Career
O'Rourke boxed in his youth, but his primary talent was rowing. He began managing boxers in the late 1880s, finally getting the black bantamweight George Dixon in his stable in 1889. The bout ended in a draw, so O'Rourke and Dixon took their show on the road, eventually claiming the world championship in 1891, and the featherweight championship in 1892 in New Orleans in a rare (for the time) mixed-race bout, a tribute to O'Rourke's matchmaking abilities.
Walcott and Dixon are famous for traveling with O'Rourke in a "take on all comers" tour, where O'Rourke had his own, slightly smaller than usual, boxing ring for the bouts. The smaller ring gave his boxers an advantage, as both men were known for their straightforward style. Another well-known boxer of O'Rourke's is Sailor Tom Sharkey, who was managed by O'Rourke when he lost the heavyweight title bout with James J. Jeffries in 1889.
O'Rourke died after collapsing in Max Schmeling's dressing room prior to his bout with Joe Louis on June 19, 1936.