Edward M. Wright (January 13, 1932 – August 28, 1982) was an American professional wrestler who became popular in the late 1950s and 1960s. Despite racial tension in the United States, he became wildly popular as a

babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

. Wrestling in either singles competition or in tag team competition (often matched with

Bobo Brazil Houston Harris (July 10, 1924 – January 20, 1998) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Bobo Brazil. Credited with breaking down barriers of racial segregation in professional wrestling, Harris is considered one ...

), thousands of fans would pack arenas to see him. He was the son of boxer Ed "Bearcat" Wright, and had an 8–0 record as a professional boxer himself in the early 1950s, boxing as "Bearcat Wright Jr."

Professional wrestling career

The Arizona Wrestling Legends website says, "He was seen in Australia, in Canada, throughout the south, in the midwest, in Texas, always winning the support of the fans as he battled the likes of The Sheik,

Johnny Valentine John Theodore Wisniski (September 22, 1928 – April 24, 2001), better known by his ring name Johnny Valentine, was an American professional wrestler with a career spanning almost three decades. He has been inducted into four halls of fame fo ...

and

Kinji Shibuya Robert "Kinji" Shibuya (May 16, 1921 – May 3, 2010) was an American professional wrestler and actor. Professional wrestling career In 1952, promoter Al Karasick suggested Shibuya try professional wrestling. He was originally given a villainous ...

. A tall and lanky man, he was usually noted for flying dropkicks, spin kicks, and leaps off the rope." He adopted a "claw hold" for his finisher and was famous for desegregating wrestling. Wright declared before an audience in Gary, Indiana, that he would no longer participate in segregated wrestling. Although suspended for a short time by the Indiana State Athletic Commission for his stand, shortly afterwards professional boxing desegregated. Bearcat Wright defeated Killer Kowalski in April 1961 to win the Big Time Pro Wrestling title and become, in effect, the world heavyweight wrestling champion. Five days before

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

delivered his famous "I have a dream" speech in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, Wright won the

WWA World Heavyweight Championship The World Wrestling All-Stars (WWA) World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Wrestling All-Stars. It was the primary championship in the WWA. The title was sanctioned by WWA as their world ...

from "Classy"

Freddie Blassie Frederick Kenneth Blassman (February 8, 1918 – June 2, 2003) was an American professional wrestler and manager, known by the ring name "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Renowned as "The Hollywood Fashion Plate","Classy" Freddie Blassie with Keith Elliot ...

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' ...

. Known for behemoth strength (he would rip phone books in half during promotional interviews for his matches) he also was blackballed by

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 ...

for refusing to drop the WWA championship to Edouard Carpentier and then back to Fred Blassie on December 13, 1963. He is one of the few wrestlers who legitimately would not drop their title—and so WWA had

Gene LeBell Ivan “Judo” Gene LeBell (October 9, 1932 – August 9, 2022) was an American martial artist, stunt performer, actor, and professional wrestler. Nicknamed "The Godfather of Grappling", he popularized grappling in professional fighting circ ...

(a known judo champion and shooter—or one who knew how to legitimately wrestle to defend themselves if needed) to substitute for Blassie at a rematch. When Wright refused to enter the ring, WWA stripped him of his title and awarded it to Carpentier. Although Wright created controversy, promoters soon forgot about his negative sides. Wright continued to draw money and wrestled even into the 1970s. On March 31, 2017, Wright was posthumously inducted into the

WWE Hall of Fame The WWE Hall of Fame is a hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when André the Giant was posthumously i ...

as a part of the Legacy wing.

Death

Wright died at the age of 50 on August 28, 1982 from sickle cell anemia complications.

Championships and accomplishments

50th State Big Time Wrestling 50th State Big Time Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Hawaii or Mid-Pacific Promotions) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Ha ...

NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship The NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team title of 50th State Big Time Wrestling and was defended between 1952 and 1979 when it was phased out. The title was later revived by the current incarnation of NWA Hawaii in 2000. It i ...

(

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) – with

Luther Lindsay Luther Jacob Goodall (December 30, 1924 – February 21, 1972) was an American professional football player and wrestler, known by his ringname Luther Lindsay or Lindsey, who competed throughout the United States with the National Wrestling A ...

and

Sam Steamboat Samuel K. Mokuahi (May 4, 1934 – May 2, 2006) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Sammy Steamboat. Early life Mokuahi grew up in Honolulu, attending President Theodore Roosevelt High School, where he pla ...

* Big Time Wrestling ''(Boston)'' ** BTW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * Big Time Wrestling ''(San Francisco)'' ** NWA United States Championship ''(San Francisco version)'' (

) *

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 Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Florida version)'' ( 1 time) **

NWA Florida Tag Team Championship The NWA Florida Tag Team Championship is the primary tag team title in NWA Florida Underground Wrestling. It started out in 1968 as the main tag team title in Championship Wrestling from Florida Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was ...

( 1 time) – with Bobby Shane * Midwest Wrestling Association ** MWA Ohio Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *

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)'' ( 1 time) – with

Enrique Torres Enrique Torres (July 25, 1922 – September 10, 2007) was an American professional wrestler, the oldest three Torres brothers in wrestling, and a major star in the late 1940s and 1950s. Personal life Torres was married to Maria in 1938. They h ...

** NWA Pacific Coast Tag Team Championship ''(Vancouver version)'' ( 1 time) – with Whipper Billy Watson * Pacific Northwest Wrestling **

NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of O ...

( 3 times) – with

Shag Thomas Shag Thomas (born James Thomas, August 11, 1924 – July 25, 1982) was an American professional wrestler during the 1950s and 1960s. He was one of the few African-American wrestlers of his day. Football career Thomas was a 1942 graduate of ...

(2) and

Billy White Wolf Adnan bin Abdul Kareem Ahmed Alkaissy El Farthie ( ar, عدنان بن عبدالكريم أحمد القيسي ألفرث; born c. 1 March 1936 or 1939), better known professionally as Adnan Al-Kaissie, is an Iraqi former professional wrestler a ...

* World Championship Wrestling ''(Australia)'' ** IWA World Heavyweight Championship (

) **

IWA World Tag Team Championship IWA World Tag Team Championship is a Tag Team Championship defended in Puerto Rico.The titles were first introduced in the first incarnation of the International Wrestling Association, where they are defended. They also made a brief appearance i ...

( 1 time) – with

Mark Lewin Mark Lewin (born March 16, 1937) is an American retired professional wrestler. Early life Lewin was born in Buffalo, New York. He had two elder brothers, Donn and Ted, both of whom also became professional wrestlers. He attended Lafayette High ...

( 1 time) **

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 ...

( 1 time) –

Mr. Moto Mr. Moto is a fictional Japanese secret agent created by the American author John P. Marquand. He appeared in six novels by Marquand published between 1935 and 1957. Marquand initially created the character for the ''Saturday Evening Post'', whi ...

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 ...

(Class of 2017) * ''

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 2019) * Other titles: ** Arizona Heavyweight Championship (1 time) ** World Negro Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Bearcat 1932 births 1982 deaths 20th-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century American male actors African-American male professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers American people of Jamaican descent Professional wrestlers from Nebraska Stampede Wrestling alumni WWE Hall of Fame Legacy inductees 20th-century professional wrestlers NWA Florida Tag Team Champions NWA Brass Knuckles Champions (Florida version) IWA World Heavyweight Champions (Australia) IWA World Tag Team Champions (Australia)