There are a few things more Mexican than lucha libre. Right, It's right up there with tacos and mariacci. Everyone has heard of lucha libre. Wherever you go, whoever you meet, if you show them a lucalo or mask, they will think of Mexico, even if they can't say ola or take a straight shot of tequila. Lucea is so famous because it's more than sport, and it's more than show. Lucha libre's folklore, tradition, culture. You see it everywhere. People have pictures of their favorite wrestlers hung up in their homes. You can buy a Luca mask in the same markets where you get your groceries, and every year, shipping containers worth of plastic figurines make it into children's toy bins. What can I say about lucha libre? For me, it's everything. It's my life, both professionally and personally. I grew up with lucha libre. Unlike many Lucallotis and children of Lucallotis, I'm still living it today, and I'm not just a wrestler. I'm a fan like you. Like everybody smiling and laughing in the arena, I get goose bumps when the next fight is announced and the wrestlers enter the ring. NI it's hard to find someone who want to enjoy at least one Lucha librea match. Lucha Libre is even officially part of Mexican identity. The Mexican Secretary of Culture made it official in its patrimonial in tan Hile Popular equal to Ral de la Mexico. It's a designation that's kind of like a national park. The Mexican government is saying this is important and we're going to protect and celebrate it. We even have a national Lucha lib today, September twenty first, my father, Elfantasma had a hand in all that. His Mexico City's commissioner of Lucha Libre and the Lucadre I respect most in the year universe. But not everyone knows Lucha librea's history. So in this podcast, I will tell you about its origins. Together, we will celebrate the legends inside and outside the ring. We will relieve the most epic battles in the Mexican arenas. Through twelve episodes with no time limit, I will tell you the story of the greatest Mexican pro wrestling heroes of all time Rega Exantov and Blue Demon, who were eternal rivals inside the ring, but outside they took Lucha libre to cinemas around the world, or Ediega Redo, who conquered the United States arenas with a very Mexican fighting style, and many more legends like Irama Gonzalez, May Flowers and Ray Mysterious. I will also tell you why pro wrestling is so popular in Mexico, just to give you an idea. The Masque la mascare is undoubtedly the most important symbol of our lucha liber culture. But did you know that the first fighter who used the mask was not Mexican. I swear so lesson And to start with this story, let me tell you that Lucha libre as we know it in Mexico was not exactly born there. That's right, Raza. Pro wrestling arrived in Mexico thanks to a Mexican businessman who saw a fight for the first time in the United States. I am Santos Escobara, the Emperor of Lucha Libre and a ww superstar. For over twenty years, I have been a professional wrestler in Mexico, the United States and around the world. I've been a champion, a hero. I've won and lost, but I always represent Lucha libre with pride. Lucha Libre, it's tradition, its heritage, its culture, Ladies and gentlemen. The following podcast is scheduled for twelve episodes, and it's all about lucha liber This is Lucha Libre Behind the Mass. Episode one. The Tzar of Lucha Libre, the man who brought lucha libre down to Mexico, was a guy named Don Salvador Lurot. Everyone knew Don Salvador simply as Don Chava. You could go to any boxing gym in the country and someone there would know him or know of him. Originally from Halisko, the land of Tequila, Chava was born into a rich family and grew up comfortably. However, the good times didn't last on. Java's dad loved to gamble and eventually paid the price. They lost everything and the family moved to Mexico City for a fresh start. The year of their move, nineteen ten, wasn't just the big year for the Lutrerotes, it was a big year for Mexico as well. In nineteen ten, the Mexican Revolution broke out, a conflict that would go on and fits and starts for a decade. As if the move and the war wasn't enough to destabilize the family, catastrophe struck when Chavas dad died. Little Don Chava Lutrerote was just a kid of thirteen when he became the man of the house and the primary breadwinner. He took an odd jobs, working at a printing press and later at a shoe factory. Despite the long hours, young Java stayed in school, finishing the fifth grade. By the time he was seventeen old enough to the revolution, the war was still going on and he was thrust into it. You could say that Donchava had a historical life even without his contributions to Lucha Libe. He fought in a battle against Pancho Villa himself, one of the leaders of the revolutionary forces. You've probably even heard that name before, one of those guys with the mustache, giant sombrero, and bullets trapped in the necks across his chest. His allegiances were constantly shifting, and he even invaded the US at one point. He's still a major figure in Mexican culture. The point is, the guy is a big deal, and if you have a relative who fought against Panchovilla. It would be like having a great grandpa who stormed the beaches at Normandy. To make Don Chava's war story even more epic, he fought for the division led by none other than Albaro Obregon. Another story general in the Mexican Revolutionary Army. Yes, at some point in time all the revolutionary generals were fighting each other for the presidency. But this is not a podcast about the Mexican Revolution, so let's go back to Chava. Don Chava thrived in the army and rose through the ranks to captain. The revolution officially ended in nineteen twenty Heneralobregon and his troops played their carts right, and when the dust settled, he became the President of Mexico. Donchavo Luteo played his own cards right and got himself a government post as the tax collector of the North, right in the heart of Ways. For four years, everything was great, But when Obregon left office in nineteen twenty four, Donchavo Luto found himself again out of a job. These days as a shoemaker were long gone. Having been both a captain and a government official, Don Chava had a resume to aim higher, and in the first of many ambitious enterprises, he raised some startup cash and up in a furniture store. However, the operation was short lived. Chava kept selling things on credit and folks weren't paying him back, so within a few years the operation folded. The revolution had hit people hard. All right, I get it. You might be wondering, when are we going to stop talking about coaches and start talking about knockouts. Bear with me, everyone, I'm almost there. See. Even before closing day at the furniture store, Don Chava was cooking up a new venture. The