Ultimate History of Pro Wrestling - A Time Line of Every Major Event in Pro Wrestling History - 1921
By: Karl Stern
Much of the text of this entry comes from issue 83 of the DragonKing Press Newsletter available as a downloadable .pdf in the digital downloads section. Special thanks to Paul Sosnowski for considerable help with this page.
The year 1921 is covered on the Long Form History of Pro Wrestling Podcast - Click Here.
1921
01-11-1921: Salvador “Gory” Guerrero is born in Guadalajara, Mexico.
01-14-1921: Utica, NY: Joe Malcewiez defeated Earl Caddock after going 1:30:00 to end the time limit. Joe Malcewicz won a close decision that was met by both applause and jeers. This match was a mystery to historians for years because Joe Malcewicz and Ed “Strangler” Lewis’ people always claimed it happened in Utica in December 1919, before the famed Caddock/Stecher title change. Seems that story was started around 1925 to take credibility away from Joe Stecher, who had stolen the World heavyweight title from the Lewis group.
In San Francisco, CA: Wladek Zbyszko defeated Jim Londos. Two newspapers insinuated the match was boring with one saying, “The crowd slumbered peacefully most of the time.”
02-20-1921: Buddy Rogers (Herman Gustave Rohde) is born.
03-04-1921: Stanislaus Zbyszko returns from Europe to defeat Joe Stecher in New York to put Zbyszko back into contention for the World title.
03-05-1921: After his defeat of two high ranking Judoka in 1914 and claiming the title of “World Judo Champion”, World lightweight wrestling champion Ad Santel defeats fifth degree Judo black belt Reijiro Nagata by TKO. Santel then battles fifth degree Judo black belt Hikoo Shoji to a one hour draw.
04-13-1921: “Argentina” Antonino Rocca (Antonino Biasetton) is born in Treviso, Italy.
05-03-1921: The Black Shadow (Alejandro Cruz Ortiz) is born in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico.
05-06-1921: Stanislaus Zbyszko defeats Ed “Strangler” Lewis for the World heavyweight title in New York City at the 22nd Regiment Armory in front of 10,000 fans.
10-04-1921: In a battle of two top world title contenders, Joe Stecher defeats Ed “Strangler” Lewis by decision in a close match in San Francisco, CA. The match went to the 2 hour time limit, and Stecher was chosen the winner by decision. Of this match the newspapers said: "The match was the greatest ever staged in California" and "Two Hours of the best wrestling ever staged in this city. A great bout with never an idle moment" Historian Steve Yohe writes, “Stecher is superior to Ed Lewis in the ring until February 20, 1928 match, when Joe sells everything, including the title, to Ed. Stecher then quit and went back to farming. The depression and need for money brought him back in 1929 to do jobs for Lewis and Gus Sonnenberg. Lewis never, in his lifetime, defended the title against Stecher.”
11-14-1921: John Pesek, feared shooter, works over Marin Plestina at Madison Square Garden giving him numerous injuries but Plestina wins the match via DQ. Pesek is “banned forever” from wrestling in New York, though he ends up returning five years later. A small attendance of about 2,500. Also on the show: Renato Gardini defeated John Grandovich… Nat Pendleton defeated Chief Newberry… Carl Johnson battled Martin Ludecke to a draw.
11-28-1921: In New York City, NY at Madison Square Garden: Attendance: 2,000: Stanislaus Zbyszko defeated Ed “Strangler” Lewis… George Calza defeated Hjalmar Johnson… Cyclone Ress defeated Billy Boeckman… Ivan Linow defeated Dr. Armos Laitenen.
1921 (unspecified): An article is published in the sports papers by Al Spink concerning the wrestling trust of promoters. He focuses on two non-trust or trust-busters, Marin Plestina, who he calls the greatest wrestler in the world, and Chris Jordan who he calls champion middleweight wrestler of the world. The article states that “As a result of their position, these men are barred from taking part in any wrestling bout with other, so-called, champion wrestlers… Jack Curley’s right name is Armand Schultz, born in Chicago of poor, but honest parents, as they say in the fairly tales… He [Curley] managed the Gotch-Hackenschmidt wrestling match in Chicago, cleared a fortune in it and then lost it all in promoting the Jack Johnson-Flynn fight [boxing] for the championship.”
Ed “Strangler” Lewis
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