Biography of Jack Johnson, American Boxing Champion

On June 10, 1946, Jack Johnson, American boxer and first African-American world heavyweight champion (1908-15), died in a car accident at the age of 68. An excerpt from the article:

"Personal Life
Johnson received bad publicity because of his three marriages, all to White women. Interracial marriages were prohibited in most of America at the time. He was convicted of violating the Mann Act in 1912 when he transported his wife across state lines before their marriage and was sentenced to a year in prison.

Fearing for his safety, Johnson escaped while he was out on appeal. Posing as a member of a Black baseball team, he fled to Canada and later to Europe and remained a fugitive for seven years.

Wrench Patent
In 1920, Johnson decided to return to the U.S. to serve his sentence. It was during this time that, searching for a tool that would tighten or loosen nuts and bolts, he made improvements to the design of the monkey wrench. Johnson received a patent for his innovations in 1922.

Johnson’s wrench was unique in that it could be easily taken apart for cleaning or repair and its gripping action was superior to that of other tools on the market at the time. Johnson is credited with coining the term “wrench.”

Later Years
After his release from prison, Jack Johnson's boxing career declined. He worked in vaudeville to make ends meet, even appearing with a trained flea act. He opened a night club in Harlem in 1920; it was later purchased from him and renamed the Cotton Club. Johnson wrote two memoirs, "Mes Combats" in 1914, and "Jack Johnson: In the Ring and Out" in 1927.

Death
On June 10, 1946, Johnson was in an automobile accident near Raleigh, North Carolina, after speeding away from a diner where he was refused service. He was rushed to the nearest Black hospital, where he died at the age of 68. Johnson was buried in Graceland Cemetery in Chicago.

Legacy
Johnson was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1954, followed by the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. His career inspired numerous people, including heavyweight champion Muhammed Ali and jazz trumpeter Miles Davis, who recorded an album in 1971 called "A Tribute to Jack Johnson." The 1910 film of Johnson's famous fight against James Jefferies was added to the National Film Registry in 2005. Johnson's life was the inspiration for the 1970 film "The Great White Hope."

On May 24, 2018, President Donald Trump issued a posthumous pardon for Johnson's 1912 conviction. Trump called the heavyweight champion "one of the greatest that ever lived" and "a truly great fighter.""