inspiration came from when he was working up north in Mexico. One day he crossed the border into a Basso and saw a show that would change the course of Mexican history. It was in the theater Liberty Hall was the name, and at first Chava didn't know what he was getting into. The show was advertised as Catch as Catch Can Ring around the Roys, a spy thriller. No, this was a sporting event and it was athletes, not school children, doing the catching. On the stage, there was a ring, and in the ring two wrestlers were fighting tooth and claw. Donchava was stunned. There weren't even rules. It must have blown abu way a little bit like when the UFC and MMA started. This was something more raw than what anyone had seen before. Sometimes it fights even spilled into the crowd and turned into all out brawls. But a soldier through and through Don'chava Lutote was no stranger to an unwill the fight. He couldn't get enough and came back again and again. It was there at Liberty Hall that Chava first saw a guy named Gos Papas. Gus was a Greek wrestler and a middleweight champion. In all likelihood, Don Chava also got to see the legendary Jackie Joe, a light middleweight champion. Jackie Joe not only had a great name, he was critical to the founding of Lucha Libre. So let's go a little more in depth on Jackie for a second. Originally from the state of Sonora in Mexico, Jackie Joe's real name was Jose Francisco. They called him Jackie because his family came from the Jackie Tribe, an indigenous group whose descendants live in Sonora to this very day. Jose was a dog worker, but just like Don Chava, made the most of his time outside work, but in Jose's case, he was learning how to fight. One day, a Japanese wrestler Matsuda. Matsuda was visiting Waimas and so Jose working out. This guy was from Japan, but already famous in the States, famous in a lot of places. Actually, some people say he's actually the best wrestler of all time. I didn't get to wrestle him, so obviously we can't prove this. Matsuda watched Josse fight and recognized his talent. It was clear that with the right training, Jose could become a world class fighter. So Matsuda convinced him to come to the other side of the Rio Brabo in al Paso, where he coached Josse all the way to light middleweight champion, And like that, Jackie Joe was born. But Jackie Joe had battles outside the ring. Surprise, surprise, Americans didn't like watching a Mexican bad their local boys, and Jackie Joe faced racism both indy arena and in the press. Lucha Libre expert Uga Monroi explains how bad it was. Na Yeah, yeah, Basically, Mexican wrestlers were being banned from some matches. Obviously racism wasn't play, and also simply Mexican wrestlers were better and the Americans couldn't handle it. The match between Jackie Joe and Ted Hawk on September first, nineteen thirty three shows just how ugly it got. Sometimes everything was fine until the end of the match. In fact, Ted Hawks was also a champion and it was a close and exciting fight. In the final moments, Jackie Joe took Ted down and held him in a vise grip of a hole. He had ted hawks chest between his legs, squeezing, and no matter how hard he tried, Ted couldn't break free. Hawks started to scream in pain. There was no escape. He was loosing painfully and was the ball to a Mexican. The ref came over and started the count one.

There are a few things more Mexican than lucha libre. Right, It's right up there with tacos and mariacci. Everyone has heard of lucha libre. Wherever you go, whoever you meet, if you show them a lucalo or mask, they will think of Mexico, even if they can't say ola or take a straight shot of tequila. Lucea is so famous because it's more than sport, and it's more than show. Lucha libre's folklore, tradition, culture. You see it everywhere. People have pictures of their favorite wrestlers hung up in their homes. You can buy a Luca mask in the same markets where you get your groceries, and every year, shipping containers worth of plastic figurines make it into children's toy bins. What can I say about lucha libre? For me, it's everything. It's my life, both professionally and personally. I grew up with lucha libre. Unlike many Lucallotis and children of Lucallotis, I'm still living it today, and I'm not just a wrestler. I'm a fan like you. Like everybody smiling and laughing in the arena, I get goose bumps when the next fight is announced and the wrestlers enter the ring. NI it's hard to find someone who want to enjoy at least one Lucha librea match. Lucha Libre is even officially part of Mexican identity. The Mexican Secretary of Culture made it official in its patrimonial in tan Hile Popular equal to Ral de la Mexico. It's a designation that's kind of like a national park. The Mexican government is saying this is important and we're going to protect and celebrate it. We even have a national Lucha lib today, September twenty first, my father, Elfantasma had a hand in all that. His Mexico City's commissioner of Lucha Libre and the Lucadre I respect most in the year universe. But not everyone knows Lucha librea's history. So in this podcast, I will tell you about its origins. Together, we will celebrate the legends inside and outside the ring. We will relieve the most epic battles in the Mexican arenas. Through twelve episodes with no time limit, I will tell you the story of the greatest Mexican pro wrestling heroes of all time Rega Exantov and Blue Demon, who were eternal rivals inside the ring, but outside they took Lucha libre to cinemas around the world, or Ediega Redo, who conquered the United States arenas with a very Mexican fighting style, and many more legends like Irama Gonzalez, May Flowers and Ray Mysterious. I will also tell you why pro wrestling is so popular in Mexico, just to give you an idea. The Masque la mascare is undoubtedly the most important symbol of our lucha liber culture. But did you know that the first fighter who used the mask was not Mexican. I swear so lesson And to start with this story, let me tell you that Lucha libre as we know it in Mexico was not exactly born there. That's right, Raza. Pro wrestling arrived in Mexico thanks to a Mexican businessman who saw a fight for the first time in the United States. I am Santos Escobara, the Emperor of Lucha Libre and a ww superstar. For over twenty years, I have been a professional wrestler in Mexico, the United States and around the world. I've been a champion, a hero. I've won and lost, but I always represent Lucha libre with pride. Lucha Libre, it's tradition, its heritage, its culture, Ladies and gentlemen. The following podcast is scheduled for twelve episodes, and it's all about lucha liber This is Lucha Libre Behind the Mass. Episode one. The Tzar of Lucha Libre, the man who brought lucha libre down to Mexico, was a guy named Don Salvador Lurot. Everyone