Buried Treasure: Big fight at Forbes Field

It's difficult to imagine now just how big boxing's heavyweight championship used to be. After Mike Tyson lost to Buster Douglas in 1990, the title's luster faded away; now I can't tell you who the champion is.

But in 1951, the world paid attention to a heavyweight championship bout. And on July 18, 1951, Pittsburgh hosted its first heavyweight title fight, as Ezzard Charles defended his belt against Jersey Joe Walcott at Forbes Field.

Pittsburgh interests, including the Rooney-McGinley Boxing Club and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Dapper Dan Club, had been trying to get a championship fight in Pittsburgh for a couple years. Charles' management was interested, and in March of 1951, Jim Norris of the International Boxing Club, which controlled the sport, met with all parties concerned to discuss possible summer bouts. Norris wanted to put a fight with Joey Maxim in Chicago and Walcott in Detroit, while a young contender named Rex Layne would be available for Pittsburgh. But Layne's management didn't think he was ready for a title shot.

On May 30, Charles fought Maxim in Norris' Chicago Stadium. Before a "disappointing" crowd of 7,226, Charles won a unanimous decision. In the runup to the bout, The Pittsburgh Press reported that if Charles won, he would next fight Walcott in Pittsburgh.

Detroit (where Norris owned the Olympia) wanted a rematch of the Charles-Walcott battle of March 7, where Charles kept his crown with a controversial decision. But Charles' management insisted on Pittsburgh, and on June 1, the Charles-Walcott fight was officially awarded to Pittsburgh, to be promoted by the International Boxing Club, the McGinley Boxing Club and the Dapper Dan Club.

To accommodate the bout, a battle between Layne and Rocky Marciano, scheduled for July 18 at Yankee Stadium, was moved to July 12.

The fight would be Charles' ninth title defense, and the third meeting between Charles and Walcott. Charles won both previous matches by decision, in Chicago in 1949 and as champion in March, 1951.

Charles had some history in Pittsburgh, having won ten bouts in the city.

The signing took place at the William Penn Hotel on June 7. John D. Holahan, the recently-appointed boxing commissioner from Western Pennsylvania, presided, along with his co-commissioners, George Jones and John (Ox) Da Grosa. Although it had been scheduled for noon, Walcott had car trouble and was an hour late. Charles would get 40 percent of the net receipts, Walcott, as challenger, would get 20 percent, and Dapper Dan was in line for 10 percent. Other participants in the signing were matchmaker Jack McGinley, promoter Barney McGinley, Post-Gazette sports editor and Dapper Dan president Al Abrams, Walcott's manager Felix Bocchichio, and Charles' managers, Tom Tannas and Jake Mintz.

Joe Louis, who was making a comeback attempt at that point, was on people's minds, perhaps as the next fight for the winner. Walcott said, "I'm one guy he wants to stay away from. He knows how close he came to losing twice before to me, and now I'm in better shape than he is."

Tickets broke down this way:

$25 Ringside (5,600 seats)

$15 Grandstand box, lower and upper deck (3,000)

$10 First 7 grandstand rows (10,000)

$6 "Seats behind the 7 rows" (10,000)

$2.95 General admission - right field stands (12,000)

At the time, Pirate box seats were $2.75 and reserved seats were $2.

When Holahan was named commissioner in March, he was the Steelers' general manager. On June 11, he announced that he was resigning from his football job to work full-time for the state. "The boxing duties take too much of my time to handle both posts," Holahan said. This allowed Art Rooney, who had left the boxing business to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, to rejoin McGinley. So the promoter was once again the Rooney-McGinley Boxing Club.

Both fighters set up camp in the area. Walcott arrived June 30, was given the key to the city of McKeesport, and used the nearby Rainbow Gardens. Charles went to Ligonier July 2, where he trained in the high school gym.

The Post-Gazette ran daily summaries of how many rounds each boxer sparred, and who his sparmates were. The Press was a bit more feature-oriented.

On July 7, the Post-Gazette announced that the Variety Club would present a 90-minute entertainment program before the boxing card. Dapper Dan would give part of its ten percent of the fight to the Variety Club for the running of Camp O'Connell. The Club said it would talk to names like Jimmy Durante, Milton Berle, Bob Hope, and Martin and Lewis.

Training continued. While Charles' camp was full of activity, Walcott had a much smaller entourage. The Post-Gazette reported that "Walcott entertained a group of kids at his camp and said all children would be admitted free to his workouts." So, while both camps were open to the public, they apparently charged admission.

Walcott, a 37-year-old father of six, was the sentimental favorite. When he ranked his past opponents, he extolled Billy Ketchell and Jimmy Bivins, while saying of Joe Louis, "He was the greatest fighter I ever fought -- Not the best at the time I fought him, but the greatest."

