Glamour, controversy and revolutions

Trace the evolution of women’s wrestling from carnival side shows to world championships

From a carnival attraction to a billion-dollar industry worldwide, professional wrestling has come a long way since the 19th century. Even the 16th American president Abraham Lincoln was once a wrestler who remained undefeated in 299 out of his 300 bouts.

Women’s wrestling, however, took many years to develop and flourish. The first known Women’s Wrestling Champion is Cora Livingston, who started wrestling in 1906 and won the title in 1910. A lot of facts are lost to history but in a male-dominated industry, and especially considering the times, it’s not surprising that it took until the early 20th century to see the first recognised women’s championship in the west.

Pro-wrestling was still a side attraction then, and hence women’s wrestling the side attraction of a side attraction. But the likes of Livingston, May Nelson and more had started to pave the way for future stars and a division that would gain more respect than they did. Livingston eventually trained another big star in Mildred Burke.

Early stars

Managed by her second husband Billy Wolfe, Burke built up her reputation wrestling men at carnivals, eventually becoming National Wrestling Alliance’s newly introduced NWA Women’s World Championship. However, Burke’s separation from Wolfe, courtesy of his infidelity, led to her being shunned from NWA circles and subsequently affected women’s wrestling’s standing overall.

Burke would continue defending the title until vacating it in 1956. Her involvement in pro-wrestling didn’t stop there though. She would continue to help train younger wrestlers, including the Fabulous Moolah and introduced the artform in several countries.

On March 7, 2025, a film titled Queen of the Ring was released. Directed by Ash Avildsen and starring Emily Bett Rickards in the lead, it chronicles the journey of Burke, a single mother who became a wrestling star at a time when women’s wrestling was banned in many places. Former NWA Women’s Champion Kamille, current AEW Women’s Champion Toni Storm and Trinity Fatu (aka Naomi in WWE) also feature in the film.

Women’s wrestling continued its tumultuous journey. Personal vendettas, relationships, falling outs, and interpersonal politics between wrestlers and management (especially Wolfe) caused multiple women to claim themselves as women’s world champions.

This was not new. In the territorial days, political rifts between wrestlers over who should be the face of the promotion, winning and losing and compensation issues, would lead individuals to break ties and start new alliances and promotions in different states. It’s a brutal industry full of egos as big as the Mountain in Game of Thrones.

Besides Burke, Mae Young must be mentioned as one of the pioneers of women’s wrestling at the time. Starting her career around the beginning of World War II, she built her credibility alongside Burke and Moolah.

Young once shared an anecdote about her meeting Moolah and wrestler and trainer Ed “Strangler” Lewis. Known for her skill in the ring, Young was already an emerging star. After watching her wrestle, Lewis told her, “I don’t like girl wrestlers, women should be in the kitchen. But after seeing you, you belong in the ring.”

An absolute icon in the history of wrestling, Young truly loved the business and even wrestled and took bumps into her 80s – something she didn’t need to do. Fans of the Ruthless Aggression era in the 2000s remember Moolah and especially Young for taking part in multiple comedic storylines and taking beatings by the likes of Dudley Boyz. Both were octogenarians by that time.

It’s interesting to note that women’s wrestling also flourished because a lot of men were away fighting in World War II. It opened up spots in carnivals and emerging promotions and female wrestlers like Gladys Gillem, Ella Waldek, Penny Banner, Ida Mae Martinez, Young and many more made the most of it.

The Moolah monopoly

In the 1950s, The Fabulous Moolah took over the mantle and led into a different era in women’s wrestling. This period of around 30 years is known for much progress in the business but it also has a dark side.