Willard Rowe Longson (June 8, 1906 – December 12, 1982) was an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

, better known by his

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname 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 ...

, Wild Bill Longson. He spent most of his career in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. He perfected the role of the arrogant

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 exerted ...

, and is credited with inventing and popularizing the

piledriver Piledriver or pile driver may refer to: *Pile driver, a person trained to use the diesel hammer that drives piles into the ground for foundations and bridges *Piledriver (professional wrestling), a move used in professional wrestling Entertainme ...

Professional wrestling career

Longson was a three-time National Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Champion during the 1940s. He first won the title from Sandor Szabo, before losing the title to

Yvon Robert Yvon Robert (October 8, 1914 – July 12, 1971) was a French Canadian Professional wrestling, professional wrestler who was best known to fans as Yvon "The Lion" Robert. Professional wrestling career American Wrestling Association (1932–1 ...

. Longson won his second title from Bobby Managoff before losing to Whipper Billy Watson. He won his third and final title from

Lou Thesz Aloysius Martin Thesz (April 24, 1916 – April 28, 2002), known by the ring name Lou Thesz, was an American professional wrestler and wrestling coach. Considered to be one of the last true shooters (legitimate wrestlers) in professional w ...

. Longson lost his title for the final time to Thesz on July 20, 1948, when Thesz elevated onto Longson's shoulders from the piledriver position and fell into a Thesz press. The following year, Thesz was awarded

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and governing body owned by Billy Corgan and operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA be ...

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

by default after champion

Orville Brown Orville Brown (March 10, 1908 – January 24, 1981) was an American professional wrestler. He is a thirteen-time world champion and was recognized as the first NWA World Heavyweight Champion in 1948. Brown's professional wrestling career end ...

was forced to retire after an automobile accident. Following this, the Alliance withdrew recognition of Brown's reign in favor of a lineage traced via the Association's lineage - ultimately back to

George Hackenschmidt Georg Karl Julius Hackenschmidt (1 August 1877 – 19 February 1968) was an Estonian Strongman (strength athlete), strongman, wrestling, amateur and Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, writer, and Philosophy of sport, sports philoso ...

in 1905 - beginning the process of consolidating all American world championships into one. As a result of this, the Alliance retroactively recognises Longson as a three time World champion. Longson retired from professional wrestling in 1960 after sustaining a broken

pelvis The pelvis (: pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of an Anatomy, anatomical Trunk (anatomy), trunk, between the human abdomen, abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also c ...

while riding an

unbroken Unbroken may refer to: Books and film * ''Unbroken'' (book), a 2010 nonfiction book by Laura Hillenbrand about World War II hero Louis Zamperini * ''Unbroken'' (film), a 2014 film based on the Hillenbrand book * '' Unbroken: Path to Redemption' ...

horse. He continued to work in the professional wrestling industry as a booker and promoter until 1977. Longson died on December 10, 1982, in St. Louis.

Championships and accomplishments

Central States Wrestling Heart of America Sports Attractions, Inc., operating as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebr ...

NWA Central States Heavyweight Championship The NWA Central States championship was reactivated in 2002 seeing Shane Somers defeat. 7'1 Butch McClain becoming the 1st champion since 1989 & youngest at 19 years of age. Title history {{Professional wrestling title history middle {{BundleEn ...

( 1 time) *International Wrestling Association (Montreal) ** IWA International Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *

National Wrestling Association The National Wrestling Association (NWA) was an early professional wrestling sanctioning body created in 1930 by the National Boxing Association (NBA; now the World Boxing Association, WBA) as an attempt to create a governing body for professional ...

NWA World Heavyweight Championship The NWA World's Heavyweight Championship is a men's professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professiona ...

( 3 times) *

NWA San Francisco NWA San Francisco was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in San Francisco, California in the United States. Founded in 1935 by "The Utica Panther" Joe Malcewicz (1897–1962), the promotion joined the National Wrestling Alliance in ...

**NWA Pacific Coast Heavyweight Championship ''(San Francisco version)'' (3 times) *

Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame (PWHF) and Museum was an American professional wrestling hall of fame and museum located in Wichita Falls, Texas; following the postponement of its 19th induction ceremony, planned for May 2020, and an annou ...

** Class of 2006 * Southwest Sports ** NWA Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Texas version)'' ( 1 time) **

NWA World Tag Team Championship The NWA World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling World Tag Team Championship, world tag team championship created by the National Wrestling Alliance. From 1948 to 1982, the NWA allowed List of National Wrestling Alliance territories ...

( 1 time) - with Ike Eakin * St. Louis Wrestling Hall Of Fame **Class of 2007 *''

Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four Wee ...

'' **

Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') Hall of Fame is a professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) hall of fame that recognizes people who make significant contributions to their professions. It was founded in 1996 by Dave Mel ...

( Class of 2000)

References

External links

Bill Longson at the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Longson, Wild Bill 1906 births 1982 deaths American male professional wrestlers Professional wrestlers from Utah Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum Sportspeople from Salt Lake City Professional wrestlers from St. Louis 20th-century American male actors 20th-century male professional wrestlers 20th-century American professional wrestlers WCWA Brass Knuckles Champions NWA World Tag Team Champions (Texas version)