| Jack Dempsey | |
a.JPG/200px-Dempsey,Jack_(1927)a.JPG) |
|
| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Real name | William Harrison Dempsey |
| Nickname(s) | Manassa Mauler |
| Rated at | Heavyweight |
| Nationality |  American |
| Birth date | June 24, 1895 |
| Birth place | Manassa, Colorado |
| Death date | May 31, 1983 (aged 87) |
| Death place | New York City, NY |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 84 |
| Wins | 66 |
| Wins by KO | 51 |
| Losses | 6 |
| Draws | 11 |
| No contests | 6 [1] |
Jack "Manassa Mauler" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983) was an American boxer who held the world heavyweight title from 1919 to 1926. The Town of Manassa is a Statutory Town that is the most populous town in Conejos County, Colorado, United States. Heavyweight is a division or weight class, in Boxing. Fighters who weigh over 200 pounds (14 st 4 lb/91 kg are considered heavyweights by the major professional The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Events 972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces takes place Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Town of Manassa is a Statutory Town that is the most populous town in Conejos County, Colorado, United States. Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) The City of New York An Orthodox stance in combat sports such as boxing and karate refers to someone who boxes right-handed as opposed to a left-handed fighter who is referred to as a Southpaw. Events 972 - Battle of Cedynia, the first documented victory of Polish forces takes place Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Boxing (sometimes also known as English boxing or pugilism) is a Combat sport in which two participants generally of similar weight, This is a chronological list of world heavyweight boxing champions since the introduction of the Marquess of Queensberry rules: Championship recognition Dempsey's aggressive style and punching power made him one of the most popular boxers in history. Many of his fights set financial and attendance records.
Contents |
Early career
Born in Manassa, Colorado, with the name of William Harrison Dempsey, he grew up in a poor family of mixed Irish origin. The Town of Manassa is a Statutory Town that is the most populous town in Conejos County, Colorado, United States. Irish Americans (Gael-Mheiriceánach are citizens of the United States who can claim ancestry originating in Ireland. Because his father had difficulty finding work, the family traveled often. He himself dropped out of grade school to work. Dempsey left home at the age of 16, eager to start a better life for himself. Due to his poverty, he frequently had to travel underneath trains and slept in hobo camps. Hobo is a term that refers to a Subculture of wandering Homeless people particularly those who make a habit of hopping freight trains. However, Dempsey was a strong, powerful youth who quickly discovered he had a talent for fighting. With the help of his older brother Bernie, he began training to be a professional boxer.
Desperate for money, Dempsey would occasionally go into saloons and challenge for fights saying "I can't sing and I can't dance, but I can lick any SOB in the house. " If anyone accepted his challenge, bets would be wagered. According to Dempsey's autobiography, he rarely lost these barroom brawls.
Dempsey's exact fight record is not known because sometimes he boxed under the pseudonym, "Kid Blackie. " This practice continued until 1916. In between, he first appeared as "Jack Dempsey" in 1914, after an earlier middleweight boxer Jack (Nonpareil) Dempsey, drawing with Young Herman in six rounds. Middleweight is a division or weight class, in Boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s John Edward Kelly (1862–1896 was an Irish-born boxer Better known as Jack (Nonpareil Dempsey, called "Nonpareil" because no one could defeat him After that fight, he won six bouts in a row by knockout (as Jack Dempsey), before losing for the first time, on a disqualification in four rounds to Jack Downey. During this early part of his career, Dempsey campaigned in Utah frequently entering fights in towns up and down the Wasatch mountain range and keeping in shape with such sparring partners as Frank VanSickle day after day. The State of Utah (ˈjuːtɔː or) is a western state of the United States.
He followed his loss against Downey with a knockout win and two draws versus Johnny Sudenberg in Nevada. Johnny Sudenberg was an American boxer. Boxing career Johnny Sudenberg's career first started off disastrously with 9 losses and 7 draws before he Nevada ( is a state located in the western region of the United States of America. Three more wins and a draw followed and then he met Downey again, this time resulting in a four round draw.
Ten wins in a row followed, a streak during which he beat Sudenberg and was finally able to avenge his defeat at the hands of Downey, knocking him out in two. Then, three more non-decisions came (early in boxing, there were no judges to score a fight, so if a fight lasted the full distance, it was called a draw or non-decision, depending on the state or country the fight was being held in).
