The debate is a real one among those who seriously study the history of this american popculture creation. In a match in 1956 against whipper billy watson in toronto, thesz had his ankle shattered and lost the title. On february 11, 1969 in tampa, florida, dory funk jr would defeat gene kiniski and remained nwa world champion for the next four and a half years, which is the secondlongest uninterrupted reign of any nwa world champion lou thesz held the nwa world title from november 27, 1949, to march 15, 1956. Eugene nicholas kiniski was born on november 23, 1928 in edmonton, alberta, canada, the young man was a natural pick for football due to being over six feet tall at only 17 years of age. Eugene nicholas kiniski november 23, 1928 april 14, 2010, better known as gene kiniski, was a canadian professional wrestler and the father of wrestlers nick kiniski and kelly kiniski. Gene lebell remembers the great lou thesz national. Aloysius martin lou thesz april 24, 1916 april 28, 2002 was an american professional wrestler. The site is the official tribute page for nature boy buddy rogers. As an emerging talent, kiniski got the opportunity to wrestle lou thesz at the olympic auditorium on 19541. That should have been all, too, but the absence of more than a year just gave thesz more time to crack the books.
Wikicommons sometimes introduced as the meanest man in canada, the late professional wrestler gene kiniski remains the stuff of legend. Kiniski s frequent challengers were don leo jonathan, eddie graham, john tolos, stan stasiak and of course thesz. One of the first was on a company airplane when a steroidfueled vince mc mahon blindsided. He died on april 14, 2010 in blaine, washington, usa. He would hold the title until 1966 when, at the age of 49 when he lost it to gene kiniski. Kiniski wrestled with or against some of the top names in the business, including lou thesz, verne gagne, wilbur snyder, dory funk sr.
Mar 28, 20 eugene nicholas kiniski born november 23, 1928, better known as gene kiniski, is a retired canadian professional wrestler and the father of wrestlers nick kiniski gene kiniski vs lou thesz 1967 theres nothing awkward about the movements. Lou thesz one of the lengendary nwa heavy weights d. And, to top it all off, we get to see the last time lou thesz was on the mat, with none other than gene lebell. An article about the last match of lou thesz, who is considered by many people as one of the greatest wrestlers in the history. The book could very easily be renamed the kiniski bible. Ninety percent of the guys didnt want to wrestle him, because he beat the shit out of them. This list may include nontitle matches which are to be removed as soon as they are confirmed. Records of nwa world heavyweight championship matches. Louis, mo lou thesz beat warren bockwinkel 0614 birmingham, al dorv roche beat lou thesz. Hooker, written by lou thesz with kit bauman, is a surprisingly, bluntly honest book. Kiniski was one of the first world champions after bronko nagurski in professional wrestling to have a previous background in football. After hes introduced as the meanest man in canada, a mock scowl flashes across the huge bulldog face of gene kiniski.
Thesz last reign was in the 1960s when he lost the nwa world title to gene kiniski. May 05, 2008 nwa world championship atlanta, ga 41467 no sound. Unfollow lou thesz book to stop getting updates on your ebay feed. With help from powerful friends, he rode out the war working in a medical company stationed at fort lewis. Gene kiniski defeated bill dromo to retain the worlds heavyweight title in macon.
Posts about gene kiniski written by flairwhoooooo and admin. Discover information about gene kiniski and view their match history at the internet wrestling database. Louis to win the nwa world title and he would hold that belt for three years. Lewis friend, lou thesz, never had any desirer to go over seas to fight germans. Thesz is widely regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. Perhaps the litmus test would be how both would fare against the undertaker. Combined, he held the nwa championship for 10 years, three months and nine days 3,749 days total, longer than anyone in history. He was an actor, known for terminal city ricochet 1990, double happiness 1994 and paradise alley 1978. This power brokership paid off in a big way in 1966 when gene kiniski etched his name in the record books by defeating lou thesz in st. History of the world heavyweight championship documentarynwa matches play chapters matches play all 2 out of 3 falls match for the nwa world heavyweight championship chicago, il june 1961 pat oconnor vs.
Cactus jack, royal rumble 2000 triple h was solidified as a main eventer, and. Lou thesz, the most celebrated professional wrestler of the mid20th century and one of the last who relied on physical skills rather than show business gimmicks, died on april 28 in a hospital in orlando, fla. Results of the prowrestling matches of lou thesz in 1966, the year he last ruled the mats. The records of nwa world heavyweight championship matches 1957. Gene kiniski wrestling history legacy of wrestling. A tribute from his last time on the mat with the last photos ever taken of lou thesz. I would highly recommend this to anyone wanting to know more about pro wrestling in general or lou thesz specifically. Gene kiniski passed away at his home at the age of 81 after a long battle with cancer dave meltzer wrote april 14, 2010. Match results of a prowrestling legend lou thesz from 1966.
