The Fifth Street gym was gone, and Beau’s health was deteriorating. In the early nineties, Jack was hospitalized due to an inoperable malignant stomach tumor. With the heart of a champion and courage of a lion, Jack kept plodding along, spending his last days receiving well-deserved awards and honors, appearing for autographs, attending boxing matches, and still managing to train fighters.
“Hall of Fame boxers will sign autographs at mall in Miami” was the announcement in the South Florida Sun Sentinel. On Sunday, March 27, 1994, Beau, along with two-time featherweight champion Willie Pep and six-time world champion welterweight Emile Griffith, appeared at Miami’s Westchester Mall for an autograph session. The prizefighter who couldn’t sign his name when he began his career was more than happy to autograph photos and cards.
As one can imagine, attending boxing matches were one of Beau’s favorite pastimes. It was different as a fan versus a boxer, but it still brought him close to his sport and always revived memories of his ring days. Jack was on the east coast of Florida, just north of Fort Myers, to attend the middleweight title bout between Andres Arellano and Freeman Barr at the Charlotte County Memorial Auditorium on Tuesday night, February 25, 1997. Barr won the International Boxing Council Americas middleweight title that night by TKO in the tenth round. During the fight card, Beau Jack and Christy Martin,1 the World Women’s Boxing Association’s lightweight champion, were recognized before the 1,200 fans.
Beau and Kid Gavilan frequently traveled together. They both boarded a plane from Miami to New York on Friday night, December 19, 1997, to witness Prince Naseem Hamed of Sheffield, England defend his WBO featherweight title against Kevin Kelley of New York at Madison Square Garden. It was a heck of a fight with abundant action. Prince (28–0, 26 KOs) was knocked down three times by Kelley (47–2, 32 KOs), before stopping Kelley in the fourth round to earn a TKO victory.
Beau was also fortunate enough to travel, expenses paid, to numerous events honoring him and his outstanding career. Jack was the featured honoree at the 1996 annual dinner of the Ring 8 Veteran Boxers Association at Tony Mazarella’s Waterfront Crab House in Long Island, New York. Started in the 1930s as a social club, Ring 8, a nonprofit organization, changed its emphasis to assisting retired boxers in 1953. Funds raised by Ring 8 are used to aid retired fighters with varied needs such as financial assistance, housing, dentures, eyeglasses, and funerals.
In early March 1997, Beau and Gavilan headed to sold-out Bally’s Park Place in Atlantic City, New Jersey, to join former boxing champions and celebrities for a three-day celebration of the 75th anniversary of The Ring magazine. Other titleholders in attendance included such boxing greats as Smokin’ Joe Frazier, brothers Leon and Michael Spinks, Archie Moore, Ingemar Johannson, Sandy Saddler, Carmen Basilio, Joey Giardello, Jake LaMotta, Joey Maxim, Floyd Patterson, Sugar Ray Robinson, Eder Jofre, Ruben Olivares, Thomas Hearns, Larry Holmes, Ken Norton, Chuck Wepner, Emile Griffith, Aaron Pryor, Iran Barkley, Christy Martin, Carlos Palamino, Sean O’Grady, Arthur Mercante, Carlos Ortiz, and Gene Fullmer. Beau was right at home with his colleagues and among the most revered in the crowd.
Seventy-five-year-old Beau swapped some stories and shared his congenial sense of humor as he spoke at the 75th-anniversary dinner. During his speech, Beau spoke about his October 14, 1949, loss to Kid Gavilan. He jokingly announced that Gavilan gave him $50 to lose the fight. Sitting among the honored guests, Gavilan just grinned back at Jack. Beau also comically expressed his frustration over his three losses to Ike Williams. “When I die and go to heaven, I want to fight Ike Williams again.”2
On April 3, 1998, two days after his 77th birthday, Jack was in Montreal, Canada. He was an honored guest of InterBox, an innovative company providing boxers training, lodging, a salary, and educational funds.3 InterBox recognized numerous boxing legends before the Stephane Ouellet and Alex Hilton middleweight title fight at the Molson Centre in Montreal. In addition to Beau Jack, InterBox paid tribute to Jake LaMotta, George Chuvalo, Archie Moore, and Yvon Durelle.
Before the bout, the legends gathered at a local restaurant to reminisce. Following dinner, someone offered to help Beau up from his table. “Leave me alone,” retorted Beau. Then another person offered to get his cane. Jack shouted, “Leave it there and leave me alone.”4 Refusing any aid, Jack stood up and began walking between the tables, but stumbled, knocking chairs and a table down on his way to the floor. Archie Moore, the former lightheavyweight world champion from 1952–61, jumped to his feet and immediately went to help Jack up on his feet. Even at 77 years old, Beau Jack shunned assistance.
