Despite delays, the rematch between Jack and Montgomery was destined to occur. It finally transpired at Madison Square Garden on November 19, 1943. There was no training camp in the mountains this time for Beau. Chick made sure Beau trained at his usual spot, Stillman’s Gym. Following preliminary training in Philadelphia, Bob Montgomery completed his fight preparations alongside Beau at Stillman’s.
Pugilists appeared perplexed as to Beau’s chances. In his last fight, he was upset by Bobby Ruffin. Was Beau’s mysteriously injured knee to blame? Had Beau just been the recipient of good fortune in their first match? Time would tell. Recent X-rays of Beau’s right knee suggested that his knee was fully recovered. Three days before the fight, Chick Wergeles announced that Beau was doing road work for the first time in seven months. He also boasted, “The kid’s never been in better shape … a ‘horstopath’ has fixed his knee.”1
Sportswriter Wendell Smith was invited to ride around with Jack and Larry Amadee in their taxi following Beau’s official weigh-in the morning of the fight. Both Beau and Amadee were in excellent spirits. Smith wrote of his conversation with boxer and trainer.
“Beau will win back his title tonight,” Larry assured me. “He’s in great shape. His bad knee is all right and you’ll see a different Beau Jack in there tonight.”
The challenger was sitting beside Larry munching on a big apple. In his lap was a bag full of pears. He offered me one and I took it.
“They say an apple a day will keep the doctor away,” Beau Jack said. “So I’m gonna’ eat a lot of ’em today.”
“If apples keep the doctor away,” I asked, “what will the pears do?”
“They’ll keep Bob Montgomery away,” Beau said with a hearty laugh.2
Amadee then pulled out a thermos full of beef broth. He explained that he gave it to Beau to drink about every half hour. Beau took it all in stride. His mind wandered from the fight as he looked out the window up at a cloudless sky, remarking that it was a beautiful day to play golf.
Several hours before the rematch, Chick took Beau to dinner in Manhattan. Chick ordered them both two rare steaks. After they finished the steaks, he asked Beau what he would like for dessert. Beau said ice cream. Beau humorously described what happened next.
“You’re fighting tonight,” Chick said, “so you can have only a dish of ice cream.” Then he turned to the waiter, “Don’t bring him nothin’ fancy, just plain vanilla ice cream.”
“Yes, sir,” said the waiter, “and what are you having, sir?”
My eyes popped out when Chick replied:
“Bring me a double order of ice cream and two hunks of apple pie—I ain’t fightin’.”3
Chick wasn’t fighting so he splurged on dessert.
For the first time, Beau came into a fight as a significant underdog. Oddsmakers had Beau as a 4–1 underdog. Bob had defeated Beau seven months ago and was riding an 11-bout victory streak. Since his last battle with Beau, Monty had defeated Al Reasoner (11–7–2) by knockout, Frankie Wills (39–17–3) by unanimous decision, former welterweight champion Fritzie Zivic (130–36–6) by unanimous decision, and Petey Scalzo (90–14–6) by technical knockout. His upcoming fight with Beau, however, was his first title defense. At the official weigh-in, Montgomery weighed in one pound heavier than Beau, 133¾ pounds to 132¾ pounds.
Temperatures were in the thirties as a crowd of 17,866 jammed into the galleries at the Garden, producing a net gate of $96,873, slightly better than their last fight. With the night’s gate, Beau had now generated gates totaling near $600,000 in his previous eight Garden bouts. By the time the night’s five preliminary bouts ended, the fans were frenzied and eager to witness a brawl. The match was also broadcast by British radio so that U.S. servicemen overseas could listen to the fight commentary.
As the contest began, it was apparent that Beau’s new trainer Larry Amadee had him ready for the contest. Following Amadee’s instructions, Beau came out as a changed fighter, catching Philadelphia Bob off guard. Unlike the previous battle, Beau stuck close to Montgomery, landing short uppercuts and slugging him with rights and lefts when Referee Young Otto separated the two from clinches. Another technique Beau employed to surprise Monty was to come in low on Bob and strike him from a crouched position.
Beau won the first two rounds over the notoriously slow-starting Montgomery, connecting with a thunderous right overhand to Bob’s temple in the second. Montgomery began to warm up in the third round, staggering Beau with a right to his jaw. Beau rallied back in the fourth, slowing Montgomery down with a right to his chin followed by a stream of jabs and uppercuts.