When he was asked about Charles, Walcott replied, "Charles is a great boxer, no question about it, but he doesn't have the punch to be dangerous. He had me down in our second fight but couldn't do anything about it, and I finished better than he did.

"In fact, I think I deserved both of the decisions in our previous fights. And I believe most of the crowd agreed with me the second time, too -- at Detroit. I'll bet they booed the decision 20 minutes."

After his July 10 training session, Walcott declared, "I guess the only way I can win that title is to stop Ezzard. I intend to spend the rest of my training with that in mind."

When Charles was told, his response was, "I've beat him twice before and had him in trouble and had him down in both fights. If he's going to pop off like that, I'll be sure and kayo him early in the bout."

"In fact," added Ray Arcel, one of Charles' trainers, "if Walcott tries for a knockout he's going to get knocked out himself -- you can bet on that. We want to walk in and wing away.

"It will make [Walcott] a target for a change. When he fights his usual style clowning, ducking and running you just don't get many shots at him.

"Don't get me wrong. We're not underestimating the guy. He's dangerous. That right hand seems to come out of nowhere and he can take you out with one punch if it lands.

"But Snooks [Charles' in-camp nickname] isn't going to be any sitting duck target himself."

Arcel went on to say, "If Snooks can finish the guy, that's fine, but we're not training with just that in mind. His object is first of all to win, we're not going to untrack from his usual style and try to make a killer out of him."

When people questioned Jersey Joe's age, his manager pulled out a copy of the birth certificate for Arnold Raymond Cream, Walcott's given name.

On July 12, Abrams lauded both fighters:

"No two finer men could be brought together than Charles and Walcott. Like Louis, they are both a credit to their race and the fight game.

"Unlike Louis, who never had the opportunity, both Charles and Walcott availed themselves of a pretty fair education. The two are high school graduates.

"Neither one is a 'dis, dat, dese, dose' guy usually associated with the denizens of the cauliflower realm. The two are straight from the shoulder talkers, and as Tommy King, the IBC publicity man points out, they can use a verb and a subject in the same sentence without murdering either one."

Grantland Rice, whose syndicated column was carried in The Press, wasn't impressed with the state of the heavyweight division. "The last high-grade heavyweight that happened to come along was Joe Louis. ...

"The best heavyweight who has come along in late years is Ezzard Charles. And Charles is no great heavyweight. He is really a good light-heavyweight caught in a run of poor fighters."

And on July 12, the promoters announced that they had accepted a $100,000 offer for television rights. The bid came from TV set manufacturers, the bout would air on Dumont, and it would be blacked out in Pittsburgh and Johnstown. Bill Stern and Bill Corum would be at the mic.

Also that day, Charles passed his physical examination by Dr. James Flinn, Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission physician. And Joe Louis was expected to be ringside for the fight, with an eye toward him fighting the winner. (He didn't show up.) A New York newspaper reported that Charles would meet Louis there Sept. 26, which led Walcott to say, "He has to beat me first next Wednesday."

That night, Marciano knocked out Layne in the sixth round of their bout at Madison Square Garden. The upset was one of the first fights seen on closed circuit television in several theaters across the country, including the Fulton in Downtown Pittsburgh.

On July 13, Walcott passed his physical, getting a glowing report from Dr. E.C. Krug. The boxer made a prediction: "I'll knock him out, you can bet on that. There'll be no doubt as to the winner this time."

Pabst Brewing bought the radio rights, and the fight would be on CBS radio. It was blacked out within 60 miles of Pittsburgh, including WJAS, the local affiliate.

The ticket offices (Rooney-McGinley in the Fort Pitt Hotel, the Steelers office in the Union Trust Building and the Dapper Dan Club in the Post-Gazette Building) stayed open Saturday and Sunday.

Abrams talked to Arcel, who was very complimentary of his fighter. Then Abrams talked about seeing the trainer after the Charles-Walcott fight in Detroit.

"You said that night," Abrams mentioned, "that if you never saw Walcott again it would be too soon."

"That's right," Arcel replied, "and I meant it. We have everything to lose and nothing to gain but a good pay day next Wednesday. Walcott is tough, make no mistake about that. He can punch and he's plenty smart. Did you notice how he switched styles several times during the bout to confuse Charles?

"If it wasn't that you fellows in Pittsburgh wanted the bout I don't believe Charles would have met Walcott again."

Mintz, one of Charles' managers, agreed. "The only reason we took it was to give Pittsburgh a heavyweight championship bout," he told Carl Hughes of The Press.

He said that Walcott's fifth shot at the title would be his last. "If Walcott can't win this time, he won't get a chance to try again, and he isn't going to win. Ez should put him away by the 10th round."

TALE OF THE TAPE

Preparations on the day of the fight included Art Rooney and a couple of his publicity men pasting numbers on 5,000 seats in the infield. Instead of ads on the backs of the round cards, the Chamber of commerce had mottoes like "Key Sporting Center of Nation", "The Most Progressive City in the United States" and "The City With a Future" there to be seen by the television audience. Estimates went as high as 60,000,000 viewers.

