Does Greatness Translate to Fame, and Vice Versa?

[HomicideHenry]

I was thinking this last night about Irish fighters, and also on the fact most men today can't even come close to packing a soccer stadium. I started thinking of how Dan Donnelly and how he may just be Ireland's most famous fighter, considering he drew 30,000 plus people to Belcher's Hollow to see him fight George Taylor and the crowd could be heard several miles away when Donnelly won. I also thought of John L. Sullivan and how people in the Phillipines were actually taking bets on who would win between him and Kilrain. The star power these men had was beyond comprehension, making Ali and Louis and Tyson look like mere posers in comparison when you consider there was no great technology to spread news then. Nonpariel Jack Dempsey was another one who was so famous that his name alone gave birth to a whole generation of fighters, and his name was used by many. Hell it was more profitable then to be Irish than say German, Polish, etc.

I guess my question, rather than just a blanket statement, would be does fame alone mean greatness, or does it take greatness to be truly famous? Much like our ballots for the HOF this year, it's a comparably weak list with men who were more famous than great. So just thought I would ask, and also ask what your opinions is on how to do it right, to bring back the fanfare. Or are we just so far gone down the line to turn back to the glory years?

[dempseyfire]

No, especially in today's media age of high technology. Just being on TV can make someone famous . . .look at the Kardashians and Honey Boo. Gatti was a glorified fringe contender but was in exciting fights and constantly shown on TV and thus famous. Harold Johnson or Charles Burley were truly greats fighters and far superior to Gatti or (or Graziano for an older example) but were not nearly as famous.

Back in the bareknuckle days there was a stronger correlation as people had to travel great distances to see anything. And human beings want to see true greatness or at least something unique/unusual if they have to put any effort into it.