Matches lou thesz wrestlers database cagematch the. He is the elder son of the legendary wrestler gene kiniski and is best known for his work with midatlantic championship wrestling and wccw. Gene kiniski, pictured here in 1966, when he was the world heavyweight champion. Reading verriers account of kiniski s life is to travel through wrestling history. Kiniski was one of only two men to hold both the national wrestling alliance nwa and american wrestling association awa world heavyweight championships at some point in. Gene big thunder kiniski, one of the great pro wrestlers of alltime, passed away this morning at his home in blaine, wa. Here you can find all the great photos, videos and articles featuring the great buddy rogers. He was born of polish descent outside of edmonton, alberta, canada. Louis, missouri in front of 11,612 fans at the kiel auditorium in st. Lou thesz appeared at the kiel auditorium on january 7, 1966 to give kiniski a shot at. The first female inducted into the george tragos lou thesz professional wrestling hall of fame, beth phoenix competed on the varsity wrestling team at notre dame high school in elmira, new york. Kiniski became the number one contender to the nwa championship and his tag team days were over.
Aside from being a very indepth autobiography of a legend of the sport, this is an outstanding book on the overall history of professional wrestling from the turn of the 20th century to the late 1980s. Go back to page 1 of lou thesz record go to page 12 of ring record 1967 jan. Jim coleman wrote in 1968 that when a columnist runs into a dull, uninspiring day. The life and times of a hooker by the phantom of the ring. He was 86 and had undergone triplebypass surgery and aortic valve replacement three weeks before. Lou thesz appeared at the kiel auditorium on january 7, 1966 to give kiniski a shot at the title. Wikicommons sometimes introduced as the meanest man in canada, the late professional wrestler gene kiniski. Lou thesz hides none of his opinions and speaking openly about his. Credits for pictures and images are given to these sitespeople. Wrestlings gene kiniski stirs the pot cbc archives. Eugene nicholas kiniski was born on november 23, 1928 in edmonton, alberta, canada, the. The sheik vs gene kiniski special ref andre the giant 1976 duration. Verrier has astutely crafted the complete and definitive biography on kiniski. It became ironic when thesz was forced to drop the belt to gene kiniski, a good brawler who lacked.
He beat vern gagne for the american wrestling association world title in 1961. Kiniski participated in the 1975 champion carnival tournament. What are matches that made a lasting change in wrestling. Kiniski s role as champion deviated from that of thesz, and gene.
Part 4 of the canada 150, an alphabetical listing of canadians impact on pro wrestling from the 1920s to today. Lou and i worked a few times, and he was always very. That and professional wrestling has never had anything as close to an undisputed world champion after thesz s semi retirement. He paints a rich portrait of kiniskis life and career. Verrier has a way of recounting the history of a land, detail by painstaking detail, a nd tying it t o the life story of his subject, gene kiniski. A fifteentime world champion, he held the nwa world heavyweight championship three times for a combined total of 10 years, three months and nine days 3,749 days longer than anyone else in history. Resplendent in an eyepopping suit, the legendary wrestling heel wastes no. Wrestlings gene kiniski stirs the pot the story after hes introduced as the meanest man in canada, a mock scowl flashes across the huge bulldog face of gene kiniski. This entry was posted in a moment in time, awa, wwe, wwf and tagged bobo brazil, gene kiniski, kangaroo al costello, lou thesz, lou thesz wwe, lou thesz wwf, nick bockwinkel, pat oconnor, ray stevens, rene goulet, sailor art thomas, the crusher, vince mcmahon, wwe, wwf, wwf battle royal, wwf in 1987, wwf legends battle royal. It must be noted though, that the writing of the book was originally completed in 1991.
Canadian wrestling legend will thrill wrestling fansand sports fans in generalwith a colorful, blowbyblow account of the fascinating life of one of pro wrestlings early. As much a winner on the page as he was in the ring, lou thesz autobiography hooker gives you a frontrow ringside seat as he takes you through the bizarre and colorful world of professional wrestling. Thesz last match was in the early 1990s when he lost via submission to one of his protoges, masahiro chono. Gene kiniski, canadas greatest athlete, dead at 81. The pinnacle of kiniski s career finally came on january 7, 1966, when he defeated thesz to win the nwa world heavyweight championship in st. Although some may dispute his bold claim, there is more than enough proof to argue that the rugged kiniski was not speaking totally tongueincheek.
