1. James John Walker, known colloquially as Jimmy Walker and Beau James, was an American attorney, lyricist, and Democratic Party politician who served as the 97th mayor of New York City from 1926 until his resignation in 1932.
23 Facts About Jimmy Walker
1. 2.
Jimmy Walker was forced to resign during a corruption scandal in which he accepted large sums of money in exchange for municipal contracts.
3.
Jimmy Walker's father wanted him to become a lawyer and politician, but he decided that he would rather write songs and be involved in the music industry.
4.
Jimmy Walker entered politics in 1909 and subsequently passed the bar exam in 1912.
5.
Jimmy Walker was elegant and witty, but he was willing to take down his opponents with no mercy.
6.
Jimmy Walker was independent-minded and put the party's one-vote majority in 1923 in jeopardy.
7.
Jimmy Walker was a clothes horse: his valet packed 43 suits for his trip to Europe in August 1927.
8.
Smith was a staunch supporter since Jimmy Walker backed many social and cultural issues that were considered politically important, such as social welfare legislation, legalization of boxing, repeal of blue laws against Sunday baseball games, and condemning the Ku Klux Klan.
9.
Finally, Jimmy Walker himself had to be willing to change some of his more unscrupulous ways or at least provide a cover for his indiscretions.
10.
Jimmy Walker even managed to maintain the five-cent subway fare despite a threatened strike by the workers.
11.
Jimmy Walker's term was known for the proliferation of speakeasies during Prohibition.
12.
Since Jimmy Walker did not feel that drinking was a crime, he discouraged the police from enforcing Prohibition law or taking an active role unless it was to curb excessive violations or would prove to be newsworthy.
13.
Jimmy Walker's fortunes turned downward with the economy after the stock-market crash of 1929.
14.
Jimmy Walker endorsed Al Smith for the Democratic nomination during the 1932 presidential election.
15.
Jimmy Walker caused his own downfall by accepting large sums of money from businessmen looking for municipal contracts.
16.
Jimmy Walker informed the investigators that women were falsely arrested and accused of prostitution by the New York City Police Department.
17.
Jimmy Walker delayed any personal appearances until after Roosevelt's nomination was secured.
18.
Jimmy Walker went on a grand tour of Europe with Compton, his Ziegfeld girl.
19.
Jimmy Walker died on November 18,1946 at the age of 65 of a brain hemorrhage.
20.
Jimmy Walker was interred in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne, New York.
21.
When Jimmy Walker was a member of the New York State Senate, he sponsored the "Jimmy Walker Law" to legalize boxing in New York.
22.
Jimmy Walker was honored a number of times over the years by the boxing community.
23.
The film was based on a biography of Jimmy Walker, titled Beau James, written by Gene Fowler.