French catch

[ohtani's jacket]

I found this slideshow from a conference paper that has some historical tidbits about catch -- https://www.academia.edu/19848319/And_catch_became_a_spectacle_1940-1970_

According to the paper, the split between amateur catch and professional catch occurred in 1951, not 1958 as I previously alluded to. Interesting to read that only 6.1% of households had a television set in 1957. 

[ohtani's jacket]

The new book about Andre also has some info about French catch. 

I can't vouch for the historical accuracy of it, but here is some info about the Catch scene in the 1960s:

* Wrestling was popular on television -- it had been broadcast at least once, sometimes twice a week, on RTF since 1952.
* The territory was up for grabs after Henri Deglane retired in 1950 and Raoul Paoli died in 1960.
* Alex Goldstein, Maurice Durand, Roger Delaporte, and the duo of Robert Lageat and Etienne Siry became the main promoters.
* The territory wasn't set up like the NWA, but the promoters shared talent and only recognised one national champion.
* RTF (ORTF from 1964) aired matches from all of the promotions, so they battled for exposure. 
* Andre was discovered by Lageat. Lageat was a former wrestler who became one of Paoli's assistants after he retired (along with Alex Goldstein, whom the book credits with the idea of L'Ange Blanc.) Lageat had already split with Paoli before his death and began his own promotion, FFCP. He then partnered with boxing promoter, Etienne Siry.
* Marc Mercier is quoted as saying the promotions all had names but the wrestlers never used them. They just said they wrestled for Durand or Delaporte or Lageat. To the public, they were known as matchmakers.
* Jacky Corn was Lageat's son.
* Andre trained at 22 rue de Martyrs, which was close to L'Elysee Montmartre, the venue Delaporte owned, and la Mutualite, a smaller venue often used by Lageat and Siry. In other words, right in the middle of Paris' wrestling scene. The 22 rue de Martyrs was a place where all aspiring wrestlers wanted to be trained. It also served as an office for Lageat and Siry. 
* Andre was trained by Michel Saulnier. Other trainees were Gilbert Wehrle and Daniel Dubail (Le Petit Prince.)
* The training facilities, as well as the L'Elysee Montmarte, were in in a neighborhood called Pigalle. This was a red-light area with bars, clubs, cabarets and adult shows, including the famous Moulin Rouge. Andre apparently became a bodyguard for some of the prostitutes. 

The book then goes into some detail about the lumberjack gimmick they gave Andre (folk hero Jean Ferre) and describes the matches we have from the archive. 

One interesting tidbit, the period of catch where business was hot is known as "les Trente Glorieuses" (the Glorious 30), meaning the 30 years where business was good.

EDIT: Actually, this term refers to the years from 1945-1975 after the Second World War and is not directly related to catch. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Al Araujo vs. Jimenez (aired 7/26/57)

Man, the commentator had no idea who these guys were. He didn't even know if they were French or Spanish. I can tell you for a fact that Al Araujo was French. I thought he might have been doing a South American gimmick since he was using the same towel the Peruvians always did, but the Wrestling Heritage side lists him as Frenchman from Perpignan, and Bob ALPRA has a cool photo of his wrestler's license.  I have no idea who "Jimenez" was. If he ever appeared on television again it was under a different name. It may not have even been his ring name. You heard how confused the commentator was. I was hoping he'd win the bout so I could hear the ring announcer say his name, but Araujio was the winner. For a couple of days I was like a dog with a bone over this name, but there are a million random guys on French cards and we don't have a lot of match records from this era. 

I'm letting it go. I swear.

King Kong Taverne vs. Roger Delaporte (aired 7/26/57)

So, French catch had its own version of Mal Kirk. I thought this was a bit of a mess, to be honest. Delaporte was arguably the top heel in the country, which made Taverne the defacto baby face. But a guy like Taverne is hardly your typical baby face. The comedy at the beginning was all right , but the longer the match went, the clearer it was that while Taverne could move pretty well for a big guy, he was lost on offence. He looked like the kind of wrestler who grinds a guy down, but you can't exactly do that to a heel. So Delaporte started to attack Taverne instead. That got the desired reaction from the crowd, but it made the big guy look weak. The same problem happened in the Bence match. Bence thought he'd come to Paris and do the same heel act he did in every territory, but he didn't quite figure that the local star was a heel. I have no idea if Taverne played a heel in other matches. I'm assuming he did because of his look. If I'd been the matchmaker, I would have put him up against a different guy (maybe one of the young "beaus"), but it seems that they liked to match Delaporte with big guys. 

Jose Tarres vs. Karl von Chenok (aired 4/2/59)

I want to know if "Cabeza de Hierro", Jose Tarres, really had iron plates in his forehead. I'm guessing it was a scar from whatever accident he was in. There are so many stories about this guy. People say he once knocked a bull unconscious and that he could break a marble table with his head. Karl von Chenok was a German wrestler who was completely dedicated to the science behind the nerve hold. This was a completely minimalist bout. Tarres threw headbutts and von Chenok applied his nerve hold. They both rendered each other unconscious in back-to-back falls. The stage was set for Tarres to knock von Chenok out in the final fall, but the promoter had other ideas. This was completely unlike anything else we've seen in catch. I thought it was interesting that von Chenok bled on the same card that Debusne did. I don't know if this was booked to help set the tone for Humez' fight or if it was just a coincidence, but it wasn't your run-of-the-mill catch bout, that's for sure. It was different. That's cool. The second two falls weren't as good as the first, but hell, it was memorable. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Jose Tarres vs. Dr. Adolf Kaiser (aired 1/1/59)

Unfortunately, we don't have as many Tarres matches on tape as we thought, but I've been watching newsreel footage of him from Spain and I think we have a fair idea of how he worked. This match was almost identical to the von Chenok fight except that Kaiser was a more interesting opponent. It was a bit slow at times, but if you liked the von Chenok match then you'll enjoy this.

