Rise of a Star

[Old School Fan]

AGWA TV taping @ Anaheim Convention Center Arena
August 27, 1968 - Anaheim, California
Attendance - 6,712

Aired the weekend of August 31, 1968 on AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling:

Dark match

Lucille Dupree defeated Samantha Sheridan by pinfall.

Sally Vega defeated Yolanda Ruiz* by pinfall following a dropkick.

Jan Vallow defeated Jackie Long by pinfall following a bodyslam and legdrop.

Baby Rocco made short work of Sylvia Hackney when she pinned Hackney following a big splash.  Rocco then called for the arena microphone following the match and again began demanding better competition, vowing to make an example of someone in the locker room if she did not get what she wanted.

Judy Arnold defeated Kim Blanchard by pinfall following a sunset flip.

AGWA United States Tag Team Championship

Renée Martel & Claire Lepage recruited Joyce Fowler to neutralize the presence of "The Queen" Mae Young as they defeated Young's tandem of Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson (C) to win the title, two falls to one.

⦁    First fall - Syverson pinned Lepage following an airplane spin.
⦁    Second fall - Lepage evened the match by pinning Syverson following a flying clothesline off the second turnbuckle.  As Martel and Lepage were getting their arms raised in victory for winning the fall, a mysterious masked figure - possibly the same woman who had attacked Renée during the Mildred Burke Invitational Tournament back in January - came out of the crowd, ran into the ring and blindsided Martel with a blow to the back, clocked Lepage with a forearm shot when Lepage tried to intervene, then viciously stomped on the fallen Martel several times before attempting to run out and back into the crowd to escape, but the masked woman's escape attempt was cut short when Fowler dashed up to her, caught her from behind and took her down to the arena floor while holding on to her.  Despite the stiff hits they took from the masked woman, Martel and Lepage then came out to ringside to help Fowler subdue the mystery figure, who put up a fight to try to free herself from the babyface trio's grasp before Earlene Brown, who had been watching the match from the staging area between the locker rooms and the aisle to the ring, ran out to help Martel, Lepage and Fowler get the masked woman under control and hauled her back to the locker room area to be held for arena security.**
⦁    Third fall - When the bell rang to start the fall, Martel and Lepage were not back in the ring yet as they were still backstage helping deal with the masked intruder, so Young insisted that the referee start counting to 20 in the hopes that Hardman and Syverson would retain their title by countout, but Martel and Lepage, with Fowler accompanying them, dashed back to the ring in time to beat the count as a brawl broke out between the two teams the moment the Canadian challengers made it in.  Late in the fall, as Lepage and Syverson were fighting around ringside, Renée knocked Hardman to the mat with a flying forearm smash, then got her opponent into position and applied the Alligator Clutch; Young attempted to interfere, but Fowler cut her off and chased her around ringside.  With no nick-of-time help coming for her, Hardman submitted to the Alligator Clutch, giving the match - and the United States Tag Team title - to Martel and Lepage as the crowd celebrated with cheers while Fowler joined the new champions in the celebration.

Aired the weekend of September 7, 1968 on AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling:

Dark match

Panama Franco defeated Jane Travis by pinfall following a knee drop.

Japanese star and former NWA World Women's Champion Yukiko Tomoe came to the United States to seek out competition in the AGWA, getting her first opponent there in the form of brash rookie heel Ashley Sinclair.  During the introductions, Sinclair tried strutting her stuff as well as getting in Tomoe's face and bragging that she would leave the match the victor, but her braggadocio ended up in vain as Tomoe used a backslide pin to get a quick win over her in 42 seconds.

Jane Sherill & Patty O'Hara defeated Linda Terrell & Margo Vincent when Sherill pinned Terrell following a double kick to the stomach by Sherill and O'Hara.

Earlene Brown defeated Margot Bouchard (with Mae Young) by disqualification when Young ran in and stomped Brown on the upper back as she had Bouchard pinned after a big splash.  Post-match, Brown got back up and confronted Young about her interference, then grabbed the manager and looked ready to give her a beatdown when suddenly, Baby Rocco ran out to the ring, blindsided Brown and felled her with several sledgehammer-like blows to the back while Bouchard slowly got to her feet.  With direction by Young, Rocco threw the referee through the ropes to the floor while Bouchard dragged the fallen Brown by her ankles to a selected spot on the mat and then, as Young held down Brown by the ankles, Rocco began rebounding off the ropes and, aided by Bouchard pushing down on her while in midair, delivered three consecutive big splashes to Brown before the heels cleared out from the ring the moment the cavalry arrived (in the forms of Renée Martel, Claire Lepage, Joan Weston, Joyce Fowler and Judy Arnold) to make the save for Brown, who then had to be taken from the ring on a stretcher due to potential injury.

AGWA Television Championship***

Joyce Fowler solidified her independence from the Fabulous Moolah as she defeated Georgia Hase (C) (with Mae Young) to win the title when Fowler leveled Hase with a high knee on the rebound from the ropes and quickly went for the pin before Young could get in the ring.

Post-taping dark match
NWA North American Women's Championship

Joan Weston (C) defeated Tonette Kadrmas by pinfall following a shoulderbreaker.

