Des Moines Wrestling Results

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, July 1, 1942
(Riverview Park) … World Heavyweight Champion Orville Brown b. Ray Steele (2-0) … Tom
Zaharias b. Carlos Rodriquez (2-0) … Jack Kennedy and Cowboy Luttrall drew (30:00) …
(promoter: Paul “Pinkie” George) … (referee: Jack Dillon)
Note: Steele was called a “stablemate of Bill Longson, the National Wrestling Association’s
champion.” Brown was “recognized by the Midwest Wrestling Association as its world champion,”
according to the Des Moines Register.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, July 8, 1942
(Riverview Park) … World Heavyweight Champion Orville Brown b. Tom Zaharias (2/3)
(Zaharias won the first fall, Brown won the second and then the third) (Zaharias was
accompanied by his brother Babe) … Jack Kennedy b. Cowboy Luttrall (2/3) … Gene Bowman
and Babe Zaharias drew (30:00) … (promoter: Paul “Pinkie” George)

*On Wednesday, July 15, 1942, Des Moines promoter Paul “Pinkie” George announced that he
had signed a match between Bill Longson and Orville Brown. Longson was recognized as the
National Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Champion and Brown was recognized by the
Midwest Wrestling Association as champion. George announced that the winner would be
recognized as the undisputed titleholder.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, July 15, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Gene Bowman b. Earl Wampler to capture the Iowa State Heavyweight Title
(2/3) … Babe Zaharias b. Cowboy Luttrall (2/3) … Jack Kennedy and Tom Zaharias drew …
(promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Carlos Rodriguez)
Notes: Wampler was a private in the United States Marine Corps. Bowman was from Des
Moines.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, July 22, 1942
(Riverview Park) … NWA World Heavyweight Champion Bill Longson b. Orville Brown to capture
the latter’s claim to the World Heavyweight Title (2/3) … Gene Bowman b. Jack Kennedy …
Babe Zaharias b. Don McIntyre … Cowboy Luttrall and Hans Schultz drew … (promoter: Pinkie
George) … (referee: Bill Nelson) … (2,000 fans)
Notes: This was reportedly Longson’s first match in Des Moines. “Longson defeated Sandor
Szabor (sic) for the National Wrestling Association title last fall,” according to the newspaper.
“Brown, well known here, gained his recognized from the Midwest Wrestling Association by
pinning Leo Wyckoff (sic) in 1940.” The finish caused a near riot.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, July 29, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Gene Bowman b. Babe Zaharias in the finals of a six-man wrestle royal …
Joe Dusek b. Carlos Rodriquez … Johnny Seals b. Hans Schultz (DQ) … (promoter: Pinkie
George) … (referee: Harry Caddell)
Notes: This was said to be the second wrestle royal ever in Des Moines, and the first was won
by “John Bartush of Chicago.” The winner of the event was going to win $250.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 5, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Iowa State Heavyweight Champion Gene Bowman b. Jay Steele (2-0) …
Emil Dusek b. Babe Zaharias (2-0) … Joe Dusek and Hans Schultz drew … (promoter: Pinkie
George) … (matchmaker: Harry Caddell) … (corporation: Sports Enterprises, Inc.)
Notes: This was Bowman’s first defense of the championship. Steele was from Centerville, Iowa
and recently returned from British Columbia.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 12, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Orville Brown b. Wladek Zbyszko (2-0) (Zbyszko was unable to continue for
the second fall after suffering a left knee injury) … Tom Zaharias b. Gene Bowman (2/3) (non-
title match) … Hans Schultz b. Johnny Seals (13:32) … (promoter: Pinkie George)
Notes: Zbyszko “returned to the United States from his homeland a few days before the
German army marched into Poland, will bring back to Des Moines the type of wrestling which
attracted record size crowds of 10,000 and more in the Earl Caddock days,” according to the
Des Moines Register. Bowman’s Iowa State Title was not on the line in his bout with Zaharias
because the latter was a “nonresident of Iowa.”

