The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-09-02
FIGHTERS GROW
 MORE COM MERCIAL
HOW MOVING PICTURES DELAY START-WOULD J. L. SULLIVAN HOLD HIS BLOW FOR DOLLAR IN THE FUTURE MARKET?
BY c. E. VAN LOAN.

Los Angeles. Cal. September 1.-The Cans Britt fight will not lack the custom ary commercial flavor which accompanies all championship battles nowadays. It will be a daylight fight, which means more moving pictures, and unlses the photographers fail for the first time. the country will soon e curried for stray halvse and quarters. and from Maine to Oklahoma the sports will have a chance to see how 1t happened and quarrel about it afterwards.
 Ten years ago, at Carson City. the moving picture machine was introduced to the fighting game, and they have been keeping company ever since. A good set of films of an important light means Il fortune for the triple alliance which di- vides the profits.
 On the day of the Nelson Britt fight at Colma the fog was hanging low and there was no sun. The trouble over the selec- ton os the referee delayed tho fight for more than an hour, during which time Nelson stayed outside the inclosure. Jimmy Coffroth, the promoter of the project, sat on the edge of the ring and looked out over the great crowd. Ru- mors that there would be no fight ere ated ct tnsternation in press row, and one of the reporters, looking up at Coffroth, remarked:
 "Yoa seem worried Jim. Is there any thing in this story about Nolan refusing to let Nelson fight?'
 ] Coffroth grinned.
 "I am worried, but it's not about their
 fighting. They'll fight all right enough.
 It's this fog that scares me. If we get
 good films of this light today I've got something bigger than forty fights"
 Half an hour later Nelson was hooted
 into the ring and the picture men began turning their cranks. The fog did not lift, l but the pictures were perfect and Golf
 roth and the Britts got something big
 ber than forty fights" Nolan sold out l for s5000 and is still waiting for the
 money.
 With the chance of winning film all ways in view. it is certain that the pro l motors and the fighters will continue to 1 insert the moving picture clause in their i articles of agreement. The premier pu- l gilist of today is business man and 1 whatever he may lack he is never with 1 out Ills Keen dpprec11liOU or d | Whas would John l.. Sullivan have said l if they had asked him to caper for the
 moving pictures? John was one fighter l who loved his art for it's own sake and ! he would not have stayed his mighty
 right for all the moving picture privileges 1 in Chrstendom. But the fighter of the ] present day is. as Jack O'Brien once re-
 marked "a commercial man.
 j! Coming. Comlng Marvellous moving i pictures of the battle of the century. But after all there is one good thing about the moving pictures of a battle. A
 man can see anything that his little heart
 desires and after the film has been rolled he can talk as much as the next man. i, number of eastern critics who were i from POGO to 5000 miles away from Gold field on that memorable afternoon last i September looked at the moving pictures
 and saw plainly that Nelson gave Cans i a terrible beating. Odd. isn't Is? September is not very far off and 1 the surprising thing about the approach
 ing contest is the great number of Brit; supporters. Jimmy Is stronger In his
 home town than ever before. Of course the Nelson fight made him a popular ido and the unmerciful beating which he gave the Durable One may have con vinced some of the western sports that Britt could win from Cans.