I was born two pounds, one-and-a-half ounces. Daddy used to tell me I'd fight my way into this world, and I'd fight my way out.
-Maggie Fitzgerald
Maggie Fitzgerald Remembered
She was like a fire cracker. She ignited, flared, and became the brightest flame that lit up the night sky. People cheered her name and watched her in awe- she was wondrous and captivating. Then a second passed, her fire extinguished and she fell. Down she went, no longer burning and sizzling, to the earth. Such was the life of Margaret (Maggie) Fitzgerald, known by her fans as "Mo Chuishle".
From the moment she was born, she fought in this world to survive. Born two pounds, one and a half ounces, no one could have dreamed that this baby would come close to being worth one million dollars one day- at least no one but herself. Maggie grew up in a dysfunctional family; reports from 1981 say that the only family member she was close to- her father- died when she was very young. Little else is known about her other family members before Maggie became famous, but it is known by her own accounts that “my brother's in prison, my sister cheats on welfare by pretending one of her babies is still alive,… and my momma weighs 312lbs.”, suggesting that Maggie was the only person in the family who strived to reach beyond their world of crime and poverty.
At age 32, Maggie has left her home and was a waitress in a Missouri town in the Ozarks. Her passion for boxing in her spare time was what brought her to the doors of Hit Pit one day, setting off an extraordinary tale. Frankie Dunn, who owned the rather run-down boxing gym, was known for “not training girls”, which was normal at the time. Unfortunately, there is no information on what went through the two to result in Frankie becoming Maggie’s trainer, other than the fact that Frankie showed up in the middle of Maggie’s first fight and coached her to victory. This is seen by many as her first step towards country-wide recognition, as Maggie continued to fight her way up the women’s welterweight division bout after bout, many won with first-round knockouts. Her popularity soars when she started to use the Gaelic nickname Dunn gave her, “Mo Chuichle”, meaning “my darling, my blood”.
It is rumored that as Maggie gained more fame and money, she sent money back to her mother who was living on welfare and Medicaid benefits (some sources say that she bought her mother a house). However, what came next in her life would make all the money she has earned insignificant. In the October of 1981, her trainer Dunn secured her a $1 million dollar match, meaning her life would spin 180 degrees should she win the match. The only problem? The match was against the WBA women’s welterweight champion- German ex-prostitute known for her dirty tricks- Billie “The Blue Bear”.
What happened during the match, of course, made headline news just about anywhere. Though Maggie didn’t have a steady start, she began to dominate the fight and hope was rising. People everywhere were chanting the familiar “Mo Chuisle”, and $1 million dollars were at her fingertips. The bell rang, the round has ended, but the referee wasn’t watching when Billie suddenly threw a sucker punch from behind and knocked out Maggie. Not many people who watched the match could describe the next few seconds without deep emotion- Maggie turned, turned too much, fell, and landed on the stool that Frankie didn’t have time to pull away. She laid still.
Newspapers followed her progress in the hospital closely. A month after her condition stabilized, her family visited her. No one was allowed inside, but an interviewed nurse said “they (the family) certainly didn’t leave in a happy mood, but it seemed more like they were complaining about Maggie than being sad.” One can only speculate what her family said, but many believe they wanted her assets and money. It was late November when events took yet another drastic turn. Maggie developed bedsores, which were common for a quadriplegic like her. Her leg that used to pivot and move with ease had to be amputated. A week later, the nurses were repeatedly rushing Maggie to the emergency room in attempts to save her life after she tried to suicide by biting her tongue, generating another round of debates surrounding euthanasia.
The day Maggie passed away, December 4th, 1981, was the same day Frankie Dunn disappeared.
Maggie’s perseverance and courage spread, even when she was bound to one place. Her story became inspirations for women to break down social barriers, and showed everyone that reaching for their dreams will leave no regrets. She risked everything for a dream that only she saw, now ask yourself if you can be as courageous as her.
