Fakirs At Work
Chapter Five: The Rise and Fall Of Ernest Roeber
#PWHS #Article #FakirsAtWork #FAW #Hippodrome #Roeber #TerribleTurk #KocaYusuf #Muldoon #SolidMan
A look at the moments in history which made audiences cry-out, "Hippodrome!"
March 8, 1884 - Police Gazette
This time around, Ernest Roeber is going to fall under the microscope as we look at how he rose up the ladder of wrestling from the amateur to the professionals and eventually tarnished his legacy as a wrestler with a series of questionable bouts and scathing reports against the legitimacy of his matches in the newspapers.
As he went through the amateurs Roeber was a favorite of the editor of the Police Gazette, Richard K. Fox, a man whose name is connected to pretty much every name in wrestling and sports in general in the 19th and early 20th centuries. As far as the audiences were concerned and the newspapers to, there was nothing suspect about his early years. Even though there were no immediate negatives to the first event we're going to look at, it's most definitely very important to the story.
From reading the last couple of articles you'll have realized the man we're about to speak of very well may have been a man who knew all the ins-and-outs of the showmanship side of the pros. On a Monday evening in Brooklyn, New York , Ernest Roeber was persuaded by a local gang to head over to Hyde and Behman's Theater where a famous wrestler was offering $50 to any man who could stay for fifteen minutes on the mat with him.
Of course that man was William Muldoon. Roeber stayed the fifteen minutes in what was most likely a legitimate contest. One could offer pure speculation that possibly Roeber was persuaded to go in by the gang on behalf of Muldoon either as a plant or Muldoon had been looking for a good opponent. As I say, that's speculation of the wildest variety, although with Muldoon having been on the police force for many years and the Gas House Gang supposedly having an interest in gambling, so who knows.
Not too long after Roeber and Muldoon worked out a working arrangement. Like Muldoon had been under the wing of guys like Andre Christol - a man I haven't said much about, but will do in a future article - and Professor Thiebaud Bauer and Professor William Miller, and how Clarence Whistler had previously been under Muldoon's wing, Roeber would be under the wing of William Muldoon to learn his trade whether legitimate, showman or both.
Another man who will be featured heavily in a later article is Jack Carkeek. During 1890 the two men worked together to put together a display of wrestling in a pitch black room only illuminated by a flashlight for a picture to be taken at a critical moment. Later that year he had a couple of matches with a man who certainly knew how to bill himself and take advantage of publicity even if it wasn't all a work, "Strangler" Evan Lewis. The two would go on to have a much more important match three years later.
By the end of the year Roeber had become a permanent member of Muldoon's traveling troupe. The two put on exhibitions together through-out 1891, at the beginning of the year Muldoon had awarded Roeber with the American Graeco-Roman Championship. All was going well for Roeber. He was one of the most popular wrestlers in New York and had been successful on the tour across the nation with Muldoon, he was mingling with boxers and then on April 12, 1892 the first cracks began to show.
As he went through the amateurs Roeber was a favorite of the editor of the Police Gazette, Richard K. Fox, a man whose name is connected to pretty much every name in wrestling and sports in general in the 19th and early 20th centuries. As far as the audiences were concerned and the newspapers to, there was nothing suspect about his early years. Even though there were no immediate negatives to the first event we're going to look at, it's most definitely very important to the story.
From reading the last couple of articles you'll have realized the man we're about to speak of very well may have been a man who knew all the ins-and-outs of the showmanship side of the pros. On a Monday evening in Brooklyn, New York , Ernest Roeber was persuaded by a local gang to head over to Hyde and Behman's Theater where a famous wrestler was offering $50 to any man who could stay for fifteen minutes on the mat with him.
Of course that man was William Muldoon. Roeber stayed the fifteen minutes in what was most likely a legitimate contest. One could offer pure speculation that possibly Roeber was persuaded to go in by the gang on behalf of Muldoon either as a plant or Muldoon had been looking for a good opponent. As I say, that's speculation of the wildest variety, although with Muldoon having been on the police force for many years and the Gas House Gang supposedly having an interest in gambling, so who knows.
Not too long after Roeber and Muldoon worked out a working arrangement. Like Muldoon had been under the wing of guys like Andre Christol - a man I haven't said much about, but will do in a future article - and Professor Thiebaud Bauer and Professor William Miller, and how Clarence Whistler had previously been under Muldoon's wing, Roeber would be under the wing of William Muldoon to learn his trade whether legitimate, showman or both.
