Frank Tunney

Francis Martin Tunney (November 12, 1912 - May 10, 1983) was a Canadian professional boxing and wrestling promoter, based in Toronto.

Biography

Early life He was educated in Markham, Ontario, and went to a business college after high school. His first exposure to wrestling came when he answered a classified ad for the Queensbury Athletic Club. The club required a secretary and Tunney was hired by Jack Corcoran to fill that position. It was Corcoran who opened wrestling at Maple Leaf Gardens in November 1931.

At Tunney's request, Corcoran hired his older brother, John Tunney, to be matchmaker. John managed the wrestling promotion through most of the Great Depression, while younger brother Frank was the bookkeeper. In 1939, Corcoran was forced to sell his promotion due to illness. John continued to handle matchmaking duties, with assistance from Paul Bowser, Jack Ganson, and Jerry Monahan. Unexpectedly, John died from influenza on January 19, 1940. Frank was now left in charge and had many struggles in the early weeks. The contributions of wrestler Bill Longson helped to sell tickets while the promotion stayed afloat. In the 1940s Tunney helped promote local boxing stars like Arthur King and others to world prominence at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Whipper Billy Watson Of all the wrestlers who ever worked for Tunney, the one who helped to put Tunney's promotion on the map was Whipper Billy Watson. Tunney estimated that Watson drew more than five million people in main events of shows in Toronto. Tunney had never taken Watson seriously in the early years. While Watson was touring England and Ireland, Watson had accumulated a package of newspaper clippings and promotional pieces and mailed them to Tunney. Watson discovered that Tunney had completely disregarded the package. Eventually, Tunney cut Watson into the business side of wrestling. Watson eventually bought into the St. Louis territory. The Toronto territory was held in such high regard that future world champions used the territory as a barometer to measure potential success.

Personality Tunney was always considered non-threatening. He was more comfortable investing his money into other territories rather than pursuing any personal aspirations. Besides St. Louis, Tunney also invested in the territories in Detroit and Indianapolis. Attendance dwindled to 2,000, but he rebounded with strong booking. The Sheik Edward Farhat and George Scott booked the matches in Toronto during the 1970s and the early 1980s. He was buried at Mount Hope Catholic Cemetery in Ontario. He was survived by his wife Loraine and his three children Eddie, Patricia and Marie from his first wife Edna who died in 1969. He was predeceased by his son Frank Jr. who was a policeman. The funeral was attended by wrestlers Sam Muchnick, Gene Kiniski, Jim Barnett, George Scott, Jim Crockett, Vincent J. McMahon, Fred Ward, and Athol Layton. Frank Tunney Sports Ltd was continued by Frank's son Ed Tunney and his nephew, Jack Tunney. In July 1984, the Tunney family partnered with Vince McMahon and Jack Tunney was the World Wrestling Federation's figurehead president from 1984 to 1995.

Awards and accomplishments Wrestling Observer Newsletter Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)