Written by: SHANNON G
From the moment she was born, she fought in this world to survive. Born two pounds, one and a half ounces, no one could have dreamed that this baby would come close to being worth one million dollars one day- at least no one but herself. Maggie grew up in a dysfunctional family; reports from 1981 say that the only family member she was close to- her father- died when she was very young. Little else is known about her other family members before Maggie became famous, but it is known by her own accounts that “my brother's in prison, my sister cheats on welfare by pretending one of her babies is still alive,… and my momma weighs 312lbs.”, suggesting that Maggie was the only person in the family who strived to reach beyond their world of crime and poverty.
At age 32, Maggie has left her home and was a waitress in a Missouri town in the Ozarks. Her passion for boxing in her spare time was what brought her to the doors of Hit Pit one day, setting off an extraordinary tale. Frankie Dunn, who owned the rather run-down boxing gym, was known for “not training girls”, which was normal at the time. Unfortunately, there is no information on what went through the two to result in Frankie becoming Maggie’s trainer, other than the fact that Frankie showed up in the middle of Maggie’s first fight and coached her to victory. This is seen by many as her first step towards country-wide recognition, as Maggie continued to fight her way up the women’s welterweight division bout after bout, many won with first-round knockouts. Her popularity soars when she started to use the Gaelic nickname Dunn gave her, “Mo Chuichle”, meaning “my darling, my blood”.
It is rumored that as Maggie gained more fame and money, she sent money back to her mother who was living on welfare and Medicaid benefits (some sources say that she bought her mother a house). However, what came next in her life would make all the money she has earned insignificant. In the October of 1981, her trainer Dunn secured her a $1 million dollar match, meaning her life would spin 180 degrees should she win the match. The only problem? The match was against the WBA women’s welterweight champion- German ex-prostitute known for her dirty tricks- Billie “The Blue Bear”.
What happened during the match, of course, made headline news just about anywhere. Though Maggie didn’t have a steady start, she began to dominate the fight and hope was rising. People everywhere were chanting the familiar “Mo Chuisle”, and $1 million dollars were at her fingertips. The bell rang, the round has ended, but the referee wasn’t watching when Billie suddenly threw a sucker punch from behind and knocked out Maggie. Not many people who watched the match could describe the next few seconds without deep emotion- Maggie turned, turned too much, fell, and landed on the stool that Frankie didn’t have time to pull away. She laid still.
Newspapers followed her progress in the hospital closely. A month after her condition stabilized, her family visited her. No one was allowed inside, but an interviewed nurse said “they (the family) certainly didn’t leave in a happy mood, but it seemed more like they were complaining about Maggie than being sad.” One can only speculate what her family said, but many believe they wanted her assets and money. It was late November when events took yet another drastic turn. Maggie developed bedsores, which were common for a quadriplegic like her. Her leg that used to pivot and move with ease had to be amputated. A week later, the nurses were repeatedly rushing Maggie to the emergency room in attempts to save her life after she tried to suicide by biting her tongue, generating another round of debates surrounding euthanasia.
The day Maggie passed away, December 4th, 1981, was the same day Frankie Dunn disappeared.
Maggie’s perseverance and courage spread, even when she was bound to one place. Her story became inspirations for women to break down social barriers, and showed everyone that reaching for their dreams will leave no regrets. She risked everything for a dream that only she saw, now ask yourself if you can be as courageous as her.
Written by: SHANNON G
I don't train girls.
-Frankie Dunn
Frankie Dunn
You know that guy, the one who’s been there, but not the star. That’s Frankie Dunn, he’s the famous trainer at ‘The Hit Pit,’ in L.A, California. It’s time to give recognition to the man who runs the show behind the scenes.
Frankie Dunn, also known as Doc or Uncle Frank, is a boxer turned trainer. He was born in 1929, in Los Angeles, California. As a child, him and his father would go to many boxing matches and he fell in love with the game,which was what started his great career. It around the middle of World War II, when he started boxing. After finishing high school, he was on his own, and since he was having trouble paying his bills, he went to a local boxing center, “The Hit Pit,” which is where everything started. Carrying on his passion for fighting from childhood, he decided to give boxing a chance, he was pretty good, with a record of 60-20-9. After eight years, his body couldn’t take the hits no more, so, he became a boxing trainer.
