These are our shorter Biographical portraits which we would like to extend if you can provide information or memories.
Frank Casey
Frank Casey made it into the last decade of the Wrestling Heritage years and is still remembered by fans of the 1980s. We came across him in 1980, working for All Star Promotions with opponents that included Chic Cullen, Al Miquet, Dave Finlay and Jackie Robinson. He was late coming into the wrestling business, having been born in Liverpool in 1950.
Frank (it was an adopted ring name) was, by his own admission, an entertainer far and above being a wrestler.1990s fans remember him as the British Bushwhacker, an entertaining character who gave fans something to smile about on the way home. He would enter the ring dressed in shop bought army gear and carrying a rubber chicken; we told you this man was no Jack Dempsey.
David Mantell has told us Frank joined the original Bushwhackers in triple tag matches when they came to Britain in 2001. On other occasions Frank would pull on a mask as The Mummy (not to be confused with Alan Turner) or The Convict, complete with handcuffs and arrows on his costume.
Not one of the great technical wrestlers certainly but we reckon anyone who managed to work in the business into the Twenty-first century deserves our respect. When not wrestling Frank could also be seen regularly in the ring as a referee.
Mick Casey
“ A Goliath of a Man” proclaimed the posters. Irish heavyweight wrestler from Sneem in County Kerry was one of the famous rowing and fighting family active in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Mick Casey was trained by brother Paddy and began wrestling in Britain in 1943. Prior to that he (and his brothers) had gained success in other sports, notably rowing. Mick and his brothers Steve, Tommy and Paddy won the All England rowing championships and were favourites to win a rowing medal in the Berlin Olympics until prevented from taking part due to Steve, Tommy and Paddy having wrestled professionally.
Paddy Casey
One of the famous fighting Casey clan from Sneem in Ireland Paddy was Irish heavyweight champion and wrestled in Britain during the 1930s until an injury to his back enforced premature retirement and cancellation of his plans to join brother Steve in the USA. Paddy and his brothers Steve, Tommy and Mick won the All England rowing championships and were favourites to win a rowing medal in the Berlin Olympics until prevented from taking part due to having wrestled professionally. After retiring from wrestling Paddy took up club management in London. Paddy Casey, the last of the seven brothers, died in February 2002.s to turn professional boxer. Tom Casey died in May, 1985.
Steve “Crusher” Casey
The Casey family of Sneem were known as the toughest family on earth. They excelled in rowing, boxing, tug of war and wrestling. Steve Crusher Casey is probably the most famous of them all. Having wrestled in Britain in the 1930s he made his way across the Atlantic where he was destined to become World Heavyweight Champion following the defeat of Lou Thesz in 1938. David Mantell told us Steve won the Boston AWA World (Massachusetts) Heavyweight title six times. His first win over Lou Thesz was later regarded retrospectively by the National Wrestling Alliance from the 1950s onwards as part of their title’s lineage back to Hackenschmidt in 1905 (with Thesz’s reign regarded as the first of six).
Born in 1908 Steve was the eldest of the fighting Caseys. He was followed by Paddy (1910) Jack (1911) Jim (1912) Mick (1913), Tom (1914) and Dan (1917). For good measure there were also three sisters, Mary Margaret, Josephine and Catherine.
Also see the entry for Steve McHoy.
Tom Casey
One of the famous fighting and rowing Casey brothers of Sneem who wrestled in Britain during the 1930s. Tom made the unusual move of leaving wrestling in the late 1930s to turn professional boxer. Tom Casey died in May, 1985.
Frank “Red” Cassidy
Frank Cassidy was born in Chester on 30th July, 1924, the son of James and Dora Cassidy. After leaving College School, Chester, aged fourteen, he became an apprentice bricklayer and could be found working for McLellans at the outbreak of the second world war in 1939. It wasn’t long afterwards, aged 16, that he took part in his first professional wrestling contests using the name Red Cassidy. He wrestled mostly closed to his home in Cheshire and opponents included Ted Betley and Jules Kiki. A small inconvenience called World War 2 got in the way and Frank joined the Navy as a cook, joining HMS Angel, an anti submarine trawler. We found Red Cassidy working in Scotland in 1944 and 1945, possibly an indication of where he was based. We are unaware of any continuation of his wrestling career following the end of the war. Frank Cassidy died in 2003.