Another man who will be featured heavily in a later article is Jack Carkeek. During 1890 the two men worked together to put together a display of wrestling in a pitch black room only illuminated by a flashlight for a picture to be taken at a critical moment. Later that year he had a couple of matches with a man who certainly knew how to bill himself and take advantage of publicity even if it wasn't all a work, "Strangler" Evan Lewis. The two would go on to have a much more important match three years later.
By the end of the year Roeber had become a permanent member of Muldoon's traveling troupe. The two put on exhibitions together through-out 1891, at the beginning of the year Muldoon had awarded Roeber with the American Graeco-Roman Championship. All was going well for Roeber. He was one of the most popular wrestlers in New York and had been successful on the tour across the nation with Muldoon, he was mingling with boxers and then on April 12, 1892 the first cracks began to show.
April 2, 1897 - Sydney Referee
In a match against Auguste Robinet the fans turned on the two wrestlers. Robinet claimed an injury in the second fall. He had apparent pain in his ribs on the right hand side of his body, something he had originally done training recently. The approximately four-hundred fans felt it wasn't on the level and the newspaper described the bout as a fiasco. During a big match with Apollon in July, Apollon quit before the final fall could be decided. One paper noted:
"Roeber has had poor luck in his matches, his opponents having a habit of quitting after two bouts. Last night it was a battle between skill and ponderosity."
So far, nothing to bad or seriously incriminating for Roeber. I feel it's also worth mentioning from the moment Muldoon awarded him the title the tides were uneasy for Roeber's future. Not everyone accepted him as a true champion and the following matches against foreign "champions" did nothing to help the matter with them quitting. Rather than them thinking that Roeber was so much of a monster in the ring they weren't willing to continue, it was perceived by some they were "put on" and by others that the victories were nothing short of hollow.
When Roeber met Muldoon again in an exhibition for the New York Press Club's "Carnival of Sports" in December 1892 he went to a ten minute draw, even though it was billed as an exhibition and was almost certainly just a nice friendly work between the two men, it can't have helped Roeber in the eye's of the public that he could not beat his aging mentor.
Roeber's next big bout was against "Strangler" Evan Lewis for the World/American Mixed Styles Championship. A good sized crowd in 3,000 people turned up, however it was deemed an utter failure as they'd expected many more. Roeber lost the contest winning only the Graeco-Roman bouts. The crowd were said to be uninterested, but for what reason it is unknown. Betting was also poor on the match.
Still Roeber was a part of Muldoon's troupe. Now Roeber was the main wrestler on it with Muldoon bowed out as purely a manager, only stepping onto the mat very occasionally to face his star pupil, Roeber. Normally the tour would see Roeber versus an unknown member of the audience. This continued with the irregular big match taking place. Then Roeber went off to become a personal trainer for Bob Fitzsimmons, the boxer. Boxing was another sport at this time which was positively boiling over with claims of the fix being in place.
Roeber was with Fitzsimmons for the next several years and would face the boxer in a series of public exhibitions. Roeber's next major match didn't come until March 26, 1898. He faced the first of the long line of Terrible Turks which struck terror through the hearts of Americans all over the nation. For the most part the match against Youssouff Ishmaelo was a complete disaster.
It drew well. Very well. The problem was the match itself. Roeber either fell off of or was pushed off of the stage where the mat was placed and the Turk was disqualified. Many claimed the match was a hippodrome. That it was fixed. That Roeber didn't deserve to win if it was legitimate because he was a coward who fell off the stage while running away from the giant Turkish wrestler.
Just over a month later they faced again. Again it was a good audience. Again the match was a disaster. Again the same cries as before were cried out. This time though the police stopped the contest when all heck broke loose and managers, wrestlers and the audience all started brawling over a foul by the Turk. Both matches had been hyped to the max. The original one had been covered and anticipated for several months with the Turk painted as a huge beast of a man.
There was talk of a third match happening when Youssouff returned from the Ottoman Empire in the winter of that year. On the journey back to the Empire he drowned to death when the ship he was on sunk. Roeber would have meetings with more Turks in the not so distant future anyway. A couple of years after the contest it was stated in the Brooklyn Eagle when talking about the prospects of a new boom arriving in wrestling:
“Can it be that wrestling, the most scientific of all forms of personal physical contest save only boxing, is to enjoy a return to popular favor after years of inactivity? It looked that way when Yousouf, the Terrible Turk, was here, but the fiascoes that attended his matches with Roeber killed the sport again, or at least tapped it on the head as soon as it was raised, sending it back for another period of desuetude."
