Classic American West Coast Boxing

[raylawpc]

The auction page: http://www.huntauctions.com/phone/image ... t_num=1153 I spotted this auction site a few weeks back, but it was too late to bid. And the winning bid was a mere $55, too. Something from the ring would've been a great addition to our museum. This was a boxing stool from the Stadium, circa 1926--or so says the brass plate. (Honestly, I wonder if maybe the stool was ours and was one of the many items that has gone "missing" from our museum over the years.)

There's not much of anything boxing-wise that has survived the pre-1938 era (when the wooden stadium was replaced by the concrete one). We've got an old pair of leather boxing gloves dangling from a wooden sign, a couple of wooden chairs, and a few other odds and ends (although, sadly, we're missing almost all the 1920s cards/fliers/programs).

And I should put this out there--if anyone interested in donating anything, please let me know! Don't throw out those old Legion newsletters, programs or other paper goods! They ain't garbage. They're our history.

Where is your museum? I'd like to see it next time I'm in LA.

[marzam]

Unfortunately, it's not a fully-functioning museum. We only have it open for two hours on meeting nights, which are on the first and third Monday of every month... and that can change if we have filming going on in the building or special meetings (Law & Order, for example), where extra guests fill up our parking lot; as it is, most people have to park at the Hollywood Bowl and then walk down to the building. You need to be a Legion member, a friend/guest of a Legion member, or contact the office to come in to the building, as this is the way that the Posts operate around the country.

Here's a shot of one of the rooms:

[raylawpc]

Unfortunately, it's not a fully-functioning museum. We only have it open for two hours on meeting nights, which are on the first and third Monday of every month... and that can change if we have filming going on in the building or special meetings (Law & Order, for example), where extra guests fill up our parking lot; as it is, most people have to park at the Hollywood Bowl and then walk down to the building. You need to be a Legion member, a friend/guest of a Legion member, or contact the office to come in to the building, as this is the way that the Posts operate around the country.

Here's a shot of one of the rooms:

Thanks marzam! So it is at the American Legion building there in Hollywood?

[marzam]

Yep. (The best advice I can give is to call the office and see what the Adjutant has to say on the matter.)

I dug out some more info from the internet last night--here's one:

New Zealand Theatre & Motion Picture, 1 May 1922 - "A New Stunt"

Although it is easier to break out of Sing Sing than to break into the studios to see the movies being made, travellers to Los Angeles have an opportunity every Tuesday of seeing films in the making out at the Hollywood Legion Stadium, where the various companies take turns at doing scenes from their current productions, the proceeds going to the Disabled Veterans' Fund. Went out last week ourselves, and saw Norma Talmadge, supported by Conway Tearle, of the soulful eyebrows, Irving Cummings, and Rosemary Theby, do a scene from Balzac's "Duchess of Langeais," the most ambitious thing Norma has yet attempted... Bull Montana — Star

This is interesting, because even though I've found mention of this before, it's the first time that the subject of money has come up. And I wonder how much all the filming got in the way of the boxing and wrestling?

[marzam]

Can I just say... TE AMO KIKIBALT y DONGEE!

We have a large version of this photo (http://i9.tinypic.com/4m13lf6.jpg), but have only one or two names identifying who's who. The obvious ones, of course, were Theodore Roberts and Charlie Chaplin, however the majority of the crowd has been forgotten about... until now.

I'm tellin' you guys, the more I dig into the boxing forums, the more it pays off!

[kikibalt]

Can I just say... TE AMO KIKIBALT y DONGEE!

We have a large version of this photo (http://i9.tinypic.com/4m13lf6.jpg), but have only one or two names identifying who's who. The obvious ones, of course, were Theodore Roberts and Charlie Chaplin, however the majority of the crowd has been forgotten about... until now.

I'm tellin' you guys, the more I dig into the boxing forums, the more it pays off!

