The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-01
sdood Boxing Manager Essential
To Successful Ring Career
BY j. CORBETT.
Copyright 1918, BY King Features syndicate, Inc.)

ms best advice that can be given
younsster of the present day who
n aeeiaes to enter the professional ring
seems to be this:
II GET a. good manager.
the bygone days in boxing a
aaaiager was no so important an as
ast LOT a fghter. Pugillsm then had
not been commercialized to it's pres
sht point, Therefore, fighters with
81 even the most ordinary business abiIi-
- We're able to handle their own
ns successfully. But boxing now
naS reached a place where a shrewd
business man is vital to ighters' in
terests. The manager not onIv guides
ne destiny OF the fighter but
$50 Keeps A watch over the young
ster's training.
ana so II is of vital Importance for
every warrior in the ring to get a.
manager who. at one and the same
time, Is fair and honorable, has a
sood sound business mind. and who
= suraciently versed in physical Gull
Iure so as to advise the fighter in
.eiilsently with reference to train
ing.
h prize ring has produced many
stories OF how skiliful managers have
mace fortunes for fighters who seem
cd 10 nave only mediocre ability. One
or the best illustrations is the ca Sc
OF Dan Morgan. manager for Knock
out Brown, the lightweight. During
y nye year period Brown, never was
q champion and nevar a really won
oerfur fighter, earned $4,000. The
credit is due largely to the skillful
Rupiicity work performed nv Morgan.
fanny mad an agile brain; he had
susas; he figured that the public
wanted to hear something new con
csrsfng q fighter. SO Dan fed then
up with stories about Browns home
lite, celebrating on Browns kind
ness TO his mother and Browns abili-
~ as chef.
All of this human interest STUFF
concerning Brown had the effect OF
whetting the public appetite to see
MIN in action. As the result. when
ever he was billed TO ight a big house
was assured. And Danny, OF course,
xook advantage OF this b. forcing
promoters to come through" with
some very sixesbie purses. When
ever interest In Brown would lag.
Danny would think OF some new pub
ffsrfty scheme to keep his warrior in
the limelight. And because he al.
ways had move ideas. he succeeded.
Few men who have fought In the
lightweight ranks ever have COMES
more money than Freddie Welsh.
While he was champion he always
commanded huge purses. Harry
Pollok was the man behind" Be
fore the Brtton hooked up with the
former newspapers maj he rarely
got big money for his ring activities.
But Pollok. one OF the "Eo-get-'em"
wort. insisted upon big purses for
Welsh-and got them.
After welsh was through. Pollok
picked up Irish Patsy Cline. The
y~oungster had been fighting around
the Fast for some time almost un.
sloticed. The purses he had been re-
ceiying were small to an extreme.
Pollok. By his clever tactics. quickly
made Cline one OF the big drawing
cards among the lghtweights and
ever since then the little Irishman
has been drawing down big money
Tor his ring efforts.
Frank Moran came back from Eu-
rope along in 1915 and hardly q line
was printed about him. He had
rank fairiy high a few years before
In the heavyweight division. but af-
ter his defeat by Johnson had slipped
som from public view. Al that
tuncture. Ike Dorgan a former news
paper man. became Moran's man
sger. Immediately Moran began to
get considerable publicity. While a
dozen fighters were ciamorinR for "A
chance al Jim Coyey, Dorgan slipped
In and secured the match for Moran.
Then he began a new publicity cam
naiEn which helped TO draw an i'm
mense GROVE TO Madison Square Gar
den for the first meeting Of the two
giadiators.
Moran won that fight. 60 the sur
prise OF the boxing world. Then came
the clanor for another match OF the
two men. Different promoters made
bids. Moran, lacking real business
Ability. was for accepting the first
offers but Dorgan held off. He insist
ed upon a big percentage. Moran
was fearful that Dorgan's demands
were so high that they would scare
and In the end articles were signed
which made 1t possible for Moran to
collect close TO $4,000 as his end.
And then came the talk OF a WI
lard Moran match. The blond Pitts
burger was willing TO fight for almost
any amount An erer OF $40. 0oo
probablv would have caused him to
sign articles. II II IA not been for ]
Dorgan. But the latter. sensing the
such a fight and that the promoters
would offer big money. held off. In
the end ne secured something like
for Moran n a big per- /
|centage Of the profits in the movinS |
pictures that were exhibited In New !
York state. /
The wonderful handling by Billy !
|Cftson has been one OF the main fac
tors In the financial and fstic sue
|cess OF Benny Leonard. 1t was Glib
|son who gave Benny his first chance |
I'm a professional ring. Billy recog- /
|ntxea Leonard as n possible champion. /
$50 he tool him under his wing and |
brought him along gradually, He
kept a watchfui eve over the young
training and ali through the /
five years that Benny was working /
his way toward the top. he vas held I
In check by Gibson, The latter knew (
that many promising youngsters had j
ruined by moving them along 4
too fast. Gibson was careful to see
TO it that the advance OF Benny was {
gradual. When he figured h a Benny I
ready. he let him go. And Benny 1
today is lightweight champion of the 4
world.
Less tina a year ago Leonard I
climbed to the top of his division /
by knocking out Freddie Welsh. Since \
that ttuoa aha varnpxfar has earned n