"Roeber has had poor luck in his matches, his opponents having a habit of quitting after two bouts. Last night it was a battle between skill and ponderosity."
So far, nothing to bad or seriously incriminating for Roeber. I feel it's also worth mentioning from the moment Muldoon awarded him the title the tides were uneasy for Roeber's future. Not everyone accepted him as a true champion and the following matches against foreign "champions" did nothing to help the matter with them quitting. Rather than them thinking that Roeber was so much of a monster in the ring they weren't willing to continue, it was perceived by some they were "put on" and by others that the victories were nothing short of hollow.
When Roeber met Muldoon again in an exhibition for the New York Press Club's "Carnival of Sports" in December 1892 he went to a ten minute draw, even though it was billed as an exhibition and was almost certainly just a nice friendly work between the two men, it can't have helped Roeber in the eye's of the public that he could not beat his aging mentor.
Roeber's next big bout was against "Strangler" Evan Lewis for the World/American Mixed Styles Championship. A good sized crowd in 3,000 people turned up, however it was deemed an utter failure as they'd expected many more. Roeber lost the contest winning only the Graeco-Roman bouts. The crowd were said to be uninterested, but for what reason it is unknown. Betting was also poor on the match.
Still Roeber was a part of Muldoon's troupe. Now Roeber was the main wrestler on it with Muldoon bowed out as purely a manager, only stepping onto the mat very occasionally to face his star pupil, Roeber. Normally the tour would see Roeber versus an unknown member of the audience. This continued with the irregular big match taking place. Then Roeber went off to become a personal trainer for Bob Fitzsimmons, the boxer. Boxing was another sport at this time which was positively boiling over with claims of the fix being in place.
Roeber was with Fitzsimmons for the next several years and would face the boxer in a series of public exhibitions. Roeber's next major match didn't come until March 26, 1898. He faced the first of the long line of Terrible Turks which struck terror through the hearts of Americans all over the nation. For the most part the match against Youssouff Ishmaelo was a complete disaster.
It drew well. Very well. The problem was the match itself. Roeber either fell off of or was pushed off of the stage where the mat was placed and the Turk was disqualified. Many claimed the match was a hippodrome. That it was fixed. That Roeber didn't deserve to win if it was legitimate because he was a coward who fell off the stage while running away from the giant Turkish wrestler.
Just over a month later they faced again. Again it was a good audience. Again the match was a disaster. Again the same cries as before were cried out. This time though the police stopped the contest when all heck broke loose and managers, wrestlers and the audience all started brawling over a foul by the Turk. Both matches had been hyped to the max. The original one had been covered and anticipated for several months with the Turk painted as a huge beast of a man.
There was talk of a third match happening when Youssouff returned from the Ottoman Empire in the winter of that year. On the journey back to the Empire he drowned to death when the ship he was on sunk. Roeber would have meetings with more Turks in the not so distant future anyway. A couple of years after the contest it was stated in the Brooklyn Eagle when talking about the prospects of a new boom arriving in wrestling:
“Can it be that wrestling, the most scientific of all forms of personal physical contest save only boxing, is to enjoy a return to popular favor after years of inactivity? It looked that way when Yousouf, the Terrible Turk, was here, but the fiascoes that attended his matches with Roeber killed the sport again, or at least tapped it on the head as soon as it was raised, sending it back for another period of desuetude."
May 18, 1898 - Sydney Referee
Before we move on to his next opponent, I just want to address that when Roeber signed on with Fitzsimmons he also took up Martin Julian as his manager. Fitzsimmons' opponent at the time, James Corbett, was managed by William A. Brady. Both men promoted matches and were top managers in the world of sports. It was said that Martin Julian and William Brady had an intense feud. When Fitzsimmons defeated Corbett and Brady couldn't get at Julian that way, according to the newspapers, he went looking for the nastiest wrestler he could find to take out Ernest Roeber and stick it to Julian that way. Make of that what you will. Was Brady legitimately that intent on getting back at Julian he traveled all the way to Turkey with the goal of finding someone to defeat Roeber?
It was back to taking on all comers in theaters for Roeber in the mean time. Unfortunately results for these matches are not always recorded. What we can ascertain though is a pattern that happened in the majority of cities, if not all. Remember we were at a time when only big matches got national coverage in newspapers, these glorified burlesque shows did not receive that same treatment. On several occasions you can see where Roeber would offer a ten minute handicap where he would pay out around $50 if he could not throw the man.
