NWA Hollywood Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Los Angeles) was a

professional wrestling promotion A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. "Promotion" also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event. Within ...

headquartered 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, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in the United States that promoted

professional wrestling 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, real- ...

matches throughout

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. It was founded in 1958 as the North American Wrestling Alliance, a member of the

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 ...

. It broke away from the NWA in 1959 and was renamed Worldwide Wrestling Associates in 1961. In 1968, it rejoined the NWA and adopted its final name, remaining a member until closing in 1982.

History

In 1942, Frank Garbutt, vice president of the

Los Angeles Athletic Club Los Angeles Athletic Club (LAAC) is a privately owned Sports club, athletic club and social club in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California, United States. Established in 1880, the club is today best known for its John R. Wooden Award pr ...

, hired former

California State Athletic Commission The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) regulates amateur and professional boxing, amateur and professional kickboxing and professional mixed martial arts (MMA) throughout the State by licensing all participants and supervising the event ...

inspector Alvah "Cal" Eaton as the promoter of the

Grand Olympic Auditorium The Grand Olympic Auditorium is a former sports venue in southern Downtown Los Angeles, California. The venue was built in 1924 at 1801 South Grand Avenue, now just south of the Santa Monica Freeway. The grand opening of the Olympic Auditoriu ...

at the advice of his secretary, Aileen LeBell. Eaton and LeBell married in 1948, and over the following years the couple became major professional wrestling and boxing promoters in

. By the early-1950s, the Eatons, along with Hugh Nichols, Johnny Doyle, and Mike Hirsch (collectively known as the "California Combine"), dominated professional wrestling in Southern California, leading to a

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...

antitrust Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...

investigation in 1955 and 1956. On July 24, 1957,

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 ...

defeated

Édouard Carpentier Édouard Ignacz Weiczorkiewicz (July 17, 1926 – October 30, 2010) was a French and Canadian Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, gymnast, and member of the French Resistance during World War II, known by his ring name, Édouard Carpent ...

under controversial circumstances to win the

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 ...

, the principal

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

recognized by the

. The decision was challenged by some members of the National Wrestling Alliance who continued to recognize Carpentier as World Heavyweight Champion. In 1958, the Eatons created the North American Wrestling Alliance as a new vehicle for promoting professional wrestling in Los Angeles. Eaton at the time was still a member of the National Wrestling Alliance, the national league that dominated professional wrestling in the United States, but had not paid dues since 1955. In October 1959, Eaton and LeBell withdrew from the NWA, recognizing Carpentier as the inaugural

World Heavyweight Champion At boxing's beginning, the heavyweight division had no weight limit, and historically the weight class has gone with vague or no definition. During the 19th century many heavyweights were 170 pounds (12 st 2 lb, 77 kg) or less, tho ...

backdated to June 14, 1957, when Carpentier had originally won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. The promotion was renamed Worldwide Wrestling Associates in 1961. The promotion ran events throughout Southern California, with the Grand Olympic Auditorium as its base. Bookers included

Jules Strongbow Francis Huntington (born November 29, 1952) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in the early 1980s under the ring name Jules Strongbow, where he held the ...

Freddie Blassie Frederick Kenneth Blassie (February 8, 1918 – June 2, 2003) was an American professional wrestler and manager, known by the ring name "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Renowned as "The Hollywood Fashion Plate","Classy" Freddie Blassie with Keith Ellio ...

, Mr. Moto, and

Gory Guerrero Salvador Guerrero Quesada (January 11, 1921 – April 18, 1990), better known as Gory Guerrero, was one of the premier Mexican-American professional wrestlers in the early days of Lucha Libre when most wrestlers were imported from outside Mexi ...

. The promotion developed a working relationship with the

Japan Wrestling Association The , also known as the Japan Pro Wrestling Association and the Japanese Wrestling Association (JWA), was the first professional wrestling promotion to be based in Japan. It operated from 1953 to 1973. History JWA under Rikidōzan (1953–1963 ...

and

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Puroresu, Japanese professional-wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, and based in Nakano, Tokyo. It is currently majority owned by card-game company Bushiroad, with TV As ...

, resulting in many talent exchanges. Aileen Eaton introduced a system of paying wrestlers a proportion of the gate rather than a guaranteed fee, boosting profits and encouraging wrestlers to help promote the events. The promotion also pioneered the use of

closed-circuit television Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of closed-circuit television cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signa ...

to show matches to fans who were unable to secure tickets for live events, an early precursor to the

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program ...

model that emerged in the 1980s. In 1963, WWA World Heavyweight Champion

Bearcat Wright Edward M. Wright (January 13, 1932 – August 28, 1982) better known by his ring name "Bearcat" Wright was an American professional wrestler who became popular in the late 1950s and 1960s. Despite racial tension in the United States, he became wi ...

faced Freddie Blassie in a bout that Wright was scripted to lose. Instead, Wright headbutted Blassie, dazing him, and then legitimately pinned him. Wright was subsequently stripped of the championship which was then awarded to Edouard Carpentier. Eaton died on January 10, 1966, with Aileen's son from a prior marriage Mike LeBell taking over on behalf of his mother, who by then was a major figure in boxing. On August 18, 1968, LeBell rejoined the NWA, renaming the promotion NWA Hollywood Wrestling. The WWA World Heavyweight Championship was abandoned and the promotion began recognizing the NWA World Heavyweight Championship once more. In August 1971, the promotion set a national gate record for an event headed by a bout between Blassie and

John Tolos John Tolos, nicknamed "The Golden Greek", (April 5, 1931 – May 28, 2009) was a Canadian professional wrestler, and professional wrestling manager. Professional wrestling career Tolos was born on April 5, 1931, in Hamilton, Ontario to G ...

that drew $142,158 (). In 1981, the promotion obtained a legacy of sorts by being the first recipient of the ''

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 ...

