The Night Jersey Joe Walcott Made Arnold Raymond Cream Champion Of The World

The Night Jersey Joe Walcott Made Arnold Raymond Cream Champion Of The World

By Peter Silkov.
For The Boxing Glove

In the end, it took just one punch, a dynamite left-hook to the face of Ezzard Charles, and ten seconds later Jersey Joe Walcott was heavyweight champion of the world. One could argue that Walcott was champion as soon as the punch had landed. It was an irrepressible force upon impact, and the devastation produced was visible on the face of the reigning champion as he fell forward senseless onto his face. To those with a keen sense of boxing knowledge, it seemed clear that this was one of those blows that would render the receiver unable to beat the fatal count of ten seconds.

Just after impact, Charles fell onto his right knee, his head bowed, where he froze for a moment. Almost as if he were in prayer. Then he pitched down the rest of the way forwards, coming to rest with his face pressed into the canvas.  He looked like someone taking a long overdue slumber.

Jersey Joe had entered the ring that night in Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a 37-year-old 5-to-1 underdog, against a man who had already beaten him twice.  When he left the ring some thirty minutes or so later he held in his gloved hands the richest prize in sports. Such is the beauty of boxing.

Charles was 'out' even before the skin of his face stuck upon the ring canvas.  In fact, the connection between canvas and face may well have 'awakened' Charles and provoked his improbable attempt to regain his feet in time to continue the fight and the 9th defense of his world title.  Yet his senses were too widely scattered and although he made a courageous attempt to beat the count, he failed.  Even as he lay prone upon his face the courageous Charles tried to regain his feet by wearily pushing at the canvas with his arms.  At this point, it seemed almost as if his arms were working separately from the rest of his body as if they were the only conscious part of the fallen fighter. As the count reached six Charles managed to raise his head, and at the count of eight he had managed to get to his knees. The soon to be ex-heavyweight champion of the world then wobbled back drunkenly onto his feet, just as the count reached the fatal 10.  Yet no sooner had the soles of his boots regained their acquaintance with the canvas, then Charles was falling again, this time backward onto his back, where he lay glassy-eyed and confused as his cornermen rushed to the now ex-champions aid.

In victory, the victor was almost rendered unconscious himself with the shock of what he had just accomplished. The spectators, whom earlier had sat largely unmoved by the action unfolding before them during previous rounds, had themselves been energized into an excited frenzy by the sudden turn of events, with many of them taking to their feet and trying to get into the ring itself.  What ensued in the next minutes was a kind of jubilant frenzy which only sport at its best, and in particular boxing (although this writer is biased) can produce.

Surrounded by an ever-growing mass of spectators, who flooded into the ring and launched themselves at their new hero. Pulled upon by his cornermen, as they sought to protect him from the expanding throng of excited human beings who were filling the ring. Jersey Joe Walcott, the new heavyweight champion of the world, breathing heavily, fell to his knees and murmured in a voice that was all but totally drowned out by the tumult surrounding him, 'Thank God!'.

Later when he had composed himself enough to speak to reporters, Walcott had exclaimed about his victory “I felt 16 years old again!”

Up until the sudden conclusion, the fight seemed to be following the same unspectacular pattern of the previous two encounters between these two men. The night had exploded into life with the sudden match-ending punch that must go down as one of the most spectacular and clinical one punch finishes that have ever been seen in a heavyweight championship bout.

It had been just one left hook that had caused this explosion of excitement and uproar. It brought about one of the biggest upsets the division had seen, up until that time.  One punch had beaten the 5-to-1 odds laid against the challenger. One punch, but that punch had taken over 20 years to land. 20 years of blood, bruises, and heartbreak. Years filled with sweat, frustration, victories, and disappointments. At the age of 37 (although some sources made Walcott closer to 42 or 43 years in age) Jersey Joe had withstood more highs and lows than is probably in a single fighter's career. His resilience to the lows, and his ability to bounce back from each setback, again and again, was the reason why he had just become the oldest man to capture sport's greatest crown at the age of (at least) 37. Walcott also gained the distinction of becoming the first man to win the most prestigious title in boxing at his 5th attempt.

