Billy Sandow

Who was Billy Sandow?

Wilhelm Baumann, better known as Billy Sandow, was an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is best remembered as the manager of professional wrestler Ed "Strangler" Lewis and a subsequent member of the famed Gold Dust Trio promotion that changed the face of the industry during the 1920s. He may have taken his ring name from Eugen Sandow, a professional wrestler and strongman in the late 19th century; in turn, current WWE superstar Damien Sandow would adopt his own ring name in honor of Sandow almost a century later. Sandow also served as manager for such wrestling champions as Billy Jenkins, Marin Plestina, and Everett Marshall, and also used the ring name The Zebra Kid in 1951. He was a charter inductee of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996.

Sandow and his brother, Max Baumann, traveled together to promote wrestling events. They also promoted events in Georgia. Sandow met his star attraction Lewis during World War I, when Sandow was teaching recruits hand-to-hand fighting techniques. Sandow was credited with helping to develop Lewis' famed headlock.