knew Don Salvador simply as Don Chava. You could go to any boxing gym in the country and someone there would know him or know of him. Originally from Halisko, the land of Tequila, Chava was born into a rich family and grew up comfortably. However, the good times didn't last on. Java's dad loved to gamble and eventually paid the price. They lost everything and the family moved to Mexico City for a fresh start. The year of their move, nineteen ten, wasn't just the big year for the Lutrerotes, it was a big year for Mexico as well. In nineteen ten, the Mexican Revolution broke out, a conflict that would go on and fits and starts for a decade. As if the move and the war wasn't enough to destabilize the family, catastrophe struck when Chavas dad died. Little Don Chava Lutrerote was just a kid of thirteen when he became the man of the house and the primary breadwinner. He took an odd jobs, working at a printing press and later at a shoe factory. Despite the long hours, young Java stayed in school, finishing the fifth grade. By the time he was seventeen old enough to the revolution, the war was still going on and he was thrust into it. You could say that Donchava had a historical life even without his contributions to Lucha Libe. He fought in a battle against Pancho Villa himself, one of the leaders of the revolutionary forces. You've probably even heard that name before, one of those guys with the mustache, giant sombrero, and bullets trapped in the necks across his chest. His allegiances were constantly shifting, and he even invaded the US at one point. He's still a major figure in Mexican culture. The point is, the guy is a big deal, and if you have a relative who fought against Panchovilla. It would be like having a great grandpa who stormed the beaches at Normandy. To make Don Chava's war story even more epic, he fought for the division led by none other than Albaro Obregon. Another story general in the Mexican Revolutionary Army. Yes, at some point in time all the revolutionary generals were fighting each other for the presidency. But this is not a podcast about the Mexican Revolution, so let's go back to Chava. Don Chava thrived in the army and rose through the ranks to captain. The revolution officially ended in nineteen twenty Heneralobregon and his troops played their carts right, and when the dust settled, he became the President of Mexico. Donchavo Luteo played his own cards right and got himself a government post as the tax collector of the North, right in the heart of Ways. For four years, everything was great, But when Obregon left office in nineteen twenty four, Donchavo Luto found himself again out of a job. These days as a shoemaker were long gone. Having been both a captain and a government official, Don Chava had a resume to aim higher, and in the first of many ambitious enterprises, he raised some startup cash and up in a furniture store. However, the operation was short lived. Chava kept selling things on credit and folks weren't paying him back, so within a few years the operation folded. The revolution had hit people hard. All right, I get it. You might be wondering, when are we going to stop talking about coaches and start talking about knockouts. Bear with me, everyone, I'm almost there. See. Even before closing day at the furniture store, Don Chava was cooking up a new venture. The inspiration came from when he was working up north in Mexico. One day he crossed the border into a Basso and saw a show that would change the course of Mexican history. It was in the theater Liberty Hall was the name, and at first Chava didn't know what he was getting into. The show was advertised as Catch as Catch Can Ring around the Roys, a spy thriller. No, this was a sporting event and it was athletes, not school children, doing the catching. On the stage, there was a ring, and in the ring two wrestlers were fighting tooth and claw. Donchava was stunned. There weren't even rules. It must have blown abu way a little bit like when the UFC and MMA started. This was something more raw than what anyone had seen before. Sometimes it fights even spilled into the crowd and turned into all out brawls. But a soldier through and through Don'chava Lutote was no stranger to an unwill the fight. He couldn't get enough and came back again and again. It was there at Liberty Hall that Chava first saw a guy named Gos Papas. Gus was a Greek wrestler and a middleweight champion. In all likelihood, Don Chava also got to see the legendary Jackie Joe, a light middleweight champion. Jackie Joe not only had a great name, he was critical to the founding of Lucha Libre. So let's go a little more in depth on Jackie for a second. Originally from the state of Sonora in Mexico, Jackie Joe's real name was Jose Francisco. They called him Jackie because his family came from the Jackie Tribe, an indigenous group whose descendants live in Sonora to this very day. Jose was a dog worker, but just like Don Chava, made the most of his time outside work, but in Jose's case, he was learning how to fight. One day, a Japanese wrestler Matsuda. Matsuda was visiting Waimas and so Jose working out. This guy was from Japan, but already famous in the States, famous in a lot of places. Actually, some people say he's actually the best wrestler of all time. I didn't get to wrestle him, so obviously we can't prove this. Matsuda watched Josse fight and recognized his talent. It was clear that with the right training, Jose could become a world class fighter. So Matsuda convinced him to come to the other side of the Rio Brabo in al Paso, where he coached Josse all the way to light middleweight champion, And like that, Jackie Joe was born. But Jackie Joe had battles outside the ring. Surprise, surprise, Americans didn't like watching a Mexican bad their local boys, and Jackie Joe faced racism both indy arena and in the press. Lucha Libre expert Uga Monroi explains how bad it was. Na Yeah, yeah, Basically, Mexican wrestlers were being banned from some matches. Obviously racism wasn't play, and also simply Mexican wrestlers were better and the Americans couldn't handle it. The match between Jackie Joe and Ted Hawk on September first, nineteen thirty three shows just how ugly it got. Sometimes everything was fine until the end of the match. In fact, Ted Hawks was also a champion and it was a close and exciting fight. In the final moments, Jackie Joe took Ted down and held him in a vise grip of a hole. He had ted hawks chest between his legs, squeezing, and no matter how hard he tried, Ted couldn't break free. Hawks started to scream in pain. There was no escape. He was loosing painfully and was the ball to a Mexican. The ref came over and started the count one.

Two, three, one more victory to add to his already long list.

Two, three, one more victory to add to his already long list.

