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Rikidozan |
History of Puroresu : The Rikidozan Era
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See also: Showa
Puroresu Message Board
The Pre-J.W.A. Era
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- 07/30/53
- Rikidozan founds Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance
(JWA). He has actually founded the Japan Pro Wrestling Promotion a short
time earlier but this was the official ceremony establishing Japan's first
full time pro-wrestling organization. Shinsaku Nitta was chosen as the president
of the Promotion, and Tadamasa Sakai as the chairman of the Alliance.
- 11/29/53
- Rikidozan returns to Hawaii for an eight man tournament with the winner
getting a shot at the World Heavyweight Champion Lou
Thesz. Rikidozan emerges as the winner.
- 12/06/53
- Lou Thesz defeats Rikidozan with a piledriver at Honolulu Civic Auditorium
in 43minutes to retain the World Heavyweight
Title.
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- 02/06/54
- Toshio Yamaguchi and Kiyomikawa promote a two-day card in Osaka as "Japan
vs. US Puroresu Match" under the name of All Japan Pro-wrestling Alliance.
- 02/17/54
- The Sharpe Brothers (Ben & "Iron"
Mike), the world tag team champions, come to Japan.
 02/19/54
- JWA promotes their first cards at Kuramae Kokugikan (old Sumo Hall) for
three days. Masahiko Kimura
and Yamaguchi also wrestle on the cards. The first day is aired by both
NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation,
the semi-govermental broadcasting network) and NTV
(Nippon Television Network). NTV also aired the second and third days.
The tag matches between Rikidozan & Kimura and the Sharp Brothers, main
event of the first and the last days, are still talked about today. In front
of the "street television" that NTV setup for people who couldn't afford
television, there were thousands of people just to watch Rikidozan.
- 03/14/54
- Toshio Yamaguchi starts All Japan Pro-Wrestling Alliance in Osaka.
- 05/10/54
- A legendary judoka Masahiko Kimura starts International Pro-Wrestling
Force in Kumamoto.
- 09/11/54
- A former rikishi (sumo wrestler) Yoshinosato debuts as a pro-wrestler.
- 11/54
- Sankei Shinbun Newspaper promotes women's show with Mildred
Burke, the women's world champion, and six other American wrestlers.
With four Japanese wrestlers, they have three consecutive soldout shows
at Kuramae Kokugikan (old Sumo Hall). Because of the popularity of women's
wrestling, more than six women's promotions are founded this year. The Pan
Ikari & Chopin Ikari, who have started female pro-wrestling in Japan
in 1948, start Japan Women's Wrestling Club. The Matsunaga Brothers start
All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling Associataion, the former body of today's
All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling.
- 12/12/54
- A former rikishi Toyonobori
becomes a pro-wrestler.
Rikidozan
vs.
Masahiko Kimura
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- 12/22/54
- Rikidozan defeats Masahiko Kimura to be the first Japanese
Heavyweight Champion in a contraversial match. Kimura, on his biography,
explains this match was supposed to be a work as a draw but Rikidozan suddenly
started shooting on him during the match.
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- 01/26/55
- Rikidozan defends Japanese Heavyweight Title against Toshio Yamaguchi
of All Japan Pro-Wrestling Alliance.
- 04/10/55
- A former yokozuna Azumafuji debuts in Honolulu, HI.
- 04/17/55
- Rikidozan & Azumafuji win Hawaiian
Tag Team title from Bobby Bruns & Lucky Simunovich in Honolulu, HI.
- 08/55
- All Japan Women's Pro-wrestling Alliance is founded. This was similar
to the old NWA, which was a union of the promoters that controls the championships,
etc.. In the following month, the Alliance had the championships for the
singles' titles in seven weight divisions and the tag titles in two weight
divisions.
- 11/15/55
- King Kong & Tiger Jokinder defeat Rikidozan & Harold Sakata to be the
first All Asia Tag Team champions.
- 11/22/55
- Rikidozan defeats King Kong to be the first All
Asia Heavyweight champion.
