Giacomo Costa (14 December 1919 – 22 January 2000) was an
Italian Australian
Italian Australians ( it, Italiani Australiani) are Australians with Italian ancestry. Italian Australians constitute the sixth largest ancestry group in Australia, and one of the largest groups in the global Italian diaspora. At the 2021 c ...
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
best known by his
ring name
A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...
, Al Costello. Costello was the first professional wrestler to be nicknamed "The Man of a Thousand Holds" because of his innovative and very technical style.
Costello was the creator and original member of the
tag team
Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establish ...
The Fabulous Kangaroos
:''This team is not to be mistaken for the similarly named team The Royal Kangaroos of Jonathan Boyd and Norman Frederick Charles III''
The Fabulous Kangaroos were a professional wrestling tag team who existed in various forms from 1957 until 19 ...
, whose "Ultra Australian"
gimmick
A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...
complete with
boomerang
A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning b ...
s,
bush hats and the song "
Waltzing Matilda
"Waltzing Matilda" is a song developed in the Australian style of poetry and folk music called a bush ballad. It has been described as the country's "unofficial national anthem".
The title was Australian slang for travelling on foot (waltzing) ...
" as their entrance music, existed in various forms from 1957 until 1983. Costello was either an active wrestler, or a
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
in all versions of The Fabulous Kangaroos.
He and
Roy Heffernan
Laurence Roy Heffernan (12 July 1925 – 24 September 1992) was an Australian professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Roy Heffernan toured all over the world, but is most famous for being one half of the original version of the tag team th ...
are arguably the most famous version of The Kangaroos,
regarded as one of the top tag teams to ever compete in professional wrestling,
and are often credited with popularizing tag team wrestling in the late 1950s and 1960s.
Costello later formed other versions of The Fabulous Kangaroos with Ray St. Clair,
Don Kent and Tony Charles. He also managed the team of Don Kent &
Bruno Bekkar and later on "Johnny Heffernan" under The Fabulous Kangaroos name.
Costello officially retired from wrestling in 1983 but still made a few brief returns to the ring after that.
In 1993, he managed
The New Fabulous Kangaroos (Denny Kass and
Al Snow
Allen Ray Sarven (born July 18, 1963) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Al Snow. He is best known as a wrestler for Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Wrestling Entertainment. Sn ...
) before retiring completely from the wrestling business.
Both Costello and his tag team partner Heffernan died before Kangaroos were honored as the first tag team to ever be inducted into the
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) and Museum is an American professional wrestling hall of fame and museum located in Wichita Falls, Texas currently closed to water leaks. The museum was founded by Tony Vellano in 1999, and was previo ...
in 2003,
which started a tradition of inducting a new team every year.
Early life
Costa was born in the village of Lingua, in the Italian island of
Santa Marina Salina
Santa Marina Salina is a ''comune'' (municipality) and one of the main towns on Salina, one of the Aeolian Islands. It is situated in the Metropolitan City of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about northeast of Palermo and about ...
,
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
, and lived there until his family immigrated to Australia when he was six years old.
The family settled in
Rockdale, New South Wales
Rockdale is a suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Rockdale is located 13 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the St George area. Rockdale is one of the administrative centre ...
, where Costa helped out in his father's
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
store. He excelled at school sports, and became interested in weightlifting at an early age. At age 16, Costa took up
amateur boxing
Amateur boxing is a variant of boxing practiced at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games, as well as many associations.
Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration, comprising three rounds of three ...
despite his father's wishes that he should become an
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
singer.
Costa was approached by Australian middleweight wrestling champion "Basher Bonas", who convinced him to try wrestling. Costa made his debut under an assumed name; his father still had hopes of him becoming an opera singer, and he did not want his parents to find out that he was wrestling. He came up with the name "Al Costello", thinking it sounded tough like a
portmanteau
A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words[Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel Capone (; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the ...](_blank)
and
Frank Costello
Frank Costello (; born Francesco Castiglia; ; January 26, 1891 – February 18, 1973) was an Italian-American crime boss of the Luciano crime family. In 1957, Costello survived an assassination attempt ordered by Vito Genovese and carried out by ...