The crowd knew.  They had followed his journey from the first Louis match when he had appeared out of nowhere to give the great Joe Louis the hardest fight of his already legendary world title reign. Many of the spectators, who were on their feet after seeing Walcott land that dynamite punch upon Ezzard Charles, were the same people who booed and protested loudly three and a half years earlier when the judges failed to give the verdict to Walcott at the end of his first fight with Joe Louis. It seemed, to many that night, that Jersey Joe had been robbed by the judges of a famous and improbable, yet well-deserved victory.  Until that night Walcott had been unknown to the average fight fan, despite a career going back 17 years.  He had flummoxed, frustrated, bewildered and out-boxed the champion with his swift-footed, herky-jerky style of boxing. Not only that, but Walcott had hurt Louis several times, and floored him twice.  Jersey Joe was like a wasp in the ring, buzzing around and around, in and out, and he had a sting. 

21 out of 32 ringside boxing writers had Walcott the winner at the conclusion of his first fight with Louis, while Louis himself was so convinced of his defeat that he attempted to leave the ring before the verdict was announced.  Yet Walcott was not crowned champion that night against Louis, instead, in many peoples eyes, he was robbed of a historic against all odds victory, the kind of which only comes to a man once in a lifetime.

Six months later Walcott had another shot at immortality when Louis granted him a second shot at his world title. Once more Walcott gave 'The Brown Bomber' fits with his speed and style, but this time Louis caught up Jersey Joe in the 11th round and knocked him out.  Ironically this time Walcott had been leading on two of the three judges cards.  Walcott's dream, the dream he had held since he first pulled a pair of boxing gloves onto his hands over 17 years earlier seemed to be gone.

How many chances at greatness does one man get in life?

After Joe Louis announced his retirement from the ring following his 11th round knockout of Walcott, Jersey Joe and Ezzard Charles were matched together to fight for the now vacant World heavyweight crown.  On June 22, 1949, Charles out-pointed Walcott over 15 rather uninspired rounds to gain NBA recognition as the worlds heavyweight champion.  It had been Walcott's third shot at destiny and this time he had failed to sparkle.

Ezzard Charles was a brilliant boxer in his own right, who in many ways is only now gaining the accolades that he so deserved during the time he was active in the 40s and 50s.  Yet Charles and Walcott together seemed to nullify each other's abilities. When matched together, except for some sporadic outbursts of action and excitement, their fights were mainly underwhelming to most spectators.  Especially taking into account what people expected from a world heavyweight title fight at the time.

The fans wanted blood and guts, wild exchanges of powerful punches.  Not the kind of cerebral boxing matches that they got when Walcott and Charles were matched up together.

Despite the underwhelming nature of their first fight, Charles and Walcott faced eachother again on  March 7th, 1951, with Walcott entering the match on the back of an upset points defeat to the raw yet tough Rex Layne.  Charles, who was proving himself to be a fighting champion, despite the lack of recognition from the fight fans at large, was making the 7th defence of his world title. 

For the fourth time, Walcott found himself the bridesmaid rather than the bride, as he was once more out-pointed over 15 rounds by Charles. With Walcott the sentimental favourite, the crowd had booed the verdict, yet those boos didn't bring his dream any closer. After four shots at the greatest prize in sport, it seemed that Jersey Joe had missed his chance at immortality and would go down as one of boxing's nearly men. A man who could have been champion save for the scores upon one judge’s scorecard.

Yet fate is a funny thing, and sometimes immortality is a combination of being at the right place at the right time but also making sure you are at the right place at the right time.

With his advanced age and the years he had put into his career, Walcott could easily have accepted his fate as a runner up who had come so close and yet so far, and simply hung up his gloves. After years of struggle, he had earned enough from his losing attempts at the world championship so that he and his family now lived comfortably in the family home in Camden New Jersey. He was no-longer wondering where his next meal was coming from as he had so often earlier in his career. 

