"Jess Willard's Last Stand" -vs- Floyd Johnson & Luis Firpo 1923

Willard -vs- Floyd Johnson and Luis Ángel Firpo 1923
16mm Transfer & Restoration
10 Minutes, Silent & Sound

Jess Willard was one of those rare champions who manifested greatness in the single most important fight of his career. (Buster Douglas is another example that comes to mind.) Willard’s otherwise modest record crested on April 5, 1915, when he faced the seemingly unbeatable Jack Johnson for the heavyweight championship in Havana, Cuba.  After taking everything Johnson could throw for 12 rounds, the towering 6’6” Willard never lost his cool, and wore the champion down, knocking Johnson out in the 26th round.

During the four years that followed, Willard was, unfortunately, a complacent champion. He defended once in 1916 against contender Frank Moran, but otherwise chose to be inactive during the First World War and did not to fight again until July 4, 1919. In that historic match, challenger Jack Dempsey gave Willard the beating of the century; most of it in the first three minutes. It became the second fight Willard is remembered for. 

Comeback 

Willard’s career didn’t end there, however. The former champion had two more important prizefights, both of them four years later during his long forgotten comeback. On May 12, 1923, promoter Tex Rickard hosted the opening of Yankee Stadium with a huge boxing card that included heavyweight contenders Luis Ángel Firpo, Floyd Johnson and others, including Jess Willard. Jess had been lured out of retirement by Rickard with the prospect of a return match with Dempsey. “What people forget about Willard,” Rickard said before the bout, “is that he can punch.”

The event was a title eliminator and Floyd Johnson was matched with Willard. Burning with comeback fever, Willard shed 20 pounds, trained seriously, and appeared leaner than he had since his championship days. Still, the media was not impressed, and Johnson was favored to win easily. Not to be upstaged, Dempsey’s manager Doc Kearns even announced ahead of time that Floyd Johnson would likely be Dempsey’s next opponent.

The fight did not go as planned. From the opening bell Willard fought aggressively and dominated the action. By the middle rounds, the 41-year-old Willard appeared to tire, but he rallied back and dropped Johnson briefly in the ninth. Late in the 11th round, Willard scored again, decking Johnson with a smashing uppercut. Johnson got up and returned to his corner, but he was bloody and hurt and unable to continue.

Jess Willard, the Comeback Kid, had won on a TKO. It was sweet redemption, spoiling the party for Jack Dempsey’s next opponent.

"Youth,” wrote Damon Runyon in the New York American, “take off your hat and bow low and respectfully to Age." 

The Last Stand 

Willard was then matched with Firpo, who had knocked out Jack McAuliffe in three rounds on the same card. Two months later on July 12, 1923, at Boyle's Thirty Acres in Jersey City, New Jersey, Willard faced “The Wild Bull of the Pampas” with the winner to meet Dempsey for the heavyweight championship. Firpo, however, was a wrecking machine. Since arriving in the U.S. in 1922, the 6’2” powerhouse from Argentina had blown through the ranks, leaving a trail of knockout victims. For seven rounds Jess held his own (allegedly with a broken hand), but Firpo clubbed Willard to the canvas in the eighth and Jess failed to beat the count. 

The Films 

The Jess Willard-Floyd Johnson fight was filmed, but the knockout footage was either lost or never captured. The existing footage is raw and unedited, perhaps shot by a newsreel crew. I suggest this because the fight sequences are brief, as the photographer stops and start the camera to catch key moments of action. Fortunately the footage itself, taken late in the afternoon under clear skies, is well preserved and remarkably good quality. It shows Willard in good form, looking trim and fighting well against the young contender. I have included photographs of the knockout.

The Willard-Firpo fight, also seen here, took place at night under the stadium lighting. As far as I know, only a highlight of this fight survives.  It was widely distributed in 8mm and 16mm in the Monarchs of The Ring (Official Films) boxing anthology series beginning in the 1940s. The footage includes Firpo training, the referee’s the referee’s instructions, and the 8th round knockout. 

Gene Tunney & James J Corbett Sparring Film, New York 1925

Gene Tunney and Jim Corbett Sparring
Putnam Building Rooftop
Times Square, New York City, December 1925
Grantlin Rice Sportlight Movie Series (Edit)
9mm Film Transfer  (Low Res)

The Boxers

References have been made over the years to a legendary sparring session between Heavyweight Champion to be Gene Tunney and former champ James J. Corbett, prior to Tunney’s first fight with Jack Dempsey.  A film was made of the meeting, but has not been seen for decades.  Several years ago and a film archivist discovered an abridged version of this movie on 9mm film, a small but format high quality format in the 1920s.  The Tunney-Corbett film was transferred to video for preservation.