.
Wrestling career
Al Costello made his professional wrestling debut in 1938, but the man that would be known as "The Man of a Thousand Holds" 20 years later, found little success early in his career. The general belief in Australian professional wrestling at the time was that a wrestler had to go to North America and learn how to be a pro before the bookers would even consider
pushing them up the
card Card or The Card may refer to:
* Various types of plastic cards:
**By type
***Magnetic stripe card
*** Chip card
*** Digital card
**By function
***Payment card
****Credit card
**** Debit card
****EC-card
****Identity card
****European Health Insur ...
.
Costello travelled across Asia, where he did see some success; he won the
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
n Heavyweight title in 1939, as well as the South Africa trophy in 1949. During the 1950s, Costello finally started to turn heads at home by winning the Australasian title.
In 1952, Costello began wrestling in America, hoping to finally break through and make a big name of himself.
Fabulous Kangaroos
For years, Al Costello had been working on an idea for a new tag team; he even knew who he wanted for a partner: a wrestler he had worked with some years ago named
Roy Heffernan
Laurence Roy Heffernan (12 July 1925 – 24 September 1992) was an Australian professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Roy Heffernan toured all over the world, but is most famous for being one half of the original version of the tag team th ...
. Because Costello and Heffernan had lost touch over the years, the idea remained dormant until Costello toured
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
in 1956. Costello mentioned his idea of an "Ultra Australian" tag team to fellow wrestler, and future
promoter, Joe Blanchard. Blanchard happened to be a good friend of Roy Heffernan and knew he was working in
Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the prom ...
at the time. Blanchard put the two in touch with each other, and Costello was soon off to
Calgary
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...
,
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
, Canada to join Heffernan and finally make his tag team a reality. Costello and Heffernan debuted as "The Fabulous Kangaroos" on 3 May 1957 for
Stu Hart
Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian amateur and professional wrestler, wrestling booker, promoter, coach, trainer, football player and sailor. He is best known for founding and handling Stampede Wrestling, a ...
's
Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the prom ...
promotion
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
in a match against Maurice LaPointe and Tony Baillargeon. Only weeks after that first match, The Kangaroos were working with the top tag teams in the promotion.
After working in Stampede for a while, The Fabulous Kangaroos started to travel across the United States, headlining shows wherever they went due to their ability to rile up crowds with their
heel
The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg.
Structure
To distribute the compressive for ...
(bad guy) tactics. On one occasion in August 1958, The Kangaroos, or "Kangaroo Men" as they were billed, nearly caused a riot in
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
during a match against
Antonino Rocca
Antonino Rocca (born Antonino Biasetton; 13 April 1921 – 15 March 1977) was an Italian Argentine professional wrestler. He tag teamed with partner Miguel Pérez. He was posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a member of the class ...
and
Miguel Pérez; the fans began to throw fruit and stones at them. After the match ended without a decisive winner, the promoters stepped in, turned up the arena lights, and played the
National Anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...
to stop a potential riot.
This was a common tactic used at the time by the New York promoters in order to prevent riots and help the heels leave the arena unharmed.
Later that year, Costello and Heffernan started working for
Dory Funk
Dorrance Wilhelm Funk (May 4, 1919 – June 3, 1973) was an American professional wrestler. He is the father of wrestlers Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk, and was a promoter of the Amarillo, Texas-based Western States Sports promotion.
Early lif ...
's
NWA Western States
Western States Sports (also known as the Amarillo Territory) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Amarillo, Texas in the United States. Founded by Dory Detton in 1946, the promotion enjoyed its greatest success in the 1960s and ...
promotion based in
Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo ( ; Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall County ...
