|
World Wrestling Association (Indianapolis)
The World Wrestling Association was an Indianapolis-based professional wrestling promotion which was operated by Dick the Bruiser and his business partner Wilbur Snyder. It was affiliated with the larger American Wrestling Association and recognized its champions, along with its own and those of the Indianapolis-based Powerful Women of Wrestling. It ran from 1964 to 1989. History The World Wrestling Association (WWA), operating under the legal name Championship Wrestling of Indiana, Inc., was established in 1964 by William Afflis and Wilbur Snyder. The duo purchased the Indianapolis NWA promotion in 1964 from its longtime owner Jim Barnett, who at that time was attempting to start up a promotion in Australia. The name of the promotion was taken from the former promotions in the Chicago and Los Angeles areas. In 1965, the WWA purchased the Chicago-based Fred Kohler Enterprises from Fred Kohler. In May of the same year, the promotion ceased promoting events in Detroit. The prom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Wrestling
Professional wrestling in the United States, until the 1920s, was viewed as a legitimate sport. This view did not endure into the 1930s, as professional wrestling became identified with modern theatrics, or "admitted fakeness" (" kayfabe"), moving away from being a showcase for true competition. The scripted nature of the art has made critics view it as an illegitimate sport, particularly in comparison to boxing, mixed martial arts, amateur wrestling, and the real sport itself, wrestling. No major promoter or wrestler denies that modern professional wrestling has predetermined match outcomes. Through the advent of television in the 1950s and cable in the 1980s, professional wrestling began appearing in powerful media outlets, reaching never before seen numbers of viewers. It became an international phenomenon with the expansion of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Throughout the 1990s, professional wrestling achieved highs in both viewers and financial success during a tim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Heenan
Raymond Louis Heenan (November 1, 1944 – September 17, 2017) was an American professional wrestling manager, color commentator, wrestler, and comedian. He performed with the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under the ring name Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. Heenan was known for his skill in elevating villainous on-screen talent by drawing negative reactions for himself and his wrestlers from the crowd. He was paired with numerous wrestlers, including Nick Bockwinkel, whom he led to win the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, and he became an integral figure in the 1980s professional wrestling boom by managing King Kong Bundy and André the Giant in WWF main event matches with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania 2 and WrestleMania III respectively. The wrestlers under his tutelage were collectively known as "The Heenan Family" at various times throughout his career. Known for his quick wit and comed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WWA World Tag Team Championship (Indianapolis Version)
The WWA World Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team title in the Indianapolis-based World Wrestling Association The World Wrestling Association (WWA) (Asociación Mundial de Lucha Libre in Spanish) is a lucha libre promotion based in the Tijuana-area of Mexico. It was founded in 1986 by Benjamin Mora Jr.. It featured some of Mexico's best ''luchadores'' a ... from the promotion's formation in 1964 until the late 1980s when the promotion closed. Title history References {{Reflist Tag team wrestling championships ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WWA World Heavyweight Championship (Indianapolis Version)
The WWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the Indianapolis-based World Wrestling Association The World Wrestling Association (WWA) (Asociación Mundial de Lucha Libre in Spanish) is a lucha libre promotion based in the Tijuana-area of Mexico. It was founded in 1986 by Benjamin Mora Jr.. It featured some of Mexico's best ''luchadores'' a ... from the promotion's formation in 1964 until the late 1980s. Title history References {{Reflist External linksWWA World Heavyweight title history (Indianapolis) World heavyweight wrestling championships Professional wrestling in Indianapolis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and various other business ventures. The company is additionally involved in licensing its intellectual property to companies to produce video games and action figures. The promotion was founded in 1953 as the Capitol Wrestling Corporation. It is the largest wrestling promotion in the world with its main roster divided up into two primary touring groups, along with a developmental roster based in Orlando, Florida (referred to by WWE as "brands"). Overall, WWE is available in more than 1 billion homes worldwide in 30 languages. The company's global headquarters is located in Stamford, Connecticut, with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Dubai and Munich. As in other professional wrestling promotions, WWE sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling company, of which he is still majority owner and wields the majority of voting power. He is also the founder and owner of Alpha Entertainment. Born in Pinehurst, North Carolina, McMahon graduated from East Carolina University with a degree in business in 1968 and began his tenure in professional wrestling as a commentator for the then-World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) for most of the 1970s; McMahon bought the company from his father, Vincent J. McMahon, in 1982 and almost monopolized the industry, which previously operated as separate entities across the United States. This led to the development of the annual WrestleMania, which became one of the most successful professional wrestling events. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baron Von Raschke
