The First Boxing Kangaroo – from Philadelphia?
You remember the movie in which
an underdog fighter gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot at the champion? He loses the fight while winning everyone’s
respect?
No, I’m not talkin’ about 1976’s Rocky, the
Italian Stallion from Philadelphia; I’m talkin’ about 1978’s Matilda,
the boxing kangaroo from Australia, mate.
“I’m fighting
for the life of a man, and a marsupial, that I give a damn about” (throw shoe).
Although people naturally
associate kangaroos with Australia, it is possible that the first boxing
kangaroo, like Rocky, was actually from Philadelphia.
The Boxing Kangaroo Flag
The red-gloved, yellow kangaroo of the Boxing
Kangaroo flag, the revered symbol of Australia’s fighting spirit that flies at international
sporting events, originated with the crew of the America’s Cup racing yacht,
Australia II, whose winged-keel stripped the United States of the America’s Cup
trophy in 1983; the first time that the cup left the United States since the
yacht, America, won the cup over fifteen British boats, in front of Queen
Victoria in 1851. The Australian Olympic Committee purchased the rights to the
image in
the late 1980s.
But the image of the boxing
kangaroo is much older. During World War
II, for example, the boxing kangaroo served as a national symbol, stenciled on
some airplanes of the Royal Australian Air Force, and appearing on propaganda
posters.
The “Kangaroo” has been used as a
symbol of Australians in international boxing matches since at least as early
as 1891:
Boxing.
The Kangaroo Whops the Eagle.
The long looked-for fight
between Joe Goddard, of Australia, and Joe Choynski, of America, took place
last week in Melbourne, and it was another case of the Australian showing
superiority over the foreigner.
Zehan and Dundas Herald (Tasmania), February 24, 1891, page 3.
Curiously, however, the first
public exhibition of an actual boxing kangaroo may have taken place not in
Australia, but in the United States, at the Philadelphia Zoo.
“John L.” – Philadelphia’s Boxing Kangaroo
 |
| The Norfolk Landmark (Virginia), November 13, 1890, page 2. |
A Boxing Kangaroo.
He Can “Put Up His Dukes” with
Some of the Best of ‘Em.
A marked characteristic of many
of the animals at the Philadelphia Zoo is their love of play. In fact, most of them seem to have forgotten
that they ever had savage instincts. The
largest kangaroo in captivity is the big one at the Zoo, which the keepers hav
nick-named “John L.” The reason they
call him by that name is because he can box almost as well as the famous
pugilist [(John L. Sullivan)] himself.
This really clever trick was
taught him by his keeper, to whom he is very much attached. One day while going in to clean the cage the
keeper noticed that “John L.,” hitherto morose, showed a decided inclination to
play. He reared himself on his hind legs
and put up his “props” just like a fighter.
The keeper put his “dukes” up too, and advanced on “John L.” The result was a rather clumsy exhibition of
the manly art.
But this first attempt was
enough for a starter, and the big kangaroo proved a willing pupil, so that in a
short time he could do almost everything but deliver the knock-out blow.
Headkeeper Byrne had a round or
two with “John L.” recently, and he had to hustle around the cage pretty lively
to keep the nimble animal from getting in one or two hard punches. When Mr. Byrne entered the cage “John L.” cocked
his hat to one side and comically surveyed his visitor.
As soon as Mr. Byrne put
himself in a fighting attitude the wily kangaroo did likewise, and began to
fiddle his paws up and down, much after the fashion of an old-style pugilistic
exponent. He slowly advanced toward the
keeper, and every move he made had a suggestion about it of business. When Mr. Byrne finally left the cage “John
L.” fairly seemed to smile derisively at the easy manner in which he had
vanquished his foe.
The Daily Democrat, March 4, 1891, page 4.
 |
| Budget and Oakland News (Topeka, Kansas), March 28, 1891, page 4. |
The earliest reports of
kangaroo boxing in Australia appeared about four months later.
“Jack” – Australia’s First, and
Foremost Boxing Kangaroo
Intercolonial Items. [By
Telegraph.] Victoria. Melbourne, Friday
Afternoon.