The stage show, which started at 7:00, didn't quite have the names that were first floated. It included Bill Farrell, MGM recording star, Rosemary O'Reilly, the up-and-coming Pittsburgh soprano, Joyce Bryant, the dramatic voice of TV, Jean Carroll, the well-known television comedienne, and Maurice Spitalny's band.

The crowd set records for boxing in Pittsburgh, with an attendance of 28,272 and a gross gate of $245,004,49. It was also the highest-grossing fight anywhere in 1951.

The preliminary card went this way:

Heavyweight: Mike DeJohn, Syracuse over Harry Mazik, Lawrenceville, TKO after one round

Light heavyweight: Lalu Sabotin, Warren, Ohio over Lloyd Gibson, Cincinnati, unanimous six-round decision

Middleweight: Floyd Morris, Hill District over Otis Graham, Philadelphia, unanimous six-round decision

Middleweight: Jack Besselman, Lawrenceville over Charley (Zivic) Affif, Pittsburgh, unanimous six-round decision

After the feature, when most people had left - Heavyweight: Dale Hall, Chicago over Johnny Haynes, Philadelphia, knockout at :47 of fifth round (Hall had been one of Charles' sparring partners.)

In the feature, which was scheduled for 15 rounds, Walcott was a 5-1 underdog who wasn't attracting much action. Before the bout started, Charley Daggert of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh's Red Robinson were announced as the judges. Mintz objected strenuously to a non-Pittsburgher being named and threatened to not let Charles fight. After five minutes of histrionics, Mintz capitulated. After the fight, the Commission announced that Mintz was suspended indefinitely, with a hearing scheduled for August 7.

The first two rounds were relatively quiet. Charles landed one solid blow in the first, and Walcott connected with one in the second. Things picked up in the third, when both boxers landed smashing left hooks to the head. Near the end of the round, Walcott staggered Charles with a right to the head and followed with a barrage to the head and body.

Charles took a defensive approach to the fourth round. Walcott took advantage of the few opportunities he had, but didn't do much damage. In the fifth, Charles opened up, and Walcott retreated without getting into trouble. As the two fighters traded punches at close range, the crowd began to roar. "Near the end of the round, Jersey Joe landed his patented blow, the sneak right, and Charles' head was almost knocked off its hinges," wrote Abrams. Charles' lip was bleeding as the round ended.

The champion continued to take the fight to Walcott in the sixth, delivering with hooks to the body and head, and the challenger responded.

In the seventh, Charles maneuvered Walcott into a corner, but Jersey Joe was able to fend him off. They moved to the center of the ring, where Walcott danced a bit, feinted with a right, and smashed home a left hook to the jaw that put Charles on the canvas. When referee Buck McTiernan counted to nine, Ezz tried to get up and failed, and at 55 seconds, Joe Walcott was the new heavyweight champion at age 37.

The 130 Pittsburgh Police on hand were needed to keep order as fans rushed the ring.

"I feel like a 16-year-old," Walcott told reporters afterward. "Just think, after 21 years of fighting."

"It was a left hook that did it," he explained. "I feinted with my right to set him up and then let him have it. I never was hurt at any time."

Charles was amazed. "I just can't believe it."

He continued. "Did they really count me out?

"I kinda remember trying to get up at the count of five or six but that's all I remember.

"That Walcott was really in there trying, wasn't he? Gee, I can't believe it."

When he was asked if he was knocked out by a lucky punch, Charles responded, "No, it wasn't a lucky punch.

"I don't quite remember if I saw that punch or not. But by golly I don't remember much after he hit me."

Ezzard made no excuses. "Everything went too smooth in training. Everything was going just fine. I felt great going into the fight and I thought I was doing all right. I wasn't trying to to knock Walcott out; I was just fighting my usual fight. That Walcott was just in there trying, that's all there is to it."

The next day, Walcott was honored in McKeesport. He met with Charles in Ezzard's hotel room, where he said, "I'm sorry you had to lose, champ."

"That's all right," responded Charles. "I would have been rooting for you if you were fighting someone else."

When he was asked about Mintz' objection to the judges, Charles replied, "What difference does it make? All they needed in there was a fellow who knew how to count up to 10!"

WDTV showed a "telescription" of the fight at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 21.

Charles had a 90-day rematch clause. However, the bout didn't take place until June 5, 1952. Walcott won a unanaimous decision in Philadelphia, then lost his title to Marciano in September.

The great response to the fight made Pittsburghers optimistic about getting future fights for the city. The heavyweight championship wouldn't return for another thirty years, but that's another story.

A newsreel of the fight can be seen here.

(All quotes are from the original newspaper coverage.)