[NOSTALGIA] The WAWLI Papers No. 383

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The WAWLI** Papers

**(Wrestling As We Liked It)

Edited by J Michael Kenyon
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Issue Number 383

Friday, January 22, 1999
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IN THIS ISSUE: ED DON GEORGE IS IN HAVANA (1959) WHEN CASTRO MARCHES IN
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HOW THEY STACK UP FOR BIG MATCH

(Los Angeles Times, August 19, 1936)

Vincent Lopez Dave Levin
Mexico City Born Brooklyn, N.Y.
27 Age 23
6ft. 1 1/4 in. Height 5ft. 11in.
225 Weight 198
44 Chest (normal) 43
47 1/2 Chest (expanded) 48 1/4
14 1/2 Forearm 14 3/4
16 1/2 Biceps 17
35 1/2 Waist 34
18 Neck 17 1/2
25 1/2 Thigh 24 1/2
17 1/2 Calf 16 3/4
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FINE SLAPPED ON VINCENT LOPEZ

(Los Angeles Times, February 27, 1937)

Fined $100 and warned that he faced a long suspension if he repeated his
assault and battery tactics on the referee next Wednesday night at the Olympic
when he wrestles Dean Detton in a rematch for the world's heavyweight
championship, Vincent Lopez, the Mad Mexican, yesterday found himself in a hot
spot with the State Athletic Commission.

Lopez was fined for hitting referee Verne McCullough last Wednesday night
after the latter had penalized the big Mexican for entwining Detton's arm
around the ropes and refusing to let him go.
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GEORGE OFFERED $10,000 FOR TILT

(Buffalo News, April 21, 1939)

Ed Don George has been offered $10,000 to defend his newly won wrestling crown
against Crusher Casey in Boston, according to Paul Bowser, head of the eastern
grapple syndicate and promoter in the Bean City.

George will defend his title tonight against Hal Rumberg in Broadway
Auditorium (Buffalo) and said he would talk business with Bowser after the
match.

Bowser came to Buffalo after George's win over Casey in Albany Tuesday night.
Up to that bout, Casey had been the rassle champ of the Bowser syndicate.

Promoter Jack Herman of Buffalo said he thought any title bout involving
George should be held in Buffalo and indicated he would try and match Bowser's
offer by staging a match here outdoors in Civic Stadium. Broadway Auditorium
would not seat enough for Herman to match Bowser's reported guarantee.

The bout in which George won the title over Casey in Albany was not a fall. He
was given a time decision by the unanimous decision of the referee and two
judges.

When the bout ended George walked to his corner and donned his robe. The crowd
started to stream towards the exits.

"I thought I had a draw," admitted George today. "But the referee pointed to
me and announced me as the winner. I'll admit it was almost as much a surprise
to me as it was to Casey. He protested to the officials but some of the crowd
chased him to the dressing room."

George claimed that officials of the wrestling syndicate didn't want news of
his victory to get out.
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BIOGRAPHY OF ED DON GEORGE

(on file at Buffalo News, July, 1941, as part of campaign materials when EDG
formulated a run at the county sheriff's office)

Edward Nicholas George, college graduate, worldwide sports figure and student
of politics and history, was born in North Java (New York) in nearby Wyoming
County on June 3, 1905. His father was born in the same house, and his
grandparents settled in the immediate vicinity nearly a hundred years ago.

George attended the North Java public school and later Canisius High School
from which he graduated in 1923. He then attended St. Bonaventure College,
where he first began showing athletic talent. However, it was not until he
entered the University of Michigan that George became a serious student of
wrestling.

He learned the mat game fast, and in 1928 was picked as a member of the United
States Olympic team. He was defeated in the finals for the Olympic heavyweight
wrestling championship.

Returning to college, George graduated in 1929 with a bachelor of science
degree. He was selected by one of the large rubber companies as one of the two
men in his class most likely to succeed in industry, and offered a position.
He accepted and was given his first practical experience managing one of the
company's branches at Michigan Avenue and North Street in Buffalo.

