Brief History:
Championship Wrestling from Florida offered some of the most colorful, dramatic and violent professional wrestling anywhere in the world. It was consistent in it's entertainment value to tens of thousands of fans across the state and was never at a loss for talent. Cowboy Luttrall, in 1950, became the "Sunshine State's" National Wrestling Alliance representative and formed a exceedingly prosperous circuit with enterpreneural spirits in cities like Jacksonville, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami. His ventures even crossed into the Bahamas, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, at times. While managing a highly successful booking office, Luttrall mentored Eddie Graham, a man who would take the Florida operations to new plateaus and eventually rise to the helm of the NWA. All of wrestling's great stars wrestled throughout the Southeast and some of the most memorable feuds in history were sold night-after-night on the Florida peninsula. Enthusiasts bought the mayhem and carnage up and eagerly waited for the next show in their area.
Background:
In early March 1945, it was announced that the Miami Boxing Commission was going to affiliate with the National Boxing Association. The NBA controlled boxing in all but two states.
Born in 1906 in Jacksboro, Texas, Luttrall was trained for the professional ranks by Art Mondt. He initially grappled as "Plowboy," then "Cowboy" Luttrall, a well known heel.
Luttrall claimed that Homer Hesterly lured him to promote in Tampa and that his first show grossed a total of $212.
Charitible organizations could count on the "Cowboy" and he donated a percentage of each wrestling program to the Sheriff's Boys Ranch in Live Oak, Florida.
Chris Dundee settled in Miami from Philadelphia in 1950.
In early 1958, after years of booking name grapplers in Daytona Beach through Luttrall's Tampa agency, Solomon "Saul" Weingeroff decided to break of his ties to the NWA booking office and become an independent promoter. Weingeroff's main gripe was that he had to pay Luttrall 10 percent of each show, an Alliance-wide practice. Within a short time, Luttrall, in efforts to retain control of the town and to buck Weineroff's actions, moved into a cross-town facility, the Peabody Auditorium, launching a wrestling war for the city. The rivals even brought a "Gorgeous George" to their locale to escalate the battle, however, Luttrall had the real one, George Wagner, in his camp.
Articles:
According to the Friday, October 13, 1950 edition of the Panama City News-Herald, Jacksonville promoter Jimmy Murdock was giving up his boxing interests. He remain a wrestling promoter, a business he took over after the death of George Romanoff last March.
According to the Tuesday, October 15, 1968 edition of the Tampa Tribune, Eddie Graham was going to undergo eye surgery in Houston "to repair torn retinas suffered in a freak accident last week." While preparing for a match at Fort Homer Hesterly Armory, a 75-pound steel window fell "four or five feet," hitting him in the head. He needed more than 300 stitches to close the head wounds.
According to the Wednesday, September 2, 1970 edition of the Tampa Tribune, "E.P. (Cowboy) Luttrall, a wrestler or wrestling promoter for nearly 50 years, is retiring and selling his interests in the Tampa-based Deep-South Sports Inc., to his longtime protege Eddie Graham." The "transfer" was "effective immediately."
Obituaries:
Wrestler and promoter George Romanoff died in a car accident south of Jacksonville on March 11, 1950. In the car with him were Pedro Ortego and Bobby Roberts, both who were injured.
A man who could be credited with building the Florida territory into a successful unit of towns, Cowboy Luttrall (Clarence Preston Luttrall) died on March 11, 1980 in Tampa.
On the morning of Monday, January 21, 1985, legendary wrestler and promoter Eddie Graham died at the age of 55. Graham was the president of Championship Wrestling from Florida, Inc., and central booker for the Florida leg of the National Wrestling Alliance. According to the report in the Tampa Tribune, "police said Graham apparently shot himself."
The Great "Boris" Malenko (Larry Simon) died on September 1, 1994 in Tampa at the age of 61.
Longtime Miami wrestling promoter Chris Dundee died on November 16, 1998 at the age of 91.
Promoters:
Solomon Weingeroff - Cocoa Beach, Florida - 1958
Solomon Weingeroff - Daytona Beach, Florida - 1949-'58-
Solomon Weingeroff - St. Augustine, Florida - 1958
Florida Wrestling Results:
Miami Wrestling Results - 1930
Miami Wrestling Results - 1931
Miami Wrestling Results - 1934
Miami Wrestling Results - 1935
Miami Wrestling Results - 1936
Miami Wrestling Results - 1945
Miami Wrestling Results - 1959
Miami Wrestling Results - 1963
Miami Wrestling Results - 1964
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