The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-12-06
By HARRY 0BAYD0N MEA Sports EaitOg

New York, Dec. Dl-tNEAJ-IeA Rickafd was known throughout the world as . gambler, but took head. long risks with other peoples money.
 Although he had no wide fepus taticn as such, Michael Stratus Jas cots was b0xink's greatest gambler with his own mazufna.
 After building c sizable fortune by vending peanuts and chewing gum on ferry boats, operating conces- siofis on excursion boats and run ming the gafnttt of ticket-bgoking. cd when he became associated with Jacobs financial success skyroeket- Rickard.
 Rickafd knew little about box- office angles and ticket brokers. Jacobs educated him. As . team they were efninent1y successful.
 When Charles E. CoChrane and william A. Brady ran out on Rickard as partners i1 the Demp- sey-C Carpentier promotion. July q 1921, Jacobs raised the initial money required, financed the building of the arena on Jersey City's Boyles Thirty Acres with the advance seat sale. The bulk of the choice seats were sold ct tw0 and three times the box office value.
 It was not until Jan. 2l, 10e4, give years after Richards death, that Jacobs branched out on his own as a fuiI-f1edged promoter, and then he broke in by accident in doing e favor. T1ne New York Free Mi1k Fund for Babies could not make what it considered c fair financial arrangement with Madt- son Square Garden, % sports writers of newspaper sponsori1g it turned to Uncle Mike as c front man.
 Good StaTs
 Barney Ross and Billy PetTolle turned 10000 persons away from the Bronx Coliseum. and MIke Jacobs was on his way as a ring entrepeneur. He organized tne present 2Oth Century Sporting Club. The sports writers Damon Runyon. Bill Farnsworth and Ed Frayne were his partners for three years
 With the corporation committed to it's Madison Square Garoen Bowl in Queens, Jacobs tied up the New York ball parks.
 One of Uncle Mixes biggest gam bles was leasing the old New York HippodrOme on Sixth Avenue as q means of competing indoors with the Garden.
 Like Rickard, Jacobs real Of- flee was under his hat. Uncle Mike had the ready. No longer did a good fighter have to shop around for an advance. All he had to do was sign and he had ft. The more attractive cards f1ocked to the banner of the new promoter, and then out of the west came brand new fighter.
 The rtngworms were well fed up with the Schmelings. Sharkeys. Cameras, Baers and Braddocks. the line of Camembert factories that followed Gene Tunney. Here was a new and young face, q heavyweight who belted them ouf and was as honest as shiny dime.
 Jacobs was around Rickard long enough to know how to put on . show for anyone he wanted to tm- press. He filled . private car with New York's boxing writers to show them what Joe Louis looked Ike against Natei Brown at the Detroit Olympia. March a, 1888. and when the party returned to Manhattan. Jacobs had Louis signed contract In his pocket. and another boxing gold rush was on.
 All Set
 With the magnetic Brown Bomb CT under contract. Jacobs had box ing;s big business in the palm of his handbook. stock, barren ana gate receipts. -
 Another of his big gsmhles vas that the court would uphold the contract he had for James J. Hrad1 dock to fight Joe Louis for the championship at Chicagois Ccmmis- key Park, June a, 19s7. in face of the fact that the Cinderella Man ran out on similar agree ment made with the Garden and calling for him to tackle Max Schmeling.
 It was this bold stroke that