Frank Valois & Andre Bollet vs. Eddy Wiecz & "Monsieur Universe" Earl Maynard (aired 6/6/65)

When I saw "Monsieur Universe," I thought it might be the British wrestler, John Lee, who won the Mr. Universe amateur title in 1957, but it was actually Barbados bodybuilder, Earl Maynard. Maynard was a skinny, sickly kid who turned to bodybuilding as a way to improve his health. He was called up to service in the Royal Air Force and began wrestling while stationed in Cyprus. A British promoter, who was on holiday there, discovered Maynard. Maynard became popular in Europe during the 60s and eventually made his way to the States. He remained an active bodybuilding competitor during his wrestling career and was crowned Mr. Universe in 1964. Later, he got into films, starring in such classics as Black Belt Jones and Truck Turner. He was also in the Nick Nolte film, The Deep. The match? It stank. 

Roger Delaporte vs. "Oddjob" Togo (aired 5/23/65)

Togo came to the ring dressed as Oddjob. That was cool. He attacked Delaporte before the bell. I wasn't sure how Delaporte would react since Togo had no intention other than to play the heel. Delaporte rolled with it and played defacto face. The match was rubbish, but after the bout Togo threatened to throw his hat at Delaporte which was amusing. 

Le Petit Prince vs. Michael Falempin (aired 5/27/66)

Andre was introduced to the crowd before this match. Le Petit Prince was easily the best thing to come out of French catch in the 1960s. He was still a rookie here, still trying to put on some extra pounds. But what a breath of fresh air after those rubbish matches. The thing I love about the Prince is that he doesn't make superhero comebacks. He sells a beating and fights his way back. The more I watch of him, the more I'm convinced that he should be in the conversation for best light weight ever. 

[ohtani's jacket]

The mystery is solved. Thank you, Phil Lions.

[ohtani's jacket]

Georges Cohen vs. Daniel Boucard (aired 12/26/68)

Cohen was a true stylist. I don't know what his reputation will be like coming out of his project, but to me he's a guy I can rely on to deliver proper catch. This covered all the bases of a catch contest. It started off as an exhibition of the type of wrestling I signed on for in the first place. Then it disintegrated and became the kind of contest that drew people into the late 50s stuff. They may have overdone the forearm smash, but then again, can you really overdo the forearm smash? This had "draw" written all over it, but they tried to make it as a dramatic as possible. Right until the end, they were pushing for a result. This was a nice piece of catch. I dunno if people will appreciate it as much if they don't watch a bunch of crap before it, but to me this was the real deal.

Gilbert Leduc vs. Rocco Lamban (aired 10/30/58)

Rocco Lamban was Felix Lamban, the Spanish heavyweight. He was nicknamed "El Estrangulador" (the Strangler) because he used the same variation of the headlock that Dr. Adolf Kaiser employed. In Spanish, it was called "la corbata" (the tie.) This was a great contest. If it taught me anything it's that you don't fuck with Gilbert Leduc. Up until now, the image we've had of Leduc has been one of a wrestler and supreme technician. The guy who can do the toupie headspin better than anyone else. This match had footage of Leduc playing bridge (which Couderc would not stop talking about), but it also proved that Leduc could fight. And he did the best counter to Kaiser's move that you could possibly imagine, proving once again that Leduc is a badass.

Vassilios Mantopolous & Francis Louis vs. Billy Catanzaro & Gilbert Lemagouroux (aired 8/19/66)

This was much better than the last Catanzaro/Lemagouroux tag I watched. Instead of going straight for the comic heel spots, they gave young Francis Louis a working over, which made it all the more rewarding when Mantopolous made fools out of them. Not only that, but it had some comic heel spots I hadn't seen before like Catanzaro and Lemagouroux being tangled in the ropes at the same time and Mantopolous rolling both of them into balls. We all want serious, greatest wrestler ever candidate, Billy Catanzaro in every match, but this was his best stooge routine so far.

Rene Ben Chemoul & Walter Bordes vs. Anton Tejero & Antonio Montoro (aired 9/20/71)

Rene Ben Chemoul has been a disappointment so far, but this was a spirited performance from him. It's possible that his best stuff was tagging with Bordes. He worked a bunch of cool spots and was lively throughout. I didn't expect Tejero to be as mobile as he was, and Montoro's performance was much better than in his singles match. He was a stooge for the locals, so I don't want to draw too many conclusions, but at least he played the role with gusto.

Angelito vs. Albert Sanniez (aired 2/19/77)

This was joined in progress. Angelito isn't the greatest wrestler you'll ever discover, but at least we got to see the brilliance of Albert Sanniez in one more match.

Iska Israel vs. Jean Corne (aired 1/15/65)

These guys were really great. It was like watching the French version of Steve Grey vs. Jon Cortez. Another match you should watch when you feel like you've exhausted the supply of great catch wrestling. I was surprised by how aggressive Corne was in this match. At first I thought it was to put over Israel, but it paid dividends in the end. 

