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1-6 of 6
- "Doc T". as he was known, was a Ph.D., and Professor of Theatre at Michigan State University in the early 1940s, just before World War II. He often spoke about leaving academia and actually trying his hand at the craft he taught. After the war, he got his chance and never looked back.
- Louise Small was born on 8 December 1917 in Louisiana, USA. She was an actress, known for Melody of the Plains (1937), Slaves in Bondage (1937) and Reckless Ranger (1937). She died on 25 January 1974 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.
- Joe Savoldi was born in Castano Primo (Italy) and he spent his childhood in Castano Primo and Bergamo (Milan, Italy). He moved to the United States in 1919 at age twelve to join his family in Three Oaks, Michigan. Giuseppe Savoldi anglicized his first name to "Joe" and became a star athlete in high school. After graduation from Three Oaks High, he enrolled at the University of Notre Dame, where beginning in 1928 he would play football for the Fighting Irish teams coached by Knute Rockne.
The All-American fullback was first nicknamed "The People's Choice" and eventually "Jumping Joe"-- after a 1929 game against Carnegie Tech when he scored a touchdown by jumping up and over the line of scrimmage to win the game. Other career highlights for Savoldi came on October 4, 1930 when he scored the first ever Notre Dame touchdown at the newly opened Notre Dame Stadium on a 98 yard kick-off return, and one week later when he scored three touchdowns against Navy in the stadium's official "dedication" game. His career came to a sudden end on November 17, 1930 when he withdrew from school after divorce papers were filed and his secret marriage became public knowledge.
Upon Savoldi's expulsion from Notre Dame, he went professional, signing first with the Green Bay Packers and then with the Chicago Bears of the NFL, for which the Bears were fined $1,000 for signing a player before his college class had graduated. The Bears started Savoldi at the halfback position opposite Red Grange, and in his first game (only ten days after leaving Notre Dame) he scored the only touchdown in a 6-0 victory over Ernie Nevers' Cardinals at Wrigley Field in Chicago. After helping the Bears win their final three games of the season, Savoldi was invited to re-join his fighting Irish team mates in a Notre Dame All-Star vs West/South All-Star game in the Los Angeles Coliseum. During the 20-7 victory, Savoldi scored three touchdowns, was named the game's MVP, and caught the eye of two famous spectators-wrestling promoter Billy Sandow and former world champion Ed "Strangler" Lewis. Sandow and Lewis allegedly promised Savoldi more money in a single wrestling match than he would make during the entire following season with the Bears.
As a wrestler, Savoldi became known for originating his finishing move, the flying dropkick (the pro wrestling move known today as simply the "dropkick").
Interpromotional wars were raging at the time, and on April 7, 1933 at Chicago Stadium, Savoldi was involved in a double cross on heavyweight champion Jim Londos. After Savoldi won the World Heavyweight Championship, vigorous arguments were waged over whether Savoldi had truly won the match, and whether Londos' title had even been on the line. As a result, Savoldi and Managoff were suspended in some territories and the title change was not universally recognized. Londos continued to bill himself as world champion, while Savoldi went to the New York area claiming the same, until he was defeated by Jim Browning on June 12 at Yankee Stadium. After peace was made between rival promotions, a Londos/Savoldi rematch was held at Chicago Stadium on January 31, 1934. Londos won the contest in front of 20,200 fans, one of the largest crowds to ever watch a wrestling match up to that time.
Savoldi continued his wrestling career throughout the decade, touring New Zealand in 1936, appearing in Hawaii and Australia in 1937, and spending a lengthy time in Europe shortly before World War II. In 1941, he attempted to bring a new soft drink to market, called Dropkick, The Drink For "All Americans". The business venture quickly fizzled, however, after the United States entered the war, and the ensuing sugar rationing halted production. As the conflict continued, Savoldi was approached by the U.S. government about joining the war effort in an espionage role, owing to his fluency in multiple dialects of Italian. Thus he became an OSS Special Ops agent operating in and around Italy, where he passed easily for a local. Among the missions in which Savoldi participated was a series of secret meetings held behind enemy lines in July 1943 between an OSS team and members of the Italian Resistance.
Savoldi resumed his wrestling career before war's end and won the Canadian Belt, but his ability to move around in the ring would begin to diminish due to the onset of arthritis. He tried promoting in the Chicago area for a while between 1946 and 1948, and mentored Bobo Brazil, before giving him his start in the wrestling business. Savoldi returned to the ring for a couple more years, wrestling his final match in 1950. He then went back to university to work towards earning his qualifications for a teacher's degree, and eventually came to teach science at Henderson County High School in Henderson, Kentucky. Joe Savoldi died in 1974 at the age of 65, and is buried in Henderson. - Irma Vass was born on 29 September 1891 in Pestszentlõrinc, Austria-Hungary [now Budapest, Hungary]. She was an actress, known for Egy pikoló világos (1955), Zápor (1961) and Merry-Go-Round (1956). She died on 25 January 1974 in Budapest, Hungary.
- Richard Peramets was born on 3 March 1922. He was an actor, known for Minu naine sai vanaemaks (1976), Variant 'Omega' (1975) and Mehed ei nuta (1968). He died on 25 January 1974.
- Neil Brant was born on 22 May 1903 in Vitebsk, Vitebsk uyezd, Vitebsk Governorate, Russian Empire. He was a writer, known for International House (1933), Hands of Mystery (1949) and Not for Publication (1951). He died on 25 January 1974 in Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France.