Modesto Wrestling Results

Modesto, California: Friday, January 15, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Bob Castle b. Herb Parks (2/3) (third fall in 12 seconds) … Steve
Strelich and Larry Tillman drew (45:00) … Husky Bird and John Strelich (Sterlich) drew (20:
00) … (promoter: Cal Herman) … (referee: Frank Manfredo)
Notes: Parks was called the Light Heavyweight Champion of Canada and his loss was
considered an “upset.” Castle was called a “super roughhouser” from St. Louis. Strelich
had been “knocking at the welterweight title for some years.” Manfredo was from Fresno.
This was Herman’s second show of 1937. The D.A.V. Athletic Club was at 117-19 Tenth
Street.

Modesto, California: Friday, February 5, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Bob Castle b. Olie Erickson (2/3) … Mitsugu Harmanaka and Larry
Tillman drew (45:00) (1-1) … Roy Lampman b. Mountain Hermitt (8:20) … Husky Bird and
Jimmy El Pulpo drew (20:00) … (promoter: Cal Herman) … (referee: Jack Wagner) …
(“fair” crowd)
Note: Bird was from Stockton, California.

Modesto, California: Friday, February 26, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Gust Johnson and Larry Tillman drew (20:00) … Dory Detton b. Jimmy
El Pulpo (2/3) (Detton was a substitute for Bob Castle) … Jimmy Tassos b. Mitsugu
Hamanaka (2/3) … (promoter: Cal Herman) … (small crowd)
Note: There was a smaller than usual audience for the “below par” card. Castle was
called a “claimant to the world’s light heavyweight wrestling title,” and he “again” failed to
show.

Modesto, California: Friday, March 5, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Dory Detton b. Mike London (2/3) (third fall by DQ) … Mitsugu
Hamanaka b. Tommy Tassos (2-0) (jiu-jitsu) … Husky Bird b. Bill Campbell (14:50) …
(promoter: Cal Herman) … (“good crowd”)
Note: Campbell was from Modesto.

Modesto, California: Friday, March 12, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Dory Detton b. Tommy Tassos (2-0) … Jimmy El Pulpo b. Gust Johnson
(1-0) … Bob Castle b. Mitsugu Hamanaka (14:14) … Jack Purdin and Larry Tillman drew
(20:00) … (promoter: Cal Herman) … (“good crowd”)
Note: Castle was a “claimant to the world’s light heavyweight championship.”

Modesto, California: Friday, April 16, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Dory Detton b. Bob Castle (2/3) … Gust Johnson b. Iron Mike (2/3) …
Rolly Warren b. Jack Campbell (13:58) … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Note: It was said to be Castle’s first loss he’d suffered in “many months at the DAV Arena
and one of the very few he has lost in California.”

Modesto, California: Friday, May 7, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … George Dusette b. Larry Tillman (1-0) (16:45) (Tillman was unable to
continue) (Australian crabhold) … Gust Johnson and The Secret drew (1-1) … Bobby
Coleman and Jack Warren drew (20:00) … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Notes: George Dusette was called “Eddie Dusette,” and was billed as the “world’s light
heavyweight wrestling champion.” He gave an “exhibition of strength.” Warren was from
Kansas City.

Modesto, California: Friday, June 4, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Ike Cazzell b. Danny Russo (2/3) … Art Belcher and Mitsuga Hamanaka
drew (1-1) … Flash Kelly b. Jimmy El Pulpo (9:26) … (promoter: Cal Herman)

*The Thursday, August 5, 1937 edition of the Modesto Bee and News Herald stated that a
tournament started on Friday at the DAV Arena for the “so called light heavyweight
championship of California.” The idea was “conceived and conducted” by Cal Herman, and
the winner was going to be “undisputed California Light Heavyweight wrestling champion.”

Modesto, California: Friday, August 6, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Round Robin Tournament to decide the California Light Heavyweight
Championship … Joe Parelli b. Art Williams (2-0) … Dory Detton b. Jerry Meeker (2-0) …
Danny Russo b. Rod Fenton (2/3) … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Notes: The show was the “first of the so called light heavyweight elimination tournament,”
according to the newspaper.

Modesto, California: Friday, August 20, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Tournament for the California Light Heavyweight Title … Dory Detton b.
Jerry Markus (2/3) … Danny Russo b. Flash Kelly (14:07) (Kelly was unable to continue)
… Joe Parelli b. Buck O’Neill (2/3) … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Notes: Detton, Parelli and Russo were said to be the final three competitors in “Cal
Herman’s” light heavyweight wrestling tournament for the California title. Two of the three
grapplers would wrestle next week and the finals would be staged on September 3, 1937.

Modesto, California: Friday, August 27, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Tournament for the California Light Heavyweight Title … Dory Detton b.
Joe Parelli (2/3) … Danny Russo b. Pat O’Dowdy (2/3) … Ace Abbott and Pete Markus
drew … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Notes: Detton and Russo were finalists in the round robin tournament, and would face
each other next week. The winner would “receive a bronze statuette and will be
recognized, according to Herman, by the state wrestling commission as the light
heavyweight grappling champion.”

