Joseph Eugene Pazandak (October 23, 1914 – December 2, 1982) was an American

amateur wrestler Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced at Olympic, collegiate, scholastic, and other levels. There are two international wrestling styles performed at the Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the worl ...

and a

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 ...

, best known for 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 ...

Joe Pazandak. Pazandak received the nickname "The Champ" as he ruled the “Beat the Champ” segment on televised wrestling from Los Angeles.

Professional wrestling career

Pazandak made his professional wrestling debut in his hometown in Minneapolis at the age of 22, where he faced Al Loset which ended in a 20-minute time limit draw. As an amateur heavyweight, he won two AAU championships in the Northwest and went on to wrestle at the University of Minnesota before turning professional. Within a year, Pazandak was traveling around the country from Massachusetts to North Carolina to Maryland, mostly as a semi-main event performer. Pazandak served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Pazandak returned to the United States in 1944, after seeing 624 days of active combat. His first match since returning from the war took place in October 1945, where he defeated the highly skilled Ray Steele. Pazandak's popularity rose in the beginning of June 1951 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. As the inaugural

NWA "Beat the Champ" Television Championship The NWA "Beat the Champ" Television Championship was a secondary professional wrestling singles title defended in Johnny Doyle's NWA Los Angeles from 1951 to 1959. The title was defended in the same area during the 1960s under promoters Gene and M ...

, Pazandak defended the title for nine months against top challengers. ''

Press-Telegram The ''Press-Telegram'' is a paid daily newspaper published in Long Beach, California. Coverage area for the ''Press-Telegram'' includes Long Beach, Lakewood, Signal Hill, Artesia, Bellflower, Cerritos, Compton, Downey, Hawaiian Gardens, L ...

'' once named Pazandak "the most feared man in the wrestling ranks", in reference to his undefeated record on the West Coast. With Pazandak's

amateur wrestling Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced at Olympic Games, Olympic, Collegiate wrestling, collegiate, Scholastic wrestling, scholastic, and other levels. There are two international wrestling styles performed at the Olympic Games, fr ...

background, in 1948, he was hired to coach amateur wrestlers in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, which saw him working alongside

Karl Pojello Karl Pojello (born Karolis Požėla, February 13, 1893 – September 4, 1954) was a Lithuanian and later American professional wrestling, professional wrestler and promoter. Early life Pojello was born in Steigviliai, Russian Empire, in 1893. ...

. Pazandak also trained Verne Gagne.

Death

Pazandak died on December 2, 1983. He was 68 years old.

Championships and accomplishments

Amateur wrestling

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

** Northwest AAU Championship (1935–1936)

Professional wrestling

NWA Los Angeles NWA Hollywood Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Los Angeles) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Los Angeles, California in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Southern California. It ...

( 1 time) ** NWA International Television Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with

Lord James Blears Lord James "Tally-Ho" Blears (born James Ranicar Blears, 13 August 1923 – 3 March 2016) was a British-American professional wrestler, ring announcer, promoter, actor, mariner, and surfing personality. Early life Blears was born in Tyldesle ...

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 2016

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pazandak, Joe 1914 births 1982 deaths American male professional wrestlers Professional wrestlers from Minneapolis American professional wrestling trainers Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army non-commissioned officers NWA "Beat the Champ" Television Champions