By John F. McKenna (McJack): The most remarkable thing about Willard was his gameness at continually getting up when all hope of victory was gone. The bell mercifully sounded ending the first round. In the pandemonium Dempsey thought the fight was over and hurriedly exited the ring in an effort to avoid the crowd which was now pressing in on him.

Dempsey’s handlers finally got him back into the ring for the start of round two. Amazingly Willard, whose face was a swollen mass, came out to meet him. Again Dempsey pounded Willard with punches from every direction and Willard lasted out the round. Willard was clearly a beaten man and he knew it. He had nothing left to counter Dempsey’s vicious onslaught. The 3rd round was more of the same. Dempsey’s sustained attack continued through throughout the round. Willard slumped on his stool realizing that there was nothing left. No more energy to resist the dynamo on the other side of the ring. Dejectedly, knowing his title was gone he kept repeating “I have a farm and one hundred thousand dollars.” That was the amount he would receive for the fight, an enormous amount ot money for 1919.

The injuries Jess Willard sustained in the Dempsey fight were substantial. They included a shattered cheek bone, a broken nose, a jaw that was broken in several places, a broken ear drum, eight teeth were knocked out and two broken ribs. Blood was gushing from his mouth and the right side of his face was abnormally swollen. Fight doctor Ferdie Pacheco stated: “I have been a physician in boxing for forty years and I have never seen such anatomical damage as Jack Dempsey inflicted on Jess Willard.”

The myth that Jack Dempsey’s gloves were loaded when he fought Jess Willard has been disproved time and again. In one of the still photos of Dempsey when he entered the ring his bandaged hands were clearly visible. One of Willard’s corner people inspected Jack’s hands in his dressing room prior to the fight. Jess Willard himself inspected Dempsey’s hands in the ring before the start of the fight. Dempsey’s manager Jack Kearns was in some part responsible for engendering the myth about his gloves being loaded. There had been a falling out between the two when Dempsey fired Kearns for allegedly skimming some of his earnings. Kearns son admitted years later that Kearns started the rumor as a way of getting even, but even Kearns did not think anyone would be foolish enough to believe it.

The Dempsey – Willard fight ushered in the modern era of boxing that fans came to know in the 20th Century. What followed this famous fight were the “Roaring Twenties”.

Boxing was as popular as any other sport during the “Golden Age of Sports”. Jack Dempsey had a big part in that. It was not long before million dollar gates and live radio broadcasts would elevate boxing to unheard of levels of attention.