Chief Don Eagle

Chief Don Eagle
Born	Carl Donald Bell (1925-08-25)August 25, 1925 Kahnawake, Quebec, Canada
Died	March 17, 1966(1966-03-17) (aged 40) Kahnawake, Quebec, Canada
Nationality	American
Other names	Don Eagle Chief Don Eagle
Statistics
Weight(s)	Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	20
Wins	16
Wins by KO	10
Losses	4
Medal record Men's amateur boxing Representing  United States Cleveland Golden Gloves 1945 Cleveland Heavyweight

Carl Donald Bell (August 25, 1925^[1] – March 17, 1966), also known by his ring name Chief Don Eagle, was a Mohawk boxer and professional wrestler during the 1950s and 1960s. Originally from Kahnawake, Quebec, he became Boston's AWA World Heavyweight Champion in 1950.^[2]

Eagle launched his boxing career in 1945, following a brief period in the steel and construction industries. He was trained by his father, Chief Joseph War Eagle, a former Junior Heavyweight Champion. In his rookie year, Eagle competed in 22 matches and secured 17 victories. He defeated the well-established Red Dawson with a frog splash in just under 16 minutes. At the height of his career in the early 1950s, Eagle achieved the unprecedented feat of lifting World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Primo Carnera off his feet. On May 19, 1951, he engaged in a 60-minute wrestling match against Antonino Rocca at the Chicago Stadium, ending in a draw.

On May 23, 1950, Eagle defeated Frank Sexton in a best-of-three falls match. At that time, Sexton was just over a year into his nearly four-year reign as the Boston version of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship.

Three days later, Eagle appeared on television without the championship belt to compete against Gorgeous George in another best-of-three falls match in the Chicago area. Eagle won the first fall by submission. In the second fall, Eagle was counted out by referee Earl Mullihan. During the final fall, George managed to pin Eagle with a cradle. Despite Eagle having one shoulder off the mat, Mullihan administered a quick count and declared George the winner. The crowd was incensed and began to riot, throwing objects into the ring. In response, Eagle struck Mullihan with considerable force as he tried to exit the ring and the arena. As Mullihan fled up the aisle, Eagle banged him again between the shoulder blades. The Illinois State Athletic Commission suspended Eagle for assaulting a referee, but he regained the title on August 31, 1950. However, the title was declared vacant in November 1950 due to Eagle’s inactivity caused by injury, and it was subsequently replaced by the AWA Eastern Heavyweight Title.

In a 1953 match against the faux-Nazi Hans Schmidt, Eagle was catapulted over the top rope and smashed into the ringside chairs, resulting in several damaged spinal discs and two broken ribs. He took a year off working to recover from his injuries, during which he began training a young Billy Two Rivers. After his return to wrestling, Eagle continued to tutor Two Rivers for an additional year, occasionally teaming up with him. In 1960, he wrestled for the American Wrestling Association (Minnesota) as the promotion was launched. However, due to ongoing back problems, Eagle became semi-retired, wrestling infrequently across various regions over the next three years. He ultimately decided to retire permanently in 1965 at the age of 39.

The Xenia Daily Gazette reported that Eagle was found dead at his home near Montreal on March 17, 1966, with a .32 caliber revolver found near his body.^[3] Contemporaneous newspaper reports indicated he had been despondent over some construction project setbacks: namely, a Logan County (Ohio) Indian village, an expansion program in the Zane Shawnee Caverns, and a $12 million Indian Center near Montreal. Those close to Eagle, including Billy Two Rivers, do not believe his death was a suicide.^[2] Skeptics noted it could have been a murder, connected to the death of his wife, Jean Eagle.^[2]

• Cleveland Golden Gloves Heavyweight Championship (1945)^[1]

• American Wrestling Association (Boston)
  • AWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
• Canadian Wrestling Hall of Fame
  • Class of 2016^[2]
• Fred Kohler Enterprises
  • World Heavyweight Championship (Illinois version)
• Midwest Wrestling Association (Ohio)
  • MWA World Heavyweight Championship (Ohio version) (1 time)

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
20	Loss	16–4	Richard Hagan	KO	4 (8)	9 Aug 1948	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
19	Win	16–3	Henry Jones	PTS	6	13 Jul 1948	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
18	Win	15–3	Johnny Flanagan	KO	2 (6)	10 May 1948	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
17	Win	14–3	Al Hunter	TKO	3 (6)	16 Apr 1948	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
16	Win	13–3	Lenny Johnson	TKO	2 (6)	19 Apr 1948	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
15	Loss	12–3	Ocie Talbert	PTS	6	29 Jan 1948	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
14	Win	12–2	Al Timmons	PTS	6	13 Jan 1948	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
13	Win	11–2	Lonnie Morris	PTS	4	6 Jan 1948	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
12	Win	10–2	James Turner	PTS	6	30 Dec 1947	Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.
11	Win	9–2	George Brown	KO	2 (4), 1:18	25 Nov 1947	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
10	Loss	8–2	Jackie Thompson	DQ	1	21 Nov 1947	Minneapolis Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
9	Win	8–1	Bobby Marshall	TKO	2 (4)	31 Oct 1947	Minneapolis Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
8	Win	7–1	Chief War Cloud	PTS	4	28 Oct 1947	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
7	Win	6–1	Joe Connors	KO	2 (4)	22 Oct 1947	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
6	Win	5–1	Jacques Carter	KO	2 (4)	15 Oct 1947	Coliseum Annex, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
5	Loss	4–1	Gibbs Pike	TKO	5 (6), 0:54	29 Aug 1947	Jefferson County Armory, Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
4	Win	4–0	Al Small	PTS	4	25 Aug 1947	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
3	Win	3–0	Larry Chatman	KO	2 (4)	28 Jul 1947	Marigold Gardens Outdoor Arena, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
2	Win	2–0	Len Billingsley	KO	1 (4)	21 Jul 1947	Marigold Gardens, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
1	Win	1–0	Herb Jones	KO	2 (4)	27 Jan 1947	Jefferson County Armory, Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.

• List of premature professional wrestling deaths

• The Way It Was -- Don Eagle by Percival A. Friend
• And Another Indian Bites The Dust by Bill McCormack
• Chief Don Eagle's profile at Cagematch.net