WHO SAYS WRESTLING’S FAKE??
- 10/05/2006 (5:50:27 pm)
- Georgiann Makropoulos
…..
Who says wrestling's fake?
John Pantozzi has real love for the game
John Pantozzi's obsession with pro wrestling was forged more than 40 years ago by the man who invented the epidural.
It may seem odd, but for Pantozzi, there a connection between anesthesia and the sleeper, a famous wrestling move. His uncle, Dr. John Bonica, the late anesthesiologist known the medical world over for developing epidural, an anesthetic injected into pregnant to ease delivery pains, was a state wrestling champion in high school, and paid his way through medical school by wrestling with a traveling carnival.
Bonica would take on all comers at the carnival, and once defeated an entire college wrestling team, Pantozzi said. Bonica worked on the West Coast but would visit New York often and was a major influence on his Brooklynite nephew Pantozzi, now 51 and a resident of Franklin Square.
Somehow, between the stories his uncle told him about wrestling and the pros he watched every week on TV like Gorgeous George and Bruno Sammartino, the young Pantozzi became a fanatic. Through the years, as pro wrestling's popularity grew, so did Pantozzi's interest. Over the last 40 years, Pantozzi has met dozens of wrestling's biggest stars, announced a few matches ring side, and has amassed a memorabilia collection that is scattered throughout the house he shares with his wife and two children.
He even got himself involved with the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) in upstate Amsterdam, and sits on its Distinguished Selection Committee. On Saturday, Oct. 7, Pantozzi will help bring a little of the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame to Franklin Square with a fund-raiser at the Franklin Square VFW hall, 68 Lincoln Rd. at 7 p.m.
Pantozzi organizes a hall of fame fund-raiser every year, but this is the first one in Franklin Square. Among the old time wrestlers scheduled to appear are former tag team champion "Luscious" Johnny Valiant, Angelo Savoldi, Jumping Joe Savoldi, Irish Davey O'Hannon, Hillbilly Cousin Luke, the First Lady of Wrestling Missy Hyatt, Pete Sanchez, Joe "Butcher Brannigan" Nova, Tony Cosenza, Tom "Crusher" Townsend, Al Samson Vass, Tito Torres and Rich Orenstein.
Pantozzi said the big draw this year is David "Dr. D" Schultz, who infamously slapped TV reporter John Stossel during a 1984 interview in which Stossel asked Schultz if wrestling was fake. It will be Schultz's second public appearance in 15 years, Pantozzi said.
Pantozzi said hall of fame fund-raisers don't usually draw the young crowd expecting to see their favorite WWE stars.
"These are usually middle-aged fans," said Pantozzi, who works for the Federal Reserve in New Jersey. "They'll hear them [wrestlers] tell stories, talk about the old times, what went on in the locker room. These are the same guys fans saw on TV when they were kids and they get to eat and drink with them. Wrestlers love to talk, and fans love to hear it."
Tony Vellano, a deputy commissioner with the New York State Athletic Commission, which oversees boxing and wrestling in the state, established the hall of fame in 1999. At an event one night, he ran into former wrestler George "The Animal" Steele. They spoke for a while and Vellano asked what life was like after wrestling. Steele said there wasn't much of a market for old wrestlers, and Vellano asked about a hall of fame. Steele said there were many virtual wrestling halls of fame on the Internet, but "no brick and mortar establishment," Vellano said.
Vellano did some research and found there were 23 halls of fame in New York. He sent a letter to the state Board of Regents asking for a charter. While Steele handled the industry end and Vellano in charge of the business end, the Board of Regents approved the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame as a not-for-profit. Vellano hosted a test dinner to gauge interest, and found overwhelming support for the project. Vellano found a building in upstate Schnectady, where he lives, and found it a perfect fit.
"The address was 123 Broadway," Vellano said. "1,2,3 is the pin count in wrestling, and Broadway is a draw. It was great."
But shortly after the hall of fame was established, the owner of the building sold, and the tenants were displaced. Vellano located an old furniture store in Amsterdam just outside Schnectady, and the new hall is two floors of wrestling memorabilia - gaudy robes, championship belts, old photos of wrestlers like Killer Kowalski, Ric Flair, Freddie Blassie, and others. Midget wrestlers and women are among the 60 or so inducted members of the hall of fame.
So why, after all these years, is wrestling still popular?
"It takes you out of your hum drum life," Pantozzi said. "The good guy is you, the bad guy is your boss, and you let everything out. You suspend belief and have a good time."
All from a uncle who was a pioneer in anesthesiology and moonlighted as wrestler.
