DOCSLIB.ORG

Download This Article (PDF)

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Download This Article (PDF) ULTIMATE G FUNDRAISINCHAMPIONSHIP 38 MAY | JUNEDonal 2009 McElwee THE PENNSYLVANIA and Nathan GAZETTE Dyer go for broke in the legendary Blue Horizon. PHOTOGRAPHY BY CANDACE DICARLO Philanthropy at the end of a fi st. Grad students beyond thunderdome. Chin-rattlers. Brain-shakers. G Welcome to Fight Night. BY TREY POPP Before he stood in a ring edged by 1,200 frenzied spectators, boxing gloves slicked with sweat, white trunks speckled with the blood of his charging opponent, Donal McElwee worried that his manager would fail to deliver the dwarfs. THE PENNSYLVANIA GAZETTE MAY | JUNE 2009 39 It was going to be the Wharton welterweight’s only bout of the year. All his friends would be there. He didn’t care if it cost a thousand bucks. The Irish native was dead set on hav- EVEN RING FIXERS ing leprechauns in his entourage. GET THE BLUES “It’s a matter of luck,” McElwee said in a dressing room, his Philly Fight Night is brogue heavier than a sock full of stones, as the opening bell of the brainchild of three Wharton students who went to the Blue Philly Fight Night drew near. “You need the little people in your Horizon on a lark one night five years ago. When they came corner when you’re fighting. I feel 10 times more confident with out, R.T. Arnold WG’05, Schuyler Coppedge WG’05, and Dave them than without them.” Birnbaum WG’05 couldn’t shake the venue from their minds. Already, the belly of North Philadelphia’s legendary Blue Carved out of a row of brownstone mansions whose facades Horizon boxing hall was quaking with noise. The 900 advance date to 1865, the smoke-stained auditorium has been called tickets allotted to Wharton had sold out in 20 hours, at $35 the best place in the world to watch boxing by none other than and $50 a pop. Now Penn Law students were streaming Ring magazine. The ring sits in a cavity taller than it is wide, through the security pat-downs to support their own contin- framed by wooden balconies that dip down so close to the gent of pugilists. There were six bouts ropes that a spectator could almost lean on tonight’s card. Ten men and two over and land a bareknuckle punch. women were about to climb past an EMT In the city of Joe Frazier and Rocky and a fight doctor to risk more than “I’m going Balboa, where “fighters come out of the their pride in three rounds of combat. womb knowing how to throw a left hook”— The gate take, plus a handful of corpo- to go for the as local sportswriter Bernard Fernandez rate sponsorships, would amount to a once put it—the Blue Horizon is a land- $55,000 donation to the Boys & Girls mark unlike any other. It boasts of having Clubs of Philadelphia. At the moment, head, go for hosted 30 world champions since open- however, McElwee’s entourage seemed ing in 1961. Stand in the hall when it’s to be the subject on everyone’s lips. empty, and the idea of 1,200 people cram- “I heard he’s hiring midgets as lepre- the knockout, ming inside makes you wonder how chauns,” said Wharton first-year Dana much the fire marshal gets bribed. Scardigli, all but spilling out of the mini- Experience a packed house, and you’re mal attire required of an official ring and walk out bound to fall under the spell that gripped girl. “I don’t know how I feel about that.” Arnold, Coppedge, and Birnbaum. Then she disappeared into the giggling seeing her “We kept talking about it for a week commotion of the ring girls’ ready room, or two afterwards,” Arnold recalls. “So where someone cried out, “More rouge!” we came up with the idea that maybe we Across the way, grad students wear- on the fl oor.” could convince Penn grad students to ing sweatpants and sneakers tried to get in the ring for charity.” whittle away such distractions. Choosing a beneficiary was a cinch. The James “Playboy” Williams plucked out a pair of iPod earbuds to Boys & Girls Clubs of Philadelphia serve some 15,000 local share his strategy for the third fight. “Knock his nose in, then his kids, and sports are a major component of their programming. eye sockets, then his cheekbones,” the student of entrepreneurial Recruiting boxers turned out to be surprisingly easy as management declared. “All in round one.” Perhaps confidence well. The trio managed to coax 16 fighters—experienced and would get him further than his 0-1 lifetime record. “I’ve boxed once, otherwise—onto their card in fairly short order. in Thailand,” Williams confessed. “I was just on holiday there and Then they hit the hard part: getting a critical mass of their class- wanted to fight. So I got myself into a fight in Chaweng Stadium. I mates to a part of town where few had ever set foot, to watch a sport lost.” But this time he had trained. And there was no question that that almost none had ever paid money to see. It was the same chal- his head was in the game. It bore the long spike of a freshly shaved lenge every promoter faces, only no ring fixer in history has been mohawk, rendered “by popular request—of three people.” deluded enough to rely on grad students to churn turnstiles. Third-year law student Bill “The Big Show” Stone looked up By noon on the big day, it looked like the trio was about to from his wrist tape