History of Pro Wrestling #24 (August-October 1957)

[Loss]

History of Pro Wrestling #24 (04:05:00)
Matches from August-October 1957

• LOU THESZ vs EDOUARD CARPENTIER (08/16/1957; NWA Chicago; 00:54:48)
  Carpentier wins the NWA title! Thesz wasn’t crazy about Carpentier as a wrestler, but did the honors as a favor for Montreal promoter Eddie Quinn, whom he liked very much. However, Quinn and Carpentier had a problem with the $25,000 bond that the NWA champ was expected to post at that time and the title change was ultimately ignored. That didn’t stop Carpentier from debuting in other territories in the months ahead with an alternate version of the title, which ended up creating alternate lineages of the World Title in California and what would later become Verne Gagne’s AWA. Historic match!

• VERNE GAGNE & WILBUR SNYDER vs CRUSHER LISOWSKI & STAN LISOWSKI (09/13/1957; NWA Chicago; 00:44:08)

• GILBERT LEDUC vs MICHEL CHAISNE (09/20/1957; French Catch; 00:06:06)

• RENE BEN CHEMOUL vs JOAQUIM LA BARBA (09/20/1957; French Catch; 00:23:59)

• GUY ROBIN vs ERIC TAYLOR (10/04/1957; French Catch; 00:26:38)
  Segunda Caida reviews of the above three matches.
  
  ohtani’s jacket comments at Pro Wrestling Only: “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.”

• LOU THESZ vs RIKIDOZAN (10/07/1957; JWA World Championship Series; 01:04:38)
  One of the biggest matches in the history of Japan, as 30,000 fans watched the two wrestle to a 61-minute (yes, 61) at Korakuen Stadium. The match drew a monster 87.0 television rating, meaning 87% of all homes in Japan watched the match. It was the first-ever NWA title match in Japan, one in which Thesz proposed that he drop the title for a short period to really boost business. However, NWA promoters were already uneasy about the champ leaving the country, so the idea of dropping it was out of the question.

• LUTHER LINDSAY vs FRED ATKINS (10/11/1957; NWA Upstate; 00:20:28)
  Lindsay holds the distinction of being the first African American wrestler to challenge for the NWA World Title. He was also a major star in Portland, the Carolinas, Texas and many other territories. Lou Thesz heavily praised Lindsay’s wrestling ability, and notably, Lindsay took Stu Hart in a shoot, which earned Stu’s respect. According to Heath McCoy’s Pain and Passion: The History of Stampede Wrestling, Stu carried a photo of Lindsay in his wallet for the rest of his life. Despite a prolific career, this 20-minute draw is the only footage of Lindsay that we have on tape, so it’s a major find!

• LOU THESZ vs RIKIDOZAN (10/13/1957; JWA World Championship Series; 00:24:43)
  The rematch only 6 days later draws 27,000 fans to Ohgi-Machi Pool Stadium in Osaka. Each wrestler takes a fall.