Yet Jersey Joe Walcott was still hungry. He still held onto that flickering dream of being heavyweight champion of the world. Perhaps if anything, after coming so close yet failing four times, the dream was even stronger now for Walcott. Even if few outside his immeadiate circle still believed it possible.  Perhaps Jersey Joe Walcott wouldn't let Arnold Raymond Cream quit before his dream had been fulfilled.

So Joe didn't hang up his gloves. He didn't quit after the Louis rematch. He didn't quit after the first bout with Ezzard Charles or even after the second defeat to Charles.  Jersey Joe wasn't a quitter and perhaps, more than anything else, this is the clue as to how in the end he managed to achieve the seemingly impossible.

Then came that stroke of luck which sometimes blesses the talented, but more often than not blesses those who show the kind of stubborn endurance, and belief, in the face of failure that  Jersey Joe displayed throughout his long career. With genuine challengers for his world title scant on the ground, Ezzard Charles found himself facing Walcott for the third time on that fateful night of July 18, 1951.

This time something was different, there was an extra spark in Walcott, the kind that he hadn't had perhaps since his two fights with Joe Louis. Maybe this time he knew that this 5th chance at his dream had to be his last chance.

The bout started out much like their previous two encounters, with both boxing cagily, and seemingly waiting for the other to make a move or a mistake. People had expected Charles to take more of the initiative in this bout in order to beat Walcott by a wider margin than previously and remove him from contention as a challenger. However, Charles was content to play the waiting game and let Walcott be the aggressor. For his part, instead of using his usual style of tricky movement and countering, Jersey Joe was more happy to hold his ground this time and deliver more telling punches than in their previous encounters. Although Charles edged the first two rounds with his more effective jab, Walcott's strategy began to bear fruit in the 3rd round when he seemed to hurt Charles with two left-hooks to the body. He also landed a left hook to the face which opened a cut underneath the champions right eye. From this point, Walcott the eternal challenger began to gain control of the fight, seemingly growing stronger as the match went on, perhaps with the growing belief that this time, this time, he would not finish second.

As the rounds progressed Charles continued to box smartly with his jab, but there was an ineffectiveness now in his work. Walcott had his own jab working, and furthermore, he was landing rights and lefts to the body that seemed to be draining Ezzard. While Charles punches looked to be bouncing harmlessly off Walcott when they landed, Jersey Joe's own blows seemed to be landing with a touch more weight. The two exchanged jabs in the 4th and 5th rounds, but Walcott's punches were becoming more telling. Ezzard was visibly shaken by a right hand in the 4th, while in the 5th round the defending champion seemed to be hurt twice, as his challenger switched from head to body in some of the best exchanges of the fight. Ezzard fought back but his punches lacked sting in comparison to Jersey Joe. In the 6th round, Walcott started looking to land the left hook more as he became visibly more confident, with the concentration and determination etched upon his face.

Then in the fateful 7th Walcott finally landed that left hook. The left hook that had taken 21 years to reach its destination. Back then he hadn't been Jersey Joe Walcott, but Arnold Raymond Cream, born in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, on  January 31, 1914, (although there were always whispers that the year of Arnold Cream's birth could be somewhat earlier than 1914). Officially Arnold Cream began his career on September 9, 1930, with a 1st round knockout of Eddie Wallace. Cream weighed 152 pounds in that early endeavor, with a long long road ahead of him before he would reach anything like the success that he dreamed about every-time he clenched his gloved hands.

It was not until some three years later on July 28, 1933, against a certain Henry Taylor, (whom he knocked out in the 1st round) that Arnold Cream became Jersey Joe Walcott. Arnold took the name of the old 'Barbados Demon' Joe Walcott, who had ruled the welterweights and been one of the most feared fighters pound-for-pound during the 1890s and early 1900s.  Perhaps he had hoped that some of the old Demons magic would rub off upon him.