Abel Castec
A giant of a man with an impressive physique the 6’4” Argentinian could deliver a dropkick as deftly as any lightweight. The heavyweight visitor of the late 1950s tackled and beat Britain’s best of the day, including wins over Alan Garfield and Royal Albert Hall defeats of Ray Hunter, in 1956, and Francis St Clair Gregory in 1957. Abel had a background in boxing and counted Archie Moore amongst his opponents.
Vento Castella
Salvador Vento Castella should not be confused with fellow Spaniard Vincente Castilla, who wrestled as Quasimodo.
Vento Castella had trained the Spanish Olympic wrestling team and made quite an impact on his British television appearances in 1964, failing in his bid at the Somme Barracks, Sheffield, to relieve Alan Colbeck of the European Welterweight Championship but gaining considerable compensation in battling through to the final of the 1964 Television trophy only to be knocked out by Mike Bennett in the final.
He went on to achieve a Royal Albert Hall draw with Jon Cortez.
Billy Catanzaro
An energetic and exciting Tunisian who settled in Villiers, a suburb of Paris. He visited Britain in 1964 and held British lightweight champion Jim Breaks to a draw at the Royal Albert Hall. We did not see Catanzaro ourselves but have heard reports of an elegant and classical wrestler. He died on 26th April, 2013, aged 82.
Gil Cesca
The parents of Gil Cesca came from Italy to reside in Paris. Gil Cesca was born in Vitry-sur-Seine, a suburb a few miles south east of the capital. It was a city he was to make his home for most of his life. His interest in wrestling started as a child and shortly after turning fourteen he joined an amateur wrestling club sited above a cinema, learning both Greco Roman and Freestyle.
The popular and stylish French welterweight was a regular visitor to the UK, making his first appearance in British rings during his three week 1958 tour. Opponents ranged from novices Al Nicol and Tony Charles to more challenging experienced opposition that included Mick McManus and Vic Coleman. By then he was an experienced professional, having joined the paid ranks in 1949.
Gil is also one of the few lighter weight wrestlers who found favour in the United States, visiting North America with Rene Ben Chemoul in 1959. Canada was the first stop, and then on to the States, wrestling at the Madison Square Garden.
He returned to Britain not once but twice in 1960, on this occasion appearing twice at the Royal Albert Hall, facing McManus during his March visit and Lightweight champion Mel Riss during his September visit; as well as making his British television debut against Tony Charles. Numerous visits to Britain followed during the 1960s.
He was one of the four man team of continental wrestlers to face a London team at the Royal Albert Hall in July 1968 in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. Two months later, in September, he narrowly lost out to Vic Faulkner when challenging for the European Middleweight Championship at Nottingham Ice Rink. 1968 was quite a year. He also married in Paris.
After almost thirty years travelling the world and taking part in thousands of matches Gil Cesca retired in 1977, setting himself up as a restaurant owner and renovating paintings.
Michel Chaisne
The popular and powerful French heavyweight made his first visit to Britain in 1951, facing the likes of Milo Popocopolis, Mike Demitre and Tony Mancelli. He returned in 1958, 1962 and 1963. In 1962 he defeated Masambula in the first round of the Royal Albert Hall International Heavyweight Trophy before going out to Bruno Elrington in the semi finals. The 1963 visit was cut short when he faced Georges Gordienko, again at the Royal Albert Hall, only to have his collar bone broken in the opening round.
Achim Chall
Berlin’s Achim Chall made his way to the United Kingdom in 1960 to take on Dazzler Joe Cornelius, Gordon Nelson and Billy Howes amongst others. He arrived in early January and was in the country for about six weeks. He brought with him experience in jiu-jitsu and judo as well as an accomplished amateur background record. He returned again in 1966, once again meeting top class opposition including a single fall loss against Syed Saif Shah at the Royal Albert Hall. Following his retirement in 1988 he took up refereeing, later to emigrate to Australia where he died in 2007, aged 73.
