Billy Miske Book Terrific Read for Dempsey Scholars ...

Thanks Evan.

I pinpoint the summer of 1919 as the time that Billy received his fatal diagnosis. I'm 99% certain that was when he was diagnosed with Bright's disease and explain why in the book.

That means he and Dempsey had already fought twice by then. (May 3, 1918 & November 28, 1918). The first bout (10 rounds) was considered a draw. Other views included the following: Fred Coburn of the Minneapolis Tribune gave Dempsey the shade on the strength of a big seventh round. In his own 1940 biography Dempsey said that at the start of the fight, and in most of the rounds, Miske outboxed him. George Barton (another local writer) thought Dempsey won it. Nat Fleischer also said Miske outboxed Dempsey most of the fight with the exception of the seventh round. Otto Floto (Denver Post) felt Dempsey earned a shade by the end of the bout but not so much as to be able to brag about it. According to him, when he accompanied Dempsey and Kearns on a train for Chicago afterward, Dempsey said, "If I ever have to fight another tough guy like that I don't want the championship. The premium they ask is too much effort." By all accounts this one was a pretty entertaining fight.

Dempsey then won a clear six-round newspaper decision in their second fight in November of 1918 in a fight said to be a dull affair that failed to live up to expectations. Dempsey later said that Billy spent the six rounds holding him.

I noted your comment about having a problem with an order from Amazon. I have a couple of boxes of the book to sell directly so you could always purchase one directly from me. Contact me at

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if you like.

 

One more quick thought/comment about Miske. He was exceptionally tough and a lot more skilled than I think many know. It amazes me to look at who he fought over the course of his career that he was only ever knocked off his feet in one fight, the third fight with Dempsey when he was floored twice and knocked out. Prior to that he'd gone 16 rounds with Dempsey without being knocked down. I'm not too sure he couldn't have gone the distance the third time despite the fact he was already sick if he hadn't decided to change his style and slug it out with Dempsey instead in an effort to land a big punch and steal his title.

 

Damn. I need more time to read. ****ing work.

 

is it cheaper to get from you or amazon

 

Same price. But, if you ask for the Eastside discount I'll sell for $5 off

 

I'm gonna get it, got the Langford book which I now notice is £73 on Amazon!!!

 

They may be sold out of the Sam Langford books now. I am working with the publisher to try and arrange to make that book available in softcover format on a print-on-demand basis going forward but no idea when that will be in place at this time.

 

Clay, hoping to get your book soon and hoping that you should make a movie about the brave Billy Miske, as if any fighter's life story should be on film, it is Billy Miske's. What a story to be told !
If as you say Billy Miske was first diagnosed with Bright's disease the summer of 1919, how do you account for the fact that after Dempsey kod Miske in 3 rds, Sept 6, 1920 ,Billy Miske went the next 20 bouts without a loss, beating, Bill Brennan, Jack Renault, Charley Weinert, Tommy Gibbons, koing Willie Meehan 1 rd, Fred Fulton 1 rd,and seemed as his disease was in remission...? What is your take C ?

 

Burt, I go into that in the book, i.e., the fac that he experienced a remission. Now, whether or not he was in full remission at any point I have no idea but clearly he improved enough from the summer of 1919 to the next year that he felt healthy enough to resume his career after he lost all the money he'd saved in his car dealership. Now, as for defeating Gibbons I will say that the only reason he won that particular fight near the end of of that 20 bout streak you refer to was because the latter was disqualified for a low blow. Up to that point Gibbons was well ahead and had the fight in-hand. I agree his story would make a great movie. His widow was approached by a Hollywood movie mogul after his death but she turned them down at the time.

 

Clay, there is no fighter in history more DESERVING of a film on his struggle to provide for his family after his impending death, and I hope you are in the forefront of that deserving film...

 

If I remember rightly, Tommy Gibbons learned of his own father's death DURING that fight with Billy Miske. Obviously upset and distracted, it was then that fouled himself out.