The latest thing in side shows
is fighting the kangaroo. The animal is
trained to box, and to-day fought a man in the city. He is a splendidly trained animal, and a
challenge to fight anyone in the world has been thrown out.
Barrier Miner (Broken Hill, NSW), Friday March 20, 1891, page 3.
The Waxworks.
Jack the Fighting Kangaroo has
taken up his position as a public entertainer at the Waxworks, where he gives
an exhibition of his warlike instincts every afternoon at three o’clock, and
every evening at nine - his antagonist being Professor Lindermann – for whom
the kangaroo entertains such a feeling of respect – or admiration – which ever
it may be – that he never takes a mean advantage of his opponent – which says a
good deal for the kangaroo. Jack’s
history is so far remarkable, from his being the first of his species to
voluntarily accept a regular course of training, and by so doing upsetting all
the theories formulated by naturalists, who state that kangaroos cannot be
educated. Jack, the Fighting Kangaroo,
is a native of the Upper Goulburn district, and has been trained during his
three years of life by Mr. R. S. Mayne,[i] of
Jamieson, who seeing that the animal showed signs of intelligence beyond his
fellows, set to work to teach him a number of accomplishments, never yet
attempted by animals of his kind.
Table Talk (Melbourne, Victoria), March 26, 1891, page 13.
 |
| Melbourne Punch, April 16, 1891 |
The question of who was first is
certainly moot at this point, and probably pointless too. But when kangaroo boxing became a worldwide
phenomenon, it came out of Australia, not Philadelphia. Although Philadelphia’s fighting kangaroo, "John L." never inspired
imitators, Philadelphia's Rocky inspired
1978’s forgotten classic, Matilda,
the Boxing Kangaroo – perhaps Elliott Gould’s and Robert Mitchum’s best performances
ever – in a boxing-animal movie.
(For an even older image of a boxing kangaroo, see my Update: Kangaroo Boxing Too - the First "Boxing" Kangaroo)
Kangaroo Boxing Circles the Globe
Australia
Professor Lindermann and Jack the
Fighting Kangaroo attained local celebrity in very quick order:
“Jack,” the fighting kangaroo,
keeps up his reputation as an unique pugilist, and his popularity appropriately
advances by leaps and bounds.
The Prahran Telegraph, May 2, 1891, page 3.
After several weeks in and around
Melbourne, “Jack” the Fighting Kangaroo moved on to Adelaide by mid-May, and
Sydney by the end of June.
In Sydney, the Kangaroo took up
“acting”:
“Evangeline” was witnessed by a
crowded house on Saturday, when a decided novelty was the introduction in the
second act of Jack, the boxing kangaroo.
The antics of this well-trained animal kept the audience in
laughter. The brute “dodges” the blows
of the Lone Fisherman by throwing back its head, and when the “rally” gets a
little too severe it stands upon its tail, and, quick as lightning, gives
“one-two” with both its hind legs in a way that one might imagine would rather
astonish J. L. Sullivan. The Lone
Fisherman, better instructed in the ethics of kangaroo warfare, at such times
throws himself on the ground as a hint that the “round” is at an end, and the
four-legged brute then fondles the biped with comic demonstrations of
affection. The new feature was received
with great applause.
The Sydney Morning Herald, July
20, 1891, page 4.
The great success which marked
the introduction of the fighting kangaroo in “Evangeline” has induced the
management to include him in the cast of “The Corsair.” The cleverly trained animal was in good
fighting trim last evening, and had a lively sparring match with his attendant.
The Queenslander (Brisbane),
August 29, 1891, page 399.
But the good times did not last
forever:
The kangaroo fulfilled his
engagement for 10 weeks, appearing with the Evangeline Company in Melbourne and
Sydney. “Jack” was then taken to the
Northern district, where, on the 30th October treated the residents
of Newcastle to a matinee and performance.
Next day he appeared at Wallsend, but, unfortunately, died on the
following Monday.”
Wagga Wagga Express (NSW), March 12, 1892, page 6.
The owner accused the promoters
of poisoning the kangaroo. But a
“veterinary surgeon declared it had died from influenza.”[ii]
But not even death could stop
fighting “Jack.” A second Kangaroo named
“Jack” continued performing through the end of 1891 and into 1892.
