Jim Norris Is Part Of Boxing's Dirty Business

Thomas' story is further supported by Sig Hart, an old bantamweight fighter who managed and trained Jack Johnson. Hart says that Norris invited him to the meeting at which the Schmeling fix was arranged and admitted the purpose of the meeting was to fix the fight.

Also, Thomas wrote to a friend, Lee Carroll, advising him that the Schmeling bout was to be fixed. Carroll, now a neighbor and friend of Thomas, identifies the letter.

Thomas gives the details of three crooked fights in his signed and sworn statement

CHICAGO

Jim Norris will say that I am punch drunk. I hope he does. I've taken a lie detector test. I'll take one with Norris any time, any place. Or an IQ test, either.

Some of my friends seem to think that I'm hurting the boxing game by telling this story. I'm trying to make boxing better.

The beginning of my athletic doings was wrestling. Won a few championships up around Eagle Bend, Minnesota. I was a catcher in baseball, which was probably one of my undoings in boxing.

After I got out of high school, I went to work for the Southern Pacific Railroad, worked there till '35. Started boxing in '32. Never had an amateur fight in my life because I played professional baseball.

Dan Thomas, no relation, started me boxing. My real name is Pontius but I took his name then and still use it. My brother Joe used to box, and when I was working out with Joe, Dan said do this, do that. He figured I'd be a better fighter. I wasn't interested, but Dan seemed to think I'd make a go of it.

Jim Jeffries was out there and saw me and thought I'd make it. I went into boxing that fall. I won my first eight fights by knockouts. No, it was nine. The 10th fight of my life was for the California heavyweight championship. I won that by a KO in the 4th.