Kay Noble - Professional Wrestling Career

Professional Wrestling Career

Noble first wanted to become a professional wrestler at age 15 and wanted promoter Gust Karras to help her break into the business. She, however, did not began her professional wrestling career until 1957 at the age 18 after being approached by a promoter in her hometown of St. Joseph, Missouri. She was trained by Laura Martinez and Sonny Myers. The following year in October 1958, Noble, along with Lorraine Johnson, Penny Banner, and Laura Martinez were charged with inciting a riot when they began fighting outside of the ring, but they pleaded not guilty in court. The promoters of the event paid the fine.

She later helped train male professional wrestler Colonel DeBeers. During her career, she held both the Texas Women's Championship and Central States Women's Championship. Throughout her years wrestling, Noble was known for her toughness and strength. She was also a high-flying wrestler.

In the 1960s, she worked primarily in Minneapolis, Minnesota. During this time, she wrestled a series of mixed tag team matches with her husband Doug Gilbert against Roy Collins and Barbara Baker. She also wrestled a series of matches against and teaming with Betty Niccoli. She also wrestled as the partner of Jack Cain in mixed tag team matches against Jean Antone and Terry Funk. Funk was also her partner on occasion. Her other well-known opponents included Penny Banner, The Fabulous Moolah, and Gladys Gillem. In 1963, she won the vacant AWA World Women's Championship by defeating Kathy Starr in Minnesota, and she held the tile for approximately eight years, losing it to Vivian Vachon in November 1971 in Canada.

She was named WFIA's "Girl Wrestling of the Year" in 1971. By the 1980s, Noble only wrestled part-time while raising her children In 2001, the Cauliflower Alley Club, a society of retired professional wrestlers, honored her contributions to women's wrestling.