Billy Madden (1852–1918) is best known as a champion American boxer (or 'pugilist'), pugilistic trainer and manager. He was also a playwright, author and journalist, a producer of sporting events including wrestling matches and women's marathon bicycle races.
Billy Madden was born on December 10, 1852, in London, England, to Irish immigrant parents, and died on February 22, 1918, in
White Plains, New York
(Always Faithful)
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, after a protracted illness, reportedly a stomach cancer. Sources report that he came to the United States as a boxer, and he would have been in his very early teens at that time: his first recorded prize fight in the United States was against Hurley, at age 15.
As a
welter weight
Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify the ...
pugilist he won numerous documented fights in the United States and was involved in numerous exhibition matches (in the US and abroad) with notable fighters such as Sullivan,
McAuliffe, and Kilrain. Purportedly, he never was punched in the face.
Billy Madden was probably the best known of the late 19th-century American boxing managers. He was reportedly the first to use modern advertising techniques and campaigns to create laudable careers for the pugilists he managed. He was credited with discovering and was indeed the manager of
John L. Sullivan
John Lawrence Sullivan (October 15, 1858 – February 2, 1918), known simply as John L. among his admirers, and dubbed the "Boston Strong Boy" by the press, was an American boxer recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing ...
, as well as such other noteworthy fighters as Charlie Mitchell, "Nonpariel"
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed Kid Blackie and The Manassa Mauler, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926. ...
,
Jake Kilrain
John Joseph Killion (February 9, 1859 – December 22, 1937), more commonly known as Jake Kilrain, was a famous American bare-knuckle fighter and glove boxer of the 1880s.
Early life
Kilrain found employment as a teenager in Somerville, Mas ...
, McAuliffe,
Peter Maher, among others.
Reportedly, he coined the term "Knock-Out" and the phrase "the hand is quicker than the eye". His international reputation was for being "on the level" and he was highly respected in sporting circles. His friendship with sports writer and lawman
Bat Masterson
Bartholemew William Barclay "Bat" Masterson (November 26, 1853 – October 25, 1921) was a U.S. Army scout, lawman, professional gambler, and journalist known for his exploits in the 19th and early 20th-century American Old West. He was born to ...
was of long standing, as was his friendship with Theodore Roosevelt, the newspaper reporter, sports writer, Governor of New York State and President of the United States. Billy Madden's obituary in the ''New York Times'' of February 22, 1918, notes that Madden had a versatile career: as well as his sports experience, he was nominated to run for the New York legislature from the fifth district of Brooklyn in 1906. According to the October 16, 1906, Gilliams Press Syndicate, he was nominated by The Independent League of New York as their candidate for the New York State Senate. The Press Syndicate quoted him as saying " If I go to Albany I will hand a few jolts to the Trusts to show them they cannot control me. I am for the Poor People - You Bet!". In his obituary in the New York Times it was noted that Billy Madden wanted to be known as a
self-made man
"Self-made man" is a classic phrase coined on February 2, 1842 by Henry Clay in the United States Senate, to describe individuals whose success lay within the individuals themselves, not with outside conditions. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Foun ...
.
Billy Madden was inducted, as a Boxing Manager, into the Bare Knuckles Boxing Hall of Fame in 2010.
Sources
* https://groups.google.com/group/alt.obituaries/browse_thread/thread/d59f332f92165537/216049e61a7912e6?hl=en&lnk=gst&q=billy+madden#216049e61a7912e6
* https://www.nytimes.com/1918/02/22/archives/billy-madden-is-dead-former-manager-of-sullivan-succumbs-to-long.html
* http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/boxing/madden-billy.htm
* Boston's Boxing Heritage: Prizefighting from 1882-1955 by Kevin Smith
* The Manly Art:
Bare-Knuckle Prize Fighting
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
in America by Elliott Gorn
* John L Sullivan and His America (Sport and Society) by Michael T. Isenberg
* http://bareknuckleboxinghalloffame.com/
{{DEFAULTSORT:Madden, Billy
American boxing trainers
American boxing managers
1852 births
1918 deaths
English male boxers
Welterweight boxers
English emigrants to the United States
English people of Irish descent
American male boxers
19th-century American businesspeople