Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} Gene Kiniski Canadian Wrestling Legend by Steven Verrier Rasslin Memories Then and Now with Greg Anthony (4/14/19) Glen Braget and Grizzled Vet Michael McCurdy welcome Independent Professional Wrestler Greg Anthony to the program to share some of his own Rasslin Memories of his 18 years in the ring. Rasslin Memories Then and Now Remember Andre the Giant (4/7/19) Glen Braget and the Grizzled Vet Michael McCurdy pay tribute to the “8th Wonder of the World” Andre the Giant with Chris Owens one of the foremost experts on Andre’s life and career. Rasslin Memories Then and Now with Jerry Jarrett and Adam Parsons (3/31/19) Glen Braget chats with Adam Parsons and the Legendary Jerry Jarrett about the recent launch of their free Roku Channel Jarrett-Parsons TV Wrestling. Jarrett-Parsons TV Wrestling contains decades of pro wrestling actions from such promotions as Memphis Wrestling, International Championship Wrestling, Southwest Championship Wrestling, IWA, the Indys and more. All of the content is shown in its original form. Rasslin Memories Then and Now Remembers Dick Beyer (3/21/19) George Schire and Glen Braget look back on the life and career of the late great Dick Beyer aka The Destroyer and Dr. X. Rasslin Memories Then & Now with Bill Anderson (3/18/19. Glen Braget & the Grizzled Vet Mike McCurdy welcome back former pro wrestler/trainer/author Bill Anderson to the program to talk about his career in the business and what he’s been up to lately. New book chronicles life of wrestling legend Gene Kiniski. A brute in the ring, the one-time Edmonton Eskimo player was a genuine character. Sometimes introduced as the meanest man in Canada, the late professional wrestler Gene Kiniski remains the stuff of legend. The former world heavyweight champion became infamous as a brutish, trash-talking villain with a cutting wit and a bulldog scowl. His signature move, the back-breaker, was sure to draw boos from the crowd. His legacy as a man wrestling fans the world over loved to hate is being honoured in a new biography, Gene Kiniski: Canadian Wrestling Legend. "I watched Kiniski as a wrestler over the years and I found him, as many Canadians did, to be a very entertaining character," author Steven Verrier said in an interview Monday with CBC Radio's Edmonton AM. "But I learned he was a great deal more than I thought, and I just wanted to chronicle his life." 'Larger than life' While he was known as one of the era's biggest wrestling heels, in real life Kiniski was an endearing man, Verrier said. Beyond the ring, Kiniski — often billed as Big Thunder or the Greatest Athlete in Canada — was a gregarious man, a survivor of Depression-era poverty, a father, husband and professional football player. "He was a larger than life kind of character," Verrier said. "He attracted people whether he was in an arena or on television. He just drew people to him. He spoke his mind. "One longtime friend called him the ultimate child. "At first, I just saw him as an entertaining character. That's what drew me to him at first. But I would not have spent all this time working on this book had I not realized he was more than that." Wrestling's Gene Kiniski stirs the pot. Born in 1928 in Lamont, Alta., the youngest of six children, Kiniski was raised in nearby Chipman, Alta., where his family struggled through the Depression. They moved to Edmonton when Kiniski was 11, and within a few years he was a promising athlete. As a teenager, he started learning amateur wrestling holds at the YMCA in the late 1930s. He wrestled and played football at St. Joseph's High School, and soon caught the attention of CFL coach Annis Stukas. Kiniski played football for the Edmonton Eskimos and got a full ride football scholarship at the University of Arizona. The family has strong ties in Edmonton. Kiniski's mother, Julia, served four terms on city council between 1963 and 1969. His brother, Julian, also served on city council. Kiniski started his pro wrestling career in 1953 after a knee injury forced him to quit the Eskimos after three seasons. His six-foot-four, 272-pound frame and freight-train fighting style propelled him quickly to wrestling's top rung. After his debut in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 13, 1952, he went on to win individual and tag-team championships across North America and Japan. He beat Verne Gagne for the American Wrestling Association world title in 1961. His biggest win came on Jan. 7, 1966, when he conquered Lou Thesz to become National Wrestling Alliance world champion. His big personality made Kiniski a favourite among reporters and radio broadcasters. "He was considered entertaining and he was a main-eventer everywhere he went," Verrier said. "He didn't just ad lib. He prepared for his interviews. He was considered one of the best of his era at that. "He worked at that. He just sold himself." After retiring from the ring at 62, Kiniski settled in Blaine, Wash. Even in his final years, his wild personality was never tamed. He was sometimes spotted in his backyard shooting targets with guns from his collection or going out of daily jogs in tiny Speedo. He died of cancer in April 14, 2010 at age 81. "He was the kind of guy who made people take notice," Verrier said. "I think he would be proud of the legacy that he left." Review of Gene Kiniski: Canadian Wrestling Legend. Verrier, Steven. Gene Kiniski: Canadian Wrestling Legend. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2018. Pp. 246. Bibliography and index. $35 paperback. Reviewed by Bob D’Angelo Professional wrestling has always been about business. 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In a time when champions were known as squeaky clean good guy wrestlers, with his aggressive nature and natural charisma, “Big Thunder” broke that precedent. Kiniski was born on 23 rd November 1928 in Lamont, Alberta, Canada before moving onto the nearby town of Chipman at an early age. Times were hard financially for his family after the Stock Market Crash in 1929 and they moved to Edmonton by the time that Gene was 11. By the time he was a teenager, At six feet tall with a robust build, Kiniski was a promising athlete practising amateur wrestling and football at St. Joseph’s High School. By the time he was 20, Gene was recruited by the Edmonton Eskimos, sporting the number 50 and played defensive lineman in the Western Interprovincial Football Union, which was the predecessor of the Canadian Football League. Quoted as making a paltry $200 a year with the Eskimos, Kiniski moved onto college at the University of Arizona and played lineman for the Wildcats and became a strong NFL prospect. His aggression was highlighted after being chucked out of three games for unnecessary roughness. While staying in Tucson, Gene and close friend Steve Paproski needed jobs and became working for wrestling promoter and Edmonton native Rod Fenton as ushers and selling programs at his events. Kiniski became an asset at the events due to his size protecting the wrestlers from over- excited fans and began to start to work out at the local gyms with fellow wrestlers and Fenton and got involved in the basics of wrestling training. It is rumoured that Kiniski and Paproski started wrestling in different towns under pseudo names so that the University would not find out, but eventually, their cover was blown and the Wildcat coach Robert Winslow demanded they immediately stop. Later that year, although it was against the wishes of his family back in Edmonton, Kiniski decided to trade in the football pads for wrestling boots and was set to make his debut on Fenton show. So, on February 13 th 1952, donning the cover of the programs he used to sell, Kiniski made his in-ring debut at the Sports Center in Tucson defeating Curly Hughes in around 12 minutes.