Historically Speaking: Secret American History

In the longest single episode of Historically Speaking we've ever done, Matt returns to take a deep dive into the first masked STARS of wrestling, as finding the first masked wrestlers seems nearly impossible... for now.

From the Masked Men of Paris who took the world by storm for a brief period in the 1860s, to the Masked Marvel who saved the International Wrestling Tournament in New York, we dig into the moments that solidifed them as stars, the wrestling world they inhabited, and the birth of the Heel Turn, the shoot run-in, and more tropes that have been codified in wrestling longer than anyone may have realized!

Research resources

The Kings Of Wrestling by Edmond Desbonnet (Edited and Translated by David L. Chapman)

Masked Marvel To The Rescue by Ken Zimmerman Jr.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/frrlbj/the_masked_marvel_the_earliest_known_masked/

https://x.com/Phil_Lions/status/1943305199667552389

https://phil-lions-research.blogspot.com/2026/06/homme-masque-1867.html?fbclid=IwY2xjawTTTvNleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMRkZ1MzJxMU5jUUNCbnNYc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHoMOpa9xcaVNspH57VAUOHEDBZzDuAjqdU6b0NJsLziTs9v4IB25aY_mCzgo_aem_ES-DtErbQxO9kvK2A8uQBg

https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/1s1iwlt/an_account_of_the_oldest_known_masked/

https://web.archive.org/web/20221013121001/https://www.prowrestlinghistoricalsociety.com/articles-0147.html

https://web.archive.org/web/20221016065423/https://www.prowrestlinghistoricalsociety.com/articles-0150.html

https://web.archive.org/web/20221016042748/https://www.prowrestlinghistoricalsociety.com/articles-0155.html

https://slamwrestling.net/archive/translated-kings-of-wrestling-a-major-contribution-to-wrestling-history/

https://nemfrog.tumblr.com/post/687267394209677312/masked-wrestlers-la-lune-november-3-1867

https://www.whenitwascool.com/history-of-wrestling-1915

https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1302&context=cparpublications

https://www.ibdb.com/theatre/manhattan-opera-house-1254

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis-Napol%C3%A9onPrinceImperial

https://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=22337&page=4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_05HWQ9vAcc

New York Herald, September 10, 1867

Chicago Tribune, September 15, 1867

The Newcastle Journal, September 10, 1867

Chicago Evening Post, September 20, 1867

The Birmingham Post, October 2, 1867

New York Times, October 6, 1867

The Pittsburgh Commercial, October 11, 1867

Birmingham Daily Post, October 22, 1867

Chicago Tribune, November 7, 1867

The Daily News (London), December 2, 1867

The Hagerstown Herald and Torch Light, December 25, 1867

The Morning Post, January 6. 1868

Bucks Free Press: January 17, 1868

The Tewkesbury Register, and Agricultural Gazette, February 8, 1868

The Grenfell Record and Lachlan District Advertiser: March 7, 1868

San Francisco Call Bulletin, January 5, 1902

New York Times, November 16, 1915

Altoona Tribune: December 1, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle, December 8, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 9, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Times: December 9, 1915

New York Times: December 9. 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 10, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Times: December 10, 1915

New York Herald: December 10, 1915

Pittsburgh Post: December 10, 1915

The Evening World: December 11, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 12, 1915

New York Herald: December 12, 1915

Boston Globe: December 12, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Times: December 13, 1915

New York Tribune: December 13, 1915

New York Herald: December 14, 1915

New York Tribune: December 14, 1915

Trenton Evening Times: December 14, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 16, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 18, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 23, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 21, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 21, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 27, 1915

The Evansville Journal: December 27, 1915

Brooklyn Daily Eagle: December 30, 1915

Baltimore Evening Sun: December 30, 1915

The Daily Standard Union: December 30, 1915

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Known as "The Elvis of Pro Wrestling," Bobby Davis rose from ring attendant and fan in Al Haft's Columbus, Ohio territory into the first real manager in the history of the sport.

Matt Ryan breaks down his path with some information from those who worked with Davis, Davis himself, and how he played a key part in Capitol Wrestling reclaiming Madison Square Garden and nearly the NWA as a whole.

