27 Facts About Hank Kaplan

Hank Kaplan was an American boxing historian and writer.

Hank Kaplan was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Jewish immigrant parents from Lithuania.

Hank Kaplan's father died of tuberculosis, when Kaplan was only 9 years of age, leaving his mother to raise four children on her own.

Hank Kaplan's mother struggled to make ends meet as a seamstress, but was forced to place the children in an orphanage at a young age.

Hank Kaplan spent much of his early years growing up in the Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York, known as the Academy.

Hank Kaplan was an active member of HOA and participated in annual events throughout his entire lifetime.

Hank Kaplan owned a business designing and sewing wedding gowns.

Hank Kaplan became interested in boxing beginning from his early years in Brooklyn, after he suffered a bloody nose in his childhood from a fight with another smaller child at Camp Wakitan in upstate New York.

Hank Kaplan had his first and only professional boxing fight as an adolescent in Bridgeport, Connecticut in the early 1940s, which he won.

Hank Kaplan joined the US Coast Guard in his early 20s, and served during World War II, as he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his idol at the time, Jack Dempsey.

Hank Kaplan spent time in the Coast Guard disinfecting ships, after learning skills about chemical warfare and how to prevent the spread of contamination.

Hank Kaplan was later assigned to work for the US Department of Public Health.

Hank Kaplan attended the University of Miami at night, while he continued to work during the day, inspecting ships for any signs of infectious contamination.

Hank Kaplan worked for the CDC until retirement, at age 55.

Hank Kaplan moved to Miami as a young adolescent, where he married his first wife.

Hank Kaplan spent many hours at the Fifth Street Gym in Miami Beach, where he first met Cassius Clay.

Hank Kaplan spent many hours at the Fifth Street Gym, with many of boxing's greatest legends from the 1950s.

Hank Kaplan later became the publicist for the Dundee brothers' fighters, who included Muhammad Ali.

Hank Kaplan was the founder and editor of Boxing Digest and served as a boxing consultant to various media outlets for many years, including ESPN, HBO and Showtime.

Hank Kaplan received the James J Walker Award for long and meritorious service to boxing from the Boxing Writers Association of America in 2002.

Many professional boxers had wished to nominate Kaplan for the Hall of Fame for years on end since Hank served on the Hall of Fame Nominating Committee, they were unable to nominate him.

Hank Kaplan refused to do so for years, stating he wanted to see others nominated before him.

Hank Kaplan married Sylvia in Florida, whom he was married to for 56 years, until her death.

Hank Kaplan's wife was known to invite many boxers into their home, often cooking for them and assisting them with any needs.

Hank Kaplan never sold any of his pieces of boxing history, despite their monetary value.

Hank Kaplan died on the morning of December 14,2007 at his home in Kendall, Florida, after a brief battle with cancer.

Hank Kaplan was survived by two daughters and a son, his brother, his sister, and four grandchildren.