Karl Pojello (born Karolis Požėla, February 13, 1893 – September 4, 1954) was a Lithuanian and later 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 ...

and promoter.

Early life

Pojello was born in Steigviliai, Russian Empire, in 1893. In 1906, he moved to

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

, Russia, to work in a pharmacy owned by his brothers Antanas and Motiejus. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he fought on the side of the Russian army.
Car Pojello birthplace

Wrestling career

At the age of 18 he was thought to be one of the best amateur wrestlers in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. In 1913 Požėla won an international wrestling tournament in Breslav. As a successful amateur wrestler, he joined a group of professional wrestlers traveling from city to city. With them he traveled to and wrestled in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, and in 1924 he came to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. In 1927, he met a Lithuanian wrestling promoter A. Tamašiūnas. There he beat Canadian wrestling champion Carl van Wurden in under 3 minutes. When he beat Johnny Mayers, another Lithuanian wrestler, considered to be middleweight champion of the world, he came to fame and recognition. At the time he was one of the most popular professional wrestlers in the United States. Pojello met

Maurice Tillet Maurice Tillet (; ; 23 October 1903 – 4 September 1954) was a Russian-French Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, The French Angel/The Angel. Tillet was a leading box office draw in the early 1940s and ...

in Singapore in February 1937, and convinced him to become a professional wrestler. Pojello went back to Europe with Tillet and wrestled there until the start of

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 ...

, when he and his friend were forced to return to the US.

Death

Karolis Požėla died on September 4, 1954, from lung cancer. Upon hearing of the death of Karl,

had a heart attack. He was taken to

Cook County Hospital The John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County (shortened ''Stroger Hospital'', formerly Cook County Hospital) is a public hospital in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is part of Cook County Health, along with Provident Hospital of Cook Cou ...

where he died on the same day. They are buried together at the

Lithuanian National Cemetery The Lithuanian National Cemetery () is a non-profit cemetery in Justice, Illinois, that mainly serves the Lithuanians in Chicago, Lithuanian American community in Chicago. Established in 1911, it is the resting place of many prominent Lithuanians ...

Championships and accomplishments

European Heavyweight Championship The European Heavyweight Championship is a name used for various top titles competed for throughout the European professional wrestling circuit. The title was recognised as official by UK national TV network ITV for the purposes of their coverage ...

(1 time)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pojello, Karl 1893 births 1954 deaths People from Pakruojis District Municipality People from Ponevezhsky Uyezd Soviet emigrants to the United States American people of Lithuanian descent American male professional wrestlers Russian male professional wrestlers Deaths from lung cancer in Illinois Lithuanian professional wrestlers