He wrestled a few times in Buffalo and vicinity, and was so successful that he
asked for a year's leave of absence. The leave was granted. George never came
back.

George then substituted "Don" for Nicholas and under the name of Ed Don George
has brought athletic fame and publicity to Buffalo in scores of cities
throughout the world. In addition to the wrestling activities, George has
traveled widely. He is an exceptionally good conversationalist, experienced in
public speaking.

Although not actually experienced in police affairs, George always has been
interested in such matters. He is a friend of hundreds of police officers from
Buffalo to Melbourne, Australia.

George has definite ideas on how the sheriff's office should be administered
and will make those ideas clear when he opens his campaign upon his return
from the West Coast.

In addition to his father and mother, George has two sisters: Margaret, who is
employed in Buffalo, and Mrs. Harold Becker, North Java; two brothers: Raymond
and Bernard, who help work the George farm at North Java.

George lives in an apartment at 916 Delaware Avenue with his friend and
attorney, Howard W. Starrett. He is not married and, because of his age, is
not subject to the draft.
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WRESTLER LOPEZ WEDS ACTRESS

(Los Angeles Times, December 17, 1943)

Vincent Lopez, the wrestler, and Miss Orianna Smith, 26, yesterday stood
before Superior Court Judge Stanley Mosk to hear the following sentence:

"I now pronounced you man and wife."

Lopez, who gave his name as Raul R. Lopez, is 32, and said he met Miss Smith,
an actress, while he was traveling in the East 10 years ago. Asked regarding
his future plans, he said he is waiting for word from the Army.
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VINCENT LOPEZ SAYS HE'S A BACHELOR

(Los Angeles Times, December 18, 1943)

Vincent Lopez, former heavyweight wrestling champion, wants it known he is
still a bachelor.

He said yesterday the Raul R. Lopez who was married Thursday to Orianna Smith
is not even a relative of his.

Raul Lopez wrestled as a welterweight and never won the heavyweight title.
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LOPEZ NABS STATE WRESTLING CROWN

(Los Angeles Times, October 9, 1947)

Vincent Lopez won the state heavyweight wrestling title last night at the
Olympic, defeating Reginald Siki in the main mat event. Lopez, after 20m, 4s.
of action, tossed Siki out of the ring. Siki injured his back and was unable
to continue his title defense.

Willie and Karl Davis teamed to win a tag match from Larry Moquin and Sam
Menacher, taking two out of three falls.

Other results:

Gorilla Ramos drew with Brother Frank (Jares), Earl McCready pinned Vic
Christy and Black Panther outfoxed Carlos Mejica.
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CASTRO COMMANDS RESPECT -- EDG

(Buffalo News, February 5, 1959)

"You'll just have to respect a fellow like that," Ed Don George said today in
thinking about Fidel Castro and events he saw in Havana during January.

Mr. George, a North Java boy who grew up to be a wrestling champion and is a
former wrestling promoter in Buffalo and other New York cities, saw the Cuban
revolutionary leader's triumphant entry into Havana.

"His route went past my hotel," he recalled, relaxing in his Hotel Buffalo
room. "Seeing his response to the crowds, my impression was unmistakable that
he is a very dedicated and sincere man -- with no thought of material gain.

"And I don't believe any conquering army ever behaved as well in entering a
city. They were sloppy, unkept, nondescript -- but never boisterous."

Mr. George, who has been promoting wrestling in Havana since last October, is
visiting Buffalo between programs. He left Cuba Monday and will be back there
for bouts Sunday.

"Our wrestling takes place in the big Sports Palace -- where Castro held the
public trial of Jesus Sosa Blanco, the former major in the Batista army," he
promoter explained.

How about the trials and executions now going on?

"As I size up the situation, almost everybody is happy about them.

"From people you talk with, just about everyone has had his own personal
experience with Batista atrocities -- either within their families or among
their friends," Mr. George said.

"They feel this is something that is just and they dislike very much the
foreign press criticizing them for it. They're not apologizing at all.

"I never saw such a scene of jubilation anywhere as in Havana streets the day
Castro rode in. Tremendous crowds were happy and cheering, trying to grab
Castro and shake his hand."