James Donald Raschke (born July 30, 1940) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Baron von Raschke. Early life Raschke was a three-year letterman with the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Cornhuskers wrestling team in 1960, 1961 and 1962. He is listed in the university's wrestling media guide as Jim Raschke. He also played football for the Cornhuskers as a left tackle in 1959 and 1960. After a successful amateur wrestling career and a stint in the United States Army, Raschke pursued a career in professional wrestling. Professional wrestling career Raschke started in professional wrestling in 1966 in the American Wrestling Association as a referee. He was soon wrestling under his real name, playing off of his amateur wrestling notoriety in the area. He eventually changed his ring name to Baron von Raschke and claimed to be from Germany. He would do a goose-step and then put his finisher known as the "brainclaw", on his opponent. Earlier in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Crusher (wrestler)
Reginald Lisowski (July 11, 1926 – October 22, 2005) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, The Crusher (sometimes Crusher Lisowski to distinguish him from other Crushers, such as Crusher Blackwell). In his obituary, ''The Washington Post'' described him as "a professional wrestler whose blue-collar bona fides made him beloved among working class fans for 40 years". One of the biggest-drawing performers in the history of the American Wrestling Association (AWA), he was known as "The Wrestler Who Made Milwaukee Famous", and found his greatest success in the American Midwest, often teaming with Dick the Bruiser. Early life Lisowski was born on July 11, 1926, and was raised by a Polish family in the Milwaukee suburb of South Milwaukee. Early on, he was more interested in football, playing fullback for the South Milwaukee High School football team, but took up wrestling while stationed in Germany with the United States Army. He reportedly began his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Verne Gagne
Laverne Clarence Gagne (February 26, 1926 – April 27, 2015) was an American amateur and professional wrestler, football player, wrestling trainer, and wrestling promoter. He was the owner and promoter of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association (AWA), the predominant promotion throughout the Midwest and Manitoba for many years. He remained in this position until 1991, when the company folded. As an amateur wrestler, Gagne won two NCAA titles and was an alternate for the U.S freestyle wrestling team at the 1948 Olympic Games before turning professional in 1949. Gagne was an 11-time world champion in major professional wrestling promotions, having held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship ten times and the IWA World Heavyweight Championship once as the IWA World Heavyweight Championship was considered a world championship in Japan. He has also won top professional wrestling promotions World Heavyweight Championships such as the World Heavyweight Championship (Oma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scott Steiner
Scott Rechsteiner (born July 29, 1962), better known by the ring name Scott Steiner, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Steiner is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and has also wrestled for Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), WWE, World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWF/WWE), Impact Wrestling, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA, later Impact Wrestling), and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). He is a four-time world champion in wrestling, being a List of WCW World Heavyweight Champions, one-time WCW World Heavyweight Championship, WCW World Heavyweight Champion, a WWA World Heavyweight Championship#Title history, one-time WWA World Heavyweight Championship, WWA World Heavyweight Champion, and a List of WWC Universal Heavyweight Champions, one-time WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship, WWC Universal Heavyweight Champion and a one-time WWA World Heavyweight Championship (Indiana ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greg Wojciechowski
Gregory M. Wojciechowski (born 1951) is a former American amateur wrestler and professional wrestler, best known by his ring name The Great Wojo, who competed primarily for the Indianapolis-based World Wrestling Association during the 1980s, most notably being featured in the $10,000 Challenge, in which he issued an open challenge to face him in a ''"shoot wrestling"'' match with the winner receiving $10,000. Professional wrestling career Early life and amateur background Born to Richard and Elaine Wojciechowski in West Toledo, Ohio, Wojciechowski began weightlifting and strength training by the age of five. As a teenager, Wojciechowski became involved in amateur wrestling competing for Whitmer High School in Toledo, Ohio, where he won the Ohio State Heavyweight Championship in 1967 and 1968. He went to college and wrestled for the University of Toledo, later winning the NCAA Division I and All-American heavyweight championship in 1971; he was the runner-up in 1970 and 1972 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amateur Wrestler
Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced in collegiate, school, or other amateur level competitions. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games: freestyle and Greco-Roman. Both styles are under the supervision of the United World Wrestling (UWW; formerly known as FILA, from the French acronym for International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles). A similar style, commonly called collegiate (also known as scholastic or folkstyle), is practiced in colleges and universities, secondary schools, middle schools, and among younger age groups in the United States. Where the style is not specified, this article refers to the international styles of competition on a mat. In February 2013, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted to remove the sport from the 2020 Summer Olympics onward. On 8 September 2013, the IOC announced that wrestling would return to the Summer Olympics in 2020. The rapid rise in the popularity of the comba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
