When boxing hit its heyday in the sports world
(Editor’s note: Part six of a seven-part series about local, area, and state amateur and professional boxing.)
By RODNEY HATLE
Contributing Writer
Area sports pages in the winter of 1947-48 headlined Golden Gloves district tournaments that would culminate in Minneapolis for the Upper Midwest championships.
Reports were also about wrestling, basketball, hockey and others, along with enough baseball to keep the fans informed of the coming seasons: local and area as well as minor and major leagues.
Locally, it was the New Richland Red Sox of the Maple Valley League before joining others such as the Four County. Previous to World War II, the “Sox” had made the Southern Minnesota League playoffs twice. That league was now semi-pro and thus “expensive” with a membership which included the likes of Owatonna, Albert Lea, Austin, Faribault, Rochester, and Mankato.
Readers nowadays may be surprised to know that the University of Minnesota boxing team was then traveling to Nebraska with “three lettermen veterans of the 1947 team which ushered in boxing as an intercollegiate sport.”
Next to that on the page is a report that “Gus Lesnevich, the durable light-heavyweight champion ... was honored as the man who did the most for boxing in 1947.”The newest mass media, television, would replace radio’s domination and soon enough launched “The Friday Night Fights” for the 1948-49 primetime TV season. For a decade it became one of TV’s main advertising money-makers. It wore thin under the pressures of a grueling weekly schedule for audience and prize fighting profits.
Hollywood’s film industry and television’s drama writers were beginning to expose even more of the dark underside in the fight world – the gambling fixes with physical and moral abuses that were pushed onto pro boxing participants.
That would reach high points with “Requiem for a
Heavyweight” on TV and “The Harder They Fall” at movie theaters, both 1956 productions. ‘The former was also made into a 1962 movie.
These abuses had already been subjects for books and newspaper in-depth reporting. More of that was on the way to be a leveler. Boxing would became less popular.
Nevertheless, great boxers who were also gentlemen of the sport were the likes of a superbly skilled athlete Archie Moore and the historically renowned heavyweight Joe Louis, world champ from 1937 to ‘49.
Louis “helped elevate boxing from a decline ... by establishing a reputation as an honest, hardworking fighter at a time when the sport was dominated by gambling interests.”
Furthermore, Louis had “a cultural impact.” For example, he was “instrumental in integrating the game of golf, breaking the sport's color barrier in America by appearing under a sponsor's exemption in a PGA event in 1952.” (Joe Louis 1914-1981, The American Experience on PBS, 2004)
At the same time, along came Moore to maintain interest in the professional ring.
No vicarious experience with boxing is ever complete without a description of Moore, who was “the longest reigning light-heavyweight champion, 1952-62, [and] called the greatest pound-for-pound boxer of all time.” Before he died at age 84, having a 27-year record of 194-26-8 with 141 knockouts, Moore became “An important figure in the American black community [when] his days as a fighter were over.” He then showed another talent as “a successful character actor in television and film.” (BoxRec Boxing Records, 2015)
Healthy to the end of his life, Moore “was the ultimate role model, a great fighter, great teacher...”. (Associated Press obituary)
So in the years on either side of 1950, boxing was experiencing one of its best times. Predictions were that the public around New Richland, Owatonna, Faribault, and Northfield would buy a thousand tickets each of the three nights to see at least a dozen Golden Gloves elimination bouts at the Owatonna Armory.
After the Wednesday, Jan. 21, 1948, opening bouts, “Donoso, Ronglien Advance” was the sports page headline for the Owatonna Daily People’s Press. The two former boxing teammates as “State Schoolers” would win separately Saturday night in front of “950 at the Armory” downtown. They would fight for the District 17 welterweight title Wednesday, January 28.
Attendance predictions were accurate enough because that would increase by 400 in the finals.
“Donoso ... was required [on Saturday night] to go through two opponents to remain in competition. The 147-pound artist from New Richland was given a TKO in the second over Bob Duzbabek of Bethlehem [Academy], and later came back to outpoint Don Kenow, also of Faribault, in what easily was the best fight of the night.”
“...no more tickets will be sold than can accommodate a crowd with full vision of the rink [ring],” reported the People’s Press.
“Donoso [Wins] Before 1,330 ... In Golden Gloves...” was the concluding headline.
That number of “paying customers attended [the] thrill-packed” event. “At 7:20, forty minutes before fight time,” all seats were taken.
Raul Donoso, the new kid in the amateur game, would defeat Harvey Ronglien for a chance to continue his victories in Minneapolis.
(To be continued.)