Background
Jack Johnson was born on March 31, 1878, in Galveston, Texas, United States. He was the son of Henry Johnson, a former slave and a school janitor, and his wife Tiny, who had six children, of whom Johnson was the third.
1900
Boxers Jack Johnson and Leroy Haynes training in the ring.
1908
Jack Johnson, the world heavyweight boxing champion, surrounded by pretty showgirls.
1910
Jack Johnson driving an automobile.
1910
Reno, Nevada, United States
Johnson and Jeffries fight in Reno.
1910
Jack Johnson
1910
Jack Johnson and others on board a ship.
1910
Jack Johnson
1910
Jack Johnson smiles while wearing a wool jacket outdoors.
1911
Jack Johnson
1912
Jack Johnson
1912
Portrait of boxing champ Jack Johnson dressed formally in hat and overcoat, seated and leaning on a walking stick.
1913
Jack Johnson embarking on a vessel with his wife.
1913
Jack Johnson
1915
Havana, Cuba
Jack Johnson, the world heavyweight titleholder since 1908, in action against Jess Willard in Havana, Cuba in 1915.
1915
Havana, Cuba
Jack Johnson, the world heavyweight titleholder since 1908, in action against Jess Willard in Havana, Cuba in 1915.
1915
Havana, Cuba
Jack Johnson, the world heavyweight titleholder since 1908, in action against Jess Willard in Havana, Cuba in 1915.
1920
Jack Johnson while training
1921
New York City, New York, United States
Jack Johnson rides through the crowd in Harlem.
1924
Jack Johnson with his wife
1928
Topeka, Kansas, United States
Former heavyweight champion Jack Johnson flashes his famous golden smile as he poses for a portrait on April 3, 1928, in Topeka, Kansas.
1931
Los Angeles, California, United States
Portrait of Jack Johnson introducing his fourth wife, the former Mrs. Irene Pineau, at the opening of his new nightclub.
1931
Los Angeles, California, United States
Jack Johnson standing with his fourth wife, Irene Pineau, at the opening of his nightclub, The Showboat, in Los Angeles.
1936
New York City, New York, United States
Jack Johnson, a professional boxer, in costume for his role in the play Aida at the Hippodrome Opera Company, New York.
1941
Paris, France
French referee Georges Carpentier intervenes during the bout between Jack Johnson and Frank Moran in Paris.
Portrait of American boxer, heavyweight champion and inventor Jack Johnson smoking a cigar, circa the 1930s.
Berlin, Germany
Jack Johnson, the world heavyweight champion, on a picnic with an unidentified party among orchard blossoms, Berlin, Germany, mid-1910s.
San Francisco, California, United States
Jack Johnson, the world heavyweight champion, grips an unidentified apparatus, San Francisco, California, the early 1910s.
Jack Johnson hauls wood on his shoulder, the early 1920s.
Jack Johnson picks up a log of wood, the early 1920s.
Portrait of American boxer Jack Johnson as he poses in a fighting stance, the 1900s.
Jack Johnson
Portrait of American boxer Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight boxing champion of the world, circa 1910.
American heavyweight boxer Jack Johnson in action sparring.
Galveston, Texas, United States
Jack Johnson Bronze Statue in Jack Johnson Park, Galveston.
(Jack Johnson: In the Ring and Out remains the key source ...)
Jack Johnson: In the Ring and Out remains the key source for information about his life.
https://www.amazon.com/Jack-Johnson-Ring-Out-ebook/dp/B073FR7HD5/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=Jack+Johnson+in+the+Ring+and+Out&qid=1603980180&sr=8-3
1927
(My Life and Battles is the translation of a memoir by Joh...)
My Life and Battles is the translation of a memoir by Johnson that was published in French in 1914, has never before been translated, and is virtually unknown. It covers Johnson's colorful life, both inside and outside the ring, up to and including his famous defeat of Jim Jeffries in Reno, Nevada, on July 4, 1910, in one of the iconic ring battles of the early twentieth century. In addition to the fights themselves, the memoir recounts, among many other things, Johnson's brief and amusing career as a local politician and provides portraits of some of the most famous boxers of the 1900-1915 era.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005X4IIF2/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2
2007
Jack Johnson was born on March 31, 1878, in Galveston, Texas, United States. He was the son of Henry Johnson, a former slave and a school janitor, and his wife Tiny, who had six children, of whom Johnson was the third.
Johnson lived a tough childhood and dropped out of school after receiving five or six years of elementary education. When he was only 12 years old Johnson determined to leave his hometown of Galveston, Texas, and see the world, especially New York City. But getting to the city was difficult. He jumped a freight train but was discovered, beaten, and thrown off the car. He jumped a boat, but ended up in Key West and worked as a fisherman. Finally, he hopped another freighter, worked as a cook on board, and reached New York. From there he went to Boston, where he worked in a stable, then hightailed it back to Galveston, where he became a dockworker at the age of 13.