All his training and his commitment was paying off. Jackie stood up beaming with pride, but before the ref even got to raise his hand in victory, the crowd rushed the ring and surrounded Jackie Joe. They started throwing glasses and breaking chairs, They hurled racist insults and started to scream get him, take him down. They said there were security guards, but they couldn't stop the crowd. An Indian can't be a champion. They screamed, get your stuff and go back to your country. Finally, horrible, they attacked him. They punched him in the chairs, his legs, his head. It was like Jackie Joe was getting jumped on the streets, but not by a couple of teenagers, instead by hundreds of racist blown men looking for an outlet for their hate. Once they got him on the ground, they started kicking him. They broke Jackie's jaw and he was covered in blood. And if it wasn't already a horror movie, somebody turned off the lights. God knows what happened in dark darkness, but it was a miracle because Jackie Joe was able to escape the theater. He ran onto the street, still in his lucha outfit, which was nothing but wrestling butts and skimpy shorts. Jackie Joe was running for his life. In fact, this wasn't the first time he'd been attacked, and he knew all too well from other restlers the risks of being Mexican in this business. Take for example, what happened to another Lucello called El Charro Wayu. He had had a similar close call. It was another great fight pitting El Charo, a Wado against an American. The crowd was laughing and Elcharro was a talented wrestler, but there was just one problem. He was Mexican and he was winning. Now, remember we're still in the nineteen thirties, only a generation after America's most lawless Wild West days, and things well, they were still pretty lawless. When Jackie Joe got swarmed, there was security, it was just that the security couldn't control the situation. In the episode with El Charro, the security was the situation. When it was clear Elcharro was winning, the local sheriff climbed into the ring, dangerously close to the wrestlers. But what the sheriff lacked in size and strength he made up for fire power. He stopped the fight, took out his pistol and put it against the chaos temple. If you don't live right now, I'm going to pull the trigger. Unreal right, Because it got that crazy sometimes some promoters started banning Mexican fighters again and again. They were out wrestling their northern neighbors, and as you can see, that wasn't always going over well. Yet, despite the racism, despite the threat of violence, Mexican wrestlers continued fighting in the US because that was the only place they could get paid, got to pay the bills right. Every now and then, Mexico hosted fights in theaters or bullfighting rings, but they were a few and far between and almost always organized by foreigners. We didn't have a clue about Lucha Libree. Things started to get better for Mexican wrestlers trying to work in the US when a newspaper called La Fision Lunch. La Facion was founded in nineteen thirty and was one of the first newspapers in the world which focused on sports. Its founder and director was a guy who mostly was known by his pen name fry Nano. Fry Nano was a pioneer in sports journalism. He was one of the first journalists to cover Jackie Joe. For example, here's a fragment from one of his articles. You could see in Jackie Joe's eyes a reflection, a reflection of all who have suffered in the foreign land. It is the same look that are brasseros our workers have who during the revolution went north to find a living wage. Some of them founded. But at what caused the hardship, the humiliation. It was indis crucible that Jackie Joe was forced dramatic stuff, right, Well, that's just how they wrote back then, And it was fry Nano's articles that helped popularize lucally in Mexico. Eventually he would go on to team up with Donchava Lutrerot, but we'll get there. So back to Don Java. Last we heard of him, his furniture business was going under, but he was about to start a new venture. His big idea was to organize raw, exciting fights in Mexico, just like the ones he saw in El Paso, and he was certain they would be a hit. To make it happen, Don Chava went to the US to find a business partner who could help bring lucha libre to Mexico, but everybody he talked to thought he didn't have enough startup cash nor expertise, So instead Chava returned to Mexico to find a local business partner who could help him, and found an investor with a boxing background, who then brought in a third partner and experienced lucha organized. With a team in place, don Chava Lutro founded Lampresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre, better known as EMLL. All they needed now was a ring. At that time, the premier boxing venue in Mexico was are Inna Nacionale in downtown Mexico City. Donchava decided it would be a good space to host Lucha librea matches, so he met with the owners of the arena and pitch his idea. But like the Americans, the arena owners didn't trust Don Chava's business insincts and told him no. But if there's one thing we know about Don Java is that rejections don't face it. The problem was there weren't that many arenas to go around, and options were slim. Remember we're in the thirties, the revolution was barely a decade old, and even in the capitol there were still horse drawn cards. But finally Don Chava found a place that would work, Arena Modelo. It was the right size and in a good location, well goodish location, well, actually a pretty rough location. It was in a Mexico City neighborhood called Colonia Doctoris, which to this day is a working class neighborhood with high poverty and crime rates. Prior to the revolution, the government had designed the Doctori's neighborhood as the city's official red light district. We know today that sex work regulation can be both profitable and safe, like in Amsterdam, for example, but that wasn't the case in La Doctoris, and the neighborhood struggled, but residents still loved it. There there was live music and huge canteenas, and you could live how you wanted without anyone breathing down your neck. And thanks to Don Java, now there was lucha libre. Understanding what was happening demographically and economically in Mexico in the thirties helps explain why Don't Chava's experiment became so popular. First of all, you had thousands of people moving to the cities, farmers looking to trade their lives in the fields for industrial wage labor, and with wages came free time. Everyone was looking for fun. The thing was, most entertainment was only available to upper and middle class people. Mexico City had an opera, ballet, and racetrack, but ticket prices were prohibited for most people that left the circus variety shows and boxing matches, but lucha was going to change all day. It wasn't going to be easy, don't Chava and associates were grateful to have a space, but they had work to do. Every corner of the ring was rotted out, the bleachers were infested