FROM THE 9th STREET MERCHANTS…

MEDIA ALERT … MEDIA ALERT … MEDIA ALERT

EVENT: BELOVED WRESTLING LEGEND BRUNO SAMMARTINO GETS PHILLY WELCOME FROM 9TH STREET MERCHANTS, THEN TOUR OF ITALIAN MARKET SHOPS AND PEOPLE

TIME:     Saturday, July 16th at 12 Noon

PLACE: Starting point is the Villa di Roma Restaurant, 932 S. 9th Street, Philly, PA.

DETAILS: Bruno Sammartino, 69, the former World Champion of professional wrestling who emigrated from Italy to the United States when he was 14 years old, will be welcomed to Philadelphia’s 9th Street Italian Market by Epiphany DeLuca, President of the 9th Street Italian Market Merchants Association and co-owner of Villa di Roma. Sammartino,
a beloved personality in South Philadelphia, will be given a tour of the Italian Market, visit stores and visit with people of the market.

Sammartino’s action-packed appearances at the Spectrum’s monthly wrestling shows in the 1960’s, 1970’s and 1980’s made him a popular favorite with Philadelphia fans. He has an even stronger bond with Italian-Americans because of his meager beginnings in the Abruzzi region of Italy. As a youngster during World War II, Sammartino escaped
a firing squad and fled to live in mountain caves near his hometown of Pizzoferrato to avoid detection by the Nazis. He came to the U.S. in 1950 as a skinny 14-year-old, weighing only 85 pounds.

He began his wrestling career in 1959, holding the World Championship belt two different times for a total of 12 years.
Sammartino will be honored at a special dinner at WrestleReunion 2, a comprehensive pro wrestling convention and a 10-match wrestling card, at the Valley Forge Convention Center in King of Prussia on Aug. 26-28.
He will be in Diamond Dallas Page’s corner in the main event against Larry Zbyszko. If Zbyszko wins, he gets five minutes in the ring to settle long-summering grudge with Sammartino. Tickets and information are available at www.WrestleReunion.com 

CONTACT: Larry Rubin
Rubin Public Relations
610-668-6801
215-850-7012
[email protected]