Overview
In 1923, not long after oil had started gushing from northern Montana fields, real-estate sales in nearby Shelby were declining, dimming the little town’s prospects of becoming the “Tulsa of the West.” Then the mayor’s son dreamed up a marketing ploy: offer to host heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey’s next fight. What began as a publicity stunt soon spiraled into a civic drama unlike any Montana had ever seen—or ever would again. Shelby’s Folly tells this story in full for the first time. Against the background of boom-and-bust Montana history, the folly of Shelby’s would-be promoters unfolds in colorful detail. It took months to persuade Dempsey’s conniving manager, Jack “Doc” Kearns, to sign a $300,000 contract. With less than two months before the July 4th fight, the town still had no stadium and no accommodations for tens of thousands of expected fans. Jason Kelly describes the promoters’ desperate measures and their disastrous results, from the first inkling of the idea to the bitter end of the fifteen-round boxing match. Shelby residents identified with the underdog challenger, Tommy Gibbons, who went toe-to-toe with the champion in an atmosphere crackling with tension. Nerves were so frayed that a holiday firecracker exploding in the arena sent shockwaves of fear through the crowd. A soap opera of financial intrigue and chicanery, Shelby’s Folly chronicles how Big Sky ambition and the scheming mind of Doc Kearns collided to produce one of the most preposterous series of events in boxing history. Watch the Shelby's Folly book trailer on YouTube.
Full Product Details
Author: Jason Kelly
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Imprint: University of Nebraska Press
Dimensions:
Width: 14.00cm
, Height: 2.30cm
, Length: 21.60cm
Weight: 0.449kg
ISBN: 9780803226555
ISBN 10: 0803226551
Pages: 238
Publication Date: 01 May 2010
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
Availability: Out of stock
Reviews
""A friend once told me about driving to Shelby. I was jealous. No more. Now Jason Kelly has taken us not only to the place but to the time. His vivid piece of Americana breathes life into legends."" Dave Kindred, author of Sound and Fury: Two Powerful Lives, One Fateful Friendship
A friend once told me about driving to Shelby. I was jealous. No more. Now Jason Kelly has taken us not only to the place but to the time. His vivid piece of Americana breathes life into legends. Dave Kindred, author of Sound and Fury: Two Powerful Lives, One Fateful Friendship
Author Information
Jason Kelly is an associate editor of the University of Chicago Magazine. He is the author of Mr. Notre Dame: The Life and Legend of Edward “Moose” Krause.