Modesto, California: Friday, September 3, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Dory Detton b. Danny Russo in the finals of a tournament to capture the
vacant California State Light Heavyweight Title (2/3) (Detton won the second and third
falls) … Joe Reno b. Buck O’Neill (2/3) … Yaqui Joe b. Mountain Hermit … (promoter: Cal
Herman)
Notes: After the main event, Harry Windus of Modesto presented the new titleholder a
bronze wrestling statuette and Detton was recognized by the state wrestling commission as
champion.

Modesto, California: Friday, September 10, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … California State Light Heavyweight Champion Dory Detton b. Joe Reno
(2/3) … Arjan Singh b. Gus Alex (2-0) … Rod Fenton and Yaqui Joe drew (20:00) … Flash
Kelly b. Ace Abbott (11:27) … (promoter: Cal Herman) … (near capacity crowd)
Notes: Singh was said to be 265 pounds and Alex 235. Yaqui Joe was billed as a Sonoma
Indian.

Modesto, California: Friday, September 17, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Pat O’Dowdy b. Rod Fenton (2/3) … Dory Detton b. Yaqui Joe (1-0) (45:
00) … Joe Parelli and Joe Reno drew (20:00) … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Note: Detton was called the “Modesto champion.” O’Dowdy was called the “Irish Light
Heavyweight grappling champion.”

*The September 29, 1937 edition of the Modesto Bee and News Herald, Pat O’Dowdy and
Joe Parelli were both claimants to the California Light Heavyweight Title. They were going
to wrestle on Friday in Modesto with the winner claiming the championship. Parelli was
recognized in the Bay Area, while O’Dowdy was the Modesto titleholder, having won his
title “last week” from Dory Detton. Pat O’Dowdy was said to be a 15-year veteran.

Modesto, California: Friday, October 1, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Joe Parelli b. Pat O’Dowdy to unify the latter’s claim to the California
State Light Heavyweight Title with his own (2/3) … Al Szasz b. Dory Detton (2/3) … Joe
Reno b. Al Boyd … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Note: Parelli was “awarded the California Light Heavyweight wrestling championship last
night,” the newspaper stated.

Modesto, California: Friday, October 8, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … California State Light Heavyweight Champion Joe Parelli b. Al Szasz
(2/3) … Yaqui Joe b. Cal Cook (2-0) … Dory Detton b. Pat O’Dowdy (2/3) … (promoter:
Cal Herman)
Note: The winner of the main event was challenged by Yaqui Joe.

Modesto, California: Friday, October 29, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Pat O’Dowdy b. Yaqui Joe (2/3) (match was held in six inches of black
mud) … Al Szasz b. Klen Kusel (2-0) … Jack “Bull” Brotona b. Hans Schuman (12:24) …
Ernie Arthur and Roland Warren drew (25:00) … (promoter: Cal Herman) … (referee:
Fred Minden)

Modesto, California: Friday, November 26, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Bobby Burns b. Yaqui Joe (2/3) … Pat O’Dowdy and John Romani drew
(45:00) … Bobby O’Neil b. Ernie Arthur (9:43) … Pancho Camino b. Joe Reno (7:56) …
(promoter: Cal Herman) … (500+ fans)
Note: The O’Dowdy-Romani match was added when the Jumbo Kennedy appearance was
cancelled due to illness. Burns was from Miami.

Modesto, California: Friday, December 3, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Bobby Burns b. Pat O’Dowdy (2/3) (Burns received help from Johnny
Nemanic in the third fall) … Johnny Nemanic b. Pancho Camino (2-0) … Yaqui Joe b. Joe
Reno … Bill “Soldier” Thomas b. Ernie Arthur (10:43) … (promoter: Cal Herman)

Modesto, California: Friday, December 10, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Johnny Nemanic b. Pat O’Dowdy (2/3) (third fall in 12 seconds) … Bobby
Burns b. Buck O’Neill (2/3) … Joe Katen and Arty Williams drew (20:00) … Bill Thomas b.
Yaqui Joe (17:53) … (promoter: Cal Herman)
Notes: Katen was from Gustine and Williams from Modesto.

Modesto, California: Friday, December 17, 1937
(D.A.V. Arena) … Scotty McDonald b. Bobby Burns (2/3) … Mel “Mad” Murdock b. Bill
Thomas (2/3) … Johnny Nemanic and Buck O’Neill drew (20:00) … (promoter: Cal
Herman)
Notes: McDonald was called a “veteran” wrestler. No show next week.

*The December 18, 1937 edition of the Modesto Bee and News Herald stated that the
application for the D.A.V. to promote wrestling matches in Modesto in 1938 was held up
pending an investigation of a growing controvesy. D.A.V. matchmaker Cal Herman
claimed he had a contract with an option clause to continue running shows, if it was
exercised. However. Don Hill, a wrestling promoter in Merced, came to a tentative
agreement with the Modesto D.A.V. to run programs for them. The California State
Athletic Commission, during their Thursday meeting, refused to declare which promoter
would be given approval until all the facts were uncovered.

Research by Tim Hornbaker
December 14, 2007

Modesto Wrestling Results - 1937