Jack Johnson Full Documentary

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the13r
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Jack Johnson Full Documentary

Post by the13r »

Slippery Pete II
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Re: Jack Johnson Full Documentary

Post by Slippery Pete II »

I saw this documentary on PBS years ago and ordered the DVD immediately after seeing it.

IMO Johnson is the bridge between the real old school way of boxing to the present day. By that I mean he was a very athletic guy that could win in any way you could imagine. He also trash talked inside the ring not only to his opponent but to the opponents corner and fans at ringside.

Back then the clutching and grabbing was a regular, accepted part of the sport.

Fixed fights were also very much the norm. Mostly they would agree to make the fight go past 15 rounds because the fight would make more money at the theatres when it was replayed there. The longer it went, the more money the theatre owners made. So the fighters would agree to clutch and grab and hold back until they go well into the 15th-17th rounds. It was like PPV is (or was) but somewhat different. The fighters would get a percentage of the theatre profits.

Think of it this way: clubs that have concerts delay the closing band to as late as they possibly can to maximize the amount of drinks they sell. The longer you're there, the more sales a venue makes. Back in Jack Johnson's day, the longer a fight went, the longer the patron stayed, the more they spent.

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