 

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

* Enhancement talent created for this diary.

** What happens during the break between taping the two shows in the aftermath of the attack on Renée by the masked intruder will be covered in an upcoming chapter.

*** The AGWA TV title passed from Diane Syverson to Sally Vega in May, then to Georgia Hase in June after a one-month reign by Vega.

 

[Old School Fan]

Soon after the conclusion of their tag team match against Shirley Hardman and Diane Syverson, Renée Martel and Claire Lepage, joined by Joyce Fowler, arrived in the backstage area, with Renée clearly on a mission at that point.  "Alright, where is she?" a clearly displeased Renée said the moment she rounded a corner into the hallway where the locker rooms were.  "I wanna find out who tried to put the boots to me again!"

"Over here!" Michèle Richard called from another part of the hallway, where she, Earlene Brown, Mildred Burke and a member of arena security were standing while the masked woman who had attacked Renée earlier was now tied up in a chair, cursing up a storm while struggling to get out of her restraints.

"Wait, I can understand wanting to keep her from getting away," Renée said as she, Claire and Joyce approached the group, "but why keep her tied up?"

"Y'all just answered your own question," Earlene replied.  "She was fightin' like a wildcat to get away, so we had to tie her in the chair to keep her in one place."

"And we wanted to wait until after your match was done so you could see and confront who attacked you earlier," Mildred said.  "I'm suspecting it's the same attacker who Fabulous Moolah sent after you back in January and tried to take you out of the tournament then."

"You don't know what you're talking about!" the masked woman snapped at everyone present.  "I don't know this Moolah and I've never met her!"

A hint of recognition came to Joyce the moment she heard the masked woman's voice, as she then whispered something to Renée while pointing to the assailant.  "Oh, really?" Renée then said as she turned to the masked woman.  "Then let's find out if you're telling the truth," she added as she started toward the mystery figure, eyeing her mask with the intent of removing it.

"Don't you touch me, b*tch!" the masked woman snapped again as, despite the rope keeping her tied in the chair, she lashed out and kicked Renée in her left shin, causing her to squeal in pain for a moment.

"Why, you dirty--" Renée, now angry over the kick, snarled as she attempted to lunge at the masked woman, but Michèle, sensing what her friend had in mind, jumped in and joined Joyce and Claire in trying to restrain Renée, while the masked woman renewed her efforts to try to free herself from the rope tying her to the chair, leading Earlene and the security guard to restrain her themselves.

"Don't worry, Renée, I got this," Michèle said to her friend before turning back to the masked woman.  "Do that again and I'll knock you right on your ass myself, comprendez-vous?" she sternly warned the assailant as she got right in her face and pointed a finger at her.  "Now settle down!"

"Alright, let's find out who you really are," Mildred then said as she started to take the mask off of the masked woman - who, even then, tried to resist the attempt, but the veteran wrestler-turned trainer and promoter was having none of it as she successfully removed the mask.  Renée and Joyce both gasped when they saw who was under the mask.

"I knew I recognized her as soon as I heard her speak," Joyce said, recognizing the now-unmasked woman as a familiar face.  "She wrestles as the Spider for Fabulous Moolah!  The last time I saw her was at Moolah's tournament in San Diego back in February."

"And we both know her too, Mildred," Renée joined in.  "That's Yvonne, the girl that was part of my training class at your school back in 1964!"

"So y'all know her from way back?" Earlene said.

"Yeah, we do," Margo Vincent, one of the AGWA's group of enhancement talents who had just joined in on the conversation the moment she also recognized a familiar face from the past, then said.  "I was in that same class then and Yvonne was the class bully there - she gave some of the other girls in the class a hard time, but she especially had it in for Renée - why, I never really knew, unless it was from envy or something."

"Like hell I did!" Yvonne shot back.  "Her first day there, she couldn't even get around without tripping over her own two left feet!"

"Only because you were the one doing the tripping against her," Margo retorted.

"And she tried to make me look bad in the ring!" Yvonne said next, still trying to play the "victim".

"Uhh...no," Mildred then countered.  "As I remember, Yvonne, you were the one trying to make Renée look bad by tripping her and roughing her up while practicing moves during classes - she just got the better of you by turning the tables on you and making you look foolish with her amateur training when you tried to make something of it and wanted to rough her up again when she stood up to you for your bullying of her.  Your ego couldn't handle you getting bested by her, so that's why you stormed out of the gym and quit that very day."

"So when did Yvonne quit the class, Renée?" Claire then asked.

"It was a week after I started there, February '64," Renée explained.

"So if she joined Moolah right after she quit Mildred's school, when did that happen?" Michèle asked next.

"If I recall, Yvonne joined Moolah's camp in September '64 after she came East from L.A. and trained with her for several months," Joyce related.  "After that, Moolah started booking her out with the Spider gimmick in early '65, but she'd go back to Moolah's gym from time to time for seasoning and to help train other new girls.  I was at the gym one time when Yvonne was there for a training session."

"And how'd she do with the new girls there?" Mildred asked.

