Des Moines Wrestling Results

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, June 9, 1943
(Riverview Park) … Jim Londos b. Tom Zaharias (2-0) (Zaharias forfeitted the second fall,
claiming he injured his knee) … “Junior Heavyweight Champion” Ken Fenelon b. Bill Dusen (2-0)
… Ronnie Etchison b. Bad Boy Brown (15:00) … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (several hundred
fans)
Notes: First show of the outdoor season. Pinkie George “has been relived from active duty with
the Iowa state guard at Camp Dodge,” the Des Moines Register stated. The paper stated
“Londos has not been as active in recent years as he was when he held the world championship,
but has been wrestling once a month with success.” Londos “last appeared in Des Moines in
1935 when he defeated Lou Plummer in two straight falls.” Fenelon “claims the Iowa heavyweight
crown by virtue of a victory over Gene Bowman in a state elimination tourney here last summer.”
He was also a “junior heavyweight title claimant.” Dusen was from Otterville, Missouri.

Des Moines, Iowa: Thursday, June 17, 1943
(Riverview Park) … NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ede Virag b. Ras Samara (2-0) (Samara
was unable to continue for the second fall after suffering an injured neck) … World Junior
Heavyweight Champion Ken Fenelon b. Jack Conley (2-0) (second fall by DQ) (Conley was a
substitute for Red Ryan) … Jimmy Lee b. Johnny Seals … (promoter: Pinkie George) …
(referee: Alex Fidler) … (1,000+ fans)
Notes: The Des Moines Register stated that “Ed Virag, who, according to promoter George, is
the current world’s heavyweight champion recognized by the National Wrestling Alliance.”
Samara was the Negro champion. “Virag, a Hungarian forced to flee Nazi-occupied Europe, now
makes his home in Wichita, Kan. A winner in tournaments at Philadelphia, Penn., and
Minneapolis., Virag failed to receive recognition until this year.” Virag was “handled” by Max
Bauman and this was his first appearance in De Moines. Bauman “jointly shared the piloting of
Ed (Strangler) Lewis, the former champion, with Billy Sandow, a brother of Bauman.” Jimmy Lee
was a “stablemate of Fenelon.” Samara, reportedly, went to Broadlawns hospital for
“observation,” but was released.

Des Moines, Iowa: Thursday, June 24, 1943
(Riverview Park) … Ras Samara b. Jack Conley (2-0) … Bill Kuusisto and Jimmy Lee drew (45:
00) (1-1) … Johnny Seals b. Bill Dusen (DQ) (18:00) … (promoter: Pinkie George)
Notes: Kuusisto was making his local debut and was said to be being “groomed by Tony Stecher
as a possible title contender.” Stecher “already has had two former champions, one Bronko
Nagurski, who has appeared here.” Lee was from Dubuque.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, June 30, 1943
(Riverview Park) … Bill Kuusisto vs. Ras Samara (2/3) … George Pevich vs. Tom Zaharias (2/3)
… Joe Adelman vs. Jimmy Lee … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Al Caddell)
Notes: Adelman was a Jewish wrestler from Kansas City. Caddell was a “former wrestler” and
now a member of the Des Moines police force. Pevich was from Chicago.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 4, 1943
(Riverview Park) … NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ede Virag and Ivan John Grandovich
drew (60:00) (1-1) … World Junior Heavyweight Champion Ken Fenelon b. Ras Samara (2/3) …
Jack Conley b. Bill Dusen (dec., 30:00) … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Johnny
Seals) … (capacity crowd)
Notes: The Des Moines Register (8/1/43) stated “Ed Virag, the National Wrestling Alliance’s
heavyweight champion, and Ken Fenelon, acknowledged by the same body as the junior
heavyweight titleholder.”