In mid-1892, Jack’s wrangler,
Professor Linderman, was performing with a third kangaroo, who like Philly’s
boxing kangaroo, went by the name “John L.”:
On Tuesday evening Professor
Linderman exhibited in the shire hall his fighting kangaroo “John L. Sullivan,”
so named after the celebrated American champion by reason of the size of the
animal, which is truly a grand specimen . . . standing fully eight feet high
when in an upright posture, and towering well above his little and agile
opponent, the professor, when boxing. . . .
Like the kangaroo which
Professor Linderman previously exhibited in the principal cities of Australia,
and which died a short time back, the present animal was trained in this
district, and the present tour, which opened in Doon on Saturday last, is only
a preliminary canter for the purpose of enuring “John L” to the stage and
strange audiences and surroundings.
Considering that the Alexandra exhibition was his third appearances in
public, and that the large stage and hall and music scenery somewhat attracted
the animal’s attention, Mr. Linderman may be credited with high praise on the
success of his tutelage, for although not quite so active or self-possessed as
his predecessor, “John L.” displays good science, while his commanding presence
makes him appear a far more dangerous adversary, and this fact, coupled with
the extra training he will receive ere he opens in the metropolis, will
doubtless command in the large centres of population a greater measure of
encores in the matter of attendances than was the case with the first fighting
kangaroo.
Alexandra and Yea Standard, Gobur, Thornton and Acheron Express
(Vic.), June 18, 1892, page 2.
Professor Linderman had conquered
Australia and spawned imitators. There
were boxing kangaroos performing in Australia even after Professor Linderman
left the country for England.
England
In late 1892 (more than seventy years before Woody Allen boxed a kangaroo on British Television), Professor Lindermann
and “John L.” played to packed houses at the Westminster Aquarium:
[T]he British stage has been
both enriched and enlivened by the advent of a boxing kangaroo which stands
seven feet in height and boxes five fierce rounds with its keeper amid the howls
of the delighted crowd. The brute is
named John L. It pays great attention to
shaking hands, stops when time is called, and handles the gloves as if born
with them on.
The Anaconda Standard, November 27, 1892, page 1.
A Kangaroo Boxer.
London news.
An exhibition of boxing of an
unusual character has been secured by the management of the royal
Aquarium. Professor Landerman, and
Australian pugilist, will box a kangaroo seven feet high. It is said that the kangaroo boxes
scientifically and hits harder than the ordinary pugilist. . . .
There will never have been such
a novel exhibition of boxing. John L.
Sullivan, though challenged, refused to fight, and Mme. Sarah Bernhardt was so
amused and taken with the exhibition at the Criterion, Sydney, as to offer
£1000 for the animal.
The Morning Call, December 14, 1892, page 4.
 |
| Punch, Volume 104, May 27, 1893, page 242 |
If kangaroos could box, could
they also race?
 |
| Punch, volume 103, December 31, 1892, page 301 |
 |
| Judge's Library, Number 167, 1903 |
The boxing kangaroo may have
outstayed his welcome, and was soon outdrawn by a wrestling lion:
 |
| Salt Lake Herald, July 9, 1893, Page 14 |
Roused to emulation by the instantaneous
success of the boxing kangaroo, London variety managers have been hustling to
unearth a rival athletic novelty. The
Oxford Theatre of Varieties believes it has at length filled the bill, and now
expends its display type on a wrestling lion. . . . He has been two years under the care of
Amousa, who is a West Indian and black as ebony, with gleaming eyes and teeth
as white as the driven snow. Standing 5
feet 10 1-1 inches, and weighing close on 15 stone, he loks like the
personification of strength and courage.
Quietly he entered the lion’s cage, and, at a sign from Alex, the brute
reared himself up and the pair “took hold” in the Cumberland fashion, only
neither could clasp hands around the body.
The first fall was given in favor of his majesty the lion (whose name,
by the way, is Prince), who simply, by superior weight in the upper part of his
body, bored his opponent down flat on his back.
Again the couple got into grips, the lion apparently very unwillingly this
time. After a little manoeuvring Alex
attempted to twist the king of beasts on his back, but failed lamentably, both
falling side by side. . . . For a while
the lion rested on his haunches until in a catch-hold bout Alex threw him very
cleverly by a singularly well-executed twist.
