The manly art : bare-knuckle prize fighting in America

329 Pages·2010·25.18 MB·English

by  Gorn

THE MANLY ART

THE MANLY ART
Bare-Knuckle Prize Fighting in America
Updated Edition
J.
ELLiOlT GORN
CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS Ithaca and London
Copyright © 1986 by Cornell University
Afterword and Selected Bibliography copyright © 2010 by Cornell University
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or parts thereof,
must not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher.
For information, address Cornell University Press, Sage House, 512 East State Street,
Ithaca, New York 14850.
First published 1986 by Cornell University Press
Updated Edition first published 2010 by Cornell University Press
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gorn, Elliott J., 1951—
The Manly art.
Includes index.
1. Boxing—United States. 2 . Boxing—United States—Matches—History. I . Title
GV1125.G67 198 6 796.8'3O97 3 86-641 0
ISBN-13: 978-0-8014-7608-2 (pbk. : alk. paper)
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www.cornellpress.cornell.edu.
Paperback printing 1 0 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Frontispiece
lohn Lawrence Sullivan and Jake Kilrain battle for the championship on July 8, 1889, in
Richburg, Mississippi, the fight took seventy-five rounds lasting two hours and fifteen
minutes. From The Modern Gladiator (1892).
For Max Gorn , 1910-1979 ,
and Anne Franci s Gorn

Contents
Illustrations 9
Preface π
Prologue: The English Prize Ring 1 9
1. Hats in the Ring 3 4
"The Tremendous Man of Colour" 3 4
First Blood 3 6
Professors of Pugilism 4 7
Ideology and the Ring 5 6
2. The First American Champions 6 9
The Rise of "Yankee' Sullivan 6 9
The Battle of Hastings 7 3
"The Great $10,000 Match between Sullivan and Hyer" 8 1
3. Th e Age of Heroes 9 8
"The Good Time Coming" 9 8
The Era of John Morrissey 10 8
The Fate of Champions 12 3
4. Th e Meanings of Prize Fighting 12 9
Working-Class Culture in Antebellum Cities 12 9
Meaning in Mayhem 13 6
The Rites of Violence 14 4
CONTENTS
Triumph and Decline 14 8
"The Great Contest for the Championship of the World" 14 8
Civil Wars 15 9
". . . The Gangs Who Rage and Howl at the Ropes" 16 4
"Fight Like a Gentleman, You Son of a Bitch, If You Can" 17 9
The Rise of Sports 17 9
The Strenuous Life 18 5
Fighting Clerks, Boxing Brahmins, Vigorous Victorians 19 4
The End of the Bare-Knuckle Era 20 7
"My Name's John L. Sullivan and I Can Lick Any
Son-of-a-Bitch Alive" 20 7
The New Order 21 6
". . . Nigh New Orleans upon an Emerald Plain . . ." 22 7
"The Champion of All Champions" 23 7
Epilogue: The Manly Art 24 8
Afterword t o the Updated Edition 25 5
Notes 26 3
Selected Bibliograph y 31 3
Index 319
Illustrations
John L . Sullivan and Jake Kilrain battle for the
championship, Jul y 8, 188 9 frontis .
The second Crib-Molineaux fight , Septembe r 28, 181 1 2 1
"Gentleman" Joh n Jackson's sparrin g rooms, 182 1 2 5
"A visit to the fives court," London , 182 5 2 8
James "Deaf " Burke , champion of England, 1832-3 9 4 3
Sparring master William Fuller, 182 4 5 2
James "Yankee " Sulliva n and Tom Hyer 8 4
The great $10,000 match, February 7, 184 9 9 3
John Morrisse y an d Joh n C . Heena n 11 5
Morrissey battles Heenan, October 20, 185 8 11 9
John C. Heena n and Tom Sayers square off, Apri l 17 , i86 0 15 3
Climax of the Heenan-Sayers figh t 15 4
" 'Yankee Doodle' on his muscle" (cartoon ) 15 8
American Fistiana, cove r of the 187 3 edition 16 7
"The Slugger s of Nebraska" 17 5
Harry Hill's New York City Sporting House 18 4
"Education: I s there no middle course?" (cartoon) 18 6
Amateur boxing, New York Athletic Club, 189 0 (broadside) 19 0
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