. Here, The Kangaroos won their first title as a team when they defeated Pepper Gomez and El Medico to win the Texas version of the
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA World ...
on 17 November 1958. Their first title reign was short lived, however, as Gomez and
Rito Romero
Rito Romero Loza (May 19, 1927 - January 18, 2001) was a successful luchador who wrestled in Mexico and in the NWA territories of Texas and Los Angeles. He appeared in several films in his native country along with a number of other luchadors. H ...
defeated them to regain the titles two weeks later.
Between 1957 and 1965, The Kangaroos wrestled in the United States, Canada, Asia and select tours of Australia and New Zealand. They worked for such companies as
Capitol Wrestling Corporation
Capitol Wrestling Corporation Ltd. was an American sports promotion company. It was run by Vincent J. McMahon from 1953 to 1982. Operating as the Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC), the company was originally a professional wrestling and boxing p ...
(the future World Wrestling Entertainment),
Championship Wrestling from Florida
Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it closed down. It is also referred to as ...
,
NWA Ohio, the
Japan Wrestling Association
The was the first professional wrestling promotion to be based in Japan. It operated from 1953 to 1973.
History JWA under Rikidōzan (1953–1963)
Rikidōzan, a former ''rikishi'' (sumo wrestling practitioner) who had debuted as a Western-st ...
and the World Wrestling Association in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
.
The Kangaroos never forgot their roots and continued to work in Canada off and on through the years; in addition to Stampede Wrestling, the team also worked for
NWA All-Star Wrestling
NWA All Star Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Vancouver) is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. All-Star Wrestling folded in 1989 but returned in 2007 no longer affiliated with the National Wr ...
based in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
. Costello featured in a
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...
short subject
A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
''La Lotta''/''Wrestling''/''Le Catch''. Their stint in NWA All-Star Wrestling was the last time Costello and Heffernan teamed together. In June 1965, The Kangaroos lost to Don Leo Jonathan and Jim Hardy and then split up. Heffernan had left Australia to tour the world in 1953 and wanted to return to his homeland, while Costello was determined to remain in the United States for a while longer.
Between Kangaroos
Heffernan returned to Australia and began working for
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
(the Australian version, not the North American wrestling federation) under
booker Jim Barnett as a singles wrestler. Costello was originally supposed to return to Australia as well and work for WCW, but those plans never came through.
Instead, Costello remained in the United States and kept working in the tag team division, never seeking a career as a singles wrestler. Costello began wrestling for
Georgia Championship Wrestling
Georgia Championship Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Atlanta, Georgia. The promotion was affiliated with what had been the world's top sanctioning body of championship titles for decades before, the National W ...
, where he teamed up with Louis Tillet to form a tag team known as "The Globetrotters"; a name that played off Costello's Australian and Tillet's French heritage.
The Globetrotters defeated the Mysterious Medics in the finals of the Georgia
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA World ...
but only held the titles for a week before losing them to Kurt and Karl Von Brauner on 4 February 1966.
After this, the Globetrotters broke up due to differences in their approach to tag teaming.
Costello then moved to the
NWA Mid-America
NWA Mid-America was a professional wrestling promotion territory under the umbrella of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) that promoted shows in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama from the 1940s until 1981. The company was founded in the 1940s by N ...
territory near
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
. In Mid-American, Costello teamed with Herb Welch to win the Mid-American version of the
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA World ...
, which they held for just over 2 months.
While still working in Mid-America, Costello began to team with Karl Von Brauner, who used a "German Nazi" gimmick despite being American. Under the management of
"Playboy" Gary Hart, Costello and Von Brauner were billed as "The Internationals"; the team was later managed by George "Crybaby" Cannon.
