Barney Nagler Award

Barry Nagler Award

Sport	Boxing
Awarded for	"Long and Meritorious Service"
Location	U.S.
Presented by	Boxing Writers Association of America
History
First award	1940
First winner	James J. Walker
Most recent	Brad Goodman

The Barney Nagler Award, previously known as the James J. Walker Memorial Award, has been conferred annually since 1940 by the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) for Long and Meritorious Service in Boxing. The award is named after sportswriter Barney Nagler.

History

First awarded in 1940, it was called the "Meritorious Service Award" until 1947. ^[1]

James J. Walker Award

Named for James J. Walker, the award previously honored the former New York City mayor and politician behind the Walker Law. ^[2] Walker was the first recipient of the organization's service award in 1940, which was renamed the James J. Walker Memorial Award after his passing in 1946. ^[3]

By 1965, the annual award had been presented to prominent boxing personalities like James A. Farley, Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney, Mickey Walker, and Jimmy Walker. ^[4]

Barney Nagler Award

The award was later renamed in honor of the late former BWAA president Barney Nagler. ^[5]

The award is presented alongside other BWAA honors at the annual awards dinner.

Past recipients

Source: ^[5]

1940s

• 1940 – James J. Walker
• 1941 – Gene Tunney
• 1943 – Nat Fleischer
• 1944 – John J. Phelan
• 1945 – James J. Johnston
• 1946 – Mike Jacobs
• 1947 – James A. Farley
• 1948 – Dan Morgan
• 1949 – Abe J. Greene

1950s

• 1950 – Wilbur Wood
• 1951 – Edward P.F. Eagan
• 1952 – George A. Barton
• 1953 – Dr. Vincent A. Nardiello
• 1954 – James J. Braddock
• 1955 – Harry Mendel
• 1956 – Frank Graham
• 1957 – Jack Dempsey
• 1958 – Sam Taub
• 1959 – Marv Jensen

1960s

• 1960 – Ned Brown
• 1961 – Dr. Alexander Schiff
• 1962 – Dr. Mal Stevens
• 1963 – Harry Markson
• 1964 – Mickey Walker
• 1965 – Jack Cuddy
• 1966 – Nat Fleischer
• 1967 – Joe Louis
• 1968 – John Condon
• 1969 – Murray Goodman

1970s

• 1970 – Don Dunphy
• 1971 – Teddy Brenner
• 1972 – Dr. Edwin Campbell
• 1973 – Barney Nagler
• 1974 – Bobby Gleason
• 1975 – Daniel M. Daniel
• 1976 – Duke Stefano
• 1977 – Chris Dundee
• 1978 – Ray Arcel, Freddie Brown
• 1979 – Bobby Goodman, Marvin Kohn

1980s

• 1980 – Nat Loubet
• 1981 – Bill Gallo
• 1982 – Eddie Futch
• 1983 – Tom Kenville
• 1984 – Muhammad Ali
• 1985 – Irving Rudd
• 1986 – Dick Young
• 1987 – Jack Fiske
• 1988 – Arthur Mercante
• 1989 – Marty Cohen

1990s

• 1990 – Jay Edson
• 1991 – Howard Albert
• 1992 – Ralph Citro
• 1993 – Lou Duva
• 1994 – Willie Pep
• 1995 – Floyd Patterson
• 1996 – Angelo Dundee
• 1997 – Mills Lane
• 1998 – Steve Acunto
• 1999 – Al Gavin, Bob Jackson, Russell Peltz

2000s

• 2000 – Gil Clancy
• 2001 – Don and Lorraine Chargin
• 2002 – Hank Kaplan
• 2003 – Jimmy Glenn
• 2004 – Marc Ratner
• 2005 – Teddy Blackburn
• 2006 – Larry Merchant
• 2007 – Nigel Collins
• 2008 – Steve Farhood
• 2009 – Jerry Izenberg

2010s

• 2010 – Jack Obermayer
• 2011 – Don Elbaum
• 2012 – Kathy Duva & Bruce Trampler
• 2013 – Bob Sheridan & Lee Samuels
• 2014 – Jack Hirsch
• 2015 – Bernard Fernandez
• 2016 – Bill Caplan
• 2017 – Dr. Margaret Goodman
• 2018 – Jim Lampley
• 2019 – Bob Canobbio

2020s

• 2020 – None
• 2021 – Michael Buffer
• 2022 – Ed Brophy
• 2023 – Gordon Hall
• 2024 – Brad Goodman

References

1. "James J. Walker Memorial Award". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
2. The Boxing Register: International Boxing Hall of Fame Official Record Book. McBooks Press. 1999. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
3. "ibhof: James J. Walker". ibhof.com. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
4. "Ex-Scribe Given Walker Award". The Raleigh Register. 1965. p. 12.
5. "Past Winners". bwaa.org. Retrieved 2025-04-20.