Mr. George believes the test of the new regime will be whether the leader can
surround himself in government with men "as idealistic and dedicated as he
is."
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A DELUXE PUT-ON

(Buffalo Evening News, May 29, 1976)

By Charley Young, sports editor

How can anybody take Muhammad Ali's date with that Japanese wrestler next
month as a serious sports contest? It's impossible.

If anything that results in paychecks of $6 million for one contestant and $4
million for the other can be called absurd, this is it.

It's a throwback to another era in ring history, to the days when fight
promoters and managers were, above all else, magnificent con men. They were
delightful, entertaining, charming, amusing and sometimes convincing.

But always they had an angle, a hand in your pocket.

Maybe absurd isn't the word for Ali's meeting with Antonio Inoki June 25 in
Tokyo in what is billed as a battle -- isn't exhibition a better word? -- to
determine the world's greatest fighting man. Ridiculous might be better.

Don't you get the feeling that you're being suckered in by the greatest put-on
of our time? A wrestler vs. a boxer in classic confrontation. How can you
swallow that?

Ali says he's very serious about the whole affair. Who wouldn't be for 6
million bucks? Besides, the heavyweight champ is his sport's greatest salesman
and perhaps the country's finest actor.

Inoki, too, pledges serious approach to the match, making promises of breaking
Ali's leg or back just to silence the people who question his integrity as a
wrestler or the honesty of the event.

First, let's look at the background. Be informed that the same people who
brought us Evel Knievel vs. Snake River Canyon are bringing you the classic.

"Nobody is making anybody buy tickets," says Shelly Saltman, a Top Rank
executive and Hollywood producer. The television Superstars show was his idea.
He also came up with the TV Battle of the Sexes.

This Ali-Inoki thing is just nutty enough to be a commercial bonanza. A
genuine sports contest it just cannot be, anymore than Superstars or Battle of
the Sexes. A good show? Maybe.

"I am approaching this fight with Ali with dead seriousness," Inoki said
recently in Tokyo. "The Japanese people know how serious I am . . . maybe the
American people don't.

"This is a real fight. I am not playing. I hope Ali understands this. There
will be no pulling of punches.

"I do not consider this as a fight between a pro wrestler and a pro boxer. It
is a contest between two men, two fighters using their own skills. What I do
in pro wrestling is honest . . . I want to prove to the world that I am
legitimate."

Inoki makes no secret of his battle plans.

"I am not stupid enough to try and outbox Ali.

"All I have to do is get hold of him one time and it will all be over because
he can't punch me. My range of martial skills are such that I can break his
leg, his arms or crush his ribs.

"He will have to stay away from me."

If Inoki has a vulnerable point, it could be his huge chin. He is taking
precautions in that respect. Listen to what he has to say:

"I ahve been letting people stand on my chin. I lie down and have them walk on
it, jump up and down on it . . . If he hits me solidly he could shatter it,
but I am not going to be standing still so he can hit me."

What did you expect him to say?

If the meeting is strictly on the level, I can't see any way Ali can win.
That's based on advice from Ed Don George, former Olympic wrestler and pro
champion who helped write the Navy manual on hand-to-hand combat, including
wrestling, karate, judo and all the rest.

You should pay attention to an athlete good enough to be honored in three
different Halls of Fame (St. Bonaventure, Michigan and the Big Ten) and here's
what the world-traveled North Java veteran says:

"Ali has no chance against an accomplished wrestler. Of course, I don't know
how accomplished this Inoki is, but he is the Japanese champion.

"All a wrestler has to do is avoid that first punch, get behind his man and
take him down. It's that easy."

This wrestler vs. boxer thing isn't new. Ed Don recalls one between Kingfish
Levinsky, a heavyweight boxing contender, and Ray Steele. The Kingfish lasted
about 20 seconds.

"Strangler Lewis had a standing challenge to Jack Dempsey," Ed Don remembers.
"But Dempsey was too smart to get into something like that."