to consider whether he had ever done any- learn why. thing this crazy—or done anything at all, for that matter, in front “We had sold about 200 tickets,” Arnold says. “I mean, hardly of 1,200 people screaming their throats out. “If I have, I was a lot anything. We were looking at each other. We weren’t even sure better at what I was doing than what I’m doing tonight,” he said. we were going to be able to cover our costs, let alone give any “I’m just going to try to conserve my energy, make it to the end of money to the Boys & Girls Clubs.” A couple hours before show the fight, and try to land some haymakers if I get the chance.” time, Arnold was pulling down folding chairs. Fight Night was Elena “The Russian Bombshell” Aidova, a second-year law bleeding before the first punch had been thrown. student, allowed that her opponent was “a nice girl.” Then, minutes from the opening bell, a huge crush of peo- “But that’s all out when we get into the ring,” she quickly added, ple hit the box office. Eight or nine hundred bodies poured for there is no boxing without bluster. “I’m going to go for the inside. Yet the mood was still uncertain, skeptical even. No head, go for the knockout, and walk out seeing her on the floor.” one seemed sure what exactly the night had in store. 40 MAY | JUNE 2009 THE PENNSYLVANIA GAZETTE “People didn’t believe that the students were actually Escorting Taj was a quartet of what can only be called “lady going to fight,” Arnold remembers. “They thought it was cops.” Navy blue mini-dresses, eight-point police caps, black going to be a joke, or some sort of performance. No one could boots to the knee. Forget about the right to an attorney. Is really get it. And when the first fight started, and they real- there a right to be arrested by the cast of a midnight feature ized that it was actually for real, the place just blew up.” on Cinemax? No wonder Donal “The Lethal Leprechaun” McElwee felt pressure to live up to his ring moniker. An ama- On February 28, 2009, the teur fighter might be forgiven a disappointing bout, but his DO DEAD MEN Blue Horizon’s floor literally entourage had better give the crowd its money’s worth. trembled beneath a sellout After the hoopla of their arrival and the ding of the bell, the DRAW BLOOD? crowd as Praveen “The Baby opening combatants circled the ring tentatively. Their first clash Face Assassin” Lingathoti turned quickly into an embrace. Feet shifted, arms flailed, and made his way to the ring in a wooden coffin borne by four the two bodies locked together again. So the clinch-heavy theme hooded figures dressed like Benedictine monks. of the first fight was set. The convict landed no blow worthy of a An 18-year-old Boys & Girls Club member named Jessica felony rap sheet. The assassin managed a few valiant flurries and Sledge had just kicked off the fifth annual Fight Night with bloodied his mark’s nose, but spent too much time leaning away an object lesson in guts, belting out the national anthem from the action. Bottom line: neither man managed to send out unaccompanied by background music— the other in Lingathoti’s raw-pine convey- or the duet partner who had been ance. At the end of three rounds and a 2-1 struck songless by the room’s unreal split decision, the referee raised Taj’s voltage. Now it was Lingathoti’s turn to clenched fist. The throng bellowed and face the glare. It would be an uphill booed. Penn Law 1, Wharton 0. battle for the Wharton second-year. He’d be giving up 20 pounds and three inches in height to Al “The Truth” Taj CGS’01, a third-year law student who entered the arena wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and handcuffs.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Anatomy of a Tragedy Philly Boxer Fights for Life
    Anatomy Of A Tragedy Philly Boxer Fights For Life By ELMER SMITH, Daily News Sports Writer POSTED: JANUARY 15, 1987 Vital fluids drained into Randy Jenkins's outstretched arms from bottles suspended on poles next to his hospital bed. A gauze turban covered the wound left by a team of neurosurgeons when they burrowed deep into his bruised brain to save his life. The quiet cadence of an accordionlike apparatus at the top of a life- sustaining respirator was the only sound. His family was with him, but the only other signs of life in room 1274 were the rhythmic contractions of Jenkins's induced breathing and the squiggly lines on a monitor that tracked his vital signs. He didn't look like a fighter. A picture on the wall that showed him striking a fighting pose was the only indication that he had ever been in the ring - that picture and the brain injuries that have left him suspended between life and death. "His condition is still critical," Hahnemann University Hospital spokeswoman Phyllis Fisher said last night. "He is on a respirator and his condition is being monitored by doctors and intensive care nurses." Except to squeeze his sister's hand yesterday, Jenkins has not moved a muscle since Tuesday night, when he complained of being tired and rolled over to rest on a back-room training table at the Blue Horizon. The 25-year-old middleweight, a North Philadelphia native now living on Provident Street in Mount Airy, had just lost a four-round majority decision to Darrell Underwood.
