UNBELIEVABLE PHOTOS OF
SAM “BONECRUSHER” LANGFORD
RECOVERED FROM GARBAGE.
SAM, THIRD FROM THE RIGHT
I have read nearly every article published on Sam Langford and seen every single piece of footage or photograph of him while developing my feature film. Or at least I thought I had. Last night I got a random text from a producer pal in LA that said : thought you might find this interesting…….
It was a link to a thread where someone had discovered a bunch of photos from 1912 when Sam was in Australia with his family. He had pulled them out of the trash and was looking for the right place to donate them. A lot of suggestions were for museums and organizations in the USA and Boston, because of course he carried the moniker “The Boston Bonecrusher” and “The Boston Tarbaby” (among others). But Sam’s roots come from a small Black community in Nova Scotia called Weymouth Falls.
Sam was known a an excellent dresser and a love of cigars.
This particular trip to Australia was interesting because only a few years earlier (1908) Jack Johnson had crossed the color line in Australia to become the first black Heavyweight Champion of the World. Canadian Tommy Burns had let the color line dip and agreed to fight him. After the victory though Johnson then drew his own color line and only accepted white challengers. This birthed the idea of the “Great White Hope” and denied Sam a chance at the title.
Sam was running out of willing opponents in the US and promoter Hugh “HUGE DEAL” MacIntosh had been trying to find a way to put Langford in the ring with Jack Johnson and invited him down under. Langford went, and though they teased the idea Johnson would come, he did not. Several 5 figure contracts were made and signed, but Jack always had an excuse. Sam fought a series of other boxers, including the tremendous pugilist Sam McVey.
(Worth reading about is McVey’s fight with Ju jitsu expert Professor Stevenson. Arguably the first modern day MMA match up. Boxing vs JuJitsu)
Sam got stuck in Australia for a while because although he was making a lot of money he spent it on friends, cars, clothes. tobacco, gambling and booze. He was unable to pay his debts and for his trip home. His wife and 4 year old daughter eventually joined him in Australia where they spent quite a bit of time. That is where these pictures come in.
Sam (driver’s seat) had a taste for sweet rides.
These photos are a remarkable record of his time there, never publicly seen before now.
I have been in touch with the owner/finder of the pictures and I am eager to help facilitate getting the originals to Nova Scotia where they belong. There, they can be shared with the community and treasured.
I can’t wait see the other images that were not shared publicly! Stay tuned!
-Jim Morrison IV