Normally he would stay in a town for five-seven days. The first night he'd challenge someone, they'd stay ten minutes. Either the same night or the next night he'd face the same man in a fifteen minute challenge with $100 on the line. Again the man would last. Then he'd face some other wrestlers over the next two days and on the last day face in a big match with no time limit, two out of three falls the man he previously couldn't throw. Roeber would win this one.
Something else that happened during this time was a series of contests with Professor Atlas, also known as James McGee and Jack McCann. McGee followed Roeber around the country, whether he was really trying to one-up Roeber, or if it was planned, I can't say for sure. Either way he followed him from town to town and challenged him, normally they would go the time-limit, every now an again Roeber would win though.
At one show after about a year of this they even got into a fight when Roeber refused to face Atlas as he was fed up of him chasing him across America. Not that he had to worry, he'd already thrown him by this point anyway. The next night they went to a time-limit draw. The night after Atlas lost, the Graeco-Roman Championship was even on the line in this February 1, 1899 bout. They would continue to do this. In New Haven, Connecticut, they even made front page news. Here's an excerpt:
"The question which all the people who were at the Grand opera house last evening were asking themselves and each other as they were leaving the house was, Is it a fake? They evidently thought that it was not a fake, for there was a line of them in front of the box window after the performances waiting to buy seats. It was the general opinion that if it was a fake, it was the cleverest bit of acting that has ever been seen on any stage in this city."
When the next Turk came over from the Ottoman Empire, Roeber never faced him. What did he do? Well, if he couldn't face the real Halil Adali, he did the next best thing. Roeber took on what was most likely an American called Morad Ali "The Terrible Turk." They went to two draws before Roeber eventually defeated him, albeit by forfeit. A letter from Adali's manager to Roeber:
"To Ernest Roeber, his counterfeit Turk and others whom it may cornern: I have this day enlarged upon my proposition of two days ago as follows: I will bet $2,500, on-fifth of which is now posted with Will J. Davis, of Chicago, that Hali Adali in private can throw Roeber and his reputed 'Turk' three times each in sixty minutes of actual wrestling time, Roeber and his 'Turk' to take all if Dali fails, and if successful, I agree to give the entire amount won to the New York Herald free ice fund. Adali will wrestle neither man in public. I will repeat this offer in every town visited by this pair of hippodromers. My $500 forfeit posted with Mr. Davis will remain up for thirty days."
The match never happened. For the rest of the year Roeber was occupied with the on-going theater shows and training with another boxer, Jim Jeffries, and putting on an occasional exhibition with him. In fact, Jeffries admitted they performed hippodromes openly to avoid jail time for boxing against the law:
"Jeffries, the pugilist, claims police commendation for not trying to act. He simply tried to give a frank hippodrome performance with Roeber, the wrestler. The first nights, the result was so glaringly one-sides that the wrestler insisted on making the exhibiton of wrestling for one half of the engagement, so that he might have opportunity for showing his superiority in his own speciality."
At the turn of the century it came out that Roeber had worked a match with Atlas for motion picture footage:
"WRESTLER SUES FOR LOST REPUTATION.
ATLAS SAYS THAT MOVING PICTURES HAVE INJURED HIS PROSPECTS.
James Atlas, who styles himself 'the champion wrestler of the world,' has brought an action in the Supreme Court perpetually to enjoin Patrick Reilly and Frank D. Bryan, who are known in the theatrical world as Reilly and Wood from exhibiting a series of miving pictures, in which, he alleges, he is depicted as being defeated in a wrestling match with Ernest Roeber. Besides asking for the injunction, Atlas demands $25,000 damages. Justice Bischoff issued a temporary injunction restraining the production of the exhibition.
Atlas says that he has been known for years as the champion wrestler, and that he has been able to earn $750 a week. He alleges that because of the exhibition of the moving pictures, in which he is shown as being defeated by Roeber, he lost a position in Elmira and much money in a show which he took out on the road. Atlas further asserts that he was never defeated by Roeber.
A.H. Hummel, counsel for the defendants, says that Reilly and Wood ceased to use Atlas' name, and that they were producing pictures under an arrangement with the Vitascope Company, which had them taken in pursuance of a deal that in a wrestling match between Roeber and Atlas the former was to win."
The Times adds:
"Atlas alleges that he had an agreement to meet Roeber about a year ago, and that the match after a hard struggle, ended in a draw. Nevertheless the pictures which have been exhibited by Patrick Reilly and Frank D. Bryan depict him as being tossed all over the mat by Roeber, who finally wins the picture match.