:)

[kikibalt]

Paco Flores

Paco Flores v Vicente Medina
5-4-1973

Community Center, Tucson, Arizona

referee: Joe Vozdik 98-97 | judge: Joe Vozdik 97-96 | judge: Robert Ferrara 97-97

In 1973I was in Tucson Az. for Mando Muniz’s fight against Manny Gonzalez. With Jake Horn and Louie Jauregui and others we took some amateurs to fill out the card. Vicente Medina came in from Mexico by himself and he needed a corner, I was asked if I would be chief second for him, I of course said yes. Paco Flores was the promoter’s brother and Medina was just supposed to be a an “opponent” At the start of the fight Medina is fighting Flores all wrong, following him in a straight line, throwing one punch at a time. After a couple of rounds I told him to what he was doing wrong, told him he needed to cut the ring on Flores and to put punches together. Medina was a good listener, he did as he was told and he started to win the fight. Now Flores people started to worry because about the middle of the fight a guy who I later found out was from the Az. Boxing commission came to talk to me and asked me “who are you?” I responded “I am Frank Baltazar” “well Frank do you have a license to work corners?”, “yes” I replied, “can I see it?” he asked, I handed him my license “but this is a California license” “of course, I am from California” I said as I played the dummy, “after the fight come to the commission table and get an Az. License”, “okay I will” I replied.

As the fight continued I could see that Medina was pulling ahead, but he lost a split decision. But if you are fighting the promoter’s brother a split decision means you won.

The fight been over I go to the commission’s table. I was drag over the coals for working an Arizona fight without an Arizona license, again I played the dummy, told them that I thought my California license was good enough. No sir! I was told. “You have $100?” I was asked, I replied that I did “good, let me have it” the commish told me as he handed me a license and taking my money at the same time.

Mr Baltazar?

Hello, I hope I have the correct address for Mr. Frank Baltazar. I saw your article on the Paco Flores vs Vincente Medina fight yesterday. I had just the day before contacted Boxrec with Paco's obit. In case you didn't know, Paco Flores passed away on June 22. I was just typing in Paco's name hoping to find any articles on him when I came to your article. I never meet Paco, but was very good friend's with his brother Tony Flores(his promoter)....We lived next door to each other in Tucson from 2006-2011. Tony passed away last year late June.

Always enjoyed talking Boxing with Tony and he had many interesting stories from Paco's fighting days and his days as a promoter in Tucson. I have been reading many of the old Tucson daily citizen articles online about Paco and his fights with Obed, Perkins, Gil King, Pugh, Rico etc...Just wondering if you had any other articles or info on Paco? I have seen some of your post on sites such as Boxrec and the West Coast Boxers page. I also remember your sons from their boxing days, mostly I remember seeing Tony Baltazar fight.......I hope you are doing well and Blessed! If you have the time, feel free to contact me back anytime.

Thanks for your time! GOD Bless you and yours! Rob.

[kikibalt]

Enrique Bolanos, Ike Williams, "Blinky" Palermo, Jack Dempsey and Willie Ritchie. May 25 1948, Los Angeles.

[raylawpc]

Can I just say... TE AMO KIKIBALT y DONGEE!

We have a large version of this photo (http://i9.tinypic.com/4m13lf6.jpg), but have only one or two names identifying who's who. The obvious ones, of course, were Theodore Roberts and Charlie Chaplin, however the majority of the crowd has been forgotten about... until now.

I'm tellin' you guys, the more I dig into the boxing forums, the more it pays off!

What a GREAT PHOTO!! The date has to be in the mid to late 1920s. I think Theodore Roberts died in the late 1920s, right around the time Talkies came out - so 1927-1929?. I recognized the names of some of the other people:

Ruth Roland was an actress whose career survived into the talkies. She died fairly young – sometime before World War II. Late 1930s I think.

Philo McCullough was an actor. All I remember about him is that he was in a Tarzan movie.

Bryan Foy was, as the inscription notes, the son of Eddie Foy. But he also produced B movies for Warner for most of his career. Not sure what he was doing at the time this photo was taken.

Benny Rubin was a vaudeville comedian. He was a friend of Jack Benny.

Sam Warner and Jack Warner founded Warner Brothers with their brothers Harry and Albert.

Carter DeHaven was an actor who later worked for Charlie Chaplin. He was assistant director of The Great Dictator, in which Chaplin starred and directed.

Charlie Chaplin . . . nuff said.

Alfred E. Green was a director, and pretty prolific, if memory serves. I think his biggest film was The Al Jolson Story.

I don't think I've ever heard of Shirley T. Mason.

Viola Dana was a silent screen actress who never made it into the talkies. She would have been at the height of her career when this picture was taken. I’ve seen publicity photos of her. She was very beautiful – absolutely stunning.

I hope this helps.

[raylawpc]

P.S.: I looked up Viola Dana in an old movie book that I own, and I found out that Shirley Mason was her sister! Their real surname was Fulgarth, and they had a third sister who was also a movie actress. I guess they were attending the fights together that night. None of them made it into the Talkies.

