Jimmy McLarnin

Jimmy McLarnin
Statistics
Real name	James McLarnin
Nickname(s)	Baby Faced Assassin Beltin' Celt Dublin Dynamiter Dublin Destroyer Murderous Mick The Belfast Spider The Jew Killer The Jew Beater Hebrew Scourge The Irish Lullaby
Rated at	Flyweight to welterweight
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Reach	67 in (170 cm)
Nationality	Irish
Born	(1907-12-19)19 December 1907 Hillsborough, County Down, Ireland
Died	28 October 2004(2004-10-28) (aged 96) Richland, Washington, US
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	68
Wins	54
Wins by KO	21
Losses	11
Draws	3

James Archibald "Jimmy" McLarnin (19 December 1907 – 28 October 2004) was an Irish-Canadian professional boxer who became a two-time welterweight world champion and an International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee.^[1] McLarnin has been referred to as the greatest Irish boxer of all time. BoxRec ranks McLarnin as the 11th best pound-for-pound fighter of all-time, the second best Canadian boxer of all time after Sam Langford, and the third greatest welterweight of all time.^[2][3]

Background

There was often confusion over McLarnin's exact place of birth and his date of birth. McLarnin himself was unsure as to the exact location and at various times claimed to be born in Inchicore, Dublin or the Lisburn Road in Belfast. Adding to the confusion he went by nicknames the Dublin Destroyer and Belfast Spider. It was Irish boxing historian Patrick Myler who later unearthed McLarnin's birth certificate which showed that McLarnin was born in Hillsborough, County Down, Ireland in 1907.^[4][5]

McLarnin's father, Sam McLarnin, a Methodist from Dublin, was described as 'a typical Dublin Irishman' and travelled throughout Britain and Ireland for work. He later married Mary Ferris from Belfast and they settled in County Down before being drawn into Belfast. When McLarnin was three years of age the whole family emigrated to Saskatchewan, Canada via Liverpool. The McLarnin’s started out as a wheat farmers but years later following a particularly harsh winter the family later moved to Vancouver where they opened a second-hand clothes store in Vancouver's east end.^{[4][5][6][7][7]}

McLarnin was prodigious athlete, his main sports were football, baseball and boxing and was considered a model of propriety by Rev. A.E. Roberts at the Methodist mission in Vancouver. He took up boxing at the age of 10 after getting into a fight defending his newspaper-selling pitch. Former professional boxers Charles "Pop" Foster recognised McLarnin's talent at the age of 13. He constructed a makeshift gym for McLarnin to train in, sure that he would one day be the champion of the world. The two of them would remain close, and when Foster died, he left everything he had to McLarnin.^[6][7]

Boxing career

Following a successful start to his career in Vancouver, McLarnin's grew aggrieved at the low pay he was receiving for bouts and decided to move south. "We had to go to the United States to make our money. We owe Vancouver nothing" said McLarnin.^[6]

Foster took McLarnin to San Francisco, where his youthful appearance made it difficult to get a fight until he lied about his age. It is for this reason that McLarnin was known as the "Baby-faced Assassin". Despite his youthful appearance, McLarnin had incredible power with both fists, his right being particularly feared. However, like many similar fighters McLarnin suffered several hand injuries throughout his career. Towards the end of his career McLarnin was forced to become more of a scientific boxer to reduce further injuries to his hands.^[8]

McLarnin lost his first title shot on 21 May 1928 in New York against world lightweight champion Sammy Mandell. However, he did go on to beat him twice in the following two years. It would be five years before McLarnin would next get a title shot, during which time he knocked out gifted contenders Al Singer, Ruby Goldstein, and Sid Terris.^[9]

McLarnin's second title shot came against welterweight champion Young Corbett III. McLarnin won by knockout after only 2 minutes 37 seconds. Following his title success, McLarnin fought an epic three-fight series with Barney Ross. The first fight, on 28 May 1934, was won by Ross, but McLarnin regained his title in their next match four months later. In the deciding fight on 28 May 1935, McLarnin lost his title for the final time in a narrow decision.

McLarnin retired in November 1936 still at the top of his game, having won his last two fights against all-time greats Tony Canzoneri and Lou Ambers. His record was 54 wins, 11 losses, and 3 draws in 68 contests. In 1996 Ring Magazine voted McLarnin the fifth-greatest welterweight of all time.

