Joe Scarpa

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Joe Scarpa


Statistics
Ring name(s)	Chief Jay Strongbow
Billed height	(183 cm) 6 ft 0 in
Billed weight	(120 kg) 260 lb
Born	1928 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Resides	Georgia
Trained by	Don Eagles
Debut	1947
Retired	1985

Joseph Luke Scarpa (born 1928 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a professional wrestler who was best known by his famous ring moniker, Chief Jay Strongbow. Scarpa portrayed a Native American wrestler (he is an Italian American from Brooklyn named Joe Scarpa) [1]) who wore a traditional headdress to the ring, and would "go on the warpath" when the fans started cheering him on against an opponent. He was one of the popular wrestlers of the 1960s and 1970s.

1 Profile
2 Career
3 Trivia
4 Championships and accomplishments

[edit] Profile

Height: 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight: 265 lb (120 kg)
Birthday: 1928
Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Trained by: Don Eagle
Professional debut: 1947
Previous identities: "Joltin'" Joe Scarpa
Finishing/signature move(s):
Tomahawk Chop
Indian Deathlock
Sleeper hold
Running knee lift
Figure Four arm bar
Bow and Arrow hold

[edit] Career

Strongbow's career started in 1947, using his given name Joe Scarpa. Scarpa was a standout in the Georgia and Florida territories of the National Wrestling Alliance throughout the '50s and '60s, winning several championships and becoming a solid fan favorite. By 1970, he was working for Vincent J. McMahon's World Wide Wrestling Federation, and was now known as Chief Jay Strongbow. Strongbow's greatest success was found in the tag team ranks of the WWWF. Strongbow held the World Tag Team Championship on four occasions. The first came on May 22, 1972, when Strongbow partnered with Sonny King to take the titles from the team of Baron Mikel Scicluna and King Curtis Iaukea. Strongbow & King held the titles for about a month.

Four and a half years later, on December 7, 1976, Strongbow again won the World Tag Team Championship, this time with partner Billy White Wolf. The team won the titles in a three-team tournament, defeating The Executioners and Nikolai Volkoff & Tor Kamata. The team of Strongbow and White Wolf was one of the most popular of the era, but their reign was cut short in 1977 when the belts were vacated due to White Wolf suffering a neck injury at the hands of Ken Patera's Swinging Full Nelson.

Strongbow's last two World Tag Team title reigns came with his "brother", Jules Strongbow. On June 28, 1982, the Strongbows won the titles from Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito in New York City's Madison Square Garden. The match was controversial at the time; special guest referee Ivan Putski counted the winning fall, but did not see Fuji's foot draped over the bottom rope. Fuji and Saito would regain the titles a short time later, but would lose them back to the Strongbows on October 26.

The Chief also had a storied singles career in the WWWF. He feuded with the likes of "The Golden Greek" Spiros Arion, "Handsome" Jimmy Valiant, and Superstar Billy Graham. His most famous feud was against Greg Valentine, who broke Strongbow's leg in 1979. The two waged war all over the WWF circuit, most famously in a violent "Indian Strap Match" in Madison Square Garden, on July 30, 1979.

Strongbow also competed for The Sheik's Big Time Wrestling promotion in Detroit. He had a memorable feud with "Bulldog" Don Kent, which culminated in a bizarre "shark cage match" in 1977. Strongbow and Kent fought inside of a small shark cage, with the first man to escape being declared the winner. With an assist from fellow fan favorite Mark Lewin, Strongbow was able to escape the shark cage victorious.

Strongbow retired in 1985, but would still step back into the ring from time to time, most notably for a legends battle royal in East Rutherford, New Jersey in 1987. In retirement, Strongbow became a WWF road agent and worked in the company's front office. He also participated in a 1993 storyline in which he mentored Tatanka, in his feud with Irwin R. Schyster. Chief Jay Strongbow was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, by his protege Tatanka, in 1994.

[edit] Trivia

Strongbow served as campaign manager for Gorgeous George when the Gorgeous One ran for president of the United States in 1952.
Strongbow's Italian-American heritage caused fellow paisan Lou Albano to joke that he was a member of the "Woppaho" tribe.
Chief Jay made a cameo appearance in the 1984 movie Micki and Maude, starring Dudley Moore.
The most popular wrestler in the northeast, besides Bruno Sammartino and Pedro Morales, in the 1970's

[edit] Championships and accomplishments

National Wrestling Alliance
Regional

NWA Florida Brass Knuckles Championship (2 times)
NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
NWA Florida Southern Tag Team Championship (3 times)
NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (1 time)
NWA World Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (1 time) - with Don Curtis
NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid-America version) (3 times) - with Lester Welch (2) and Alex Perez (1)

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

PWI ranked him # 214 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year award in 1973
PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year award in 1979.