When the United States entered World War I in 1917, Dempsey worked in a shipyard while continuing to box. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All After the war, he was accused by some boxing fans of being a draft dodger. It was not until 1920 that he was able to clear his name on that account, when evidence was produced showing he had attempted to enlist in the U.S. Army but had been turned down. The United States Army is a military organization whose primary mission is to "provide necessary forces and capabilities.
Taking the title
Among his opponents were Fireman Jim Flynn, the only boxer ever to beat Dempsey by a knockout when Dempsey lost to him in the first round (although many boxing historians, including Monte Cox, believe the fight was a "fix"), and Gunboat Smith, formerly a highly ranked contender who had beaten both World Champion Jess Willard and Hall of Famer Sam Langford. Edward (Gunboat Smith ( February 17, 1887 - August 6, 1974) was an American boxer and later a boxing referee Jess Willard ( December 29, 1881 in the town of St Clere Pottawatomie County, Kansas – December 15, 1968 in Sam Langford ( March 4, 1883 - January 12, 1956) was an African Canadian boxing standout of the early part of the 20th century Dempsey beat Smith for the third time on a second round KO.
Around this time Dempsey hooked up with Jack "Doc" Kearns, an experienced, clever fight manager who carefully and skillfully guided Dempsey to the top.
In 1918, Dempsey boxed 17 times, going 15–1 with one no decision. He avenged his defeat against Flynn by returning the favor, knocking him out in the first round. Among others he beat were light heavyweight champion Battling Levinsky, who had never been knocked out before Dempsey did so. In boxing the light heavyweight (above 168 pounds up to 175 pounds division is the weight division between Cruiserweight and Super middleweight. Barney Williams (better known as Battling Levinsky; born Barney Lebrowitz June 10 1891 &ndash died February 12 1949 in Among others he beat were Bill Brennan, Fred Fulton, Carl Morris, Billy Miske ("newspaper decision") and Homer Smith.
He began 1919 winning five bouts in a row by knockout in the first round. Then on July 4, he and world heavyweight champion Jess Willard met at Toledo, Ohio, for the world title. Events 836 - Pactum Sicardi, peace between the Principality of Benevento and the Duchy of Naples Jess Willard ( December 29, 1881 in the town of St Clere Pottawatomie County, Kansas – December 15, 1968 in This article is about the city in Ohio, USA. For Toledo Spain, see that article Few gave Dempsey a chance against the larger champion and many called this fight a modern David and Goliath. Goliath ( גָּלְיָת, Standard Hebrew Golyat, Tiberian Hebrew Golyāṯ, Arabic: جالوت Jalut (Muslim Minutes before the fight started, Kearns informed Dempsey that he had wagered Dempsey's share of the purse on Dempsey winning with a first round knockout. As a result, the first round of the fight was one of the most brutal in boxing history. Dempsey dealt Willard a terrible beating and knocked him down seven times in the first round. Willard had a broken cheekbone, broken jaw, several teeth knocked out, partial hearing loss in one ear, and broken ribs. Kearns' own recollection of the event was the source of the loaded gloves' theory. In March, 1964, Sports Illustrated published an article interviewing Dempsey and Willard, on their recollections of the fight and of "Doc" Kearns. Kearns claimed he had applied plaster of paris to the customary wrappings under Dempsey's gloves, and that Dempsey did not seem to notice even when these reinforcements were removed after the fight. Dempsey never granted any credence to Kearns' story.
Under the rules at the time, a fighter was allowed to stand almost over a knocked-down opponent, and hit him again as soon as both knees had left the canvas. Several times Willard was knocked back down as he was trying to rise. Also, modern referees would step in to stop a fight if one of them was clearly defenseless, but the referee of this fight had the attitude that the only ending for a fight is an actual knockout. At the end of the third round the champion's handlers would not let him answer the bell for the fourth round. Dempsey did win the Heavyweight Title, but he never received any money for doing so.
Title defenses
beating Jess Willard and winning the title, Jack Dempsey traveled around the country, making publicity appearances with circuses, staging exhibitions, and even starring in a low-budget Hollywood movie. Jess Willard ( December 29, 1881 in the town of St Clere Pottawatomie County, Kansas – December 15, 1968 in Dempsey did not defend his title until September 1920. This was against Billy Miske in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the US State of Michigan. Miske was a good fighter but past his prime when he challenged Jack for the title, and was knocked out in 3 rounds.