Monty landed his best punches when Beau rose from his crouch. When Beau momentarily came out of his crouch in the fifth, Montgomery landed a magnificent right on his jaw, bludgeoning him into the ropes. Reeling from Bob’s stunning blow, a bewildered and glassy-eyed Beau somehow succeeded in tying Montgomery up in a clinch to avoid additional damage.
Bob Montgomery presses Beau Jack against the ropes in their second meeting, November 19, 1943, autographed by Jack and Montgomery (courtesy Bruce Kielty).
Remarkably, Beau mounted another rally to win the sixth and seventh rounds. He bashed Montgomery with left jabs. Jack was beating Bob at his own game—inside fighting. When the two were in close, Beau utilized an imposing inside attack, throwing body punches and uppercuts to the champion’s head. The “Georgia Wildcat” continued to vary his game, throwing a multitude of punches, including “over-hand punches, back-hand punches, hooks, bolo punches, chops and uppercuts.”4 Although Monty managed to rally and win the eighth, the ninth and tenth rounds belonged to Beau. In the ninth, Beau delivered the blow of the night. As the two fighters broke from a clinch, Jack cracked a thundering bolo uppercut on Montgomery’s chin. Staggering Bob, the blow bounced him into the ropes. With the deafening noise of the crowd and blood pouring from his mouth, Monty resorted to last defense, some crafty bobbing and weaving along the ropes to endure the round.
In the 10th round, Montgomery hurt Beau with a staggering right. Snatching the momentum, Bob turned up the pace, winning the next round. The 12th round was even, but Beau took the 13th, hurting the champion with a left hook to the abdomen. Bob rallied in the 14th, hammering Beau with straight rights and stunning him with a one-two combination. Then Monty hurled a savage right on the challenger’s jaw, transforming Beau’s legs into rubber. Bob appeared to be on the verge of a knockout victory, but Beau, with a chin of steel, refused to go down. Even though both fighters tried to close strong, the final round was scored even.
At the end of the grueling 15-round melee, both men were bloodied, bleeding from the nose and mouth. Although there were no knockdowns, each man staggered the other on several occasions with thunderous blows. The decision went to the scorecards. The two judges, Bill Healy and Joe Agnello, gave Beau 10 rounds, whereas Referee Young Otto gave Beau seven rounds, Montgomery six and called the other two even.
Six months after losing the title, Beau earned a unanimous decision regaining his crown over the man who had dethroned him. It was only the second time in history that a lightweight had taken back the title from the same man who ousted him. Lou Ambers previously accomplished the task when he defeated Henry Armstrong after Henry took the title from him.
In a colossal upset, Jack was once again the lightweight king of the world. Fans and experts were surprised by his speed, stamina, and persistent attack. The champ, now former champ, had also been baffled. Fighting a savvy fight, Jack exhibited footwork like never before. Giving his new trainer Larry Amadee the credit, Beau praised him, saying, “I did just what Larry told me.”5 Larry Amadee had now trained his fourth champion.
Throngs of newspapermen gathered in Beau’s dressing room after the fight. It was a madhouse. A handsome man in a blue pinstriped suit appeared in the crowd, determined to shake the champ’s hand. It was none other than movie star Humphrey Bogart, and he didn’t just shake Beau’s hand. He gave him a big hug. Beau also received another present—Chick Wergeles’ 12-cylinder sedan with white-wall tires, worth $2,400. Chick promised Beau his car if he beat Montgomery in the rematch.
Even though Beau was once again the New York lightweight world champion, the lightweight title was still in disarray between the two major sanctioning bodies. The NYSAC recognized Beau Jack as the lightweight champion, whereas the NBA acknowledged Sammy Angott, even though Angott vacated the title when he temporarily retired.
As he did eight months earlier, Jack headed to St. Petersburg, Florida, for a weeklong vacation to visit his mother and sister. While in St. Petersburg, Beau relaxed by spearfishing in the Gulf. He also visited numerous classrooms at Davis Elementary School. Leaving Florida, he traveled to Augusta to visit other family members and friends.
Returning from vacation, Beau was tentatively scheduled to meet Bobby Ruffin again. Wergeles and Ruffin’s manager, Maurie Waxman, however, could not agree on terms. Although Chick had previously agreed to 30 percent of the gate, he now insisted on 40 percent. The two sides were at an impasse, so Mike Jacobs had to find Beau a different opponent. On December 21, 1943, Jacobs announced that he had lined up Jack’s next two fights. In his first match on January 7, Jack would meet Lulu Costantino in a nontitle contest. The second bout, on the other hand, would feature a January 27 non-title battle between Beau Jack and the NBA lightweight champion, Sammy Angott.