After a series of street fights in Galveston, Johnson went to Dallas where he started to train as a boxer. Returning to Galveston, he began fighting his first series of bouts. After whipping a man named Pierson - known throughout Galveston as the toughest man in town - Johnson's reputation was firmly fixed. And he had a new nickname, one that he would carry throughout his life, "Lil' Arthur."
Johnson soon outgrew Galveston; he had fought every tough guy in town. So he traveled to Springfield, Illinois, and then to Chicago, fighting in hastily arranged bouts for food and lodging. He was 17 years old when he fought a man named "Klondike" and lost. Johnson claimed that despite the loss he decided he could make a living as a fighter. From Chicago, he went to New York by way of Pittsburgh, fighting all the while. Then it was back to Texas, across the South, and finally out to Denver where he traveled about with a group of other boxers, taking on all comers in all weight classes.
John became a professional boxer with a third-round knockout of Jim Rocks in 1897. Prizefighting was then illegal in Texas, so he left to seek bouts up north. After returning home a few years later, he fought the older, more experienced veteran Joe Choynski, a Polish Jewish immigrant, who had earlier earned a draw against James J. Jeffries, the undefeated heavyweight champion. Johnson was knocked out by Choynski on February 25, 1901, and both were locked up after the illegal bout was raided by the Texas Rangers. Incarcerated together for a month, Choynski taught Johnson the tricks of the boxing trade.
After his release from prison, Johnson once again left Texas and lived the life of a hobo, traversing the western states from 1901 to 1903. In Los Angeles on February 3, 1903, he beat "Denver Ed" Martin to capture the "colored" heavyweight crown via a twenty-round decision.
Back in Colorado, Johnson continued to fight while serving as camp cook for the traveling stable of boxers. Eventually, he moved west, won the world's light heavyweight championship from a boxer named George Gardiner and began to set his sights on the heavyweight championship of the world. That would prove to be an elusive goal. By the end of 1906, Johnson had fought in 56 official fights and lost only two. But no one would give him a shot at the title. To win the championship, he had to defeat the reigning champ, Tommy Burns, so Johnson began a two-year quest to get that match.
Johnson fought in Australia and England and began to generate a worldwide following. The press began to criticize Burns for avoiding Johnson. Finally, the fight was set for December 26, 1908, in Sydney, Australia. Thirty thousand people attended the bout; the purse was $35,000, of which only $5,000 went to Johnson. In another concession to get the bout underway, Johnson had to agree to let Burns's manager referee the fight. Even under that manifestly unfair condition, Johnson won; the police stopped the fight in the 14th round and Johnson was declared champ.
Thus began the era of the "Great White Hope," the name given to the white man who could take the championship belt away from Johnson. Johnson wrote that he "regretted" the racial aspect of the search for a new contender but that he was willing to take on anyone, no matter their color. While the search went on, Johnson fought a few minor bouts and engaged in his second career: that of music hall performer. Throughout his professional life, Johnson was booked on the vaudeville and lecture circuit, singing and dancing, telling stories, and giving boxing exhibitions. He performed across the United States and in Europe.
But the life of the stage was not what the public expected of Johnson. They expected him to fight and a good number of them, especially whites upset with Johnson's rich living style and his dating of white women, expected him to be "put in his place" by a white fighter. The ultimate White Hope was Jim Jeffries, the retired heavyweight champ. When Jeffries retired he had anointed Burns as his replacement. With Burns thoroughly beaten by Johnson, the pressure was on Jeffries to come out of retirement and defend the title and his race.
Finally, Jeffries agreed to come out of retirement. The fight was originally set for California, but the governor there intervened and banned the match. The match was then set for Reno, Nevada, on July 4, 1910. When they climbed into the ring, the 32-year-old Johnson was a trim 208 pounds, while the 35-year-old Jeffries weighed 230 pounds. At 2:45 pm the fight began in front of tens of thousands of people who had gathered under the hot sun. The fight itself was, by all accounts, a great one. Jeffries was known for his famous crouch, a bent-over way of boxing. But Johnson neutralized this strategy quickly and landed numerous blows to Jeffries's face. He also taunted the ex-champ.
Johnson knocked Jeffries out in the 15th round. In doing so, he collected $60,000, as well as picture rights and bonuses that brought his total take to $120,000, a good-sized sum in those days.
After the win, John took to the road to fulfill theatrical contracts, and when he had made some good money doing that, he traveled to London and Paris with his wife, Etta Duryea.
When Johnson returned to the United States, he opened a cabaret in Chicago. All races were welcome in his club. After nearly one year in Chicago, in September of 1912, Johnson's wife Etta committed suicide. It was a great blow to the champ and his interest in boxing and business waned.
Two months later Johnson faced an even greater personal challenge. He was arrested for violating the Mann Act, the statute prohibiting the transportation of women across state lines for unlawful purposes. The woman in question was Belle Schreiber, an old acquaintance of Johnson's. The problem with the charge is that Johnson and Schreiber were an item before the Mann Act became law in June of 1910.
