Stan Kowalski (born Bert Smith; May 13, 1926 – October 20, 2017) 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 one half 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 ...

Murder Incorporated with partner

Tiny Mills Henry Mittlestadt (1911–1987), best known by his ring name, Tiny Mills, was a Canadian professional wrestler born in Camrose, Alberta. He often teamed with his brother Al Mills as the tag team Murder Incorporated (Murder Inc.). Later on Stan "Kr ...

in the

American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The territory was originally part o ...

(AWA) from 1960 to 1975.

Early life

Kowalski wrestled and played football at North High School. At age 17, under an assumed name, he joined the US Navy (United States Navy) and served in the Pacific on three submarines (USS Plaice SS 390, USS Bashaw SS 241, USS Barb SS 220) for three and a half years as a Gunners Mate(GM) during the Second World War (World War II]. He enrolled at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

after the war. He joined the wrestling team, where he met local promoter Joe) Pazendak, the University's unofficial assistant wrestling coach. He turned down a chance to play football for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

in 1950.

Professional wrestling career

Kowalski turned to professional wrestling, debuting as Buddy Marco for a NWA promotion run by Tony Stecher. He traveled to Los Angeles, where he trained with Sandor Szabo. In 1955, promoter

Jack Pfefer Jack Pfefer (also commonly spelled as "Pfeffer"; December 10, 1894 – September 13, 1974) was an American professional wrestling promoter during the early-to-mid twentieth century. He pioneered an earlier form of sports entertainment, as he was ...

changed his ring name to Krusher Kowalski; Kowalski was a family name. He later formed a

with Canadian wrestler

as Murder Incorporated. They wrestled together in Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. They won the Minneapolis version of the NWA World Tag Team Championships twice while working for the NWA Minneapolis Wrestling and Boxing Club. When that promotion became the

(AWA) in 1960, Mills and Kowalski became the first AWA World Tag Team Champions. They also won the Canadian Open Tag Team Championship, defeating Billy "Whipper" Watson and

Ilio DiPaolo Ilio DiPaolo (November 7, 1926 – May 10, 1995), was an Italian professional wrestler and restaurateur who lived in the Buffalo, New York area. Professional wrestling career DiPaolo was born in Italy and lived there until he moved to Venezuela in ...

in 1960. They lost the championship early in 1961. Later, he managed

Ivan Koloff Oreal Donald Perras (August 25, 1942 – February 18, 2017) was a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by the ring name "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff. He was the third wrestler to hold the WWWF Championship. Early life Perras was b ...

. In 1969, he has a brief appearance in an Ohio promotion, Ohio Wrestling Classics. Then, in 1970, he went to New York to wrestle in 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 ...

(WWWF) as Krippler Karl Kovacs. In Pennsylvania, Kowalski and

Bruno Sammartino Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino (October 6, 1935 – April 18, 2018) was an Italian-born American professional wrestler, best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF, now WWE). There, he held the WWWF World Heavywei ...

set a record attendance and gate of $86,000.

Personal life

After retiring from professional wrestling, Kowalski owned a night club with wrestler Blackjack Daniels, worked as a police officer, union negotiator, and business agent. He resided in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, where he was active in charities, fundraisers, and speaking engagements. He volunteered with the

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

and helped homeless veterans. Kowalski was married to his wife Cleo since 1961 and had two children, a son Scott Smith, and daughter Stacy Smith. He lost part of his colon due to cancer in 2006. He died on October 20, 2017. Kowalski received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the

Improved Order of Red Men The Improved Order of Red Men is a fraternal organization established in North America in 1834. Their rituals and regalia are modeled after those assumed by men of the era to be used by Native Americans. Despite the name, the order was formed ...

in 2016. In addition, the

Veterans of Foreign Wars The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an organization of US war veterans, who, as military service members fought in wars, campaigns, and expeditions on foreign land, waters, or a ...

presents an award named in his honor.

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 is ...

( 1 time) – with

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 ...

**Honoree (2000) *

Maple Leaf Wrestling Maple Leaf Wrestling was the unofficial name in the 1970s and 1980s of the professional wrestling promotion run by Frank Tunney in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. History Queensbury Athletic Club The promotion, initially known as the Queensbury Athle ...

NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Championship The NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Championship was the top tag team professional wrestling championship in the Canadian promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any ty ...

( 1 time) – with

* NWA Minneapolis Wrestling and Boxing Club / American Wrestling Association **

AWA World Tag Team Championship The American Wrestling Association (AWA) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991. History When the NWA Minneapolis ...

( 1 time) – with

** NWA World Tag Team Championship ''(Minneapolis 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

References

External links

*http://www.minnesotawrestlinghalloffame.com/tag/stan-kowalski/ * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kowalski, Stan 1926 births 2017 deaths American color commentators American male professional wrestlers Professional wrestling announcers Professional wrestlers from Minneapolis Sportspeople from Minnesota United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century professional wrestlers AWA World Tag Team Champions NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Champions