There was little magic for the first decade of Jersey Joe Walcott's career. He struggled to find fights, and when he did get fights, he was seldom well-prepared for them as he often went into his early fights hungry. Jersey Joe's early career was so sporadic and full of ups and downs that he was forced to take work elsewhere, working in construction, as a porter, a janitor, and many other areas of menial employment in order to feed his growing family. At one point Walcott was forced to go on relief and provide for his family with 9 dollars 5 cents a week. Several times Jersey Joe retired from the ring and almost gave up on the dream that in his lowest moments seemed to have become just a memory.  But Walcott, a humble yet determined man, believed that God would help him achieve his goal if he just kept his faith in himself and continued to work hard to reach it despite all the hard years and the setbacks.

Walcott's career only really began to take off in 1945, when, after having just 2 fights in five years, he returned from another lay off of 7 months, with new management in the shape of Felix Bocchicchio. Under the guidance of Bocchicchio, who promoted fights in Walcott's adopted home town of Camden New Jersey, Jersey Joe finally began to get regular fights, and produced a streak of 18 wins in 21 matches.  These included victories over notable fighters such as Joe Baksi, Lee Q Murray, Curtis Sheppard, Jimmy Bivins, Lee Oma, Joey Maxim and Elmar Ray.  The wins over Maxim and Ray avenged two of the defeats that Walcott suffered during this time and qualified him for his first title shot against Joe Louis.

It would take a little longer for Jersey Joe to realize his dream after his controversial 1st defeat to Louis, but finally, after 21 years he achieved what he had dreamed about all those years earlier.

Eleven months after landing that historic left-hook Jersey Joe successfully defended his World Heavyweight title against the man he took it from, convincingly out-pointing Ezzard Charles over 15 rounds. After successfully defending his world crown Walcott declared “This proves that I'm really champion, this proves it wasn't any lucky punch in Pittsburgh. I had him all the way. This win meant more to me”.

The successful title defence against Charles made Walcott at 38 years of age, the oldest man to successfully defend the World heavyweight crown. That and his record of being the oldest man to win the heavyweight title would stand until 1995 when George Foreman regained a portion of the world heavyweight championship against Michael Moorer.  (Ironically with a spectacular one-punch knockout).

Perhaps some of Joe Walcott's old demon magic had rubbed off upon Arnold Raymond Cream after all.

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Andre Dirrell Title Fight Erupts In Explosive Punches and Disqualification

 

By Peter Silkov

Last night”s scenes at the MGM National Harbour, Oxon Hill, Maryland, during the aftermath of the Andre Dirrell vs Jose Uzcategui match, were a disgrace to the sport. Uzcaregui had just been disqualified after the 8th round for landing a punch after the bell, which sent Dirrell face-first to the canvas, and unable to continue the contest. Ironically, Dirrell was also involved in a similar incident in 2010, when Arthur Abraham also knocked him out with a blow after the bell. However, on that occasion, the aftermath was not quite as controversial and violent as it turned out to be on Saturday night. Uzcategui seemed to be very unlucky to be disqualified in a fight that he seemed to be winning clearly, for a late punch, which seemed purely accidental. Uzcategui already had Dirrell hurt and backed up into a corner, and was in the midst of a throwing a flurry of punches, when the bell sounded. In the past, fighters have got away with such incidences with point's deductions, or simple warnings, but with Dirrell seemingly rendered incapacitated by the late punch, the referee had little choice but to disqualify Uzcategui.

Yet, if Uzcategui was thinking that his night had just taken a bad turn things were about to get even darker. Moments later, with both boxers now in their corners, and Dirrell quickly recovering, Leon Lawson, Jr the uncle of Dirrell, and member of his coaching team, approached Jose Uzcategui, and sucker-punched him with a brutal left hand that snapped Uzcategui's head back alarmingly. Luckily, a second punch by Lawson only clipped Uzcategui's neck, and by then, his corner-men had rushed in front of their fighter to protect him from Lawson. It was a vicious, and to be blunt, cowardly attack by Lawson, who then fled the scene, and is now being sought by the Police. Hopefully Uzcategui is unhurt from the post-fight assault that he suffered at the hands of Lawson.

