These are our shorter Biographical portraits which we would like to extend if you can provide information or memories.
Kurt Stein (St Helens) (Also known as Fred Hill)
The name Kurt Stein was re-cycled on the independent shows of the early 1970s. Despite an impressive build-up in The Wrestler magazine, and inclusion in the A-Z of wrestlers book, this Stein, living in St Helens in Lancashire, seems to have worked mostly for the independent promoters. Not exclusively so, as he did work for Joint Promotions using the name Karl Schultz. Heritage member Frank Thomas remembers a rather steamy bout between Schultz and Bill Howes at Liverpool Stadium, “Got the feeling that there was very little ‘fixed’ about this one… ” We saw him on the northern independent circuit against Orig Williams and Klondyke Bill.
Stein or Schultz the family name was far less exotic, more synonymous with Lancashire than Deutsch land! He was Fred Hill of St Helens. Dale Storm remembers him, ” I worked with him for Danny Flynn and other Independents back in the 1960’s. I remember it well, he was a big solid guy and he almost broke my jaw with a very dodgy Forearm Smash. I still have some trouble with it to this day, it clicks. He also worked as the “Masked Outlaw” for serveral promoters and yes he did work for Joints for a time. He also toured India with my good friend Sam Betts (both men featured in my memoir “As him again Ref!”) he was a quitet unassuming individual outside the ring and he was a very good villain in his day.
Psycho Shane Stevens
The beard and the leotard made this 1980s villain look the part. A regular worker in the 1980s, especially for Brian Dixon and Orig Williams, Psycho Shane also worked in Europe. From Peterborough he was trained by Boston wrestler Bill Clark. On World of Sport he made a 1986 appearance against Catweazle, which he lost. He also appeared three times on Screensport’s Satellite Wrestling and S4Cs Reslo. Our earliest sighting is in January, 1986, when he partnered Blondie Barratt on the programme at Hanley where Count Bartelli made his final appearance. Our last sighting was at Bristol in October, 1999, when the press reported he now weighed eighteen stones, a good four stones heavier than a decade earlier. In July 1986 The Stage magazine listed Shane as the coach for a production of the Trafford Tanzi play.
Stephen St John
Stephen St John had wrestling in his blood, because dad was John L Hagar, one of the great villains of the independent rings. Dad was a regular worker for promoter Brian Trevors and took his son along to Brian’s gym in 1967. For Brian Trevors it was important that all his pupils took their studies seriously and gained a thorough foundation in how to wrestle. For Stephen his training was timely, as Brian’s promotional business was just beginning to grow (he hadn’t long moved to the area from Yorkshire) and as Stephen’s skill grew so did the size of the halls in which Brian promoted! Brian Trevors’ contract to provide wrestling shows for numerous holiday camps around East Anglia gave his apprentices the chance to gain a lot of experience in a relatively short time. Stephen St John learned quickly and worked regularly for the independent promoters throughout the 1970s and in to the mid 1980s.
Billy Stock
Stock by name and stocky by nature. Billy Stock must have been one of the shortest middleweights of the 1960s,70s and 80s. A stocky but powerful man who preferred to pummel an opponent and go for the submission route.
Born in Notting Hill and later living in Ewell, Surrey, Billy Stock was a popular 1960s wrestler,a tv wrestler who went on to work for the independent promoters. A keen swimmer he was a life guard before turning professional wrestler.
He began wrestling as an amateur at the Foresters AWC before turning professional in 1961. Usually sticking within the rules Billy could let the fury fly when he felt the situation required it. His style was not always textbook stuff and he specialised in strength holds.
A handful of television appearances included opponents Peter Szakacs, Stefan Milla, Cliff Beaumont, and on the day England beat West Germany to win the World Cup Billy partnered Bobby Barnes against the Cortez brothers.
In the 1980s he was known to don a mask and wrestle as The Assassin.
Billy Stock died suddenly in September, 2010.
