JUNE 2005
Poem of the Month By Tom Smario
Cinderella Man
Book Excerpt by Mike DeLisa
Entertaining Fighters and Prospects By Adam
Pollack
Fatty Langtry: Pudgy Pugilist of the Past
By Robert Carson
John Klein: 19th-Century Trainer
Extraordinaire By Pete Ehrmann
Ring Leader By Ron Lipton
Incentives in Professional Boxing Contracts
By Rafael Tenorio
Fight Town
Book Excerpt by Tim Dahlberg
The Regulation of Boxing on Tribal
Lands: Towards a Pan-Indian Boxing Commission By James
Alexander
Spotlight on Cut Man Lenny DeJesus By Sam
Gregory
Dick Wipperman by Pete Ehrmann
Jack Johnson: The Dates, the Events, the Sources
by Stuart Templeton
Touching Gloves with... "Irish" Art Hafey by
Dan Hanley
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Last Time Around
Me and "The Bucket"
are working our last fight card
next week. Boxing's future
dances like two desperate lovers
in a dingy old bar minutes before
closing time. The jukebox
is tired, the music obsolete.
Only it's history overflows
with rich hallelujahs
Now I'm 55. I grew up
with black and white television.
In twenty-something years
I've made 246 trips to the corner.
America changed. The public
wants Shock & Awe. Joe Louis
couldn't hold their attention.
Now it's Ultimate Fighting
and Mixed Martial Arts
and believe me, these guys
are talented. Many are educated.
They sport the same tatoos
as the young rabid audience
and pierce body parts Joe Louis
didn't know he had.
"The Bucket" who is a hard-core
boxing pervert can't deny it.
He understands history.
Hell, he knew Davey Moore,
Janis Joplin and Jimmy Reed.
All dead, overflowing with history,
nevertheless. On the other hand
I never knew any of them. But
I know boxing. Now I'm
the Cutman for the great
Randy Couture.
--Tom Smario
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