Atlas declares that about ten days before the real match, the proprietors of the pictures had Ernest Roeber and another man perform before the picture machine, and that Roeber tossed this man about in a way that it would be impossible for him to do with him (Atlas.) These pictures have since been ewxhibited about the country as the bona fide pictures of the wrestling match."
There were a couple of big matches left for Roeber against Paul Pons and Magnus Bech-Olsen from France and Denmark respectively. The Magnus bout saw a Roeber forfeit after the second fall stating he had hurt his ribs to bad and thus lost the World/American Graeco-Roman Championship. He reportedly went to Denmark and won it back from Magnus later in the year. The Pons match saw a draw. Roeber would quit in several matches going forward and suffered in the press because of it. There was also another match with another Turk, this time Ali Nurullah Hasan. Again it was called a fiasco as the Turk sat on Roeber on the middle of the mat.
By 1902 there were almost always cries of a hippodrome when Roeber was about. It were the final matches marred with injuries to Roeber, he was getting older so may-be he was just injury prone then, or may-be it was not, either way they served to really tarnish his legacy. There's no doubt that Roeber learned from one of the best in Muldoon and tried his best to utilize that knowledge. Now in my opinion Roeber along with Evan Lewis and the Turks was performing some ground breaking stuff.
They were trying new and different things. Bringing in foreign monsters, really playing up the holds, the strangle hold most notably. A move which Roeber always requested to be banned. The results available of Roeber in the theaters are something unique in that because of his association with Muldoon, Fitzsimmons and Jeffries at varying times there are more of them than most for the time period. Thanks to that you can follow who he was facing and how often. I would suggest looking through the Roeber results page at the matches and you'll see what I mean about Atlas and how it really was just a clever piece of showmanship by the two men. Well, that's what I think anyway.
It was back to taking on all comers in theaters for Roeber in the mean time. Unfortunately results for these matches are not always recorded. What we can ascertain though is a pattern that happened in the majority of cities, if not all. Remember we were at a time when only big matches got national coverage in newspapers, these glorified burlesque shows did not receive that same treatment. On several occasions you can see where Roeber would offer a ten minute handicap where he would pay out around $50 if he could not throw the man.
Normally he would stay in a town for five-seven days. The first night he'd challenge someone, they'd stay ten minutes. Either the same night or the next night he'd face the same man in a fifteen minute challenge with $100 on the line. Again the man would last. Then he'd face some other wrestlers over the next two days and on the last day face in a big match with no time limit, two out of three falls the man he previously couldn't throw. Roeber would win this one.
Something else that happened during this time was a series of contests with Professor Atlas, also known as James McGee and Jack McCann. McGee followed Roeber around the country, whether he was really trying to one-up Roeber, or if it was planned, I can't say for sure. Either way he followed him from town to town and challenged him, normally they would go the time-limit, every now an again Roeber would win though.
At one show after about a year of this they even got into a fight when Roeber refused to face Atlas as he was fed up of him chasing him across America. Not that he had to worry, he'd already thrown him by this point anyway. The next night they went to a time-limit draw. The night after Atlas lost, the Graeco-Roman Championship was even on the line in this February 1, 1899 bout. They would continue to do this. In New Haven, Connecticut, they even made front page news. Here's an excerpt:
"The question which all the people who were at the Grand opera house last evening were asking themselves and each other as they were leaving the house was, Is it a fake? They evidently thought that it was not a fake, for there was a line of them in front of the box window after the performances waiting to buy seats. It was the general opinion that if it was a fake, it was the cleverest bit of acting that has ever been seen on any stage in this city."
When the next Turk came over from the Ottoman Empire, Roeber never faced him. What did he do? Well, if he couldn't face the real Halil Adali, he did the next best thing. Roeber took on what was most likely an American called Morad Ali "The Terrible Turk." They went to two draws before Roeber eventually defeated him, albeit by forfeit. A letter from Adali's manager to Roeber:
"To Ernest Roeber, his counterfeit Turk and others whom it may cornern: I have this day enlarged upon my proposition of two days ago as follows: I will bet $2,500, on-fifth of which is now posted with Will J. Davis, of Chicago, that Hali Adali in private can throw Roeber and his reputed 'Turk' three times each in sixty minutes of actual wrestling time, Roeber and his 'Turk' to take all if Dali fails, and if successful, I agree to give the entire amount won to the New York Herald free ice fund. Adali will wrestle neither man in public. I will repeat this offer in every town visited by this pair of hippodromers. My $500 forfeit posted with Mr. Davis will remain up for thirty days."