Mighty Chang (Also known as Jungle Boy)
Emerging from an unspecified distant land in the spring of 1952 was a colourful heavyweight with the fearsome name of Jungle Boy. Maybe if fans had known that the exotic land was Glasgow (albeit born in India) and he had been known by his real name then Milton Reid might not have filled the largest halls of northern England and Scotland (Belle Vue Manchester, St James Hall, Newcastle) against Les Kellett, Dennis Mitchell, Joe Zaranoff, Billy Joyce and other heavyweight favourites. Milton Reid combined his prolific wrestling 1950’s commitments with small parts in films. When the invincible Jungle Boy faced the unconquerable Bert Assirati it was a dramatic and abrupt end for the Jungle Boy and his leopard skin trunks. It was a June evening in Ilkeston and knocked out in the first round that was the end for Jungle Boy, never to be seen again. Not that here at Wrestling Heritage we have suspicious minds, you understand, but Jungle Boy’s ignominy was conveniently timed for Milton Reid to shave his head for a role in the film, Ferry To Hong Kong. When Milton Reid returned to the ring he was the shaven headed tyrant, The Mighty Chang, topping the bill on Paul Lincoln and independent shows against experienced men such as Alan Garfield, Mike Marino and Judo Al Hayes as well as Lincoln’s new breed Dave Larsen, Bob Kirkwood and Steve Haggetty.
During the 1960s film and television roles began to take up an increasing amount of his time. Most fifty plus readers of Wrestling Heritage will remember him as the body guard in a long running tobacco commercial. In 1962 played the part of a henchman in the first James Bond film, Dr No. Maybe that premature death was the reason why, in 1964 he lost out to Harold Sakata when they were both in the running for the part of Odd-Job in the Bond film, Goldfinger. Legend has it that Reid challenged Sakata (pro wrestler Great Togo) to a wrestling match to determine who should get the part! Milton Reid did return to Bond films in the 1977 Spy Who Loved Me.
Wrestling appearances lessened during the latter half of the 1960s, the combined consequence of increasing film commitments and the removal of Paul Lincoln patronage following the 1966 partnership of Lincoln and Dale Martin Promotions.
In 1980 he attempted to revive his film career in India, where he is thought to have passed away around 1987.
Mitzuko Chango
Not a career masked man but the appearances he made in the mid 1960s were quite memorable. Mitzuko Chango was light for a masked man of the sixties, who were usually heavyweights, but this middleweight of the independent rings was quite a fearsome figure. The white masked warrior would enter the ring and go through a ceremonial tile smashing ceremony before disregarding the rules as he set about his opponent.
Dave Chapman
Welterweight Dave Chapman hailed from Kettering in Northamptonshire and like many others began his career in the usually smaller halls of the independent promoters. This was in the mid 1960s following a relatively short amateur career. Early opponents included Mick Collins, Jack Taylor and Adolf Dabrowski. With a couple of years experience he was signed up by Joint Promotions. Highlights of his short career included wins over Iron Jawed Joe Murphy and knocking out Brian Goldbelt Maxine. A frequent opponent, and sometime tag partner, was the Corby wrestler Tony Rowley. Dave’s career seemed to end abruptly in the early 1970s and we would like to know what became of him.
Michael Charles (Also known as Mick LaRoache)
The son of Ric Charles worked for the independent promoters in the 1970s.
Ray Charles
We know precious little about welterweight Ray Charles, other than he seemed to be on lots of independent shows in the 1960s and he was on the first live wrestling show we attended.
Ric Charles
Ric Charles was a popular light heavyweight from Great Yarmouth who worked for the independent promoters, often Cyril Knowles and Jack Taylor in the 1960s and 1970, mostly in the midlands and the north of England. Our memories of him are of the white trunked slayer of villains such as The Wildman of Borneo, Klondyke Bill. His wrestling career was shared with that of managing and off licence.
Ted Charlton
The Australian came to Britain claiming the Australian welterweight title, which turns out to be a fictitious title at the time. Heritage member Graeme Cameron has told us that Ted was from Perth and could find no evidence of working on the East Coast of Australia. Records were found of him having held the West Australian light-heavyweight and welterweight State titles in 1969.
We were told his visit was part of an extended world tour that included New Zealand, South Africa and mainland Europe. Ted Charlton worked in Dale Martin rings during the summer of 1970 and into the winter month, leaving Britain in January 1971. He made little impact against the established British names of Boscik, Maxine, Cooper and the like.
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