with moths, and there were holes in the roof big enough that rain got through. Not only was the damage substantial, they only had three weeks to fix it all. The first official fight of the EMLL was only three weeks away, but they pull it off and by the big night September twenty first, nineteen thirty three, everything was ready. The Luco in Mexico. Well, that's what Frii Nano wrote in Lafision, the sports paper I was telling you about. This was definitely a publicity stunt. Lafision had already been covering Lucha libert all over the world for three years, but Frei Nano was a hype man, and I'm not mad about it. Here's a quote from the article. Hopefully it will be as great as success here as it is in the United States. That way, Mexico Luca Otes can compete without harassment and abuse. Was Fry's dream going to come? True, Well, it had to be an entertaining evening if luceell in Mexico was even going to have a chance. So let's see what happened. Dunchava and everyone who put a diamond to this idea was taking a huge risk. The fight card, at least was promising. At the very top was none other than the legend Jackie Joe. But tonight was going to be bigger than a couple of Mexican boys clowing it out. Donchava had put together an international event. Jackie was up against a titan of American wrestling boy Bobby was the highest ranked fighter in the US Navy. Yaki had already been him twice, but Samson was eager for revenge if the Yaki Samson showed it wasn't sweet enough. A wrestler all the way from China, Leon Jinki at Chiu, better known as El Chino at Chiu, was going up against the Irish fighter Cyclone Maki. People who were there described Maki as having a kara de buenos amigos, which means something like it was a friendly looking guy. I don't know how far that gets you in this line of work. I only smile when crushing my competition. But hey, Cyclone Maki had earned a place in this event and must have been a heg of a wrestler. Despite gathering this world class taialent from all corners of the globe, a feed that must have been logistically challenging, Donchava was not able to fill the seats. In fact, hardly any people came at all. Sure, it was basically a brand new sport, but this wasn't a good sign. But onto the event. The evening started with warm up fights with local amateurs who were training in Ladin a nacionale. The fights were super close and each of these young guys had personal fans in this stance cousins, girlfriends, neighbors, so despite being small, the started to really get into the show. Donchava's big gamble started looking even better when Chino a Chiu and Cyclone Maki entered the ring. You could tell the crowd was invested because they were fully participating. Right away, the fans took the side of the Chinese fighter, who mocked Cyclone Maki by trying out aye ay every time he hit it. Meanwhile, anytime the irishman committed a foul, the crowd whistled and boot. Nice guys do finish last, it seems, but not so fast. Cyclone Maki was able to pull off an impressive maneuver more than once where he lifted at Chiu in the air and then dropped him. The Chinese restaurer cried out each time his ass hit the floor and the crowd cried alongside him. But despite Cyclones lift and dropped moved, Achu won the first fall using a toe pay, which was one of his trademark moves. Topez are a type of attack where you dive at your opponent, heard first from the rope. They're super popular even today, and I'm the person that performs the best tope in the universe, so I would know. Achi won the second round, and with that it was declared the fans rode in celebration they had found a champion in at You and showered him with screams, whistles and applause. It gives me goosebumps to imagine that on this night, the magical connection between a luchador and the crowd was born. And this was all before the main event, all before the Mexican crowd got to cheer for their very own luchador was Mexico, going to deliver or blow it under the pressure. With the crowd on his side, the native's son got off to a good start against Bobby Samson, the restaurant from California, but lost control and lost the first fall. In the second round, Yaki recovered, showcasing his breath, taking agility and strength in one hold after another. The Mexican outfut Samson, putting him in a series of holds, knocking him to the floor, bringing him up, and knocking him down again, over and over. I can see the crowd in my mind, glued to the edge of their seats, watching Samson fall again and again, everyone feeling a deep pride for the countryman. Next, Jackie put Samson in a hold with his powerful legs and launched him cleared out of the room. The proud smelled victory, but to their dismay, Samson got up and got back in the ring, determined to pull out all their stops to defeat the Mexican. Samson threw himself from one end of the ring to the other, bouncing off the ropes, hoping to coll out with Jackie Joe and take him down with a tope, But the Mexican fighter had already demonstrated his superior skill and managed to catch Samson between his legs. Never loosening his grip, Jacki slammed Samson to the matter and kept his face glued to the canvas until the ref finished the count one, two, three, and just like that, Jackie won the second pot. Jackie Joe and Bobby Samson returned to the ring for round three, a battle that proved even closer than the first two. At one point, Samson launched at Jackie's legs and held him to the ground with his arms as Jackie, even with his massive physique, cried out in pain. This was it. He was on the ropes. I can imagine the crowd grabbing each other on the brink of tears, terrified that ther beloved fighter was about to lose. But Jackie Joe, in a burst of strength, broke free and put Samson in a headline and snarring his opponent his legs with one leg and his hands with his other. When Jacki pulled his legs apart, everyone could see that Gringo was in pain. All Jackie had to do was finish him. There was nowhere for him to go. He couldn't move but Samson wouldn't give up. No, no, he cried. So Jackie Jo decided to make use of his hid and stood up from the match, still holding Samson between his legs. The move would become known as la messedora, or the rocking chair. From that high Jackie slammed Samson back down to the ring. The ref woke to Samson and asked him if he would give up, and finally Samson did. He surrendered. There was no doubt Jackie Joe had won, and as the ref lifted his hand in victory, the crowd rose from their seats and cheered for the champion with everything they had, clapping and shouting. The whole arena shouted his name. Meanwhile, while Bobby Samson was complaining about his groin and was eventually carted off in a stretcher, Mexico finally has a world class fighter. Friinano wrote the next day in his article about the match, What a historic night. What I would have given to be there somehow, with a bit of luck and a lot of don't traveler that it's great Lucha libre had come to Mexico and it was here to stay. At