Lillian Ellison, known in wrestling circles as "The Fabulous Moolah", will be inducted into the Women's division. Ms. Ellison has recently penned her autobiography entitled, "The Fabulous Moolah-The First Goddess of the Squared Circle". She claimed the Women's Championship for thirty straight years and has trained many other female wrestling performers. She states that she has a match booked on July 22, 2003, which is the same date as her eightieth birthday!

In the Midget division, the late Lionel Giroux, who wrestled as "Little Beaver", will be inducted. His ring antics entertained crowds for four decades. Giroux was a native of Quebec, Canada.

In the Non-participant category, legendary St. Louis promoter Sam Muchnick will receive the 2003 honors. Muchnick ran a successful promotion from 1945 until his retirement in 1982. He was actively involved in the National Wrestling Alliance, which was the main governing body for professional wrestling during his period of promotion. Muchnick passed away in 1998 at the age of ninty-three.

In the Pioneer-era division, which includes the years between 1898 and 1942, Martin "Farmer" Burns and Stanislaus Zbyszko will be enshrined. Burns wrestled in over six-thousand matches and is well-known for training Professional Wrestling Hall-of- Famer Frank Gotch, who was inducted in 2002. Burns was born in 1861 and wrestled until he was in his sixties. He died at the age of seventy-seven. Polish-born Zbyszko was an intellectual as well as a wrestler. He studied music, philosophy and law in Austria and was a linguist. He had a prominent role in the movie, "Night and the City", which starred Richard Widmark. He held the World Championship after defeating Ed "Strangler" Lewis, who was a 2002 PWHF inductee. Zbyszko died in 1967 at the age of eighty-eight.

The Televsion-era division, which extends from 1942 until 1984, will have Walter "Killer" Kowalski and Antonino "Argentina" Rocca being inducted. Kowalski, who was at the PWHF's Inaugural Induction in May of 2002, had a mat career that extended thirty years. At 6' 7" tall and 260 pounds, Kowalski held versions of the World title. Many fans remember his famous "Claw" hold, which was even mentioned on a Seinfeld episode. He is an accomplished photographer and currently has a book of his photography published. Rocca, born Antonino Biasetton, was a soccer player in Argentina before being discovered by a wrestling promoter. Rocca is credited with introducing the high-flying aerial tactics in the U. S.professional wrestling rings. He passed away in 1977 but his ring techniques are still enjoyed via video releases of his matches.

The Mania-era category, which is from 1985 onward, has two former world champions being elected. Nick Bockwinkel is a second-generation wrestler who held the American Wrestling Association's (AWA) title on four seperate occasions. His twenty-five year long ring career saw him hold other prestigious titles and sell out many arenas throughout the world. Bockwinkel resides in Las Vegas and we hope that he will be present to accept professional wrestling's highest award. Hulk Hogan, born Terry Bollea, also was elected to the hall in this catagory, but will be enshrined after his official retirement.

Two new award divisions will be added to the 2003 Induction Weekend lineup. The Tag-Team division makes its debut with the induction of The Fabulous Kangaroos. This team consisted of Australians Al Costello and Roy Heffernan. The Fabulous Kangaroos dominated much of tag team wrestling in the 1950s and 1960's and they headlined shows at the famed Madison Square Garden.The team held both World and United States titles under the direction of their manager, "Wild" Red Berry. The pair used to throw cardboard boomerangs, bearing their images, out to the fans. Both wrestlers are now deceased.

The other new category will be the PWHF New York State Award, which will be given to wrestlers who have brought honor and dignity to both the State of New York and to the profession of wrestling. There will be one living and one posthumous award. Dick "The Destroyer" Beyer of Akron, New York will receive the living award for his contributions to his community and to the field of wrestling. Dick holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Syracuse University and co-captained their football team in the early 1950's. He gained immense fame in the United States, Japan, Australia and Europe wrestling under a mask as "The Destroyer". Dick states that he plans to be present in Schenectady to accept his award. The posthumous award will be given to the late Ilio DiPaolo, a wrestling legend from Italy who settled in Blasdell, New York. DiPaolo held many titles including the Canadian Tag-Team Championship with Whipper Watson and the All-Asian Championship in Japan. He retired in 1965 due to an ankle injury and then opened a restaurant in Blasdell, New York. The restaurant, which bears his name and is managed by his family, has established itself as one of the finest dining facilities in the region. The Buffalo Bills football team frequent the restaurant on a regular basis. A line of food products bearing Ilio's name has proven to be successful. Like Beyer, DiPaolo has been the recipient of many community involvement awards. A tragic motor vehicle accident ended his life prematurely in 1965.

The inductees were voted upon by twenty-two members of the PWHF Board of Selection. A Screening Committee consisting of wrestling writer/photographer Don Laible, Chairperson of the Board of Selection, Dr. Robert Bryla, longtime wrestling collector, and Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer editor and well-known wrestling expert, chose the wrestlers upon which the full Board of Selection voted. The PWHF Board of Directors' Chairperson Tony Vellano of Schenectady stated that these Inductions will take place on May 17, 2003. For further information, please call Tony Vellano at 518-356-3473 or Mike Capano at 518-725-5272. The PWHF maintains a website at www.pwhf.org for more details.

Thanks to Steve Fox