The match never happened. For the rest of the year Roeber was occupied with the on-going theater shows and training with another boxer, Jim Jeffries, and putting on an occasional exhibition with him. In fact, Jeffries admitted they performed hippodromes openly to avoid jail time for boxing against the law:
"Jeffries, the pugilist, claims police commendation for not trying to act. He simply tried to give a frank hippodrome performance with Roeber, the wrestler. The first nights, the result was so glaringly one-sides that the wrestler insisted on making the exhibiton of wrestling for one half of the engagement, so that he might have opportunity for showing his superiority in his own speciality."
At the turn of the century it came out that Roeber had worked a match with Atlas for motion picture footage:
"WRESTLER SUES FOR LOST REPUTATION.
ATLAS SAYS THAT MOVING PICTURES HAVE INJURED HIS PROSPECTS.
James Atlas, who styles himself 'the champion wrestler of the world,' has brought an action in the Supreme Court perpetually to enjoin Patrick Reilly and Frank D. Bryan, who are known in the theatrical world as Reilly and Wood from exhibiting a series of miving pictures, in which, he alleges, he is depicted as being defeated in a wrestling match with Ernest Roeber. Besides asking for the injunction, Atlas demands $25,000 damages. Justice Bischoff issued a temporary injunction restraining the production of the exhibition.
Atlas says that he has been known for years as the champion wrestler, and that he has been able to earn $750 a week. He alleges that because of the exhibition of the moving pictures, in which he is shown as being defeated by Roeber, he lost a position in Elmira and much money in a show which he took out on the road. Atlas further asserts that he was never defeated by Roeber.
A.H. Hummel, counsel for the defendants, says that Reilly and Wood ceased to use Atlas' name, and that they were producing pictures under an arrangement with the Vitascope Company, which had them taken in pursuance of a deal that in a wrestling match between Roeber and Atlas the former was to win."
The Times adds:
"Atlas alleges that he had an agreement to meet Roeber about a year ago, and that the match after a hard struggle, ended in a draw. Nevertheless the pictures which have been exhibited by Patrick Reilly and Frank D. Bryan depict him as being tossed all over the mat by Roeber, who finally wins the picture match.
Atlas declares that about ten days before the real match, the proprietors of the pictures had Ernest Roeber and another man perform before the picture machine, and that Roeber tossed this man about in a way that it would be impossible for him to do with him (Atlas.) These pictures have since been ewxhibited about the country as the bona fide pictures of the wrestling match."
There were a couple of big matches left for Roeber against Paul Pons and Magnus Bech-Olsen from France and Denmark respectively. The Magnus bout saw a Roeber forfeit after the second fall stating he had hurt his ribs to bad and thus lost the World/American Graeco-Roman Championship. He reportedly went to Denmark and won it back from Magnus later in the year. The Pons match saw a draw. Roeber would quit in several matches going forward and suffered in the press because of it. There was also another match with another Turk, this time Ali Nurullah Hasan. Again it was called a fiasco as the Turk sat on Roeber on the middle of the mat.
By 1902 there were almost always cries of a hippodrome when Roeber was about. It were the final matches marred with injuries to Roeber, he was getting older so may-be he was just injury prone then, or may-be it was not, either way they served to really tarnish his legacy. There's no doubt that Roeber learned from one of the best in Muldoon and tried his best to utilize that knowledge. Now in my opinion Roeber along with Evan Lewis and the Turks was performing some ground breaking stuff.
They were trying new and different things. Bringing in foreign monsters, really playing up the holds, the strangle hold most notably. A move which Roeber always requested to be banned. The results available of Roeber in the theaters are something unique in that because of his association with Muldoon, Fitzsimmons and Jeffries at varying times there are more of them than most for the time period. Thanks to that you can follow who he was facing and how often. I would suggest looking through the Roeber results page at the matches and you'll see what I mean about Atlas and how it really was just a clever piece of showmanship by the two men. Well, that's what I think anyway.
Unique content strictly for the Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
Fakirs At Work: Chapter Five.
Author: Jimmy Wheeler.
Published: August 29, 2014.
Article: #61.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
Fakirs At Work: Chapter Five.
Author: Jimmy Wheeler.
Published: August 29, 2014.
Article: #61.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
Fakirs At Work: Chapter Six - Read Here.
Fakirs At Work: Chapter Four - Read Here.
Other articles by Jimmy can be Read Here.