From what I know of this site Hack would take some beating when it comes to Independent shows. I often went and at the time I found most shows a bit below the Belle Vue Atmoshpere.
Now I look back nostalgically at those days and am so glad I went to see these guys. I have a lot of good memories of Jack Cassidy shows and for his efforts I hold him in high esteem and he also seems to have had an interesting career. I know probably the top promoter was Paul Lincoln but there are lots of other questions,
Did you have a favorite. Mine has to be Jack.
The million dollar question is which wrestlers and who was the most well known wrestler NEVER or almost NEVER to have worked for joint promotions.
It's amazing that over the years most got a taste.
The man that springs to mind for me I believe had a try out with Joint , but I am not sure if that was training or if he was booked. (Lord Bertie Topham)
I bet Hack can throw a few in.
What about the bills as well , were they not the most outrageous billing
What did you like about the Independents?
And credit to Manchester, producing a cowboy and an Indian.
Let's give Willie some credibility , here he is.
What a load of tosh.....Has killed two men in the ring.
Here you are guys
At a wrestling show in Kilkenny ‘Roughhouse Jack Martin’ takes on Seán O’Shea. Can this spectacle be called sport or is it actually some sort of choreographed torture? Wrestler ‘Wollongong Willie’ explains it is indeed a sport, bound to a set of strict rules and regulations.
Does anyone know who was "Woolagong Willie" ?
Morecambe Guardian that one , I notice he also boxed a lot at Preston. Often billed out of Salford.
I have looked through some of the Salford clubs for his brother wrestling. Thought he might have shown up at the Devonshire in Broughton , but no luck.
Man Mountain was often Bill Benny but in wrestling other people copy the ideas. But was Mark a really big guy , I ask because as a boxer , your granddad seems to be a ten stoner , but of course it is possible for brothers to be vastly different.
This might be a turn up for the books but Gregory Peck is claimed to be Young Vulcan:
Beckie , your grandfather really was famous. I can see him on boxing bills from about 1926. Pro Wrestling only started here in December 1930 and in February 1931 I have a unique bill where Boxing and Wrestling was combined. Your Grandfather is on the boxing.
He was from Salford, yes my first post. I know a lot about my grandfather he was famous in the North West as a Boxer. He did do some wrestling, but boxing was him. His younger brother Mark tried to live up to his hero brother, but never made it big, I know Mark wrestled in clubs and fairgrounds in the north west but I cannot find any information on him
Mark Kenyon , if it is the right man, made the papers in 1949 for breaking into a factory in Broughton and got sent down for a year.
It was reported that Mark Edward Kenyon was 31 although I make him born 1917 in Manchester.
He was sentenced at Bolton and the report did state that he boxed and wrestled in Fairgrounds.
I don't recall the name Beckie. Where was he from? It's good to have you making your first post. Stay around.
Hi Phil My Grand father was a professional Boxer in the 1920’s & 30’s his boxing name was Al Kenny. His name was Albert Kenyon. He had a brother Mark Kenyon who use to Wrestle but I don’t think he done it professional
Beckie
No pretence on 2nd October Ron. Diabolical.
That's quite a diet of Ian St John. He was a heavyweight on Thursday and lightweight on Friday. He couldn't have been more than 11 stones. Very fast. Did some work for Joint, I'm surprised he didn't make it.
Yes Hack and this promoter didn't give a fig for his fraudulent antics.
After letting down the people at one venue he moved on with this tour and here i find him doing it again.....TWICE
I couldn't agree more with Ron about some of the independents letting themselves down with misleading or even fraudulent promoting. You all know I'm the champions of the independents and argue their corner, but there was no excuse for misleading advertising. It wouldn't have been so bad if it had only been a few villains, but some of the better ones did it too. My local promoter put on some great bills, every bit as good as Joint, with Saint, Dempsey, Marino, Bartelli, Campbell as well as greats usually associated with the independents Klondykes, Pyes, Wildman of Borneo, St John, Ingleburgh. But they weren't averse to a bit of Nick McManners. I enjoyed Buddy Rogers, but he was no famous American, Earl McCready was talented, but no former world champion and tv star, Whipper Watson didn't do a lot of whipping.
Hi Tom H. Charlie Scott did work for Joint. He was at Newcastle a few times.
I went to the Merry Fiddlers a few times in the early 1960's and was told on this site that the promoter was Mrs Assiratti.
I know that Bert was on there pretty often at that time.Probably after he left Joint.
Moving on to another dimension of the Independents , what really let them down from time to time was Fraudulent Promoting. I once fell for this by going to see "Son of two Rivers" only to be very let down by the scam.
In the example below and looking at the roster , there was no way ever that Mick Mcmanus was going to turn up. From a legal standpoint it was another Mick advertised as he was MacManus.
Although in Ireland the promoter was from Manchester.
I saw Jimmy Lewis about that time Bernard and he was still around welterweight. Of course we don't know who Dr Death was and the independents could disregard the weights.
I was looking at the bill for 12th march 1968 from edgewick town hall and it truck me that Lewis must have put a lot of weight on later in his career to take on Dr Death.
I saw Lewis on with Bernard Murray and he was generally on with welterweights.
Saw Mir Zaffer Ealam, Reg Ray and Arthur Ricardo, the latter countless times, at Newcastle which was Morrell promotions - 100% Joint. Saw Ray and Ricardo on TV as well.
I only saw Charlie Scott wrestle, when he wore a mask as the Great Bula apparently he was known as the Tyneside Terror he was a big powerful wrestler. I don't know if he ever worked for Joint Promotions.