The Internationals worked mainly in
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
and
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
for NWA Western States. In Texas, Costello and Von Brauner won the Texas version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship, a title Costello and Heffernan had held in 1958. The team was also billed as the first
NWA American Tag Team Champions, titles that were also recognized by
World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA) (1986–1991) was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed ...
in addition to the Western States promotion. The Internationals lost the American Tag Team title to
Fritz
Fritz originated as a German nickname for Friedrich, or Frederick (''Der Alte Fritz'', and ''Stary Fryc'' were common nicknames for King Frederick II of Prussia and Frederick III, German Emperor) as well as for similar names including Fridolin an ...
and
Waldo Von Erich
Walter Paul Sieber (October 2, 1933 – July 5, 2009) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for performing under the ring name Waldo Von Erich, playing the character of a villainous Prussian Nazi. He was billed as the brother of ...
on 21 February 1967.
Kurt then decided to go back to teaming with his storyline brother, Karl Von Brauner.
After the Internationals broke up, Costello returned to Australia to visit friends and relatives and to recuperate after many years on the road. On his way back to the United States, Costello had a stop over in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, where he met Cleo Williams. The two fell in love and married shortly afterwards, remaining together for the rest of Costello's life.
Kangaroos once more
In 1967, Al Costello reformed The Fabulous Kangaroos, this time teaming up with Ray St. Clair. The team had been touring non-stop for about six months when St. Clair was forced to retire due to knee problems. A few months after St. Clair retired, Costello found a new man to don the bush hat: Don Kent. Kent, who was from
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, adopted the Ultra-Australian
gimmick
A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...
(but retained his American accent) and the two formed the third overall and second most well-known version of The Fabulous Kangaroos.
Costello and Kent teamed together on a regular basis from 1968 until 1974, approximately the same amount of time that Costello spent teaming with his original partner, Roy Heffernan.
Costello and Kent continued in a tradition that was reminiscent of the original Kangaroos; when a federation needed a new tag team title, The Kangaroos were brought in and acknowledged as champions upon arrival instead of holding a tournament to determine the champions. In 1967, the Japanese federation "International Wrestling Enterprise" (IWE) brought The Kangaroos in as the first Trans-World Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Champions. They held this title until 10 January 1968 when IWE mainstays Toyonobori and Thunder Sugiyama beat them for the gold.
Over the years, many more title reigns came from various promotions all over the globe. In Canada, The Kangaroos were the first
Eastern Sports Association
The Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It ran during the spring and summer months from 1969 to 1976.
History
The ...
International Tag Team Champions. In the
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 ...
of
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
, they held the WWA World Tag Team Championship twice.
In addition to winning titles all over North America, Costello and Kent also made appearances for the
World Wide Wrestling Federation
Capitol Wrestling Corporation Ltd. was an American sports promotion company. It was run by Vincent J. McMahon from 1953 to 1982. Operating as the Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC), the company was originally a professional wrestling and boxing p ...
(now known as
WWE
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 vario ...
).
The Kangaroos frequented
NWA Detroit
Big Time Wrestling (also known as NWA Detroit) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Detroit, Michigan in the United States.
History
Professional wrestling debuted in Detroit in the 1920s when Nick Londos began promoting events ...
, where they held the Detroit version of the
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA World ...
for most of 1971.
By the end of 1972, The Kangaroos began working for Nick Gulas' NWA Mid-America. In Mid-America, they held the local version of the
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA World ...
, the Mid-America version, on three occasions.
After a match at
Cincinnati Gardens
Cincinnati Gardens was an indoor arena located in Cincinnati, Ohio, that opened in 1949. The 25,000 square foot (2,300 m²) brick and limestone building at 2250 Seymour Avenue in Bond Hill had a entrance that was decorated with six three-dimensio ...
, an enraged fan took a
fire extinguisher
A fire extinguisher is a handheld active fire protection device usually filled with a dry or wet chemical used to extinguish or control small fires, often in emergencies. It is not intended for use on an out-of-control fire, such as one which ha ...
off the wall and threw it at Costello and Kent from the balcony of the Gardens. The extinguisher hit Costello in the hip, damaging it so much that he needed hip replacement surgery later that year. The fan was arrested, served 15 days in jail, and fined fifty dollars for damaging the fire extinguisher. The hip injury left Costello unable to wrestle, and The Fabulous Kangaroos split up once again.