Comments about this story? [email protected] or (516) 569-4000 ext. 240
John Pantozzi's obsession with pro wrestling was forged more than 40 years ago by the man who invented the epidural.
It may seem odd, but for Pantozzi, there a connection between anesthesia and the sleeper, a famous wrestling move. His uncle, Dr. John Bonica, the late anesthesiologist known the medical world over for developing epidural, an anesthetic injected into pregnant to ease delivery pains, was a state wrestling champion in high school, and paid his way through medical school by wrestling with a traveling carnival.
Bonica would take on all comers at the carnival, and once defeated an entire college wrestling team, Pantozzi said. Bonica worked on the West Coast but would visit New York often and was a major influence on his Brooklynite nephew Pantozzi, now 51 and a resident of Franklin Square.
Somehow, between the stories his uncle told him about wrestling and the pros he watched every week on TV like Gorgeous George and Bruno Sammartino, the young Pantozzi became a fanatic. Through the years, as pro wrestling's popularity grew, so did Pantozzi's interest. Over the last 40 years, Pantozzi has met dozens of wrestling's biggest stars, announced a few matches ring side, and has amassed a memorabilia collection that is scattered throughout the house he shares with his wife and two children.
He even got himself involved with the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) in upstate Amsterdam, and sits on its Distinguished Selection Committee. On Saturday, Oct. 7, Pantozzi will help bring a little of the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame to Franklin Square with a fund-raiser at the Franklin Square VFW hall, 68 Lincoln Rd. at 7 p.m.
Pantozzi organizes a hall of fame fund-raiser every year, but this is the first one in Franklin Square. Among the old time wrestlers scheduled to appear are former tag team champion "Luscious" Johnny Valiant, Angelo Savoldi, Jumping Joe Savoldi, Irish Davey O'Hannon, Hillbilly Cousin Luke, the First Lady of Wrestling Missy Hyatt, Pete Sanchez, Joe "Butcher Brannigan" Nova, Tony Cosenza, Tom "Crusher" Townsend, Al Samson Vass, Tito Torres and Rich Orenstein.
Pantozzi said the big draw this year is David "Dr. D" Schultz, who infamously slapped TV reporter John Stossel during a 1984 interview in which Stossel asked Schultz if wrestling was fake. It will be Schultz's second public appearance in 15 years, Pantozzi said.
Pantozzi said hall of fame fund-raisers don't usually draw the young crowd expecting to see their favorite WWE stars.
"These are usually middle-aged fans," said Pantozzi, who works for the Federal Reserve in New Jersey. "They'll hear them [wrestlers] tell stories, talk about the old times, what went on in the locker room. These are the same guys fans saw on TV when they were kids and they get to eat and drink with them. Wrestlers love to talk, and fans love to hear it."
Tony Vellano, a deputy commissioner with the New York State Athletic Commission, which oversees boxing and wrestling in the state, established the hall of fame in 1999. At an event one night, he ran into former wrestler George "The Animal" Steele. They spoke for a while and Vellano asked what life was like after wrestling. Steele said there wasn't much of a market for old wrestlers, and Vellano asked about a hall of fame. Steele said there were many virtual wrestling halls of fame on the Internet, but "no brick and mortar establishment," Vellano said.
Vellano did some research and found there were 23 halls of fame in New York. He sent a letter to the state Board of Regents asking for a charter. While Steele handled the industry end and Vellano in charge of the business end, the Board of Regents approved the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame as a not-for-profit. Vellano hosted a test dinner to gauge interest, and found overwhelming support for the project. Vellano found a building in upstate Schnectady, where he lives, and found it a perfect fit.
"The address was 123 Broadway," Vellano said. "1,2,3 is the pin count in wrestling, and Broadway is a draw. It was great."
But shortly after the hall of fame was established, the owner of the building sold, and the tenants were displaced. Vellano located an old furniture store in Amsterdam just outside Schnectady, and the new hall is two floors of wrestling memorabilia - gaudy robes, championship belts, old photos of wrestlers like Killer Kowalski, Ric Flair, Freddie Blassie, and others. Midget wrestlers and women are among the 60 or so inducted members of the hall of fame.
So why, after all these years, is wrestling still popular?
"It takes you out of your hum drum life," Pantozzi said. "The good guy is you, the bad guy is your boss, and you let everything out. You suspend belief and have a good time."
All from a uncle who was a pioneer in anesthesiology and moonlighted as wrestler.
Comments about this story? [email protected] or (516) 569-4000 ext. 240
Sent in by John Pantozzi and Mike Informer:
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