first, newcomers to the sport came out of pure curiosity, but soon sitting ringside with full view of the holes and pins, sweats spraying on their faces. Every day, Mexicans found a place where they could forget the week's troubles, where they could shout and curse and no one would kick them out. Where they could shout and curse and be rewarded for it. There was a learning curve, of course, and one of the first things that the audience figured out is that all Lucadores are divided into two groups lous technicos its rulos. Technicos like Chino a Chu and Jackie Joe, follow the rules and fight fair. In other words, technicos are the good guys and the rudos like Cyclone Macki are the bad guys. Rudos played dirty, find ways to bend the rules and even cheat. To be clear, rudos don't represent evil. They're more like misbits, the black sheep, the disruptors. Rudos defy the establishment. I'm a rudo myself, and I go against the grain. I do things differently than how they normally do it. In the WWE, I walk into the arena with my poncho on, my vin de wall a lupe. I wrestle not just to win, but to represent my people, Mirasa, to show the THC tradition, heritage, and culture, which is what drives me. I'm a rudo and I'm proud of it. When it comes down to it, Lucha Libre represents the classic struggle between good and evil Mexican style, and as far as I can tell, Lucha Libre is here to stay. It's not only fantastic entertainment, it's a beautiful representation of the Mexican culture. Don't think getting to today was all easy, though we still have a long way to go. The tides of history brought the sport to Mexico, but it still had to come and do its own. The masks, the critical Luca de Apostas family dynasties, the expansion of restorers to include women and other non traditional groups. All that is yet to come. Obstacles too, though Chava found himself with more struggles. There's even a building burned down we need to talk about. But next, I want to talk about the piece of cloth that changed Mexican wrestling forever, the piece of fabric that became a symbol so powerful that it transformed wrestlers from mere athletes into flesh and blood superheroes. La Masca the Masque. I'll tell you this story in the next episode. Sit Tight Picks It's about to blow Up. Lucha Libre Behind the Mask, Hosted by Santos Escobar, Produced by Fernande Strada, Argumelo and Marianna Coronell Written in Spanish by Tania Lopez and adapted in English by ASA Merit. Story editor Rodrigo Crespon. Fact checking by Monserrad Maldonado. Research and interviews by Marianna Coronel with help from Fernande Strada, Daniel Padilla and Saul Cortes. Mixed and sound design by Daniel Padilla. Studio recording in Orlando, Florida by High Hello Studios. Studio recordings in Mexico City by Daniel Padilla, Fernando g Laviz and Andres Baena in Sonorro Studios. Development by Rodrigo Crespo. Executive producers Camilla Victoriano and Joshu Weinstein for Sonorro and Gisel Bencez for Iheartsmichael Tura Podcast Network Marketing strategy and execution by Claudia Fernandez Mariana Heirera, Pauela Perez, Mariana Baron, Gundy Barba and Berenice Soto. Head of Marketing, Susanna Marina. Lucha Libre Behind the Mask is a Sonoro original series for Iheartsmichael Tura podcast Network. Listen to more podcasts in the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Agredeci Minos Specialist, Para Ugo Monroy, covered Art Carlos Miranda. Thank you to the CMLL for the permissions granted to record ambient audio in their facilities.

All his training and his commitment was paying off. Jackie stood up beaming with pride, but before the ref even got to raise his hand in victory, the crowd rushed the ring and surrounded Jackie Joe. They started throwing glasses and breaking chairs, They hurled racist insults and started to scream get him, take him down. They said there were security guards, but they couldn't stop the crowd. An Indian can't be a champion. They screamed, get your stuff and go back to your country. Finally, horrible, they attacked him. They punched him in the chairs, his legs, his head. It was like Jackie Joe was getting jumped on the streets, but not by a couple of teenagers, instead by hundreds of racist blown men looking for an outlet for their hate. Once they got him on the ground, they started kicking him. They broke Jackie's jaw and he was covered in blood. And if it wasn't already a horror movie, somebody turned off the lights. God knows what happened in dark darkness, but it was a miracle because Jackie Joe was able to escape the theater. He ran onto the street, still in his lucha outfit, which was nothing but wrestling butts and skimpy shorts. Jackie Joe was running for his life. In fact, this wasn't the first time he'd been attacked, and he knew all too well from other restlers the risks of being Mexican in this business. Take for example, what happened to another Lucello called El Charro Wayu. He had had a similar close call. It was another great fight pitting El Charo, a Wado against an American. The crowd was laughing and Elcharro was a talented wrestler, but there was just one problem. He was Mexican and he was winning. Now, remember we're still in the nineteen thirties, only a generation after America's most lawless Wild West days, and things well, they were still pretty lawless. When Jackie Joe got swarmed, there was security, it was just that the security couldn't control the situation. In the episode with El Charro, the security was the situation. When it was clear Elcharro was winning, the local sheriff climbed into the ring, dangerously close to the wrestlers. But what the sheriff lacked in size and strength he made up for fire power. He stopped the fight, took out his pistol and put it against the chaos temple. If you don't live right now, I'm going to pull the trigger. Unreal right, Because it got that crazy sometimes some promoters started banning Mexican fighters again and again. They were out wrestling their northern neighbors, and as you can see, that wasn't always going over well. Yet, despite the racism, despite the threat of violence, Mexican wrestlers continued fighting in the US because that was the only place they could get paid, got to pay the bills right. Every now and then, Mexico hosted fights in theaters or bullfighting rings, but they were a few and far between and almost always organized by foreigners. We didn't have a clue about Lucha Libree. Things started to get better for Mexican wrestlers trying to work in the US when a newspaper called La Fision Lunch. La Facion was founded in nineteen thirty and was one of the first newspapers in the world which focused on sports. Its founder and director was a guy who mostly was known by his pen name fry Nano. Fry Nano was a pioneer in sports journalism. He was one of the first journalists to cover Jackie Joe. For example, here's a fragment from one of his articles. You could see in Jackie Joe's eyes a reflection, a reflection of all who have suffered in the foreign land. It is the same look that are