[kikibalt]

Tom...

[Chuck1052]

Tom- I remember seeing Viola Dana being interviewed in a terrific British ten-part series about silent movies about thirty years. The silent movie era was fascinating.

-Chuck Johnston

[Rick Farris]

Eddie Foy III . . .

Eddie Foy III will be a guest at my table at the 2012 CBHOF banquet.
Eddie will be on hand with members of the Kennedy family (as in the late Tom Kennedy: first Hollywood-Legion promoter & one of the Keystone Kops).
We'll induct Tom Kennedy at next year's event.
Foy worked with manager Willie Ketchum and Bill Daly, he cornered Jimmy Carter, Davey Moore and Carlos Ortiz.
However, the Foys are best known for their work in the film industry.
In the 70's, trainer Teddy Bentham passed away in the home of Eddie Foy in the San Fernando Valley.

[coach greg v]

Eddie Foy III . . .

Eddie Foy III will be a guest at my table at the 2012 CBHOF banquet.
Eddie will be on hand with members of the Kennedy family (as in the late Tom Kennedy: first Hollywood-Legion promoter & one of the Keystone Kops).
We'll induct Tom Kennedy at next year's event.
Foy worked with manager Willie Ketchum and Bill Daly, he cornered Jimmy Carter, Davey Moore and Carlos Ortiz.
However, the Foys are best known for their work in the film industry.
In the 70's, trainer Teddy Bentham passed away in the home of Eddie Foy in the San Fernando Valley.

> Rick is this the same Foy family that were know years ago as the 7 Little Foys?

[Rick Farris]

Same family, Greg. I had a great conversation with Eddie Foy III two weeks ago. We have mutual friends in the film industry that are related to Tom Kennedy, a former heavyweight fighter, Hollywood Legion Stadium promoter and actor. Kennedy was not only one of the Keystone Cops, but worked in major films right up to his death in the mid-1960's. Tom Kennedy is a future CBHOF Inductee. Ironically, legendary trainer, Teddy Bentham, was staying with Eddie Foy Jr. in Los Angeles, when he passed away in the 1970's.

[marzam]

From Rick Farris - August 8, 2011 - Tom Kennedy, a former heavyweight boxer, played a big role in California Boxing history and was the first promoter at the Hollywood Legion Stadium. He was also one of the original "Keystone Kops" and a well known charactor actor right up until his death. I've learned a lot of Kennedy from our pal Hap Navarro, as well as my long time friend John Kennedy, Tom's grandson, who has worked with me in the film industry for more than thirty years. When I mentioned his name to Don Fraser, Don was surprised I knew of him.

Funny enough, I have yet to type in "Tom Kennedy" into my laptop but I know we have notes on him in the office.

But I did find this and thought it was pretty neat:


Speedy Scraps on Bill - LA Times, Aug. 22, 1921:

A cracked ham bone on the right side of Young Carmen's K.O. department forced a switch yesterday in the plans of Matchmaker Frank Crowley for the boxing bouts at the HOllywood Legion Stadium Friday night.
Young Carmen was slated to trade swats with Joe Coffey in the main event at the Legion Stadium, Hollywood Boulevard and El Centro avenue. The broken mitt means that the winner of the Bobby Ertle-Jimmy Dundee bout at Vernon tomorrow night will be booked to mix it with Coffey...
Ad Roubidoux and Kid Mondo at 118 pounds; Fred Kramer and Dan Sirlos at 142; Packy McMullen and Casey Smith at 126; and George Sherman and Young Compston at 113, round out the ticket.
The Legion band, under direction of J. Paul Elliott, is going to play between bouts.
Tickets have been placed on sale at the Alexandria Hotel, Dyas & Co. and Crowley & Kerwin's sporting goods house downtown and at the American Legion Post and the Kress Drug Company in Hollywood.
Carpenters are busy rebuilding the temporary grandstand that went up for the week of the first event of the post a week ago. There will be 200 ringside and 2000 reserved chairs and bleachers to hould 2500, so constructed as to put the farthest bleacher seat only forty-five feet from the ringside.

This, of course, was back when the Stadium was still out-of-doors, before the roof went up and about a year after the members called "weed-pullers" did their job under the pepper trees. (I feel it's worth mentioning that the Legion members got tired of pulling weeds on the dirt lot after a while, held a craps game at the site, and the money from that game went towards hiring Japanese and/or Japanese-Americans to continue and finish the job--a forgotten bit of history. Not that the members probably didn't continue to help out, but it's a bit of info that's often left out of the narrative.)

