'Fleischer Tells of Langford Koing Rival "On The Fly"'

"He lost to Wills because of Wills being too big and extremely good. He lost to Fulton because a huge man with speed and a jab was too much for him to overcome at his size."

I wonder about this myself, though believe that Sam was clearly past his prime by the time he lost to both Wills and Fulton. The little man had a good reach and it just amazes me how much success he had against much bigger men over the course of his career. Guys like Joe Jeannette and Harry Wills each had over 100 fights in their careers and Jeannette was only K.O.'d twice, one of those by Langford, and I believe Wills may have suffered five knockouts, I'd have to double check on that again, but two of those were against Langford.

And it really impresses me that a number of men, like Jeannette, "Gunboat" Smith, Jim Flynn, etc., who had fought so many of the leading heavyweights of their era said he was either, or both, the greatest fighter they every fought and the hardest hitter. The little guy was a wonder.

 

Sept. 9, 1913 - Newspaper clipping from unknown source.
Johnson Quits In First Round
“It took Sam Langford a little more than half a minute to prove to John Lester Johnson that fighting is no business. The two sons of Ham were booked to battle ten rounds at the Atlantic Garden A.c. last night, but a small part of one round was enough for Johnson.

When Langford entered the ring he looked like a sign for a restaurant where good food is served, while Johnson impersonated a man badly afflicted with the palsey. As soon as the bell sounded, Johnson jumped to hs feet and started to look for a place where Langford could not find him.

Langford lumbered after him and finally got him in a corner where Johnson covered his head and face with his black arms. He was in a stooping position and Langford let go a right which landed a little below the base of the spine. Johnson pictched headlong to the floor and remained there while the referee tolled off nine.

When he got up he started another sprint, but Sam soon cornered him and dropped him again with the same blow. At the count of nine he arose and as Langford made another lunge at him he fell to the canvas before Sam had the blow half started.

Referee Billy Moore, seeing the bout was a joke, ordered Langford to his corner and told Johnson’s seconds to get a hand truck and remove the debris.

The crowd was sadly disappointed at the exhibition and voiced its sentiment by hooting Johnson out of the ring. The latter weighed 170 pounds and during his short stay in the ring did not make one attempt to land a blow. “

Sept. 9 – J. Lester Johnson, New York Atlantic Ocean A.C. KO 1

The night of this fight as Sam walked into the arena and passed Johnson stretched out on a rubbing table with a handler fanning him he asked, “What are you doin, boy?” “Just taking a little nap, just takin a little nap,” replied Lester. “Why now? You gonna be taking one in that ring,” said Sam.

Sam’s first appearance in a New York ring was with John Lester Johnson and it ended quickly when he hit John Lester at the base of the spine so hard in the first 30 seconds of the first round that the blow paralyzed Johnson from the waist down, and he had to sit on the floor of the ring and take the count. He picked up a $1,000 guarantee for his efforts. From the moment that Sam stripped for action, Johnson showed fright, and when the contest began he quickly circled away from Sam. Sam landed a left to the stomach, and in the clinch that followed, sent a dozen more punches to the back, the last of which sent Johnson down for a count of eight. As Johnson staggered to his feet, Sam rushed forward and Johnson fell without receiving a blow. On again gaining his feet Johnson was rushed into his own corner where Sam landed a blow to his left kidney and the South African went to the floor for the final time, unable to rise.

Johnson had gone 10 rounds with Joe Jeannette in the same club only a few months prior.

In it’s Sept. 27, 1913 issue ‘Boxing’ magazine reported that the “fiasco” was attended by approximately 2,000 people and that Billy Moore put an end to the burlesque after Johnson had gone to the floor twice because of blows on the kidneys.

Langford scaled 185 lbs., and his opponent 170 lbs., and the unequal proportions of the men were apparent directly when they stripped for action. In his corner Johnson displayed all the evidences of a man overcome with fear, and his chief second was compelled to give his ears a vigorous massage in order to wake him up.

At the gong Johnson immediately began prancing and stamping around the ring like a horse with blind staggers. Langford was compelled to make long-distance swings at his man, and the only spot he could reach was his opponents left kidney, which he walloped so effectively three times while the pair were in a neutral corner that Johnson went down for the count, just getting to his feet as the referee cried ten seconds.

