The Champ

Maybe you could do better if you'd crawl on your hands and knees.

Come on!

Some day I'm gonna sock that guy...

- right on the beezer! - Hey, you, Dink. Lay off of that stuff.

If there's any fighting in this family your old man's gonna do it.

Alley-oop!

How much further is it to Tijuana?

About three miles. Go on, or I'll run on top of you.

- Want me to carry you? - No! What do you think I am, a sissy?

Say, Dink, if them promoters get me that fight, I'm gonna buy you a horse.

Gee, a real horse?

Certainly. What do you think it is, a wooden horse?

Hey, what happened to the atch-pay I sewed on the anny-fay?

Gee, I must have lost it.

Does it ow-shay?

Well, I guess it's your underwear. It'll give you plenty of air...

through there, anyway.

Gee, I think that's enough for today, don't you, huh?

You've done swell, Champ. Ain't he, Jonah?

- Thanks. - You bet your boots!

Let me tell you something.

Them promoters ain't got a chance of turning me down tonight, have they?

- No, they'll grab you up. - Here, feel that muscle.

- It's getting big, ain't it, Jonah? - Sure.

Look at those punch muscles in the back.

I'm just as good right now as I was in the old days.

- You betcha! - You know I am.

Tell you what you do, you stay here and play with Jonah a little while.

I'm going to run over and play a little of that there Kelly pool.

Champ, you've had enough exercise for today.

This ain't exercise. This is just a little let-down...

a relaxation, you know?

Hey, Champ! Champ, wait a minute.

Oh, no! You know I wouldn't.

Didn't I tell you I wasn't going to drink anymore?

I haven't had a drink for three weeks and you know I wouldn't take a drink...

going to meet them promoters tonight, don't you?

Goodbye.

Champ!

There ain't no pool tables in that place.

Doggone if I didn't forget that!

This one shows him wearing the diamond belt. Looks great, don't he?

There he is, right after the bout with Battling Kelly.

Look at him, not even a scratch.

Sure, he was the greatest fighter in his day.

Now, here he is...

How did that get among these?

Now, this one here shows you his muscular development.

All there, ain't he?

Hey, Dominick, have you seen the Champ?

No, he ain't been over here.

All right, gang.

Wait here, gang. Hey, come on.

Boy, oh boy. Give me another drink, Louie.

Nix, Champ. Forget it, Louie!

Well, if it ain't a little spitball. Go ahead, Louie!

Those promoters from Los Angeles are up at the place waiting for you.

Oh, darn it, I forgot.

You can't let them see you've been drinking.

Get some ice and tell Curley to open you a can of tomatoes.

Okay.

They've been there for over an hour.

Gosh, why did you have to go on a binge tonight?

Listen at him bawling me out. I'm gonna be good from now on, Dink.

- Honest, I am. - You said you'd behave. Oh, gee whiz!

- Rub his neck with the ice. - Okay.

- Come on, Champ, drink. It'll do you good. - Drink? Sure.

No, that ain't what I ordered.

- Boy, you got to straighten up. - I'm all right.

- Who's dribbling down my back? - He's coming around now.

Okay.

- See if you can stand up. - Oh, I can stand up all right.

I'm all right. Your old man's okay.

I'm always okay.

You guys better scram now. I got him, Jonah.

Okay, Dink.

The air didn't make you feel bad, did it, Champ?

No, I feel good.

- Put your feet out one after another. - That is a good idea.

Ain't no more than fair. We can do better than that.

Only, seeing you guys came all the way from Los Angeles...

- Live and let live, that's my motto. - Sure.

- Hi, boys. - Hi, Andy.

Hello.

Sorry to have kept you waiting.

Business. Hello, there.

- Hi, big boy. - Hi.

- Hello. - How are you?

Okay.

There you are, Champ.

- What's your proposition? - How's your condition, Andy?

He's tip-top. Better than he ever was.

Sure, ain't stopped training a minute. Hardly.

We got him doing roadwork, skipping a rope, shadow boxing.

Why, only last week he tore up three punching bags.

Certainly. We could've matched him with Gene Tunney, if Gene hadn't quit.

Yeah?