[Rick Farris]

From Rick Farris - August 8, 2011 - Tom Kennedy, a former heavyweight boxer, played a big role in California Boxing history and was the first promoter at the Hollywood Legion Stadium. He was also one of the original "Keystone Kops" and a well known charactor actor right up until his death. I've learned a lot of Kennedy from our pal Hap Navarro, as well as my long time friend John Kennedy, Tom's grandson, who has worked with me in the film industry for more than thirty years. When I mentioned his name to Don Fraser, Don was surprised I knew of him.

Funny enough, I have yet to type in "Tom Kennedy" into my laptop but I know we have notes on him in the office.

But I did find this and thought it was pretty neat:


Speedy Scraps on Bill - LA Times, Aug. 22, 1921:

A cracked ham bone on the right side of Young Carmen's K.O. department forced a switch yesterday in the plans of Matchmaker Frank Crowley for the boxing bouts at the HOllywood Legion Stadium Friday night.
Young Carmen was slated to trade swats with Joe Coffey in the main event at the Legion Stadium, Hollywood Boulevard and El Centro avenue. The broken mitt means that the winner of the Bobby Ertle-Jimmy Dundee bout at Vernon tomorrow night will be booked to mix it with Coffey...
Ad Roubidoux and Kid Mondo at 118 pounds; Fred Kramer and Dan Sirlos at 142; Packy McMullen and Casey Smith at 126; and George Sherman and Young Compston at 113, round out the ticket.
The Legion band, under direction of J. Paul Elliott, is going to play between bouts.
Tickets have been placed on sale at the Alexandria Hotel, Dyas & Co. and Crowley & Kerwin's sporting goods house downtown and at the American Legion Post and the Kress Drug Company in Hollywood.
Carpenters are busy rebuilding the temporary grandstand that went up for the week of the first event of the post a week ago. There will be 200 ringside and 2000 reserved chairs and bleachers to hould 2500, so constructed as to put the farthest bleacher seat only forty-five feet from the ringside.

This, of course, was back when the Stadium was still out-of-doors, before the roof went up and about a year after the members called "weed-pullers" did their job under the pepper trees. (I feel it's worth mentioning that the Legion members got tired of pulling weeds on the dirt lot after a while, held a craps game at the site, and the money from that game went towards hiring Japanese and/or Japanese-Americans to continue and finish the job--a forgotten bit of history. Not that the members probably didn't continue to help out, but it's a bit of info that's often left out of the narrative.)

That's great information! Marzam, do you remember when Don Fraser was doing PR for the Legion in the 50's?

[CNorkusJr]

Rick- reading with great interest on Tom Kennedy on this forum. I seem to remember (off the top of my head) of a Kennedy the Cop in the Little Rascal features. Is he the same guy -do you know?
I know their were different eras of Little Rascals, but I seem to recall the episodes that had Jackie Cooper as one of the young lads along with Kennedy..
With all the Hollywood history mixed in the the Boxing stars at this years CBHOF event-one wonders if there will be enough time to make all the rounds. I certainly plan on doing so !!

[marzam]

Marzam, do you remember when Don Fraser was doing PR for the Legion in the 50's?

No, I'm sorry to say that was not my era.

However the first public mention that I have of him was in the August 14th Stadium Souvenir Program for “The Stadium of the Stars” listed the Stadium Board and Executive Staff in it, including "Publicity; Don Fraser."

[Rick Farris]

Rick- reading with great interest on Tom Kennedy on this forum. I seem to remember (off the top of my head) of a Kennedy the Cop in the Little Rascal features. Is he the same guy -do you know?
I know their were different eras of Little Rascals, but I seem to recall the episodes that had Jackie Cooper as one of the young lads along with Kennedy..
With all the Hollywood history mixed in the the Boxing stars at this years CBHOF event-one wonders if there will be enough time to make all the rounds. I certainly plan on doing so !!

Tom Kennedy was known for a look he would get when his charactor was mad, "the slow boil" they called it. I know the charactor you are referring to in the Little Rascals series, and I think that is Tom. If you look up his film log (IMBD) you'll find lots of info. He was definitly a "working actor". I believe his last film was "Around the World in 80 days", but I'll have to check. Eddie Foy III is a close friend of the Kennedy family, and we have discussed inducting Tom into the CBHOF next year. His grandson John and I have been good friend since we started out together at Universal in the 70's. Yesterday I spoke with actor Clint Howard, and he and his father Rance will be at the event, and very possibly older brother Ron, who will be in town directing a picture next month. The Howard's were all fans of Windmill White and attended several of Don Fraser's promotions at the Valley Music Theatre. They grew up around the corner from me in Burbank and are old friends.

