William Muldoon
"We are all ready to criticize the government, beginning with town, county, State and that of the Nation. But we are not ready to investigate our own self-government. Perhaps we would find reforms necessary to establish that would keep us busy for a while." – William Muldoon
William Muldoon (May 25, 1852 – June 3, 1933) was a champion American wrestler, famous physical culturalist and the first chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission. He once wrestled a match that lasted over seven hours. Nicknamed "The Solid Man," Muldoon established himself as champion in greco-roman wrestling in the 1880s and over the years gained a remarkable measure of public influence that would continue through his days as a health farm proprietor in Westchester County and his service on NYSAC. Muldoon was a mainstay in New York sports for over 50 years.
Early Years
Born in Allegany County, New York, Muldoon was the son of Irish immigrants. His father was a farmer. Showing a knack for strength athletics at a young age, Muldoon gained a local reputation as a standout in caber-tossing, powerlifting, sprinting and amateur wrestling. His youth was otherwise characterized by a brutish, flash temper, and his desire to be treated with the respect of an adult despite being a child.
In April, 1864 Muldoon joined the Sixth Cavalry, Company I and served in the Civil War[1]. He was at the Battle of Opequon, when Union General Russell was killed as Confederate General Early's forces were being pushed back. Muldoon would recall years later the impromptu wrestling bouts held by fellow soldiers as being among his fondest memories. He was dubbed by his comrades "The Colonel" for his audaciousness in spite of his youth.
Muldoon journeyed to Paris to serve as a volunteer in the French Army in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, where he met publisher James Gordon Bennett, Jr., who told Muldoon he had the potential to be the best greco-roman wrestler in the world if he concentrated on it.[2]
By 1876, Muldoon was living in New York City, where he accepted appointment to the New York Police Department at the behest of Senator John Morrissey, former bare-knuckle boxing champion. At the time of his resignation in 1881 Muldoon was a detective.
The Solid Man[3]
"The value of physical training is that it tends to develop coordination; coordination of mind and muscle enables one to see, to think, to act as one effort." – William Muldoon
In 1880 Muldoon gained recognition as greco-roman champion of the world with a win over title claimant Thiebaud Bauer. His rise to prominence brought challengers from across the globe, including Edwin Bibby and Tom Cannon of England, Donald Dinnie of Scotland, “Mat” Sorakichi of Japan, Carl Abs of Germany, William Miller of Australia, and John McMahon and Clarence Whistler, the latter being Muldoon's opponent in a titanic seven-hour match in 1881, where neither could gain a single fall.[4]
Following the celebrated match with Whistler, Muldoon assembled an athletic combination and toured the country promoting athletic events and defending his title against all comers. Muldoon became involved in theater around this time, stemming from his fame in athletics. In 1883 he shared the bill with Maurice Barrymore in Madame Modjeska's production of Shakespeare's "As You Like It." In 1887, he appeared on Broadway as "The Fighting Gaul" in "Spartacus."
In 1889 Muldoon trained John L. Sullivan for his famous 75-round fight against Jake Kilrain for the bare-knuckle boxing championship of the world. He had done so on a friendly wager and offered to absorb expenses if Sullivan lost. Sullivan won and Muldoon gained national notice for restoring the boxing champion to fighting form after Sullivan was dismissed by the press and sporting public as a hopelessly dissipated wreck. Muldoon's methods at accomplishing Sullivan's rejuvenation gained much public interest.
Muldoon was never defeated for his greco-roman championship. He wrestled final championship match in 1890, defeating Evan Lewis in Philadelphia. Despite being implored by promoters and challengers to come out of retirement, Muldoon never wrestled another finish match or claimed any active championship. He symbolically passed his greco-roman championship to protege Ernest Roeber (whom Lewis later defeated). Muldoon would make his final public appearance as a wrestler in a charity exhibition match against Roeber at Madison Square Garden in 1894.
That same year Muldoon moved his health farm from Belfast, New York to White Plains. As he tapered off direct involvement in professional athletics he devoted more time to devising his system on restoring one's health. Muldoon continued to train boxers and wrestlers until boxing was banned in New York at the turn of the century.
Later Years
"A man at fifty should have something to pay back to the world from out of his experience." – William Muldoon
In 1900 Muldoon opened what would become the work of his life, the well-known health institute "The Olympia," at Purchase, NY. In subsequent years through the success of the Olympia Muldoon would again gain national notice as he treated such notables there as U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain Joseph Hodges Choate, publisher Ralph Pulitzer, Senator Chauncey Depew, Major General J. Franklin Bell, essayist Elbert Hubbard novelist Theodore Dreiser and Secretary of State Elihu Root, who was sent to Muldoon by President Roosevelt. In 1907 there was talk that Muldoon would be appointed to the president's cabinet to oversee physical health. For his uncompromised methods at his health farm Muldoon was dubbed the "Professor." Journalist Nellie Blye was the first woman to complete Muldoon's system.
In the spring of 1909 Muldoon made a final return to the stage in a theatrical tour organized in benefit of The Lambs.
Muldoon dedicated a Civil War monument to the town of Belfast, New York, listing the names of deceased local veterans in 1915, including that of his older brother John[5].
In 1921 Muldoon was personally tapped by Governor Nathan Lewis Miller as the inaugural Chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission, when professional boxing's status was legally restored in New York. While on NYSAC, Muldoon's czarish decrees characterized his inflexible sense of integrity to the press and sporting public. He was dubbed in the papers the "Iron Duke."
In 1927 Muldoon was profiled[6] by the “The New Yorker” magazine and in 1929 by “The Saturday Evening Post”[7]. A biography[8] was published in 1928, with a foreword by Jack Dempsey.
Personal
Muldoon was married twice, the first marriage ending in divorce, the other in separation. It was revealed later in his life that he had adopted his longtime secretary Margaret Farrell – she received his entire estate at his death. Muldoon was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1931 and died two years later of it. Retired boxing champion Gene Tunney, a disciple of Muldoon, remarked to the Times at the time of Muldoon's death, “All I know about training I learned from him…. His patience, intellectual courage and wisdom were inspirational.”[2]($)
Muldoon was a strong advocate of compulsory military service, equestrianism, and the Boy Scouts of America, citing the latter as the only organization devoted to leadership-building for young men.
References
- ^ This is disputed by American National Biography, although at just under 12 years of age Muldoon would not have been the youngest enlisted man to serve[1].
- ^ According to Ring Magazine publisher Nat Fleischer in his volume, "From Milo to Londos" (The Ring Athletic Library, Book No. 13, 1936)
- ^ The "The Solid Man" nickname was referenced from a popular song of the time, "Muldoon, the Solid Man" by Ned Harrigan. The moniker may have also been a nod to the “Solid Muldoon”, a P.T. Barnum exhibit claimed to be the petrified remains of an ancestral missing link between man and ape, later revealed as a hoax.
- ^ Whistler, who died young, was later eulogized by Muldoon as the toughest man he ever met on the mat. Their 1881 match ignited a professional and personal rivalry that punctuated wrestling's popularity in the early-to-mid 1880s.
- ^ Civil War Monument at www.usgennet.org
- ^ http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1927/07/16/1927_07_16_018_TNY_CARDS_000174304
- ^ http://www.philsp.com/homeville/fmi/t1238.htm#A27708
- ^ Van Every, Edward. Muldoon – The Solid Man of Sport. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1928.