St. Paul recorder., 1960-12-30
Negro Boxers Are
Chief Victims Of
RING Rockefeerinu
By Charles j. Livingston

/ Ring Rockefeerinq
By Charles j. Livingston
AS the Senate probe into rack
eteering and gangster control of
boxing continues, 1t becomes more
and more evident that Negro pug
lists have been and continue to
be the most misused, abused, ex-
plotted and neglected persons in
the fight-for-pay business. 1t
seems logical, therefore, that Sen.
Estes Kefauver and his Antitrust
and Monopoly Subcommittee prob
ers should turn their attention to
this neglected phase Of the game.
By its very nature, boxing, from
its inception, has been cruel and
heartless sport. And Negro box
ers, from the greatest to the small
est, have always been vulnerable
to the pitfalls and constant evils
it poses. Now come disclosures of
racketeering, and again fighters
of color are prominently mentioned
among the victims.
Gibson Testifies
That was the situation as the
overwhelming probe continued in
the Senate chambers in Washing
ton last week. Several Negro per-
sonalities, including pugilists OF
the past and present, gave testi-
monies of the roles they were
forced to play in order to survive
in boxing.
These included testimony by
Truman Gibson, Jr., who as former
secretary and later president OF
the now dissolved International
Boxing Club, rose to the highest
rank ever held in boxing by any
member of his race. Gibson told
the committee that the IBC was
forced to deal with underworld ele-
ments and to dole out large sums
of money in order to continue to
function without interruptions, par
ticularly with regards to fulfilling
its television fight telecasts.
The payoffs, said Gibson, in the
testimony in which he named
names, at one time amounted to
$180,OOO, while other sums Of vary
ing amounts were made to under
cover managers.
Backing up Gibson's testimony
of the unwanted but necessary
undercover dealings, was James D.
Norris, the neutrality-suspicious.
who headed the promotional firm
while Gibson was its secretary.
Norris himself testified behind
closed doors, because it was feared
that a public hearing might jeop-
ardize his health. He has been
troubled with a heart ailment.
Jersey Joe ExplOdes
Others whose testimonies made
headlines were the No. heavy
weight contender Sonny Liston,
who reportedly Is handled under
cover by hoodlums; former champ
ion Jersey Joe Walcott, who denied
a claim by Gibson that imprisoned
underworld figure Frank Carlo
dictated the terms for Walcott's
1852 rematch with Rocky Mar
ciano;, former lightweight champ
ion Ike Williams, who told of being
tempted with bribes totaling as
high as S1sO,O0O; Jake Lamotta,
and several others.
Lamotta, one Of the first to testi-
fly, said he was paid to throw a
fight with blackjack" Billy Fox,
a headline-making slugger. several
years ago. Fox is now living in a
mental institution and Is not stable
enough to answer Lamotta-
Nothing New
Control of boxers and managers,
however terrible 1t looks now, Is
nothing new In boxing. The late
Mike Jacobs reportedly loaned
former champion Joe Louis sums
as high as 100000 and had the
Brown Bomber" at his finger
tips, financially. Jacobs also con-
trolled several other Negro fight
ers, including "Hammering'' Henry
Armstrong and ex-nghtweight
champion Beau Jack. Ironically,
Jacobs was able to get away with
it," while the IBC ran into mon
opoly charges and was ordered dis
solved. Why?
The difference Is that the IBC
operated under widely different
circumstances. Jacobs had only to
concentrate on filling the arenas
and cashing in on radio and movie
rights. However. the IBC had an
ironclad television contract and
had to deliver fighters for two
fights a week on coast-to-coast
television. This means the IBC
had to find some way to not only
finance the live promotion, but