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Brian Damage
Grappling with Tragedy is a series of articles that deal with unfortunate, tragic incidents that have occurred throughout the history of professional wrestling. It is unlike the ‘Wrestling with Sin’ series that deals more with the seedier side of wrestling like arrests, murders and suicides. Grappling looks more at particular tragic incidents that have in some instances altered pro wrestling in some way.
Antonino Rocca
He was born Antonino Biasetton in Trevisa, Italy, on April 13, 1927. At the age of 15, his family moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina to find a better life financially. Despite his poor upbringing, Antonino attended college, where he graduated with a degree in electrical engineering. He discovered his love of pro wrestling after seeing a touring wrestling show and was introduced to a wrestler named Kola Kwariani in 1942.
Antonino began training and debuted in the business under the ring name of Antonino Rocca. He was an instant attraction due to his unique acrobatic style, which was still uncommon during those days. He also wrestled barefoot and that began because he was too poor to afford wrestling boots. It was a style he continued to adopt even after making millions in wrestling.
Antonino ‘Argentina’ Rocca became a huge star for Toots Mondt and Vince McMahon Sr for their Capitol Wrestling Corporation. Vince Sr once said of Rocca…“Next to Milton Berle, Rocca sold more TVs in the country than anyone else, he was wrestling on five different TV stations at that time. There was never a more likeable and more personable fellow in sports.” At one point, Antonino Rocca was making a $100,000 a year and had his legs insured for $250,000.
Despite being a superstar celebrity, Rocca always found time to donate money and his time to various charities that dealt with poor children. Many of his peers in the wrestling industry called Antonino Rocca “true blue” and “not a phony.” Rocca retired from the ring in 1967 and remained in the wrestling spotlight as a color commentator. He once bragged that he knew the “secret of life” and said he would live to be over 100 years old. He credited exercising and plenty of sleep as ways to live a longer life.
In early March of 1977, Rocca complained of pain in his lower abdomen and checked himself into a New York City hospital. Two weeks later, he was dead. The official autopsy said he passed away from a urinary infection. Antonino Rocca was just 49 years old at the time of his death.