Frankie was a great fighter, but he was the best trainer. He truly understood boxing to his bones, the fighters said there was magic in his words, he could teach a cow how to box! His old time fighters would say “Frankie Dunn, Frankie Dunn,” with a smile on their face. He had trained many of the greats, including “Stone” Stokes and Andrew Barlett. And he always trained boys, no girls allowed, ever. When people asked him why, he always replied with “I don’t train girls.”
Well, that is until the late Maggie Fitzgerald. Nobody knew too much on how they became trainer and boxer, but it was obvious Frankie had a soft spot for Maggie, she was his ‘mo cuishle.’ It was in the first few fights she was in that everyone realized the talent she had, her record went from 13 and 3 with 5 kayos, to 19 and 3 and 9 knockouts. When reporters asked him why he trained Maggie even though she was girl, he replied with, “That ain’t a girl, that’s a fighter.” News on Maggie was everywhere, she would have been a million dollar baby, if Billy Astrakhov hadn’t thrown in that dirty punch which ended her career.
Nobody realized it but after Maggie became a quadriplegic and later on passed away, Frankie lost his passion for fighting and slipped away from L.A without a trace. It wasn’t long before rumors and speculations about the truth behind Maggie’s death surfaced- many thought it was Frankie who assisted the girl who had failed to suicide once before. No one looked into it, and thirty years later, we only have our imagination to tell us what really happened. But nevertheless, this memoir is for you Frankie, to tell everyone that you’re the best and that even though you’re not seen at every fight, you deserve all the recognition for what you’ve help accomplish.
Written by: ALAINA G
Frankie Dunn, also known as Doc or Uncle Frank, is a boxer turned trainer. He was born in 1929, in Los Angeles, California. As a child, him and his father would go to many boxing matches and he fell in love with the game,which was what started his great career. It around the middle of World War II, when he started boxing. After finishing high school, he was on his own, and since he was having trouble paying his bills, he went to a local boxing center, “The Hit Pit,” which is where everything started. Carrying on his passion for fighting from childhood, he decided to give boxing a chance, he was pretty good, with a record of 60-20-9. After eight years, his body couldn’t take the hits no more, so, he became a boxing trainer.
Frankie was a great fighter, but he was the best trainer. He truly understood boxing to his bones, the fighters said there was magic in his words, he could teach a cow how to box! His old time fighters would say “Frankie Dunn, Frankie Dunn,” with a smile on their face. He had trained many of the greats, including “Stone” Stokes and Andrew Barlett. And he always trained boys, no girls allowed, ever. When people asked him why, he always replied with “I don’t train girls.”
Well, that is until the late Maggie Fitzgerald. Nobody knew too much on how they became trainer and boxer, but it was obvious Frankie had a soft spot for Maggie, she was his ‘mo cuishle.’ It was in the first few fights she was in that everyone realized the talent she had, her record went from 13 and 3 with 5 kayos, to 19 and 3 and 9 knockouts. When reporters asked him why he trained Maggie even though she was girl, he replied with, “That ain’t a girl, that’s a fighter.” News on Maggie was everywhere, she would have been a million dollar baby, if Billy Astrakhov hadn’t thrown in that dirty punch which ended her career.
Nobody realized it but after Maggie became a quadriplegic and later on passed away, Frankie lost his passion for fighting and slipped away from L.A without a trace. It wasn’t long before rumors and speculations about the truth behind Maggie’s death surfaced- many thought it was Frankie who assisted the girl who had failed to suicide once before. No one looked into it, and thirty years later, we only have our imagination to tell us what really happened. But nevertheless, this memoir is for you Frankie, to tell everyone that you’re the best and that even though you’re not seen at every fight, you deserve all the recognition for what you’ve help accomplish.
Written by: ALAINA G