Dean Stockton
Tall and slender Dean Stockton was a 1950s wrestling technician from Hanley in Staffordshire, popular with fans; and probably no more so than when he was placed in the unfortunate position of being Hans Streiger’s first television opponent! A quiet, assured performer with a clean cut style that never caused the referee any problems Dean was a frequent worker, mostly for Wryton Promotions, into the 1960s. A Wryton Promotions programme from July, 1960, stated, “He enters the ring, does his job,, gets rid of his man, and departs with a modicum of trouble; he does not fight with all sound and fury, he covers as little of the rig as is possible, and plays down as far as he can, any idea of being a show-man.” Armchair fans were familiar with his pleasing style as in 1960 and 1961 Dean appeared on television no fewer than nine times, with opponents including Les Kellett, Seamus Donleavy, Bert Royal. Steve Logan and Johnny Czeslaw. Not a bad calibre of opponent, which does illustrate Dean’s high standing in the business. Like most other wrestlers Dean had outside business interests and ran a florists in Town Road, Hanley.
Graham Stockton
Canadian Graham Stockton was a worker in Britain from 1935 until 1938. Before and after his visit he was a successful worker in North America, particularly in the Montreal area.
Henri Stoeff
It was left to member Phil Lyons to discover Bulgaria’s Henri Stoeff for Heritage. Henri was a light heavyweight who wrestled in Britain on and off from 1934 until 1938He facesd a number of the top British names at the time. Prior to coming to Britain Henri had a long career in the United States. He became one of the biggest wrestling stars, as well as a top promoter, in Bulgaria when catch-as-catch-can/American style wrestling first got off the ground in the country in 1935.
Aaron Stone
Kent light heavyweight Aaron Stone took to our rings towards the end of the 1960s. An interest in judo led to an interest in wrestling, through the encouragement of Danny Lynch, with Aaron making his professional debut for Dale Martin Promotions in 1969, appearances seemed sporadic until 1971 and then a re-appearance for the independents in 1979. Even in those days he was said to have business interests in property and cars and he followed his wrestling career with successful business ventures.
Carl Rocky Stone
Born in Norwich in 1919 Charles Stone was a male nurse in 1939 as war broke out. Shortly afterwards he was in the Paratrooper Regiment and by 1945 wrestling in Singapore, billed as British lightweight champion. Demobilised by April 1947 Rocky was getting married, and we find no further mention of him.
Stan Stone
For more than twenty years Londoner Stan Stone was one of the country’s top middleweights and holder of the British title in the early 1950s. A regular of the all-in rings of the 1930s Stan’s technical ability distinguished him from many of the 1930s stars. Post war Stan wrestled on British television in the days before ITV was dreamed of. He wrestled three times on BBC television, between July, 1946 and June 1947, against Charlie “College Boy” Law, Jack Dale and Tug Wilson.
After almost a quarter of a century of wrestling Stan retired in 1956 and went on to become a leading referee for Dale martin Promotions. of the fifties and early sixties. Possibly at the top of his game in 1962, in that year he refereed two high profile television grudge matches: Jackie Pallo versus Mick McManus and, a few months later, the controversial and bloody episode in the Clayton Thomson versus Les Kellett feud. He refereed regularly at the Royal Albert Hall.
Stan Stone died in 1966.
Big Bill Stones
A giant of wrestler weighing well over 20 stones and a familiar figure in the North East during the 1960s and 1970s. He was born Tommy Stones in Eastbourne but moved to Stockton on Tees where he was taught to wrestle by Jimmy Stockdale and Alex McDonald, using the ring name Bill Stones.
Luc Straub
French judoka turned heavyweight wrestler, and one time French mid heavyweight champion, visited southern Britain in 1964. Although the visit lasted only two week he was matched with the best heavyweights of the time – Billy Robinson, Francis Sullivan, Georges Gordienko, Gerhardt de Jaeger, Earl Maynard, Kiwi Kingston, Roy Bull Davis, Henri Pierlot, Charlie Fisher, Prince Kumali, Tony Mancelli. May 2002.
