(Credit for the following results go to numerous sources, including, but not limited to, Larry Matysik, and various news clippings)
St. Louis Wrestling Results 1959
Promoting the Area of: St. Louis, MO
Affiliation: NWA
Promoter: Sam Muchnick
According to Larry Matysik, on May 23, 1959, the first edition of “Wrestling at the Chase” aired on KPLR-TV, Channel 11 from the Khorassan Room of the Chase-Park Plaza Hotel. Dates for WatC are the air dates, as the programs were taped usually one or two weeks earlier.
May 23, 1959 – “Wrestling at the Chase” (First Chase show ever – w/Joe Garagiola doing commentary.)
Jim LaRock and The Mighty Atlas draw
Rip Hawk defeated Ray Spindola
Whipper Billy Watson defeated Bob Orton. Watson won the first fall, but the television show ran out of time, thus going off while Orton and Watson battled in the second fall. The following week announcer Joe Garagiola noted that Watson had also won the second fall.
Oct. 9, 1959 – Kiel Auditorium
Lou Thesz and Cowboy Bob Ellis won from Rip Hawk and Gene Kiniski. 1-Kiniski pinned Ellis. 2-Ellis won by disqualification. 3-Thesz pinned Hawk.
Kinji Shibuya defeated Thor Hagen after the ring ropes collapsed.
Argentine Rocca defeated Roberto Pico
Attendance: 9310
Oct. 30, 1959 – Kiel Auditorium
Lou Thesz and Cowboy Bob Ellis won a return match from Rip Hawk and Gene Kiniski. 1-Ellis pinned Kiniski. 2-Kiniski pinned Ellis. 3-Thesz pinned Hawk.
Dick Hutton defeated Ray Gordon
Kinji Shibuya defeated Thor Hagen in a rematch
Farmer Marlin defeated Otto Von Krupp (who would become Boris Malenko of Florida fame)
Rock Hunter and Jim LaRock draw
Nov. 27, 1959 – Kiel Auditorium
NWA Champion Pat O’Connor and Lou Thesz went to a one hour draw. Thesz won the first fall and O’Connor the second before time expired.
Cowboy Bob Ellis, Whipper Billy Watson and Ray Gordon won from Rip Hawk, Kinji Shibuya and Dick Hutton. 1-Hawk pinned Gordon. 2-Watson pinned Hawk. 3-Ellis
pinned Shibuya.
Lorraine Johnson, billed as Central States Champion, defeated Jessica Rogers
Thor Hagen defeated Stan Lisowski (yes, this was the brother of Reggie Lisowksi, who was booked as “The Crusher” a few years later – both Stan and Reggie Lisowski worked a few St. Louis dates during the no-tv period in the 1950s)
Jim LaRock defeated Jerry Gordett
Attendance: 9000+
Dec. 11, 1959 – Kiel Auditorium
NWA Champion Pat O’Connor defeated Dick Hutton. Hutton won the second fall, but O’Connor took the first and third.
Killer Kowalski and Gene Kiniski were both disqualified (Bill Longson helped break up the brawl and, in the process, knocked Kiniski cold with a piledriver. Longson had tried to restrain Kiniski and Bob Ellis during a brawl on television a few months earlier. It led to a feud between Ellis and Kiniski, and ill feelings between Longson and Kiniski.)
Cowboy Bob Ellis defeated Don Lee
Lorraine Johnson defeated Barbara Baker
Rip Hawk and Rock Hunter won from Bobby Managoff and Jim LaRock. 1-Hunter pinned Managoff. 2-Managoff pinned Hunter. 3-Hawk pinned LaRock.
Tommy O’Toole defeated Don McClarity
Attendance: Estimated 6000
