As 2017 gets underway, one of the things I'm most excited about is bringing to fruition a project I've been working on for many years: a documentary titled "Lady Wrestler: The Amazing, Untold Story of African-American Women in the Ring."
"Lady Wrestler" chronicles the story of three sisters named Babs Wingo, Ethel Johnson and Marva Scott ‒ African-American women who garnered international success with their athletic grace and distinctive style decades before another African-American “sister act” ‒ Venus and Serena Williams ‒captured the world's attention by doing the same.
As teenagers in the 1950s, Babs, Ethel and Marva were recruited by famed wrestling promoter Billy Wolfe, who was described in the press as the “self-made Maharajah of Muscle who had lifted women's wrestling out of the murky confines of carnivals and burlesques to make it one of the top-drawing attractions in America.”
Wolfe's operation was based in Columbus, Ohio — Babs, Ethel and Marva’s hometown, and where I was born and raised.
As African-American women, Babs, Ethel and Marva were in a unique position, not only battling sexism, but racism as well. While many of their white female peers have been inducted into wrestling halls of fame, these women's names have been omitted from the history books ‒ perhaps due to racism or their reticence to revisit the past.
"Lady Wrestler" finally tells not only the story not only of the three sisters, but of the dozens of long-forgotten women who blazed trails alongside them.
I'll be posting periodic updates about "Lady Wrestler" as the film's release approaches. In the meantime, you can find out more information at Ladywrestlermovie.com.
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