Costello had a full hip replacement and was forced to retire from active competition.
Managing
In 1975, Costello surprised everyone by returning to professional wrestling as the manager of the team known as "The Love Brothers" (Hartford and Reggie Love). He actually stepped into the ring on occasion as part of special six-man tag team matches.
After recovering from his hip surgery, Costello returned to active competition at age 56. The fact that he was able to recover from such a major injury is credited to his almost-fanatical style of healthy living. As a devout
vegan
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. Di ...
, Costello credited his meat-free diet with his recovery, as well as the remarkable shape he was in for a man of his age.
Costello reformed The Fabulous Kangaroos once more, this time teaming up with wrestler Tony Charles. The team defeated
Dominic DeNucci
Domenico A. Nucciarone (January 23, 1932 – August 12, 2021) was an Italian-American professional wrestler and trainer better known under his ring name of Dominic DeNucci. He held over a dozen championships around the world in the 1960s and 197 ...
and Chris Markoff to win Detroit's version of the NWA World Tag Team title, the same title that Costello and Kent had previously held. The Kangaroos title run was short, however, and they lost their gold to
"Crazy" Luke Graham and Ripper Collins.
In 1977, Tony Charles was replaced by Don Kent and the two reunited for a tour of
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
with the
World Wrestling Council
The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...
(WWC). In Puerto Rico, The Kangaroos arrived billed as the
WWC World Tag Team Champions, once more to give a newly created title legitimacy. They dropped the titles to
Carlos Colón
Carlos Edwin Colón González Sr. (born July 18, 1948) is a Puerto Rican wrestling promoter and former professional wrestler, better known as Carlitos Colón or simply Carlos Colón. He is, along with Victor Jovica, an owner of the Puerto Rican ...
and Jose Rivera on 12 March 1977 and remained in the WWC until 1978 chasing, but never regaining, the WWC World Tag Team Championship.
After their tour in Puerto Rico ended, Don Kent returned to singles wrestling, and Costello refocused on managing.
Still a Kangaroo
In 1981, Costello convinced Kent to once again don the bush hat and pick up the boomerang. Costello got Kent to team up with
Bruno Bekkar, who was mostly known from working in his native New Zealand and Australia. Kent and Bekkar worked a tour for the WWC, while Costello served as their manager.
The team won the WWC North American Tag Team titles from
Jack
Jack may refer to:
Places
* Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA
People and fictional characters
* Jack (given name), a male given name, ...
and
Jerry Brisco
Floyd Gerald "Jerry" Brisco (born September 19, 1946) is an American retired professional wrestler. Brisco is best known for his time in the wrestling promotion WWE, where he was a backstage producer, and, during the 1990s, an on-screen character, ...
on 22 October 1981. They then lost the titles to
Invader I
''InVader'' is the fourth album by Finnish glam metal band Reckless Love, released on 4 March 2016 through Spinefarm Records.
Track listing
All songs written by Olli Herman, Pepe Reckless, and Ikka Wirtanen, unless otherwise noted.
Reception
Wr ...
and Super Gladiator but quickly gained them back before
dropping the titles for good to Invader and Gladiator on 26 January 1982.
The Kent and Bekkar team only lasted through one tour of the
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
, after which Bruno Bekkar returned to Australia and New Zealand to work for the local promotions there.
Bekkar was replaced with Johnny Heffernan (Canadian wrestler Bob Della Serra), a storyline cousin of Roy Heffernan, for what was the final version of The Fabulous Kangaroos.
The team ended
Terry
Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence (given name), Terence or Terrier (masculine).
People
Male
* Terry Albrit ...
and
Dory Funk Jr.
