August 27th in the Time Tunnel:
Happy Birthday to those who have passed on and to those great wrestlers still with us:
In Memoriam:
George Scott 1929
Reggie Parks 1934
Denny Kass 1956
Happy Birthday:
Bob Remus\Sgt. Slaughter (77)
Dalip Singh Rana\The Great Kahli (53)
Carlene Moore-Begraud\Jazz (53)
RIP Memorial: We stop & remember those who have passed on this day and gave themselves to the business for us, the fans. We salute you and thank you.
Tony Borne 8-27-2010 at the age of 84
Luna Vachon 8-27-2010 at the age of 48
Anton Geesink 8/27/2010 at the age of 76
Bob Armstrong 8-27-2020 at the age of 80
Anton Geesink
A Dutch Judo Master Who Entered Professional Wrestling
Anton Geesink took up judo at the age of 14 and by 17, started competing internationally, winning a silver medal in 1951. He won his first European title the following year and twenty more European titles followed through to 1967.
At the 1956 World Championships, Geesink was eliminated in the semi-finals against Yoshihiko Yoshimatsu. At the 1961 World Championships, he became World Champion in the open class, defeating the Japanese champion Koji Sone. Japanese judokas had won all the World Championship titles contested to that point in history.
Judo debuted as an official sport at the 1964 Summer Olympics, held in the sport's home country, Japan. Although Japan dominated three of the four weight divisions, Geesink won the final of the open weight division, defeating Akio Kaminga in front of his home crowd. After winning the 1965 World Championships and a last European title in 1967, Geesink gave up competitive judo.
Anton Geesink was one of the few 10th Dan grade judokas recognized by the International Judo Federation but not by the Kodokan at. that rank. Promotions from 6th to 10th Dan are awarded for services to the sport of judo. There are no living 10th Dan awardees remaining and the Kodokan has not warded the 10th Dan to anybody outside Japan.
He was selected as the Dutch Sportsman of the Year in 1957, 1961, 1964 and 1965.
Pictured: Anton Geesink with his wife and children
Anton Geesink also starred in various television series and movies in Dutch and Italian productions. In the 1960s, he published several books on judo in Dutch and English.
In 1986 and ‘87, he did work for the International Olympic Committee. He was suspected of possibly taking bribes around the 2002 Winter Olympics and the selection of Salt Lake City, Utah as the site of the games. He was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing and he continued working for the IOC until his death in 2010.
Professional Wrestling
In 1973, Shohei "Giant" Baba recruited Geesink to join his All-Japan Pro Wrestling Promotion, then sent him to Amarillo to be trained for American-style Professional Wrestling under Dory Jr and Terry Funk for a month.
He made his debut at the Ector County Coliseum in Odessa, Texas on October 18th, 1973. He then returned to Japan to tour with All Japan as a popular part-time performer starting on November 24th, 1973, until his last match on February 5th, 1978.
Geesink was often featured prominently in the All-Japan tours as he was considered a huge star in the Judo circles and also being Dutch gaijin adding extra dimensions to the Japanese wrestling scene.
50 years ago, in the All-Japan Pro Wrestling Summer Action Series I that lasted through the month of July 1975, Geesink was put over heavily both in traditional tag team matches, 6-man tags and in singles. Coincidentally, today is Bob Remus (Sgt Slaughter) birthday and also the date Geesink passed away in 2010. Remus was the guy who had to put Geesink over the most, as he was still building his reputation and hadn't found the Slaughter gimmick as of yet.
Geesink defeated Remus on 7/6, 7/8,7/10 and 7/21. Geesink defeated Chavo Guerrero on 7/16, 7/18, 7/19 and 7/22. He went over Gerry Brisco on 7/14.
He was in tag teams with Giant Baba, The Destroyer and Jumbo Tsuruta, all wins.
50 Year Flashback
July 22nd, 1975: Anton Geesink defeated Chavo Guerrero in the Summer Action Series I, Day 15 at Toyama, Japan
In 1995, his hometown of Ultrect, Netherlands named a street after him and erected a statue of Geesink to commemorate his accomplishments by his hometown. He was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure by the Japanese Government in 1997. Geesink had a wife and three children and had spent several weeks in the hospital before he passed from an unspecified illness at the age of 76. His death was announced by the Netherlands' Olympic Committee officials.
One Thing I Learned Today About Pro Wrestling History
Bob Armstrong's career got a jump start from Fred Ward Promotions in Columbus, Georgia. Bob was a firefighter in town and Mr. Ward was the first to recognize Bob might have something to offer as an in-ring competitor. He was pushed in the late 60's until getting a chance to hold the NWA Georgia Tag Team Title with Dickie Steinborn in August of 1972.
Thank You for Reading
I'm Tony Richards, Pro Wrestling Historian, Author and Storyteller. I share pro wrestling historical items in each issue of the Time Tunnel Pro Wrestling History Newsletter. Thanks for reading! If you enjoy my information on select events, matches and insights, please share it with folks you think might like to be a subscriber!
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