Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, May 23, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Gil Knutsen vs. Jules LaRance …
Lupe Acosta vs. Gladys Gillem … Dave Levin vs. Frankie Talaber … Bill Cazzell vs. Paavo
Ketonen … (promoter:  Al Haft)
Note:  Show was postponed until Friday because of bad weather.

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, May 23, 1940
(Schonthal Center Gymnasium) … Farmer Morris vs .Flash Gordon … Henri Gianarco vs.
Dan Morris … Jimmy Lewis vs. Bill Schmittar (boxing) … Johnny Vuckovich would also appear
Notes:  The venue was at 555 East Rich Street.  The show was being held in observance of
“This Work Pays Your Community Week.” This was a combined boxing and wrestling show.

Columbus, Ohio:  Friday, May 24, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Gil Knutsen vs. Jules LaRance …
Lupe Acosta vs. Gladys Gillem
Notes:  Other matches were not announced in the newspaper Friday because changes in the
preliminary matches were expected.  This show was also postponed because of weather.

Columbus, Ohio:  Saturday, May 25, 1940
(Zoo Park) … Stacy Hall vs. Bull Marino … Alex Kasoboski vs. Frank Wolfe
Note:  The venue was near O’Shaughnessy Dam and this show was the first of a series of
free shows to be presented there this summer.

Columbus, Ohio:  Wednesday, May 29, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Gil Knutsen vs. Jules LaRance …
Lupe Acosta vs. Gladys Gillem … Dave Levin vs. Frankie Talaber … Buzz Jones vs. Paavo
Ketonen … (promoter:  Al Haft)
Note:  This show was postponed for the third time because of weather.

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, May 30, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Gil Knutsen vs. Jules LaRance …
Lupe Acosta vs. Gladys Gillem … Dave Levin vs. Frankie Talaber … Buzz Jones vs. Paavo
Ketonen … (promoter:  Al Haft)
Note:  This show was postponed because of weather for the fourth time in eight days.

Columbus, Ohio:  Friday, May 31, 1940
(The Auditorium) … Jules LaRance b. Gil Knutsen to capture the World Junior Heavyweight
Title (38:00) … Gladys Gillem b. Lupe Acosta (12:18) … Oregon McDonald b. Fred Carone
(13:42) … Paavo Ketonen and Dave Levin drew (30:00) … (promoter:  Al Haft)
Notes:  To ensure that this show would go on, Haft moved it to the indoor Auditorium.  
Knutsen had held the championship for nearly three months, having won it from Billy
Weidner.  The title had a 190-pound limit.

Columbus, Ohio:  Wednesday, June 5, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … Ali Baba vs. Oregon McDonald … Lupe Acosta vs. Gladys Gillem …
George Becker vs. Leon St. Pierre … Gust Johnson vs. Dave Levin … (promoter:  Al Haft) …
(referee:  Eddie Lewis)
Note:  Lewis was from Detroit.

Columbus, Ohio:  Saturday, June 8, 1940
(Zoo Park) … Gust Johnson vs. Frankie Talaber … Chief Bearfoot vs. Frank Wolfe
Note:  Free show

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, June 13, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Jules LaRance b. Stacy Hall (41:
32) … Women’s World Champion Mildred Burke b. Gladys Gillem (20:15) (countout) …
Frankie Talaber b. Dave Levin (12:58) … Paavo Ketonen b. Morris Shapiro (24:23) …
(promoter:  Al Haft)

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, June 20, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Jules LaRance b. Frankie Talaber
(37:06) … Women’s World Champion Mildred Burke failed to throw Gladys Gillem and Lupe
Acosta in 30 minutes (Burke beat Gillem in 8:00, but Acosta stayed the limit) … (promoter:  Al
Haft)
Notes:  Billy Watson was said to be an “Irish 190-pounder.” Gillem was from Alabama.

*The Saturday, June 22, 1940 edition of the Columbus Dispatch reported that “John Pesek’s
heavyweight mat title has been vacated by the Midwest Wrestling Association and Dick Shikat
of Germany and Orville Brown, leading American heavyweight, have been named to wrestle
for it.” They would battle on Thursday and the “MWA will recognize the winner as heavyweight
champion.” “Heywood Allen, Sr., of Louisville, KY, announced in Louisville late Friday that the
MWA had vacated Pesek’s title because he chose to remain inactive and would not defend it
and named Brown and Shikat as the two top contenders.  Brown recently won the title claims
of Bobby Bruns by defeating Bruns in Kansas City.” The MWA welcomed Pesek when he
wanted to return to wrestling and challenge for the championship.

*The Tuesday, June 25, 1940 edition of the Columbus Dispatch reported that Orville Brown
“only 10 days ago defeated Bobby Bruns and took over eastern recognition as champion
which Bruns had held since he won the title tournament in New England last winter.”

*The Wednesday, June 26, 1940 edition of the Columbus Dispatch reported that Dick Shikat
dispelled the rumor that he’d take the world heavyweight title to Germany if he beat Brown on
Thursday.  He was quoted as saying:  “In the first place, I couldn’t go to Germany now even if
I wanted to.  And I certainly don’t want to.  I am an American citizen and have been for several
years.”

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, June 27, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … Orville Brown b. Dick Shikat to capture the MWA World Heavyweight
Title (49:13) … George McCloud b. Fred Carone (9:45) … Paavo Ketonen b. Bull Marino (9:
57) … The Great Mephisto b. Ned Taylor (13:22) … (promoter:  Al Haft) … (referee:  Clete
Kauffman)

Columbus, Ohio:  Friday, July 5, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Jules LaRance b. Paavo Ketonen
(50:00) … “Whipper” Billy Watson b. Tiger Tasker (15:08) … Dick Trout b. Frank Wolfe (dec.,
30:00) … The Great Mephisto b. Leon St. Pierre (DQ) (14:00) … (promoter:  Al Haft) …
(referee:  Woodland)

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, July 11, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … Dick Shikat b. Bobby Bruns (23:02) … “Whipper” Billy Watson b. Alex
Kasoboski (14:10) … George McCloud b. Fred Carone (13:13) … Frank Wolfe b. Ned Taylor
(14:55) … (promoter:  Al Haft) … (referee:  Clarence Nonnemacher) … (2,106 fans)
Notes:  The winner of Shikat-Bruns was going to wrestle Orville Brown for the World Title.  
The results for this show were printed in the Saturday, July 13, 1940 edition of the
newspaper, and that article noted that the show was Friday.  However, all other mentions
claimed the program was staged on Thursday.  There was no mention of the show in the
Friday paper.

Columbus, Ohio:  Thursday, July 18, 1940
(Haft’s Acre Arena) … World Junior Heavyweight champion Jules LaRance b. “Whipper” Billy
Watson (24:00) … Alex Kasoboski and Frankie Talaber b. Dick Trout and Buck Weaver
(team match) … Stacy Hall b. Paavo Ketonen … (promoter:  Al Haft)


Research by Tim Hornbaker
Columbus Wrestling Results - 1940
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