This incident recalls the case of the Richard Grant vs James Butler fight in November 2001, who incidentally were also super-middleweights, like Dirrell and Uzcategui. Richard Grant had caused a mild upset by out-pointing the fancied Butler over 10 rounds. After the decision had been announced, Butler had walked over to where Grant was stood, but instead of congratulating Grant on his win with the expected show of sportsmanship and respect, Grant (whose gloves had been removed, but not his hand-wraps) struck Grant in the face with a terrible punch, which sent Grant to the canvas with blood pouring from his mouth. Grant was later found to have suffered a broken jaw and concussion. For Butler, the repercussions of his spiteful blow were irreversible. He was charged with assault and jailed for 4 months, and barred form boxing for a time.

Eventually, Butler who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in the aftermath of the Grant fight, was allowed to return to boxing, but he remained an outcast and had just 4 more fights, winning two. Then on March 2006, Butler was jailed for 29 years for the voluntary manslaughter of Sam Kellerman (younger brother of Max Kellerman) who had been allowing Butler to stay in his house. Richard Grant himself was never the same fighter after the Butler incident, and although he returned to the ring when his jaw had healed, he went 5-7-1 in the remainder of his career. Ultimately the tale of Grant vs Butler is far darker than Dirrell vs Uzcategui, but Leon Lawson should be severely reprimanded for his actions on Saturday night, which not only could have caused serious injury to Joe Uzcategui, but also came very close to sparking off a full scale riot in the arena. Dirrell is now in line to challenge James Degale who beat him on points two years ago, but anyone who saw last nights fight up to its controversial conclusion, would struggle to find a case for Dirrell being deserving of another fight with Degale. The fairest way to sort out this mess would be a rematch between Andre Dirrell and Jose Uzcategui. Hopefully without the presence of Leon Lawson. 

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The Boxing Glove Book Review: In The Ring with Jack Johnson

The Boxing Glove Book Review By Peter Silkov

"In the Ring with Jack Johnson, Part 1: The Rise"  Written By Adam J. Pollack

There is probably no figure in boxing history as controversial as Jack Johnson. While Muhammad Ali comes a close second, due to the tumultuous times that he lived through, his proximity in time makes him an easier book to read than Johnson. Ali lived much of his life in front of TV cameras and with a dozen or so pressmen constantly on his tail.  Johnson on the other hand, because of the time in which he lived, is still very much more of a mystery to us than Ali is. Certainly, Johnson, like Ali after him, lived much of his life pursued by the media, but there are still many questions regarding his character and the characters of those around him. It has often been said that much of the trouble that came Johnson’s way during his life was his own doing. He has been called a braggart and a self-centered bore, who when he won the World heavyweight title let his success go to his head and became a spoiled megalomaniac. Yet, this was a man who was as sinned against as sinning.

It is difficult for us today to have any real appreciation of the social pressures and conflicts that Johnson faced during his lifetime and boxing career. While it is true that racial inequality and stigmatization exists to this day, the social landscape of Johnson’s time was even more dangerous and unforgiving. It’s not an exaggeration to say that Jack Johnson took on the whole social establishment during his boxing career, and he did so with a rare mixture of talent, courage, intelligence, and sheer determination, that must be admired.  No man of lesser strength of character and will power, along with self-belief, could ever have accomplished Johnson’s feats. When he finally got his fight with Tommy Burns for Burns’ World Heavyweight title, it took a huge amount of work and will power on Johnson’s part. In the end, it was his strength of character, as much as his performances in the boxing ring, that made it impossible for Burns to ignore Johnson. In many ways, Johnson’s greatest feat was gaining his shot at Burns’ World heavyweight championship, and becoming the first colored world champion.  By doing so, he opened the way for later greats such as Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali.  If there had not been a Jack Johnson, then there would not have been either a Louis or an Ali.

