t.co/O5GfUklP1O", "Cowboy" Bob Ellis profile, from LegacyOfWrestling.com, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_oldest_surviving_professional_wrestlers&oldid=1142721943. Backlund will always be remembered as one of the greatest technicians in pro wrestling history who built his legacy by battling other promotional World Champions several times and any comer, often very bigger than him. Due to the lack of complete records, it is believed that Farmer Pete was World Champion for seven days in 1957, after beating Sonny Boy Cassidy, who won the title back in a rematch in October the same year. He would win his first singles championship from none other than Mark "Rollerball" Rocco in November 1976 when he defeated him for the British Light Heavyweight Championship, a Joint Promotions title he would go on to hold five times. David Smith (27 November 1962 - 18 May 2002) was an English professional wrestler. Out of traveling carnivals, circus acts and sheer ambition, these wrestlers started a sport that was followed by hundreds of thousands across America, Canada and England. Billy the Kid born John William Guillot in Waco, Texas in 1936. Frost. Antonio Posa - World Champion Matthewss extensive knowledge of wrestling holds aided him, even in some of Britains most ruthless towns. Little Bruiser ready for a bout in Chicago, September 1 1972. First African-American promoter & manager working under Vincent J. McMahon. Along with his accolades, he was one of the first to incorporate a female valet into his act. He moved to the US in the early 1960s, where he became NWA World Midget Championwinning a record three times (tied with Little Tokyo). AEW President Tony Khan broke the news on Tuesday that one-half of the ROH World Tag Team Champions Jay Briscoe, real name Jamin. In his later years, he continued to be influential within the British circuit, winning titles such as the Frontier Wrestling Alliances British Heavyweight Championship. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. When Embry wins and Lowrance compares it to other great moments in the decades-long history of the Dallas Sportatorium, you. Cowboy Lang was born Harry Lang in Saskatchewan, Canada on August 28, 1950. The free-form music expression of jam bands became a monumental part of hippie culture in the 60s. Strongbow will probably be most remembered for his Native American gimmick, with the complete outfit, including his famous traditional headdress than for his achievements. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic. His calculated evil ways made him one of the biggest heels in any company he worked. Garea made his mark in the tag team division by winning the gold on three occasions, with three different partners, for a total of 384 days with the title in the '70s. Wrestled his last match on a AAA show in a loss to El Pistolero in San Pedro Cholula, Mexico. Cowboy Bob Bradley was born Robert Claton Bradley in Dickens County, TX, in February 1935. The Promoters A-Z index has been split into sections. However, he never got to show his full potential and was often placed in comedy segments alongside his leprechaun sidekick, Hornswoggle. These contests, though, receive little publicity and mostly go unnoticed by the general public. source Cauliflower Alley Club, Spanish announcer in boxing and wrestling in Los Angeles. * Continued to exist after the National Wrestling Alliance was founded in 1948. It's normal because he was like the main attraction for all those years. 9. Oldest British wrestler in history, Second oldest worldwide. Nina Hagens Nunsexmonkrock: Greatest (and weirdest) unsung masterpiece of the postpunk era? You can also click here to watch another poor quality video (Sammartino defeating Stasiak for the WWWF Title). He was in movie Raiders of the Lost Ark, and played Bomber in TV series Auf Wiedersehen, Pet. In the process, I discovered countless wrestlers I hadn't heard about or I didn't really know. Wrestled in her last match in a tag team match with Stormy Apple as they lost to Josie Navarro and Margaret Garcia at Ladies International Wrestling Association in Las Vegas, Nevada. His father was an alcoholic and his abusive and violent behavior towards his son led the teenage Murray to run away from home. Big Daddy regularly prevailed in his bouts, commonly using his star-studded finisher, The Big Splash.. Referee, and British Wrestlers Reunion President until BWR ended in January 2022 after 30 years. Regal would debut in WCW in 1993. A former tag partner of Big Daddy, they became huge ring rivals. Doncaster-born Gary Cooper took on the TV wizards moniker and came up with many bizarre gimmicks, including licking a lucky toad between rounds. He had grueling rivalries against Bruno Sammartino and Bob Backlund over the WWWF Championship. Wrestled in a tag team match with Jeff Justice and Officer McKenny to defeat, Wrestled in a tag team match with Shawn Blanchard and Lou