The all-but-defeated man continued to try and evade Langford, who belaboured him again on what appeared to be a vital spot, and, after Johnson had gone down through the effects of the punch as well as because of apparent weakness, the referee helped the beaten man to his feet and waved Langford to his corner to the accompaniment of the boo-hoos of the crowd.

In an 1932 issue of the Ring, George Engle wrote, “Sam Langford, who recently appeared in a vaudeville sketch with his pal, Joe Walcott, described a fight with John Lester Johnson in which he told how he knocked Lester out with a punch on the seat of his anatomy.

It was in the old Atlantic Gardens of New York City, down on the Bowery near Canal Street that Sambo turned the trick. And it all happened because Johnson tried to make a marathon race out of the fight. He started to run as soon as the bell rang and this riled Langford, who, having trained on the fat of the land, was in no condition to enter a race.

His wind was bad and it was getting worse. The three minutes of the first round found the Tar Baby gasping for breath. When the second round started, Langford made up his mind that the bout would have to end in a jiffy or Sambo would be unable to continue. So he started footing it after the man who had once fractured Jack Dempsey’s ribs.

Johnson, seeing fire in his opponent’s eyes, hoofed it faster than in the opening session with Sam after him. The round was almost drawing to a close, when Sam cut loose a powerful right swing that came up like Frank Moran’s Mary Ann, and the blow landed square on that spot of John Lester Johnson’s anatomy that comes in closest proximity to his chair when he sits down to his pork chops.

The toppled over with a thud, his head striking the canvas first. He tried to get up as the referee counted but the farthest he could get, was on his elbows. He was counted out while crowed cried “quitter,” yet Johnson didn’t do a nose dive because he wanted to have it over with. When he was struck, that blow was delivered with such force that it paralyzed his lower extremities and he had no control of his legs for ten minutes afterwards.

Technically speaking, that blow was a foul. It landed below the belt yet Johnson made no claim because he didn’t want any more of Sam Langford. That one haymaker on the seat of the anatomy was sufficient for John Lester Johnson.”

 

He lost to Wills because he was past his best and he lost to Fulton because he was an empty shell.

You should bve carefull what you inferr from the Wills fights and you should inferr absolutely nothing from the Fulton fight.

At a guess I would say that a prime Langford would have had a lot of problems with Wills but would have anihilated Fulton.

 

Langford got the better of Willis in their first four fights. It was only when wear and tear and age caught up to Langford that Wills won.

Langford lost on cuts to Fulton.

At the tail end of his career, Langford KO'd super heavy Godfrey.

I think Sam hit hard enough to pretty much beat anyone. On film, I don't see good defense from Langford. I tend to think a long armed power hitter with outside skills and inside tie up ability would prove to be a tough match up for Langford.

 

"Langford got the better of Willis in their first four fights. It was only when wear and tear and age caught up to Langford that Wills won.

Langford lost on cuts to Fulton"

I don't know where you got this information, but Wills defeated Langford by decision the first time they met. And when Langford fought Fulton he was forced to quit when he lost sight in his left eye and the other one was closed during the fight as a result of Fulton's blows, essentially leaving him unable to see.

Here's what Langford said later about his fight with Fulton:

"After I fought Fred Fulton in 1917 some newspaper headlines said “Sam Langford quits to Fred Fulton”. That was true, boys, and yet it wasn’t really fair to say that about me. I’ve fought 500 fights, I fought from early boyhood close to the 40 year mark. I fought every man that would get into that ring with me and no one can say that I ever backed away from any of them. No man ever accused me of quitting before 1917, and no man said that about me since then.

But in 1917 they said I quit and nobody tried to find out the reason why. They just wrote that “Sam Langford Quit” and put that brand on me, and no one ever told the real story.

Yes, I quit in that fight, if that’s the way the record book makers want to write. But they should be fair to Little Thammy and say that it’s pretty much because of what happened in that fight that I late quit the game, when I figure that, later as old as I was, I was still good enough to whip about half of those joke heavyweights they’ve got.

Fulton may have been tough and a good fighter, like they say, but not then, nor even later, would I quit to him unless I was absolutely blind as I was after the fourth round of that fight that night.

Yes, boys, I quit to Fulton, but I didn’t quit until I couldn’t see out of either eye and I couldn’t even feel him any more. That’s why I quit. I never did think much about fellows that went around and made excuses for themselves. So, after the fight, I didn’t tell the people why I quit.