Dorrance Earnest Funk (born February 3, 1941), known professionally as Dory Funk Jr., is an American retired professional wrestler and wrestling trainer. The son of Dory Funk (Dorrance Wilhelm Funk) and brother of Terry Funk, he was the promoter ...
's year and a half run with the WWC World Tag Team championship on 1 May 1982. Kent and Heffernan held the gold for less than two months before losing the WWC World Tag Team titles to Invader I and Pierre Martel.
After a tour in Puerto Rico, Costello, Kent and Heffernan returned to work for
Championship Wrestling from Florida
Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it closed down. It is also referred to as ...
(CWF), a promotion The Kangaroos last worked for in 1962. In Florida, The Kangaroos won the
NWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship
The NWA Florida Global Tag Team Championship was a major tag team title in Florida Championship Wrestling from 1982 until fall 1983, when it was replaced by the NWA Florida United States Tag Team Championship.
Title history
See also
*List of ...
four times.
The final storyline involving The Fabulous Kangaroos saw Al Costello bring in
J. J. Dillon
James Morrison (born June 26, 1942) is an American retired professional wrestler and manager, better known by his ring name, J. J. Dillon.
Professional wrestling career
J. J. Dillon had an extensive wrestling career. He broke into wrestling at th ...
to act as his short-term replacement while he was "away on business". When Costello returned from his business trip, Dillon
kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe, as a noun, is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not staged. ...
refused to give up The Kangaroos' contracts and was backed up by both Kent and Heffernan. This
angle
In Euclidean geometry, an angle is the figure formed by two Ray (geometry), rays, called the ''Side (plane geometry), sides'' of the angle, sharing a common endpoint, called the ''vertex (geometry), vertex'' of the angle.
Angles formed by two ...
was designed to write Al Costello out of The Fabulous Kangaroos' storyline and allow him to retire from wrestling altogether.
Not long after Costello retired, Kent and Johnny Heffernan went their separate ways.
Retirement
After retiring from wrestling, Al Costello became the head of security at College Harbor, Florida. In 1992, at the age of 71, Costello retired from his job in Florida and began teaching wrestling. He also started to manage The New Fabulous Kangaroos in 1993, a team consisting of Mickey Doyle and Denny Kass who worked for "Motor City Wrestling" (MCW).
By the fall of 1993, Mickey Doyle had been replaced by a young wrestler by the name of
Al Snow
Allen Ray Sarven (born July 18, 1963) is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Al Snow. He is best known as a wrestler for Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Wrestling Entertainment. Sn ...
; with Costello's help The New Fabulous Kangaroos defeated "Canadian Lighting" (Otis Apollo and "Irish" Bobby Clancy), on 29 December 1993, to win the MCW Tag Team Championship.
On 14 May 1994, Kass and Snow defeated Canadian Lighting again to win the
Border City Wrestling
Border City Wrestling (BCW) is an independent professional wrestling promotion owned and booked by Scott D'Amore, and based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
Many of the promotion's employees were trained at the ''Can-Am'' wrestling school. After ...
(BCW)
Can-Am Tag Team Championship, unifying the two tag team championships. A week later, The New Fabulous Kangaroos lost both sets of titles to
Scott D'Amore
Scott Francis D'Amore (born August 8, 1974) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler, manager, promoter, booker and entrepreneur. He is the current Executive Vice President of Impact Wrestling, where he also worked from 2003 to 2010 as an on- ...
and "Irish" Bobby Clancy.
After losing the unified MCW/BCW Tag Team championships, The New Kangaroos split up; Snow focused on his
World Wrestling Federation
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 vario ...
career while Costello retired for good, never making another wrestling related appearance.
Death
On 22 January 2000, Costello died from a combination of
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
and
heart
The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide t ...
problems, in Clearwater, Florida. In 2003, Al Costello and Roy Heffernan became the first tag team to ever be inducted into the
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) and Museum is an American professional wrestling hall of fame and museum located in Wichita Falls, Texas currently closed to water leaks. The museum was founded by Tony Vellano in 1999, and was previo ...