 

[ohtani's jacket]

Andre Drapp & Bernard Vignal vs. Rocco Lamban & Dr. Adolf Kaiser (aired 4/21/61)

Well, this was interesting. Felix Lamban tagging with Dr. Adolf Kaiser. You wonder if they sat in the hotel lobby, drinking cognac while discussing the finer points of how to strangle a man. They formed quite the pair, actually. You had the wimpy, effeminate Kaiser, who cowered with every blow, and the tough guy Lamban. The match wasn't as fun as I was hoping -- their mutual stranglehold wasn't as big a focus as you'd expect -- but I've seen worse.

Henri Le Mao vs. Thadee Kojielski (aired 4/17/66)

Henri Le Mao is a joy to watch. With his moustache and receding hairline, he almost reminds me of a French Fujiwara. As with a lot of these new finds, we don't have enough footage of him, since surprisingly there is more complete footage from '57-59 than the 60s. But we get this gem. Kojielski was a young Polish wrestler, as best as I can tell. He was a nice dance partner, but this was the Le Mao show.

Roger Guettier vs. Cowboy Jack Bence (aired 9/15/60)

Bence came back to France every year or so in the early 60s. It would be nice if we had more footage of him. He could be catch's very own version of a Stan Hansen. This match had a terrible crowd. The ring was littered with trash before the wrestlers came out. The wrestlers, and the ref, had to spend time clearing it of garbage before they could start. They spent the entire match being pelted with trash. At first, I thought it was some kind of drunk, unruly crowd. Then I realized there was a bunch of snot nosed kids at ringside throwing things at the wrestlers. God knows why no one did anything about it. Eventually, someone must have complained because a police officer came to ringside (looking remarkably like Officer Crabtree from 'Allo 'Allo.) He was pretty useless, and in the end we got a slow match that was difficult to follow because of the kids. There were some exciting tumbles to the outside, but I was kind of hoping that the wrestlers would scare the living shit out of the kids. A wide shot at the end showed the ring in a sea of trash. This match will henceforth be known as the "trash match."

[ohtani's jacket]

This week's Segunda Caida batch:

Cheri Bibi vs. Andre Chauveau (aired 8/2/57)

Andre Chauveau was an older wrestler from the Lino Ventura era (I call it that, but in reality Ventura only wrestled for a few years before a broken leg ended his career.) He reminded me a bit of Ken Joyce, and other British wrestlers who liked to use comedy in their matches. Bibi is the type of wrestler who's only good when he's moving forward and striking people. Even though Bibi was aggressive here, the best thing about the bout was Chauveau's reaction to losing. Later on, he became a referee, or an "arbitre" as the French like to call them. Which, I believe, is the only time we'll see him again. The real question is, does Bibi have a good match in the footage?

Michel Chaisne vs. Jo Labat (aired 8/2/57)

I swear they must have been giving Chaisne a push in '57. He was on TV a lot. He actually looked the goods here. I don't know who was promoting this match, but letting him work a clean bout did wonders for his rep (in my eyes at least.) This followed the typical pattern of a stalemate that leads to frustration. It wasn't the hottest version that I can remember, but Chaisne came across strong in the finish. Next up, he fights Leduc, but it's the clipped match. It would be nice to think he was on TV a few times in the lead up to the feature match with Leduc, but I guess catch doesn't work like that.

Moise Besch vs. Jo Benardo (aired 8/8/57)

I'm pretty sure I've watched this already, but I might as well watch it in context. Both of these guys have huge heads. I thought it was the camera playing tricks, but everyone else's head is normal-sized. There's a fair amount of niggle in this bout and it whets the appetite for the match that follows.

Jacques Couderc vs. Ami Sola (aired 8/8/57)

Fabulous match. Couderc was amazing. I've watched a few Ami Sola matches now, and I swear I couldn't recognize him before this bout. I won't forget his face again. Couderc was just brilliant. It felt like you were watching some kind of eccentric catch genius. I haven't felt this way about a worker since the first time I saw Mocho Cota. In many ways, this bout reminded me of Mocho Cota vs. Americo Rocca with Sola making a pretty good Rocca. I loved how they blended all of the elements of catch together. I especially loved the comedy spot where Sola performed his move on the ref by mistake. That was one of the best comedy spots I've seen in catch. Naturally, we don't see Couderc again, but this is a match that I'll go back to again and again when shitty catch gets me down. 

 

[ohtani's jacket]

Georges Kasbarian vs. Bruno Rocco (aired 9/5/65)

Georges Kasbarian was a big man. He was a Frenchman. I don't know much about Rocco except that the commentator says he's Italian and he has a sour looking face. There's two ways of looking at a match like this. You either think it's slow with little action, or you appreciate that they did better than most heavyweights. The thing I appreciate about it is that at least the matchmaker gave them an honest 20 minutes. 

Rene Asselin vs. Moise Besch (aired 8/16/58)

I like these gritty midcard matches. They may not feature the best wrestlers or the best wrestling, but they set the tone for the main event to follow. Besch looks like a French yokel when he flails about. He goes from kissing babies at the start to biting his opponent and striking him in the groin. Asselin looks like a good worker, and I'm sure he had a few barn burners in his career, but we won't be seeing him again. 

Nikolai Zigulinoff vs. Robert Gastel (aired 10/30/58)

Nikolai Zigulinoff was a wild man whose gimmick was that he was a Bulgarian shepherd. I found this cool tidbit about him from the New Zealand Sports Digest (June 1963):

Quote

 

Later, a local Bulgarian provided a verbal bridge for me to converse with "The Hangman," who snipped open a brief case initialed "N.Z." (for Nikolai Zigulinoff), trotted out a 12-page book on himself, exquisitely written in French .(separate edition in English) and illustrated. by a French artist with line drawings.

