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Ivan Gene "Judo" LeBell (October 9, 1932 – August 9, 2022) was an American judoka, stunt performer, actor, and professional wrestler. Nicknamed "The Godfather of Grappling", he popularized grappling in professional fighting circles, serving as a precursor to modern mixed martial arts. He worked on over 1,000 films and TV shows and authored 12 books. In 2000, the United States Ju-Jitsu Federation (USJJF) promoted LeBell to 9th dan in jujitsu and taihojutsu. On August 7, 2004, the World Martial Arts Masters Association promoted him to 10th degree. In February 2005, the USJJF made him 9th dan in judo. LeBell has been reported as the inspiration for the character of Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. However, Tarantino disputes this claim. Early life Ivan Gene LeBell was born in Los Angeles, California. He started training in catch wrestling and boxing from his early childhood, influenced by his mother, "Red Head" Aileen Eaton, a promoter of both sports who owned the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, and who was the first woman to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. LeBell took up catch wrestling under Ed "Strangler" Lewis at age 7, and later moved to train in judo. After getting his black belt, he went to Japan to train in judo at the Kodokan. Career Early career After returning to the United States, LeBell competed as a heavyweight. In 1954 and 1955, while only 22 years of age, he captured both the heavyweight and overall Amateur Athletic Union National Judo Championships. His very first match was against John Osako, one of the highest ranked judokas at the national level. LeBell earned the upset win via an osaekomi. Afterward, attracted by better potential earnings and the family's legacy in the business, LeBell transitioned to professional wrestling. Despite his pedigree, he did not get over immediately with audiences but gradually became known for his martial arts background. He eventually adopted the role as "policeman" for the promotion, maintaining law and order, especially during matches involving his brother Mike LeBell. Gene also wrestled under a black mask as The Hangman, teaming up with Roy Staggs. Milo Savage match In 1963, LeBell became involved with a challenge by boxer and writer Jim Beck to the practitioners of Japanese martial arts. Beck claimed that a boxer could defeat any martial artist in a straight fight and offered $1000 to anyone who could prove otherwise. Beck engaged in abundant trash-talk, but revealed a very limited knowledge of martial arts, seemingly mistaking judo for karate. Encouraged by Ed Parker, LeBell accepted the challenge and travelled to Salt Lake City to meet Beck. To his surprise, he learned his opponent would not be Beck but another boxer, journeyman Milo Savage, who LeBell claimed also had a background in amateur wrestling. An agreement was reached for the match to last five rounds, each lasting three minutes. The boxer's side demanded a stipulation in which the smaller and older Savage (Savage was 39 while LeBell was 31 at the date of the fight) could use any type of punch, while the judoka could not kick, in the apparent belief LeBell was a karateka. An additional stipulation prevented LeBell from attempting tackles or takedowns under the waist. In return, Savage offered to wear a judogi. On the day of the match, Savage appeared wearing a karategi instead, much tighter and harder to grab. The Savage camp claimed they did not know the difference. According to LeBell and other sources, Savage's gloves allegedly contained brass knuckles and his gi was greased with vaseline to make gripping it more difficult. The unusual stipulations convinced LeBell the Savage camp, far from being ignorant about martial arts, had trained Savage in judo in order to defend against LeBell's throws. The match took place on December 2, 1963. The combatants were initially cautious, with LeBell being the first in pressing the action by attempting to throw Savage down. The boxer blocked the move, which LeBell claimed aggravated an old shoulder injury. LeBell tried several techniques through the second and third rounds and was finally successful in taking Savage down, but Savage kept defending both standing and on the ground in a very technical manner, seemingly confirming LeBell's theory about his opponent's grappling training. Savage even attempted to sweep the judoka in one instance. Nevertheless, LeBell got mount and found the opportunity to execute an armbar, but he opted instead to seek a choke, concluding that Savage would not surrender to a broken arm. Finally, he performed a left harai goshi in the fourth round and followed by locking a rear naked choke. Within seconds, Savage fell unconscious and LeBell was declared the winner. The loss by Savage, the hometown favorite, caused the crowd to react violently. Bottles, chairs, and other debris were thrown into the ring. To prevent a full-blown riot, hometown hero and rated professional boxer Jay Fullmer (brother of boxers Gene and Don Fullmer) entered the ring to congratulate LeBell. According to 1999 interview with LeBell, the judoka and his team showed their sportsmanship by helping to revive Savage using kappo, as neither the referee nor the ring doctor knew how to resuscitate him. Despite this, LeBell claims that a man tried to stab him on the way out and the latter had to be protected by the judokas and professional wrestlers who accompanied him. Dewey Lewes Falcone, who attended the event and wrote a round-by-round recap for Black Belt magazine, made no mention of either of these events as claimed by LeBell. As noted by Black Belt in a write-up about LeBell following his death in 2022 that briefly covered the event, he was known to fabricate stories regarding his exploits. As a result, it is possible that many of the claims he made regarding the fight, such as the use of brass knuckles, the audience member attempting to stab LeBell, and the extent of Savage's grappling experience, may be exaggerated or outright fabricated. After retiring Following his combat sports career, LeBell, along with his brother Mike, ran the National Wrestling Alliance's Los Angeles territory, NWA Hollywood Wrestling, from 1968 to 1982. In June 1976, LeBell refereed the infamous boxing-versus-wrestling contest between Muhammad Ali and Antonio Inoki in Tokyo, Japan. LeBell was selected from over 200 other applicants to referee the bout. He also continued to work in professional wrestling intermittently, wrestling his final match on August 29, 1981, against Peter Maivia for NWA Hollywood Wrestling. LeBell has opened two martial art schools in cooperation with others and has touted his 1963 match with Milo Savage as the first televised MMA fight in America. In 1994, LeBell counted kickboxing champion Benny Urquidez and Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners the Machado brothers among his training partners. According to fellow BJJ artist Royce Graci.... Discover the Jen Gotch popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Jen Gotch books.