This full color booklet is 16 pages in length and features lou thesz demonstrating wrestling technique on judo gene. Louis, missouris kiel auditorium in front of nearly 12,000 fans. Kiniski was one of the first world champions in professional wrestling to have a previous background in football, after bronko nagurski. Nwa champion gene kiniski beat sailor art thomas karl von brauner vs saul weingeroff sam steamboat vs sputnik monroe eddie graham vs hiro matsuda johnny valentine vs lester welch klondike bill vs the ox sherri lee vs cora combs _____ we are the priests of the temples of syrinx our great computers fill the hollowed halls we are the priests. Oldtimers grapple with todays stars october 12, 1997.
Gene kiniski defeated lou thesz for the nwa world title and lost the belt three years later to dory funk jr january 7, 1969. Kurt had a strange series of encounters with taker. Lou thesz was a professional wrestler and six time nwa world heavyweight champion. Thesz battled opponents on an average of 250 nights a year during the first three decades of his career. As an emerging talent, kiniski got the opportunity to wrestle lou thesz at the olympic auditorium on november 3, 1954. Verrier lays out the groundwork for his biogr aphy with a history of the provi nce of alberta, canada. Lou thesz hides none of his opinions and speaking openly about his peers and his own career inside the squared circle. Lou thesz is considered by many to be the single greatest wrestling champion of all time. She also competed in the wwe, where she was a wwe divas champion and a threetime wwe womens champion. Frank schroll in a 2 of 3 falls match 0820 houston, tx lou thesz beat lou plummer 0825 kansas city, mo lou. One thing about lou thesz, when he likes you, he really, really likes you. While gene kiniski declared himself to be canadas greatest athlete, few can dispute the highlydecorated and respected big mans claim. Eugene nicholas kiniski, better known as gene kiniski, is a retired canadian professional wrestler.
Gene kiniski was born on november 23, 1928 in edmonton, alberta, canada as eugene nicholas kiniski. Lou thesz defeats al costello and arnold skaaland and art thomas and baron mikel scicluna and bobo brazil and chief jay strongbow and dominic denucci and edouard carpentier and gene kiniski and gino brito and killer kowalski and nick bockwinkel and pat oconnor and pedro morales and ray stevens and rene goulet and the. Louis, not only did kiniski win the real world title, he defeated the greatest wrestling champion the sport had ever known at the time and perhaps of all time to win the championship, the legendary lou thesz. On january 7, 1966, big thunder gene kiniski defeated lou thesz for the nwa world heavyweight championship in st. Lou thesz professional wrestling ring record page 11.
He was a pro wrestler and that was his only obsession. New book chronicles life of wrestling legend gene kiniski. He became one of the first world champions in professional wrestling to have a former background in football, after bronko nagurski. Lou thesz autobiography a winner the wrestling gospel. Dec 30, 2015 this entry was posted in a moment in time, awa, wwe, wwf and tagged bobo brazil, gene kiniski, kangaroo al costello, lou thesz, lou thesz wwe, lou thesz wwf, nick bockwinkel, pat oconnor, ray stevens, rene goulet, sailor art thomas, the crusher, vince mcmahon, wwe, wwf, wwf battle royal, wwf in 1987, wwf legends battle royal. Details about the big book of wrestling october 1968 bruno sammartino lou thesz gene kiniski. Eugene nicholas gene kiniski november 23, 1928 april 14, 2010 was a canadian professional wrestler and actor. Lou thesz is technically the second nwa world champion but is considered to be the first true world champion because he went around defeating the holders of rival belts to that claim and unifying them with his own.
The pinnacle of kiniskis career finally came on january 7, 1966, when he defeated thesz to win the nwa world heavyweight championship in st. Up for sale is the october 1968 issue of the big book of wrestling magazine. The former world heavyweight champion became infamous as a brutish, trashtalking villain with a cutting wit and a bulldog scowl. Kelly kiniski born may 27, 1960 is a canadianborn american retired professional wrestler. The history of the world heavyweight championship by pat. Gene kiniski was a gridiron star for edmonton eskimos of the cfl when a knee injury in 1953 forced him out of football, and somehow, into pro wrestling. In this short treatise, gene lebell gives us an insiders look at a great man and a great fighter. Compared to thesz, kiniski was a heel and was very comfortable in his role as a bad guy world champion. And, to top it all off, we get to see the last time lou thesz was on the mat, with none other than gene lebell himself. Verne gagne defeated gene kiniski to recapture the awa world heavyweight title national wrestling alliance. Wwa dick the bruiser vs igor zalkoff june 1987 danville, il duration. On the flip side of the coin, when he dislikes you, watch out. Jul 02, 2017 the fourth part in our 10part series looking at 150 canadian names in pro wrestling, in honour of canadas 150th birthday.
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