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 18, 1943
(Riverview Park) … NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ede Virag vs. Ivan John Grandovich …
Ras Samara b. Johnny Seals (2-0) … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Pat McGill)

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 25, 1943
(Riverview Park) … Ivan John Grandovich b. Ras Samara (2-0) … Emil Dusek b. Bill Dusen (2-0)
… Johnny Seals b. Frankie Cutler (forfeit) … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Pat McGill)
… (3,000 fans)
Notes: Cutler was said to be from the Ottumwa Naval Airbase. He missed a train connection and
failed to show.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 1, 1943
(Riverview Park) … Ed “Strangler” Lewis b. Emil Dusek (2/3) … Frank Cutler b. Chuck Mall (2-0)
… Johnny Seals b. Bill Dusen … (promoter: Pinkie George) .. (referee: Pat McGill) … (large
crowd)
Notes: Final outdoor show of the season. Next week, wrestling would be at the Shrine
Auditorium. Lewis weighed around 265 pounds, the paper reported. Mall was said to be from
Kansas City.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 8, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Boxing and Wrestling Show … Pug Wilson b. Duke Owens (TKO) (fifth
round of boxing match) … Tom Zaharias b. Ivan Grandovich (2/3) … Frankie Cutler b. Ronnie
Etchison (2/3) … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Alex Fidler)

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 15, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Mae Weston b. Elviry Snodgrass (2/3) … Gladys Gillem b. Mae Young (2-
0) … Ralph Garibaldi b. Johnny Seals … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Al Gold)
Note: Gold was from Waterloo.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 22, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Mae Weston b. Elviry Snodgrass (2/3) … Gladys Gillem (Gillum) b. Rose
Evans (2-0) … Fred Blassie and Ralph Garibaldi drew (30:00) … (promoter: Pinkie George) …
(referee: Joe Kretchey)
Notes: Blassie was in the Navy from Lambert Field in St. Louis. Evans was from Louisville.
Kretchey was from Omaha.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 29, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Women’s World Champion Mildred Burke b. Mae Weston (2-0) … Fred
Blassie b. Ralph Garibaldi (2-0) … Elviry Snodgrass b. Blondie Young… (promoter: Pinkie
George) … (referee: Jack Lamphere) … (large crowd)
Note: Young was from Kansas City.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 6, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Ras Samara b. Chief Little Bear (2-0) … Ivan Grandovich b. Frankie
Cutler (1-0) (Cutler was unable to continue) … Ray Steele b. Fred Blassie (2-0) … (promoter:
Pinkie George)
Note: Chief Little Bear was from Santa Fe, New Mexico, yet another report said he was from
Phoenix.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 13, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Frankie Cutler b. Ivan Grandovich (2/3) (mixed wrestling and judo bout)
… Ras Samara b. Bill Dusen (2-0) … Johnny Seals b. Chief Little Bear (Seals was a substitute
for Carlos Rodriguez) … (promoter: Pinkie George)
Notes: Dusen was from Ottawa, Kansas. Cutler was a “judo expert.”

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 20, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Ras Samara b. Ivan Grandovich (2/3) (third fall by DQ) … Frankie Cutler
b. Fred Blassie (2/3) (straight judo match) … Johnny Seals b. Dan McBride … (promoter: Pinkie
George) … (referee: Pat McGill)
Notes: The Des Moines Register stated that Carlos Rodriguez “just recently received his
citizenship papers and has enlsited in the army” earlier that week. Rodriguez was originally
booked to wrestle Johnny Seals. McBride was from Omaha. No show next week due to an
Eastern Star grand chapter session.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, November 3, 1943
(Shrine Auditorium) … Tony Galento b. Fred Blassie (knock out in the third) (three-round
exhibition) … NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ray Steele b. Ivan Grandovich (1-0)
(Grandovich was unable to continue) … Earl Wampler b. Ras Samara (1-0) (45:00) … Sergeant
Russ Fujino and Private T. Yano put on an exhibition of judo and rifles with bayonets …
(promoter: Pinkie George) … (3,000 fans)
Notes: The Des Moines Register stated that Blassie was a “former Missouri Golden Glove boxer
and is said to teach boxing among his duties at the naval station.” Steele was called the world
heavyweight champion. Fujino and Yano were from Fort Des Moines army post. The Galento-
Blassie bout was initially billed as a 10-round boxing match, but the National Boxing Association
ruled that all of Galento’s ring affairs be listed as exhibitions.

*On Tuesday, November 23, 1943, promoter Pinkie George announced that there would be no
more wrestling programs in Des Moines until after January 1, 1944.

Research by Tim Hornbaker
December 4, 2007

Des Moines Wrestling Results - 1943