The newspaper boys said I just quit cold because I wouldn’t get up from my chair and continue fighting. I thought when I read it, well, if those boys who know I never quit in 14 years of fighting don’t want to find out why I quit to Fulton, I won’t run around telling them why.

We fought in Boston. Fulton was good then, perhaps at his best. That was while he was challenging Jess Willard and before he got whipped by Jack Dempsey. (In later years, Sam said that the night before the fight he received a visit at his home in Cambridge at two in the morning from a man who told him he was to carry Fulton the full fifteen rounds or he wouldn’t receive his share of the purse. He needed the money so he said O.K.)

Fulton was one of those giant fellows, nearly a foot taller than I was, and he had long, long arms. I’d try to reach him with overhand rights but they were short. Then I’d try to get in close to his stomach but he’d keep me away with those arms of his.

I figured he couldn’t do it all the time and that pretty soon, I’d get in close and I’d let him have it right in his thin stomach. Along in the fourth I was edging in close, when Fred swiped a right hand at my chin. I ducked and the blow landed around my temple. When it hit me I thought a thousand needles had been shoved into my skull and were being driven around by a sewing machine.

When the round ended, which was only a half minute or so later, I found that I couldn’t see at all out of my left eye. I thought it had been closed tight. When the boys in my corner didn’t pay any attention to the eye, I said: “Say, try to get my left eye open, quick. I can’t see out of it at all.” They looked at the eye and said: “Nothing wrong with it, Sam. It ain’t swollen.”

I thought that was sort of strange, but when the fifth began, I went out to do some fighting with one eye. All the time the pain in my head was getting worse and there was wild pounding in it and loud noises, and just before the bell ending the fifth, everything got black before me.

They other eye, though I hadn’t been hit in it, had gone too. In the 6th I went out from my corner completely blind. But I was hoping Fulton would get close to me and I would grab him and then punch him up in the infighting. But everybody that knows Fulton knows he’s a long range boy. So he just kept away from me far enough so I couldn’t find him and all the time he was landing long rights and lefts all over me.

When I got back to my corner, the boys were all excited: “What’s the matter, what’s the matter?” they yelled, “You never hit him once and he hit you a hundred times.” I told them that I couldn’t see out of either eye and I couldn’t even grab Fulton because he wouldn’t come close enough to me. So the boy’s said: “This fight is all over now, Sam. We aren’t going to let a blind man go out and get murdered.”

When the bell rang for the seventh, I didn’t go out. The referee came over and I guess he counted over me for a little bit later I head him yell “Fulton wins.”

Since that day I have been totally blind in my left eye. Doctors fixed up the right eye in a week, saying it had gone out of business because of that punch in the fourth, but it was not absolutely gone like the eye that was nearest to where the blow had landed.

That’s the story, boy’s, of why I quit to Fred Fulton, the only ‘quit’ that’s charged against me in 23 years of fighting the gamest, toughest and best fighters in the world."

 

Some dope on Sam's first fight with Wills, and the subsequent meeting when he knocked Wills out:

May 1, 1914 – Harry Wills, New Orleans L 10

"I met Harry Wills in 1914, and that gave me a nice new playmate. I tried to get fights with all the white heavies that were sure they could whip Jack Johnson, who then was champion, but they just wouldn’t associate with me. I had tried to get Johnson for my lovely little self while I was in Europe but John Arthur had gotten awfully uppish and he just figured I wasn’t alive at all.

So it was no fight and no pork chop money, or fight the men I’d met often before, and I lost track of the number. It was Jeanette, or McVey, or Jim Johnson, or John Lester Johnson, or Bill Tate, or Kid Norfolk, or Jeff Clarke, or Jack Thompson, all negroes.

They were up against it like I was. The white fighters wouldn’t take them on. So we boys had to fight among ourselves and the pickings were getting smaller and smaller because after two men have fought each other several times, the public gets tired of seeing them do their stuff, no matter who they are.

So in 1914, I didn’t have anything else to do so I went to New Orleans and while I was loafing around somebody asked me, “Will you box Harry Wills?” and I said “Sure, who is he?” and they told me he was a big black boy, awfully green, but mighty tough.

