LISTENING IN

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 417, 27 July 1928, Page 1

LISTENING IN

KEEN COMPETITION As the messages flashed through the air, the cabled account followed nearly as swiftly. The competition between the two methods of transmitting the news was ■almost as keen as the tight itself. Every available wireless set was in use this afternoon. Owners of shortwave sets were trying to pick up stations in the United States, highpowered broadcast band sets were trying for Australia and Wellington, and the crystal sets were all turied in for IYA Auckland. Thousands of listeners packed round every wireless plant in and around the city, but for the most part they were disappointed.

THE TWO MEN TOM HEENEY Of Irish parentage, Tom Heeney was born at Gisborne in 1898. Upon leaving school he secured a job as a blacksmith’s striker, but that particular line of graft was evidently not to his likmg, and after a mere three days of ‘bring down the hammer” he became apprenticed to a plumber, with whom ne served his time. As one way of keeping his boys in at night, Tom’s father bought a set of boxing gloves and started a gym at the homestead, where his own boys and neighbouring families were given a round of boxing in the evenings. It was in this old shed erected bv his aad for a gym that Tom Heeney first donned the gloves. Jack, one of Tom’s rothers, was very keen on the sport, and later he became New Zealand middle-weight champion. Tom’s only essons in boxing came from his father and Jack. , At the a Se of 19 Tom enlisted for ne war, and was in training in EngT ant ? "'hen the Armistice was signed. n the meantime, however, besides boxmg he had excelled at Rugby, and in ..- 1 re Presented Poverty Bay against the Springboks. PROFESSIONAL RANKS 14 was in 3921 that Tom Heeney d farewell to the amateurs in boxand became a professional. He th a . a Sood showing, and some of p®. heads,” scenting a find, brought V-iin ® e H. heavy-weight ch i npion of .Mistraha. across to engage che burly rw in a try-out. After a wontill battle, which will always be redJL?l^ >ere<3 by every Gisborneite, the waaion was a draw—and the decides point in Heeney’s career. m then departed for Australia, tnnu though he later returned and JJ part in eight more professional mi * * ? ne in w hich he regained his 6 forfeited by his absence. Then varwf* ° Ut * or England, and after a Afh success proceeded to South * lca> where he fought five bouts and ° n tour . losing the fifth on a foul. HIS RISE TO FAME

f t° the Homeland again, he phngs were not too bright, and St£i ded to try his luck in the United k es -. It was a lucky decision, for ard . IVed °. n the s P ot when Tex RiokworiS' as lryin & °ut contenders for the fioht- s championship, and Tom’s kn „! ng spirit and ability to take hard Amf • Won him 1 the favour of the Amencan public. ** lie landed in America, a little on _. than a year ago, he has had nine Uuil « S - The first threG were of otw nnancia -l importance, but the to p fl li Were hig fights, and according rhino, i t messa &es, he profited somelk® £40,000. Yet Heeney’s last and \ En^lan d netted him only £lO, Donro 6 T as told Pointedly that he was r than a third-rater, and should left , the rins for ffood. When he knew and * dispirited and poor, lie count . ere was not a promoter in the who desired his services. To-day, next to Tunney, he is VVorlrf hlß t*l St Pa ’ d box*'- in the “■ while to-morrow he may even he the highest. GENE TUNNEY Tunney. also of Irish parenttion ° orn in tlie Greenwich secceleh..* York, and on May 25 last celebrated his 30th birthday. ,„T u "ney was christened James :“*® p h’but one of his sisters niekhim Gene, a nam* which

has stuck to him right through life. A good-natured young shippingclerk in 1916 (his family was hoping ho would continue his studies), and later a crude “leather-pusher,” winning one of the preliminaries to the famous Dempsey-Car pentier classic (but dreaming even then that he would eventually wear the heavy-weight crown!) —slow but sure progress in physique and experience (battles with Greb, Carpentier, Gibbons and others!) —and then the century’s most astounding boxing upset, the overwhelming defeat of Dempsey in 10 rounds. These are some of the details of Gentle Gene’s career. GOOD ALL-ROUND ATHLETE When at the age of 14, Tunney graduated from St. Veronica’s with high honours, his parents sent him to the La Salle Academy. At school Tunney was always athletically inclined, and besides being a fine baseball player, he became a Marathon runner of some repute. Tunney’s first job was that of a stenographer at 12 dollars a week, but his great ambition was to become either a lawyer or a priest. It was when he joined up with the United States Marines at war-time that Gene realised his true worth as a boxer, and after the war was over he became light-heavy boxing champion of the American Expeditionary Force. After this he had a run of successes as a. light-heavy boxer, and startled the world when he won the American title from Battling Levinsky in 1922, but four months later Harry Greb relieved him of the championship in a rough-and-tumble fight in the old Madison Square Garden. This was the first and only fight Tunney has ever lost. Later, however, in 1923 he twice got verdicts over Greb, and rewon the title.

AMONG THE HEAVY-WEIGHTS Then Gene set his mind on the heavy-weight title, working to build up his weight, and trying himself out with noted heavy-weights. In 1924 he achieved a knock-out against the Spanish champion, Spallo, and, better still, conquered Georges Carpentier in 15 rounds. The following year he devoted almost entirely to training, and to study of Dempsey’s methods. He tried himself out in a bout against Tom Gibbons, whom he defeated in 12 rounds. Eventually he put his training and heories to the test by securing a bout with Dempsey in 1926, whom he defeated in a 10-round championship bout at Philadelphia, winning the title.