why did boxers like to change there names years ago?

...benny leonard (benjamin leiner) used to tell this story...when he came home one night after a match and he had a few bruises on his face he confessed to his father that he had been boxing. his father bawled him out...wanted him to stop...and then benny laid down the twenty-five dollars he had received for the fight, and his father picked it up and said "so..benjamiin....when will you be boxing again?"

 

Its a question from the ages...... 18th century fighters had aquired nicknames relating to occupation, local landmarks, physical flaws/attributes, race and standing in society.... I guess its just as the average person aquires a nick name in current society.. With the quantity of Jewish manages/ promoters in 1920`s - 50`s America, which encompassed the depression, WW2 and and European immigration, the American public was still in love with the all-american-man... Thus, many fighters changed their names in order to appeal to the 'average Joe'... clearly the bigger the fan base, the bigger the revenue....

 

Regarding Henry Armstrong, He changed his name from Jackson to Armstrong to cover his early tent fighting record, as he was paid to 'lay down' on many occasions.... it was actually Al Jolson who took interest in him, and passed him over to Eddie Mead to manage....