When Sam entered the ring that day, he appeared fat, but the fight that followed proved he was in good shape. When the two met in the middle of the ring to receive preliminary instructions there were a few hoots and hollers regarding their discrepancy in size. However, Sam merely looked up at Wills and smiled. He had fought these kind before and it didn’t worry him in the least.

We went ten rounds no-decision (Ring Record book shows a loss in 10 for Sam) and that satisfied me. For that Wills sure was a powerful baby and he was developing fast. He was only 20 or 21 then, but he knew quite a few tricks about fighting and he was one of those learning kind.

A newspaper report of the first meeting in a ring between the two said that Wills earned the decision on the strength of his work in the first round rounds, and though he did not win by much of a margin, he showed enough stuff to demonstrate that with a little more confidence he will be a hard man to beat.

Sam for his part, seemed too confident. He went into the ring under the impression that he was meeting another of the local favorites that he had polished off in his long career. He didn’t seem to realize what he was up against until he had staked his young oppenent to a four round lead.

Round one: Sam felt Harry out for the first few seconds. He tried a left hook and then shot over a right cross, but Harry countered with two right crosses to Sam’s jaw in rapid succession. Sam brought up a stinging left hook, which made Harry wince. Wills tried several left jabs, and then put over another right cross. Sam covered during the latter part of the round. Wills round.

Round two: Both men landed to body and head as the fighting started to pick up. Sam split Harry left eye with a right cross. Wills round by a shade.

Round three: Langford worked hard in clinch. Wills missed right cross and Sam landed left hook. Wills came back strong, putting both hands to Sam’s head and rushing his man to the ropes. Langford jabbed twice with left and started to work in clinch. Wills landed a terrific right cross at the bell, staggering Sam. Wills round.

Round four: Wills cut in with left hood and Sam covered. Wills had the better of the fight at long range. Sam landed left hook to the jaw. Wills shot in three smashing right crosses, each landing fairly on Sam’s jaw. Sam, unhurt, countered with a terrific left hook to head, Wills landed another right cross. Sam staggered him with left hook to the jaw. Wills landed uppercut in clinch. Wills round by slim margin.

Round five: Langford hooked twice to jaw. Wills worked both hands to head. Langford made him blink with stinging left hook. When Sam landed a smashing left hook to Wills head in the fifth round, Wills started to hold and stall breifly. Then they three themselves at each other like tigers. Langford appeared to shake himself and he started fighting in earnest. They divided honors in a terrific exchange in the center of the ring. Sam swung hard at the bell. Even round.

Round six: They clinched and Sam had the better of infighting. Sam landed left hook. Wills appeared tired and held on. Sam jabbed and landed right hook to jaw, going into clinch, Sam landed hard left hook to jaw and a moment later brought up hard right hook. Wills put right cross to head. Sam jabbed and Wills met him with right cross, knocking him back. Sam staggered Wills with right hook to jaw. Sam’s round by big margin.

Round seven: It began to look black for Wills, but he fought back hard. Later in the round, Samnearly dropped him with terrific left hook to the jaw. Wills held tight in the clinch. Sam jabbed and hooked right. Sam worked hard in clinch. Wills put both hands to jaw, Sam deliberately dropped his hands and Wills foolishing waded in. The next moment the big youngster nearly measured his six foot three inch frame on the canvas. He was caught with one of Sam’s famous left hooks and his knees sagged under him while his jaw dropped. But he came back and fought hard. Sam’s round.

Round eight: Wills came back strong. He landed a right cross. Sam brought up left hook. Wills jabbed and rushed into a clinch. Sam worked with both hands to body in clinch and landed left hook to jaw. Wills landed right uppercut coming out of a clinch. Wills landed right cross. Sam put right to jaw twice in clinch. Sam shifted and hooked with hard left to jaw. Wills landed two right crosses at the bell. Even round.

Round nine: Wilsl rained lefts and rights to jaw. Sam taking them cooly. Sam missed a left hook and then landed one. Sam jabbed and Wills fought back hard. Wills measured him and landed right cross. Sam swung heavy left to jaw, knocking one of Wills teeth out. The fighting was terrific in latter part of this round. Wills rained rights and lefts at the bell. Wills round by a shade.

