Eric Holmback (April 16, 1916 – January 16, 1965) was an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

, better known by the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or project ...

Yukon Eric. Holmback spent the majority of his career in Southern

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, where he won the

NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Championship The NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Championship was the top tag team professional wrestling championship in the Canadian promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any ty ...

on two occasions with

Whipper Billy Watson William John Potts, (June 25, 1915 to February 4, 1990) was a Canadian professional wrestler best known by his ring name "Whipper" Billy Watson. He was a two-time world champion, having held both the National Wrestling Association title and the ...

in 1955 and 1961 and the Montreal Athletic Commission's International Heavyweight Championship. He also won the

NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship The NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title that has existed since the 1930s. Though its exact date of creation isn't known, it is among the oldest championships used in professional wrestling today. The title has us ...

in 1948. Holmback is best known for his 1952 match and subsequent

feud A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one par ...

with Killer Kowalski in which he lost his ear as a result of a botched knee drop. A rematch between the two the following year was the first televised wrestling match in Canada. Holmback continued to wrestle in

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until he committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

in 1965.

Professional wrestling career

After being trained by Man Mountain Dean, Holmback made his

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

debut on January 22, 1942, using the

Yukon Eric. Yukon Eric utilised a strongman in-ring persona, and as part of the persona, he was announced as being from

Fairbanks, Alaska Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. The 2020 Census put the p ...

and always wore

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wool shirts, worn open to show off his chest. He also was known for whipping his opponent into the ropes so that they would bounce back into his chest. On January 30, 1948, Yukon Eric defeated Sonny Myers to win his first professional wrestling championship, the

. He held the championship for a week, before losing it to Miguel Guzmán on February 6. After this, he moved to

Southern Ontario Southern Ontario is a primary region of the province of Ontario, Canada, the other primary region being Northern Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada. The exact northern boundary of Southern Ontario is disp ...

, where he spent the majority of his wrestling career. Two years later, on February 15, 1950, he defeated Bobby Managoff to win the Montreal Athletic Commission's International Heavyweight Championship. During a match against Wladek Kowalski in 1952, Kowalski botched a knee drop, and legitimately severed part of Holmback's left ear. Afterward, Kowalski went to visit Holmback in the hospital, but began laughing at the bandages wrapped around Holmback's head. The incident cemented Kowalski as a

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exer ...

(villainous character) and prompted Kowalski to rename himself Killer Kowalski. A rematch between the two on January 14, 1953 at the

Montreal Forum Montreal Forum (french: Le Forum de Montréal) is a historic building located facing Cabot Square in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by '' Sporting News'', it was an indoor arena which served as t ...

was the first ever televised wrestling match in

. He won the

twice with

, with their first reign beginning on February 13, 1958, when they defeated

Fritz Von Erich Jack Barton Adkisson Sr. (August 16, 1929 – September 10, 1997), better known by his ring name Fritz Von Erich, was an American professional wrestler, wrestling promoter, and the patriarch of the Von Erich family. He was a 3-time world champio ...

and Gene Kiniski. They lost the championship just over a month later to Stan and Reggie Lisowski on March 20, 1958. Later that year, he won the championship for the second time when he teamed with

Dara Singh Dara Singh Randhawa (born Deedar Singh Randhawa; 19 November 1928 – 12 July 2012) was an Indian professional wrestler, actor, director and politician. He started acting in 1952 and was the first sportsman to be nominated to the Rajya S ...

to defeat Stan and Reggie Lisowski on August 7, 1958. Three years later, on December 28, 1961, he won the NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Championship for the second time with Watson, and the third time overall, when the pair defeated

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and Chris Tolos. Worked in Minnesota for

American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The territory was originally part ...

from 1961 to 1962. He later moved to

, where he wrestled until the time of his death in 1965. In 2007, Holmback was one of the honorees of the Cauliflower Alley Club's Posthumous Award, along with Betty Jo Hawkins.

Personal life

Holmback grew up in

Aberdeen, Washington Aberdeen () is a city in Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. The population was 17,013 at the 2020 census. The city is the economic center of Grays Harbor County, bordering the cities of Hoquiam and Cosmopolis. Aberdeen is occasi ...

, with three sisters. He attended Washington State College, where he played

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with the

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in 1938 as a

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Death

After divorcing his wife and suffering financial problems, on January 16, 1965, Holmback drove to the church in Cartersville, Georgia where he had gotten married, and committed suicide by shooting himself in the mouth with a

.22 caliber .22 caliber, or 5.6 mm caliber, refers to a common firearms bore diameter of 0.22 inch (5.6 mm). Cartridges in this caliber include the very widely used .22 Long Rifle and .223 Remington / 5.56×45mm NATO. .22 inch is also a popular ...

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. He was reported missing when he failed to show for matches in

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and St. Petersburg, Florida. His body was found the next day in his car in the church parking lot. He was survived by his three children, two daughters and a son.

Championships and accomplishments

* Cauliflower Alley Club **Posthumous Award (2007) *

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA began as a governing body for a ...

** NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Pat O'Connor and Roy McClarity **

( 3 times) – with

(2) and

(1) **

( 1 time)* *Montreal Athletic Commission ** MAC International Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

References

{{Reflist

External links