It traced the story of Nikolai, from his birth in the sheep town of Ternova, in the Bulgarian highlands, to the starry-eyed day he got the message from Bulgarian wrestling hero and world traveller Dan Koloff that there's more offering in life than the Bulgarian hills and the flocks of sheep. But on the title page Nikolai called himself ˜The Bulgarian Shepherd," and by his noddings and gruntings he made it clear that in his heart this was preferable to "The Gorilla," "The Abominable Snowman," or any of the other public images.

The book cleared up a few points. The dressing-gown skin, for instance, wasn't any old skin at all. As a. young shepherd Nikolai had a ram that won all the prizes for fighting. That ram won all his bouts, right to the end; but after a final encounter against shocking odds the ram nuzzled up to its master and died on his bosom. His hide is the one covering Nikolai as he pads to the ring.

There was also some folk lore from the mountains. A thrilling tale of a great stone called the "Devil's Rock," which lured travelers to their deaths and was suspected of being responsible for a drought which assailed the land.

After a community prayer meeting the massive young Nikolai went to the rock, wrapped his arms round it, flexed his great legs for leverage, and sent the bad-luck omen tilting and then crashing down the hillside. The rain which followed is remembered to this day. Well, that's what it said...

Nikolai was proud of the book. But it left some gaps. Through the interpreter, he passed back the word that he was not married. Had he ever considered this means of subduing a raucous female fan? - and had he ever come close to marrying? For the first time in the interview, "The Hangman" laughed. The interpreter passed on the reply: "He leaves it to you - different towns, different women, you know how it is."

 

More interesting than the match, I can tell you that much. You do get to see footage of him dining at a restaurant with one of those women, though. And appreciating the musicians playing for him at his table. 

Paul Villars vs. Juan Botana (aired 1/1/59)

I quite like Paul Villars. I feel he's the most underrated of the heel sect we've seen thus far. Once he starts cheating, the crowd is molten. He's not over the top with his theatrics but he knows how to piss off a crowd. Botana is a tough Spaniard whom we don't see again. Actually, I think Bob ALPRA shared a clip of him wrestling Jo Marconville, but that's it. 

[El-P]

On 4/29/2020 at 6:20 AM, ohtani's jacket said:

* Andre trained at 22 rue de Martyrs, which was close to L'Elysee Montmartre, the venue Delaporte owned, and la Mutualite, a smaller venue often used by Lageat and Siry. In other words, right in the middle of Paris' wrestling scene. The 22 rue de Martyrs was a place where all aspiring wrestlers wanted to be trained. It also served as an office for Lageat and Siry. 

Wow, I had no idea l'Elysee Montmartre was owned by Delaporte. I knew it was the place where old pro-wrestling took place though. It became a super famous concert place later on, which burned down in the early 2010's. It reopened a few years ago. Some really good memories here.

On 4/29/2020 at 6:20 AM, ohtani's jacket said:

* The training facilities, as well as the L'Elysee Montmarte, were in in a neighborhood called Pigalle. This was a red-light area with bars, clubs, cabarets and adult shows, including the famous Moulin Rouge. Andre apparently became a bodyguard for some of the prostitutes. 

It still is. The most famous one. Although it became pretty gentrified in the 00's. The idea of bumping into young Andre doing bodyguard work for the Pigalle hookers kinda blows my mind.

I really need to read this book.

[Matt D]

I'm pretty deep in. Delaporte snuck his way back into the book unexpectedly because he did the announcing for WM3.

[Phil Schneider]

OJ what would you list as your absolute must sees from this footage? I think Sola vs. Courdec makes that bar, but I know you were less high on Tony Oliver vs. Bert Royal then we were.

[ohtani's jacket]

I liked Royal vs. Oliver. I just had some reservations about it as a title match, but then again, I'm not sure what title matches were meant to look like at the time. I would still recommend it.

My focus has really been on the workers, so I would recommend the best Leduc, Drapp, Sanniez, and Saulnier matches at this stage. And all of the stuff with Le Petit Prince vs. Noced. Maybe Delaporte at his best. I can't think of too many great matches without going through my posts, but the overall quality has been incredibly high. Especially the stuff from '57. The week-to-week quality of the '57 matches is higher than anything I can remember seeing prior to the early 90s. It helps that they're setting up a camera and taping a house show, but the quality of those 50s Paris shows is something I don't think you see again until Tokyo in the late 80s/early 90s. 

I will start keeping track of the matches I liked. Matt says there's a good Rene Ben Chemoul match coming up, which is something I have been waiting to see. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Michel Saulnier vs. Jo Marconville (aired 12/11/59)

This was a good, solid bout. It was one of those bouts that threatened to get out of hand at times, but since neither guy was a heel they settled back down. Saulnier had only been a pro for a few years at this point after he missed out on '56 Olympics. He wasn't the maestro he would become ten years in, but he was a good worker. The only problem I had with this was the length. That's a funny thing to complain about given how long most of the non-JIP stuff runs, but this needed a few more minutes to really leave an impression.

Jean Rabut vs. Vento Castella (aired 1/22/60)

This was already available, but I wanted to nail down who Castella was. Turns out he was a Spanish wrestler who went on to have success in England and Mexico. He actually held the NWA World Welterweight title for a brief time, which is more impressive than it sounds considering he ended Karloff Lagarde's 590 day run as champion. The commentator refers to him as a 19 year-old rookie from a famous Valencia wrestling school. This was JIP, so all of this is just a footnote, but at least we have our man.

