Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Best known for an economical, understated style that significantly influenced later 20th-century writers, he is often romanticized for his adventurous lifestyle, and outspoken and blunt public image. Most of Hemingway's works were published between the mid-1920s and mid-1950s, including seven novels, six short-story collections and two non-fiction works. His writings have become classics of American literature; he was awarded the 1954 Nobel Prize in Literature, while three of his novels, four short-story collections and three nonfiction works were published posthumously.
Charles L. "Sonny" Liston, nicknamed "The Big Bear", was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. A dominant contender of his era, he became the undisputed world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round, repeating the knockout the following year in defense of the title; in the latter fight he also became the inaugural WBC heavyweight champion. Often regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time, Liston was particularly known for his immense strength, formidable jab, long reach, toughness, and is widely regarded as the most intimidating man in the history of the sport.
Stanisław Kiecal, better known in the boxing world as Stanley Ketchel, was an American professional boxer who became one of the greatest World Middleweight Champions in history. He was nicknamed "The Michigan Assassin." He was murdered at a ranch in Conway, Missouri, at the age of 24.
Samuel Edgar Langford was a Black Canadian boxing standout of the early part of the 20th century. Called the "Greatest Fighter Nobody Knows", by ESPN, Langford is considered by many boxing historians to be one of the greatest fighters of all time. Originally from Weymouth Falls, a small community in Nova Scotia, he was known as "the Boston Bonecrusher", "the Boston Terror", and his most famous nickname, "the Boston Tar Baby". Langford stood 5 ft 6+1⁄2 in (1.69 m) and weighed 185 lb (84 kg) in his prime. He fought from lightweight to heavyweight and defeated many world champions and legends of the time in each weight class. Considered a devastating puncher even at heavyweight, Langford was rated No. 2 by The Ring on their list of "100 greatest punchers of all time". One boxing historian described Langford as "experienced as a heavyweight James Toney with the punching power of Mike Tyson".
James Jackson Jeffries was an American professional boxer and world heavyweight champion.
The two fights between Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston for boxing's World Heavyweight Championship were among the most controversial fights in the sport's history. Sports Illustrated magazine named their first meeting, the Liston–Clay fight, as the fourth greatest sports moment of the twentieth century.
"The Killers" is a short story by Ernest Hemingway, first published in Scribner's Magazine in 1927 and later republished in Men Without Women,Snows of Kilimanjaro, and The Nick Adams Stories. Set in 1920s Summit, Illinois, the story follows recurring Hemingway character Nick Adams as he has a run-in with a pair of hitmen, who are seeking to kill a boxer, in a local restaurant.
Joe Gans was an American professional boxer. Gans was rated the greatest lightweight boxer of all time by boxing historian and Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer. Known as the "Old Master," Gans became the first African-American world boxing champion of the 20th century, reigning continuously as world lightweight champion from 1902 to 1908, defending the title 15 times against 13 other boxers. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.
Joe Walcott, also known as Barbados Joe Walcott to distinguish him from the more recent American boxer known by the same name, was a Bajan professional boxer who reigned as the World Welterweight Champion from 1901 to 1906, becoming the first black man ever to capture the title. He was elected to The Ring Boxing Hall of Fame in 1955 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1991.
Louis Mbarick Fall, known as Battling Siki, was a Senegalese light heavyweight boxer born in Senegal who fought from 1912 to 1925, and briefly reigned as the World light heavyweight champion after knocking out Georges Carpentier.
Jack Britton was an American boxer who was the first three-time world welterweight boxing champion. Born William J. Breslin in Clinton, New York, his professional career lasted for 25 years beginning in 1905. He holds the world record for the number of title bouts fought in a career with 37, many against his arch-rival Ted "Kid" Lewis, against whom he fought 20 times. Statistical boxing website BoxRec lists Britton as the No. 6 ranked welterweight of all time while The Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer placed him at No. 3. He was inducted into the Ring Magazine Hall of Fame in 1960 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame as a first-class member in 1990.
The Harder They Fall is a 1956 American boxing film noir directed by Mark Robson, produced and written by Philip Yordan, based on Budd Schulberg's 1947 novel. It was Humphrey Bogart's final film role. It received an Oscar nomination for Best Cinematography, Black and White, for Burnett Guffey at the 29th Academy Awards.
The Prizefighter and the Lady is a 1933 pre-Code Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer romance film starring Myrna Loy and the professional boxers Max Baer, Primo Carnera, and Jack Dempsey. The film was adapted for the screen by John Lee Mahin and John Meehan from a story by Frances Marion. Marion was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Story.
Joseph "Jack" Doyle, known as "the Gorgeous Gael", was an Irish boxer, professional wrestler, actor, and a tenor. He was born Joseph Doyle but changed his name to Jack when starting his professional career. Considered a boxing prodigy in his youth, Doyle was a contender for the British Boxing Heavyweight Championship. However, his promising boxing career was destroyed by the emergence of his alcoholism, which he would continue to battle with for the rest of his life. In the early to mid-1930s he would attempt to launch both singing and acting careers, but was pulled back into the world of boxing only to be humiliated in a number of first-round knockouts. In the 1950s Doyle turned his hand to professional wrestling, playing up to his former "Gorgeous Gael" moniker with a character inspired by Gorgeous George.
Paul John "Frankie" Carbo was an Italian-American New York City Mafia soldier in the Lucchese crime family who operated as a gunman with Murder, Inc. before transitioning into one of the most powerful promoters in professional boxing.
Ted "Kid" Lewis was an English-Jewish professional boxer who twice won the World Welterweight Championship. Lewis is often ranked among the all-time greats, with ESPN ranking him 41st on their list of the 50 Greatest Boxers of All-Time and boxing historian Bert Sugar placing him 46th in his Top 100 Fighters catalogue. Statistical boxing website BoxRec ranks Lewis as the 17th best welterweight of all-time and the 7th best UK boxer ever. He is a member of the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, the Ring Magazine Hall of Fame, and the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Joe Baksi was an American boxer and top heavyweight contender. He defeated fighters such as Tami Mauriello, Lee Savold, Lou Nova, and Freddie Mills, while losing decisions to Jersey Joe Walcott and Ezzard Charles.
Dateline: Toronto is a collection of most of the stories that Ernest Hemingway wrote as a stringer and later staff writer and foreign correspondent for the Toronto Star between 1920 and 1924. The stories were written while he was in his early 20s before he became well-known, and show his development as a writer. The collection was edited by William White, a professor of English literature and journalism at Wayne State University, and a regular contributor to The Hemingway Review.
Rube Ferns was an American boxer of the early 20th century. Nicknamed "The Kansas Rube", he held the World Welterweight Championship in 1900 and 1901. He was formidable and scrappy with a good punch.
Today is Friday is a short, one act play by Ernest Hemingway. The play was first published in pamphlet form in 1926 but became more widely known through its subsequent publication in Hemingway's 1927 short story collection, Men Without Women. The play is a representation of the aftermath of the crucifixion of Jesus, in the form of a conversation between three Roman Soldiers and a Hebrew bartender. It is one of the few dramatic works written by Hemingway.
