Evening star., 1942-11-21
Left Jabs Throughout
In obedience
To Pilot 5 Orders
Crowd Of 1881, Cote
OF $71,868 Are New
Tops for Feathers
by SID FEDER,


NEW YORK, Nov. 21.-No one did
. hand-stand in Madison Square
Gardens ring, but Willie Pep sue
ceeded Chalky Wright on the world
featherweight throne today strictly
ION his head"
Now, this is not to say that the
greatest crowd ever to see a feather
weight title tussle sat in on an
exhibition of gymnastics last night
But it was simply by fighting Wright
the only way the aging Los Angeles
Negro can be beaten-by using his
head all the way-that the Pep kid
is the new boss of the 127-pounders
today.
Willie is 20-year-old ex-boot-
black out of Hartford, who admits
ne hasn't been around long enough
to have read the entire book about
the beak-busting business. So Willie
calls his manager, Lou Viscusi Mr..
Brains" at all times, and it was only
by the battle plan Lou drew up that
the Hartford jumping-jack brought
the bauble back to Connecticut for
the first time since the hey-days
OF Kid Kaplan and Bat Battalino
IN the late 20s.
Pep Sticks to Left Jab.
To say Pep used his head all the
way Is not to imply that slippery
Willie had glove on his noggin
and worked it as third hand. In
TACT, about the only weapon he used,
with the exception of a dozen or so
right hands that he let 60 (probablv
by acciden) through the entire Is
rounds, was a half-punch, half-push
left jab that bounced off Chalkys
lace as If it owned it.
The Chalk, you know, is regarded
AS one of the smarter" fighters in
the business today. He's been around
so long he's acquainted with the
score all the way. and usually makes
young fellows fight just the way he
wants them to. But Viscusi has had
two tusslers tangle with Chalky be-
fore this, and knew somewhat more
than one-andone about Wrights
way OF doing business. So he told
Willie to just stick and move" and
for Is rounds Pep did just that.
He stuck with his jab from start
TO flnlsh, and he moved so much and
so often that some folks thought he
had borrowed the bicycle on which
Bob Pastor pedalled to escape Joe
Louis for 10 rounds few years back
Pep insisted this was not so. But,
at any rate, it befuddled the Chalk
Attendance Sets Record.
Now, this may not have made for
the bloddiest braWl in the book
rs a matter of fact. with Chalkv
missing and Willie back -pedalling
1t grew considerably boring at times
but it proved highly entertaining
to the crowd of 1881 who tossed
S71 ,868.70 into Mike Jacobs money
boxes. Several thousand of the boys
and girls were from Connecticut
and were seeing Willie home. These
totals, incidentally, went to make
up the all-time high turnout for
featherwelght fuss. out shining by
quite bit the s63,656 paid to see
Benny Bass and Tony Canzoneri
clout each other around IA wears
ago.
Yet, now that Willie has the
mpionship-this fight was his
54th straight victory in a two-year
professional career the feather
weight follies still are playing the
two-a-day circuit. For Pep still owns
only the half of the crown recog-
nized by New York States Athletic
Commission and its affiliates. Pitts
hurgh Jackie Wilson has the half
which has the National Boxing As
sociation blessing And there's no
immediate prospect for a shindig
to iron it out, for ViScuSi says Pep
has to be on hand for the parade
Hartford Is tossing in his honor to-
day, and then will have to rest up
from the effort.
Which probably was the best
laugh-getter of the night. unless YOU
want to argue about the conversa-
ton between Chalky and his trainer.
Harry Gordon. during the minutes
rest between the sixth and seventh
rounds.
"Chalky, there's more than $4,000
In the house" said Gordon.
No that" replied the Chalk,
makes mighty nice conversation.
Which shows Wright was very in
terested in the proceedings.