New Britain herald., 1923-06-08
GIBBONS HAS MADE
BOXING HIS CAREER
Tommy Has Been IN Ring
Since He Was q Youngster

> Paul, June s.--Just shaut the
TINE most anxious fathers are feel
lhg CUT their sons 10 ascertain their
llierVoFk desires, a yeuHg man Of 81,
faul-"haFdlY mere than a kid," his
friends said-grlpped the lower rung
OF The ladder af pngilistie fame,
u was his selection for a life pre-
fesslen, and how well he has master
ed u will he demonstrated July 4 when
ne seeks 70 wFest the heavyweight
boxing crown from Jack Dempsey al
Shelby, Montana,
For the young man who decided on
fsueuffs as life work was Tommy
Gibbons Of ST. Paul, only . youth Of
u years when he answered the lure
OF the game Many haxers have gain
Cd their start In the ring through
their proves as rough and tumble
mixers, with science developed later
as a necessary requisite 20 greater
success,
Not SO with Tommy Gibbons II
was purely business proposition with
him, and he selected his career for the
same reason that many other young
men have entered less violent protes.
1ions II was the attraction OF more
money than he could make any other
way.
Path Beaten BY Brother.
Tommy's path had been beaten by
his brother. Mike Gibbons. FIVE years
his senior. whose boxing skin later
gained for him the sohriauef ofs"The
Phantom" II was the verhel Persua
sion OF MIX, coupled with his sue
cess al f>/ine. that decided Tom ~
II had left school and had gone "a
work for the Great Northern railway
here" he said in recounting his start
"of course. was only making a. little
money. no more than any kid Of that
age is likely 10 make.
"one day Mike came to me with a
proposition that I enter the ring. He
eaid he could pay me more than the
railroad company could. and as I had
watched with some envy the money
Mike was making, decided TO take
him up.
Mike was great teacher, and
from that time until very recent years
when Mixes eyes have been bother
ing him. he gave me thorough In
etruction. It Is to this. of course that
owe much OF whatever boxing abil-
ity I possess"
II was the luster cast over him by
his brothers success that took Tom
my into his first fght-informal quiet
affairs at a little athletic club the
young men maintained out In the GID
bons' neighborhood.
Expected Him To Re Fighter
''The fellows expected me to be a
fighter lust because Mike was" Tom
my said. land so they generally
matched me with the big fellows.
didn't have much to gain. for they all
expected me TO win my fights, but
had a lot to lose--at least. 1t seemed
a lot then-and so ! naturally fought
over my head as q rule"
The father of Mike and Tommy had
keen aversion to fighting. 1t was
oyer his strong protests that Mike en-
tered the game, but when the senior
Gibbons saw the remuneration tna'
might result from a single engage
ment, his opposition gradually van
,shed and had disappeared by the time
Tommy was ready for the pro1essloHa'
ring.
However, the senior Gibbons never
saw either one of his sons IN the ring
He died on the night that Tommy
fought Billy Miske in New York last
October: fight Tommy entered with
knowledge of his fathers serious III
ness. The bout terminated when Glib
bons fouled Miske.
Tommy was the youngest member
of the family and, he declares ma
t,lrally somewhat favorite'' He tells
with a. smile of the day ne and Nike
"framed" bout with their father as
me only spectator, This mixup ended
when Tommy knocked out Mike
He was glad to see the younger one
ret the best of it, the senior Glooons
said. after he saw Mike was not
seriously hurt.