USS Arizona

Built at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Commissioned in 1916

Modernized in 1929-31 at the Norfolk Navy Yard

Bombed and Sunk on December 7, 1941 in Pearl Harbor, with the loss of over 1100 crewmen

reprinted from December 2011

When Boxing Was King

Although my fascination with boxing from the 1930's began with a family connection, was fed by a curiosity about the many Jewish boxers, the real hook is my love of black and white photography. Some of the best photographers of the era aimed their camera's at the ring during those years. Shown here is a boxing portrait of Izzy Jannazo. This tough welterweight fought the best, from Barney Ross to Sugar Ray Robinson. These photographs are from the Harry Winkler Collection, now housed at the University Library of Notre Dame.

Tony Chavez was the first New Mexican to fight for a title. He moved to Los Angeles to train for his lightweight title fight with Henry Armstrong. Harry Winkler assembled these amazing images while working as the Los Angeles correspondent for Ring Magazine.





Freddie Miller won 210 fights out of 250, between 1927 and 1940. This featherweight champ had two of his most famous fights with Abie Israel.

reprinted from July, 2010

Guns and Ammo

Yesterday, both Bernie O'Hare and I had posts about the shooting in South Bethlehem. Also yesterday, Paul Carpenter had a column on the same occurrence. Carpenter gave Morganelli credit for his courage using the term Culture concerning the shootout, but then batted the topic back and forth so much that he drew no conclusion. Carpenter wondered if Culture referred to young Hispanic males? Morganelli said no, just young in general. I think that Morganelli's Culture referred to young males in a lower social economic demographic, and assorted wannabes, exploring hipness. An extended comment section on O'Hare's blog revealed another culture, which I call Guns and Ammo. That's a reference to a popular magazine specializing on both those items. These are the 2nd Amendment advocates, the NRA members, and assorted gun right advocates. In that world when it comes to bullet caliber, bigger is much better. They have successfully lobbied for the right to carry in most states. The gun industry has responded with a large assortment of small light weight guns, designed for concealable carry, in high calibers. One middle class, self described liberal, anonymously stated that he carries a 45. Although he may feel that this caliber is necessary, and although he may be well trained in it's use, an unintended consequence is millions of lightweight, high caliber weapons in the hands of untrained, undisciplined people, with a chip on their shoulder and a hot head. Thirty high caliber shots were fired last weekend in the South Bethlehem gun battle.

$100 A Week

In 1935, a Jewish boy earning $35 a week carrying 300 pound blocks of ice, was offered three times more to fight; win, lose or draw. For one hundred dollars a week, Jock Whitney, British aristocrat and sportsman, owned Abe Simon. Abe won his first 14 fights, 12 by knockout. On his climb to fight Louis in 1941 he would knock out 27 opponents, including Jersey Joe Walcott.

reprinted from September 2009

You Don't Look Too Bad

Bernie Goetz told his subway attacker in 1984 that he doesn't look too bad, here's another, then shot him again. Bernie O'Hare tells the story of Teddy Roosevelt finishing a speech after he was shot. With the guns and ammunition in use now a days, neither of those things would happen. District Attorney Morganelli talks about the culture of the night people. The two weapons used in the Bethlehem shooting were a 40 and 45 caliber pistol. The 45 was invented during Teddy Roosevelt's time. It was designed to bring down a cavalry horse, not just the soldier. The Zombie Ammunition shown is not some fabrication to illustrate my point, it is an actual advertisement for hyper bullets by a major manufacturer. We have an arsenal of large caliber concealed weapons, filled with high velocity tissue and bone eating ammo, cruising our city streets. Who are the real zombies?

World War Ringside

Joe Louis had won his previous 23 fights, and was expected to do the same against Germany's Max Schmeling in June of 1936. Instead, the large crowd at Yankee Stadium saw the older Schmeling, a former World Champion, outscore Louis, and then knock him out in the 12th. Schmeling would go back to Hitler's Germany a national hero. Louis would go on to beat the Cinderella Man, James Braddock, for the World Championship. The stage was set for the most anticipated rematch in history. The famous 1938 fight, again at Yankee Stadium, was a sellout. Louis and Schmeling embodied everything about the pending war between the two countries. They were given pep talks by no less than Roosevelt and Hitler themselves. Louis carried the mantle for all Americans, but especially Black Americans, in the late 1930's. He would leave nobody down, by knocking out Schmeling in the first round.top photo of German toy produced between the first and second fights
bottom photo, one of three first round knockdowns in 1938 reprinted from March 2012