Jacky Corn vs. Ted Lamar (aired 8/23/58)

This was a long bout, but both wrestlers were committed to what they were doing. I kept expecting it to get nasty since Corn was involved, but the uppercuts weren't flash triggers here. Instead of beating the shit out of his opponent, Corn was more interested in flashy looking pin attempts. Not a bad match, but nothing that furthered my opinion of Jacky Corn.

Vassilios Mantopolous vs. Roberto Ricetti (aired 6/26/59)

This was an early Mantopolous match. I'm not sure if it was a title match, but it was definitely set up as some sort of challenge. The interesting thing about the bout was that it was completely devoid of the lightweight stylings that we've come to know from Mantopolous in the 60s footage. That makes me wonder if the tricks Mantopolous picked up were things he learned while wrestling in the UK. It also makes me wonder how prevalent that style was in the 50s. Wherever he learned his art from, this was definitely the most straight up wrestling match I've seen Mantopolous work. Ricetti was an Italian who followed a similar path as Mantopolous, touring the UK in the late 50s and early 60s as a middleweight.

Le Bourreau de Bethune vs. Gilbert Leduc (aired 2/5/59)

This was already in circulation, but I hadn't seen it in years and back then I didn't have a good grasp of who Leduc was. I thought the opening of this was brilliant. Le Bourreau de Bethune was a hell of a lot better than most guys who done a mask. It was like watching Villano III compared to most of the masked wrestlers I've seen so far. Leduc was fantastic as well. Naturally, it couldn't last. I was kind of hoping that Le Bourreau de Bethune would bloody Leduc, but they did some sort of injury angle where Leduc either had an abdominal issue or some broken ribs. The match screamed to a grinding halt, but it was surreal to see Leduc laid out like that, and a testament to how big a player Le Bourreau de Bethune was during the height of catch's popularity. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Michel Chaisne vs. Gilbert Leduc (aired 9/20/57)

I was disappointed we didn't get all of this given how much TV time they've given Chaisne. It was impossible to gauge how good the match was from the little that aired. It was billed as the World Light Heavyweight champion vs. the French Mid-Heavyweight champion, but I'm not sure if either man held a title at the time. I wonder what happened to the master tape of this. The ITV vaults hold the master tapes of the wrestling, but the INA must only have the broadcast tapes. 

Rene Ben Chemoul vs. Joachim La Barba (aired 9/20/57)

It's no secret that I've been disappointed by Ben Chemoul so far. Everyone talks him up as the guy, the way they used to talk Saint up as the guy. I think Jetlag hit the nail on the head when he described Ben Chemoul as more of a Vic Faulkner type (another guy who infuriated me with his approach to wrestling.) This wasn't a bad match, but it lacked the toughness we've seen from the rest of 50s catch. I can see why a generation of fans were entertained by Ben Chemoul, but I haven't been convinced by him on the mat. Considering how hard they push the Greco-Roman origins of catch, and the way they try to sell catch as the legit professional branch of amateur Greco-Roman, you'd think Ben Chemoul would show a bit more grit on the mat. La Barba seemed like a special talent heading into this bout, but he couldn't stamp his personality on the match and ended going along for the ride. I bet that happened to a lot of people in Ben Chemoul's bouts. Maybe they liked it. Perhaps it was an easy night. In any case, it didn't click for me.

Guy Robin vs. Eric Taylor (aired 10/4/57)

This was a really early Eric Taylor match. In fact, he'd only made his debut on British TV the month before. I thought it was interesting that he fought Guy Robin just as Al Hayes and the Fisher brothers had. I wonder if there was a reason why Robin fought the British lads. Perhaps his English was good. I was excited when I learned that we had a Taylor match. Taylor is one of those guys that Walton used to talk about ALL the time. He was a wrestler's wrestler, and one of the stars of the early 60s. He quit Joint Promotions in the mid-60s and began working for the independent promoters, but he sure as hell left an impression on Walton. I thought he was good. I'm sure he was even better in the 60s, but for a young talent he did a stand-up job. Robin's not really the type to chew the scenery so he gave Taylor enough chance to shine. The match seemed to run a bit short, though, as the commentator had to bullshit his way through the beginning of the next match which was a guy who doing a Butch Cassidy gimmick against a guy named Monsieur X, whom the commentator thought was a gorgeous viking. Oh, and that damn martian was at ringside.

One more match for your troubles:

Lino Di Santo vs. The Big Chief (aired 10/15/59)

The Big Chief had a huge headdress and made a spectacular entrance. He was a huge, muscular guy who worked a brutal, direct style. I have no idea who he was. We're familiar with Lino Di Santo. His job was to get the shit beaten out of him, and get the shit beaten out of him he did. The doctor was checking on him when The Big Chief grew impatient and began stomping the shit out of the injured Di Santo. The ref threw him out, and the Chief went apeshit. Kaiser and Co. had nothing on this guy. He was a fuckin' loose cannon. He chased a fan into the crowd before being escorted to the back. I've got to be honest, it was better than most matches with fake Native Americans. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Changing tack here and focusing on the 80s stuff.

Walter Bordes vs. Zarak (aired 3/1/80)

Bordes brought a strap to the ring, and for a second I thought we'd be getting a strap match, but it was a challenge that Zarak keep refusing, apparently. This was a solid bout, but formulaic. It was one of those bouts where the babyface wants to go after the heel, but the ref keeps stopping him. The ref and the babyface start to beef, and the worse it gets, the easier it is for the heel to cheat. It all comes to a head, and the ref screws over the babyface. From what I've seen, the refs get involved far too much in 80s catch. I wanted to see Zarak and Bordes take the gloves off, but the ref spoiled it. The highlight of the bout was a big lucha style bump into the second or third row. Afterward, Bordes had his strap ready for Zarak to accept the challenge. I'd like to think that match happened. I'd also like to think that Bordes was still one of the best wrestlers in Europe if he can cut through the bullshit.