Dempsey's second title defense was much tougher, against Bill Brennan in December 1920 at Madison Square Garden, New York City. Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG, and known colloquially as The Garden, has been the name of four Arenas in New York City. The City of New York Brennan had given Dempsey a tough match two years earlier. After 10 rounds, Brennan was actually ahead on points, and Dempsey's left ear was bleeding profusely. Dempsey rebounded to stop Brennan in the 12th round.
The next fight for "The Manassa Mauler" was against Frenchman Georges Carpentier, who had been a war hero during WWI and was extremely popular on both sides of the Atlantic. Georges Carpentier (pronouced car-pun-tee-eh)( January 12, 1894 – October 28, 1975) was a French boxer The bout was shrewdly promoted by Tex Rickard, emphasizing the differences between the two men, and George Bernard Shaw, who claimed that Carpentier was "the greatest boxer in the world" and stacked the odds 50 to 1 against Dempsey. George Bernard Shaw ( (26 July 1856 &ndash 2 November 1950 was an Irish Playwright. [2] The anticipation for this bout was tremendous.
Dempsey-Carpentier took place on July 2, 1921 at Boyles Thirty Acres, New Jersey, generating the first million dollar gate in boxing history. New Jersey ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. A crowd of 91,000 watched the fight. Though it was deemed "the Fight of the Century," and Carpentier was favored 50 to 1, the match was not nearly as close as many assumed it would be. RCA arranged for live coverage of the match making the event the first national radio broadcast reaching mostly homemade radio sets after first being telegraphed to KDKA for broadcast. RCA Corporation, founded as Radio Corporation of America, was an electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986 [3]
Carpentier got off to a fast start and reportedly even wobbled Dempsey with a hard right in the 2nd round. A reporter at ringside, however, counted twenty-five punches from Dempsey in a single thirty-one second exchange soon after he was supposedly injured by the right. [2] Carpentier also broke his thumb in that round, which crippled his chances. In the 3rd, the bigger, stronger Dempsey began to take charge and administered a brutal beating to Georges. The Frenchman was eventually stopped in the 4th round.
Dempsey did not defend his title again until July 1923 against Tommy Gibbons in Shelby, Montana. Shelby is a city in and the County seat of Toole County, Montana, United States. Gibbons was a skilled, clever boxer, but was not powerful enough against the bigger, stronger Dempsey, who won a 15 round decision.
The last successful title defense for Dempsey was in September 1923 at New York's Polo Grounds. The opponent was the huge, powerful, yet limited contender Luis Angel Firpo, from Argentina. Luis Ángel Firpo, ( October 11, 1894 ? - August 7, 1960) was an Argentine boxer. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Attendance was 85,000, with another 20,000 trying to get inside the arena. Dempsey won via a 2nd round KO, but it was an exciting battle. Firpo was knocked down repeatedly yet continued to battle back, even knocking Dempsey down twice. The second time Dempsey was floored he went sailing head first through the ring ropes, landing on a reporter's typewriter, and taking several more seconds than the ten stipulated by the rules. This scene is one of the most memorable in sports history. (This fight was so important that it was transmitted live to Buenos Aires by radio, and people gathered in the streets to listen to it through primitive amplifiers. Buenos Aires is the Capital and largest city of Argentina. It is geographically located on the southern shore of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern )
These fights, plus his many exhibitions, movies and endorsements, had made Dempsey one of the richest athletes in the world.
Time off from boxing
After the Firpo brawl, Dempsey did not defend his title for another 3 years. There was pressure from the public and the media for Dempsey to defend his title against black contender Harry Wills. Harry "The Black Panther" Wills ( May 15, 1889 – December 21, 1958) was perhaps the most well known victim of the "color Politics and racial fears prevented the Dempsey-Wills bout. There is disagreement among boxing historians as to whether Dempsey avoided Wills. Dempsey always claimed he was willing. Instead of defending his title, Dempsey continued to earn money by boxing exhibitions, making movies and endorsing products. Dempsey also did a lot of traveling, spending and partying. During this time away from competitive fighting, Dempsey married actress Estelle Taylor, and broke up with his long-time trainer/manager Jack "Doc" Kearns. This break-up did not go smoothly, and Kearns repeatedly sued Dempsey for huge sums of money.