brasseros our workers have who during the revolution went north to find a living wage. Some of them founded. But at what caused the hardship, the humiliation. It was indis crucible that Jackie Joe was forced dramatic stuff, right, Well, that's just how they wrote back then, And it was fry Nano's articles that helped popularize lucally in Mexico. Eventually he would go on to team up with Donchava Lutrerot, but we'll get there. So back to Don Java. Last we heard of him, his furniture business was going under, but he was about to start a new venture. His big idea was to organize raw, exciting fights in Mexico, just like the ones he saw in El Paso, and he was certain they would be a hit. To make it happen, Don Chava went to the US to find a business partner who could help bring lucha libre to Mexico, but everybody he talked to thought he didn't have enough startup cash nor expertise, So instead Chava returned to Mexico to find a local business partner who could help him, and found an investor with a boxing background, who then brought in a third partner and experienced lucha organized. With a team in place, don Chava Lutro founded Lampresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre, better known as EMLL. All they needed now was a ring. At that time, the premier boxing venue in Mexico was are Inna Nacionale in downtown Mexico City. Donchava decided it would be a good space to host Lucha librea matches, so he met with the owners of the arena and pitch his idea. But like the Americans, the arena owners didn't trust Don Chava's business insincts and told him no. But if there's one thing we know about Don Java is that rejections don't face it. The problem was there weren't that many arenas to go around, and options were slim. Remember we're in the thirties, the revolution was barely a decade old, and even in the capitol there were still horse drawn cards. But finally Don Chava found a place that would work, Arena Modelo. It was the right size and in a good location, well goodish location, well, actually a pretty rough location. It was in a Mexico City neighborhood called Colonia Doctoris, which to this day is a working class neighborhood with high poverty and crime rates. Prior to the revolution, the government had designed the Doctori's neighborhood as the city's official red light district. We know today that sex work regulation can be both profitable and safe, like in Amsterdam, for example, but that wasn't the case in La Doctoris, and the neighborhood struggled, but residents still loved it. There there was live music and huge canteenas, and you could live how you wanted without anyone breathing down your neck. And thanks to Don Java, now there was lucha libre. Understanding what was happening demographically and economically in Mexico in the thirties helps explain why Don't Chava's experiment became so popular. First of all, you had thousands of people moving to the cities, farmers looking to trade their lives in the fields for industrial wage labor, and with wages came free time. Everyone was looking for fun. The thing was, most entertainment was only available to upper and middle class people. Mexico City had an opera, ballet, and racetrack, but ticket prices were prohibited for most people that left the circus variety shows and boxing matches, but lucha was going to change all day. It wasn't going to be easy, don't Chava and associates were grateful to have a space, but they had work to do. Every corner of the ring was rotted out, the bleachers were infested with moths, and there were holes in the roof big enough that rain got through. Not only was the damage substantial, they only had three weeks to fix it all. The first official fight of the EMLL was only three weeks away, but they pull it off and by the big night September twenty first, nineteen thirty three, everything was ready. The Luco in Mexico. Well, that's what Frii Nano wrote in Lafision, the sports paper I was telling you about. This was definitely a publicity stunt. Lafision had already been covering Lucha libert all over the world for three years, but Frei Nano was a hype man, and I'm not mad about it. Here's a quote from the article. Hopefully it will be as great as success here as it is in the United States. That way, Mexico Luca Otes can compete without harassment and abuse. Was Fry's dream going to come? True, Well, it had to be an entertaining evening if luceell in Mexico was even going to have a chance. So let's see what happened. Dunchava and everyone who put a diamond to this idea was taking a huge risk. The fight card, at least was promising. At the very top was none other than the legend Jackie Joe. But tonight was going to be bigger than a couple of Mexican boys clowing it out. Donchava had put together an international event. Jackie was up against a titan of American wrestling boy Bobby was the highest ranked fighter in the US Navy. Yaki had already been him twice, but Samson was eager for revenge if the Yaki Samson showed it wasn't sweet enough. A wrestler all the way from China, Leon Jinki at Chiu, better known as El Chino at Chiu, was going up against the Irish fighter Cyclone Maki. People who were there described Maki as having a kara de buenos amigos, which means something like it was a friendly looking guy. I don't know how far that gets you in this line of work. I only smile when crushing my competition. But hey, Cyclone Maki had earned a place in this event and must have been a heg of a wrestler. Despite gathering this world class taialent from all corners of the globe, a feed that must have been logistically challenging, Donchava was not able to fill the seats. In fact, hardly any people came at all. Sure, it was basically a brand new sport, but this wasn't a good sign. But onto the event. The evening started with warm up fights with local amateurs who were training in Ladin a nacionale. The fights were super close and each of these young guys had personal fans in this stance cousins, girlfriends, neighbors, so despite being small, the started to really get into the show. Donchava's big gamble started looking even better when Chino a Chiu and Cyclone Maki entered the ring. You could tell the crowd was invested because they were fully participating. Right away, the fans took the side of the Chinese fighter, who mocked Cyclone Maki by trying out aye ay every time he hit it. Meanwhile, anytime the irishman committed a foul, the crowd whistled and boot. Nice guys do finish last, it seems, but not so fast. Cyclone Maki was able to pull off an impressive maneuver more than once where he lifted at Chiu in the air and then dropped him. The Chinese restaurer cried out each time his ass hit the floor and the crowd cried alongside him. But despite Cyclones lift and dropped moved, Achu won the first fall using a toe pay, which was one of his trademark moves. Topez are a type of attack where you dive at your opponent, heard first from the rope. They're super popular even today, and I'm the person that performs the best tope in the universe, so