Dempsey-Tunney: 100 Years Since Boxing's Landmark Philadelphia Fight
The short version
- Jack Dempsey fought Gene Tunney on 23 September 1926 in Philadelphia before about 120,000 spectators.
- Wednesday marks 100 years since the first of their two bouts.
- Their fights are considered among boxing's most storied championship contests and major American sports spectacles.
- Biographer Randy Roberts documented Dempsey's impoverished upbringing and willingness to take any work.
The centenary falls on Wednesday of the first heavyweight championship bout between Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney, held before a massive Philadelphia crowd.
One hundred years ago on Wednesday, heavyweight champions Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney shared a ring in Philadelphia, drawing a crowd of roughly 120,000 people. The date was 23 September 1926, and the bout captivated much of the United States.
Their two meetings are widely regarded as standing among the most celebrated title fights boxing has produced, and they are remembered as some of the biggest sporting events ever staged in America.
Dempsey holds a unique place in the sport's history, linking its early days to the modern era. Biographer Randy Roberts described a hardscrabble early life spent in mining camps and hobo camps, riding freight trains and sometimes asking strangers for food. According to Roberts, what set Dempsey apart was how readily he took on work of any kind, from washing dishes and mowing lawns to laboring in coal mines, digging ditches and harvesting fruit.