Bob Stuart
Bexley Heath’s Bob Terry wrestled as Bob Stuart in the 1970s, and also ran his own shows under the banner Terry Promotions. One half of The Crusaders tag team with Bob Steele (not the Manchester Joint Promotions wrestler).
Mel Stuart
Real-life fire-fighter, deep-sea-diver and budgerigar-breeder, Pretty Boy Stuart was a Gravesend mid-heavyweight who appeared on the Dale Martin scene mid-seventies and proved adaptable to any opponent. Particularly skilled at allowing the aged Les Kellett to shine in spite of deteriorated timing. Tagged with any villain going, the only consistency being alongside Steve Haggetty in the Blond Bombers. At the time we got upset as sloppy MCs called him Mal, but it turned out we were wrong. Malcolm Stuart Clifton dropped his surname to become Mal Stuart, but those sloppy MCs changed him to the everlasting Mel Stuart. Continued wrestling until into the twenty-first century.
Thunder Sugiyama
Barefooted and bearded Japanese heavyweight Tsuneharu Sugiyama wrestled professionally as Thunder Sugiyama and made a fifteen day visit to northern England in May 1969. Inside that fortnight he made two television appearances, defeating Henri Pierlot and Roy Bull Davis. Opposition to the talented Jap was first rate; draws against Mike Marino and Kendo Nagasaki, and disqualification losses against Albert Wall and John Cox. At the age of 24 Tsuneharu Sugiyama had represented Japan in the Greco-Roman heavyweight competition of the Tokyo Olympic Games. His partnership with Giant Baba and speciality “thunder and lightning drop” made him a big name on the American scene. In 1969 Sugiyama defeated Billy Robinson to become the second International Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Champion. Robinson had defeated Toyonobori on 12th December in Okayama, Japan, to become the first champion.
Following his wrestling career he became a television personality appearing on tv and in films. Born on 23rd July 1940, he died of heart failure on 22nd November, 2002, aged 62. His death was reported as heart failure brought on by diabetes.
Butty Sugrue
In a sport that is full of larger than life characters few could have had a life larger than Butty Sugrue.Strongman, circus performer, wrestler, and not to forget that he was the promoter of the Muhammad Ali versus Al ” Blue ” Lewis boxing match in Croke Park in Dublin in July 1972.
Michael Butty Sugrue was certainly one of the most colourful Irishmen in London. His feats of strength were the stuff of legends and earned him the title of “Irelands Strongest Man.” In 1953 Butty wrestled The Gorgeous Gael, Jack Doyle, at Killorglin’s Puck Fair in 1953.
After moving to London Butty became landlord of various pubs such as the Admiral Nelson in Kilburn and the Wellington in Shepherd’s Bush. In the late 1950s and early 1960s he wrestled for independent promoters in London and the south. Butty had a talent for self promotion – a quick internet search will reveal photos of him lifting a chair with his teeth (with a woman sat on it!), mixing with film and sporting celebrities, and the time he persuaded one of his bar staff to live buried alive in a coffin for sixty-one days.
Butty Sugrue died in 1977, aged 53. Ironically for Ireland’s strongest man, he died carrying a fridge up the stairs.
Dai Sullivan
We remember Dai Sullivan in the latter part of his career when he was something of a heavyweight bruiser. Even so, his rugged style did not hide the fact that here was a skilful wrestler who could hold his own with the best, including World heavyweight champion, Lou Thesz, when the American toured Britain.
From his earliest days in the professional wrestling ring Dai had earned a reputation as an all-action, aggressive fighter. Born in Tonypandy in 1922 as Francis Morgan Dai was the son of a miner. Like all mining families times were hard, and none more so than during the 1926 General Strike. During the strike non mining families from around the country volunteered to look after the children of mining families. That was how, in 1926 it came about that four year old Dai was sent to live with a family in Doncaster.
As things turned out he stayed with the family and remained in Doncaster for the rest of his life. Like many other professional wrestlers Dai’s first sporting interest was boxing, and he was an army champion before turning to wrestling whilst stationed at Chester and watching the shows at Liverpool Stadium. Trained by Charlie Glover Dai turned professional in the mid 1940s and we find his first documented contest in 1947, wrestling his mentor, Charlie.