.
Since that time, the Hall of Fame has honored other tag teams, but The Fabulous Kangaroos were given the honor of being the first. In the tradition of the Kangaroos, they were "billed as champions on arrival" one last time.
Championships and accomplishments
*
Alex Turk Promotions (Winnipeg)
**International Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with
Roy Heffernan
Laurence Roy Heffernan (12 July 1925 – 24 September 1992) was an Australian professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Roy Heffernan toured all over the world, but is most famous for being one half of the original version of the tag team th ...
*
Capitol Wrestling Corporation
Capitol Wrestling Corporation Ltd. was an American sports promotion company. It was run by Vincent J. McMahon from 1953 to 1982. Operating as the Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC), the company was originally a professional wrestling and boxing p ...
**
NWA United States Tag Team Championship ''(Northeast version)'' (
3 times) - with Roy Heffernan
*
Cauliflower Alley Club
The Cauliflower Alley Club is a non-profit fraternal organization, which includes a newsletter and website, comprising both retired and active professional wrestlers and boxers in North America.
Established in 1965 by Mike Mazurki and Art Abram ...
**Other honoree (
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
)
*
Championship Wrestling from Florida
Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it closed down. It is also referred to as ...
**
NWA United States Tag Team Championship ''(Florida version)'' (
1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
**
NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Florida version)''(
1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
*
Eastern Sports Association
The Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It ran during the spring and summer months from 1969 to 1976.
History
The ...
**
ESA International Tag Team Championship
Eastern Sports Association
The Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It ran during the spring and summer months fro ...
(
1 time) - with
Don Kent
*
Georgia Championship Wrestling
Georgia Championship Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Atlanta, Georgia. The promotion was affiliated with what had been the world's top sanctioning body of championship titles for decades before, the National W ...
**
NWA World Tag Team Championship (Georgia version)
Between May 1955 and 1969 the professional wrestling promotion ABC Booking (later known as Georgia Championship Wrestling; GCW) promoted their own regional version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship, a professional wrestling championship for ...
1 time – with Louie Tillet
*
International Wrestling Enterprise
International Wrestling Enterprise (国際プロレス興行;, ''Kokusai Puroresu Kogyō'') was a professional wrestling promotion in Japan from 1966 to 1981. Founded by Isao Yoshihara, it was affiliated with the American Wrestling Association ...
**Trans-World Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Don Kent
*
Japan Wrestling Association
The was the first professional wrestling promotion to be based in Japan. It operated from 1953 to 1973.
History JWA under Rikidōzan (1953–1963)
Rikidōzan, a former ''rikishi'' (sumo wrestling practitioner) who had debuted as a Western-st ...
**
NWA International Tag Team Championship
''This was a regional NWA championship based in Japan. For the version of this title that was promoted in NWA All Star Wrestling in Canada, see NWA International Tag Team Championship (Vancouver version).''
The NWA International Tag Team Champio ...
(
1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
*
Midwest Wrestling Association
Heart of America Sports Attractions, also known as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska ...
**NWA United States Tag Team Championship ''(Ohio version)'' (1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
*Mike London Promotions
**Rocky Mountain Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
*
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc.
Founded in 1948, the NWA ...
**
NWA Hall of Fame
The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) Hall of Fame is an American professional wrestling hall of fame maintained by the NWA. It was established in 2005 to honor select wrestling personalities, mostly alumni of the NWA. Inductees receive commemorat ...
(Class of 2013)
*
NWA All-Star Wrestling
NWA All Star Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Vancouver) is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. All-Star Wrestling folded in 1989 but returned in 2007 no longer affiliated with the National Wr ...