The Meeting

According to published accounts, Jim Corbett was in Chicago for the Tunney-Risko fight of November 1925 and surprised Tunney in his dressing room after the fight.  Grantlin Rice arranged for the two to meet again in New York a month later to be part of his Sportlight movie series.  On the roof of the Putnam Building in New York’s Times Square, Tunney and Corbett sparred for the cameras, and the two staged Corbett’s demonstration classic boxing technique in slow motion.  Two very brief shots of Jack Dempsey sparring at what appears to be an informal outdoor gathering are also shown.

The Film

Historically, this is perhaps the best documented meeting between pioneers of both vintage and modern boxing styles.  Corbett is 59 years old and appears very fit, but I was most impressed with the fact that Corbett was taller than Tunney, and would have been even bigger in his prime.  Eight months after this film was made, Tunney went on to win the Heavyweight Championship from Jack Dempsey in Philadelphia.

I obtained what turned out to be a low resolution copy of this film.  Still, I made some adjustments to the exposure and image stabilization to make it as clear as possible.  I’ll be sure to post an update if a better copy becomes available.  Enjoy this rare gem of vintage boxing.

Georges Carpentier vs Wells, Papke & Grundhoven

Georges Carpentier vs Wells, Papke & Grundhoven
Pathe Newsreel Segments 1912, 1920
3 minutes 10 seconds

The Fighter
I came across these Pathe fight films which I had never seen before. It inspired me to take a fresh look Georges Carpentier, the great French boxing champion who fought internationally 1908-1926. He had his first professional fight at the age of 14 and quickly became the Golden Boy of France. At 5’11” he was a lean, crafty and skilled boxer with surprising KO power. During his career, he grew and fought from Welterweight to Heavyweight. Unfortunately he’s most remembered in the U.S. as road kill for Jack Dempsey in their famous title fight of 1921. After that bout, Carpentier and Dempsey became friends, and for years visited and celebrated the anniversaries of their fight. Carpentier also fought Gene Tunney, and did well early in their 1924 fight, but Tunney’s size and strength were too much. To add insult to the loss, Tunney fouled Carpentier with a low blow in the 14th, and Carpentier collapsed. Carpentier was also a respected referee, and can be seen, at age 20, as the third man in the ring for the Jack Johnson vs Frank Moran heavyweight title fight in Paris 1914. An irony is the fact that Carpentier was also a top heavyweight contender at the time, though he never fought Johnson.

The Film
It’s too bad this segment is so short, but it’s still a gem. Carpentier is briefly shown in action against two American middleweight boxers and a Belgian heavyweight. The fights were held in Paris. The first opponent is labeled as “Lewis”, and according to the record, this is either either Harry or Willie Lewis circa 1912. The third shows Carpentier’s KO of heavyweight Georges Grundhoven in 1920 winning the European Heavyweight title. The most significant clip is Carpentier challenging the great middleweight champion Billy Papke in 1912, who had also fought the Stanley Ketchel. We see action in the 17th round, where Carpentier has suffered a severe cut and is struggling to hold on. The fight was stopped in the next round.

The Restoration
Film speed adjusted.
Contrast improved.

Jack Sharkey vs Jimmy Maloney IV 1927

Jack Sharkey vs Jimmy Maloney IV
Yankee Stadium, New York, May 20, 1927
Silent 10:00

The Fight
Boxing has a rich history of title eliminator or “contender” fights. Many epic battles were waged by hungry lions as they battled for title shots. Sadly many have faded into obscurity, overshadowed by the championship fights that followed. One such battle was this one, the fifth fight between heavyweights Jack Sharkey and Jimmy Maloney in 1927. The winner would be in position to challenge Champion Gene Tunney for the heavyweight title. By all accounts, Sharkey and Maloney were fierce east coast rivals. They fought four times between 1924 and 1927. For their last fight, in front of 40,000 fans at Yankee Stadium, Sharkey and Maloney wasted no time from the opening bell. A tactical slugfest with plenty of action, Maloney boxed well in the first round, but had trouble landing often enough to hurt Sharkey. By the third round Sharkey was coming on strong. The end came in the 5th round with brutal right by Sharkey that drove Maloney to the canvas.