"She said she wanted to 'toughen them up' and prepare them for life as a wrestler, but I think she was just usin' that as an excuse to bully the new girls and rough them up," Joyce said.

"Sounds just like what she did at Mildred's school," Margo then said with a chuckle, at which Renée agreed with a nod.

"Okay, Yvonne, you've been made and there's no lying your way out of this, so how 'bout it?" Joyce then said as she looked back at Renée's assailant.  "Anything else we need to know?"

Yvonne let out a frustrated sigh.  "Alright, you wanna know why I did what I did?" she snapped at everyone present.  "Part of it was to get revenge against the little princess right there, for making me look bad during training back in '64!" she added, looking right at Renée.  "After I went to join Moolah's camp and train with her, one time I went back there to brush up on my skills and Moolah was grumbling about some girl she tried to recruit for her camp but never got because she never answered Moolah's letter.  I asked her who it was and she told me, and I realized it was the same girl who ran me out of Burke's school back then!"

"I didn't 'run you out', you left of your own choice," Renée corrected Yvonne, who ignored what she said.

"So when we realized we both had something in common - one girl I had dealings with, the same girl she tried and failed to recruit - we decided she needed to be taught a lesson," Yvonne continued.  "After I told Moolah about you guys forming your own promotion, she offered to continue to book me while she sent me back here to keep an eye on happenings with you, especially when the princess was in town," she added, again referring to Renée.  "When she was, I got in touch with Moolah to let her know about it and she told me what she wanted me to do."

"Oh, like that time one of our events during last year's Mildred Burke Tournament got postponed because of disruption by those student protesters from Berkeley?" Mae Young, who had come along moments earlier and overheard what Yvonne said, then spoke up.

"What do you think, Grandma?" Yvonne said disrespectfully with a smirk.

"So that was you who set it up?  You ****ing young punk!" Mae snapped as she got right in Yvonne's face.  "If you weren't already tied up in that chair, I'd stomp a mudhole in you and walk it dry!  The one good thing to come out of that night was when me and some of the other girls who were supposed to wrestle that night got to lay a beatdown on those pinko chicks from Berkeley when they tried to start trouble with us - and now, I wish you'd have been there too that night so you'd have got the same treatment!"

"Right, like you think you can lay a hand on me, Grandma!" Yvonne taunted Mae from her chair.  "I'd have you tied up in knots before you could!"

"Is that so?" Mae retorted. "C'mon, Mildred, untie that young whelp and let her loose so she can try to back up her big talk!"

"Uhh...no, I don't think I'd better," Mildred said.

"Why, you afraid I'd give the old broad the thrashing she deserves and that's why you're keeping me tied up, for her protection?" Yvonne said snidely.

"No, actually," Mildred replied, "I'm doing it for your protection, not hers.  I trained Mae and I've known her for years, and she's tougher than the men she fought with when she was young.  Besides," she added, "I have other ideas - like, oh, letting the police deal with you."

"What?!  You wouldn't!" Yvonne snapped.

"Try us," Mildred said as she pointed in the direction of two Anaheim Police officers who were arriving on the scene, causing Yvonne to look worried as she looked in that direction.

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Some time later at home in Columbia, South Carolina, Fabulous Moolah had just finished watching The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and was getting ready to head upstairs to bed after turning off her living room TV set when the show ended when her phone by her recliner started ringing.  After letting it ring twice, Moolah picked up the handset and answered, "Hello?"

"Moolah, it's Yvonne," Yvonne replied at the other end.

"Yvonne, it's 1 a.m. over here and I was just gettin' ready for bed," Moolah said.  "So what gives?  Why didn't you call earlier when I was expectin' you to call?"

"That's just it, Moolah," Yvonne said.  "I couldn't call right away..."

"Did you do what I asked you to regardin' that Martel girl?" Moolah asked.

"Yes, I did..." Yvonne began.

"So what's the problem then?" Moolah interrupted.  "You did get the job accomplished, right?"

"Not exactly," Yvonne said.

"Whaddya mean, 'not exactly'?" an incredulous Moolah said.  "Either y'all got the job done or you didn't, right?  What happened?"

"I put my mask disguise on again when the fans were distracted by cheering after the second fall of Martel's match, then I ran in and attacked her when she wasn't looking," Yvonne explained.  "I was gonna cut out through the crowd to escape after that, but I wasn't counting on getting jumped from behind by Joyce Grable, then she, Martel and two other girls caught me and hauled me backstage."

Moolah held the handset away from her mouth for a moment and cursed under her breath.  "What happened after that?" she then said, sounding mildly annoyed.

"I got tied to a chair to keep me from escaping, then I got unmasked by Mildred Burke in front of Martel after the match and they found out who I was," Yvonne said.  "And on top of that, the plan didn't work - I found out Martel still won her championship match and she's got the AGWA United States Tag Team title now.  After that, the police came and I got charged with assault and taken to jail at the police station."

"Wha...so what, are you still in jail now?" Moolah said, now more annoyed to hear that not only had her plan to keep Renée from winning a title that night failed, but that her contact had been found out.  "Why waste your time callin' me when you coulda used your one phone call to get hold of a lawyer?"

