Ultimate History of Pro Wrestling - A Time Line of Every Major Event in Pro Wrestling History - 1925
By: Karl Stern
Much of the text of this entry comes from issue 82 of the DragonKing Press Newsletter available as a downloadable .pdf in the digital downloads section.
The year 1925 is covered on the Long Form History of Pro Wrestling Podcast - Click Here.
1925
01-08-1925: Wayne “Big” Munn wins the World heavyweight championship from Ed “Strangler” Lewis in Kansas City, MO in front of a crowd of 15,000. This is the beginning of a promotional war with Lewis claiming to have been fouled when thrown over the top rope by Munn. Strangler Lewis keeps the physical belt and continues to be promoted as World champion by Billy Sandow and Ed White. The whole war was a booking angle to reunify the two titles in a big money match scheduled for May. However, a shoot double cross by Stanislaus Zbyszko and promoter Tony Stecher messes things up in April. The two World titles end up being unified anyway in 1928. Other matches on the show included: Lou Talaber defeats Cy Martin… Mike Romano defeats George Hills.
02-03-1925: Chicago, IL: Coliseum: Attendance 9,000: Dick Shikat defeats Jack Sampson… Mike Romano defeats Hassen Giles… Joe Zigmund battled Stanislaus Zbyszko to a 45 minute draw… Ed “Strangler: Lewis defeats Toots Mondt 2 falls to 1.
02-11-1925: Wayne Munn defeated Stanislaus Zbyszko in Kansas City, MO to retain the world title. Zbyszko put over Munn in this match only to double cross him in April and take the title. Attendance was 9000. In other matches: Pat McGill defeats Jack Peterson… Lou Talaber defeats Joe Bruno in 2 falls.
03-17-1925: Ike Robin defeats Mohammad Ali Sunni for the New Zealand title in Auckland.
04-15-1925: Stanislaus Zbyszko defeats Wayne “Big” Munn for the World heavyweight championship in Philadelphia, PA when promoter Tony Stecher double crosses promoters Billy Sandow and Ed White. Zbyszko shoots on Munn to take the title. The referee, who was on the Sandow-White-Lewis payroll, is forced to count two falls after Zbyszko pins Munn numerous times in the match just to keep the crowd from rioting. Munn remains recognized in some areas as champion. Attendance is 8,000. In other matches: Mike Romano defeats Ivan Kanski… Frank Bruno (Brunowicz) battled John Pesek to a 30 minute draw.
04-16-1925: Wayne Munn is hospitalized with “severe tonsillitis and influenza.” Munn’s manager, Gabe Kaufman, says that Munn had entered his world title defense against Stanislaus Zbyszko with a high fever. Munn is said to have a “104 degree” fever.
05-30-1925: Stanislaus Zbyszko drops the World title to Joe Stecher in St. Louis, MO. Meanwhile, in Chicago, the disputed version of the World title is contested between Lewis and Munn. Despite Zbyszko taking the title from Munn in a shoot, Ed “Strangler” Lewis claims Munn never legitimately won the title from him in the first place and continues to bill himself as world champion. Attendance here is 13,500. Other results: Pat McGill defeats Bob Managoff Sr… Mike Romano defeats Jack McCarthy… John Pesek defeats Scotty McDougall… Toots Mondt battled Dick Shikat to a 48 minute draw.
Ed “Strangler” Lewis defeats Wayne Munn for his version of the World title. This would have been for the reunification of the titles had Zbyszko not double crossed Munn and taken the real championship. Attendance for the Chicago show was 14,000.
07-05-1925: Stanislaus Zbyszko tells the Spokane Spokesman-Review that, “When I am more than 60 years old I will do my best wrestling.”
07-15-1925: To demonstrate how much wrestling has changed since 1925 consider this quote from turn of the century wrestler Emil Klank, now a referee, following a Portland, OR match where Ira Dern knocked out Billy Edwards. “I have been wrestling for 31 years and I have never seen a more deliberate foul than Dern committed. He hit Edwards in the face with a clenched fist. Edwards is still unconscious, so I declare Edwards the winner.”
08-10-1925: Los Angeles, CA: Olympic Auditorium: Attendance 8,000: Stanislaus Zbyszko defeats Andreas Castanos… Jim Londos defeats Jim Browning… World Heavyweight champion Joe Stecher defeats Renato Gardini 2 falls to 1.
09-28-1925: Los Angeles, CA: Olympic Auditorium: Attendance 10,000: Jim Browning battled Milo Steinborn to a 30 minute draw… Hans Steinke defeats Joe Komar… Jim Londos defeats Dan Koloff… World Heavyweight champion Joe Stecher defeats Stanislaus Zbyszko 2 falls to 1.
11-09-1925: Los Angeles, CA: Olympic Auditorium: Attendance 9,000: Renato Gardini defeats Milo Steinborn… Reginald Siki defeats Jim Browning… World Heavyweight champion Joe Stecher defeats Jim Londos. Joe Stecher defeats Jim Londos in 20 seconds to take the only fall of the two hour match.
11-28-1925: The new Madison Square Garden building in New York City opens. It is not located in the same area as the first two Madison Square Garden buildings. It has a maximum capacity of 18,496.
12-11-1925: Jess McMahon along with Tex Rickard begin promoting boxing matches at Madison Square Garden in New York with a light-heavyweight championship match between Jack Delaney and Paul Berlenbach.
12-14-1925: Los Angeles, CA: Olympic Auditorium: Attendance 8,000: Peter Sauer (Ray Steele) defeats Dr. P.A. Mullikan… Setsuzo Ota defeats Earl Clemings in a Jiu Jitsu match… George Kotsonaros defeats Reginald Siki… World Heavyweight champion Joe Stecher battled Jim Londos to a draw. Stecher won the first fall. Londos won the second fall. The third fall went to a time limit draw.
Stanislaus Zbyszko
DragonKingKarl (Karl Stern) is a long time pro wrestling historian who has been published in books, newsletters, and podcasts since the mid-1990s.
The Ultimate History of Pro Wrestling Zone is Karl Stern's attempt to chronicle the entire history of pro wrestling and is a work in progress with hundreds of pages of text added each month.
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