Jo Gonzales & Pedro Gomez vs. Bruno Asquini & Guy Mercier (aired 8/4/80)

I'm pretty sure Michel Saulnier was the ref here, and once again, too involved. He took so many bumps you'd think he wanted to one of the participants. This was supposed to be a bit of everything like those great Petit Prince vs. Noced tags from the 70s, but there weren't any outstanding performances. Gonzales was the best of the bunch, but he didn't bring much depth to his role. There was one exaggerated sell and that was about it. If everyone had been on their game, I'm sure this would have been electrifying, but I found it boring. 

[Phil Lions]

Yay! My account finally went through. I had been stuck on the "awaiting approval" stage for some time. Thanks!

On 5/14/2020 at 3:36 PM, ohtani's jacket said:

Lino Di Santo vs. The Big Chief (aired 10/15/59)

The Big Chief had a huge headdress and made a spectacular entrance. He was a huge, muscular guy who worked a brutal, direct style. I have no idea who he was. We're familiar with Lino Di Santo. His job was to get the shit beaten out of him, and get the shit beaten out of him he did. The doctor was checking on him when The Big Chief grew impatient and began stomping the shit out of the injured Di Santo. The ref threw him out, and the Chief went apeshit. Kaiser and Co. had nothing on this guy. He was a fuckin' loose cannon. He chased a fan into the crowd before being escorted to the back. I've got to be honest, it was better than most matches with fake Native Americans.  

It's been a good year or two since I've seen this one, but I remember being quite impressed with Le Big Chief too. In fact, I would even go as far as to call him one of my favorites from the catch stuff that I've seen. Not because he was the best wrestler or anything, but because he had a great presence and an aura of danger about him. Also, there was this one moment where Di Santo flipped him over the top rope, which was quite impressive for a guy of Chief's size. Didn't expect him to try a flying body press either. No idea who Le Big Chief was, but wish there was more footage of him.

On 5/7/2020 at 2:07 PM, ohtani's jacket said:

Nikolai Zigulinoff vs. Robert Gastel (aired 10/30/58)

Nikolai Zigulinoff was a wild man whose gimmick was that he was a Bulgarian shepherd. I found this cool tidbit about him from the New Zealand Sports Digest (June 1963):

More interesting than the match, I can tell you that much. You do get to see footage of him dining at a restaurant with one of those women, though. And appreciating the musicians playing for him at his table.

Admittedly, I am biased since Zigulinoff is one my favorite characters from that era in European wrestling, but I quite enjoyed this one. In terms of actual wrestling it wasn't any good, but I thought it was some good comedy, especially the stuff with Zigulinoff knocking Gastel on the top of his head and Gastel tying up Zigulinoff's hair in the ropes.

On 4/29/2020 at 4:35 PM, ohtani's jacket said:

Jose Tarres vs. Karl von Chenok (aired 4/2/59)

I want to know if "Cabeza de Hierro", Jose Tarres, really had iron plates in his forehead. I'm guessing it was a scar from whatever accident he was in. There are so many stories about this guy. People say he once knocked a bull unconscious and that he could break a marble table with his head. Karl von Chenok was a German wrestler who was completely dedicated to the science behind the nerve hold. This was a completely minimalist bout. Tarres threw headbutts and von Chenok applied his nerve hold. They both rendered each other unconscious in back-to-back falls. The stage was set for Tarres to knock von Chenok out in the final fall, but the promoter had other ideas. This was completely unlike anything else we've seen in catch. I thought it was interesting that von Chenok bled on the same card that Debusne did. I don't know if this was booked to help set the tone for Humez' fight or if it was just a coincidence, but it wasn't your run-of-the-mill catch bout, that's for sure. It was different. That's cool. The second two falls weren't as good as the first, but hell, it was memorable. 

Yeah, Tarres was all about the headbutts and knocking people out with them. So much so that in addition to being known as "Cabeza de Hierro" (Iron Head), in Spain he was also known as and sometimes billed as "El Noqueador" (the Knockouter or something along those lines). That worked quite well for him since usually in Spain, as best as I can tell, the matches were generally shorter and more action-packed so Tarres constantly trying to knock people out with his "cabezazos" fit the Spanish style quite well. That's probably part of the reason why he was such a big star in his home country. The biggest one for quite a few years, in fact.

One final thought. I recently watched the April 6th 1968 six-man tag with Cheri Bibi, Eric Husberg & Jo Gonzalez vs. Gilbert Leduc, Guy Mercier & Le Batman. What an interesting piece of business that match was. Tons of tags. In and out, in and out. Constantly. The first half of the match, and most of it really, was almost all babyface shine. Almost too much so. Then you have Batman, who completely disappeared for half of the match, which was odd, coming back to win the whole thing for his team. It wasn't one of those matches that has a lot of actual wrestling in it or much of a structure to it, but it was pretty faced-paced and fun. And you had a super hot crowd that was eating it all up. This kind of felt like a French house show main event, that's meant to send the crowd home happy, broadcast on TV.

[ohtani's jacket]

Phi Lions, it's an honour.