The fourth and last fall went to the sable champion, who very adroitly
back-hurled the leonine hero of the wrestling arena, and fell plump on
him. At the close of the wrestling Alex
opened the jaws of the lion, and, while holding them apart, placed his head in
the animal’s mouth and took a survey of the contents of his stomach. After that Prince fired a pistol which was
suspended from the roof of the cage, and then Alex and the lion lay down on the
floor together and positively cuddled each other.
The Times (Richmond, Virginia), March 26, 1893, page 23.
 |
| Salt Lake Herald, July 9, 1893, Page 14 |
The trainer was born in the
island of St. Vincent, and till the age of 15 he had never seen a traveling
menagerie.
Taken to Morocco by a party of
English gentlemen bent on a great hunting expedition, he obtained a certain
amount of experience in wild-beast hunting, and later his fine physique
procured him an engagement in Sanger’s celebrated English circus, but he there
had nothing to do with the show, and was considered more ornamental than useful
by his employers.
One fine day the official lion
tamer felt his nerve give way; he refused to go into the cage, and the
performance would have had to come to an end had not Alicamousa offered to take
his place, and there it was that he found to his surprise that he had a
remarkable ascendancy over animals.
This is how he found his
vocation. During the last twelve years
he had tamed and trained over fifty tigers, leopards, bears, wolves and
elephants. It was Alicamousa who first introduced
the trick of making a lion fire off a pistol in the presence of other wild
animals, and he soon became famed throughout Europe as a trainer.
The first idea Alicamousa ever
had of training a lion to wrestle was from seeing the Boxing Kangaroo. He said to himself: “If a kangaroo can box,
surely one of my lions can wrestle,” and he immediately began looking out for a
likely one to teach.
The Salt Lake Herald, July 9, 1893, page 14.
With the English public’s thirst
for boxing kangaroos having been slaked, “John L.” (or several facsimiles
thereof) jumped across the pond for greener pastures in the United States.
The United States
In May of 1893, the United States
was invaded by several boxing kangaroos:
A Boxing Kangaroo:
The celebrated, much talked of,
boxing Kangaroo will be on the Monowai enroute to the World’s Fair [(in
Chicago)]. Some of our local professionals purpose trying to bout with the
animal if the steamer stays long enough.
The Hawaiian Star (Honolulu), May
3, 1893, page 2.
For the World’s Fair.
Siva-Siva Dancing Girls and
Boxing Kangaroos.
On the Monowai yesterday was
quite motley assortment of freaks from the Southern Hemisphere, designed for
show at the World’s Fair. Chief amongst
them were four Siva-Siva dancing girls who, under the guidance of Manager
Stevenson of Apia [(Somoa)], will open as a tropical attraction in songs and
dances in Chicago upon their arrival there.
Three boxing kangaroos were also on exhibition, in large wooden cages on
the upper deck and hardly look the sloggers that they really are. J. Tait of Sydney is manager of this
attraction and shows with especial pride the Australian wonder “Jack,” who has
boxed every other kangaroo into smithereens in Australia. The animals stand, on an average, six and a
half feet high and are marvels of strength and agility. They box with gloves on and soon knock out
the best of professional sparrers.
The Hawaiian Star (Honolulu), May 6, 1893, page 4.
The Australian Boxing Kangaroos
at the Meyer’s Wigwam Theater.
Manager Meyer has secured at an
enormous expense the greatest novelty attraction every brought to this
city. It is the pair of Australian
Boxing Kangaroos, of whom the press of this city has given columns of praise
and write-ups during the past two weeks.
They will appear in a glove contest, which will be amusing and
interesting. This is the first
exhibition of its kind ever introduced in this country. They will appear May 22.
The Morning Call, May 15, 1893, page 8.
When the Morning Call called the boxing kangaroo in San Francisco, “the first
exhibition of its kind ever introduced in this country,” it was not entirely
true. Two circuses had advertised their
own boxing kangaroos earlier that same month:
This great feature of the show
is the one great novelty, but such rare things as the boxing Kangaroo; Earl the
trotting dog; Basis and Baby Ruth, the largest and smallest female elephants in
the world . . . .
