Montreal Wrestling Results

Montreal, Quebec: Monday, May 4, 1931
(Mount Royal Arena) … Henri DeGlane b. Ed “Strangler” Lewis to capture the World
Heavyweight Title (2-0) (DeGlane won the first fall by pinfall in 33-minutes, DeGlane won
the second by disqualification) (Lewis was accompanied by Billy Sandow) (referee:
Eugene Tremblay) (after DeGlane had won the first fall, Sandow entered the ring and
protested the decision) (Montreal Athletic Commission Chairman Dr. Gason Demers
stated that Sandow had no license and directed several police officers to take the
manager away from the ring and to the back area) (Lewis was initially awarded the
second fall by pinfall) (DeGlane got up holding his right arm and upon an examination, it
was found that Lewis had bitten him when Henri attempted to lock a headlock on the
defending champion) (referee Tremblay discussed the situation with Demers and
Alderman J.A. LaMarre, and finally disqualified Lewis, awarded DeGlane the
championship) (five doctors checked DeGlane’s wrist, each stating that he had been
seriously hurt) (Sandow issued a challenge to DeGlane immediately after the match) …
Bibber McCoy b. George Vasell (2-0) … Lee Wykoff and George Zarynoff drew (30:00)
… Nick Lutze and Stanley Stasiak drew (45:00) … (promoters: Louis Letourneau, Lucien
Riopel) … (referee: Eugene Tremblay) … (7,500 fans) (new record) … (gate: $10,000+)
Notes: After the match, Billy Sandow and Ed “Strangler” Lewis claimed that the new
champion Henri DeGlane actually bit himself, a move that caused the disqualification of
Lewis. There was a battle over this claim to the World Heavyweight Title between
Sandow and Lewis and Paul Bowser of Boston, and his alligned promoters. Lewis had
literally taken the title from Ed Don George and out of the hands of Bowser in Los
Angeles in April 1931. DeGlane took control of the World Title back, and Lewis and
Sandow were left out in the cold.

*On Tuesday, May 5, 1931, Ed “Strangler” Lewis and Billy Sandow appeared before the
Montreal Athletic Commission, posting a $500 cash deposit for a return match with Henri
DeGlane. Lewis stated that the commission could give any or all of his purse to charity,
win, lose or draw. Lewis also stated that he had defeated DeGlane in Los Angeles in two-
straight falls in less than 50-minutes, and wanted to convince the people of Montreal that
he was the better man. Lewis also said that the first fall of his match with DeGlane was
handled improperly, as his shoulders were not down on the mat for three seconds.

“Lewis never bit anyone,” asserted Billy Sandow, his manager. “If DeGlane was bitten –
and your physicians say he was, so we accept that statement – then he bit himself. That
is an old, old circus wrestling trick, practiced in Europe for years and resorted to often by
wrestlers to gain disqualification of an opponent when wrestlers are meeting all comers.
Your police department could easily establish who did the biting by photographing the
bite marks and having a cast made of the jaws of Lewis and DeGlane to see which fits the
marks. Then it would be known.” – The Montreal Gazette, Wednesday, May 6, 1931

Montreal, Quebec: Monday, May 11, 1931
(Mount Royal Arena) … Ed Don George b. Pat McGill (2/3) … Lee Wykoff b. “Sailor” Jack
Arnold (29:00) … Raoul Simon b. Axel Andreason (10:00) … Art Davis and Albert
Beaucaire drew (20:00) … (promoters: Louis Letourneau, Lucien Riopel) … (5,000 fans)
Notes: Lee Wykoff was billed as a “former University of St. Louis athlete.” The show
marked Ed Don George’s Montreal debut. It marked the sixth show of the current season
for the Riopel-Letourneau syndicate. Andreason was billed as being from Worcester,
Massachusetts.

Quebec City, Quebec: Tuesday, May 12, 1931
(Quebec Arena) … Ed Don George b. Lee Wykoff (2/3) … Raoul Simon b. Jack
Lawrence (9:40) … Alex Anderson b. Bill Arnold (2/3) (Arnold was a substitute for George
Vassell, who failed to appear and was suspended by the Quebec Athletic Commission) …
(3,500 fans)
Note: The spelling of “Anderson” differed between reports. It was seen as Anderson and
Andreason.

Montreal, Quebec: Monday, May 18, 1931
(Mount Royal Arena) … Stanley Stasiak b. Pat McGill (2/3) (third fall by DQ) … Frank
Judson and George McLeod drew (60:00) … Raoul Simon b. Frank Yusko (11:55) …
Paul Gaudette b. Ted Bell (15:35) … (promoters: Louis Letourneau, Lucien Riopel) …
(referee: Eugene Trembley)

*The Thursday, May 21, 1931 edition of the Montreal Gazette reported that a new faction
may be invading Montreal to promote wrestling. Alex Moore, a promoter for the Canadian
Hockey Club, was going to run the Montreal Forum with wrestlers from the Jim Londos
troupe. Promoters Louis Letourneau and Lucien Riopel planned outdoor programs at
the Montreal Stadium during the summer, and were soundly affiliated with the Paul
Bowser organization.

Montreal, Quebec: Monday, May 25, 1931
(Mount Royal Arena) … George Zarynoff b. Cyclone Reese (2/3) (Zarynoff earned a title
match with Henri DeGlane) … Andre Adoree b. Axel Andreason (32:55) … Dan Petroff b.
Raoul Simon (14:30) (Simon was originally slated to wrestle John Grandovich, who was
injured an unable to appear) (Boris Shevchenko was booked in place of Grandovich
originally, but replaced by Dan Petroff of St. Louis) … Joe DeVito and Jim Maloney drew
(20:00) … Paul Gaudette and Paul Lebrun drew (20:00) … (promoters: Louis
Letourneau, Lucien Riopel)
Notes: It was reported that Hungarian wrestling champion Mihaly Orgovanyi had arrived
in New York by the Homerie. Orgovanyi was billed as a challenger for Jim Londos. He
stood 6’1” and weighed 212. According to the Montreal Gazette (5/21/1931), he “won
tournaments in Vienna, Paris and Berlin. Among the well known wrestlers he has
defeated who are now in America is Sandor Szabo. His record to date is something like
400 victories without a defeat.” The newspaper stated that Andre Adoree also wrestles
under the name Al Baffert.

Montreal, Quebec: Monday, June 1, 1931
(Mount Royal Arena) … World Heavyweight Champion Henri DeGlane vs. George
Zarynoff (2/3) … Abie Kaplan vs. Nick Lutze … “Sailor” Jack Arnold vs. Al Mercier …
Einar Johannessen vs. Dan Petroff … Ted Bell vs. Willie Bourque … (promoters: Louis
Letourneau, Lucien Riopel)
Notes: It was reported that Henri DeGlane suffered from a “rather serious illness” after
winning the championship from Ed Lewis. A second report stated that DeGlane “spent
some time in hospital in Boston recovering from an injured arm.”

Montreal, Quebec: June 26, 1931
(Montreal Forum) … World Heavyweight Champion Jim Londos vs. (winner of Mike
Romano-Ray Steele match) … (promoter: Alex Moore)

Montreal, Quebec: Friday, June 26, 1931
( ) … Dick Shikat b. Frank Brunowicz (2-0)

Research by Tim Hornbaker
September 16, 2010

Montreal Wrestling Results - 1931