Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-03-23

spreading the word Of the
Harlem Glohetrotters' visit.
says the day OF the so-called
sucker" in sports Is over.
"Television is responsible"
said the 72-year-old veteran
with q l6-year-old's zest for
life. "It's made sports experts
Of everybody who knows how
to turn on the switch. Even
the ladies. who once thought
left hooks were found only on
dresses. recognize a good one
when they see a fighter use 1t.
And they know all about the
half-Nelson and hammerlocks
from watching their Tv
screen"
The small. grazing Walsh
says promoters know they can't
foist q grade-B attraction on
the public anymore under a
grade-A label. Television has
smartened up the fans. It's
made millions of armchair
strategists and Monday morn
ing quarterbacks.
Whats the first question
you hear the morning after a
TV fight?", he asked. why it's
either, What did you think Of
that decision?' or What did
you think of that fighter?'"
Walsh, a one-time partner Of
Jack Kearns, and himself the
manager of some top-fiight
battlers like Pal Moore in the
old days, says TVS one big
fault is that it has devoured the
top-quality entertainment in
one big gulp.
Take the theater before w.
he pointed out. IF you saw al
good act in your home town
you'd pass the word to a friend
in another city and he'd be sure |
to see it when the show got
there. A play or a skit was good |
for months on the road. Now
everybody sees it on TV and the |
entertainer has got to come up
with something new on his next
show.
ITS the same in sports, 81
Walsh continued. "Television
has exhausted the supply Of
good talent especially in box
ing. That's why we've got tol
import fighters from Europe. |
We aren't developing them fast
enough at home"
i i i
Some of the publicity man in
Walsh leaked out while he was
on boxing. He thinks the heavy
weight title match between
Champion Floyd Patterson and
Ingemar Johansson viii be a.
corking good one.
'It1l be the best interna-
tional fight since Jack Demp-
sey fought Georges Carpenter
at Boyle's Thirty Acres Tom
said, land ] predict that
Johansson will win"
That makes two who think |
the Swede can do it--Toil1 and
IngeImar. @
Speaking of Dempsey, Walsh |
still considers Jacks famed |
long count" fight with Gene |
Tunney at Chicago the greatest |
sports thrill he has experienced. |
1T was brains VS.. a rough, |
tough character that night.
he said. "And although Dave
Barry, the referee, has been
criticized for the long count,
he did exactly as Dempsey
asked him to do before the
fight.
Dempsey remembered the
criticism he received for stand
ing over Firpo when he was
down and mentioned it to
Barry. So when Barry said
that could be avoided by hay-
ing the man scoring a knock
down go to the farthest neu-
trail corner. Dempsey was all
for it."
Walsh had one thought in
particular that should interest
most newspaper publishers. and
that was that the sports pages
have become Americas aspirin.
People are sick and tired of
reading about the threat of
war, the hydrogen bomb, taxes
and crime, so they turn to the
sports pages for peace and
relaxation" Tom said. People
are turning more and more to
sports and religion. Church
attendance is up everywhere.
and so is sports attendance.
Why, do you know that there
are around 80 million bowlers
in the country? The Globe
trotters alone drew 1876, 700
fans in this country and over
4 million all over the world.
Sports is the balance wheel
and they're getting bigger all
the time ~
4 #x +
Some of us recognize the true
value of sports and, in this cat
egory, are Washington's golf
ers. who will honor golf writer's
Merrell Whittlesey of The Star
and Maury Fitzgerald of The
Post and Times-Herald at a
dinner at the Willard Hotel on
April IL. r. +..
Tom Carney of Manor, who,
with Martin Mccarthy of Co.
lumbia. is serving as co-chair-
man of the event. explained it
as simple gesture of apprecia-
ton for the two writers work
on behalf of the areas golfers.
Their work is unique. They
write a lot more detail about
Comedies Downs
Hood, but Trails