“In the Ring With Jack Johnson: Part 1 The Rise”  by Adam J. Pollack is different from the many other books on Jack Johnson as it focuses upon his rise to the world championship, and ends with Johnson’s famous bout with Burns. This is the moment when he finally cornered the World heavyweight champion into the same ring as him in Sydney, Australia, and duly won sports greatest prize. 

Author Adam Pollack has spent the best part of the past decade writing a series of highly detailed biographies of the World heavyweight champions, beginning with John L. Sullivan, and later including, James J. Corbett, Bob Fitzsimmons, James J. Jeffries, Marvin Hart, Tommy Burns, and now Jack Johnson. Each book goes into an amount of detail seldom seen before; each book is not so much a biography, but a study of the men, their boxing careers, and the times in which they lived. Great use is made of newspaper reports and interviews of the day; we hear these fighters in their own words as never before. We are also given round-by-round reports of their fights, taken from first hand reports of the time. In addition to this, there are numerous photos, many never seen before in publications. These are weighty books of 500+ pages each, but they have been constructed with such care and skill that they do not weigh heavily when read.

Given his tumultuous life and career, and his multifaceted character, it is fitting that Pollock has decided to dedicate two books to the life and boxing career of Jack Johnson. It says much about Johnson that this is one of Pollock’s longest biographies so far, coming in at approximately 700 pages, despite the fact that it only follows Johnson up to the point where he wins the Heavyweight crown from Tommy Burns.  Yet, as we see, so much happened to Johnson, just in this early part of his life, and his journey to his title winning triumph against Burns proves fully worth the attention given to it by one whole book. We are shown Johnson’s development as a fighter step-by-step, and fight-by-fight. His fights are portrayed in minute detail, with attention given to pre and post fight interviews and anecdotes, as well as blow-by- blow, round-by-round reports of the fights. It is possible now to analyze Johnson’s fights with his great coloured rivals Joe Jeannette, Sam McVey, and Sam Langford, and see just whom he struggled with the most.

The portrayal of all Johnson’s early fights gives us a fascinating insight into Johnson’s fighting style and his development from a talented, yet, raw and inexperienced youth, into the best heavyweight in the world, and one of the greatest of all time. There is also great insight into Johnson’s character, with numerous interviews, and eyewitness reports allowing us some rare glimpses into his character and feelings at certain moments of his life. It is hard to imagine a more detailed biography of this period of Johnson’s life, both inside the ring, and outside of it. We are also given an in-depth portrait of the times in which Johnson was living and the various social frictions that existed between the races. The racist attitudes of the era, including many of the top white fighters of that time as well, are both enlightening and in many cases quite shocking. It becomes clear that Johnson had to be the character that he was in order to survive his times, and most importantly, to break through the barriers like he did.

This book is a fantastic portrait of a man who is still considered by many to be the greatest heavyweight champion ever. For what he had to overcome just in order to get reasonable fights, Jack Johnson was a very unique man indeed. Throughout this book, there are some great insights into the other fighters of this period, Sullivan, Corbett, Jeffries, Burns, Langford, McVey, Jeannette and Choynski, amongst others. Some of them do not come out of this book too well. While it is true that these men were all formed by the times in which they lived, it’s fair to say that some of them were formed rather more rigidly than others.

“In the Ring With Jack Johnson” is a must have for anyone who is interested in the life and boxing career of the first coloured man to perform the incredible feat of becoming the first black Heavyweight Champion of the world.  It was an achievement that sent shock waves through the sporting and social world, both for good and bad.

While there are other books on Johnson that give a good focus on his life in general and his character outside the ring, no other book on Johnson goes as deeply into the fighting side of Johnson’s life as this volume. This, along with the many detailed interviews with Johnson taken from newspapers of the time, gives us a view of Johnson that is both informative and refreshing. You will end this book wanting to read volume 2, which will focus upon Johnson’s life while he was world champion. It is sure to be another engrossing read.