References

Evolution of Communication: A Comparative Study from Cave Paintings to Emojis By. Aamir Ayub, Yasir Shehzad, and Shakeel Ahmad

Irresistible Force: The Life Of Gorilla Monsoon by Brian R. Solomon

Master Of The Ring by. Tim Hornbaker

Capitol Revolution by. Tim Hornbaker

The Hard Way by Don Fargo

My Life In Wrestling: With A Little Help From My Friends by. Gary Hart

https://www.nyprowrestling.com/results/1960s/1963.html

https://www.nyprowrestling.com/results/1950s/1959.html

https://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=1024&page=4&s=500

https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/wrestling-managers/

https://www.wwe.com/classics/classic-lists/10-overlooked-managers-you-need-to-know

https://slamwrestling.net/legend/bobby-davis/

https://www.postwrestling.com/2021/01/07/pollocks-news-update-trendsetting-manager-bobby-davis-dies/

https://x.com/allan_cheapshot/status/2033931489042190808

https://prowrestling.fandom.com/wiki/Bobby_Davis

https://retrowrestlingarchive.substack.com/p/the-blueprint-of-belligerence-bobby

https://www.cagematch.net/?id=2&nr=25227&page=4

https://www.facebook.com/groups/wrestlingbackintheday/posts/707068248896169/

https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2023/10/24/what-are-we-even-doing-get-bobby-davis-into-the-won-hall-of-fame/

https://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profile/bobby-davis/

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.454311777921291.109380.254252634593874

https://slamwrestling.net/features/mat-matters-the-quizzical-calls-from-bobby-davis-1937-2021/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcAeQjDy05g

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Matt is BACK with some Secret Wrestling History!

Join him as he looks back to the 1957 riot that saw Antonino Rocca, Edouard Carpentier, Dr. Jerry Graham, and Dick the Bruiser fighting each other... and hundreds of fans inside the Garden!

That plus a look at NWA Politics from that time, how McMahon was able to take control of the Garden and build a power base with Toots Mondt as his heater, plus how Kayfabe was dead in 1957, and a meditation on parasocial relationships and wrestling from that time period and now!

Madison Square Garden Riot Resources

Assassin by Joe Hamilton W/ Scott Teal

Capitol Revolution by Tim Hornbaker

https://www.nytimes.com/1957/11/20/archives/wrestling-ends-in-riot-at-garden-2-policemen-hurt-as-fans-storm.html

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1266028211/?match=8&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/660015726/?match=7&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/560864594/?match=1&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1010597847/?match=2&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1191516910/?match=6&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/255990503/?match=2&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/530584361/?match=1&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

https://www.newspapers.com/image/535577323/?match=2&terms=Rocca%2C%20Madison%20Square%20Garden%2C%20Riot

Wrestling Observer Newsletter History of WWF: March 17.2003

https://www.facebook.com/groups/wrestlingbackintheday/posts/818985334371126/

Dr. Jerry Graham Obituary: Kurt Brown/Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer: February 3, 1997

https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/1957-msg-riot/?srsltid=AfmBOoonhm_7W4b3KbekUCQGOccCJRlf_Upya2CDOS2hZmUd3PFhHRFg

https://www.nyprowrestling.com/results/1950s/

https://www.cagematch.net/en/?id=8&nr=2113&page=4

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_Athletic_Commission_World_Heavyweight_Championship

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob5EFSOeVgI&t=261s

https://books.google.com/books?id=j1YEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA165&dq=wrestling+script+gone+awry&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwju4oTe2JmVAxX7rokEHaOMAI8QuwV6BAgIEAc#v=onepage&q&f=false

https://x.com/BJBethelTweets/status/2064562167353954481/photo/1

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With the New York Mayoral Election upon us, we look at the founding fathers of Conservative Talk as Bob Grant and his mentor Joe Pyne set the stage for our modern media landscape, and weirdly play into the backstory of the same racial and cultural animosity we've seen in the 2025 New York Mayoral Election, as the son of the man Grant brought down with smears, jears, and a catchy parody song, Andrew Cuomo, is caught playing the same game as the man who dispised his father, Mario, and Cuomo's political mentor, Bill Clinton.