A day later, Mike Jacobs, on behalf of the Twentieth Century SC, released attendance and financial numbers for the 22 boxing shows promoted at the Garden thus far in 1943. Aggregate attendance was 322,512, with gross receipts of $1,136,228. Beau was easily the commanding box-office draw of the year. Gates from Jack’s six Garden bouts in 1943 drew $481,415, with attendance totaling 111,188. In other words, Jack’s bouts accounted for 35 percent of the year’s attendance and 42 percent of the overall gate. Jack also received the honor for the three largest gates. Beau’s bout with Henry Armstrong produced $104,976, the largest gate of the year. His November 19 bout against Bob Montgomery generated the second largest gate, $96,873, and Jack’s May 21 bout with Montgomery yielded $94,500, the third largest gate. Likewise, Jack drew the five largest crowds of the year. Jack dominated the year of 1943 at Madison Square Garden, procuring the largest gates and attendance.
Beau Defeats “Lulu” Costantino
It was time to kick off another year. In his first contest of 1944, Beau was matched in a ten-round non-title fight with Charley “Lulu” Costantino (1923–1981) of Queens, New York. Costantino boasted a professional record of 89 victories and only 6 losses. At 22 years of age, Lulu was quick, agile, had a good left hand, and was clever inside the ring. Although a light puncher, his speed and footwork made it difficult for his opponents to catch him. Costantino was a good scrapper but probably could have been even better if he hadn’t fought such a demanding schedule, averaging one match every two weeks for the last two years. To prepare for the bout, both athletes trained alongside each other at Stillman’s Gym. Standing at the same height, Beau had a three-pound weight advantage at 139 pounds. On fight night the oddsmakers had Beau as a 3–1 favorite.
Entering the Garden ring on January 7, the boxers were greeted by 14,878 thunderous fans who paid a gate of $43,161 to witness the contest. In the early rounds, Costantino, using his speed and agility, danced around Beau, landing left jabs while evading most of Beau’s punches. In the fifth round, Jack threw a wild right that missed Costantino and left Beau standing at the ropes, “looking dopily over the heads [of] the spectators with the grinning Lulu patiently waiting behind him.”6
Continuing to dance in reverse, Lulu avoided many of Beau’s punches. However, in the eighth round, Beau leaped in and connected a smashing hook to Costantino’s head. Then in the tenth round, when LuLu made the mistake of standing toe to toe with the champion, Beau landed a booming right to his jaw, knocking out a tooth.
At the end of the match, Referee Eddie Joseph implausibly scored the bout eight rounds to two for Costantino. Judges Marty Monroe and Bob Cunningham scored the fight five rounds for Beau, four rounds for Costantino, and one even. By a slim margin, Beau won a split decision. Most sportswriters present, on the other hand, thought Beau had won by a decisive margin. The United Press scorecard gave seven rounds to Beau, two for Costantino and one even. Chick Wergeles was so upset, he was screaming at Eddie Joseph, “we wuz robbed.” Enraged, Chick threatened to withdraw Beau from his upcoming bout with Sammy Angott unless the NYSAC assured Beau “protection.” Later, Wergeles disclosed it wasn’t Referee Joseph’s honesty that he was concerned about, it was his incompetence.
Because of his disparaging outburst, the NYSAC required Chick’s attendance before them on Tuesday, January 11. Somewhat surprisingly, the newest member of the three-person Commission, Dr. Clilan Powell, upheld Chick’s charge that Joseph was incompetent. Following the hearing, the Commission merely reprimanded Wergeles for his initial statement about Joseph while admonishing him that they could have fined him $5,000 or suspended him.
Beau Battles NBA Lightweight Champ Sammy Angott
Several weeks later, Beau ultimately faced off in a ten-round nontitle welterweight duel against the NBA lightweight champion Sammy Angott (1915–1980). Born Salvatore Engotti, Angott, at 29 years of age, had a professional record of 73–18–5, a two-inch height advantage over Jack, and the NBA championship belt. Beau, on the other hand, was seven years younger at 22 years of age, had a record of 57–8–2, and held the New York championship belt. Both Angott and Beau completed their prefight preparations at Stillman’s Gym. Beau sparred six rounds with Johnny Abbott and Jackie Lemos. Angott sparred three rounds with Charley Howard. Standing on the scales at the pre-fight weigh-in, Angott weighed 140 pounds to Jack’s 138 pounds.