Life after boxing

McLarnin never returned to the ring despite large incentives for him to do so.^[10] Unlike many boxers, McLarnin invested his money wisely and retired a wealthy man. He opened an electrical goods store, and also did some acting, golfing, and lecturing.^[10]

In 1937, he appeared with boxers Maxie Rosenbloom, James J. Jeffries, Jack Dempsey, and Jackie Fields, in MGM's Big City, a film involving rough competition between two rival taxi companies.^[11]

In 1938, he appeared in a background gymnasium scene for the successful 1938, MGM boxing movie, The Crowd Roars with boxers Abe "The Newsboy" Hollandersky, Joe Glick, Maxie Rosenbloom, Jack Roper, and Tommy Herman.^[12]

In 1946, he appeared in Monogram Pictures' boxing movie, Joe Palooka, Champ, with cameos by real boxing greats Joe Louis, Henry Armstrong, Ceferino Garcia, and Manual Ortiz. Heavyweight Jack Roper appeared as the character Waldo. The simple plot involved young boxer Joe and his girl resisting mob influence while Joe trains to fight the champ.^[13]

Death

McLarnin died in Richland, Washington living to the unusually old age of 96, and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. His long life may have been a result of his early retirement from boxing at 29, and the wise investment of his boxing earnings which allowed him to live comfortably. His healthy lifestyle included golfing into his old age, and abstention from smoking and drinking.

