Larry Tillman
| Larry Tillman | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lawrence Robert Tillman[1] |
| Born | January 18, 1909[1] Springdale, Arkansas, U.S.[1] |
| Died | February 28, 1997 (aged 88)[1] |
| Spouse(s) | Leota Byrd[2] |
| Children | 5[2] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | El Relámpago[1] Larry Tillman[1] Tommy Gibbs[1] |
| Billed height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 175 lb (79 kg)[1] |
| Debut | 1934 |
Lawrence Robert Tillman (1909-1997) was an American professional wrestler and promoter. He competed throughout the United States and Canada, primarily within the National Wrestling Alliance territories, winning the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship in 1946, and promoted professional wrestling in Calgary, Canada.
Professional wrestling career
Tillman was one of the first prominent wrestlers within the National Wrestling Alliance, competing from at least 1934 until 1950. During his in-ring career, he had memorable feuds with wrestlers including Freddie Blassie, Sonny Myers, Stu Hart, Ken Fenelon, Dan O'Connor and Marshall Esteppe,[1] from whom he captured the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship on January 1, 1946 in Des Moines, Iowa.
During his career, Tillman also promoted wrestling bouts and events. At the fourth National Wrestling Alliance convention in September 1951, Tillman was granted NWA membership as a promoter[3] for a territory spanning the U.S. Pacific Northwest to Western Canada.[4] Canadian wrestler Stu Hart was one of the mainstays of Tillman's territory and would eventually work as a booker. In 1948, Stu had created Klondike Wrestling in Calgary and in 1951 Tillman sold his territory to Hart for $50,000[5][6] allowing him to take over NWA membership for Calgary. Hart would later rename the territory Big Time Wrestling, Wildcat Wrestling and eventually Stampede Wrestling.[7]
Championships and accomplishments
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Saalbach, Axel. "Larry Tillman". WrestlingData.com. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ a b "Leota Tillman's obituary on Calgary Herald". Calgary Herald – via Legacy.com.
- ^ Hornbaker, Tim (2017). National Wrestling Alliance: The Untold Story of the Monopoly That Strangled Professional Wrestling. ECW Press. p. 32. ISBN 9781554902743 – via Google Books.
- ^ McCoy, Heath (December 14, 2010). Pain and Passion: The History of Stampede Wrestling. ECW Press. p. 53. ISBN 9781554902996 – via Google Books.
- ^ Hornbaker, Tim (2017). Legends of Pro Wrestling: 150 Years of Headlocks, Body Slams, and Piledrivers. Skyhorse Publishing. p. 265. ISBN 9781613218754 – via Google Books.
- ^ Meltzer, Dave (2017). Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. Sports Publishing. p. 100. ISBN 9781582618173 – via Google Books.
- ^ Taras, David; Waddell, Christopher (2016). How Canadians Communicate V: Sports. Athabasca University Press. p. 296. ISBN 9781771990073 – via Google Books.
External links
- Larry Tillman's profile at Wrestlingdata.com
