Pro wrestler Killer Kowalski died last Saturday. Read last year's Esquire interview, where he talks about the Iron Claw, Yukon Eric's cauliflower ear, and how he got his nickname.

From Sarah Bernhardt to Yukon Eric. By A. J. Liebling. November 5, 1954. Save this story. Save this story. The New Yorker, November 13, 1954 P. 132. REPORTER AT LARGE ...

Walter "Killer" Kowalski, 81, a pioneering wrestler who appeared in more than 6,000 matches in a 30-year career on the professional wrestling circuit, died of a heart attack Aug. 30 in Everett, Mass.