References

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GD6q-aRlFPlYVGJXKKvLQZltkQGk-0EcVOUbNN_lHac/edit?usp=sharing

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In this edition, we take a look at the first radio station and disc jockeys to play their own songs, the impact of consultants, and how much they kill creativity.

Also, a look at the origin story of WNEW, how they seized an opportunity when another station failed, and the story of a guy who broke his legs working in a uranium mine and then became the biggest name in radio by being the first shock jock, Don Imus.

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WNEW-FM

https://www.nyradioarchive.com/wnewfm.html

https://nab.org/hof/inductees/donImus.asp

https://worfm.com/history.html

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2006/02/imus200602

https://books.google.com/books?id=D-kCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA29#v=onepage&q&f=false

https://archive.org/details/everythingimusal0000reed/page/24/mode/2up

https://thebluze.com/2017/04/04/underground-radio-in-the-late-1960s/

https://www.nyradioarchive.com/audio/WNEWFM_GirlsJingle_NL.mp3

https://www.nyradioarchive.com/worfm.html

https://books.google.com/books?id=uVYEAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

https://www.nyradioarchive.com/worfm.html

https://archive.org/details/wor-fm-98.7-nyc-first-fm-rock-station-1966

https://www.npr.org/2019/12/27/791955636/pioneering-shock-jock-don-imus-has-died-at-79

https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/biography/don-imus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Imus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eldridge_Cleaver

https://www.musicradio77.com/other/Rosko%20Resigns%20WOR-FM%2010-2-67.mp3

https://www.flicklives.com/index.php?pg=112&recno=6133

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_a_Wonderful_Life

https://halloffame.nysbroadcasters.org/post/scott-muni

https://nyradioarchive.com/

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-sep-30-me-passings30.1-story.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/30/arts/scott-muni-74-a-radio-dj-of-fm-rock-programming-dies.html

https://denniselsas.com/scott-muni/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Muni

https://www.radiohalloffame.com/scott-muni

https://radiodiscussions.com/threads/the-old-wnew-fm-record-library.549283/

https://www.musicradio77.com/other/WOR-FM-Muni-Michaels-10-8-66.mp3

https://topviewtix.com/new-york/new-yorks-broadcasting-history?srsltid=AfmBOorxS6wlZ244-tyGXgvT5Ug_rgtVIwA_w3ZfXFbMuVYPnPDAA4Hm

https://www.playlistresearch.com/ny-radiohistory.htm

https://nyradioarchive.com/audio/WNEWFM_197510_PF_CatOlsen.mp3

https://www.facebook.com/groups/278808429125814/posts/2312907445715892/

https://radiodiscussions.com/threads/early-1960s-nyc-am-radio.623044/

https://nyradioarchive.com/images/radioscans/WNEWFM_Ros_NYT19690105.jpg

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The only way to tell the tale of radio in New York City is to look back... all the way back to over a century ago, as the concept of broadcast radio would be developed on the backs of a massive international tragedy, David Sarnoff being the reason we have culture and a culture war over the airwaves, and the philisophical question of how do you accurately cover a subject with a limited amount of worthwhile people?

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Resources

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GD6q-aRlFPlYVGJXKKvLQZltkQGk-0EcVOUbNN_lHac/edit?usp=sharing

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With it being Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame season, our resident favorite Wrestling Historian/Blabbermouth runs through his unofficial ballot for the 2025 class!

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Listen to Matt's new monthly/bi-monthly podcast where he tells you stories that come from inside his mind!

It's a literal place for his stuff!

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It's the season finale of Historically Speaking, and Matt Ryan lays out the case for why we are where we are now was inevitable, setting the through line from the fall of the IWA to 1982 as the Wrestling Establishment began to topple over like a Jenga puzzle.

Resources

Death Of The Territories: Tim Hornbaker

Capitol Revolution: Tim Hornbaker

The Solie Chronicles: Robert Allyn, Pamela Allyn, Scott Teal

National Wrestling Alliance: The Untold Story: Tim Hornbaker

Inside Out: How Corporate America Destroyed Pro Wrestling: Ole Anderson, Scott Teal

Ric Flair: The Last Real World Champion: Tim Hornbaker

Wrestling At The Chase: The Inside Story: Larry Matysik

The Cowboy And The Cross: Bill Watts

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