Detroit evening times., 1945-10-17
State Taxes
May Settle II
BY BOB MURPHY

BY BOB MURPHY
NEW YORK. Oct. 10 - Joe
Louis. the heavyweight champion
of the world, absolutely will hold
out for Detroit being the site OF
his meeting with Billy Conn next
June.
And, unless New York changes
its tax system on movie, tele-
vision and radio rights, Uncle
Mike Jacobs, promoter of the
Twentieth Century Sporting Club,
positively will NOT consider the
big town for the title match.
~ feel I owe more to Detroit
than any other town In tho
world" Louis told me shortly
after he had signed with Jacobs
for the Conn fight. This might
he my last fiEht, win or lose,
and I have asked Mike to put it
on in Detroit
This writer later cornered
Jacobs alone and put the question
10 him.
TAX ON GROSS
els all this balIyhOO or Is it
the Mccoy" we asked.
Uncle Michael clacked his IA
nous food grinders together sew
eral times and explained:
you see It's like this. When
General Phelan WAS chairman OF
tho boxing commission he got
an amendment put through on
che boxing rules that 5 per cent
OF the gross on all radio, tele-
vision and picture rights go to
tho state OF New York.
Now, I wouldn't squawk on
s Der cent OF the net. But 1 will
not try TO put on n heavyweight
title bout here under such cir
cumstances.
Louis has requested that the
hSht bo put on in Detroit, and
no Is entitled to some say
about this whole thing. After
all, he Is still the champion.
NO LEVY HERE
Another thing, there Is no
tar In Michigan on picture,
radio and televislon rights,
Michigan puts on a 10 per cent
admission tax for the state, but
when I staged the Louis-PastOr
fight out there / made n deal
whereby the state only took S
per cent.
eff 1 can mako this kind OF
deal again / feel now that the
fight will 20 TO Detroit"
Louis plans TO leave New York
today for the Pacific Coast. lie
will play a lot of golf and do a
lot of loafing.
Jacobs said he positively would
NOT allow either Louis or Conn
TO engage in warmup bouts be-
fore next June.
MIGHT HURT GATE
"Let them go in there the
same" he said. "The public is
ready for them and a bad show
ing by either in warmup bouts
would hurt the gate"
Jacobs estimated that around
10000 people could be put in
Briggs Stadium and the prices
would be scaled to do around three
million dollars.
Conn is expected 10 come 10
New York within the next two
days and sign for the bout.
Billy, it is understood, def
nitely will ask for more than the
usual challenger'S percentage OF
12h per cent. SO there may be
considerable jockeying back and
forth before final papers are
signed.
WHO BUT CONN?
Anyway, Uncle Mike and Billy
have a long time to really get
serious about it. Mike smiled yes
terday when he said TO reporters
Louis signed to meet any one
name. Maybe II won't he
Conn"
There came a chorus Of laugh
/ ter. Even Louis talks about no
one else but Billy and has stated
on many occasions Billy gets the
first crack at his title.
More than that, Conn is a close
personal friend OF Jacobs, and
those in the know say both Louis
and Conn have borrowed, so much
dough off Uncle Mike since they
donned uniforms that Ne would
have TO match them if ever he
hopes to balance the bookA
Conn weighed ia pounds when
he met Louis the last time. He
says he will weigh around 1S3
next June.