'' award for Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic. This tactic involved the push of Tony Hernandez, who had previously wrestled in the Arizona territory as "Frankenstein", a crazed man who believed himself to be

Frankenstein's monster Frankenstein's monster, commonly referred to as Frankenstein, is a fictional character that first appeared in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' as its main antagonist. Shelley's title compares the monster's ...

and even wore a rubber mask depicting the creature. LeBell chose instead to push him as "The Monster", who was billed as legitimately being made in a laboratory, and use him as a top heel. After being defeated by

André the Giant André René Roussimoff (; 19 May 1946 – 28 January 1993), better known by his ring name André the Giant, was a French professional wrestler and actor. Dubbed "the Eighth Wonder of the World", Roussimoff was known for his great size, which ...

(who was reportedly unimpressed by the act and decided to stiff Hernandez), the Monster was unmasked - despite the mask being intended to be his real face - and turned into a child-friendly babyface. This entire arc was seen as insulting by hardcore fans. NWA Hollywood Wrestling continued to operate until December 1982. Mike LeBell sold his interest in the territory to the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

, which in March 1983, began promoting shows in its former territory.

Championships

Alumni

* Chris Adams *

Buddy Austin Austin Wesley Rogers (born Austin Wesley Rapes; February 27, 1929 – August 13, 1981) was an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name "Killer" Buddy Austin. He is best known for his appearances with the Los Angeles, Californ ...

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 ...

Dino Bravo Adolfo Bresciano (; August 6, 1948 – March 10, 1993), better known by the ring name Dino Bravo (), was an Italian-Canadian Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter, promoter. After training under Gino ...

* The Destroyer *

Ric Drasin Richard Alan Drasin (July 12, 1944 – August 30, 2020) was an American bodybuilder, personal trainer, actor, stuntman, author, and professional wrestler. He wrestled professionally and sporadically between 1965 and 2001, while also winning ...

Terry Funk Terrance Dee Funk (June 30, 1944 – August 23, 2023) was an American professional wrestler and actor. Widely considered one of the most influential and greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Funk was known for the longevity of his car ...

Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (; November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American Evangelism, evangelist, ordained Southern Baptist minister, and Civil rights movement, civil rights advocate, whose broadcasts and world tours featuring liv ...

Chavo Guerrero, Sr. Salvador Guerrero Llanes (January 7, 1949 – February 11, 2017), better known as Chavo Guerrero or Chavo Guerrero Sr., and also known during the 21st century as "Chavo Classic", was a Mexican-American professional wrestler. He was best k ...

* Dick Lane (announcer) *

Gene LeBell Ivan Gene LeBell (October 9, 1932 – August 9, 2022) was an American actor, judoka, stuntman and professional wrestler. Nicknamed "Judo Gene" and "The Godfather of Grappling", he is credited with popularizing grappling in professional fighti ...

Don Leo Jonathan Don Heaton (April 29, 1931 – October 13, 2018), also known as Don Leo Jonathan, was an American-Canadian professional wrestler. Professional wrestling career Jonathan, nicknamed "The Mormon Giant" was a second generation star (his father was ...

Mil Máscaras Mil Máscaras (born Aarón Rodríguez Arellano, July 15, 1942) is a Mexican Lucha libre, luchador (professional wrestler) and actor. He is regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico – along with El Santo a ...

Ray Mendoza José Díaz Velázquez (July 6, 1929 – April 16, 2003), better known by his ring name Ray Mendoza, was a Mexican ''luchador'' (or professional wrestler). After working for Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL), Mendoza had great success in th ...

Pedro Morales Pedro Antonio Morales (October 22, 1942 – February 12, 2019) was a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the United States with Worldwide Wrestling Associates (WWA) and the World Wide Wrestling Federati ...

* Mr. Moto *

Roddy Piper Roderick George Toombs (April 17, 1954 – July 31, 2015), better known as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, was a Canadian professional wrestler and actor. In professional wrestling, Piper was best known to international audiences for his work with the Wo ...

Rikidōzan (born Kim Sin-rak; ; November 14, 1924 – December 15, 1963), better known as Rikidōzan (), was a Korean-born Japanese wrestler who competed in sumo and professional wrestling. He was known as The Father of Puroresu (professional wrestling ...

* Victor Rivera * The Sheik *

Dennis Stamp Dennis Stamp (December 6, 1946 – March 13, 2017) was an American professional wrestler and referee. He was best known for wrestling extensively during the 1970s and 1980s for the American Wrestling Association, and for the National Wrestling Al ...

* Sándor Szabó *

* Dale Valentine *

Footnotes

External links

Worldwide Wrestling Associates at WrestlingTitles.com

National Wrestling Alliance Hollywood Wrestling at Cagematch.net

NWA Hollywood Documentary
{{Professional wrestling in the United States 1958 establishments in California 1982 disestablishments in the United States Independent professional wrestling promotions based in California Professional wrestling in Los Angeles Professional wrestling in California Defunct professional wrestling promotions

History

Championships

Alumni

Footnotes

See also

External links