Benny Bass

Featherweight Fury

 

In the history of boxing in America, there are many names which crop up for a moment and then sink back into obscurity. But the single second of glory is sometimes remembered for a long time and the obscurity is not really as bad as it seems to be. In a sports field where there are thousands of combatants over a period of, say, fifty years, there are many glorious names. But at times there are names which are not particularly outstanding yet are remembered for one deed.

Just as Tony Galento always will be remembered for his valiant effort against Joe Louis, when he floored the great champ with a left hook before he himself succumbed to the powerful Negro's chopping punches, so Benny Bass will be recalled by fans of pugilism, for his bloody, but winning effort against Red Chapman of Boston, in their fight for the featherweight title on September 12, 1927.

Benny Bass did not last very long as a champion. And it is doubtful if he will rank among the truly great titleholders of his day. In his fighting era there were great champs. Men like Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney were grabbing the sports spotlight. It was the Golden Age of sports, the time when names like Bobby Jones in golf, Jack Dempsey and Benny Leonard in boxing, Babe Ruth in baseball and Bill Tilden in tennis became immortals in the annals of sports.