Round ten: The spectators were on their feet and there were many yells for Wills. Sam tried hard for a knockdown, but he couldn’t put it over. He landed a hard left hook, then sunk heavy left hook to stomach, rebounding it to the jaw. Sam landed another left hook. Wills put heavy right cross to jaw. Sam hooked his left to jaw and then to wind. Wills countering with right cross. Both men were fighting hard at the bell. Even round.

After that Wills went to the Pacific Coast and made quite a hit out there. Pretty soon he ran out of opponents. Just then Tom McCarey, a matchmaker, thought about me, and asked Wills if he wanted to fight me. Harry said “yes”. McCarey telegraphed me and I wired “Yes” and jumped out to the Coast and both of us got down to hard training. I knew I’d have to be in shape to get that boy.

The fight was to go 20 rounds. With the first bell, we both rushed out and took a swing. Mine missed, Harry’s a right hand bone crusher, hit me on the chin. I went down, got up and was knocked down again. Wills had me on the ground floor six times in that first round and when the second began, a lot of folks thought it looked like good night for Little Thammy.

But Little Thammy hadn’t been fooling around in the ring for about 12 years without learning a little something about what to do when in trouble. So Little Thammy stalled and kept out of the way for a few rounds until the buzzes got out of his head and his legs came back from where Wills had knocked them.

But that Harry wasn’t so dumb, even then. He was stronger than Little Thammy and he got me in clinches and hammered me red, white, and blue. And maybe there was a little pink here and there in spots. So I kept away from clinches and used my legs as much as I could, putting all my hope in one punch. Wills had won every round up to and including the 13th.

We came out for the 14th, Harry came out fast, hoping to finish me. He wasn’t covered as well as he should have been. I saw an opening for his chin. Putting everything I had into a right hand overhead drive, I let go. Wills went down and was counted out."

 

I checked and you are correct.

1914 Wills on points over Langford
1914 Langford wins via KO over Wills
1914 Willis on points over Langford
1915 Willis on points over Langford
1915 Wills on points over Langford
1916 Langford wins via KO over Wills.

Ok-- I think the question we have to ask ourselves here is how much did Langford have left from 1914-1916? At these dates, Sam was in the 190's, sometimes 200 pounds and a veteran of at least 75+ fights.

Langford best weight was in the 170's to 180's. I think Wills fought a slightly past his prime Langford who put on too much weight in the above dates. I have not read the reports, but a hunch would be Langford was not in shape to press the action enough which is why Wills out worked him and won on points....but Langford did KO Willis twice.

Very few past their prime heavies can KO prime hall of fame heavies. Langford is one of the few exceptions.

 

No doubt. Still, Wills dominated their series almost from the start. Even the fights he lost by KO were come from way behind wins for Sam. Fulton did use his size well to beat him. Jeannette would be a cruiser today and McVey a small heavy ... again Langford was amazing, the way he destroyed Godfrey, but I feel the best big men would be asking too much ... I pick him over Dempsey, over Marciano, over Frazier all based on size and styles. I give him a hell of a shot with Louis as well. I like Johnson over him but the Johnson of the Burns fight only ... true prime Johnson ...However, the Ali's , the Holmes', Lewis, both Klitschko's , stylistically it is too much ...

 

"Ok-- I think the question we have to ask ourselves here is how much did Langford have left from 1914-1916? At these dates, Sam was in the 190's, sometimes 200 pounds and a veteran of at least 75+ fights."

Actually, Langford's first fight with Wills was about the 147th of his long career, I wouldn't be surprised to learn there were a few more unrecorded contests in there somewhere. He's right, Wills dominated the series between the two men. Still, I found it interesting that Wills was quoted as saying that Langford was the kind of fighter you wished you could be, but knew you never could be. He had a few great quotes about Sam. For example, saying the heaviest hits of anybody else he ever faced were like a slap in the face from a woman compared to one of Langford's blows, or that when he hit him in the body you kind of looked around half expecting his glove to be sticking out the other side of your body

 

he wouldn't have beaten neither foreman nor ali or holmes.
it is not because someone of them being greater it was just because he was really a 160/168 fighter , maybe even less who could allow himself to grow fat just because he couldn't find enough high-profile fights in his natural weight. he was about #1 p4p and an all-time top 4 at anywhere from 147 to 160 , and also a top 10 at 168,175 , but no 200+.