Giant Baba

[bookerbill]

I recently read From Nanjo to The Sheik Tales from Toronto Wrestling by Andrew Calvert which featured some of the photographs of Roger Baker who was at ringside at Maple Leaf Gardens for years.

One of the stand-out chapters for me was on Johnny Valentine and his time in the territory. In the chapter, Baker’s pictures capture Valentine in action against Giant Baba and what was unusual was Baba wrestling barefoot. Just wondering if any had heard of Baba wrestling without the boots before?

It had to have been during one of his first North American tours.

[natureboi]

He was barefoot versus Bruno in the early sixties.

["Emperor Norton" (Mark T)]

I think it's a symptom of the times. There was an era when stereotypes had every Japanese or Pacific Islander who wrestled in North America going barefoot. Kind of like how the Russians were mostly bald guys with beards.

[natureboi]

I think the barefoot look was to push him as a martial artist. When Baba was young and relatively limber, he did leg strikes as well as the familiar chops.