Professional boxing record

54 Wins (21 Knockouts), 11 Defeats (1 Knockout), 3 Draws[14]
Res.	Record	Opponent	Type	Rd., Time	Date	Location	Notes
Win	55–11–3	Lou Ambers	UD	10	1936-11-20	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	53–11–3	Tony Canzoneri	UD	10	1936-10-05	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Loss	52–11–3	Tony Canzoneri	UD	10	1936-05-08	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Loss	52–10–3	Barney Ross	UD	15	1935-05-28	Polo Grounds, New York City, New York	Lost World Welterweight Title
Win	52–9–3	Barney Ross	SD	15	1934-09-17	Madison Square Garden Bowl, Queens, New York	Won World Welterweight Title
Loss	51–9–3	Barney Ross	SD	15	1934-05-28	Madison Square Garden Bowl, Queens, New York	Lost World Welterweight Title The Ring magazine's "Fight of the Year" (1934)
Win	51–8–3	Young Corbett III	TKO	1 (10), 2:37	1933-05-29	Wrigley Field, Los Angeles, California	Won World Welterweight Title
Win	50–8–3	Sammy Fuller	TKO	8 (10), 2:58	1932-12-16	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	49–8–3	Benny Leonard	TKO	6 (10), 2:55	1932-10-07	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Loss	48–8–3	Lou Brouillard	SD	10	1932-08-04	Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
Win	48–7–3	Billy Petrolle	UD	10	1931-08-20	Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
Win	47–7–3	Billy Petrolle	UD	10	1931-05-27	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Loss	46–7–3	Billy Petrolle	UD	10	1930-11-21	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	46–6–3	Al Singer	KO	3 (10), 2:21	1930-09-11	Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
Win	45–6–3	Jack Thompson	UD	10	1930-03-28	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	44–6–3	Sammy Mandell	UD	10	1930-03-01	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois
Win	43–6–3	Ruby Goldstein	KO	2 (10)	1929-12-13	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	42–6–3	Sammy Mandell	UD	10	1929-11-04	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois
Win	41–6–3	Sergeant Sammy Baker	KO	1 (10), 2:01	1929-10-09	New York Coliseum, Bronx, New York
Win	40–6–3	Ray Miller	UD	10	1929-03-22	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	39–6–3	Joe Glick	KO	2 (10), 1:37	1929-03-01	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	38–6–3	Joe Glick	UD	10	1929-01-11	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Loss	37–6–3	Ray Miller	RTD	7 (10)	1928-11-30	Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan
Win	37–5–3	Stanislaus Loayza	KO	4 (10)	1928-08-02	Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan
Win	36–5–3	Phil McGraw	TKO	1 (10), 2:45	1928-06-21	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Loss	35–5–3	Sammy Mandell	UD	15	1928-05-21	Polo Grounds, New York City, New York	For World Lightweight Title
Win	35–4–3	Sid Terris	KO	1 (10), 1:47	1928-02-24	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Win	34–4–3	Billy Wallace	PTS	10	1927-11-23	Olympia Stadium, Detroit, Michigan
Win	33–4–3	Louis Kaplan	KO	8 (10)	1927-10-18	Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois
Win	32–4–3	Don Long	KO	3 (10)	1927-09-23	San Diego Coliseum, San Diego, California
Win	31–4–3	Charlie McBride	KO	2 (10)	1927-09-09	San Diego Coliseum, San Diego, California
Win	30–4–3	Lope Tenorio	PTS	10	1927-06-24	Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California
Win	29–4–3	Johnny Lamar	PTS	10	1927-05-27	Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California
Win	28–4–3	Freeman Black	KO	2 (10)	1927-05-06	San Diego Coliseum, San Diego, California
Win	27–4–3	Tommy Cello	PTS	10	1927-04-05	Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Draw	26–4–3	Tommy Cello	PTS	10	1927-02-22	Recreation Park, San Francisco, California
Loss	26–4–2	Doc Snell	PTS	10	1926-10-15	Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California
Win	26–3–2	Joe Glick	PTS	10	1926-09-07	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Loss	25–3–2	Johnny Farr	PTS	10	1926-03-17	Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win	25–2–2	Joey Sangor	KO	3 (10)	1926-03-03	Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Loss	24–2–2	Bud Taylor	PTS	10	1926-01-12	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	24–1–2	Bud Taylor	DQ	2 (10)	1925-12-08	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	23–1–2	Jackie Fields	KO	2 (10)	1925-11-12	Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California
Win	22–1–2	Pancho Villa	PTS	10	1925-07-04	Oaks Park, Emeryville, California
Loss	21–1–2	Bud Taylor	PTS	10	1925-06-02	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	21–0–2	Eddie Spec Ramies	KO	6 (6)	1925-04-18	Recreation Park, San Francisco, California
Win	20–0–2	Young Farrell	PTS	6	1925-04-11	Lyceum A.C., Los Angeles, California
Win	19–0–2	Teddy Silva	PTS	10	1925-03-24	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	18–0–2	Fidel LaBarba	PTS	10	1925-01-13	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California	Pacific Coast Flyweight Title
Draw	17–0–2	Memphis Pal Moore	PTS	4	1924-12-09	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Draw	17–0–1	Fidel LaBarba	PTS	4	1924-11-11	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	17–0	Fidel LaBarba	PTS	4	1924-10-28	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	16–0	Young Nationalista	PTS	4	1924-10-14	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	15–0	Frankie Dolan	PTS	4	1924-10-07	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	14–0	Benny Diaz	PTS	4	1924-09-30	Vernon Arena, Vernon, California
Win	14–0	Mickey Gill	MD	10	1924-8-15	Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia
Win	13–0	Abe Gordon	KO	2 (4)	1924-05-14	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	12–0	Jimmy Griffiths	PTS	4	1924-05-02	L-st Arena, Sacramento, California
Win	11–0	Jockey Joe Dillon	PTS	4	1924-04-30	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	10–0	Johnny Jockey Lightner	PTS	4	1924-04-23	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	9–0	Frankie Grandetta	PTS	4	1924-04-09	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	8–0	Jimmy Griffiths	PTS	4	1924-04-02	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	7–0	Sammy Lee	PTS	4	1924-03-26	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	6–0	Frankie Sands	PTS	4	1924-03-19	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	5–0	Joe Conde	TKO	3 (4)	1924-03-05	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	4–0	Eddie Collins	TKO	3 (4)	1924-02-22	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	3–0	Frankie Sands	PTS	4	1924-02-13	Oakland Auditorium Arena, Oakland, California
Win	2–0	Mickey Gill	MD	7	1923-12-28	Hastings Gym, Vancouver, British Columbia
Win	1–0	Young Fry	KO	1 (6)	1923-12-19	Hasting Gym, Vancouver, British Columbia

See also

• List of lineal boxing world champions
• List of welterweight boxing champions

References

External links

• Professional boxing record for Jimmy McLarnin from BoxRec
• Jimmy McLarnin at Find a Grave