Maple Leaf Wrestling
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maple Leaf Wrestling was the unofficial name in the 1970s and 1980s of the wrestling promotion run by Frank Tunney in Toronto.
The promotion, initially known as the Queensbury Athletic Club, traces its roots back to 1930, when it was managed by Jack Corcoran. Corcoran stepped down in 1939 and handed operations over to his assistants, John Tunney and Frank Tunney. John died just a few months later, and the promotion was run by Frank Tunney until his death in 1983. The main venue for Tunney's shows was Maple Leaf Gardens.
Following Frank's death, the business was run by John's son Jack Tunney and Frank's son, Eddie Tunney. They soon joined forces with Vince McMahon's expanding World Wrestling Federation, with Jack serving as a figurehead on-air president from 1984-95 and as the president of Titan Sports Canada.
In 1995, McMahon chose to run the shows in Toronto without any involvement from the Tunneys.
[edit] Some featured performers
- Whipper Billy Watson
- The Sheik
- Gene Kiniski
- Johnny Valentine
- Bruno Sammartino
- Tiger Jeet Singh
- Ric Flair
- Dewey Robertson
- Angelo Mosca
- Gary Will's Toronto Wrestling History: http://www.garywill.com/toronto/
- Maple Leaf Wrestling - Pictorial: http://mapleleafwrestling.4t.com/index.html