Steve Stanlee

Paul Oswald Zygowicz (February 29, 1920 – July 2, 2010), better known by his ring name of Steve Stanlee, was an American professional wrestler from the late 1940s through the 1960s. He was the younger brother of professional wrestler Gene Stanlee.[1]

Steve Stanlee
Birth nameSteve Zygowicz
Born(1920-02-29)February 29, 1920
Chicago, Illinois
DiedJuly 2, 2010(2010-07-02) (aged 90)
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Steve Stanlee
Paul Stanlee
Billed weight232 lb (105 kg)

Career

Steve served with Gene in the U.S. Navy during World War II and entered the professional wrestling circuit after the war. From 1947 to 1948, Stanlee wrestled under the ring name Paul Stanlee for Georgia Championship Wrestling (gCW).[2] He competed against such wrestlers as Tom Mahoney and Bobby Roberts, winning the majority of these matches.[2] Like his brother Gene, Steve took the nickname "Mr. America" for his chiseled physique, bleached his hair blond, and wore dazzling sequined jackets to the ring.[3] Gene and Steve did train together and had a couple of runs as a tag team, but the two generally stayed on separate career paths.[1] Notably, Steve wrestled Lou Thesz for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on October 27, 1950,[4] two full years before his brother faced Thesz.[5]

After his stint in Georgia, Stanlee competed in Toronto, Ontario. He worked as a jobber, putting over other wrestlers, such as Al Korman and Pat Flanagan.[6] In the early 1950s, Stanlee wrestled in the Northeastern United States. Wrestling in New York and New Jersey, he received occasional pushes, challenging for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on several occasions.[7][8]

Stanlee then traveled to California, where he wrestled in the mid-1950s.[9][10] He later returned to wrestle for Capitol Wrestling in the New York area in the late 1950s.[11][12][13]

Steve didn't catch on with the public in the same way as Gene did, and as a result never attained the same level of fame. He did have a longer career in the ring, however, and may in fact be the better known brother among fans of 1960s wrestling. While Gene was out of wrestling by the early '60s, Steve remained active. He wrestled both as a singles competitor and as part of a tag team, "The Stanlee Steamers", with a kayfabe third "brother", Bob Stanlee (played by Bob Merrill).[1] Unfortunately, Steve won few high-profile matches either way and is generally regarded to have been a "jobber to the stars" for much of his career. He did, however, win the National Wrestling Alliance's Ohio Heavyweight Championship on July 1, 1961 by defeating Frankie Talaber.[14] He dropped the belt back to Talaber in a rematch later that year.[14] Stanlee also helped train Buddy Bison, who wrestled for Georgia Championship Wrestling for several years.[15]

From 1964 to 1966, Stanlee wrestled for the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). He lost the majority of his matches, but he did get victories over Arnold Skaaland and "Baron" Mikel Scicluna in 1965.[16][17][18] After leaving the WWWF, Stanlee wrestled in Hawaii, competing in both singles matches and in a tag team with Jim Hady.[9][19] He then returned to Georgia Championship Wrestling, putting over the other talent in that promotion as well.[2]

Late in life, Steve Stanlee appeared in an interview in the Icons Of Wrestling documentary series.[1] He died in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin on July 2, 2010.[20]

Championships and accomplishments

References
  1. Oliver, Greg. ""Mr. America" Stanlee a showboating pioneer". SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  2. "Who's Who: Paul Stanlee". Georgia Wrestling History. Archived from the original on 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2008-02-12.
  3. Kelly, David (1993-06-20). "Children's Books: I Was a Teenage Professional Wrestler". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  4. "Steel Belt Wrestling - Buffalo - 1950". Steel Belt Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  5. "Wrestler Profiles: Gene Stanlee". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  6. "1949 Results". Toronto Wrestling History. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  7. "Records of NWA World Heavyweight Championship Matches: 1950-51". Wrestling Titles. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  8. "Records of NWA World Heavyweight Championship Matches: 1952-53". Wrestling Titles. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  9. "Wrestler Profiles: Johnny Barend". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  10. "Wrestler Results Archive: Sandor Kovacs". SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  11. "Results: 1958". NY Pro Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  12. "Results: 1959". NY Pro Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  13. "Capitol-NWA 1959". Superstar Billy Graham Record Book. Archived from the original on 2008-05-14. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  14. "Ohio Heavyweight Title". Wrestling Titles. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  15. "Wrestler Profiles: Buddy Bison", Online World of Wrestling, retrieved 2008-02-13
  16. "Ring Results: 1964". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on 2007-11-02. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  17. "Ring Results: 1965". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on 2007-11-02. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  18. "Ring Results: 1966". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on 2008-01-01. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  19. "Wrestling Results (1966)". 50th State Big Time Wrestling. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  20. "Steve Stanlee Obituary". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2010-07-13.
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