Gerard Herve & Tony LaMotta vs. The Golden Falcons (aired 8/11/80)

Gerard Herve was a young Flesh Gordon. He was pretty good considering he'd go on to become one of the worst workers in history. I have no idea who the Golden Falcons were. They worked a generic masked man style, which I guess they had to so no-one suspected who they were. I didn't think much of their work. The best parts of the match where when Herve and LaMotta were in control. LaMotta reminded me of Bert Royal and did some neat stuff. The trouble with these 80s tags is that they're too long. The wear down sections are boring and the refs get involved too often. If they'd made this a one fall, twenty minute bout, it would have been much tighter. 

Le Petit Prince & Claude Rocca vs. Bob Remy & Anton Tejero (aired 8/18/80)

This was the best 80s match so far. When I saw Anton Tejero's name in the match listings, I thought there was no way he could still go. Then when I saw him during the intros, I thought, "Jesus, he looks like Orig Williams." But he was really good. Remy, too. They showed the value of a good rudo team in these lengthy French tags. The match would have been better if we'd seen some vintage Prince FIP, but there was enough going on to make up for it. The ref was a pain in the arse again, but I guess I'll have to get used to him being the 5th man in the ring. I did like the second aiding and assisting the Prince with a cigarette still in his mouth. But there are wilder and better matches from the 70s. 

[Phil Lions]

4 hours ago, ohtani's jacket said:

Gerard Herve & Tony LaMotta vs. The Golden Falcons (aired 8/11/80 or 8/25/80)

Gerard Herve was a young Flesh Gordon. He was pretty good considering he'd go on to become one of the worst workers in history. I have no idea who the Golden Falcons were. They worked a generic masked man style, which I guess they had to so no-one suspected who they were. I didn't think much of their work. The best parts of the match where when Herve and LaMotta were in control. LaMotta reminded me of Bert Royal and did some neat stuff. The trouble with these 80s tags is that they're too long. The wear down sections are boring and the refs get involved too often. If they'd made this a one fall, twenty minute bout, it would have been much tighter.

August 11 is the correct date. August 25 is the Finlay tag.

I'm not sure if The Golden Falcons in 1980 were the same guys as the Golden Falcons who show up in the French catch TV footage in 1971 against Ben Chemoul and Bordes, but it was the same gimmick at least. They also worked in Greece in 1969 and probably elsewhere in Europe too around that time. They were billed as a tag team from South America. They had the same look/gimmick as Halcon de Oro I and Halcon de Oro II, who wrestled in Mexico in 1968. Again, I'm not sure if it was the same guys or not, but I would assume so. Especially the 1969-1971 team in Europe.

Here's a promo photo of The Golden Falcons and some shots of them in action in Greece in 1969:

[ohtani's jacket]

Interesting. I assumed they were a couple of regulars just like the British wrestlers who donned masks, but they definitely look like Halcon de Oro I & II. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Jacky Richard & Albert Sanniez vs. Jean Corne & Rene Cabellec (aired 9/8/80)

This was my kind of match. It was like a French version of a maestros tag. I can see people being frustrated by the layout here. Neither team was trying hard to win, and the match didn't build toward any sort of climax. Instead, what we got was great exchange after another. Roger Delaporte ran a tight ship and stayed the fuck out of the way, which surprised me. He operated like a French version of Max Ward. He was biased towards the baby faces and didn't let the heels get away with anything, presumably because of the other refs in the promotion who got in the baby faces' way and cost them matches. In that sense, I suppose he was still one of the stars of the show. The guy who impressed me here was Corne. I thought he was sensational. In fact, I thought he was head and shoulders above anyone in the 80s footage so far. The match ended in a draw, and they did a finish that Joint Promotions used to use where the ref decides the winner. Of course, Delaporte raised the faces' hands. He seemed to like this finish, but judging by the matches that follow, he may have overused it a tad.

Guy Mercier vs. Jack de Lassartesse (aired 10/5/81)

This was a typical Lassartesse match. Some of them are good, some of them are bad. This one was bad. He spent the first half of the match dominating with some pretty lacklustre offence. I'm not sure if it looked bad because Lassartesse was uninspired or Mercier wasn't selling it well, but I've seen enough matches where Lassartesse is compelling on offense to know that this was lousy. Lassartesse dominating for such a long stretch didn't really help. I thought the match would have better served with a back and forth struggle. Mercier might not be the best wrestler we've seen in this footage. He's kind of a Leduc clone without the presence and aura. But he barely got a look in on offense and he was neutered by the match layout. The match went to a draw, and Delaporte made the ridiculous decision to award the match to Mercier despite Lassartesse being miles ahead on points. This match was just a waste of time. I love Lassartesse, so it's disappointing when he doesn't deliver.

Jacky Richard & Guy Renault vs. Jean Corne & Rene Cabellec (aired 10/12/81)

This was in circulation already, but what a brilliant match. This was the first match to blend 80s maestro action with a dramatic match structure and deliver an honest to goodness classic. The way they achieved this is that the heels scored an early pinfall, then they worked an extremely long second fall that took up the majority of the bout. So you had all these great maestro exchanges, but everyone was aware of the stakes. Corne and Cabellec have definitely been the best thing about this 80s footage. Corne was sensational again, but Cabellec also showed plenty of fire. The crowd hung on every comeback that Corne and Cabellec made, and even though the final stanza was short, the action was fantastic. 

Ranking the matches so far:

1. Jacky Richard & Guy Renault vs. Jean Corne & Rene Cabellec (aired 10/12/81)
2. Jacky Richard & Albert Sanniez vs. Jean Corne & Rene Cabellec (aired 9/8/80)
3. Le Petit Prince & Claude Rocca vs. Bob Remy & Anton Tejero (aired 8/18/80)

And, finally, a tribute to Corne:

 

[ohtani's jacket]

Le Petit Prince & Gerard Bouvet vs. Anton Tejero & Albert Sanniez (aired 7/24/82)

French wrestling may have been going down the tubes at this point, but the one thing it could still do well was a tag match. If you look at the cards from this era, you'll see a series of lousy main events, but there's always one tag match on every show that carries on the traditions of French catch. This was another of those matches. It was full of classic exchanges that were just as delightful as the era that spawned them. Everything about this match was a throwback even the embrace between Couderc and the Prince and the fans swarming the Prince for an autograph. The bout was over in two falls, which meant it was never going to compete with the likes of the last bout on tape, but it still invoked a sense of nostalgia. 

Zarak vs. Mammoth Siki (aired 8/28/82)
Golden Eagle vs. Remy Bayle (aired 8/28/82)

For some reason, there isn't a lot of 80s footage in the archive. I guess the INA cared as much about preserving 80s catch as the people did watching it. These matches are ordinary, but they achieved what they set out to do. You can't hold it against them that they're not hidden gems. The 80s stockpile is tiny. and unless there were collectors taping everything off TV, this is as close a window we're getting into how the final years unfolded. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Jacky Corn vs. Rafael Blasco (aired 11/29/57)

This was from a venue I hadn't seen before, Le cynodrome de Courbevoie, which I believe was a greyhound trace track up until 1951. I don't know if Rafael Blasco wrestled this way all the time, but if he did it was an exciting style. He absolutely pummeled Corn. I was surprised because usually it's Corn dishing it out. I thought for sure that Corn was taking the punishment because he was getting the win, so the finish was a bit of a shock. 

Liano Pellacani vs. Black Salem (aired 11/29/57)

Black Salem was billed from Ethiopia and that's about all I know about him. He had a similar physique to someone like Masambula as opposed to the hulks we've seen like Mammouth Siki, Jimmy Dula and Earl Maynard. It looked like he might have had some cool leg scissors spots. Pellacani was brilliant here. He was every bit as good as Delaporte at working the crowd. The difference was that it was a nastier, meaner reaction. There were fans who actually wanted to attack him. I was surprised that he kept his cool when he had his head draped on the apron and a fan struck him across the throat. I'm sure there's been a fair few wrestlers who would have gone apeshit if a fan did that. It's a shame that Pellacani only appears once more on tape (aside from one appearance where he's introduced before a bout.) He's definitely been one of the highlights of the '57 footage. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Daniel Schmid & Remy Bayle vs. Paco Ramirez & Gilbert Wherle (aired 7/1/83)

Daniel Schmid was a big boy, but he could go. If the rest of his matches are like this, I think we might have a cult favourite on our hands. Ramirez was a Spanish worker who spent a lot of time in Mexico. He was a stylist, but wasn't able to stamp his mark on this bout. I hesitate to say anything bad about him because he died of cancer in '84. Wherle's biggest claim to fame is that he trained with Andre and Le Petit Prince. He didn't show me much, but he did have a decent forearm contest with Bayle. I wanna see if Schmid is always this fun.

 Eliot Frederico & Kato Bruce Lee vs. Flesh Gordon & Walter Bordes (aired 7/9/83)

Herve is back again, but this time as Flesh Gordon. I was interested in the backstory behind this. Apparently, Jean Corne brought Herve into the business in the mid-70s. Herve says he was part of the Celts, so perhaps he replaced Falempin as Corne's tag partner. According to Herve, he didn't like the fact that wrestlers wore underpants and idiotic robes. He had a better idea and started fashioning a gimmick for himself based on the Flash Gordon movie. Now you'd think a gimmick patterned after Flash Gordon would be pretty spectacular. After all, it's Flash, ah ah, King of the Impossible. Herve wasn't bad. He was apparently influenced by lucha after a trip to Mexico, and he comes across as a decent technico. It's patently obvious that the Eurosport shit that come later was not the same idealist that we see here. But you can see that he's not as good as an aging Bordes let alone the phenom that he'd need to be to really be a draw. I was surprised by how much Bordes resembled Ben Chemoul in this match. It was almost like he had adopted his former partner's role. There was some fun stuff from the Gordon/Bordes team, but their opponents were weak. 

Guy Mercier & Marcel Montreal vs. Fred Magnier & Yasu Fuji (aired 7/30/83)

It's been an age since I've seen a Yasu Fuji match, and I hope it's an age before I have to see another one. This wasn't as bad as I was dreading. The file was 54 minutes long so I had this horrific notion that this was some kind of broadway match, but the first half of the file was a kind of French improv show like Who's Line Is It Anyway? and a few French commercials like a commercial for women's underwear that gives you a shapely bottom. This had a lot of clobbering. The kind of shit you'd expect from a heavyweight like Fuji. But it also had three old-school catcheurs in Mercier, Montreal and Magnier, so it wasn't all bad. I mean right across the channel they were headlining with Big Daddy tags. This was at least better than a British main event. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Le Primitif vs. Eliot Frederico (aired 7/18/84)

This was the strangest thing I've seen in catch. It was a guy in a monkey suit pretending to be a primitive. He had a group of African tribesmen at ringside beating a drum and spurring him on. They jumped up and down whenever he was winning, and threatened to shoot people with bows and arrows when he wasn't. The fucked up thing about it is that we have about half a dozen of this guy's matches on tape.