Pepper Gomez

Joseph "Pepper'' Gomez of Alameda was a pro-wrestling star of the 1950’s thru the 1970’s best known for his "cast iron stomach'' that opponents loved to jump on.

I had watched him as a young lad on CKLW-TV 9 out of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, where matches were done for the Detroit territory. He had many feuds there, and probably the biggest was with Dick "The Bruiser" after Bruiser jumped on his neck instead of his stomach. They sold out the Olympia Stadium in Detroit more than once.

Mr. Gomez, who always wrestled as a genteel gentleman against opponents whose names were Killer or Strangler or worse, was fond of graciously allowing his foes to climb 20-foot-high ladders and jump feet-first upon his belly, or of having Volkswagens driven across his midsection.

"They always called me 'the man with the cast-iron stomach,' and I prided myself on my physique,'' he said in a 1996 interview.

He wrestled inside steel cages. He wrestled in tag-team matches. He wrestled in Mexican strap matches and in battle royals. He had chairs thrown on him. He was choked, pummeled, kicked and disrespected in many ways.

He once lost a title to the Strangler, who executed something called a "loaded head-butt,'' which was not at all pleasant.

He drew jam-packed crowds at New York's Madison Square Garden. He toured Asia and Mexico. He won and lost world championships at a dizzying pace, and, if a fan approached him on the street, he was always good for a good-natured half nelson.

In the 1960’s, paired against his arch foe Ray Stevens, he drew sellout crowds at the Cow Palace and Oakland Arena. It was in those years, after Friday night wrestling became a mainstay on an Oakland television station, that Mr. Gomez became a major star, main-event wrestler and tag-team champion.

He regularly wrestled the likes of Classy Freddy Blassie, Stan "The Man" Stasiak, Kenji Shibuya, Strangler Lewis, Dick "The Bruiser", Killer Kowalski, Moose Cholak and many others. He was proud of his skill and his titles.

“I had one of wrestling's best bodies a long time before any of these guys took to enhancements. I've never approved of those cheap shortcuts.''

Mr. Gomez, a plumber's son, was born and raised in Los Angeles and attended Los Angeles City College. He was a high school and college athlete, specializing in football, gymnastics, and track and field, and he was a bodybuilder on Muscle Beach in Venice in Los Angeles County. His fiery spirit and drive got him the nickname of "Pepper.''

After retiring in 1982, Mr. Gomez worked for years as a maitre d' at a seafood restaurant on Fisherman's Wharf. In 1992 the Cauliflower Alley Club honored him for his many numerous contributions to the wrestling world.

Pepper passed away at age 77 on May 6, 2004 and is sadly missed. Pepper left behind his wife of 27 years, Bonnie, seven daughters, three sons, and ten grandchildren.

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers
2004 CAC Honoree