Martin to defeat Bobby O, Kris Kash, Shane Starr and Justin Sane for. Copyright is owned by the creators of text and photographs. The Baron enjoyed a great career with the WWWF in the '60s and in the '70s as one of the top heels. [Photo: mirror.co.uk]Nagasaki had superhuman powers, such as the power of healing and the ability to hypnotize. He was referred to as the man you love to hate!. And, with his trademark war dance, the fans went as crazy as when Hogan was "Hulking" up in the '80s. PWSTees.com Your favorite Pro Wrestling Stories, on a tee! Unofficially, she lost the title on four occasions, but she only spent 70 days without the gold in that 10,778-day time frame. Click the appropriate section on the right. However, since I didn't watch wrestling in those great days, I could hardly evaluate the in-ring abilities, the charisma and the mic skills. This ultimately proved to be a waste of his ability during a time when he didnt have many years left in the squared circle as a performer. 6 Antonio Inoki Retired wrestler Saraya-Jade Bevis, better known as Paige, has won the Divas Championship twice and was also its the youngest winner. Wrestling stars of the 60s/'70s. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Get the latest wrestling news and takes direct to your inbox. Discover 100 Huge Hits of the 60s & 70s by Various Artists released in 2007. Click here to watch the 1977 PWI Match of the YearGraham defeated Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF Title. Whenever not on tour overseas, Rocco would continue to compete for All Star Wrestling back home in Britain for the remainder of his career, which would last into the early 90s. Wrestlers fell in two categoriesthe goodies and the baddies, who would either seek the cheers or loud disapprobation of the audience by skill or pantomime cheating. Wrestled in Germany, France, Japan and AWA. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 2020-21 O-Pee-Chee Platinum Yellow Traxx #197 Dylan Cozens RC 66/249 at the best online prices at eBay! There's no Buddy Rogers WWWF footage available but click here to watch a little gem from the '50s between him and Johnny Valentine. The Fabulous Moolah is the longest reigning champion in pro wrestling history. We have taken a lot of time and careful attention to detail in bringing you our free to use and access Wrestler's Database. From 1972 to 1978, in an age when tag team wrestling actually meant a lot, Fuji portrayed the stereotypical heel Japanese persona, and he was often involved in anti-American storylines. Policy. Pro Wrestling Stories - Your daily source of nostalgia and a peek behind the curtain wall of wrestlings past! This helps us provide free content for you to enjoy! He was also a trainer at the WWE Performance Center, where he trained the newest batch of WWE superstars. Joe wrestled his last match at the Gypsy Joe retirement show held in Tullahoma, Tennessee by the Southern Wrestling Federation. Although his father was against his son becoming a professional wrestler he would go as far as having Mark banned from his gym in Manchester, England Rocco would "learn the ropes" from many veterans from the age of 16 while his father was out on tour. It would take a whole book to cover his unique career, but to make it short, he was the face of the company for over 15 years. Morales, who would later become the first Triple Crown Champion in WWE history, was known for his uncommon resilience and for his mat skills. With Cold War fears lessening slightly compared to the previous decade, spy movies still often focused on Russian defectors, nuclear annihilation, and East German intrigue. Matthews trained as a shooter (a wrestling term that describes a wrestler with a legitimate fighting background), and he often defended prize money against members of the public. He would later appear on an April 2007 episode of Raw, losing a no disqualification, 3-on-1 handicap match to Shane McMahon, Vince McMahon, and Umaga. * Some NWA promoters recognized Moolah as world champion These are the men who became heroes of the ring as Midget Wrestlers during the 1960s and 1970s. 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars. The last surviving wrestler from the "Pioneer Era" (1900s1940s) was American wrestler Angelo Savoldi (born April 21, 1914, died September 13, 2013, aged 99years, 145days). Brookside was introduced as a man that Shane McMahon had personally seen take down six men by himself in a fight at a local pub! Danny Hodge - World Champion, Challengers (listed alphabetically): McManus has been described as the greatest name in British wrestling history, yet he remains mostly unknown outside of the United Kingdom. The legendary Lord Littlebrook (aka Eric Tovey), in Milwaukee July 7, 1968. He was meant to be a transitional WWWF Champion, but with his huge popularity, he had an impressive 296-day reign as WWWF champion after he defeated none other than Bruno