cambodia allowing Twentieth-Century Fox to use stock footage of the recently discovered ruins of Angkor Wat. The discovery of Angkor Wat captured the attention of the American public. Many