 thumb|300px|willard in 1913 jess willard (december 29, 1881 â december 15, 1968) was a world heavyweight boxing champion known as the pottawatomie giant who knocked out jack johnson in april 1915 for the heavyweight title. he was known for his great strength and ability to absorb tremendous punishment, although today he is also known for his title loss to jack dempsey. willard held the championship for more than four years. today his reign is considered the 11th longest in the heavyweight division. he lost the title to jack dempsey in 1919 in one of the most severe beatings ever in a championship bout. willard was knocked down for the first time in his career during the first round and another six times before the round was over; he suffered broken ribs, shattered jaw, broken nose, four missing teeth, partial hearing loss in one ear along with numerous cuts and contusions.http://www.eastsideboxing.com/dempseyvswillard.html jess fought for two more rounds before retiring on his stool because of the injuries he received in the first round, relinquishing the title. at  and , willard was the tallest and the largest heavyweight champion in boxing history, until the  primo carnera won the title on june 29, 1933, and the  vitali klitschko won the wbc title in 2004 and the 7&nbsp;ft nikolai valuev won the wba title in 2005. ==boxing career== a working cowboy, willard did not begin boxing until he was 27 years old. despite his late start, he proved successful as a boxer, defeating top-ranked opponents to earn a chance to fight for the championship. willard said he started boxin
1881_births 1968_deaths American_boxers Boxers_from_Kansas Burials_at_Forest_Lawn_Memorial_Park_(Hollywood_Hills) Heavyweight_boxers International_Boxing_Hall_of_Fame_inductees People_from_Pottawatomie_County,_Kansas Vaudeville_performers World_boxing_champions World_heavyweight_boxing_champions