It’s too bad that Sharkey never fought Gene Tunney. He was a much better fighter in the 1920s than in the 1930s when he briefly held the title. Sharkey not only beat Maloney, but the great Harry Wills, Johnny Risko, Tommy Loughran, Primo Carnera (in 1931) and drew with Tom Heeny. Instead Sharkey was matched in July 1927 with former champion Jack Dempsey in a runoff for the title. Sharkey was leading against Dempsey through seven rounds. In the seventh, Dempsey stunned Sharkey with a low blow, and followed with a left hook to Sharkey’s jaw. Sharkey dropped to the canvas and was counted out.

The Movie
As with most night or indoor fight films of the 1920s, the results depended on the venue and abilities of the film crew. This film is about average for the period. The shadows are heavy, but there’s enough detail to follow the action. The exposure changes from round to round, probably from different cameras, and is clearest at the end.

Restoration
The print I have is clean and transferred to video with no problem. Film speed and exposure were adjusted. This is a great fight and shows future champion Jack Sharkey, perhaps at his best.

Primo Carnera vs Ernie Schaaf 1932

(1.) Official Films, circa 1940, 16mm silent 100’
(2.) Speed and Picture Restoration

The Fight
On February 10, 1933 at Madison Square Garden in New York, heavyweight boxer Ernie Schaaf fought 13 competitive rounds with contender Primo Carnera. Suddenly, after taking a straight left to the forehead, Schaaf collapsed and never recovered. He died two days later. It’s believed that Schaaf was critically ill when he entered the ring that night. He had been knocked out by Max Baer the year before in a savage fight, and appeared never to recover.

The tragedy played out before the cameras. Schaaf was knocked down by Primo in the 13th round. You can practically see the light going out of Schaaf’s eyes as he sinks to the canvas. Schaaf’s manager, Jack Sharkey (Then reigning heavyweight champion) drags Schaaf back to his corner. Unable to regain consciousness, Schaaf is carried like a fallen solder from the ring. Later the following year, Jack Sharkey went on to fight Carnera in a title match. Sharkey was knocked out in six rounds in what was suspected as a fake, and Carnera became champion. Many believe that Carnera’s mob connections pressured or paid Sharkey to thrown the fight. Sharkey had previously defeated Carnera in 1931.

The Movie
The fight was filmed, but the cameras ran at silent speed (16fps) to conserve film stock. This was common with most fight films made during the Depression and War years. As a result, when projected a standard speed, the action appears so fast it’s hard to view the action in detail. Carnera was a genuine athlete and very agile for a man of his size, which he used to great advantage over his smaller opponents. It’s also clear in the early rounds what a skilled fighter Schaaf was. He had great moves and despite his frustration getting on the inside with Carnera, he tagged Primo with counterpunches and overhands.

The Video
I own three 16mm film versions of this fight – Monarchs of The Ring, Official Film short, and an Extended Edition showing most of the fight with narration. This is the complete Official Films Short subject version. The print was in great condition, with no splices and the sharpest picture I’ve seen. The contrast is high, but there’s still plenty of detail. There are no major scratches and once cleaned, the film transferred with no trouble. In this clip, I’ve adjusted the film speed to show the fight at original time.

Paolino Uzcudun vs Harry Wills 1927

Official Films, circa 1940, 16mm silent 100’

The Fight
One of the last of the great African-American heavyweights of the early 20th century was Harry Wills. Wills was scheduled to fight Jack Dempsey for the heavyweight championship as early as 1922, but though Dempsey and his manager were willing (I have a film of the signing ceremony), the boxing promoters of the day prevented the fight from being held out of bigotry. Whatever the outcome would have been, Wills remained a serious contender until 1926 when he lost to Jack Sharkey in 13 rounds. In his next fight, Wills was matched with Spain’s Paolino Uzcudun, and Harry suffered a ferocious knockout.

The Film
The Uzcudun-Wills film has been circulating for years, most commonly issued as part of the Official Films Monarchs of The Ring Series on 8mm and 16mm dating back to the 1940s. I also have a slightly longer version of the film released on a boxing series called The GI Weekly for the U.S. Military.

The Video
Recently I acquired a more complete version of the film which I’m showing here. Also released by Official Films, but issued as a solo short subject which may predate the later MOTR versions. Little more of the actual fight is shown, but the post fight celebration is great footage. Uzcudun throws hats to the crowd and does gymnastic moves. Wills is also seen sitting, dejected and recovering is his corner. The print is in excellent condition with no scratches or wear. I did further restoration slowing the film speed to more accurate real time. Since the film was shot at 16fps or less, it still plays slightly jerky. A film of Wills vs Luis Firpo in 1924 would no doubt be a revelation.