Nat Pendleton

Former Olympic wrestler turned actor, Nathaniel Greene 'Nat' Pendleton. Nat's parents were Nathaniel Greene Pendleton (09 Dec 1861 -  13 May 1914) and Adelaide Elizabeth "Bessie" Johnson Pendleton (16 Jul 1873 -  22 May 1960). Two-time Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) champion (1914-1915) in the 175-lb class at Columbia University, graduated Class of 1916. Wrestled for the United States at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium, earning a silver medal, losing only one match due to a controversial point-decision. After the Games he became a professional wrestler and was a big fan favorite, which led to Hollywood. In the 1920 census he was living in Manhattan with his first wife Juanita Alfonzo (age 22) and her brother Ramon Alfonso (age 13). He was working as a sports manager Juanita was born in Brooklyn, New York, October 6, 1897. He was usually cast as a circus strongman, brutish thug, dump cop or dense buffoon, but he had a college degree and in 1933 wrote the script for Deception (1932), in which he starred--not surprisingly--as a wrestler. Upon his death from a heart attack, his remains were interred at Cypress View Mausoleum and Crematory in San Diego, California. His location plot is Corridor A NW, #9 on the inside of the door frame on the left side. Inducted into the Columbia University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006 (inaugural class).