Copyright © 2015 The Boxing Glove, Inc. Peter Silkov Art. All Rights Reserved. Peter Silkov contributes to www.theboxingglove.com and www.theboxingtribune.com

 

Book Review:Yesterday’s Glovemen: The Golden Days of Ulster Boxing

 

 The Sunday Book Review by Peter Silkov

 “Yesterday’s Glovemen: The Golden Days of Ulster Boxing”  Written by Brian Madden

This week’s book is a celebration of the great boxers to come out of Northern Ireland.  Ireland has a long history of providing a great number of outstanding pugilists to the sport. Ever since the legendary bare-knuckle champion of Britain Daniel Mendoza toured Ireland during his prime, he more or less single-handedly inspired the Irish to take up organized fighting. 

First published in 2006, “Yesterday’s Glovemen: The Golden Days of Ulster Boxing” looks at the lives and careers of a fascinating selection of fighters, ranging from those who found world fame and world titles, to those who had careers as journeymen. A few fighters in this book had only a handful of professional contests, but their career and life stories as recounted to us by Brian Madden, more than justify their inclusion within this book. Indeed, one of the most rewarding aspects of this book is how you find yourself discovering fighters of the past who you had never previously heard of, in addition to reading about fighters of whom you might have already are acquainted. Each of the book’s 26 chapters are devoted to a different boxer.

The boxers included in “Yesterday’s Glovemen: The Golden Days of Ulster Boxing” are Mickey Lavery, Jack Garland, Pat “Maurice” Marrinan, Ike Weir (Jimmy Rooney), Bunty Doran, Al Gibson, Paddy Slavin, Tom Meli, Bunty Adamson, Bob Gourly, John Kelly, Billy “Spider” Kelly, Paddy Graham, Jimmy Carson Sr., Charlie Cosgrove, Sammy Cowan, Henry Turkington, Jim Mccann, Paddy Graham, Francie “FRA” McCullagh, Jimmy Carson Jr., and David Irving.

Alongside such well-known names as Jim “Spider” Kelly, John Kelly, Rinty Monaghan, Freddie Gilroy, and Johnny Caldwell, there are plenty of other fighters whom, while not as famous, have just as interesting life stories to be told.

Another charm of this book is that, despite the compactness of every fighter’s bio, the author manages to build an interesting and informative account of each fighter that he covers. It really is impressive how vivid a picture Madden is able to paint of each fights career and life within these pages.

This book is a handsome one, with a nice cover, and within its 258 pages there are plenty of photographs of the fighters being profiled.

Brian Madden’s narrative is detailed, yet never too dry. We are never just drowned in a list of facts and dates, as is the mistake of some boxing biographies. This book flows as we learn interesting aspects of fighters lives outside the ring as well as inside it, each fighter is portrayed as a person, rather than just a stereotypical boxer.

In all, Madden has put together a wonderful book that seems to have escaped the attention of many. It is a book that deserves to be read, and will be thoroughly enjoyed by anyone with a healthy interest in boxing, especially in reliving the glory days of Irish boxing. It is a pleasure to find a book, which brings back into the light fighters who might otherwise have become forgotten. 

Copyright © 2015 The Boxing Glove, Inc. Peter Silkov Art. All Rights Reserved. Peter Silkov contributes to www.theboxingglove.com and www.theboxingtribune.com

Book Review: Two Ton: One Night, One Fight -Tony Galento v. Joe Louis

The Sunday Book Review by Peter Silkov

 "Two Ton: One Night, One Fight -Tony Galento v. Joe Louis" Written by by Joseph Monninger

Joe Louis and Tony Galento weigh in.

On June 28, 1939, Joe Louis defended his World heavyweight championship against Tony Galento, in what would prove to be one of the legendary ‘Brown Bombers” most famous battles. 

