The Broadway Sporting Club was established and operated by John Weismantel, who served as president of the organization. [1] It was situated in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, at Halsey Street near Broadway and the Halsey Street station on the elevated rapid transit line. [2] [3]
Boxing
The Broadway Sporting Club debuted with its first boxing program on February 3, 1914. [2] The card featured Soldier Kearns and Sailor Fred Fritts as the inaugural main event in a ten-round bout officiated by referee Johnny Haukop. [4] Following a successful launch, the club went after major bouts justified by its modern equipment and capacity of over 3,000 seats. Weismantel viewed only Madison Square Garden as big enough to outbid him. [5]
The venue at Halsey Street, near Broadway, hosted many old-time boxing greats such as Kid Williams, Lew Tendler, Battling Levinsky, Eddie Martin, Jack Britton, and André Routis, among others. One of the biggest upsets at the arena was in April 1914, when world middleweight champion George Chip was defeated by Brownsville's Al McCoy, who struck early with a left hook and ended Chip's reign. [6]
The venue was briefly known as the Broadway Exhibition Association (or Broadway Association arena) during the early 1920s. [2]
From 1925 to 1929, promoter Ben Feinberg operated the "New" Broadway Arena, where he, along with various matchmakers including Tom McArdle and Andy Niederreiter, staged new talent shows. [7] Feinberg personally financed and supervised major upgrades to the venue, including the addition of a balcony, facilitating a name change, and expanding the venue's overall capacity to nearly 5,000. [8]
Tony Canzoneri, a future world champion, had his breakthrough at Broadway Arena in 1925. [7]
After Ben Feinberg lost Johnny Attell's services in 1928, Brooklyn's Tony Martello filled in as matchmaker, and he went on to have a successful season. [7] Martello was formally appointed matchmaker at Broadway Arena in March 1929, succeeding Johnny Attell, following financial losses experienced by Feinberg. [9]
The New York State Boxing Commission ordered the Broadway Arena's last show of the 1929 season's first half to take place on May 13, 1929, before suspending Feinberg's arena indefinitely for unsanitary conditions and lack of floorwalkers. [10]
In 1935, the Broadway Arena was taken over by new owners who renovated and repainted the facility, setting October 1, 1935, as the reopening date. The month before, Max Joss, a Williamsburg man who had pioneered National Guard boxing, took over matchmaking duties at the arena. [6] Joss went on to operate the arena for 17 years. [11]
Abe Yager worked as press agent and promoted the club's shows for 15 years. [12]
Max Joss withdrew in 1951 under pressure from television's impact on boxing shows. [11] Moe Fleischer became matchmaker and promoter in October 1951 and briefly reopened the venue without television revenue, confident that strong matchups and the right pricing would appeal to boxing fans. [13]