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 19, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Iowa State Heavyweight Champion Gene Bowman b. Ken Fenelon (2/3) …
Emil Dusek b. Hans Schultz (2-0) … Joe Dusek b. Bad Boy Brown … (promoter: Pinkie George)
Notes: Fenelon was a former Dubuque University wrestler. Brown was from Chicago and
Schultz from New York.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, August 26, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Ken Fenelon b. Johnny Carlin to capture the World Light Heavyweight Title
(2-0) … Gene Bowman and Emil Dusek were both counted out … Joe Dusek b. Duke
Kotsonaros … Hans Schultz b. Rudy LaDitzi … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Harry
Caddell) … (benefit for the Iowa Sports War Relief Fund, adding $155.19) … (gross receipts:
$322.45)
Notes: The wrestlers only worked for “their bare expenses,” which was $135 in total. Carlin was
said to be from Fresno, California. It was stated that Carlin weighed 190 or 195 pounsd and
that Fenelon weighed “slightly less than that.” The paper indicated that “it seems that 175
pounds is no longer the light-heavyweight limit in professional wrestling.” It was called an “old
fashioned wrestling match.” Kotsonaros was from Minneapolis.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 2, 1942
(Riverview Park) … Iowa State Heavyweight Champion Gene Bowman vs. Emil Dusek (2/3) …
Joe Dusek vs. Rudy LaDitzi (2/3) … Hassa Baba vs. Johnny Seals … (promoter: Pinkie George)
… (matchmaker: Harry Caddell)
Notes: This marked the close of the outdoor season. Hassa Baba was said to be the “brother
of Ali Baba,” and was from Philadelphia. Because of rain, this show was cancelled. Next week’s
program would be held at the Coliseum.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 9, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Maurice Tillet b. Joe Dusek (2/3) … Iowa State Heavyweight Champion Gene
Bowman and Emil Dusek drew (60:00) (1-1) … Billy Bartush b. Rudy LaDitzi (DQ) … (promoter:
Pinkie George) … (referee: Jack Lamphere)
Notes: LaDitzi bit Bartush on several occasions, and when the former refused to release an
illegal hold, the referee bit him.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 16, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Emil Dusek b. Iowa State Heavyweight Champion Gene Bowman (Bowman
was unable to continue after suffering a shoulder injury) (non-title match) … World Light
Heavyweight Champion Ken Fenelon b. Leo Morten (2-0) … Rudy LaDitzi b. Al Caddell …
(promoter: Pinkie George)
Notes: Al Caddell was a “Fayetteville, N.C., policeman.” The newspaper stated that when
Fenelon beat Carlin, “Carlin was at that time recognized as the National Wrestling Association’s
175-pound champion.” Leo Morten was from Tulsa.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 23, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Elvira Snodgrass b. Dorothy Rutledge (2/3) … Gladys “Killem” Gillem b. Mae
Young (10:00) … Elmer Snodgrass b. Big Boy Adams (8:00) (Adams was a substitute for Rudy
LaDitzi) … Al Caddell and Johnny Seals drew (15:00) … (promoter: Pinkie George) …
(referee: Jack Lamphere) … (4,000 fans)
Notes: Rutledge was from Chicago and the Snodgrasses were from Smokemount, Tennessee.
Elvira Snodgrass reportedly “attracted the largest crowd of modern wrestling in Des Moines,”
according to Pinkie George. Lamphere was from Boone, Iowa. Caddell was now from Des
Moines, as was Big Boy Adams. Gillem was from Houston and Young from Tulsa.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, September 30, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Ed “Strangler” Lewis b. Emil Dusek (2/3) … Elviry Snodgrass b. Gladys
Gillem (2-0) … Joe Dusek b. Elmer Snodgrass … Dorothy Rutledge b. Mae Young …
(promoter: Pinkie George) … (3,500 fans)

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 7, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Women’s World Champion Mildred Burke b. Elviry Snodgrass (2-0) … World
Light Heavyweight Champion Ken Fenelon b. Al Caddell (2-0) … Dorothy Rutledge b. Gladys
Gillum … The Masked Lone Wolfe b. Elmer Snodgrass … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (2,500
fans)

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 14, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Iowa State Heavyweight Champion Gene Bowman b. Emil Dusek (2-0) … Ras
Samara b. Alf Johnson (2/3) … Al Caddell b. Joe Dusek (DQ) … (promoter: Pinkie George) …
(referees: Ralph Adams, Jack Lamphere)
Notes: Bowman suffered an injured shoulder in his last bout with Emil Dusek and “since then,
the Iowa heavyweight titleholder has been recuperating in a Denver, Colo., resort.” Samara was
the “world’s Negro champion.” Samara “recently returned from a successful invasion of South
Africa.” Another report stated that Samara “fought in the Ethiopian war” and successfully
defended his title during his tour of South Africa. Alf Johnson was a heavyweight from
Minneapolis.

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 21, 1942
(The Coliseum) … Ed “Strangler” Lewis b. Joe Dusek (2/3) … Iowa State Heavyweight
Champion Gene Bowman and World Light Heavyweight Champion Ken Fenelon were both
counted out … Al Caddell b. Hans Schultz … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referees: Jack
Lamphere, Hans Schultz) … (2,500 fans)

Des Moines, Iowa: Wednesday, October 28, 1942
(The Coliseum) … World Light Heavyweight Champion Ken Fenelon b. Gene Bowman to
capture the Iowa State Heavyweight Title (2-0) … Orville Brown and Emil Dusek drew (60:00) …
Al Caddell b. Bad Boy Brown (22:23) … (promoter: Pinkie George) … (referee: Alex Fidler)
Notes: Fidler was from Cedar Rapids. After a several week hiatus, wrestling was going to
continue at the Shrine Auditorium.

Des Moines, Iowa: November 18, 1942
(Shrine Auditorium) … Orville Brown b. Ed “Strangler” Lewis (2/3) … Ken Fenelon b. Nick Elitch
(2-0) … Ronnie Etchison b. Bad Boy Brown … (promoter: Pinkie George)

Research by Tim Hornbaker
December 4, 2007

Des Moines Wrestling Results - 1942