The Featherweight

Ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together

for former featherweight champion of the world,

Willie Pep!

He was a celebrity in my town. Are you kidding?

You'll play numbers with that guy? Watch out he don't stiff you!

- -He'll stiff you.

You play my number?

What's your number?

427.

427? What do you want on it?

You don't wanna put that on the camera. Don't let them see.

You gotta move this stuff. Turn this over. You crazy?

He sees me fighting.

He sees me fighting this kid, and after the fight, I whip him good.

He comes up to me, he goes, "What are you doing?"

-I said, "What do you mean?" -He goes, "You're fighting in the street.

Only suckers fight in the street. Go to the gym..."

-Gotta make money. -Gotta make money.

-I made some money. -You did all right.

-I think I did all right. -So and so.

I love you. Love you, kid.

You want me? Well...

This is me. This is me.

I'm not gonna win any beauty contests with this face.

And my nose, it's gonna be flatter in your pictures.

Make sure you get my good side, okay?

His real name was William Guglielmo Papaleo.

From Middletown.

Guglielmo.

A real Italian name, Guglielmo.

Which translates to "William."

That's why they call him "Willie."

Best fighter I ever saw.

And I saw a lot of fighters. My father-in-law was a trainer.

Tommy, you heard this one?

Listen...

I'm at a weigh-in...

And the kid I'm gonna box comes up to me and goes,

"Hey, Mr. Pep, can I get your autograph?"

I look at this kid, I say, "Kid, get away from me.

We're boxing here tonight, there's people watching.

What are they gonna think?" So, the bell rings, right?

Hold on, I gotta stand for this. Stand up, Charlie.

Now a lot of the young fighters, they turn white.

This kid is starting to turn purple.

Now I gotta do something, right?

So, I step in with a...

I'm not going to hit you. If I do, you're gonna be on the floor.

Relax, it's all right. I throw a right over his shoulder.

Now I'm gonna miss, but it's gonna look good for the crowd, right?

And I wrap this kid up and I say,

"Look, kid, relax, all right?

A lot of these people spent good money here. I'm gonna give 'em a show."

You're not gonna get hurt. We're just gonna box.

We're gonna have a good evening. Everybody's gonna be fine."

So, now I let him go, I step back...

Boom!

This kid falls right on the canvas.

The referee counted him out.

I won the fight. Yeah. I didn't throw one punch.

Yeah, it's a true story. Sit down. You're a good sport.

Yeah.

I'm older now.

I'm always looking back.

I've been thinking about a comeback ever since I retired six years ago.

Well...

Good.

Keep it rolling.

Bedlam in the Garden tonight as the champ, Chalky Wright,

defends his title against the young Hartford Tornado, Willie Pep.

I'm telling you, you're ahead. You're ahead on every card.

This guy has gotta knock your ass out this round.

And he can. He's the champ.

He wants to keep it that way.

Now you go out there and get away.

Get away from him!

I'll tell you what I remember about that fight.

I was having a heart attack for 15 rounds. That's what I remember.

Chalky Wright was the champ.

And he was... He was a stud.

Showgirls, the whole thing. Fighting Willie Pep.

Who the hell is he? He's nobody.

A snot-nosed kid from Hartford, Connecticut.

We had no business being in that ring.

But there we were, somehow.

The champ is wasting no time, going for the knockout.

Amazing how fast these boys can be after 15 rounds.

Wright stumbles around but is back into action.

Pep is like a ghost out there.

Pep makes Wright miss. First with a left, then a right.

He's boxing like a master, like you wouldn't expect a 21-year-old to do.

What the hell are you doing? Get out of there, Willie!

Listen to this crowd!

Pep's jabs are flying now, and we're gonna stop counting them!

I had him sign my press pass from that night.

Willie was no more than a bright local prospect.

His meteoric rise from nowhere

made him not just a boxing world champion,

it made him a sports sensation.

That night at the Garden a star was born.

The decision, and new featherweight champion of the world...

Willie Pep.

Scenes of indescribable bedlam here!

You're the champ.

As Willie Pep, Will O' the Wisp,

becomes the youngest world champion in 40 years!

I always had a thing for good-looking clothes.

I've spent a lot of money on wardrobe.

You know, being champ, better look like one too.

Now this suit...

This suit really paid off for me.

Yeah, looking sharp.

What do you think, huh?

You ain't got nothing?

You ain't gonna give me nothing? Nothing?

You get that.

You keep this camera off my wife.

I guess I can't tell you, "Take a picture, it'll last longer."

Hey, Herman. See this? This was a gift. A good gift.

Bob Hope. You believe that? He gave me this.

He came to all my fights. This is engraved.

It says, "For the champ. You're always a pleasure to watch."

You'd expect better from Bob Hope.

She's cute. That's why I keep her around.

- You almost ready? - I'm almost ready.

Hartford's home.

But I love this place.

I had a lot of good memories here.

I had all my big fights here.

I met Linda here.

I was the hat-check girl at Willie's club.

She was a bad one.

You're too good for that place.

You're gonna tell me that I have more wins

than Joe Louis, Jake LaMotta,

and the big guy Rocky Marciano over there?

You've got more of them than all of them combined.

Hey, see this guy right here?

Survived a plane crash in his prime.

And they said he would never fight again.

Thank you so much for having us. We appreciate it.

Great to spend some time with you.

-I need my hand. -I'm sorry.

-You get all of that? -Stop.

No, I mean, that was cute.

How much did you have to pay him?

See a lot of familiar faces around.

I ain't gonna look too close. I might find somebody I might wanna fight.

Yeah, you right.

- Bob. -

What is it?

That guy doesn't like me, you always seat me near him.

-What guy? -Sandy.

Sa...

That's what the organizers want.

That's the deal. You sit together.

But what about what I want?

Do I not put money in your pocket?

Do I not keep your name out there?

I don't see anybody else doing the things I do for you.

Sit with Linda, please. Help me with this.

That's all I ever do for you, by the way, is help. That's what I do.

-That's what you're supposed to do. -I'm a helper. I help you.

-Hey, Bob. -Yeah?

You're fired.

Come on, Sandy.

Sandy Saddler, everybody, Sandy Saddler.

Sandy and I, we're great friends.

In fact, there's nothing in the world that I wouldn't do for Sandy.

And there's nothing in the world Sandy wouldn't do for me.

That's how we've been going about our whole lives.

Doing absolutely nothing for each other.

We're colorful fighters, Sandy and I,

very colorful fighters.

We bled all over the ring.

- Give him the mic! -Take it easy, pal.

If I give him the mic, I can't get it back.

Here, Sandy, say something.

Well, I was featherweight champ of the world.

And thank God, I had a wonderful career.

Good, tell them how tough I was. Tell 'em.

Well, Willie was a tough opponent

and a very tough fighter.

- You've been training? - Yeah.

What are you training? Dogs? Come on.

I'm gonna make a comeback.

Oh, you're making a comeback? That sounds right.

I know I'm not gonna win any championships,

but, you know, I'm in good shape.

I just want to show people that a man my age can still do it.

There's nothing else I know how to do.

What is all this? What are you doing?

You're gonna get hurt.

You see Sandy?

Wanna be Sandy? Huh?

You won't be able to fuck your wife.

You won't be able to do anything.

Come on. Brains.

When I first got with Willie,

I asked him, "Did you ever fight Rocky?"