Kowalski vs. Bobo

Recently, on a trip to Bobo Brazil's home in Benton Harbor to visit with his family, I glanced at the small walnut box on the fireplace mantle that contained his ashes, and it got me to thinking about the old days. This is a true story that actually happened.

If it had not been for the pioneering spirit of Bobo Brazil and other greats from our business in the early 1950's, there might have not been the chance for young black athletes to compete on the pro mats.

Bobo went through a lot of discouragement in his first few years of being a pro wrestler. He was often denied access to restaurants where the other guys went to eat. He was denied access to motel rooms where the other guys slept and spent lots of nights in his car's back seat. All because of the color of his skin. Some people just didn't realize that this man was going to be one of the icons of our great business. Some were just biased and one-sided.

Houston Harris (Bobo's real name) had been trained by "Jumping" Joe Savoldi, who had made many trips to the old Naval Armory in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Joe was one of the top moneymakers of his day, and he saw something in the young lad who made his home in Benton Harbor. Bobo had done everything that had been expected of him and then some. Bobo was an excellent learner and developed a style of his own. People loved Bobo, and he loved them back by being a great sportsman and a talented wrestler in the ring.

Bobo helped to pack the Armory on a lot of cards that he opened in his early years, but they still would not let him wrestle against a white man. For some reason, the promotion would not accept the fact that Bobo was a HUMAN and that he was a MAN. Bobo faced many different black athletes who came around on the pro circuit; two of them that come to mind were the late "Bearcat" Ed Wright and the late Jimmy "Black Panther" Mitchell of Toledo, Ohio. The matches those guys had were talked about for many years as being some of the greatest classics that had ever been seen. The "old timers" even had nice things to say. That, in itself, was flattery beyond belief.

For a couple of years, early in his career, Bobo did a lot of dreaming about the BIG lights of New York City and the wonders of the Asian countries. He talked to a lot of the old timers who had been to those places and eventually got a contact with a promoter/matchmaker by the name of Zacko out of the old Capitol Wrestling office.

Bobo traveled to Washington, D.C. and began a new career with more people than he had ever seen in his short life to date. He still wrestled on a nightly basis against other up and coming black men. He still won a lot of matches, and the fans gave him the following that he deserved. But, he still had some of the old haunts that had followed him from Benton Harbor.

It was in Alexandria, Virginia, a small town a few miles outside of Washington, D.C. that the NAACP finally did something for Bobo and all the other young black athletes that were in the business. They were concerned with conditions that were quite obvious. They went to matchmaker/promoter Zacko and told him that they would not let the matches start unless Bobo was allowed to compete against ANY wrestler, white, brown, black, and any other color in between. At first, Zacko thought he would have more power in the situation, but the fan support for Bobo was overwhelming.

The group from the NAACP was assured that on the next card, because the matches had been made and advertised, that Bobo would face a white wrestler. The card that night went on as scheduled, and when Bobo came out for the third bout on the card, he was carried to the ring on the shoulders of a group of fans. The accolades from the fans were almost too much for Bobo to believe; he had never been treated like this before. It was like a dream come true.

Two weeks later, true to his word, Mr. Zacko booked a huge young man from the Detroit office to meet Bobo in a classic, history making match that was a first of its kind. That young athlete was Wladek "Killer" Kowalski.

Did they have a match? HECK YES they had a match. It darned near ripped the roof off the building. They battled to a 30-minute draw, and both were covered with sweat and totally exhausted. At the end of the match they both shook hands and gave each other a short hug and returned two weeks later on the semi-main event and battled to a 60-minute draw.

Both men went on to become champions in the world of pro wrestling. They both traveled the world over and wrestled each other many times. Both men continued to have a lifelong admiration and respect for each other and, most of all, never saw any difference in their skin. The only COLOR they saw was GREEN. The color of money.

Thank you, Bobo and Killer Kowalski, for opening the doors of opportunity for all men to make a living equally.

May God continue to bless you both.

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers