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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
 Posted - 09/06/2008 : 2:23:44 PM
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Growing up and watching wrestling in the 1960s & 70s, one of the bad guys we all hated was Killer Kowalski. With the lightning bolts down his trademark long pants [many of the bad guys had long pants] and his scowl and menacing claw hold, good guys like Eduord Carpentier would have to summon all of their strength to come back to victory.
Killer passed away a few days ago. RIP to him. Unfortunately, the good ol' days when it really was not a bad thing to let kids watch wrestling are long gone, too. |
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bestbet123
1577 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 2:27:00 PM
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I remember him , man that was a long time ago.....He probably died broke and hungry like a lot of these guys did.Bam Bam Bigalow owned a little shake joint in my town and died from an overdose on painkillers.Sad.....so sad.
quote:
Originally posted by MisterVA
Growing up and watching wrestling in the 1960s & 70s, one of the bad guys we all hated was Killer Kowalski. With the lightning bolts down his trademark long pants [many of the bad guys had long pants] and his scowl and menacing claw hold, good guys like Eduord Carpentier would have to summon all of their strength to come back to victory.
Killer passed away a few days ago. RIP to him. Unfortunately, the good ol' days when it really was not a bad thing to let kids watch wrestling are long gone, too.
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 2:32:19 PM
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| Giant Jean Ferre later known as Andre the Giant, Billy Two Rivers & Johnny War Eagle, GIlle 'The Fish' Poisson, Don Leo Jonathan, The Hollywood Blondes, Destroyer I, II & III... |
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ML
3006 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 2:44:29 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by MisterVA
Giant Jean Ferre later known as Andre the Giant, Billy Two Rivers & Johnny War Eagle, GIlle 'The Fish' Poisson, Don Leo Jonathan, The Hollywood Blondes, Destroyer I, II & III...
He was one of the greats, saw him with my dad a few times in the old Schenectady Armory, he fought Chief Jay Strongbow, and on the tag team undercard event George "the Animal" Steele fought, and of course, ripped open the turnbuckle with his teeth, the crowd went insane!
Obit from the NY Times last week:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/01/sports/01kowalski.html
The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame was until recently located in Schenectady, NY. It recently moved to Amsterdam, about 10 miles west, after the city-owned building where it started was sold. Check it out:
http://www.pwhf.org/
I waited on Andre in a nice restaurant, downtown, in the mid 70's. He was HUGE. His hand made a bottle of Heineken look like a thimble, the full bottle fit in his palm!
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 2:57:29 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by ML
quote:
Originally posted by MisterVA
Giant Jean Ferre later known as Andre the Giant, Billy Two Rivers & Johnny War Eagle, GIlle 'The Fish' Poisson, Don Leo Jonathan, The Hollywood Blondes, Destroyer I, II & III...
He was one of the greats, saw him with my dad a few times in the old Schenectady Armory, he fought Chief Jay Strongbow, and on the tag team undercard event George "the Animal" Steele fought, and of course, ripped open the turnbuckle with his teeth, the crowd went insane!
Obit from the NY Times last week:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/01/sports/01kowalski.html
The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame was until recently located in Schenectady, NY. It recently moved to Amsterdam, about 10 miles west, after the city-owned building where it started was sold. Check it out:
http://www.pwhf.org/
I waited on Andre in a nice restaurant, downtown, in the mid 70's. He was HUGE. His hand made a bottle of Heineken look like a thimble, the full bottle fit in his palm!
Most of the matches I watched were from the Montreal Forum or Verdun Arena. Mad Dog Vachon & the Leducs [who wore jeans & lumberjack boots] appeared frequently. These guys were not bulked up by steroids. They even had midget wrestlers on the card. |
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crankyusi
658 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 5:42:34 PM
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Ahh, Ray Patterson, Pepper Gomez and the Mexican Cradle, Kenji Shibuya and the clawhold or was that the Sleeperhold and only he could wake them
back up, Bear Cat Wright & BoBo Brazil, the Sheik running his eyes along the ropes to show his opponents he actually liked it..... still remember touching the "blood" that was on the mat. |
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SoCalRay
2698 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 5:44:49 PM
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Did you see the episode of Hogan Knows best when they had all the guys on there
Sargent Slaughter looked real old
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 5:51:53 PM
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| A lot of regional groups in those days. Predated Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and the descent into what exists today. Stan "The Man" Stasiak and his 'heart punch' was the big name in Eastern Maine & the Maritimes when I lived there in the 1973-79 timeframe. |
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darkstar
18092 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:05:53 PM
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| I remember seeing him and Bruno fight at the Baltimore Civic Center, made my parents take me!...Bobo Brazil, Andre the Giant and Lou Albano was fighting then as well, IIRC...RIP Killer... |
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assassin17
4155 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:07:18 PM
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| I don't like wrestling, but damned if the "heart punch" isn't the most vicious and intimidating thing I've ever heard of. Just sounds NASTY. |
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toddblue
2397 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:08:46 PM
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I watched Houston Wrestling back in the day of regional venues. Ivan Putski, Wahoo MacDaniel, The Briscos, Harley Race, Andre, Superstar Billy Graham and Playboy Gary Hart were the big stars.
