Beulah "Cora Combs" Szostecki (March 17, 1927 – June 21, 2015),
[Obituary for Mrs. Beulah "Cora Combs" Szostecki](_blank)
''Springhillfh.com.'' better known by her ring name as Cora Combs, was an American
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 ...
. She was the last survivor of the
Billy Wolfe
William Harrison Wolfe (July 4, 1896 – March 7, 1963) was a professional wrestling promoter who was active from the 1930s to the 1950s. Wolfe was the husband and manager of Mildred Burke and ran a traveling troupe of women wrestlers alongside h ...
troupe. She mainly wrestled in Indianapolis.
Professional wrestling career
Combs was born in 1923 in
Hazard
A hazard is a potential source of harm
Harm is a moral and legal concept.
Bernard Gert construes harm as any of the following:
* pain
* death
* disability
* mortality
* loss of abil ity or freedom
* loss of pleasure.
Joel Feinberg giv ...
, Kentucky.
Before she was a professional wrestler, Combs was a
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
singer. In 1949, she attended a pro wrestling show headlined by
Mildred Burke
Mildred Burke (August 5, 1915 – February 18, 1989) was an American professional wrestler. She is overall a three-time women's world champion under different incarnations and recognitions.
Burke's heyday lasted from the mid-1930s to the mid-1950 ...
, then the biggest star in women's pro wrestling.
Nick Gulas
Nick Gulas (September 3, 1914 – January 21, 1991) was an American professional wrestling promoter in the Southern United States, partnered with Tennessee promoter Roy Welch for decades. Gulas was also known as "The King of Managers", "King B", ...
presented her to pro wrestler
Billy Wolfe
William Harrison Wolfe (July 4, 1896 – March 7, 1963) was a professional wrestling promoter who was active from the 1930s to the 1950s. Wolfe was the husband and manager of Mildred Burke and ran a traveling troupe of women wrestlers alongside h ...
, who trained her.
Combs also wrestled her own daughter,
Debbie Combs
Debbie Szostecki (born April 18, 1959) is a retired professional wrestler better known as Debbie Combs.
Early life
Her mother, Cora Combs, was also a professional wrestler. Debbie Combs made her wrestling debut at Louisville Gardens for Angelo ...
, under a mask as Lady Satan.
In 2007, Combs was inducted in the
Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame.
Personal life and death
Combs had a daughter,
Debbie Combs
Debbie Szostecki (born April 18, 1959) is a retired professional wrestler better known as Debbie Combs.
Early life
Her mother, Cora Combs, was also a professional wrestler. Debbie Combs made her wrestling debut at Louisville Gardens for Angelo ...
, who also was a professional wrestler.
Combs died on June 21, 2015 in Nashville at the age of 88.
She had pneumonia in the week preceding her death.
Championships and accomplishments
![Cora Combs poster](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Cora_Combs_poster.jpg)
*
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 United States Women's Championship
The NWA United States Women's Championship was a sporadically used women's professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance from 1968 until 1987.
Title history
Footnotes
See also
*List of National Wrestling Allianc ...
(4 times)
**
NWA Southern Women's Championship (Florida version)
The NWA Southern Women's Championship (Florida version) was a National Wrestling Alliance's women's professional wrestling championship, It was created in 1953 and it was also a part of Championship Wrestling from Florida, the championship retire ...
(2 times)
*
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 2007
*
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 ...
**
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 ind ...
(
Class of 2018
''Class of 2018'' is a 2018 Filipino teen suspense–thriller film directed by Charliebebs Gohetia. It stars Sharlene San Pedro and Nash Aguas. The film was produced and distributed by T-Rex Entertainment. It premiered in the Philippines on Nove ...
)
See also
*
List of oldest surviving professional wrestlers
This is a list of oldest surviving professional wrestlers. As of 2017, there are 42 living veterans from the "History of professional wrestling in the United States#Television era (1950s to 1970s), Golden Age of Wrestling" (1950s–1970s) over 75 ...
References
External links
*
*
Official pageat DDT Digest
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Combs, Cora
1927 births
2015 deaths
American female professional wrestlers
Sportswomen from Kentucky
People associated with physical culture
People from Hazard, Kentucky
WWE Hall of Fame Legacy inductees
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
Stampede Wrestling alumni
21st-century American women
Deaths from pneumonia in Tennessee
20th-century professional wrestlers