Before the clash between titleholders, there was a consideration among various boxing commissioners to declare the winner as the undisputed lightweight champion. NBA President Abe Greene recommended that the winner of the Jack-Angott bout be declared the undisputed champion, but Major Gen. John J. Phelan, Chairman of the NYSAC, rejected the plan, explaining that unlike a title bout, this was a ten-round affair. Furthermore, both fighters weighed in over the lightweight limit of 135 pounds. The two sanctioning bodies along with the managers for Beau Jack, Bob Montgomery, and Sammy Angott did, however, devise a plan to untangle the title bedlam. They acceded that the winner of the upcoming Jack–Montgomery bout would be paired against Sammy Angott to determine the unified lightweight championship, with the match to take place on May 26.
The long-awaited battle between Jack and Angott finally occurred on January 28. Madison Square Garden was sold out with a deafening crowd of 19,113 fans on hand, producing a gate of $84,870. Excitement filled the arena as the two titleholders progressed down the aisles to the ring. The nontitle affair would determine which combatant would be crowned the unofficial, undisputed lightweight champion of the world. Featured on Gillette’s Cavalcade of Sports, the match was broadcast from ringside around the country.
Beau was a 7–5 favorite, but a close fight was anticipated from the brown-haired Italian fighter from Washington, Pennsylvania. “Slammin’” Sammy possessed deceiving speed and excellent ring skills. Both men employed unorthodox styles. Beau pursued his adversaries with continuous motion, constantly throwing punches. Recently, he strengthened his cache with a deceptive right-hand bolo punch that he swung from the floor. Angott, on the other hand, plunged in at his opponents mauling at them from all angles, and using his clutch to tie them up before pounding them on the release. Much to the delight of the crowd, both set a blistering pace.
After Referee Frankie Fullam went over his final instructions, the champions went back to their respective corners for the opening bell. As the fight began, Angott moved ahead early, winning the first three rounds by out-boxing Beau. Forcing the combat, he was exceptionally productive at close quarters. Nevertheless, Beau rocked Sammy with a stunning left hook to the head in the second round and smashed some enormous right bolo uppercuts on his chin. It was a bitterly contested see-saw battle. True to form, Sammy’s tactic of clutching Beau with one arm and hitting him with the other proved detrimental to Jack; whereas Beau scored by throwing right hands to Sammy’s body and crown. Contrary to his critics, on several occasions, Beau displayed sharp boxing skills as he out-jabbed Angott. Beau took the fourth stanza and staggered Angott with a powerful right to his face before the bell.
The two fought evenly in the fifth round, but Beau took the sixth and seventh. Midway into the sixth, Beau crashed a right uppercut to Sammy’s chin. Sammy grinned back, as he did every time he was hurt by a punch. Later in the round, Jack apparently slammed a blow on Sammy’s groin, causing Sammy to agonize with pain. After the fight, Sammy disclosed that six days earlier, he injured his thigh in training when his sparring partner plunged his head into his thigh. Beau had an exhilarating ninth round when he banged seven vicious rights to Sammy’s crown, leaving Angott shaken and goggle-eyed. The last round was reasonably even as both men appeared to run out of gas.
When the scorecards were tallied, the match was ultimately declared a draw. Neither fighter, however, seemed visibly upset at the decision. Referee Frankie Fullam scored the fight five rounds for each Beau and Angott. Judge Marty Monroe had Beau winning six rounds and Sammy four. Judge Charley Draycott scored the bout in favor of Sammy, with Angott winning seven rounds to Beau’s three rounds. The United Press card had the fight even with four rounds going to each fighter and two rounds even.
A noteworthy aspect was the respect the fighters showed each other. During the contest, both fighters displayed virtuous sportsmanship, handshaking and bowing to each other, to the extent some people in the gallery yelled for them to kiss and make up. Interestingly, Ted Yates of the New York Age compared Beau to what Anthony O. Edmonds referred to as the “docile childlike” good Negro. Yates wrote that Beau, “showed signs of still being under the yoke of a southern cracker,” because he bowed to Angott often during their bout.7 Of course, the reference implied that he was still under the control of wealthy white men or former slave owners.
