Johnny Dundee Appreciation Thread.

The only thing I've ever seen you "serious" about is trolling and trying to stir up controversy by making silly assertions. The sad part about it is there are still people who bite into it and waste pages and pages worth of brain cells chasing you on your happy little merry-go-round.

Hopefully they will all learn soon not to take your bait. As I have.

 

The world champion Dundee brothers (Vince and Joe) were Italian. Their last name was Lazzaro.

Having a Celtic surname was usually a smart business move back then because it meant more ticket sales. That's how a man named Andrew Chiariglione becomes Fireman Jim Flynn, Jose Perez becomes Battling Shaw and Ovila Chapdelaine becomes Jack Delaney.

 

Surf,one of Johnny Dundee's most talked about fight, was against a NY
battler named Willie Jackson whom my dad related info to me. In 335 bouts the rugged" rubber ball" Johnny Dundee was never KNOCKED OUT, but on Jan 15,1917 Johnny Dundee pulled one of his favorite tricks he often used..He would richochet like a rocket off the ropes into his bewildered opponent, which he did against willie Jacksons right hand, knocking Dundee cold like a frozen pancake..A great upset it was for sure as Dundee would never be flattened again in a career of 335 fights...

 

Nope! And he would go on to beat Jackson handily in subsequent fights if my memory serves me. Willie was no pushover, btw. :smoke

 

But how the italian-american fans viewed it back in the day ? They accepted that the italian-american fighters used non-italian names ? I mean, there was some type of critic among the italian-american community about these fighters using celtic surnames ?

 

Maybe, but nothing I've read. Drawing ticket buyers and making money was more important than political correctness back then .

Promoters had no problem marketing a fight as the "Mick" from the North side vs. the "Shine" from the South side or the "Wop" from the East vs. the "Polack" from the West. Money trumped all racial sensitivities.

 

"We fought so often I learned to speak Italian."

-- Benny Leonard (on Johnny Dundee)

 

And the ropes? No mention of good fighting off them ropes.

 

Did not know that about Fireman Flynn. Now I know Dempsey had a vulnerability to Italians. Marciano KO4. :yep