[Rick Farris]

Marzam, do you remember when Don Fraser was doing PR for the Legion in the 50's?

No, I'm sorry to say that was not my era.

However the first public mention that I have of him was in the August 14th Stadium Souvenir Program for “The Stadium of the Stars” listed the Stadium Board and Executive Staff in it, including "Publicity; Don Fraser."

Thank you. Appreciate your sharing your info. I have started a California Boxing Hall of Fame Facebook Page, just to share photos and info on past and present inductees, etc. Have a few photos and a little history of the Legion. If you are on Facebook, please check it out. As the Page evolves, the history will expand, and the Hollywood American Legion Stadium is a great part of that history.

[Chuck1052]

Tom Kennedy had quite a career as a professional boxer, a matchmaker at the Hollywood Legion Stadium and a motion picture actor. He is a good choice for induction in the California Boxing Hall of Fame.

Kennedy's successor as the matchmaker at the Hollywood Legion Stadium was Tom Gallery, who also was a motion picture actor, but only for a brief period of time. When I looked on IMDb website for information about Gallery, I was appalled about what I found. Yes, there was information about his marriage to the well-known motion picture actress, Zasu Pitts and their adopted son, Don Gallery, whose biological mother was the ill-fated motion picture actress, Barbara LaMarr. But there wasn't any mention about his long career in the sports world as a boxing matchmaker, a boxing promoter and a television sports programming executive at DuMont (an early television network) and NBC.

Gallery served as the matchmaker at the Hollywood Legion Stadium from the middle 1920s to the early 1930s. It could be that he left the job because of the brief rough patch at the Legion Stadium caused by the "Great Depression." His successor was Charley MacDonald, who served as matchmaker with astounding success from the early 1930s to the late 1940s, by far the longest tenure of anyone who had the job.

- Chuck Johnston

[Rick Farris]

Tom Kennedy had quite a career as a professional boxer, a matchmaker at the Hollywood Legion Stadium and a motion picture actor. He is a good choice for induction in the California Boxing Hall of Fame.

Kennedy's successor as the matchmaker at the Hollywood Legion Stadium was Tom Gallery, who also was a motion picture actor, but only for a brief period of time. When I looked on IMDb website for information about Gallery, I was appalled about what I found. Yes, there was information about his marriage to the well-known motion picture actress, Zasu Pitts and their adopted son, Don Gallery, whose biological mother was the ill-fated motion picture actress, Barbara LaMarr. But there wasn't any mention about his long career in the sports world as a boxing matchmaker, a boxing promoter and a television sports programming executive at DuMont (an early television network) and NBC.

Gallery served as the matchmaker at the Hollywood Legion Stadium from the middle 1920s to the early 1930s. It could be that he left the job because of the brief rough patch at the Legion Stadium caused by the "Great Depression." His successor was Charley MacDonald, who served as matchmaker with astounding success from the early 1930s to the late 1940s, by far the longest tenure of anyone who had the job.

- Chuck Johnston

Thanks, Chuck. Tom Kennedy is on deck for next year. He has a son who is still alive, but very old. A surprisingly large family including the family of his wife, who's maiden name was Marshall. Both sides work in the industry, primarily in set lighting. Tom's grandson, John Kennedy, brought his grandfather's scrapbook into work to show me a few years back. Unbelieveable. More will appear on the CBHOF page regarding Tom Kennedy after this year's event in October.

[marzam]

A couple of minor notes on Tom... Thomas S. Gallery (Army, WWI) was a Post 43 Legionnaire and was elected as a delegate for Post 43 during the 1925 State Convention at Avalon.

Page 53 in "Boxing in the Los Angeles Area: 1800-2005" mentions Gallery as being "at the helm as a matchmaker and then as a matchmaker/manager." Our information is sketchy in the 20's and early '30s due to missing newsletters and boxing programs. (MacDonald was definitely in there by '35, though.)

[Chuck1052]

Frank- I have learned from a friend that Van Barbieri, the one-time publicist for the Olympic Auditorium, has passed away. According to his obituary on the Daily Breeze website, Barbieri died Wednesday of last week.

- Chuck Johnston