Professional wrestler Jim Londos, whose name was Chris Theophelos, lived ca. 1895--1900 to 1975. Londos was born in Patras, Greece and immigrated to the United States ca. 1910. By 1915 he was active in wrestling. Newspaper features sometimes referred to Londos as “The Greek Adonis.” As a young athlete he won “the Greek championship,” to quote an undated (1936 or later) and unidentified newspaper clipping included in this collection by its creator, Ted T. Nichols. For most of the twenty five to thirty years after 1915 Londos enjoyed a successful career as a professional wrestler, at a time where wrestling was still mostly believed to be “real”, and wrestlers needed to possess genuine skills to defend their belts. Londos won multiple world championships, holding the original World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship for a record 2,628 days. Out of the 2500+ matches he wrestled, notable bouts in his career include a title defense against Ed “Strangler” Lewis at a sold out Wrigley Field in 1934, and an early mixed martial arts match against Japanese judoka Oki Shikina at the Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles in 1933. Londos, known for his charisma and good looks, was one of wrestling’s biggest attractions. In his home country of Greece, he drew over 100,000 fans for his match against Russian champion Kola Kwariani. In a time where many immigrant wrestlers were villains, Londos was beloved by all, and remains as a singular figure from the sports early days in North America. After his retirement in 1946, Londos became a massive charitable figure, especially for Greek children orphaned after World War Two, and was recognized by both Richard Nixon, and King Paul of Greece for his work.  Londos, who married Arva E. Rochwite of St. Louis MO in 1941 in film impresario Charles P. Skouras’s Beverly Hills CA home, ultimately retired to Escondido (near San Diego) CA where he died in 1975 at the ranch on which he grew avocados. He and his wife were parents of three daughters. Ted T. Nichols of Cicero, Illinois, was an ardent fan. This collection includes three items organized or written by Ted Nichols. 
Ted T. Nichols is less well documented. Internal evidence indicates he resided in Cicero, IL.  This collection’s materials suggest biographical compilations about Jim Londos were his avocation for many years.
 

This collection includes volumes 2,4, and 5 of The Jim Londos Story by Ted Nichols, a biography of professional wrestler Jim Londos/overview of the history of professional wrestling in North America, composed of newspaper clippings, photographs, text, and reproduced clippings and photographs. Also included is a xeroxed collection volumes 2, 4, and 5 in one book, a xeroxed collection of the paraphernalia from The Jim Londos Story, and the poem “The Jim Londos Story” by Ted Nichols. The items found in this collection range in date from 1931 to 1989.

The items are arranged in the following order, Paraphernalia from The Jim Londos Story, The Jim Londos Story (Most Complete Set), Volumes 2, 4, and 5 of The Jim Londos Story, and the poem The Jim Londos Story. This was the original arrangement when acquired by the National Hellenic Museum.

Donated by Nick Nichols and Steven Nichols to the Hellenic Museum and Cultural Center (Former name of The National Hellenic Museum) on November 14, 1996.

[item], folder, box, NHM12 Ted Nichols Collection on Jim Londos, National Hellenic Museum.