Something I ate.

Booze-fighting and box-fighting don't mix. You know that.

- I don't get you. - Why, you're cockeyed right now!

What do you mean, I'm cockeyed?

Just like you were the night you lost the Championship.

Yeah?

Sit down!

You big palooka!

The mug.

Is that all right?

Of all the nights, you would pick tonight to get stinking!

- Yes, and I could... - Lay off of me will you?

Go on, scram. You, too, Sponge. Get out of here.

You don't believe what they said about me being drunk...

the night I lost the Championship, do you, Dink?

No.

All right.

Boy, oh, boy, oh, boy.

I'm gonna lay off the booze, word of honor.

I'm not gonna gamble anymore.

You hear what I said, Dink?

Yeah, I heard you, Champ.

You ain't mad at me, are you?

No, I ain't mad.

- Well, goodnight, Dink. - Goodnight, Champ.

If the Champ wins this fight, he says he's gonna buy me a horse.

Hey, Kadinkus. Hey, Dinkey.

Here, spit on it for luck.

Attaboy!

You know that cartwheel that you spit on for good luck?

Well, it brought it! I made 14 straight passes...

and doubled up each time. And was Joe sore!

Oh, boy, he was sore.

Oh, he's burned up.

Get a load of this.

It's yourn.

Thanks, Champ.

Hey.

Genuine Stetson.

Feel the felt.

That's yourn, too.

Thanks, Champ.

Hey, Dink. Come here and have a look.

- Could you go for that? - You mean the...

The horse, sure. It belongs to you. It's yourn!

- Where'd you get it? - Oh, I won it from Joe.

- You did? - Yeah.

Hooray!

- Gee! Mine? - Sure he's yourn, just like I said.

- Look at that. Ain't he swell? - Gee!

- He's a race horse, ain't he? - Well, he was in a race once.

- What's his name? - They call him Butterfly.

- Butterfly? - Yeah.

That's a heck of a name for a swell horse like this.

We got to change it.

I tell you, we'll call him "Little Champ" after you.

That ain't a bad idea, huh?

- And we can enter him in a race soon. - Sure. We can fix him up, can't we, Tim?

- I should hope to tell you. - Gee, can I sit on him?

Well, I guess he's been sat on before. Alley!

Oops-a-daisy! Hey!

- Hey, give me my hat. - Isn't he a swell horse?

Yeah, sure he's swell.

Gee. Oh, don't do that. Somebody might be looking.

Oh, what do we care whether they look or not?

Gee, I'll bet he can go a mile in 20 minutes!

I bet he can go a mile in just-like-that.

How are you today?

Hello, beautiful baby! Baby, hello.

Oh, don't you do that to your mama.

- How is he? - Great.

Baby, you're gonna win a big old race.

- Mr. Carlton. - Yes?

I'm from The Herald-Examiner. Would you and Mrs. Carlton mind...

- posing for a picture with Blue Boy? - Not at all.

- Thanks. - Linda.

- Yes, darling? - We're going to have our pictures taken.

Well, well. Come on, Blue Boy.

Now, Blue Boy belongs to Mrs. Carlton, doesn't he?

- Yes, he does. - A birthday gift from my husband.

- I see he's a favorite today. - Who? My husband?

No, Blue Boy.

- My husband's a favorite every day. - Step just a little closer.

- Like this? - Just a little closer.

Now, nice smile. That's it. Fine. That's good.

Say, lady, I wouldn't bet on that horse if I was you.

- You wouldn't? - No.

If you got any money, you better stick it on my horse here.

- Is this your horse? - Sure, it's my horse.

Well, he's a pretty good-Iooking animal.

Pretty good-Iooking, my eye! He's gonna win the race today.

Well, I think if you know, I'll just have to put some money on him.

- What's his name? - Little Champ.

Little Champ?

What's your name?

Dink. What's yours?

- Linda. - Hi, Linda.

I think Dink's a pretty name.

- Well, Linda ain't a bad name, either. - Tony...

this young man says that his horse is gonna win this race.

Well, now, that may be a good hunch.

What's the name of the horse?

- Little Champ. - Little Champ, eh?