Japanese Great Rikidozan Stabbed in Nightclub Incident

by Mark Long

Rikidozan - historyofwrestling.comJapanese great Rikidozan was stabbed by gangster Katsuji Murata while at a nightclub in Tokyo, Japan. Rikidozan, considered the Father of Japanese Professional Wrestling received medical treatment and was expected to survive the encounter. In fact, members of the Yakuza (including Murata) met with him to apologize for the incident. He was told to rest so that he could heal, but he continued to party in the nightclubs, drinking heavily. He was soon found to be suffering from internal bleeding and died on December 15, 1963.