That did not stop the courts from finding Johnson guilty in May of 1913, nor did it keep the judge from imposing a sentence of one year and one day in prison and a fine of $1,000. In the meantime, Johnson had married Lucille Cameron. When the verdict was handed down, Johnson arranged for himself and his wife to travel to Canada and from there to Paris. For the next seven years, Johnson was an exile from the United States, living in Europe, Mexico, and South America. His lifestyle overseas was lavish, and his exploits, including bullfighting, racing cars, performing on stage, and boxing, continued to receive worldwide attention.
On April 5, 1915, Johnson fought Jess Willard in Havana, Cuba. Willard won the bout and the championship from Johnson, but Johnson would always claim that he threw the fight. He said that he was promised that he could return to the United States and avoid his year-and-a-day jail term if he would give up the championship to Willard, the latest in a line of White Hopes. The fight ended with a knockout in the 26th round.
Whether fixed or fair, the bout cost Johnson the championship and did not end his exile. He wandered the globe for five more years before giving himself up to United States authorities in 1920. He served eight months in Leavenworth prison and became the physical director of the inmates, supervising track meets, baseball games, and fight training. When he was released from Leavenworth, Johnson was met at the prison gates by a marching band and a horde of friends.
By 1921, Johnson had ended his exile, paid his debt to society, and began a new series of theatrical engagements. In 1924, Johnson returned to boxing. He soon won a unanimous decision over a fighter named Homer Smith of Kalamazoo, Michigan. Two years later, at the age of 48, he beat a 24-year-old boxer named Pat Lester in Mexico.
In the years before his death, Johnson had lectured at Hubert's Museum on Forty Second Street in New York.
Johnson also earned considerable sums endorsing various products, including patent medicines. He wrote two memoirs of his life: Mes Combats in 1914 and Jack Johnson in the Ring and Out in 1927.
(My Life and Battles is the translation of a memoir by Joh...)
2007(Jack Johnson: In the Ring and Out remains the key source ...)
1927Jack Johnson rebelled against religion and was kicked out of church when he stated that God did not exist and that the church dominated people's lives.
Johnson came to believe that prison was good for the hardened criminal. But for the man who erred slightly in life, prison does nothing more than to arouse bitterness.
Quotations:
"I am astounded when I realize that there are few men in any period of the world's history, who have led a more varied or intense existence than I."
"I had demonstrated my strength, speed and skill, but still faced many obstacles, the principle one of which was the customary prejudice because of my race."
"A new champion had arrived and that new champion was Jack Johnson."
"I had attained my life's ambition. The little Galveston colored boy had defeated the world's champion boxer and, for the first and only time in history, a black man held one of the greatest honors which exist in the field of sports and athletics - an honor for which white men had contested many times and which they held as a dear and most desirable one. To me it was not a racial triumph, but there were those who were to take this view of the situation, and almost immediately a great hue and cry went up because a colored man was holding the championship."
"The search for the "white hope" not having been successful, prejudices were being piled up against me, and certain unfair persons, piqued because I was champion, decided if they could not get me one way they would another."
"There have been countless women in my life. They have participated in my triumphs and suffered with me in my moments of disappointment. They have inspired me to attainment and they have balked me; they have caused me joy and they have heaped misery upon me; they have been faithful to the utmost and they have been faithless; they have praised and loved me and they have hated and denounced me. Always, a woman has swayed me - sometimes many have demanded my attention at the same moment."
Handsome, successful, and personable, Johnson was known as much for his exploits outside of the ring as for his boxing skills. He made big money, spent it lavishly, and lived grandly. And in doing so he gained admirers and detractors all over the world and became, quite simply, one of the best-known men of the early twentieth century.
In his autobiography, Johnson wrote: "I have always been an ardent motorist."
Physical Characteristics:
Jack Johnson was 187 cm (6 ft 1.5 in) tall and weighed 93 kg (205 lb).
Johnson died in a car crash on United States Highway 1 near Franklinton, North Carolina.
In 1897 or 1898, Johnson married Mary Austin, the first of his four wives and the only African-American; they permanently separated in 1901 after she got tired of her husband's repeated marital infidelity.
In 1911, he married Etta Terry Duryea, a recently divorced Long Island socialite. Duryea subsequently was ostracized by her friends and suffered from depression; she committed suicide at Johnson's Chicago jazz club, the Café du Champions, in 1912.
When Johnson began to travel with Lucille Cameron, his eighteen-year-old private secretary, her mother leveled charges that he had abducted the young lady. The furor caused by the scandal resulted in his nightclub's loss of its liquor license and Johnson's indictment for violation of the Mann Act. While the charges were true in a technical sense, Cameron refused to corroborate them or to testify against her lover, and they married on December 4, 1912. Cameron divorced him in 1924 because of infidelity. The next year, Johnson married Irene Pineau. They were together until his death in 1946. Johnson had no children.