    [Show full text]
  • Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 54 Common Name: Blue Horizon; Legendary Blue Horizon
    NOMINATION OF HISTORIC BUILDING, STRUCTURE, SITE, OR OBJECT PHILADELPHIA REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES PHILADELPHIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION SUBMIT ALL ATTACHED MATERIALS ON PAPER AND IN ELECTRONIC FORM ON CD (MS WORD FORMAT) 1. ADDRESS OF HISTORIC RESOURCE (must comply with a Board of Revision of Taxes address) Street address: 1314-1316 North Broad Street Postal code: 19121 Councilmanic District: 5 2. NAME OF HISTORIC RESOURCE Historic Name: Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 54 Common Name: Blue Horizon; Legendary Blue Horizon 3. TYPE OF HISTORIC RESOURCE Building Structure Site Object 4. PROPERTY INFORMATION Condition: excellent good fair poor ruins Occupancy: occupied vacant under construction unknown Current use: Vacant 5. BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION SEE ATTACHED 6. DESCRIPTION SEE ATTACHED 7. SIGNIFICANCE Period of Significance (from year to year): c.1878-2010 Date(s) of construction and/or alteration: c.1878; 1914-1916; 2003 Architect, engineer, and/or designer: Unknown (c. 1878); Carl Berger (1914-1916) Builder, contractor, and/or artisan: Richard J. Dobbins Original owner: Richard J. Dobbins Other significant persons: Theodore Armstrong, Moses Aaron Dropsie, Gustav Schwarz, Jimmy Toppi Jr. CRITERIA FOR DESIGNATION: The historic resource satisfies the following criteria for designation (check all that apply): (a) Has significant character, interest or value as part of the development, heritage or cultural characteristics of the City, Commonwealth or Nation or is associated with the life of a person significant in the past; or, (b) Is associated with
    [Show full text]
  • Rewrite / Reweave North Philadelphia: Patterns for Second-Growth in the Postindustrial City
    640 CONSTRUCTING IDENTITY Rewrite / Reweave North Philadelphia: Patterns for Second-Growth in the Postindustrial City SALLY HARRISON Temple University "To avoid the meaninglessness of the contemporary ofthe exploding industrial economy was the text that dictated city it is not necessary to search for some ideal in the most ofthe urbanism ofthe nineteenth century. The idea we preindustrial past. It is possible to start with a given now consciously seek - of establishing dwelling for the reality of any existing city and to discover in most of long-term, ofmaking aplace sustainable-is arelatively new them a residuum of tradition sufficient to support a concept in American urban design. It is not surprising, then consistent, imaginative, and sometimes even radical that the formof the industrial city in its primary iteration, was reinterpretation of the status quo." frankly utilitaria The idea we now consciously seek - of establishing dwelling for the long-term, of making a place - Dalibor Vesely, Architecture arid Corztinuity' sustainable - is a relatively new concept in American urban design. Its schema neither suggested nor explicitly supported INTRODUCTION communal continuity, and provided little that would discour- The depth and breadth of the physical decomposition of age subsequent postindustrial abandonment when the fit was postindustrial inner-city neighborhoods has confounded no longer precise. American culture for the latter half of this century. The In America, continued opportunities for growth and change problem has been examined from the point of view of eco- have been obtained in mobility, and in the potential ofthe vast nomics, racial politics, social psychology, and technology; undeveloped landscape to provide an unlimited "blank slate" and strategies to reverse the decline have been undertaken in for imprinting new forms ofinhabitation - literally, for form various modes.
    [Show full text]
  • Our Brochure Here
    Who We Are . Orens Brothers Real Estate, Development and Construction is a privately-owned family business, serving the Philadelphia region since 1979. Orens Brothers combine their expertise in all aspects of the real estate business, along with the support of a staff of more than 50 co-workers to create the widest variety of real estate services available anywhere in the region. With an Orens Brothers project, you are getting decades of experience, a quality finished product, as well as an unsurpassed level of professionalism and ethical conduct. “We deliver more than expected for less than projected” Our Story. In the spring of 1979, Scott, Guy and Jonathan Orens purchased a three-story, six bedroom residential property across the street from the University of Pennsylvania School of Dentistry. The plan was to create a simple and convenient living environment for the graduate students who were attending the dental school. The property was in need of substantial repair and the three brothers performed a full-scale renovation to accommodate tenants by the end of the summer. Backed only by the support of their parents, some physical help from friends, and a “learn from your mistakes and continue forward” attitude, the property was completed and fully rented for the academic school year. This real estate purchase and renovation in ‘79 was effectively the seed of what is now a full service construction contracting and development company. Additionally, it operates as a real estate brokerage and management company that has serviced thousands of residential and commercial properties throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey over the years.