The Hocking Sentinel (Logan, Ohio), May 4, 1893, page 2.
 |
| People's Voice (Wellington, Kansas), May 5, 1893, page 8 |
May 5, 1893.
And another boxing kangaroo died
in Chicago, where he was in training for the Chicago World’s Fair:
A Boxing
Kangaroo Dead.
Chicago, May 17. – The boxing
kangaroo died yesterday in the barn which had been her quarters since her
arrival. It was seized with a chill
Saturday. It continued to grow worse,
and Sunday morning Messrs. Allen and Harris, her owners, called a veterinary
surgeon, but he could do nothing. The
kangaroo cost Allen and Harris $5,000, including the expense of bringing it to
this country. As it was as proficient in
boxing as the one that earned a fortune at the London aquarium, her owners
expected to reap a rich harvest by exhibiting it here during the world’s fair.
The Kinsley Graphic, May 19, 1893, page 1.
Kangaroo boxing came to Madison
Square Garden in New York City in June 1893:
A Kangaroo
Boxing and Boxed.
The Unusual
Pugilistic Contest at the Garden Yesterday.
A most remarkable exhibition of
pugilism was given t the Madison Square Garden yesterday afternoon before a
small company of invited guests. Three
rounds were fought between “Big Frank” and “Tom” Tully, otherwise known as
“Black Jack.” “Black Jack” is a
California man who is said to be celebrated as a pugilist, and “Big Frank” is a
kangaroo. Frank is a five-year-old; Jack
is considerably older and also heavier.
He looks stronger too, Frank’s arms being no larger than a small
child’s, but Frank is more vicious and less careful about observing the rules.
New York Tribune, June 2, 1893, page 4.
And a kangaroo did, eventually,
perform at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The kangaroos that came direct from Australia,
via Hawaii and San Francisco, appear to have had the honors:
Jack is Happy.
The Kangaroo Boxer’s Wife
Arrives.
Kangaroos, Indians,
prize-fighters and racehorses came to town yesterday morning on the steamer
Alameda, from Sdney, Apia and Honolulu.
The kangaroos attracted more
attention than all, for one of the party is the wife of Gentleman Jack, the
champion kangaroo boxer of the world [(who had arrived on the Molowai a few
weeks earlier)]. . . .
“My protégé, Jack, is going to
spar with Corbett. Jim treats the
proposition lightly, but he will find that Jack is no mean opponent, and though
he does not fight with tooth, he can with nail.
His hind toe will make any pugilist tremble.
“I have Manager Brady’s
contract in my pocket.” Said Mr. McMahon, reaching after the document and
handling it fondly. “Jack will box with
Jim and give him a good set-to I guess.” . . .
After her cage was lowered
Jack’s wife was hurried away to her husband’s training quarters on First
street.
The Morning Call, June 9, 1893, page 10.
When Jack finally boxed at the
World’s Fair in Chicago (in a ring built over the empty swimming pool at the
Fleischmann’s Yeast restaurant), he appeared on the same bill as Jim Corbett,
but only as a novelty exhibit – he did not get his shot at the champ.[iii]
Germany
The French actress and dancer, Polaire, insisted on having a no-kangaroo clause written into her contract. "The kangaroo was specifically mentioned because once when Polaire was playing at a German vaudeville theatre where there was a boxing kangaroo on the bill, the creature put on its gloves and frightened Napoleon [(her pet pig)] half to death by chasing him all over the stage." The Times Dispatch, August 17, 1913, page 38.
 |
The German film-makers, Max and Emil Skladanowsky,
filmed a kangaroo-boxing match in in 1895.
Through the miracle of YouTube, we can see what all the fuss was about:
Skladanowski
Brothers: Mr. Delaware and
the Boxing Kangaroo.