"That's the thing," Yvonne said.  "I'm not in jail now, I'm back at home  - about an hour after I got taken in, Burke - of all people - showed up to post my bail and got me out, but she still wants me to face the music for what happened tonight.  I'm expected to appear in court in the next few days on the assault charge."

"Well, good, then she can recommend a good lawyer to y'all too," Moolah said before she hung up her phone abruptly.  "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's someone who screws up an easy job," she then grumbled as she went upstairs to bed.

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As a result of Yvonne being found out as her Los Angeles contact, the failure-intolerant Moolah, deeming Yvonne to now be of no further use to her, cut ties with her, refusing to even take any further phone calls from her; when contacted later by the wrestling press after they found out about what happened that night, Moolah denied any knowledge of the incident, or even knowing who Yvonne was - essentially throwing her now-former charge under the bus.  Soon afterward, Yvonne had her day in court as, without Moolah's backing, she plead guilty on the assault charge against her for the attack on Renée that night and, in lieu of jail time as this was her first such offense, she was fined, banned from attending AGWA events or having contact with its wrestlers and staff, and placed on a conditional probation for six months, after which she would not have a criminal record if she stayed out of trouble during that time.  Embittered by Moolah's betrayal and the events of that night, Yvonne subsequently washed her hands of the wrestling business entirely and decided to get a regular 9-to-5 job.

[TC Dale]

Really enjoying this series.  Please keep it going! A fun read for sure.

[Captain Kremmen]

Hey, man! Quit horning in on my business at the Anaheim Convention Center 23 years later! 😁

Seriously, the best-written thing on this site IMHO. Far more in-depth than most BTB's. Are you being paid by the word? 😉

[Old School Fan]

Following the TV tapings in Anaheim, the girls of the AGWA, once again in association with NWA Arizona promoter Rod Fenton, undertook a tour of the US Southwest - this time starting in Utah, where its cards would end up drawing big crowds thanks to the promotion's exposure via AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling on Salt Lake City station KCPX-TV (now KTVX )

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

American Girls' Wrestling Association @ Smith Fieldhouse
August 30, 1968 - Provo, Utah
Attendance - 10,220

 

Margo Vincent and Jane Sherill fought to a time-limit draw.

Georgia Hase & Margot Bouchard (with "The Queen" Mae Young) defeated Linda Moody & Samantha Sheridan when Hase pinned Sheridan following a knee lift.

Yukiko Tomoe defeated Patty O'Hara by pinfall with a reverse cradle.

Six-woman elimination match

Joyce Fowler, Renée Martel & Claire Lepage defeated Mae Young, Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson.

⦁    First fall - Young pinned Lepage following an elbow drop.
⦁    Second fall - Martel pinned Hardman following a flying forearm smash off the ropes.
⦁    Third fall - Young was disqualified when she was caught using a foreign object on Martel.
⦁    Fourth fall - Syverson pinned Martel (who had been left loopy by the foreign object hit by Young) following an airplane spin.
⦁    Fifth fall - Fowler got the win for her team when she pinned Syverson following a high knee off the ropes.

AGWA United States Championship

Ann Calvello (C) (with Mae Young) defeated Sally Vega by pinfall following a leg lariat.  Calvello continued attacking Vega post-match at Young's urging, but the champion was quickly chased out to ringside when Yukiko Tomoe ran out to the ring for the save; after this, an incensed Calvello grabbed the arena microphone and berated Tomoe for chasing her out and ruining her fun.

 

 

Edited October 23, 2022 by Old School Fan

[Old School Fan]

American Girls' Wrestling Association @ Utah State Fairgrounds Coliseum*
August 31, 1968 - Salt Lake City, Utah
Attendance - 6,500+

 

Patty O'Hara defeated Margo Vincent by pinfall following a clothesline to the back of the head.

Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson (with "The Queen" Mae Young) defeated Sally Vega & Linda Moody when Hardman pinned Moody following a side suplex.

Yukiko Tomoe defeated Jane Sherill by pinfall with a reverse cradle.

AGWA United States Tag Team Championship - Two out of Three Falls

Renée Martel & Claire Lepage (C) defeated Georgia Hase & Margot Bouchard (with Mae Young), two falls to one.

⦁    First fall - Bouchard pinned Lepage following a spinebuster slam.
⦁    Second fall - Bouchard was disqualified for throwing Martel over the top rope.
⦁    Third fall - Martel pinned Hase following a flying clothesline off the ropes.

AGWA United States Championship

Joyce Fowler defeated Ann Calvello (c) (with Mae Young) when Calvello was disqualified for using the piledriver on Fowler (Calvello retains her title due to the DQ).  Post-match, Calvello continued to beat on Fowler at Young's urging until Yukiko Tomoe ran in to stop the assault and chase out Calvello and Young to make the save for Fowler.

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

* The Utah State Fairgrounds Coliseum was Salt Lake City's main indoor arena until the opening of the Salt Palace and the University of Utah Special Events Center (now the Jon M. Huntsman Center), both in 1969.

 

 

[The Blonde Bomber]

Hope Joyce is ok. Piledrivers are deadly. 

[Old School Fan]

21 hours ago, The Blonde Bomber said:

Hope Joyce is ok. Piledrivers are deadly. 

