*The Thursday, November 3, 1938 edition of the New Orleans Times-Picayune stated that Joe
Gunther was “leading the Southern Junior Heavyweight mat tourney with 11 wins.  The tournament
has but six weeks more to go, as the final night will be Thursday, December 8, when Colonel Harry
W. Landry, president of the National Wrestling Association, will present the ultimate winner with the
gold belt.” Bob Corby was in second place with 9 wins and Art O’Mahoney and Charley Keene
were tied for third with eight wins.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, November 3, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Art O’Mahoney b. Bob Corby (2/3) … Joe Gunther b. Jack Steele (2-0) …
Billy Sandow b. George Bennett … (matchmaker:  Marty Burke)
Note:  Bennett was said to be from Oklahoma.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, November 10, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Joe Gunther b. Mike Nazarian (2/3) (third fall by DQ) … Art O’Mahoney b.
Roy Welch (2/3) … Flash Clifford b. Jack Kogut
Notes:  Welch was said to be from Kentucky and had been “absent from local rings for months.”
Clifford was the “colorful New England light heavyweight champion,” and making his Southern
debut.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, November 17, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Joe Gunther b. Mike Nazarian (2-0) (second fall by DQ) … Art O’Mahoney b.
Tommy Hill (2-0) … Flash Clifford b. Roy Welch … (1,700 fans)

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Friday, November 25, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Art O’Mahoney b. Bob Corby (2/3) … Charley Keene b. Flash Clifford (DQ)
… Larry Schaaf b. Henry Hill

*Three wrestling matches were going to be staged on an amateur boxing card staged by Buck
Dupre on Wednesday, November 30, 1938 at the Star of the Sea Auditorium.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, December 1, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Art O’Mahoney b. Sid Bromberg (2-0) (Bromberg was a substitute for Larry
Schaaf) … Flash Clifford b. Charley Keene (2/3) … Bob Corby b. John Ellis
Notes:  If O’Mahoney was to win tonight, he would move into a tie for first place in the Southern
Junior Heavyweight tournament with Joe Gunther.  If he was to lose, Gunther would win the
championship.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, December 8, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Joe Gunther b. Art O’Mahoney in the finals of a tournament to capture the
Southern Junior Heavyweight Title … Charley Keene vs. Len Stecklin … Flash Clifford vs. Bob
Corby … (matchmaker:  Martin Burke) … (in attendance:  NWA President Col. Harry J. Landry)
Notes:  This show was going to feature the final match of the long-running Southern Junior
Heavyweight Wrestling Tournament that began at the Coliseum Arena last April.  The finalists
were Joe Gunther and Art O’Mahoney.  Burke announced on Saturday, December 3, that National
Wrestling Association President Harry J. Landry was going to be at the program to “present the
winner with a gold belt buckle as an emblem of the championship.” Another report stated that
Landry was going to present the victor with a “belt offered by Martin Burke and Chris Jordan
emblematic of the Southern Junior Heavyweight Title.” While talking to reporters, Landry said that
Everette Marshall was the recognized heavyweight titleholder.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, December 15, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Southern Junior Heavyweight Champion Joe Gunther b. Lem Stecklin …
Sailor Parker b. John Ellis (the semi-final was originaly scheduled to be Art O’Mahoney vs. Ray
Stone) … Flash Clifford b. Charley Keene (DQ) … (matchmaker:  Marty Burke)
Note:  Said to be Gunther’s first defense of his newly won Southern Junior Title.

*On Friday, December 16, 1938 in New Orleans, there was an amateur show at the St. Aloysius
Gymnasium featuring boxing and wrestling matches.  The wrestling bouts included Jeff Albert vs.
George Calongue, Lloyd Broussard vs. Eustace Sherman

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, December 22, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Jack “Flash” Clifford b. Bob Corby (2-0) (finals of a six-man wrestle royal) …
Joe Gunther b. Sid Bromberg (1-0) (Bromberg was unable to continue) … Jack Dillon b. Earl
Malone (2-0)
Note:  Gunther was called the Southern Junior Heavyweight Champion.

New Orleans, Louisiana:  Thursday, December 29, 1938
(Coliseum Arena) … Women’s World Champion Mildred Burke vs. Alice St. Clair … Southern
Junior Heavyweight Champion Joe Gunther vs. Flash Clifford … Leo Jensen vs. Charley Keene
Notes:  The New Orleans Times-Picayune (12/29/1938) stated that Burke was “recognized by the
National Wrestling Association as world’s 135 pound world feminine grappling champion.” St. Clair
was “rated as one of the five ranking contenders by the National Wrestling Association.” Jensen
was making his local debut.

Research by Tim Hornbaker
November 1, 2007
New Orleans Wrestling Results - 1938