**
NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship ''(Vancouver version)'' (
4 times) - with Roy Heffernan
*
NWA Big Time Wrestling
**
NWA American Tag Team Championship
The WCWA World Tag Team Championship was the primary professional wrestling tag team championship (professional wrestling), championship promoted by the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area–based World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA). The cham ...
(
1 time) - with Karl Von Brauner
**
NWA World Tag Team Championship
The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed member promotions to create their own territorial version of the "NWA World ...
''(Texas version)'' (
2 times
"2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...
) - with Roy Heffernan (1), Karl Von Brauner (1)
*
NWA Detroit
Big Time Wrestling (also known as NWA Detroit) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Detroit, Michigan in the United States.
History
Professional wrestling debuted in Detroit in the 1920s when Nick Londos began promoting events ...
**
NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Detroit version)'' (
3 times) - with Roy Heffernan (2), Ray St. Clair (1)
*
NWA Mid-America
NWA Mid-America was a professional wrestling promotion territory under the umbrella of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) that promoted shows in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama from the 1940s until 1981. The company was founded in the 1940s by N ...
**
NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title for lighter wrestlers, board-controlled by the National Wrestling Alliance since December 1949.
It originally was used by various promotions across the Southeaster ...
(
1 time)
**
NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Mid-America version)'' 4 times) - with Don Kent (3), Herb Welch (1)
*New Zealand Wrestling Union
**
NWA Australasian Heavyweight Championship
The New Zealand version of the NWA Australasian Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling regional heavyweight championship recognized by the National Wrestling Alliance and competed for by wrestlers in the Australasian region. It wa ...
(
1 time)
*
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) and Museum is an American professional wrestling hall of fame and museum located in Wichita Falls, Texas currently closed to water leaks. The museum was founded by Tony Vellano in 1999, and was previo ...
**
Class of 2003 - with Roy Heffernan
*
Western States Sports
Western States Sports (also known as the Amarillo Territory) was a professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion headquartered in Amarillo, Texas in the United States. Founded by Dory Detton in 1946, the promotion enjoyed its ...
**NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Texas version)'' (1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
A
**
NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Amarillo version)'' (
1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
*
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 ...
**
WWA World Tag Team Championship
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 i ...
(
2 times
"2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...
) - with Don Kent
*
Worldwide Wrestling Associates
NWA Hollywood Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Los Angeles) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Los Angeles, California in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Southern California. It ...
**
WWA World Tag Team Championship
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 i ...
(
1 time) - with Roy Heffernan
**
WWA International Television Tag Team Championship
The WWA International Television Tag Team Championship was the tag team title in the Los Angeles-based Worldwide Wrestling Associates from the title's formation in 1954 (as the NWA International Television Tag Team Championship, renamed as a Nort ...
(
2 times
"2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...
) - with Roy Heffernan
*
World Wrestling Council
The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...
**
WWC World Tag Team Championship
The WWC World Tag Team Championship is the tag team title contested for in the Puerto Rican professional wrestling promotion, the World Wrestling Council.
History Abroad (2017)
On February 11, 2017, Thunder and Lightning defended the WWC World T ...
(
1 time) - with Don Kent
*''
Wrestling Observer Newsletter
The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four We ...
''
**
Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame
The Wrestling Observer Newsletter (WON) Hall of Fame is a professional wrestling and mixed martial arts hall of fame that recognizes people who make significant contributions to their professions. It was founded in 1996 by Dave Meltzer, editor of t ...
(
Class of 1996) with Roy Heffernan
References
External links
New Fabulous Kangaroos Tribute page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Costello, Al
1919 births
2000 deaths
Australian male professional wrestlers
Italian emigrants to Australia
Italian male professional wrestlers
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
Sportspeople from the Province of Messina
Stampede Wrestling alumni
Deaths from pneumonia in Florida
20th-century professional wrestlers
NWA World Tag Team Champions (Florida version)
NWA United States Tag Team Champions (Florida version)
NWA Americas Tag Team Champions
NWA International Tag Team Champions