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The Cauliflower Alley Club announced the following:
The Cauliflower Alley Club is happy to announce that Allison Danger will be the recipient of its' 2024 Women’s Wrestling Award.
In addition to a 12-year in-ring career that took her around the globe, collecting championships worldwide, Danger was also a co-founder of SHIMMER Women Athletes and was instrumental in helping redefine women’s professional wrestling in the 21st century.
Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Cathy Corino grew up in Trappe, Pennsylvania, outside of Philadelphia. She discovered professional wrestling through her older brother, Steve. Steve was a longtime fan and made began wrestling in 1994.
Cathy followed Steve’s exploits in the ring and was introduced to many of her brother’s wrestling peers. In 2000, she was at an ECW show in Reading, Pennsylvania, when she was asked to substitute for The Sandman’s valet who was unable to make the show.
The experience changed her life.
“It’s so hard to say what it is, but there’s this feeling you get when you walk through that curtain and the music is going, people are yelling. It’s intoxicating,” she said in an interview for the book Sisterhood of the Squared Circle.
Corino began training under Mike Kehner and Rapid Fire Maldonado and made her pro debut in 2001 under the name Allison Danger. In 2002, she landed a spot in Ring of Honor, the rising super independent promotion. She proved to be a true workhorse in the early 2000s, earning bookings with ROH, Women’s Xtreme Wrestling, IWA Mid-South, Jersey All Pro Wrestling, and other independent promotions. She landed tours of Japan and Europe and incorporated elements from joshi wrestling and European catch-as-catch-can style to her game and her presentation.
At a time when WWE was featuring three-minute “divas” matches, Danger was one of a handful of women helping revolutionize what women’s wrestling could be.
In 2005, Danger received a call from Dave Prazak, the promoter of IWA Md-South’s “Volcano Girls” women’s events. He was looking to expand those shows into a women’s wrestling promotion. Danger jumped at the opportunity.
On November 6, 2005, SHIMMER had its first event. That night, Danger defeated Beth Phoenix, who would go on to a Hall of Fame career in WWE. From 2005 through 2021, Danger was involved with the SHIMMER promotion, serving as an agent, a coach, a mentor, an in-ring talent, an authority figure, and a den mother. SHIMMER served as a launching pad for dozens of women wrestlers, including (to name just a few) Bayley, Becky Lynch, Shayna Baszler, Saraya, Asuka, Dakota Kai, Nikki Cross, and Jordynne Grace.
While SHIMMER is an enduring part of her legacy, Danger also captured several prominent championships, including the BELLATRIX (England) title in 2011, the ICWA European women’s title (Germany), and the World-1 North American title (in 2006 and 2010.) She had memorable rivalries with Alexis Laree (Mickie James), Portia Perez, Cindy Rogers, Saraya Knight, and Rebecca Knox (Becky Lynch).
Danger retired from wrestling in 2013 due to injuries and her desire to be with her family.
“I want to hope that I helped to put the current style of wrestling on the map, that I was part of it,” Danger said in Sisterhood of the Squared Circle. “Since I retired one of the things I struggle with to this day is the feeling that wrestling has passed me by and that I’ve been forgotten. That’s one of the hardest thins for me to deal with, to wonder if I did all this in vain. Then I go to SHIMMER and these other shows and I have these young girls who come up to me and say, ‘You’re why I do this. I still watch your tapes.’ And I realize, oh man, even after everything is done, I still have the ability to touch the occasional person. That’s such a good feeling.”
Rest assured, Cathy, your impact in wrestling has been undeniable. Congratulations on receiving a Women’s Wrestling Award at the 2024 Cauliflower Alley Club Reunion at the Plaza Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, Aug. 19-21.
Reunion tickets and CAC memberships, as well as all of the information about the CAC and our upcoming reunion can be obtained on the Cauliflower Alley Club’s website at www.caulifloweralleyclub.org.
*The Cauliflower Alley Club wishes to thank Dan Murphy (co-author of many books including, Sisterhood of the Squared Circle; The History and Rise of Women's Wrestling) for penning this wonderful announcement.
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