Loss of title and the "Long Count"
In September 1926, Dempsey fought Irish-American former U.S. Marine Gene Tunney in Philadelphia. James Joseph "Gene" Tunney ( May 25 1897 – November 7 1978) was the heavyweight boxing champion from 1926-1928 who defeated Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə Tunney was an excellent boxer who had lost only once in his career. Nevertheless, Tunney was still considered the underdog.
In a big upset, Dempsey lost his title on points in ten rounds. No longer displaying his legendary punching power or hand speed, Dempsey was easily outboxed by the slick Tunney who would dodge, and then let loose with a salvo of punches of his own. The attendance for this fight was a record 120,557, the second largest attendance ever for a sporting event (the 1950 soccer world cup finals between Brazil and Uruguay had 150,000+ spectators). Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Uruguay.(official full name in República Oriental del Uruguay;, Oriental Republic of Uruguay) is a country located in the southeastern part of South America When the battered Dempsey returned to his dressing room, he explained the defeat to his film actress wife Estelle Taylor by saying, "Honey, I just forgot to duck. Estelle Taylor ( May 20, 1894 &mdash April 15, 1958) was an American Hollywood actress whose career was most prominent " This phrase was later used by President Ronald Reagan to his wife after Reagan was shot during a failed attempt on his life in 1981. Nancy Davis Reagan (born Anne Frances Robbins on July 6 1921 is the widow of former United States President Ronald Reagan and served as an influential The Reagan assassination attempt occurred on March 30 1981 just 69 days into the presidency of Ronald Reagan.
Dempsey contemplated retiring, but after a few months of rest decided to try a comeback. In July 1927, at Yankee Stadium, he knocked out future heavyweight champion Jack Sharkey in the seventh round of an elimination bout for a title shot against Tunney. The original Yankee Stadium is a Stadium located in The Bronx in New York City. Jack Sharkey ( October 26, 1902, in Binghamton New York – August 17, 1994, in Beverly Massachusetts) was an American Sharkey was beating Dempsey until the end, when the fight ended controversially. Dempsey had been hitting Sharkey below the belt, and Sharkey turned to the referee to complain, leaving himself unprotected. Dempsey took advantage and crashed a left hook onto Sharkey's chin, knocking him out cold. The referee then counted out Sharkey.
The Tunney rematch took place in Chicago, Illinois, on September 22, 364 days after losing his title to Tunney in their first bout. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. Events 66 - Emperor Nero creates the Legion I Italica. 1236 - The Lithuanians This fight generated even more interest than the Carpentier and Firpo bouts, generating an amazing 2 million dollar gate, a record that stood for many years. It is said that Al Capone offered Dempsey that he could fix the rematch, but he would not hear of it. Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone (January 17 1899 &ndash January 25 1947 commonly nicknamed Scarface, was an Italian American Gangster who Millions of people around the country listened to the bout on the radio, and hundreds of reporters covered the event. Tunney was paid a record one million dollars for the Dempsey rematch. Dempsey earned about half that.
Dempsey was losing the fight on points when he knocked Tunney down with a left hook to the chin in the seventh round, and landed several more punches. A new rule for boxing at the time mandated that when a fighter knocks down an opponent, he must immediately go to a neutral corner. But Dempsey seemed to have forgotten that rule (compare his fight with Willard where he almost stood over his downed opponent ready to strike again) and refused to immediately move to the neutral corner when instructed by the referee. The referee had to escort Dempsey to the neutral corner, which bought Tunney at least an extra five seconds to recover.