Fortunately for Joyce, she'd be alright in time for the next card upcoming...

[Old School Fan]

Up in Portland, Oregon, wrestling has always been a big draw with fans, both on local television and at live events - and thanks to the popularity of AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling via its airing on Portland station KPTV (also the home station of fellow NWA affiliate Pacific Northwest Wrestling and its Portland Wrestling TV show) and the recent legalization of women's wrestling in Oregon*, Mildred Burke and Portland promoter/PNW owner Don Owen collaborated to put together a joint card between the two promotions that would end up boasting the largest crowd in Portland history to attend a wrestling event until the PNW 60th Anniversary Wrestling Extravaganza in 1985:

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

AGWA/Pacific Northwest Wrestling @ Veterans Memorial Coliseum
September 3, 1968 - Portland, Oregon
Attendance - 11,000+

 

Sally Vega defeated Jane Sherill by pinfall following a flying dropkick off the second turnbuckle.

Judy Arnold defeated Patty O'Hara by submission with a spinning toehold.

Georgia Hase & Margot Bouchard (with "The Queen" Mae Young) defeated Carmen Thompson** & Linda Moody when Bouchard pinned Thompson following an elbow drop.

In a non-title match, Yukiko Tomoe defeated AGWA United States Champion Ann Calvello (with Mae Young) by disqualification when Young ran in and attacked Tomoe, who fought back and ran Young and Calvello out of the ring.

AGWA Television Championship

Joyce Fowler (C) defeated Tonette Kadrmas by pinfall following a high knee off the ropes.

AGWA United States Tag Team Championship - Two out of Three Falls

Renée Martel & Claire Lepage (C) defeated Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson (with Mae Young), two falls to one.

⦁    First fall - Syverson pinned Lepage following an airplane spin.
⦁    Second fall - Martel pinned Hardman following a flying forearm smash off the ropes.
⦁    Third fall - Martel and Lepage won when Hardman and Syverson were disqualified after Young ran in and attacked Martel as she had Syverson caught in the Alligator Clutch; Young and her team, by then joined by Margot Bouchard, waged a 4-on-2 attack against the champions until Yukiko Tomoe and Joyce Fowler ran in and helped Martel and Lepage clear the Queen's Court out.

Billy White Wolf*** & Johnny War Eagle defeated Kurt & Karl Von Steiger to determine the number-one contenders to NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Champions Moondog Mayne & Beauregarde when White Wolf used the Indian Deathlock to force a submission from Karl Von Steiger.

NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship

Moondog Mayne (C) and The Crusher**** battled to a no-contest when both wrestlers were disqualified for excessive brawling in the ring.

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

* IRL, women's wrestling did not become legal in Oregon until 1975, when the state legislature lifted a 50-year-old ban on women competing in the ring; for storyline purposes ITTL, thanks to the efforts of Mildred Burke, the ban was lifted more than seven years earlier in late-1967, making the joint event shown above possible by this point.

** Roller derby skater IRL.

*** AKA Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissie.

**** This Crusher is not AWA star Reggie Lisowski, but Stan Stasiak.

 

[Old School Fan]

American Girls' Wrestling Association* @ San Jose Municipal Stadium**
September 5, 1968 - San Jose, California
Attendance - 8,000+

 

Sally Vega and Patty O'Hara battled to a time-limit draw.

Judy Arnold defeated Jane Sherill by pinfall with a sunset flip.

Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson (with "The Queen" Mae Young) defeated Carmen Thompson & Linda Moody when Hardman pinned Moody following an elbow drop.

Yukiko Tomoe defeated Tonette Kadrmas by pinfall following a flying bodypress.

AGWA United States Tag Team Championship - Two out of Three Falls

Renée Martel & Claire Lepage (C) drew with Georgia Hase & Margot Bouchard (with Mae Young) after each team had scored one fall.

⦁    First fall - Martel pinned Hase following a flying forearm smash off the ropes.
⦁    Second fall - Bouchard pinned Lepage following a spinebuster slam.
⦁    Third fall - Both teams were counted out while brawling outside the ring.

AGWA United States Championship

Ann Calvello (C) (with Mae Young) defeated Joyce Fowler by countout when Young, out of sight of the referee, grabbed Fowler's right leg to prevent her from getting back into the ring after Calvello threw Fowler out to ringside.  When Fowler confronted Young about her interference post-match, Calvello ambushed Fowler from behind and threw her back in the ring, where Calvello and Young double-teamed her until Yukiko Tomoe ran out to the ring and chased the heels out.

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

* The AGWA promoted this event in conjunction with San Francisco promoter Roy Shire, whose Big Time Wrestling had just joined the NWA a month earlier.

** San Jose Municipal Stadium, which opened in 1942 with seating of 2,900 for baseball (later expanded to 4,200), is now known as Excite Ballpark.

 

Edited October 27, 2022 by Old School Fan

[Lord Byron]

Good diary so far--the detail for a diary in the 1960s is amazing, IMO...

