Pittsburgh’s official professional wrestling organization, Keystone State Wrestling Alliance (KSWA), has announced that 2025, its 25th anniversary, will be its last.
In a social media post on New Year’s Day, KSWA Owner Bobby O and the KSWA Championship Committee posted a letter thanking the fans—called “Krazies,” sponsors, and wrestlers—called “Megastars”—that after months of discussion, the decision was made.
“Twenty-five years is a great run, and that’s a tribute to everyone who has been involved with the KSWA from the start. 2025 will be a year to celebrate the journey and those who have made it possible. The KSWA looks forward to making more unforgettable memories during the upcoming year,” wrote KSWA Owner Bobby O in an email.
The Keystone State Wrestling Alliance began its journey at Peabody High School in the city of Pittsburgh in February 2000. Over the next 24 years, the organization, anchored by Shawn Blanchard and Lou Martin, has hosted more than 400 events. There have been countless fundraisers and cards in various communities over the nearly quarter century.
The KSWA had its first home at the VFW in Pittsburgh’s Bloomfield neighborhood before moving to the Moose building in the city’s Lawrenceville neighborhood. When the Moose organization closed that structure on 51st Street, the KSWA moved to the Teamster Temple on nearby Butler Street. When the Moose building was sold to new owners, the KSWA returned to “The Home of Professional Wrestling in Pittsburgh.”
Then the pandemic hit right after the KSWA’s 20th anniversary celebration, one in which then-Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto attended and proclaimed a “KSWA Day” in the city.
The group was sidelined for nearly a year but came back strong. Over the past few years, the KSWA hosted nearly 25 events a year all over Western Pennsylvania.
In Pittsburgh, the Bruno Sammartino-led “Studio Wrestling” TV show was a mainstay from 1958-1974. Many of the stars of those days became friends with the KSWA. James J. Dillon credits Sammartino in helping him get started in Pittsburgh. When the KSWA started its Hall of Fame, the first inductees were hometown boys Joe Abby and Frank Durso. Dillon, Dominic DeNucci as well as Sammartino have all touted the KSWA as the heir to their era’s professional wrestling product.
Over the years, the KSWA Hall of Fame was local to Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania, adding more than 50 members, including Bill Apter and Bill Eadie, Angie Minelli and her late aunt Donna Christianello, Sammartino and Dominic DeNucci, “Luscious” Johnny Valiant as well as home-grown talent such as “Mr. Tenacity” Tommy Faime” and Bubba White, who wrestled as Moondog Splat and Goliath.
The KSWA is the longest-continually-running brand of professional wrestling in Western Pennsylvania. The organization took pride in providing entertaining athletic achievements but was the most prolific and philanthropic professional wrestling organization not shared on NASDAQ. And no independent wrestler anywhere was as prolific as “The Face of Pittsburgh” Lou Martin. “It’s hard to explain what KSWA Wrestling truly means to me. The great memories in and out of the ring, the people I have met over 25 years many who are not just friends they are family. The community engagement and moments that hold a special place in your heart. This is what KSWA is about!”
The KSWA hosted an annual holiday Toy Drive that benefitted Allegheny County’s “Holiday Project” where needy children received toys that were donated at FanFest. The group also became the main attraction for the annual Millvale Days community event, as well as a mainstay of Lawrenceville’s Independence Day Celebration at Arsenal Park.
Because of its community outreach, the Keystone State Wrestling Alliance was recognized by the city of Pittsburgh’s Council as well as Mayor’s office, Allegheny County, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the United States Senate.
In 2014, the KSWA was featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal. The story detailed how local wrestlers with aspirations and everyday jobs wrestled in front of enthusiastic crowds. In 2016 during the hotly contested Presidential race between Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton, the KSWA was prominently featured in an ABC News feature.
Since the COVID shutdown, the KSWA took its frequent shows on the road. There was a temporary home at a Harley Davidson dealership outside of the city, but ultimately, the group found its most recent home at the American Legion in Pittsburgh’s Sheraden neighborhood. It’s there that officials say they have been most welcomed over the past two and a half decades.
Rich Dalzotto, a FanFest sponsor with South Hills Financial Group, as well as one of the organizers of “Horror Realm” an annual horror movie convention in Pittsburgh that has hosted George “The Animal” Steele, Shane Douglas and J.J. Dillon along with KSWA Megastars, noted, “You guys did things right and were an asset to the community.”
The KSWA does have 16 event already scheduled in 2025 with hopes of adding more. Talks are already underway with past hosts. Organizers also hope to bring back wrestlers from the past who have moved on to other endeavors.
TOP PHOTO: Referee Jimmy James holds up the hand of then-KSWA Champion Lou Martin alongside former Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Michael McKendry at KSWA FanFest 2023. Photo by Tim Steiner
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