That was before todays 'Glam' wrestlers. It just seemed more real back then. |
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:08:48 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by assassin17
I don't like wrestling, but damned if the "heart punch" isn't the most vicious and intimidating thing I've ever heard of. Just sounds NASTY.
Well, It was sort of like Moe's 'eye poke'. Timing is everything. |
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clarenceworley
4200 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:14:00 PM
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Dick The Bruiser and The Crusher kept in shape by "dancing the polka with big Polish ladies".
www.obsessedwithwrestling.com has alot of the "Golden Era" wrestlers. |
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stewpot
442 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:15:21 PM
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| DICK The Bruiser was awesome! |
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:17:33 PM
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Here is Jack Curran of CFCF-TV Ch 12 in Montreal interviewing Mad Dog Vachon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV-rp4dhdBs |
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:20:16 PM
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Here is a match between Vachon and Giant Jean Ferre aka Andre the Giant. I loved listening to "C'est lui! That's him!" from the Montreal Forum's announcer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HngzSCiZ_Eg&NR=1 |
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 6:50:36 PM
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Found Stan "The Man" Stasiak.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQCv_LR4I7k |
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crankyusi
658 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 7:00:24 PM
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| Wasn't the first "big man" Haystack Calhoun, overalls, barefeet. |
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darkstar
18092 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 7:01:02 PM
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Remember the Vampire, Freddie Blassie before he went Hollywood?...Mil Mascaras was one of my favorite masked wrestlers...And don't forget my all=time favorite, Chief Jay Strongbow!...The midgets were fun back then, I guess the PC crowd killed that...
I can't remember the Japanese wrestler that fought Ali, what a boring match...IIRC, the guy laid on the ground and kicked Ali in the ankles the whole time... |
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 7:12:59 PM
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| The best of wrestling probably ended in the early to mid-80s. Like the mega bank mergers, the wrestling mergers seemed to ruin things. [Okay there is the tie-in to mortgages.] Loved watching some of these videos. |
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 4:55:09 PM
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| Killer Kowalski deserves a bump before getting deleted on Monday. |
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financeone
1635 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 4:59:21 PM
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| I too remember watching "wrastlin". Use to be fun. Too bad the midgets aren't around! |
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jvanpetten
2513 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 5:20:56 PM
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Living in Florida I grew up on Championship Wrestling from Florida with, the greatest comentator ever, Mr. Gordon Soley. 
Now that I am an adult, I don't think I have really watched the new stuff more than during a channel surf.
I remember Harley Race, Dick Murdoch and of course Dusty Rhodes.
The performers now seem to have more athletic skills, but the older generation had the mike skills, charisma and general showmanship. Ric Flair in his prime anyone?
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SoCalRay
2698 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 5:26:19 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by financeone
I too remember watching "wrastlin". Use to be fun. Too bad the midgets aren't around!
It is on the spanish channels and the Sap button is bilinigual in some cities
Spanish channels that have English on the SAP |
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financeone
1635 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 5:27:39 PM
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That,I'll waste some time on. Thanks
quote:
Originally posted by SoCalRay
quote:
Originally posted by financeone
I too remember watching "wrastlin". Use to be fun. Too bad the midgets aren't around!
It is on the spanish channels and the Sap button is bilinigual in some cities
Spanish channels that have English on the SAP
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MisterVA
6570 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 5:42:20 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by jvanpetten
Living in Florida I grew up on Championship Wrestling from Florida with, the greatest comentator ever, Mr. Gordon Soley.
Now that I am an adult, I don't think I have really watched the new stuff more than during a channel surf.
I remember Harley Race, Dick Murdoch and of course Dusty Rhodes.
The performers now seem to have more athletic skills, but the older generation had the mike skills, charisma and general showmanship. Ric Flair in his prime anyone?
A lot of the guys I remember pre-dated Hulk Hogan. The last 15 years has been pitiful IMO. |
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ejgoldy
108 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 7:52:07 PM
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| In the early years he would hold "grudge" matches with Yukon Erik. The "claw" was originated by Verne Gagne, as was the backbreaker originated by Antonino Rocca. Among other early greats were Geogeous George, the Garibaldi Brothers, the Skull, Shandor Szabo, and The Swedish Angel. A lady fan at ringside earned the name "Hatpin Mary" and she would stick a pin in any wrestler who was thrown from the ring and landed near her. |
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Tony V
105 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 8:38:16 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by crankyusi
Wasn't the first "big man" Haystack Calhoun, overalls, barefeet.
I think that Haystacks was the 2nd.....Dammmm, I can't remember the first though......I remember coming home from catacism classes on Saturdays, at Noon, wrestling and after that was Roller Derby...
Killer K....RIP... |
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ML
3006 Posts |
Posted - 09/07/2008 : 9:21:20 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Tony V
quote:
Originally posted by crankyusi
Wasn't the first "big man" Haystack Calhoun, overalls, barefeet.
I think that Haystacks was the 2nd.....Dammmm, I can't remember the first though......I remember coming home from catacism classes on Saturdays, at Noon, wrestling and after that was Roller Derby...
Killer K....RIP...
Maybe you're thinking of "Uncle Elmer" he went about 6'9" and 400lbs, wore the cutoff overalls and barefoot. He made the rounds in the late 60's and 70's.
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