Karl Von Hess

Karl Von Hess (c.1919 – August 12, 2009) was an American professional wrestler.

Karl Von Hess

Early life and career

Born Frank Fakety [1] (or Faketty[2]) in Michigan in about 1919 to Hungarian immigrants, and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, Von Hess was a lifeguard and swimming teacher before entering the United States Navy in World War II serving aboard the cruiser USS Montpelier in the Underwater Demolition TEAM 5.[3] Upon his discharge, he worked the carnival circuit for several years, then worked in various regional wrestling promotions.

In post World War 1955 he was inspired by another wrestler, Kurt Von Poppenheim (of the Pacific Northwest) who had a local "heel" gimmick, and there Von Hess further developed the gimmick of the villain into the wrestling persona of a Nazi sympathizer [3] there being the first to take the gimmick nationwide.[4] In doing this, Von Hess became one of the most hated wrestlers; and fans flocked to the arenas to boo him. He adopted the name of Karl Von Hess, later changing his name legally. Von Hess was so convincing as a "heel" that some fans tried to stab him, burn him, and even shoot at him.[3] Von Hess quickly rose to fame in Vince McMahon Sr's World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), drawing huge crowds wherever he went.[5] In truth, he was reportedly, not a Nazi sympathizer, but used the gimmick to inspire the position of the villainous "heel".[3]

In the early 1960s, Von Hess's gimmick began to wear thin, and he was gradually phased out of the WWWF.[5] He continued to work in various wrestling promotions before quitting the business in the late 1960s.

Later life

After wrestling, Von Hess operated trailer parks, including the Karl-Le trailer park on the Black Horse pike in Egg Harbor Township, NJ, and other businesses with his wife Lenore.

Von Hess died on August 12, 2009 of Alzheimer's disease.[3]

References
  1. "WrestlingTruth.com Old School Wrestler Karl Von Hess Passes Away". Archived from the original on 2012-11-30. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
  2. Karl Von Hess - Online World of Wrestling
  3. Johnson, Steven; Oliver, Greg. "Hated German heel Karl Von Hess dies". Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 2009-08-12.
  4. PWTorch - WWE News and Pro Wrestling Coverage Since 1987 Post-World War II era heel Karl Von Hess dies at age 90 this morning
  5. Cawthon, Graham (2013). the History of Professional Wrestling Vol 1: WWF 1963 - 1989. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 1492825972.
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