During the following twenty years Dai wrestled all the big names in Britain until retiring in the late 1960s. “A non stop whirlwind,” according to Dwight J Ingleburgh.
Johnny Summers
From Chorley in Lancashire Johnny Summers claimed the World Flyweight Championship in the 1930s. He must have been a pretty tough fighter to have made his way in the all-in rings of the 1930s against men who were usually much heacier than himself. Nowadays Johnny is mostly remembered as the opponent, and vanquisher, of Jeff Conda (later Count Bartelli) when he made his professional debut at the Broadway Palace, Chester, in June 1939. In “They Called Him The Count” Bartelli tells how Summers taught him a hard lesson that night in Chester.
Sheik Cas El Suri
There have been numerous Sheiks in British wrestling down the years and distinguishing between them can be problematic.We have to rely on The Wrestle rmagazine for information about Sheik Cas El Sori, a source not always known for complete accuracy. They reported that the Sheik had been born in the Lebanon in 1935, coming to Britain in childhood. The magazine reported a boxing and judo background and only turned full time professional at the beginning of 1964.
Olaf Svenson
We have found eighteen matches for this heavyweight billed from Sweden, all for Wryton Promotions, and seventeen of them in Hanley. The other was at Willenhall. Opponents included Count Bartelli, Bill Benny, Sam Burmister, and Mike Marino. So he sounds like a big man who could work with the best. Not to be confused with an American of this name.
Terry Swan (Terry Quinn)
1970s Ellesmere Port wrestler and brother of Monty Swan. In later tears Terry used the name Terry Quinn and tagged with Mighty John Quinn, billed as the Canadian’s brother.
Josef Szabo
Joe was a Hungarian refugee from the same uprising that saw Tibor and Peter Szakacs arrive in the UK. He had amateur experience in Hungary and turned professional in this country mainly to supplement his income as a swimming instructor and baths manager.
He lived in Levenshulme, Manchester quite close to Jack Atherton, Grant Foderingham and several other wrestlers. He trained at various gyms including Panther’s gym.
He wrestled as a middleweight but would take on all comers regardless. His opponents included Billy Graham, Mad Mike Mahoney, Jimmy Lewis, Ian “Mad Dog” Wilson, Roy Fortuna, Eddie Rose and Pete Lindberg. He worked mainly for the Independent promoters rather than Joint Promotions.
Later he tried his hand at promoting with mixed results. He could go from a full-house one night to an empty one the next and eventually this ebullient, good humoured wrestler decided to call quits on the wrestling scene and concentrate on leisure management. He left the Manchester area in the late ’70s, address unknown but rumoured to be in the south Midlands.
Steve Szalay (Satay Szalay)
In an age when wrestling matches were often brutal affairs with two men paying little regard to the rules and the authority of the referee Steve Szalay made a refreshing change. He was a scientific, lightning fast lightweight whose skill was appreciated by fans.
Hungarian Steve Szalay arrived on the British wrestling scene in 1936. When he wrestled Jim Maloney at Portsmouth on 1st October promoter John Mortimer said he was eighteen years old and this was his first appearance in England. It was reported that Szalay outclassed Maloney and went on to defeat him by two falls to nil in six rounds. Steve was a very skilled wrestler, his contest against Harry Rabin at Derby in 1937 proclaimed the best bout seen at the hall without any of the unpleasant occurrences that marred most bouts. Similar acclaim followed his match with Juan Lopez in Chelmsford, won by Steve by two falls to one.
Our records of Steve suggest he left Britain in September, 1937, returning in March 1938 for the year until May, 1939. Opponents including Harold Angus, Norman Morrell and George DeRelwyskow. Following the Second World War Steve returned to Britain in 1947 and 1948, this time meeting a number of youngsters who were to go on to become Britain’s top stars, Mick McManus, Eddie Capelli and Tommy Mann amongst them.
2071
Wrestling Heritage 