May 23 in the Tunnel:
Happy Birthday to those who have passed on and to those great wrestlers still with us:
In Memoriam:
Charlie Harbin 1914
Mitsu Arakawa 1927
Silento Rodriguez 1933
Donna Christianello 1942
Windham Rotunda\Bray Wyatt 1987
Happy Birthday:
Alex Shelley (42)
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.
Ray Candy 5-23-1994 at the age of 42
Owen Hart 5-23-1999 at the age of 34
Chief White Owl 5-23-2008 at the age of 73
Hana Kimura 5-23-2020 at the age of 22
Significant Pro Wrestling Media Event in the Time Tunnel:
5-23-1959: The first episode of Wrestling at the Chase aired on KPLR-TV, channel 11 in St. Louis, Missouri. The show would continue weekly for 24 years until 1983.
Pictured: The marquee at The Chase Hotel in St. Louis, Missouri
Select Time Tunnel Pro Wrestling Match Flashbacks:
50-Year Flashback: Mr. Wrestling #2 & Andre the Giant defeated Abdullah the Butcher & The Sheik at the Omni in Atlanta, Georgia
What an amazing superstar-level drawing match! All four of these performers sold millions of dollars in tickets in the 1970s with Wrestling #2 being the only one who was not a nationwide drawing card and the amazing thing about this is that it's the semi-main match underneath Jack Brisco vs Dory Funk, Jr for the NWA World Heavyweight Title. At this point, the Georgia Booking office was running The Omni once to twice per month, with the regular weekly Friday night cards being held at the Atlanta City Auditorium.
Pictured: The Omni, Atlanta, GA
One month prior to this on April 25th, they had run Andre vs Abdullah on top for a great drawing Omni Spectacular in which Andre went over defeating The Butcher. Now, Abby returns with his longtime nemesis and tag team partner, The Original Sheik while Andre hooks up as a team with Georgia's all time biggest drawing wrestler, Mr. Wrestling #2, who had been created a couple years prior by Jerry Jarrett when he was the booker for Jim Barnett in the Atlanta Wrestling War in 1973. Tim Woods, the original Mr. Wrestling had been an amazing performer who was over like crazy in Georgia.
Pictured: Johnny Walker as Mr. Wrestling #2
Jarrett reached out to Woods about coming back as his lead babyface for the NWA office in the Atlanta war. Woods, who at that point was semi-retired was not interested, so Jarrett thought of a wrestler he had booked in the Tennessee Territory in a mid-card position, Johnny Walker. Johnny "Rubberman" Walker worked throughout the South anywhere from the opening match to the middle of the card. Jarrett told him to find a white outfit and a white mask and what he had in mind for him as Mr. Wrestling #2 and the rest is history.
One Thing I Learned Today About Pro Wrestling History:
Abdul the Terrible Turk was a leading wrestling heel from the 1930s through the 1950s.
Pictured: Abdul the Terrible Turk
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!
Remember, paid subscribers get access to exclusive and special content such as to commemorate his induction to the WWE Hall of Fame, I'll be publishing some special issues including a multi-part deep dives on wrestling territories, wrestler bios and championship title histories, special audio and video interviews on territory pro wrestling and more available in The Vault of the Pro Wrestling Time Tunnel for Paid Subscribers.