Beau Faces Maxie Berger in Cleveland
The draw with Angott was a disappointment for Beau, but he still wore the lightweight crown. Before facing off with Bob Montgomery for the third time, Beau had another challenger to battle. Beau faced Maxie Berger (1917–2000) in a welterweight bout at Cleveland’s Public Auditorium on Tuesday, February 15. Constructed in 1922, the Public Auditorium had a seating capacity of 11,500. With significant space available for conventions, it contributed to Cleveland in becoming a preeminent national convention center.
Berger had a record of 89–16–8 and was on a 13-fight win streak. Nevertheless, he was still a two to one underdog. Maxie was a good puncher, clever boxer, and demonstrated fast footwork. Irritated with the pre-fight press, the 27-year-old Canadian welterweight grudgingly said, “It kind of looks like I’m the forgotten man here. To read all the headlines a person might think Jack was going into that ring by himself.”8 Needless to say, Chick Wergeles was a master at promoting his boxer in the press. A crowd of 8,206 boxing fans gathered for the contest, producing a gate of $30,040 with 10 percent of the gate reserved for the National Infantile Paralysis Fund.
Maxie came into the ring almost five pounds heavier than Jack, weighing 143¾ pounds, and standing two and a half inches taller at 5'8". Unfortunately for Maxie, it didn’t provide him with any meaningful advantage. Jack snatched control of the fight from the opening bell, diving in with left hooks, followed by staggering rights. By the end of the first round, Beau had inflicted significant damage to his foe. He belted Berger with four solid left hooks, opening a gash over his left eye. As blood oozed out above Maxie’s left eyebrow, Jack peppered his prey with stiff left hooks followed by right uppercuts. Stalking his victim around the ring, Beau bounced in, ripping left hooks bolstered by stunning right uppercuts. Berger desperately tried to slow Beau with counter punches but to no avail.
Boos rang down when Referee Joe Sedley warned Beau about low blows in the third round but didn’t penalize him. Jack just kept stalking his prey, connecting with savage punches in the fourth round, pressuring Maxie into retreat. With his leaping, swinging attack, Beau continued to score but was penalized in the sixth stanza for a low blow. In the seventh round, Beau had the crowd on its feet when he knocked Berger to the canvas with a staggering right hook followed by a devastating right to the head. Berger rose up on the count of two and somehow managed to hang on until the bell sounded. In the eighth, Beau struck Berger with two hard rights followed by a left that nearly put Berger on the canvas again. In the ninth round, a hard left stunned Berger. Maxie tried to rally in the final round, but Beau simply outmaneuvered him. Beau won every round except the sixth, in which the referee deducted a point for a low blow. In an easy unanimous decision, Beau improved his record to 49–8–3, as he prepared to enter his fourth title match.
Several days before Beau’s rematch with Montgomery, the fight took on more significance. The NYSAC and NBA announced an agreement, blessed by the fighters’ managers, whereby the winner of the upcoming March 31 contest between Jack and Montgomery would meet Angott on May 26 for the undisputed lightweight championship. Then, Beau received the inevitable word from the Augusta Draft Board that he had been declared 1-A, ready for service. Therefore, Beau’s match with Montgomery was quickly moved up to March 3, with the winner scheduled to meet Sammy Angott on March 24.
1. Harold Parrott, “Both Sides,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, November 15, 1943, 11. “Beau Jack Trains for Match,” Ithaca Journal, November 17, 1943, 11.
2. Wendell Smith, “Smitty’s Sports Spurts; a Champ’s Life Before and After a Title Fight,” Pittsburgh Courier, November 27, 1943, 16.
3. Beau Jack, “Eye-Poppers: Manager’s Appetite Floors Boxer,” Ithaca Journal, August 17, 1944, 13.
4. Wendell Smith, “Jack’s ‘Wild Man’ Attack Baffles Bob Montgomery,” Pittsburgh Courier, November 27, 1943, 16.
5. “Jack’s Infighting Defeats Montgomery,” Press and Sun-Bulletin, November 20, 1943, 13.
6. Lawton Carver, “Husky Beau Jack Still Uses Battle Royal Style,” Lansing State Journal, January 10, 1944, 9.
7. Ted Yates, “I’ve Been Around,” New York Age, February 5, 1944, 11.
8. “Beau Jack 3–1 Choice Over Berger,” Star-Gazette, February 15, 1944, 9.