61 Facts About Jack Dempsey

Jack Dempsey pioneered the live broadcast of sporting events in general, and boxing matches in particular.

Jack Dempsey is ranked tenth on The Ring magazine's list of all-time heavyweights and seventh among its Top 100 Greatest Punchers, while in 1950 the Associated Press voted him as the greatest fighter of the past 50 years.

Jack Dempsey is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame, and was in the previous Boxing Hall of Fame.

The son of Mary Celia and Hiram Jack Dempsey, he was of part Irish ancestry and claimed to be partially Cherokee.

Jack Dempsey was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in 1903 following his eighth birthday, the "age of accountability", according to church doctrine.

Hiram Dempsey and his family returned to Logan County when Jack was a small boy where he was raised until shortly before commencement of his boxing career.

Jack Dempsey remained here until a young man, having been employed by the Gay Coal and Coke Company as late as 1913, and then went west alone to seek pugilistic fortune.

Jack Dempsey met Jack Kearns on the Pacific coast, from which point his spectacular climb to the pinnacle of the heavyweight division furnished the sport with one of its most romantic episodes.

Jack Dempsey spoke of Uncle Dyke Garrett and was pleasantly surprised to learn that he is still living.

Jack Dempsey was a daughter of Charles Smoot, who came to Logan from Boone County, and who lived and died up on Island Creek.

Jack Dempsey remembers the marriage of Hiram Dempsey and Cecilia Smoot, and recalls that the site on which the town of Holden now stands was sold by Hiram Dempsey to Mr Justice's father when the family decided to migrate westward.

Mrs Jack Dempsey spent six days in Logan, quartering at the Aracoma Hotel.

Jack Dempsey often fought under the pseudonym, "Kid Blackie", although during his stint in the Salt Lake City area, he went by "Young Jack Dempsey".

Jack Dempsey first competed as "Jack Dempsey" in the fall of 1914, in Cripple Creek, Colorado.

Jack Dempsey substituted his brother, still unknown in Eastern Colorado, as "Jack Dempsey".

Jack Dempsey followed his loss against Downey with a knockout win and two draws versus Johnny Sudenberg in Nevada.

Jack Dempsey beat Smith for the third time on a second-round knockout.

Jack Dempsey further asserted that the object appears to be removed by someone from Dempsey's corner.

Jack Dempsey did not defend his title until September 1920, with a fight against Billy Miske in Benton Harbor, Michigan.

Jack Dempsey's next defending fight was against French WW I hero Georges Carpentier, a fighter popular on both sides of the Atlantic.

Jack Dempsey ended up winning the match in the fourth round.

Jack Dempsey did not defend his title again until July 1923 against Tommy Gibbons in Shelby, Montana.

Jack Dempsey won the match as result of a 15-round decision.

The last successful title defense for Jack Dempsey was in September 1923 at New York City's Polo Grounds in Jack Dempsey vs Firpo.

Firpo was knocked down repeatedly by Jack Dempsey, yet continued to battle back, even knocking Jack Dempsey down twice.

Ultimately, Jack Dempsey beat Argentine contender Luis Angel Firpo with a second-round KO.

Jack Dempsey's heavyweight title-defending fights, exhibition fights, movies, and endorsements, made Jack Dempsey one of the richest athletes in the world, putting him on the cover of Time.

Jack Dempsey did not defend his title for three years following the Firpo fight.

Disagreement exists among boxing historians as to whether Jack Dempsey avoided Wills, though Jack Dempsey claimed he was willing to fight him.

In September 1926, Jack Dempsey fought the Irish American and former US Marine Gene Tunney in Philadelphia, a fighter who had only lost once in his career.

The match ended in an upset, with Jack Dempsey losing his title on points in 10 rounds.

Jack Dempsey was called upon to identify the bodies and was emotionally affected by the incident.

When Sharkey turned to the referee to complain, he left himself unprotected and Jack Dempsey crashed a left hook onto his foe's chin.

At the time of the knockout, Jack Dempsey was leading on the scorecards.

Jack Dempsey was losing the fight on points when in the seventh round he knocked Tunney down with a left hook to the chin then landed several more punches.

Jack Dempsey refused to immediately move to the neutral corner when instructed by the referee.

Jack Dempsey then attempted to finish Tunney off before the end of the round, but failed to do so.

Jack Dempsey retired from boxing following the Tunney rematch, but continued doing exhibition bouts with over one hundred matches between 1930 and 1931 alone.

In June 1932, he sponsored the "Ride of Champions" bucking horse event at Reno, Nevada with the "Jack Dempsey Trophy" going to legendary bronc rider Pete Knight.

In 1933, Dempsey was approached by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to portray a boxer in the film, The Prizefighter and the Lady, directed by W S Van Dyke and co-starring Myrna Loy.

Jack Dempsey portrayed himself in the role of referee of the climactic fight between Max Baer and Primo Carnera, a fictional battle that foreshadowed their actual championship bout only a year later.

Jack Dempsey attempted a boxing comeback in 1940 at the age of 45, setting a match against Cowboy Lutrell on July 1.

Jack Dempsey won two more exhibitions with early knockouts before deciding to call off the comeback and retire for good.

Jack Dempsey was a co-owner of the Howard Manor in Palm Springs, California.

Jack Dempsey married four times; his first two wives were Maxine Gates and Estelle Taylor.

Jack Dempsey divorced Taylor in 1931, and married Broadway singer and recent divorcee Hannah Williams in 1933.

Jack Dempsey then married Deanna Piatelli, remaining married to her until his death in 1983.

Jack Dempsey joined the New York State Guard and was given a commission as a first lieutenant, later resigning that commission to accept a commission as a lieutenant in the Coast Guard Reserve.

Jack Dempsey reported for duty in June 1942 at Coast Guard Training Station, Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, New York, where he was assigned as "Director of Physical Education".

Jack Dempsey was promoted to lieutenant commander in December 1942 and commander in March 1944.

Jack Dempsey was released from active duty in September 1945 and received an honorable discharge from the Coast Guard Reserve in 1952.

Jack Dempsey authored a book on boxing titled Championship Fighting: Explosive Punching and Aggressive Defense and published in 1950.

Dempsey made friends with former opponents Wills and Tunney after retirement, with Dempsey campaigning for Tunney's son, Democrat John V Tunney, when he successfully ran for the US Senate, from California.

Jack Dempsey was one of many boxers to attend the funeral of Feab S Williams, who boxed under the name of George Godfrey.

Jack Dempsey was an inaugural 1954 inductee to The Ring magazine's Boxing Hall of Fame, and was an inaugural 1990 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

In 1970, Jack Dempsey became part of the "charter class" in the Utah Sports Hall of Fame.

Jack Dempsey recounted an incident where he was assaulted while walking home at night, telling the press in 1971 that the two young muggers attempted to grab his arms, but he broke free and laid them both out cold on the sidewalk.

In 1977, in collaboration with his daughter Barbara Lynn, Jack Dempsey published his autobiography, titled Jack Dempsey.

In 2011, Jack Dempsey was posthumously inducted into the Irish American Hall of Fame.

On May 31,1983, Jack Dempsey died of heart failure at the age of 87 in New York City.

Jack Dempsey's body was buried at Southampton Cemetery in Southampton, New York.