Sammartino. The 60s & 70s beer guide; Beers from the past; Beers from the past. He later would become a regular performer on WCW Saturday Night and WCW Thunder. He dropped out of West Texas State College in 1953 to take up the fight game. Keg bitters on draught. Father of Bret "The Hitman" Hart, and the late wrestler Owen Hart. 1960 Summer - Wrestling Revue Men (Heavyweight): Pat O'Connor ( NWA World Champion) Killer Kowalski Antonino Rocca Lou Thesz Edouard Carpentier Don Eagle Buddy Rogers Dick Hutton Don Leo Jonathan Gene Kiniski Women: June Byers ( World Champion) Judy Grable Lorraine Johnson Tona Tomah Rose Roman Kathy Starr Barbara Baker Lee Chona LaClaire Chances are that grandmother or aunt would not be quite so respectable and may well have been prone to threatening the wrestlers with her handbag, umbrella or any other inanimate object that may have been close to hand. Dozens of wrestling tournaments were held every night of the week, (with a handful on Sunday), whilst boxing in the doldrums struggled to put on a couple of shows a night. Now, with no more introduction, let's travel back in time when pro wrestling was absent from the mainstream media and when it caused actual riots on many occasions. No matter where he wrestled, Koloff generated heat like no other with his Russian gimmick, all that right in the middle of the Cold War. He was also credited by the Guinness Book of Records as the Worlds Strongest Midget. Working co-operatively, being highly professional, promoting consistently good quality shows and winning a lucrative television contract gave Joint Promotions a much higher profile than any of the independent, or opposition promoters. While gender equality was an elusive dream in many fields, women were well represented in popular music, and the best female singers are legends. Also was a bodybuilder, swimmer, and actor. The similarities were apparent. On February 20, 1978, Bob Backlund reached the top of the mountain when he won the WWF Championship against "Superstar" Billy Graham in what was declared "The Match of the Year" by Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Frenchy Lamonte was also known as Rolly the Rocket, the Little Hawk, and Little Evilborn. You probably noticed that the name of Bruno Sammartino was repeated often and was featured in many videos. Rex. ), Mick McManus, Billy Two Rivers (real life father of designer Wayne Hemmingway) and many more. Now retired, Lord Littlebrook resides with his son in Saint Joseph, Missouri. Inducted into the. Whilst the enthusiasts focus was quite rightly on the wrestlers they could never have taken their place centre stage had it not been for those who made it happen, the promoters. The top 100 of the 1960s is an expanded version of a top 15 list that ran last July, a few months after we began our Lost Factor calculations. This series of highly regarded matches would also lead to New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) contacting Rocco, leading to the birth of the "Black Tiger" persona and some of the most highly rated matches in Japanese television history against Sayamas Tiger Mask. I hope you enjoyed that ride back to the old school universe, and as usual, your comments are more than welcomeespecially if I missed anyone on the list and/or if you disagree with the order. Oldest living female wrestler. He became a face in the '70s to eventually turn back heel in preparation for a legendary boxing match between him and Andre The Giant in 1977. The oldest female wrestler was Princess Bonita (19192014), aged 94years, 273days. Click here to watch Strongbow taking on Professor TanakaMr. He died aged 75 on June 24, 2010 in Amarillo, Texas. The Last Unicorn (The Last Unicorn, #1) by. But the female in the wrestling industry was Betty Wagner, the valet of Gorgeous George who lived to 98 years old in 2011. It featured geometric edges that became a hit all over the world while super out-there for the time. Although after thirty years of being a performer, he was able to transition into becoming a talent scout for the WWE. 41.88, Davey Boy Smith is the 2nd most famous British Wrestler. His glam rock looks and in-ring ability instantly attracted attention from the fans and cemented his place as a top heel. In London and the urban conurbations of northern England it was not unknown for independent wrestlers to work two, even three programmes in one night. Last wrestled in an 11-person Royal Rumble style match, where he entered last and won, last eliminating Erik Lockhart, for Rock n Roll Wrestling in Wahpeton, North Dakota. In 1978 DeNucci enjoyed his second reign with Dino Bravo as his partner, and they held the belt for 104 days. By Kelly O'Sullivan. There were more than 4,000 different brews available in the 60s, so we cannot list them all. In two reigns, one with Jimmy and one with Jerry, he was Tag Team Champion for a total of 600 days. With two different partners (Professor Tanaka