Hope Wendy Richter manages to hook up with Renee and not the Fabulous Moolah and WWF (as for why not the not-so-Fabulous Moolah, well, watch the Dark Side of The Ring episode about her, for starters--if even half of it is true, yikes); I don't see Renee Martel doing a screwjob like Moolah and the WWF did...

The AGWA sounds like it'd be a good episode of Tales From The Territories, the new VICE series which details the territories (and which is produced by none other than Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Rocky's son)...

[Old School Fan]

19 hours ago, Lord Byron said:

Good diary so far--the detail for a diary in the 1960s is amazing, IMO...

Hope Wendy Richter manages to hook up with Renee and not the Fabulous Moolah and WWF (as for why not the not-so-Fabulous Moolah, well, watch the Dark Side of The Ring episode about her, for starters--if even half of it is true, yikes); I don't see Renee Martel doing a screwjob like Moolah and the WWF did...

The AGWA sounds like it'd be a good episode of Tales From The Territories, the new VICE series which details the territories (and which is produced by none other than Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Rocky's son)...

We'll see what happens down the line.  😎  Meanwhile in the more immediate future, all I can say (since I lay out the synopses for my chapters in advance) is that, at some point in 1969 (without spoiling anything), Renée and Moolah may finally meet.  What happens then?  ❔

[The Blonde Bomber]

4 minutes ago, Old School Fan said:

We'll see what happens down the line.  😎  Meanwhile in the more immediate future, all I can say (since I lay out the synopses for my chapters in advance) is that, at some point in 1969 (without spoiling anything), Renée and Moolah may finally meet.  What happens then?  ❔

That’ll be quite the moment. 

[Old School Fan]

AGWA TV taping @ Anaheim Convention Center Arena
September 10, 1968 - Anaheim, California
Attendance - 7,082

Aired the weekend of September 14, 1968 on AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling:

Dark match

Kathy Starr defeated Jessie Willard* by pinfall with a reverse rollup.

Sylvia Hackney defeated Ashley Sinclair by pinfall with a sunset flip.

Jane Sherill & Patty O'Hara defeated Serena Harris & Dixie Grant* when O'Hara pinned Grant following a clothesline.  Following the match, AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling host Dick Lane appeared at ringside to interview Mae Young and AGWA United States Champion Ann Calvello, who began ranting about Yukiko Tomoe getting involved in her recent matches while the AGWA was on tour, then demanded to have a match against Tomoe; Mildred Burke came to ringside and told Calvello that if she wanted the match with Tomoe, she would have it for next week's episode.

Tonette Kadrmas defeated Sandra Hale by pinfall following an overhead suplex.

Handicap match

Baby Rocco defeated Liz Connor & Jackie Long in a squash when she big-splashed Connor and Long in turn and pinned them both simultaneously.  Post-match, Mae Young joined Dick Lane for another interview at ringside, where Young called Rocco over, then announced that Rocco was the newest member of the Queen's Court; during the interview, Rocco bragged about her attack on Earlene Brown in the previous episode which sidelined the ex-Olympian and said that she would do the same to her again if she attempted to return to face her.

AGWA Television Championship

Joyce Fowler (C) defeated former (and original) TV Champion Margot Bouchard (with "The Queen" Mae Young") by disqualification when Bouchard refused to stop choking Fowler against the ropes. When the referee tried to stop Bouchard from choking Fowler, Young ran in and clocked the ref, then threw him through the ropes to the floor before directing Bouchard to continue her attack; moments later, Bouchard and Young were chased out when Renée Martel and Claire Lepage arrived for the save, leading to a heated argument between the heel duo and United States Tag Team Champions Martel and Lepage.

Aired the weekend of September 21, 1968 on AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling:

Dark match

Mary Jane Mull defeated Jane Travis by pinfall following a bodyslam.

Carmen Thompson & Linda Moody defeated Casey Andrews & Kim Blanchard when Thompson pinned Andrews.

Georgia Hase (with Mae Young) defeated Linda Terrell by pinfall following a kneelift.

Judy Arnold defeated Lorna Dale by pinfall with a sunset flip.

In a non-title match, AGWA United States Tag Team Champions Renée Martel & Claire Lepage defeated Janet Russ & Jen Scott when Lepage pinned Russ following a flying clothesline off the second turnbuckle.  Post-match, Georgia Hase and Margot Bouchard ran into the ring and attacked Martel and Lepage, leading to a brawl between the two teams that required several referees and arena security to break up.

