In Black and White: The secret side to one of Melbourne’s original wrestlers

Forget WWE, this was how Melbourne did wrestling almost 100 years ago. And one of our original stars, Big Chief Little Wolf, had a secret side to his fierce stage persona. LISTEN NOW

Big Chief Little Wolf, a professional wrestler, in full headress.

Famed Navajo wrestler Big Chief Little Wolf was a master showman, but it was his unsung work away from the spotlight that made him a true hero.

The second episode of the new In Black and White podcast series tells the story of the Navajo entertainer who wowed Australian audiences from the 1930s to the ‘50s.

Chief Little Wolf made a name for himself with his signature wrestling move, the Indian death lock, and became an instant celebrity when he came from the US to Melbourne.

While his antics in the ring made him a childhood hero for many, it was a different activity away from the spotlight that made him a true hero in the eyes of those he helped.

The Chief made countless unpublicised visits to hospitals, where he would perform Navajo dances, in his famous feathered headdress, and keep sick kids entertained for hours.

Big Chief Little Wolf, centre, in the ring in 1957. He has Illio di Paolo in a hold.

One of those children was Reg Muller, who spent four years in the 1940s encased in plaster from his armpits to his toes looking at the world through three mirrors at the Children’s Hospital Orthopaedic Section in Mt Eliza, after he was struck down with tuberculosis.

“We were considered incurable in those days; not many of the poor kids made it out the other end,” recalls Reg, from Allans Flat.

“The highlight of the year — and there weren’t many highlights — was when Big Chief Little Wolf visited us in his full regalia.

“He told us he had adopted our hospital as his favourite charity.”

But the big wrestler had a softer side and love for family. His wife, Dona, and their daughter, Markeeta Little Wolf. Picture: Markeeta Little Wolf

Big Chief Little Wolf and his stepson, David, out for dinner and a movie in 1955.

Many years later, Reg saw Chief Little Wolf again at his touring tent show in Albury, and he announced after his show he was donating his profits to the hospital in Mt Eliza.

“I was overwhelmed, and even though I have a bit of a speech impediment I went up to him and told him I was in that place and had loved his visits,” Reg says.

“And then it was his turn to be overwhelmed, and he told me after all those years he still remembered me.

“It might have been a white lie but I believe I was the outgoing kid who stood out from the bunch.

“After all these years, I’ve never forgotten him.”

The wrestling star in training.

He was a much-loved performer.

David Little Wolf, who grew up in Melbourne and performed in his stepfather’s travelling show for much of his childhood, often joined the Chief on his visits to sick children.

“It would drain me emotionally. It would drain him too,” David recalls.

“He would walk outside, get far enough away and just break down. He would absolutely lose it, seeing those poor children.”

MORE: THE SLUM ‘BOSS’ AND FOOTY GREAT

In costume: Chief Little Wolf and his son, David Little Wolf, performing. Picture: David Little Wolf

Chief Little Wolf in the ring.

While the chief was renowned as a shameless self-promoter, the remarkable aspect of his ongoing visits to children in hospital was he never sought publicity.

As historian and wrestling fan Barry York tells us, the Chief visited the kids just to cheer them up.

“I had letters in the 1990s from former nurses who said the Chief would have a huge impact on the morale of the sick kids,” he says.

“And he never had media with him or anything. He just did it because that’s the kind of person he was.”

The new In Black and White podcast tells the compelling stories of some of Melbourne’s forgotten characters. Find and subscribe on iTunes or search for “In Black and White” in your favourite podcasting app.