I'm not sure that proves Dempsey is smarter than Ali, but it does make a point
that Muhammad, like the Post Office, isn't letter perfect.

For $6 million, who cares?
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PHOTO CAPTION FROM A LONG AGO DATE

(Buffalo News, September 6, 1981)

Remembering . . .

Primo Carnera, briefly the world heavyweight boxing champion, had a big smile
and wave as he arrived at the Buffalo Airport on Dec. 4, 1946, during an even
briefer (sic) career as a wrestler. Ed Don George, a former heavyweight
wrestler and promoter, is on the left. "Da Preem" needed only five minutes and
37 seconds to vanquish "The Iron Talun" here before 12,000 fans.
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GEORGE'S GIFT KEEPS GIVING

(Buffalo News, December 30, 1982)

By Bob Curran

ED "DON" GEORGE CAMP SITE FOR VETERANS & GUESTS, NORTH JAVA, NEW YORK

Naturally, my curiousity was piqued when I saw the above words on the side of
a truck parked outside the Veterans Hospital on Bailey Avenue on Veterans Day.

Thanks to a man named Paul Wilcox, I didn't have to wait long for the story
behind the sign on the truck. Paul, who is president and commander of Disabled
American Veterans Post 163, told me that Ed "Don" George, the famed athlete,
had donated "the lion's share of 360 acres of land which has a block warehouse
185 feet long and 50 feet wide on it" to the post.

Because of Cy Kritzer, the former News sports writer, I had met his friend, Ed
"Don" George shortly after my arrival in western New York in 1967. And I
recall wishing that my father was alive and able to hear about the former
wrestler he admired.

You see, in the '30s, prominent college football players passed up
professional football to either go into the bond business on Wall Street or
professional wrestling. In those days, professional wrestling was looked upon
as a legitimate sport and was covered as thoroughly by the newspaper as the
other major sports.

Without going into the record books, I can recall that Gus Sonnenberg, an All-
America from Dartmouth; Len Macaluso, an All-America from Colgate; and Ed
"Don" George, a star player at the University of Michigan, were all well
publicized and well-paid wrestlers in those days.

No, there were no Gorgeous Georges or Haystack Calhouns on the scene then. But
the wrestling promoters in Boston had a gimmick. They would import fine broths
of lads from Ireland who would thrill the Irish immigrants with their deeds.

One such brother was a lad named "Danno" O'Mahoney, whose favorite hold was
called The Irish Flip. Oh, I can remember that well because my father and his
friends talked about it so many times.

Then, one night, Danno went up against Ed "Don" George, who proceeded to turn
him every way but loose. That meant the end of Danno's career and the
beginning of a new career for another Irish broth named Steve Casey. If memory
serves, the promoters kept Casey away from Ed "Don" George.

When I see Ed "Don" George around the area, I have to wonder how many people
know about his colorful career. Those who don't would be fascinated by the
report that at different times he was invited to dinner by President Franklin
Delano Roosevelt, the father of the late Shah of Iran, King George of England
and Prime Minister Joseph Lyons of Australia. That's "tall cotton" for a farm
boy from North Java. Indeed, it's "tall cotton" for any young man.

In 1928, Ed was on the U.S. Olympic wrestling team. And between then and 1942,
when he entertained the U.S. Navy, he wrestled in almost every country in
Europe except Germany, which in those days did not allow foreigners to take
money out of the country.

When Ed joined the Navy, he was placed in charge of the hand-to-hand combat
program at Chapel Hill, N.C. And there is no doubt that he could tell some
good stories about those days because so many big-time athletes were stationed
at Chapel Hill then.

After he left the Navy with the rank of commander in 1945, Ed became a
wrestling promoter. And his stories about Gorgeous George and the other
colorful characters in the dodge then are intriguing.

Yes, Ed had a colorful career, and the feeling here is that he is proud of the
fact that he is in the halls of fame at both Michigan and St. Bonaventure,
where he also spent a year.

But nothing that Ed has done before is, in the minds of my fellow disabled
veterans, as important as the move he made when he donated the land in North
Java to Disabled American Veterans Post 163.
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