Tony Galento was one of  Louis‘s more outlandish challengers. Standing only 5’ feet 8” inches tall, and weighing usually something between 225 to 245 pounds, Galento was a full blown ‘character‘ who trained on beer, had a constant cigar gripped between his thick lips, and owned and ran his own bar in Orange, New Jersey.  Perhaps the most outlandish thing about Galento was that, despite his unconventional lifestyle and training habits, he really could fight. He was a natural, savage brawler, with a heart as huge as his belly and a punch to match. Galento was the kind of fighter who during the days of bare knuckle fighting could have been world champion. 

Galento ready to take Louis on.

Louis was already at the halfway point of becoming a legend when he defended his title against the barrelesque Galento and few gave the challenger much of a chance of defeating "The Brown Bomber."  However, on the night,  the fight proved to be a thriller and sensation, for the 4 rounds that it lasted. Galento lived up to his pre-flight boasts of doing the best he could to ‘Moider dat bum’; hurling his wide frame forward again and again, even as Louis’s slashing fists began to make a bloody mess of Tony’s pudgy face.  However, more than that, Galento’s wide yet powerful punches actually rocked Louis in the 1st round, and then dropped him in the 3rd.

Galento knocks Louis down in the 3rd.

For a couple of seconds in the 3rd round, it seemed that Tony Galento was on the threshold of pulling off one of the biggest upsets in the history of boxing, indeed in the sport itself.

“Two Ton: One Night, One Fight -Tony Galento v. Joe Louis” by Joseph Monninger is a riveting portrait of that night of June 28, 1939, when, for a few precious seconds, enthralled the thousands watching the world championship contest in person, plus the millions listening via radio. For those few precious seconds, Galento had the world at his feet, and the most coveted prize in all sports within his hands.

It was a night when a fighter with the nickname of “Two Ton,” who actually looked like he weighed two tons, came close to becoming Heavyweight champion of the world. 

Then Joe Louis got up. 

Referree helps Galento up.

First published in 2006, “Two Ton: One Night, One Fight -Tony Galento v. Joe Louis” gives us a marvellous portrait, not only of both boxers that swapped leather that night for the world heavyweight crown, but also of the people around them. We are given an at times mesmerizing glimpse of the world of 1939, a world where radio still ruled the airwaves, and boxing ruled the sports world.  Monninger’s narrative is stylishly sparse and to the point. He says a lot in paragraphs that are short, but flowing, hitting the target like a Joe Louis combination.


First published in 2006, “Two Ton: One Night, One Fight -Tony Galento v. Joe Louis” gives us a marvelous portrait, not only of both boxers that swapped leather that night for the world heavyweight crown, but also of the people around them. We are given an at times mesmerizing glimpse of the world of 1939, a world where radio still ruled the airwaves, and boxing ruled the sports world.  Monninger’s narrative is stylishly sparse and to the point. He says a lot in paragraphs that are short, but flowing, hitting the target like a Joe Louis combination.

Tony Galento after his fight with Joe Louis

Yet, it is Tony “Two Ton” Galento who is the real hero of this book, not Louis. In this book, we see Galento in all his beer sodden, blood splattered, wise cracking, glory.  It is hard to think of a more comprehensive and insightful portrait of the New Jersey brawler. These 208 pages, which include a nice selection of photographs, do a wonderful job of showing us why this fight thrilled so many at the time, and reached the status of one of the truly legendary battles to have been fought for the World heavyweight title. We also see why Galento was such a favourite with the public and the press alike, and how even in savage defeat, his performance against Louis consolidated his legacy.

Joe Louis reads the headlines after his victory over Tony Galento.

“Two Ton: One Night, One Fight -Tony Galento v. Joe Louis” is a book that, despite its relatively slim nature, manages to reveal a vast amount of information, about both of its two combatants, but also about the time in which both men lived and fought, and when boxing was the most important sport in the world, with the power to transcend all barriers.

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