The official timekeeper for the fight counted the time Tunney stayed down as 14 seconds. But, after Dempsey finally went to a neutral corner, the referee started his count, and Tunney got up at the referee's count of nine. Dempsey tried to finish Tunney off before the round ended, but he failed to do so. A fully recovered Tunney dropped Dempsey for a count of one in round eight, easily won the final two rounds of the fight, and retained the title on a unanimous decision. Ironically, the new rule (which was not yet universal) was requested during negotiations by members of the Dempsey camp. Another discrepancy was the fact that when Tunney knocked Dempsey down, the referee started the count immediately, not waiting for Tunney to move to a neutral corner. [1] Because of the controversial nature of the fight, it remains known in history as the fight of "The Long Count. The Battle Of The Long Count was the Boxing rematch between world Heavyweight champion Gene Tunney and former champion Jack Dempsey, held on September "
Retirement
He retired after this bout and made countless exhibition bouts. In 1935, he opened Jack Dempsey's Broadway Restaurant in New York City's Times Square, which he kept open until 1974. Jack Dempsey's Broadway Restaurant, known popularly as Jack Dempsey's, was a Restaurant on Broadway in Manhattan, New York at the The City of New York Times Square is a major intersection in Manhattan, New York City at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West He divorced Taylor and in July 1933 married Broadway singer Hannah Williams (who had just divorced Roger Wolfe Kahn) and had two children with her. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located Hannah Williams (born 1911) was a United States Actress, Singer, and Comedian. Roger Wolfe Kahn ( October 19, 1907 – July 12, 1962) was an American Jazz and popular Musician, Composer Shortly after he divorced Hannah Williams in 1943, the boxer married Deanna Rudin Piatelli, and was married to her at the time of his death.
When the United States entered World War II, Dempsey had an opportunity to refute any remaining criticism of his war record of two decades earlier. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including He volunteered for national service and was commissioned as a commander in the U.S. Coast Guard, charged with developing a physical fitness program for U. S. soldiers. Later, he served as a morale officer in the Pacific and in 1945 became a hero to many when, at age 49, he insisted on going into battle on Okinawa with a group of men he had trained. is one of Japan 's southern prefectures, and consists of hundreds of the Ryukyu Islands in a chain over 1000 km long which extends southwest from Kyūshū
Dempsey wrote a book on boxing, Championship Fighting: Explosive Punching and Aggressive Defense, which was published in 1950. Dempsey was also something of a cross-trainer, he wrestled in training camp and later took judo lessons. He later wrote a book on this, How to Fight Tough, which dealt with close-quarters combat incorporating boxing, wrestling, and jiu-jitsu.
He made friends with Wills and Tunney after retirement, and had many books written about his life. Dempsey even campaigned for Tunney's son John when he ran for the U.S. Senate, from California. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. One of Dempsey's best friends was Judge John Sirica who presided over the Watergate trials. John Joseph Sirica ( March 19 1904 – August 14 1992) was the Chief Judge for the United States District Court for the District of The Watergate scandals were a series of Political scandals during the presidency of Richard Nixon that resulted in the Indictment of several of Nixon's
In 1977, in collaboration with his stepdaughter Barbara, Jack published his autobiography, titled Dempsey. In May 1983, Dempsey died of natural causes at age 87. His wife Deanna at his side, he told her. . . "Don't worry honey, I'm too mean to die. " He is buried in the Southampton Cemetery, Southampton, New York. Southampton New York may refer to Southampton (town New York in Suffolk County Southampton (village New York, in the town of Southampton
Dempsey is a member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame. The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall The street where Madison Square Garden is located is called Jack Dempsey Corner.
Record
Professional boxing: 82 Fights 66 Wins 51 KOs 6 Losses 9 Draws 6 No contests[4]
Quotes
- "You're in there for three-minute rounds with gloves on and a referee. That's not real fighting. "
- "Honey, I just forgot to duck. "
- "I can't sing and I can't dance, but I can lick any SOB in the house. "
- "A champion is someone who gets up when he can't. "
Notes
- A cichlid fish, the Jack Dempsey, has been named after him. Cichlids (ˈsɪklɪd are Fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two For other uses see Jack Dempsey (disambiguation. The Jack Dempsey ( Rocio octofasciata (Regan 1903 formerly Nandopsis octofasciatum
- ^ Six Dempsey fight results were 'newspaper decisions. ' Four were wins and two were draws.
- ^ a b The Lawless Decade By Paul Sann
- ^ Fisher, Marc. Something in the Air. Random House, xiv. ISBN 978-0-375-50907-0.
- ^ Six Dempsey fight results were 'newspaper decisions. ' Four were wins and two were draws.
External links
- Professional boxing record for Jack Dempsey from Boxrec
- Jack Dempsey's New York Restaurant
- Video Highlights of Dempsey
- Biography at Utah.gov
- Picture of Dempsey contracting to fight Wills in 1925
| Preceded by Jess Willard |
9th Heavyweight Champion July 4, 1919 – September 23, 1926 |
Succeeded by Gene Tunney |
| Preceded by Inaugural champion |
1st NBA Heavyweight Champion July 2, 1921 – September 23, 1926 |
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