and Mr. Saito), he managed to have five reigns as Tag Team champion, for a total of 932 days. Beforebeing released from his WWE contracton January 5th, 2022, which ended his 22-year tenure with the company, Regal had an even bigger role behind the scenes as theWWE Director of Talent Development and Head of Global Recruiting, playing a significant role in building the future stars of WWE. The contest ended after an hour-and-16 minute time limit draw in front of a crowd that went nuts after the officials declared they had to comply with a curfew. Cast Moira Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring. Born Murray Downs in Wallaceburg, Ontario, Little Bruiser was the only son among four sisters. Born in Iraq, wrestled in AWA and WWF as General Adnan. His run as the World Champion officially lasted 2,083 days, and it took him less than one year with the company to win the title. The Liverpool-born wrestler initially performed in a tag team called The Golden Boys alongside William Regal (then known as Steven Regal). From Wrestleview.com Jay Briscoe has passed away. He went on to win one world title. He portrayed a Japanese samurai with a relatively unknown past: Kendo Nagasaki. Wrestling was the sort of place you could take your grandmother or aunt. (Youngest WWE Divas Champion) 44. aaaaaahhhAndre the Giant one of my chidhood heroes, Davey "The British Bulldog" Smith November 27, 1962- May 18, 2002 Smith, who shot to fame wrestling as the British Bulldog in the World Wrestling Federation, was trained by the legendary Stu Hart. So with news that World of Sport is back on ITV in June, we salute the great grapplers of yesteryear. He sadly died at the age of 56 in January 2007. He was 52. DeNucci, who trained Mick Foley and Shane Douglas among others, was mainly a tag team specialist and a great brawler. Wrestling stars of the 60s/'70s2 of 18. Another World of Sport favorite, Martin Austin Ruane, as Giant Haystacks, became a massive star in 1975 after teaming up with previously mentioned Big Daddy as one of the most dominant tag teams in British Wrestling history. In the 1st 5 years of the '60s the following wrestlers showed in the Spanish rings: from Britain, John Foley, Chic Purvey, Michael Gale, Ian Campbell , ClayThompson, Bill Robinson (years later became a tag team champ in the AWA), Lord B. Tophan, Bob Anthony, Vick Faulkner, Jackie "Mr. TV" Pallo, Tony Cassio, Lindey Caulder, Peter Berg, Dave The title of the oldest verified wrestler of all time belongs to Polish-born American wrestler Abe Coleman (19052007), who lived 101years, 189days. Thanks to photographer David Maciejewski we can see pictures of the 'little' wrestlers before the hype and hoopla of WWF took hold. It was a detective/cop show starring Jack Lord. Many icons paved the way to what would become an empire in the world of wrestling. The 10 best music producers of the '60s By Simon Arblaster ( Future Music ) published March 04, 2016 MusicRadar users have voted, so here's the countdown. Luke Graham was one of the rare to have a gimmick that didn't include specific outfits such as cowboy or other Russian characters. Mexican wrestler who teamed with the Great Goliath. 1962-08-10 - National Wrestling Association (source: LegacyOfWrestling.com) Hawaii Five-O was a popular television series in the US during 1968 and for several years running. And, in those years, he often fought in 60-minute time limit draws. He died in 2013 at 93. However, he never got his break in what was, at the time, the top promotion in the world, WWE. His win streak eventually was ruined by opponent Peter Preston. Wrestled last match as a replecement for Nick Strong, teaming with, Last wrestled on November 14, 2021, for an event in Guadalajara, Mexico where he defeated. Here are twelve British wrestlers who were critical to the evolution of British wrestling and influenced some of the very best of today. Initially unpopular with the crowds, he became much loved after his acting career took off. With his flamboyant gimmick, combined with his powerhouse in-ring style and his bodybuilder's physique, he was the prototype who established the future WWF wrestlers standards. 30 Wrestlers You May Not Know Were Related! Most recently wrestled on October 22, 2022, at Niigata Pro Wrestling event in Niigata, Japan, where he teamed with, Last wrestled at the 2022 C-K Autumnfest in Kenova, West Virginia, where he teamed with, DeNucci wrestled his last match at a PWS card in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, teaming up with, Last wrestled at the 2019 Expo Lucha convention in San Diego, California, teaming up with. Little Tokyo (aka Shigeri Akabane) who was inspired to quit homeland and join Lord Littlebrook and his troupe after they visited Japan in the 1960s. After retiring in 1983, he wrote his autobiography, You Grunt, Ill Groan, and did acting work, getting knocked out by Honor Blackman in a fight scene on The Avengers.