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- 05/04/56
- Rikidozan & Koukichi Endo win NWA
World Tag Team title from Ben Sharpe & "Iron" Mike Sharpe at the Osaka
Prefectural Gym. The Sharpe Brothers regain the title on 05/10/56 in Sapporo.
- 10/23/56
- The Japanese Championship Tournaments starts. Yoshinosato defeats Isao
Yoshiwara to be the first Japanese
Light Heavyweight Champion.
- 10/24/56
- On the second day of the Japanese Championship, Surugaumi defeats Michiaki
Yoshimura to be the first Japanese
Junior Heavyweight Champion. In the heavyweight division, Azumafuji
draws with Toshio Yamaguchi. They wrestle a rematch on 10/30/56.
- 10/30/56
- In a rematch, Azumafuji defeats Toshio Yamaguchi to win the Japanese Heavyweight
Tournament. Azumafuji wins the title shot against Rikidozan's Japanese Heavyweight
Title. The match did not take place, however.
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- '57
- All Japan Women's Pro-wrestling Alliance, which has started losing its
authority in previous year, folded. The Ikari Brothers leave the business.
Women's puroresu loses popularity and goes back from sports arena to striptease
theaters.
- 04/30/57
- Rikidozan meets Lou Thesz in St. Louis, MO. Thesz signs the contract to
defend the title in Japan.
 10/02/57
- Lou Thesz comes to Japan. He is the first World Heavyweight Champion to
come to Japan.
- 10/07/57
- On the first world heavyweight title match ever in Japan, Rikidozan wrestles
against the champion Lou Thesz to a time limit draw in front of 30,000 people
in the audience at Korakuen Stadium (not to be confused with the small Korakuen
Hall. Korakuen Stadium was the main baseball stadium of Tokyo before Tokyo
Dome was built).
- 11/24/57
- Satoru Sayama is born in Shimonoseki,
Yamaguchi.
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- 08/27/58
- Rikidozan wins NWA International
heavyweight title from Lou Thesz at the LA Olympic Auditorium to be
the second champion.
- 10/25/58
- Atsushi Ohnita is born in Nagasaki.
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- 05/21/59
- The first "World League" round-robin tournament starts. This annual tournament
continues until 1972.
- 06/15/59
- Rikidozan wins the first "World League", defeating Jess Ortega in the
final.
- 09/18/59
- Great Togo comes to Japan for the first time.
- 09/30/59
- A puroresu gym/dojo "Puroresu Center" opens in Naniwa-cho, Tokyo.
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- 04/10/60
- Rikidozan scouts Kanji Inoki, a Japanese
immigrant to Brazil, and brings him back to Japan.
- 04/11/60
- Shohei Baba, a former pro baseball pitcher
of Tokyo Yomiuri Giants, joins the JWA.
- 09/30/60
- Both Inoki and Baba have their debut matches. Baba defeats Yonetaro Tanaka,
and Inoki is defeated by Kintaro Ohki.
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- 07/30/61
- "Riki Sports Palace" is built in Shibuya, Tokyo.
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- 03/28/62
- Rikidozan wins WWA World Heavyweight
title from Fred Blassie
at the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium and becomes the first Asian to win
a world title belt.
- 04/23/62
- Rikidozan defends the title against Blassie in a bloody match which causes
a death from shock to an aged person who was watching the match on TV. It
is the second case since 04/17/62.
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- 05/17/63
- The "Intelligent, Sensational"
Destroyer (Dick Beyer) comes to Japan for the first time.
- 05/24/63
- Rikidozan challenges the WWA World Heavyweight champion The Destroyer.
The match ends as a draw.
- 06/05/63
- Rikidozan has a wedding with Keiko Tanaka at Hotel Ookura in Tokyo.
- 12/07/63
- Rikidozan has a 6men tag macth, teaming with Great Togo and Michiaki Yoshimura
against the team of The Destroyer, Killer Buddy Austin, and Ilio DiPaolo
at Hamamatsu City Gym. This match turns out to be his last match.
- 12/08/63
- Rikidozan gets stabbed in a yakuza revenge at a night club in Tokyo and
carried into hospital.
- 12/15/63
- Rikidozan dies at age of 39.
The Post-Rikidozan Era
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