Sam Langford: Jack Dempsey is Afraid of Harry Wills

[travestyny]

I thought some of you might like this since some seem to place the most importance on the opinion of boxers alive during the discussed era. I recently ran into this quotation from Sam Langford regarding Harry Wills and Jack Dempsey.

What I do think, however, is that Jack Dempsey ought to give Harry Wills a chance at the title. By not doing so, I believe he shows he is somewhat afraid of Wills. It proves it to me by the fooling around he has done with Harry. First, he goes West and signs up with Floyd Fitzsimmons to box Wills and then he comes back East and signs up with Rickard for a bout with Tunney. I guess he doesn’t care for any of Harry’s game, else he would give the man who has been chosen as the logical contender for his title a chance with him.?/div>

It's interesting that Langford pinpoints exactly the incident I keep telling you guys about with regards to Dempsey signing for Wills in the West and Tunney in the East.

Does he have a point? Was Dempsey afraid of Wills?

[travestyny]

Willie Pep 229 JAB5239
Noticed you guys talking about this in the other thread.

The 500 newspapers were all connected by being clients of N.E.A, which is apparently a newspaper syndication service.

Pretty sure the first snippet is the final count. The article below it is earlier in the count, but you can see some more names that got votes.

[Willie Pep 229]

Willie Pep 229 JAB5239
Noticed you guys talking about this in the other thread.

The 500 newspapers were all connected by being clients of N.E.A, which is apparently a newspaper syndication service.

Pretty sure the first snippet is the final count. The article below it is earlier in the count, but you can see some more names that got votes.

Thanks that great - need to find out what the NEA was -- what year did this happen - before or after Shelby? I can't figure Gibbons that many votes - I thought he was a dark horse when Shelby/Kearns signed him - I knew the younger brother had a nation wide rep but didn't think the people knew Tommy outside if the Midwest.

Unless this was a call for a rematch which seems unlikely.

Do you know what year? I notice Willard and Brennan are on the list of choices so I will guess it is the controversial year of 1922.

But I must admit iy dite looks like they took a nationwide poll (for no reason)

If this is from '22 Kearns wasn't going to budge on squeezing out Wills -- Wills was too connected to the NYSAC and Tex Rickard. Both of which Kearns was looking to avoid. But the poll (if '22) explains why Kearns was willing to take a chance on Gibbons- much more popular than I thought.

[travestyny]

Thanks that great - need to find out what the NEA was -- what year did this happen - before or after Shelby? I can't figure Gibbons that many votes - I thought he was a dark horse when Shelby/Kearns signed him - I knew the younger brother had a nation wide rep but didn't think the people knew Tommy outside if the Midwest.

Unless this was a call for a rematch which seems unlikely.

Do you know what year? I notice Willard and Brennan are on the list of choices so I will guess it is the controversial year of 1922.

But I must admit iy dite looks like they took a nationwide poll (for no reason)

If this is from '22 Kearns wasn't going to budge on squeezing out Wills -- Wills was too connected to the NYSAC and Tex Rickard. Both of which Kearns was looking to avoid. But the poll (if '22) explains why Kearns was willing to take a chance on Gibbons- much more popular than I thought.

Yep. It was March 1922.

[louis54]

Greb got buried

[Willie Pep 229]

I looked closer at the NY article - In NY Gibbons who took second nation wide scored a mere 200 votes to Wills seven thousand.

Gibbons was as unknown in NY as I thought but much more popular across the country than I imagined.

NEA seems to be some sort of collection of sport newspaper writers who chose the college football All American team plus other awards. Makes sense that they could pull off a nationwide poll.

[travestyny]

I looked closer at the NY article - In NY Gibbons who took second nation wide scored a mere 200 votes to Wills seven thousand.

Gibbons was as unknown in NY as I thought but much more popular across the country than I imagined.

NEA seems to be some sort of collection of sport newspaper writers who chose the college football All American team plus other awards. Makes sense that they could pull off a nationwide poll.

Not only that. Apparently Gibbon's coach made the statement that Gibbons won't be ready for Dempsey for a few years. At least one article I read believes that also shifted some votes. But it's still interesting that the votes shifted to Harry Wills. I don't think he was expected to win. And this was early...beginning of 1922 like we said. So clearly this just lingered and built up until 1926 when they both suffered losses. Dempsey got Gibbons out of the way in 1923. It simply doesn't make sense the Wills fight didn't happen when Dempsey has stated himself that Harry Wills was the only man he ever wanted to fight since becoming champion. But we've been down that road so no reason to really rehash it. But the poll is pretty interesting. I think it makes it clear that the public wanted that fight.

[travestyny]

I looked closer at the NY article - In NY Gibbons who took second nation wide scored a mere 200 votes to Wills seven thousand.

Gibbons was as unknown in NY as I thought but much more popular across the country than I imagined.

NEA seems to be some sort of collection of sport newspaper writers who chose the college football All American team plus other awards. Makes sense that they could pull off a nationwide poll.

I just noticed something else interesting. It seems to me that the public got it right. I just read an article that said that Dempsey had decided to drop the color line because Gibbons had lost to Greb.

The date of the newspaper that gave the final tally for the poll was 3/15/1922. Gibbons lost to Greb 3/13/1922. Dempsey just waited over a year and fought him next anyway.