France
A boxing kangaroo performed at
the Folies Bergere:
 |
| Gallica.bnf.fr (Biblioteque nationale de France) |
Hong Kong
And my personal favorite (you gotta see this one):
Bat Ye Tin
(1987) (aka Killer’s Nocturne) – Kangaroo Boxing Clip
Boom to Bust
All good (?) things must come to an end. As was the case in London, in early
1893, the lure of the boxing kangaroo eventually wore thin:[iv]
There was a boom in kangaroos some years
ago. It will be remembered that a boxing
kangaroo was exhibited in London at the Aquarium. It drew such crowds that every other place of
entertainment had to have its boxing kangaroo; but kangaroos were not to be had
in such numbers, and some resorted to the clumsy expedient of clothing a man in
a kangaroo skin. Even so, the demand
remained unsatisfied, and cables were sent out to Australia to agents and the
Captains of ships lying there to bring over as many kangaroos as they could
find. Kangaroos consequently, which
before were practically unsalable, bounded up to 100 apiece; now they are again
unsalable, and are heard of only in connection with a rather rich soup that is
made out of their tails.
The New York Times, April 28, 1901.
The Bruce Herald (New Zealand), volume 28, issue 2849, April 30, 1897, page 3.
Today
The image of the Boxing Kangaroo
is as popular as ever today in Australia. But despite its success, the boxing kangaroo is
not without controversy. The
International Olympic Committee tried to ban
the Boxing Kangaroo Flag from the Olympic village at the Vancouver Olympics. And in Florida, when PETA (People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals) asked the state boxing commission to ban actual kangaroo
boxing, they refused to take any action; they only deal with human boxing. A petition on Change.Org, however seeks to do
what the Florida boxing commission was powerless (and perhaps uninterested) to
stop.
In the meantime, you can still
see kangaroo boxing whenever “Jack” (he’s still called “Jack”) the Boxing
Kangaroo comes to your town - Boxing Kangaroo Draws Crowds
and Critics.
Other Boxing
Kangaroos:
Killer’s Nocturne (1987)
– Chin Siu-ho vs. The Kangaroo
Matilda the Boxing Kangaroo
(1978)
Kick Boxing Kangaroos –
in the wild
Anime Boxing Kangaroos
– Naruto Shippūden Episode #185
__________________________________________
UPDATE: 6/11/2015 - Sarah Kurchak mentions this article in her fine editorial piece, The Prolific and Upsetting History of Humans Boxing Kangaroos, posted on Vice Magazine's Mixed Martial Arts website, Fightland.
UPDATE: 3/31/2020 - Article revised to show earlier publication of the Philadelphia boxing kangaroo story, March 4, 1891, a month earlier than April 2, 1891 example in the original post; resolving the question of whether it happened before or after the March 20, 1891 description of kangaroo boxing exhibitions in Australia.
UPDATE: 3/31/2020 - Article revised to show earlier publication of the Philadelphia boxing kangaroo story, March 4, 1891, a month earlier than April 2, 1891 example in the original post; resolving the question of whether it happened before or after the March 20, 1891 description of kangaroo boxing exhibitions in Australia.
UPDATE: 6/29/2021 - Added image of "pugilistic kangaroo" at Westminster from The Graphic. Also added references to earlier examples of the Philadelphia boxing kangaroo article; a headline from the Norfolk Landmark (November 13, 1890), and an image and identical text from the St. Louis Globe-Democrat (November 17, 1890). The Norfolk article was the earliest example of the article I have seen; the St. Louis article is the earliest version citing the Philadelphia Record as the source of the article, and also has the clearest image.). Revised text of the post to reflect four months earlier than earliest reference to kangaroo boxing in Australia.
[i]
Although this article credits Mr. Mayne, the kangaroo had apparently
actually been purchased and trained by his wife, Olivia Sabina Mayne, who
purchased the kangaroo as a pet with money she earned making and selling “fancy
articles.” Her marital status was an
issue at trial, because women had only recently been given the right to own
property in her own right. Wagga Wagga
Express (NSW), March 12, 1892, page 6. Musta’ been a kangaroo court. Her husband held an “official position in the
Government service” and did not want his name associated with the kangaroo. Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’
Advocate (NSW), March 8, 1892, page 5.
[ii] Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners’
Advocate (NSW), March 8, 1892, page 5.
[iii]
Sol Bloom, The Autobiography of Sol Bloom,
New York, G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1948, page 139.
[iv] Microkahn.com,
Supply, Demand, and Pugilistic Marsupials, February 4, 2010.
Good post.
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