THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Friday, February 6, 1981 35
Legendary Jewish Boxer Named to International Hall of Fame
By HASKELL COHEN
will be Daniel Mendoza, a
Jewish boxer who was born
on July 5, 1764. Some of
Mendoza's descendants will
be present at the installa-
tion services.
Mendoza received a
thorough Jewish education,
married a Jewish woman
and raised a Jewish family.
One of the strong points in
his life was the fact that he
desired to be known as a
Jew and as a matter of fact
defended his Jewishness
with his fists time and time
(Copyright 1981, JTA, Inc.)
The Wingate -Institute of
Physical Edcation in
Natanya, Israel will induct
19 athletes into the Interna-
tional Sports Hall of Fame
in July. One of the inductees
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♦ 11 MILE AT LAHSER
IN HARVARD ROW MALL
again. It was this defense of
his Yiddishkeit which made
him a fighter even before he
reached his Bar Mitzva.
Daniel Mendoza was
known as "the Jewish
bruiser from Aldgate, Lon-
don" and became the most
celebrated Jewish athlete
not only in his own time but
as a matter of fact up until
the beginning of the 20th
Century. His ability to use
his fists successfully
brought to him a modicum
of fame and for a while a
great amount of money. His
most memorable fights
were against another
fighter of the time by the
name of Richard Hum-
phries, who was nicknamed
the "gentleman boxer."
A boxing writer of the
time named Pierce Egan
wrote, "No pugilist what-
ever since the days of
Broughton, or even
Broughton himself, has
ever so completely elici-
dated or promulgated the
principles of boxing as
Daniel Mendoza. Men-
doza was considered one
of the most elegant and
scientific fighters of the
period."
It is interesting to note
that the late Peter Sellers,
of screen and stage fame,
was a descendant of Daniel
Mendoza, albeit he never
followed the Jewish tradi-
tion like his antecedent did.
We do know that the 18th
Century scrapper was an
actor, a soldier, a sheriff's
assistant, and a dealer in
horses. Unfoitunately, he
died a poor man at the age of
73.
Mendoza was a descen-
dant of Marranos who had
escaped from Spain and suc-
ceeded in settling in Lon-
ROME (JTA) — Rabbi
Henry Sobel of Sao Paolo,
Brazil presented Pope John
Paul II with a mezuza made
of Jerusalem stone during a
30-minute audience with
the Pontiff at the Vatican
last week. He said he told
the Pope that it was a sym-
bol of "the fraternity of the
human race united under
God," and also an affirma-
tion of "the indivisibility of
Jerusalem and the Jewish
people."
The Pope replied that
Jerusalem is "the city of
peace for all religions,"
Sobel reported. He said
their discussion was an
inter-religious dialogue
"which did not exclude our
differences."
The rabbi said the high
point of their meeting was
an ecumenical prayer of
thanks for the release of the
52 American hostages from
Iran.
don. After his Bar Mitzva,
Mendoza was an apprentice
to a glass cutter. While serv-
ing his tenure in this
capacity he was forced to
fight the snotty son of the
glass cutter he worked for
and as a result he went into
another profession im-
mediately.
The years following his
apprenticeship as a glass
cutter were filled with
numerous battles which in
many cases were sparked by
a wrong gesture, an anti-
Semitic remark or the offer-
ing of a small prize.
Perhaps the finest
battles of his career were
with Humphries. These
two boxers were gener-
ally accepted to be the
finest prize fighers in the
land and crossed fists
three times. Actually the
three fights established
the early and most impor-
tant principles of boxing
in general.
As a result of the
Mendoza-Humphries
clashes the round was es-
tablished, a time limit be-
tween rounds created_ the
appointment of judges and
referees, and the proper
conduct of fighting was
stipulated so that nobody
hit an opponent while he
was down on his knees nor
hit the opponent below the
waist. (When Daniel Men-
doza entered the ring he had
two seconds, a new innova-
tion, and it should be re-
corded that both of these
gentlemen were Jews
named Jacobs and Isaacs.)
Mendoza won the first
PanaSCerS
indicated that the battle
continued until the 53rd
round, when the Jewish
hero was declared the win-
ner. One reporter wrote,
"Mendoza shewed himself a
pleasing fighter, as he al-
ways has done." The Jewish
scrapper continued to fight
for many years more and he
ended his career in defeat
although not in disgrace on
July 4, 1820 when he was
beaten by Tom Owen. At the
time Mendoza lost his last
fight in the ring he was 56
years old, against a much
younger man.
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Free Hockey Clinic.
Bacall Canceled
Lauren Bacall's new mus-
ical, "Woman of the Year,"
will not be seen in Detroit
because its set and lighting
design are too large to be ac-
commodated by the Fisher
Theater stage, the Detroit
Free Press reported Wed-
.nesday.
fight, Humphries the sec-
ond and Mendoza the third
fight.
In 1795 Mendoza, at this
point recognized as the
World Champion, lost his
title to "Gentleman
Jackson." After the _battle
Daniel announced that he
was retiring from the trade.
Despite this announcement
he returned to the ring on
March 21, 1806 in order to
close his career as a profes-
sional boxer by engaging in
a contest with one titled Mr.
Lee.
Reporters who covered
Just come to the Joe Louis Arena on
Sunday, February 15th at 1:00 P.M. and your
favorite Red Wing players will show you how
to put some plays together. The first 3,000 people
at the clinic get a free hockey puck compliments of
the Detroit Red Wings and A&W Root Beer. After the
instruction, you'll get a chance to meet the team and
get their autographs. Join us, and take a shot at
improving your game.
1