In the TV main event, Yukiko Tomoe faced off against AGWA United States Champion Ann Calvello (with Mae Young) in a non-title match.  At the beginning of the match, Tomoe offered Calvello a handshake, a show of good sportsmanship.  However, sportsmanship is not a word in Calvello's vocabulary, and she snubbed the former NWA World Women's Champion.  Calvello took the early lead, using a series of headlocks and hiptosses.  Tomoe retaliated with a series of slams.  At one point, Calvello tried to level Tomoe with a clothesline off the top rope, but Tomoe caught her and reversed the move into an armbar.  Calvello brought the fight outside the ring, where she proceeded to suplex Tomoe on the arena floor.  The action returned to the ring and the pendulum swung back in Tomoe’s favor until the referee was accidentally knocked down in a collision with Calvello.  With the ref down, Young got involved, ran into the ring and attacked Tomoe, then grabbed and held onto her for Calvello to attack; the United States champion made a run for the ropes to clothesline Tomoe, but the Japanese star escaped and Calvello accidentally clotheslined Young instead as the crowd cheered.  Taking advantage of the miscue, Tomoe caught Calvello from behind and delivered a belly-to-back suplex into a bridge pin, which a substitute referee came in to count as he made the three-count, giving the win to Tomoe.  Following the match, Tomoe went out to ringside, grabbed Calvello's title belt off the timekeeper's table and held it up, then pointed to it and yelled something in Japanese to Calvello while pointing at her; moments later, Young went up to Calvello and pushed her, then berated her for the miscue that led to Young getting clotheslined instead of Tomoe, leading to an argument between Calvello and Young that brought fellow Queen's Court members Georgia Hase and Margot Bouchard out to settle and make peace between client and manager.

NWA United States Women's Championship

Mae Young donned the tights herself and debuted her NWA United States Women's Championship (which she was reported to have won while touring with the Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling territory in Alabama in July) in the AGWA, battling to a no-contest against Ann Casey.  During the match, an incensed Ann Calvello showed back up to ringside, grabbed the arena microphone and demanded from Young to know what was going on with bringing her own United States title with her, accusing her manager of trying to steal some of Calvello's own thunder (this match was not aired as part of the September 21 episode, but was held for airing in a future episode).

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

* Enhancement talent created for this diary.

 

 

[smartman]

3 hours ago, Old School Fan said:

We'll see what happens down the line.  😎  Meanwhile in the more immediate future, all I can say (since I lay out the synopses for my chapters in advance) is that, at some point in 1969 (without spoiling anything), Renée and Moolah may finally meet.  What happens then?  ❔

Somebody is going to jail would be my guess. Also, so Mae couldn't fly all the way to Rio to get the title?

[Old School Fan]

23 minutes ago, smartman said:

Somebody is going to jail would be my guess. Also, so Mae couldn't fly all the way to Rio to get the title?

I saw whatcha did there; good call (and history ref drop).  😁 😎

[Old School Fan]

Meanwhile, back in the Montreal territory...

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

All-Star Wrestling @ Colisée de Québec
September 13, 1968 - Quebec City, Quebec
Attendance - 9,058

 

Annette Dupuis* defeated France Gall by pinfall following a springboard reverse elbow off the ropes.

Antonio Baillargeon battled Ben Sharkey to a time-limit draw.

Matt Gilmore defeated Carlos Colon by countout when Colon was unable to beat the referee's count to get back in the ring after Gilmore threw him through the ropes to the ringside floor; Colon got his revenge moments later when, as Gilmore attacked him after returning to the ring and attempted to whip him to the ropes, Colon reversed the whip and dropkicked him to the mat on the rebound, sending Gilmore out to ringside to the delight of the pro-Colon fans.

Canadian Women's Championship

Hometown heroine Barbara LaMarche defeated Françoise Hardy (C) by disqualification** when Hardy refused to let go of a submission hold on LaMarche after the latter grabbed onto the bottom rope to force a break of the hold (Hardy retained her title due to the DQ).

ASW Canadian Heavyweight Championship

Ti-Blanc Richard defeated Hans Schmidt (C) by disqualification when, as Richard had Schmidt trapped in a bearhug, Schmidt threw some powder he had taken from his tights earlier into Richard's eyes (Schmidt retained his title due to the DQ).  Schmidt continued his assault on Richard post-match, but the big Quebec lumberjack quickly battled back after shaking off the effects of the thrown powder and floored the German ruffian with a clothesline before chasing him out of the ring.

ASW World Tag Team Championship

Johnny & Jacques Rougeau (C) defeated Jos & Paul Leduc when Johnny Rougeau used the sleeperold on Paul LeDuc for the submission.

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

* Annette Dupuis (pronounced du-pwee) was previously mentioned as a participant in a women's battle royal at an All-Star Wrestling card in July 1967; as then noted, she was created for this diary.

** This was the only match in a series of bouts between Françoise Hardy and Barbara LaMarche in which LaMarche got the win; in all other matches between them around the circuit, Hardy emerged victorious.

 

[Lord Byron]

At least you're giving Mae Young some more respect in this diary...

[Old School Fan]

 

And on the same night as that All-Star Wrestling show...

 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

American Girls' Wrestling Association @ Orange Pavillion
September 13, 1968 - San Bernardino, California
Attendance - 5,700

 

Sylvia Hackney defeated Panama Franco by pinfall following a dropkick.

Georgia Hase & Margot Bouchard (with "The Queen" Mae Young) defeated Sally Vega & Lita Marez when Hase pinned Marez following a kneelift.

Yukiko Tomoe fought Jan Vallow to a time-limit draw.

NWA United States Women's Championship

Mae Young (C) and Judy Arnold battled to a double-countout as both women brawled around the ringside area.

