Mushy Callahan was born Vincent Morris Scheer in Manhattan's Lower East Side.
28 Facts About Mushy Callahan
2.
Mushy Callahan's family moved to the heavily Jewish neighborhood of Boyle Heights District in Los Angeles from New York when he was two.
3.
Mushy Callahan was into amateur boxing by ten, and when he finally started professional boxing in 1924, four rounds were the limit in California, so his progress in gaining experience was limited.
4.
Mushy Callahan took the ring name of Mushy Callahan, discarding his more ethnic-sounding name, as most Jewish boxers did at the turn of the century.
5.
Mushy Callahan was nicknamed "Mushy" from his Hebrew name Moishe, or Moses.
6.
Mushy Callahan was a great counter puncher and possessed a fine defense.
7.
In 1925, when ten-round fights were legalized in California, Mushy Callahan ran through a number of opponents, including Russel LeRoy and Pal Moran, knocking both out in three rounds.
8.
Mushy Callahan fought Ace Hudkins to a draw in their first meeting on September 16,1925, in Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, and then defeated Hudkins in ten rounds on November 14,1925, in Vernon, California, despite having broken bones in both hands.
9.
On September 21,1926, Mushy Callahan fought Pinky Mitchell for Mitchell's World Light Welterweight crown.
10.
Nevertheless, Mushy Callahan beat Mitchell over ten rounds in Vernon, California, and won the title.
11.
Mushy Callahan defended his title again on May 31,1927, against Spug Myers at Wrigley Field in Chicago and then on May 28,1929, against Fred Mahan in Los Angeles.
12.
Mushy Callahan fought a variety of non-title fights from 1927 to 1929.
13.
On July 13,1927, Mushy Callahan lost a bout to Sergeant Sammy Baker by TKO in the ninth round.
14.
Baker had weighed in at 144 pounds, putting him four pounds over the junior welterweight limit, allowing Mushy Callahan to keep his title despite the loss.
15.
On July 24,1929, Mushy Callahan first fought British boxer Jack "Kid" Berg in a non-title fight.
16.
On February 18,1930, Mushy Callahan put his title on the line against "Kid" Berg at Royal Albert Hall in London, England.
17.
Mushy Callahan suffered injuries to his hands early in his career that contributed to his retirement.
18.
Shortly after his last fight, Mushy Callahan began to referee boxing matches, working more than 400 matches between December 1932 until November 1960.
19.
Mushy Callahan stayed close to the Los Angeles area as a referee, so he could pursue his career in the movie industry during this period.
20.
On October 9,1937, Mushy Callahan was scheduled to box in a benefit exhibition at Legion Stadium in Los Angeles for Wad Wadheim, a fight promoter who had suffered a stroke.
21.
Warner suggested Mushy Callahan come work for him once he retired from boxing.
22.
In 1933, Mushy Callahan took Warner up on the offer, and he was placed in charge of the Warner Bros.
23.
Mushy Callahan soon was tapped by studios to choreograph boxing scenes, including the original 1937 and Elvis's 1962 remake of Kid Galahad and the 1938 sequel The Kid Comes Back, and to train and condition actors.
24.
Mushy Callahan served as technical adviser on a number of films, include Warner's 1942 Gentleman Jim in which he did fight choreography, Warner's 1948 Whiplash, Columbia Pictures' 1948 Leather Gloves, and Ventura Pictures' 1957 The Crooked Circle.
25.
Mushy Callahan appeared in bit parts in at least a dozen films, most commonly as a referee.
26.
Mushy Callahan was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame posthumously in 1989.
27.
In 1934, Mushy Callahan married Leonora Summers, a former silent film actress, in Los Angeles.
28.
Mushy Callahan died in June 1986 following a long illness and was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.