Beau was in Rochester, New York, in May 1998 to receive yet another award. At the Rochester Boxing Hall of Fame dinner, Jack received the John Mastrella Integrity Award. John Mastrella, always known for his honesty and integrity, was an Army captain who served in the Battle of the Bulge. After serving his country, Mastrella worked as the Rochester police commissioner and later served as a New York Supreme Court Justice. A former boxer himself, Mastrella was a welterweight boxing champion.
Several months later, Jack headed out from his South Beach apartment to catch a flight to Philadelphia to be commemorated once again. His destination was the Boxers’ Ball at the Apollo of Temple. The black-tie affair, held on November 18, 1998, raised money for the Fight for Education Foundation. Among the 600 people on hand were boxing stars Sugar Ray Leonard, Bernard Hopkins, David Reid, Nate Miller, Joey Giardello, Michael Grant, Charles Brewer, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Zahir Raheem, Wesley Mouzon, Curtis Parker, Greg Sirb, Marvin Garris, Randall “Tex” Cobb, and Fred Jenkins.
(Left to right) Philadelphia Mayor Rendell, boxing memorabilia dealer Harry Zambelli, and Beau Jack. Former light heavyweight champion Harold Johnson is in the foreground, c. 1998 (courtesy Bruce Kielty).
“Bouts-and-Boogie” was the event’s theme, featuring a remembrance of boxing in the 1940s and a special tribute to the late Bob Montgomery and to Beau Jack. The two warriors fought four times, each winning two of the bouts. Their bouts filled Madison Square Garden and raised a record total of $35 million for war bonds in the renowned “War Bonds Fight” in 1944. Both men nobly and enthusiastically contributed to the U.S. efforts in World War II.
Speaking of the “War Bonds Fight,” Beau proudly proclaimed, “The thing that means the most to me is that I felt like I was doing something to help win the war. As old as I am now, I would do it again.”5 He also fondly reminisced about his late rival, Bob Montgomery. “Bob Montgomery was a rough, tough man, a real man. That’s what I was told before I fought him the first time, and it was the truth. I can’t say nothing but good things about Bob Montgomery.” He sadly added, “Nobody even called to let me know he was sick,” Jack said, the sadness in his voice evident. “I wish I could have talked to him before he passed.”6 During the gala affair, Philadelphia’s Mayor Ed Rendell presented Jack with the Liberty Bell Award commemorating his four bouts with Bob Montgomery and the great “War Bonds Fight.”
Along with his journeys, Beau found a new boxing gym to train young boxers, the South Beach Boxing Gym. Founded in 1998 by Jolie Glassman and her ex-husband, the gym was created with the intent to continue Miami Beach’s boxing legacy. Offering extreme workouts, several former boxers such as Beau Jack, Roberto Duran, Vinny Pazienza, Roy Jones, and Bernard Hopkins, used the gym to train their eager pupils. Although most trainers had to pay for gym space and use of the facilities, Jack was given free space and use of the gym.
1. Christy was a tremendous female boxer who, at that time, had a record of 31–1-2, with 25 of her victories coming by way of knockout. Several months earlier, Martin had graced the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine.
2. Ed Schuyler, Jr. (1997, Mar. 9). “Former Champions Reminisce,” Albuquerque Journal, March 9, 1997, 99.
3. Ian MacDonald, “Champ Escaped Fisherman’s Hook: Morre, Durelle Reminisce About Their Fabulous 40-year-old Fight at the Forum,” Gazette, April 6, 1998, 43. InterBox is quite a unique company. They seek out the best young boxers and bring to Montreal to be trained and managed. At the InterBox facility in Montreal, there are three full-time trainers, a strength coach, a sports psychologist, a physiotherapist, medical doctors and a 10,000-square-foot, modern training facility with two rings and 20 heavy bags. InterBox offers a complete package to its boxers. It covers each boxer’s lodging costs, pays them an average salary of $1,000 per week, provides them $4,000 per year to further their education and offers them retirement pensions and investment counseling.
4. Ian MacDonald, “Champ Escaped Fisherman’s Hook,” Gazette, April 6, 1988, 43.
5. “Boxers Ball Will Salute a True Hero,” Philadelphia Daily News, November 18, 1998, 77.
6. Ibid.