AGWA United States Tag Team Championship

Renée Martel & Claire Lepage (C) defeated Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson by disqualification when Mae Young (who did not accompany Hardman and Syverson to the ring for the match, as she had chosen to rest up following her title bout earlier) ran out to the ring and attacked Martel as she had Syverson tied up in the Alligator Clutch; post-match, Young helped Hardman and Syverson continue the 3-on-2 attack on Martel and Lepage until Judy Arnold came out to even the sides and helped the champions run the Queen's Court off.

 

[Old School Fan]

Bonus content time:  😁

Since the launch of AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling in TV syndication in September 1967, Mildred Burke's efforts to expand the program's reach beyond its initial few stations paid dividends when, thanks to the niche it provided (women's wrestling), she was able to get the program packaged with the locally-produced programs of NWA-affiliated promotions on many stations, more than tripling the number of stations during the first year of its production.  From a September 1968 AGWA arena program, here's a look at a listing of all the stations carrying AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling at that point:

Edited October 31, 2022 by Old School Fan

[Captain Kremmen]

3 hours ago, Old School Fan said:

Bonus content time:  😁

Since the launch of AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling in TV syndication in September 1967, Mildred Burke's efforts to expand the program's reach beyond its initial few stations paid dividends when, thanks to the niche it provided (women's wrestling), she was able to get the program packaged with the locally-produced programs of NWA-affiliated promotions on many stations, more than tripling the number of stations during the first year of its production.  From a September 1968 AGWA arena program, here's a look at a listing of all the stations carrying AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling at that point:

I'd be watching on KSHO back in those days.

Like how you've really put the work into this.

Colon makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up bc he brought back Brody's killer and all the wrestlers knew Jose Gonzalez  did it.

I miss Sat. afternoon wrestling. Still would rather watch it then than on Monday nights.

Edited October 31, 2022 by piperrulz

[Old School Fan]

16 hours ago, piperrulz said:

I'd be watching on KSHO back in those days.

Like how you've really put the work into this.

Colon makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up bc he brought back Brody's killer and all the wrestlers knew Jose Gonzalez  did it.

I miss Sat. afternoon wrestling. Still would rather watch it then than on Monday nights.

Well, if you liked how that turned out, check out this Photoshop-created piece representing what a local (in this case, Los Angeles) TV Guide ad of the show would've looked like at the time...  😁

Edited November 1, 2022 by Old School Fan

[The Blonde Bomber]

11 hours ago, Old School Fan said:

Well, if you liked how that turned out, check out this Photoshop-created piece representing what a local (in this case, Los Angeles) TV Guide ad of the show would've looked like at the time...  😁

I want a copy.

[Old School Fan]

American Girls' Wrestling Association @ Sam Lynn Ballpark
September 14, 1968 - Bakersfield, California
Attendance - 6,500+

 

Sally Vega and Mary Jane Mull battled to a time-limit draw.

Georgia Hase & Margot Bouchard (with "The Queen" Mae Young) defeated Sylvia Hackney & Kathy Starr when Bouchard pinned Starr following an elbow drop.

Yukiko Tomoe defeated Panama Franco by pinfall following a fisherman suplex.

Two out of Three Falls

Judy Arnold, Renée Martel & Claire Lepage defeated Ann Calvello, Shirley Hardman & Diane Syverson (with Mae Young), two falls to one.

⦁    First fall - Calvello pinned Martel following a leg lariat.
⦁    Second fall - Arnold pinned Syverson following a cross-bodyblock.
⦁    Third fall - Martel avenged her loss of the first fall when she pinned Calvello with a schoolgirl rollup after Calvello, who was holding Martel for Young (who had gotten up on the edge of the ring) to blast with a foreign object while the referee was busy trying to break up a brawl between the other members of both teams, accidentally got decked by Young when Renée ducked the hit.  Post-match, Calvello blew her stack as she started arguing with Young over the misplaced hit, forcing Hardman and Syverson to separate the two.

AGWA Television Championship

Joyce Fowler (C) defeated Baby Rocco (with Mae Young) by disqualification when, as Fowler had Rocco caught in a sleeperhold, Rocco dropped the referee to the mat by kicking him in the stomach, followed by Young running in after the ref went down and blindsiding Fowler.  Post-match, Young and Rocco continued to beat Fowler down, then Young held the fallen champion in place on the mat as Rocco got set to deliver a big splash - but before she could, Judy Arnold, Yukiko Tomoe, Renée Martel and Claire Lepage all ran in for the save as they ran Young and Rocco off and kept Fowler from falling victim to the big splash.

 

Edited November 3, 2022 by Old School Fan

[The Blonde Bomber]

On 10/31/2022 at 2:23 AM, Old School Fan said:

Bonus content time:  😁

Since the launch of AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling in TV syndication in September 1967, Mildred Burke's efforts to expand the program's reach beyond its initial few stations paid dividends when, thanks to the niche it provided (women's wrestling), she was able to get the program packaged with the locally-produced programs of NWA-affiliated promotions on many stations, more than tripling the number of stations during the first year of its production.  From a September 1968 AGWA arena program, here's a look at a listing of all the stations carrying AGWA Women's Pro Wrestling at that point:

I wouldn’t be able to watch any AGWA?? 🥺

Stupid Manifest Destiny 😡