Otto Robert "Pat" Kuss (March 12, 1911 – March, 1980) 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 ...

who was best known for his work with Central States Wrestling from 1948 to 1950, and 1952 as well as

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 ...

in 1952.

NCAA wrestling

Otto Kuss lettered four years at

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

from 1931 to 1934. He earned All-America honors in 1934 with a second-place finish at the NCAA Wrestling Championship. During his four-year career, the Hoosiers went 27-2, including four Big Ten and one NCAA championship. He is the only Hoosier to have lettered on NCAA championship teams in two sports, track and wrestling (1932). He also played football for the Hoosiers.

Professional wrestling career

Kuss competed in 38 states and in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, wrestling 331 people in that time. He retired from the sport in 1962.

Personal life

Kuss grew up in

Pine City, Minnesota Pine City is a city in and the county seat of Pine County, in east central Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,130 at the 2020 census. A portion of the city is located on the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation. Founded as a railway town, ...

, the son of Cyril and Rose Kuss. He had three brothers and they all attended Pine City High School. Otto went on to college at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

. He lived in Minnesota during most of his professional wrestling career and made

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

his second home. He married a woman named Virginia. After retiring from wrestling, he became a referee. He died in Texas in March, 1980 at age 68.

References

External links

Wrestling Data - Otto Kuss
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuss, Otto 1911 births 1980 deaths American male professional wrestlers People from Pine City, Minnesota Indiana Hoosiers wrestlers Players Stampede Wrestling alumni 20th-century professional wrestlers