Ivan Linow

Ivan Linow
Ivan Linow about to fight Joel McCrea in 1930's The Silver Horde.
Born	Janis Linaus (1888-11-21)November 21, 1888 Latvia
Died	November 21, 1940(1940-11-21) (aged 52) London, England, United Kingdom
Occupation	Wrestler, actor
Years active	1918–1935

Ivan Linow, also known as Jack Linow, was a Latvian-born American wrestler, who would go on to become a character actor in American films during the silent and early sound film eras. Born in Latvia on November 21, 1888,^[1] he would begin wrestling in the United States in 1918. Between 1918 and 1933, he would participate in 92 matches, with a record of 38 wins and 23 losses.^[2] Linow's monikers in the ring were "the Cossack" and the "Russian Man-Eater".^[3] During his wrestling career he would face other notable wrestlers of that era, such as Joe Stecher and Ed Lewis.^[4]

Ed 'Strangler' Lewis and Linow in the ring, 1920.

Using his popularity as a wrestler, Linow entered the film industry during the 1920s, his first film being Cappy Ricks (1921).^[5] In his fifteen year acting career he would appear in over forty films in supporting and bit parts.^[6][7] While appearing in films, Linow would continue his wrestling career, his final match would be in July 1931, under the pseudonym, Jack Leon, in which he would defeat Young Sandow.^[4][8] Linow would retire from films two years later, in 1935; his final film was The Black Room, starring Boris Karloff.^[9] On November 21, 1940, while in London, Linow would die of a heart attack.^[10]

Filmography

(Per AFI database)^[6][7]

References

External links

• Ivan Linow at the Internet Movie Database
• Ivan Linow at the TCM Movie Database