I would know. Achi won the second round, and with that it was declared the fans rode in celebration they had found a champion in at You and showered him with screams, whistles and applause. It gives me goosebumps to imagine that on this night, the magical connection between a luchador and the crowd was born. And this was all before the main event, all before the Mexican crowd got to cheer for their very own luchador was Mexico, going to deliver or blow it under the pressure. With the crowd on his side, the native's son got off to a good start against Bobby Samson, the restaurant from California, but lost control and lost the first fall. In the second round, Yaki recovered, showcasing his breath, taking agility and strength in one hold after another. The Mexican outfut Samson, putting him in a series of holds, knocking him to the floor, bringing him up, and knocking him down again, over and over. I can see the crowd in my mind, glued to the edge of their seats, watching Samson fall again and again, everyone feeling a deep pride for the countryman. Next, Jackie put Samson in a hold with his powerful legs and launched him cleared out of the room. The proud smelled victory, but to their dismay, Samson got up and got back in the ring, determined to pull out all their stops to defeat the Mexican. Samson threw himself from one end of the ring to the other, bouncing off the ropes, hoping to coll out with Jackie Joe and take him down with a tope, But the Mexican fighter had already demonstrated his superior skill and managed to catch Samson between his legs. Never loosening his grip, Jacki slammed Samson to the matter and kept his face glued to the canvas until the ref finished the count one, two, three, and just like that, Jackie won the second pot. Jackie Joe and Bobby Samson returned to the ring for round three, a battle that proved even closer than the first two. At one point, Samson launched at Jackie's legs and held him to the ground with his arms as Jackie, even with his massive physique, cried out in pain. This was it. He was on the ropes. I can imagine the crowd grabbing each other on the brink of tears, terrified that ther beloved fighter was about to lose. But Jackie Joe, in a burst of strength, broke free and put Samson in a headline and snarring his opponent his legs with one leg and his hands with his other. When Jacki pulled his legs apart, everyone could see that Gringo was in pain. All Jackie had to do was finish him. There was nowhere for him to go. He couldn't move but Samson wouldn't give up. No, no, he cried. So Jackie Jo decided to make use of his hid and stood up from the match, still holding Samson between his legs. The move would become known as la messedora, or the rocking chair. From that high Jackie slammed Samson back down to the ring. The ref woke to Samson and asked him if he would give up, and finally Samson did. He surrendered. There was no doubt Jackie Joe had won, and as the ref lifted his hand in victory, the crowd rose from their seats and cheered for the champion with everything they had, clapping and shouting. The whole arena shouted his name. Meanwhile, while Bobby Samson was complaining about his groin and was eventually carted off in a stretcher, Mexico finally has a world class fighter. Friinano wrote the next day in his article about the match, What a historic night. What I would have given to be there somehow, with a bit of luck and a lot of don't traveler that it's great Lucha libre had come to Mexico and it was here to stay. At first, newcomers to the sport came out of pure curiosity, but soon sitting ringside with full view of the holes and pins, sweats spraying on their faces. Every day, Mexicans found a place where they could forget the week's troubles, where they could shout and curse and no one would kick them out. Where they could shout and curse and be rewarded for it. There was a learning curve, of course, and one of the first things that the audience figured out is that all Lucadores are divided into two groups lous technicos its rulos. Technicos like Chino a Chu and Jackie Joe, follow the rules and fight fair. In other words, technicos are the good guys and the rudos like Cyclone Macki are the bad guys. Rudos played dirty, find ways to bend the rules and even cheat. To be clear, rudos don't represent evil. They're more like misbits, the black sheep, the disruptors. Rudos defy the establishment. I'm a rudo myself, and I go against the grain. I do things differently than how they normally do it. In the WWE, I walk into the arena with my poncho on, my vin de wall a lupe. I wrestle not just to win, but to represent my people, Mirasa, to show the THC tradition, heritage, and culture, which is what drives me. I'm a rudo and I'm proud of it. When it comes down to it, Lucha Libre represents the classic struggle between good and evil Mexican style, and as far as I can tell, Lucha Libre is here to stay. It's not only fantastic entertainment, it's a beautiful representation of the Mexican culture. Don't think getting to today was all easy, though we still have a long way to go. The tides of history brought the sport to Mexico, but it still had to come and do its own. The masks, the critical Luca de Apostas family dynasties, the expansion of restorers to include women and other non traditional groups. All that is yet to come. Obstacles too, though Chava found himself with more struggles. There's even a building burned down we need to talk about. But next, I want to talk about the piece of cloth that changed Mexican wrestling forever, the piece of fabric that became a symbol so powerful that it transformed wrestlers from mere athletes into flesh and blood superheroes. La Masca the Masque. I'll tell you this story in the next episode. Sit Tight Picks It's about to blow Up. Lucha Libre Behind the Mask, Hosted by Santos Escobar, Produced by Fernande Strada, Argumelo and Marianna Coronell Written in Spanish by Tania Lopez and adapted in English by ASA Merit. Story editor Rodrigo Crespon. Fact checking by Monserrad Maldonado. Research and interviews by Marianna Coronel with help from Fernande Strada, Daniel Padilla and Saul Cortes. Mixed and sound design by Daniel Padilla. Studio recording in Orlando, Florida by High Hello Studios. Studio recordings in Mexico City by Daniel Padilla, Fernando g Laviz and Andres Baena in Sonorro Studios. Development by Rodrigo Crespo. Executive producers Camilla Victoriano and Joshu Weinstein for Sonorro and Gisel Bencez for Iheartsmichael Tura Podcast Network Marketing strategy and execution by Claudia Fernandez Mariana Heirera, Pauela Perez, Mariana Baron, Gundy Barba and Berenice Soto. Head of Marketing, Susanna Marina. Lucha Libre Behind the Mask is a Sonoro original series for Iheartsmichael Tura podcast Network. Listen to more podcasts in the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Agredeci Minos Specialist, Para Ugo Monroy, covered Art Carlos Miranda. Thank you to the CMLL for the permissions granted to record ambient audio in their facilities.