Imperial Valley press., 1935-08-12
DnENS
SPORT%PARADE
A6S
BY HENRY McLEMORE
United Press staff Correspondent

DES MONIES, Iowa, aug. 4. -
This is the story of Bob Freder-
icks known to the wrestling trade
as Ed lStrangler) Lewis
had to come to Iowa. where
its so hot the corn grows "a hours
day. to hear it.
I got the story from a resident
of Lansing, Iowa, a town of 1900
citizens where the sheriff doubles
in brass and buries the dead as
undertaken.
The Stranger" who took a mil
lion or more dollars and the repu-
tation as the finest workman Of
all from the wrestling business,
owes his success to a man you've
never heard OF.
The man is Rudolph from Ger
many In 1911 the pride Of Lam
sing was Rudolph. AS an employee
of Wolfes poultry house he enter
tanned the natives by standing on
the street, bending his back, and
allowing a 100-pound sack OF salt
TO be dropped on his neck from
the second story. Rudolph took
the sack without a grunt. And
with a smile.
Then Robert F'redericks came to
town. He didn't have salt dropped
on his back, but he picked up bar
rels of dressed turkeys as though
they were the baseballs he pitched
for the Lansing nine, and hoisted
them on freight cars.
The citizens, after watching Ru-
dolph from Germany and Freder-
icks of Kentucky, fell into two
schools of thought. School No. l
said Rudolph of the iron back was
the strongest man in the world.
School No. said Fredericks, who
handled hundreds OF pounds oI
poultry as though they were all
feathers. was Samson doubled and
redoubled.
Bets were made. A night was
set. The town opera house was
hired and. sharply at nine p. m.
Rudolph and Bob came to grips.
They wrestled five minutes. Then
FrederickS, using a reverse body
and poultry hold, tossed Rudolph
from Germany through the ropes
and into the lap of gentleman
named, oddly enough, Ernie Gau-
nitz, manager of the poultry house.
Became Famous
For the next six months Freder-
icks who now had adopted the
title of Stranger Lewis, because
his family objected to his scuffing
the family name in the resin Of the
mat, threw all of Iowa's Semi-pro-
candidates His fame spread Che
now was tossing 'em with a head
lock- and he went to Chicago to
take on Doc Cutler. He threw the
doctor into the mezzanine much TO
the delight of the Lansing custom
ers who followed the progress OF
the match by telegraph.
The Cutler match started Lewis
on the road to fame. He gave up
the chicks and devoted all his time
to wrestling In this begotten era
wrestling was on the level, and
Lewis, because of his speed,
strength and stamina, went to the
top. Not long after this Lewis,
frowned upon by the old-timers,
challenged Joe Pesek, his chief ri
val in a pullman car in Chicago.
without benefit of referee or
gate receipts, natty in pajamas,
tossed Pesek, who was Bernarr
MacFadtHn's example of spinach
and a proper love of life. They
nearly tore up the La Sale street
station before Lewis finished it
with ayes, you've guessed it-a
deadlock.
Lewis became champion of the
world few years later when, at
Dodge City, Neb, at fourth of
July barbecue, he subdued Joe
Stecher of the famed leg equip
ment. They started wrestling at
four in the afternoon with the
farmer customers betting their
land on them Not only the farm
ers' farms but their livestock was
at stake when Joe and Ed went to
the mat. Darkness fell and the
farmers, determined to wait for
the one fall, turned on their model
T headlights to provide illumina-
ton for the Wrestlers.
Finally Lewis won and, in a bar
rage of bottles, oats and assorted
vegetables, escaped the town.
Bob Fredericks, poultry picker,
was champion of the world.
Tomorrow your large-eared cor
respondent will explain the value
of corn-and when say corn 1
mean on the ear and not in the
bottle.