Fitzsimmons and Corbett Fight (1897)

Today the Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight of March l7, 1897 at Carson City, Nevada is called a ring classic, but in 1897 it was the "Fight of the Century." Prizefighting was then illegal in California, but a few weeks after the fight, hundreds of local fans saw the action on a 10 by 10-foot screen.

The movie was made by Enoch J. Rector, formerly of Edison Labs, who designed a trio of unique motion cameras and paid $13,000 for film rights to the contest. Rector was more than an inventor, because he was also a sharp businessman. The fight matched "Handsome Jim" Corbett, the San Francisco-born world champion, against an up-and-coming British challenger, Bob Fitzsimmons, but the event was also Nevada's first legally-sanctioned boxing contest, and it fired the public's imagination.

Enormous crowds and some of America's wealthiest and best-known people were expected, and that included Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson brought in to manage a sizable security force. The muscle was probably needed, because three months earlier Earp refereed a match in San Francisco between Bob Fitzsimmons and Tom Sharkey, and when Earp halted the fight in round 8 and gave the decision to Sharkey, it nearly caused a riot. This time, promoters hired a referee with impeccable credentials-- 51 year old George Siler, chief correspondent for the Chicago Tribune. (For that story see July 1998 True West Magazine, "A Questionable Fight in San Francisco" by Harold L. Edwards, Bakersfield's wild-west author.)

Immediately after the Corbett - Fitzsimmons fight was over, Rector hurried his film into distribution, and while the results of the fight were available a day later in Bakersfield, in two months clips of the fight were shown here at Bakersfield's Armory Hall (southwest corner of 19 and "K" Streets). A Daily Californian ad for the show read, "Saturday May 29th - Marvel of the Age. Edison's latest and most wonderful invention, reproducing life-size scenes and figures. Including the Great Corbett Fight and Knockout. [Actress] Cissy Fitzgerald in her skirt, dances and winks. The Santa Fe Limited at a speed of 60 miles per hour. The Great Hurdle Race at Epsom Downs. The Boxing Tom Cats. The Closing of a Great NY factory at 6 PM showing over 1,000 people leaving the building. McKinley's Inauguration with 20 thousand people in motion. The Great Fire Scene and Rescue of Men and Women from a burning stable, and many others."

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• silent
• film

[mcorbett1977]

thats my great great grandpa =D .

[ASilentOpsProduction]

@jarcar202 Actually You need to get your facts straight before you comment on videos. the kinetograph Was the first working motion picture camera it was finished in november 1890. you dumb ass.

[DzekoVelez]

@jarcar202 dumbass

[jarcar202]

there was no cameras back then

[lizardman77]

This was known as Buttocks Boxing.

[scottandrewhutchins]

@Allritemat There is more of this match. It was originally over 90 minutes--the longest film ever made at the time. According to IMDb, a fourth of the film still exists, which is certainly a lot more than this 11-second clip.

@Hatuey19: The Edison Company made scome earlier boxing films with Corbett.

[wtfudimbo]

I say...thats a nice left hook

[PoutinePete]

I can't help but wonder if these two guys are still fighting today?

[freddysuprem]

yeah jajaja

[eggsoverdone]

Do you know if there is any coverage of Wyatt out there?