    [Show full text]
  • 5. Boundary Description
    5. Boundary Description The public interior portion of 1314-16 N. Broad Street comprising the subject of this nomination is the area of the building historically known as Moose Auditorium. This is also the portion of the property that hosted boxing matches during the building’s incarnation as the Blue Horizon. It occupies the second and third floor areas of the property’s rear addition, designed by architect Carl Berger in 1914 and completed in 1916. It fills the full width and nearly the full depth of this addition, which is situated behind the main massing of the property’s c.1873 townhouses fronting Broad Street. The auditorium sits above a basement rathskeller and first floor banquet hall, which are not included in this nomination. The auditorium space is an open volume measuring approximately 109 feet 6 inches by 61 feet 9 inches in plan, partially bisected by a U-shaped balcony. The floor-to- ceiling height of the space measures 32 feet 3 inches over most of the volume; the ceiling rises an additional 5 feet over the easternmost 30 feet of the auditorium to accommodate an upper balcony level. The north and south boundaries of this nominated interior space follow the interior face of the property’s load-bearing exterior walls. The east boundary is defined by the interior face of a plaster wall which separates the main auditorium volume from circulation spaces to the east, which are not included in the nomination boundaries. The west boundary is defined by the interior face of the proscenium wall. The open volume of the stage area behind the proscenium is also not included within the nomination boundaries.
    [Show full text]
  • The State of NORTH BROAD 2019
    The State of NORTH BROAD 2019 #THINKBROAD Table of Contents Letter From Executive Director 4 North Broad by The Numbers 5 Map of North Broad 6 North Broad is Connecting Neighborhoods and People 7 Living Along North Broad 10 Jobs and Businesses Along North Broad 12 Development Along North Broad 15 List of Developments Along North Broad Corridor 16 Transportation Along North Broad 35 Public Safety Along North Broad 38 Qualty of Life Along North Broad 40 2019 Forecast 42 About The North Broad Renaissance 45 The North Broad Renaissance Team 47 TheThe StateState ofof NorthNorth BroadBroad 20182018 3 Letter from North Broad The Executive Director by the Numbers Census Tracts The pace and shape of community and economic development is beginning to change for cities across America. In December 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) created Qualified Opportunity Zones to promote long-term investment in low-income communities. The law provides a tax incentive . 49492 Population Groth for investors to re-invest their unrealized capital gains into Opportunity Funds. Residents in North Broad from 2018 to 2023 Source ESR Business Analyst Source ESR Business Analyst In November 2018, our research partners at Econsult Solutions, Inc., released the Smarter Cities 2025 white paper that provided an overview on the impact smart cities will have on “attracting business, residents, tourists, and talent, and for ultimately fostering growth and prosperity.” The paper noted that communities that make smart city investments – both now and by the year 2021 – will enhance safety and 44% 15,18 security, generate additional revenue, and attract residents and tourists.
    [Show full text]
  • Transportation Assesment
    SECTION 3 TRANSPORTATION ASSESMENT 122 | THE PHILADELPHIA GAMING ADVISORY TASK FORCE Introduction In addition to analyzing the major advantages and challenges associated with potential gaming sites (see page 77), the Task Force also conducted an in-depth transportation access study to assess the impact of increased traffic at potential casino locations. This assessment begins with an estimation of “mode splits”, or the percentage of casino visitors expected to arrive by various modes of transportation. It is followed by a detailed technical analysis current and projected traffic conditions on city streets surrounding potential gaming sites. This traffic capacity analysis is based upon current traffic counts and intersection conditions, determination of current roadway capacity levels, and modeling of anticipated additional local traffic generated by development of a 3,000-device slot parlor. Mode of Arrival Understanding how gamers are likely to arrive at Philadelphia slots parlors is a necessary first step in assessing the potential traffic impacts associated with casino development. Toward this end, the Task Force drew upon surveys of potential gamers in the region as well as the industry expertise of its consultants to estimate the percentage of visitors that would arrive by various modes of transportation at different casino locations. These “mode splits” can vary according to the relative location of Philadelphia’s two slots parlors (see page 202 for analysis of casino development scenarios) as well as a casino operator’s marketing strategy. Graph 3.1 displays the expected typical distribution of transportation modes for a casino located in a given area of the City. An explanation of the methodology used in developing these mode splits is included on page 192.
    [Show full text]