Topeka, Kansas

Of all the towns that Heart of America Sports went into, the roughest of them all, in my opinion, was Topeka, Capitol of Kansas. Every other Monday night, they had the greatest talent that was available to the Kansas City Territory.

Sometimes, Gust Karras went out of his way to try and please fans by bringing in very special attractions to the matches. Pat O'Connor was the World Heavyweight Champion and demanded 10% of the gate just for showing up. He also was a consummate pain in the butt to many of us that traveled thousands of miles each week to make our living.

He sometimes stuck his big New Zealand nose where it didn't belong by butting in on affairs that did not concern him. He did just that on the previous card that he was on in Topeka. He stuck up for Omar Atlas after we had delivered a beating on him.

Then, he went to promoter Gust Karras and cried about Angus and his little snot nosed manager. He claimed that we were a disgrace to the entire territory and should not be allowed to wrestle anywhere. He said that we owe him an apology and a match in Topeka on the next card.

Gust Karras was always in favor of what the crowd wanted and usually gave in to the constant whining and crying from the "Good Guys." Angus called them cheeky little queen's pawns, and rightfully so. None of them could really beat Angus in a fair one-on-one fight. Not one of them had the talent in their bodies that Angus possessed, nor did they have the strength or stamina or the knowledge of wrestling holds that I had taught him.

Gust made me travel from my beautiful home in Overland Park, Kansas to St. Joe, Missouri … just to prove his point to me. I was humiliated into a match for Angus against O'Connor on the next card in Topeka. It wasn't a matter of pride that I signed for the match; I wanted to teach this World Champion has-been a few wrestling holds that he didn't know. I wanted to have Angus grind his body into the harsh canvas that covered the ring. I wanted revenge.

It was a five-match card that had the biggest names appearing on it. The opening match was a tag event with Black Jack Black & Benji Rameriz facing Terry Martin & Billy Howard. These four men lit the fire that would continue to burn all night long. They had moves that I had trouble pronouncing. When you mix people from all parts of the world together and grab their different styles and combine them in a ring, you have history in the making. The match went the entire 30 minutes without either team gaining a fall.

Martin and Howard wanted a time limit extension, but referee Frankie "Fast Count" Diamond would not allow the match to continue. How great this card was is measured by the second match involving the former champ, Omar Atlas, meeting one half of the North American tag champs, Chati Yokouchi. It was a 20-minute time limit and went a little over the 15-minute mark when Chati threw a devastating karate chop to the side of Omar's rib cage and doubled him over and pinned him 1-2-3.

Promoter Gust Karras, seated at ringside, did not like the use of Karate and levied a fine on the Oriental ace for his action. Chati wanted to take on all three goons that were guarding Karras, but he thought twice when they stood erect at over 6'5" tall. He knew he was in the wrong side of town and quietly exited, a much wiser but poorer man.

Yasu Fuji, tag partner of Yokouchi, was next on the card and fought the huge man from Canada, The Stomper. Archie Gouldie was not a small man by any means, and Fuji was not your typical small, sneaky Oriental that relied on martial arts to defend himself in a man's world. Those size 15-EEE tan boots were pure thunder when they came down on your body. I can attest to that, as I had been the recipient of kicks from him on a few nights.

In a little over 10 minutes, Gouldie (The Stomper) had driven Fuji so far into the mat with those boots that he literally had left boot imprints in Fuji’s back that were turning bright purple. In a move unbecoming him, Stomper grabbed a full nelson on Fuji and made him submit.

As he did, Chati stormed the ring and proceeded to chop the living daylights out of the Stomper. He ended this movement with a huge Karate thrust to the throat that knocked Archie to the arena floor into the second row of spectators. Chairs were flying, and fans were fighting to get at Fuji and Yokouchi as they were being escorted back to the dressing room.

Danny Littlebear, who had been on a winning streak as of late, was next on the huge card, facing one of the toughest men in the territory besides Black Angus, Harley Race. Harley had just returned from the Orient and was chomping at the bit to get at one of his bitterest enemies in the ring.

Littlebear may have been a crybaby and whiner to Gust Karras, but he could wrestle when he had to. He had been multi-time holder of the Central States Championship and other titles as well. He was trained by his father, Steven Littlebear, in the rugged hills of Oklahoma. Steven was known as a rubber man due to his being able to contort his body in and out of small hoops that were less than 24". Indians had a unique way of dancing to please the different Gods that they worshiped.

To be continued…

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