Abraham Jacob Hollandersky
Abe "The Newsboy" Hollandersky (December 3, 1888 – November 1, 1966) became the second American boxer to win the Panamanian Heavyweight Title when he defeated Californian Jack Ortega in nine rounds in Panama City on May 30, 1913. American congressmen, Naval personnel, and canal workers were among the crowd of nearly two thousand who watched Hollandersky gain victory over an opponent who outweighed him by over thirty-five pounds. The "New York Times" announced Hollandersky's best known win the following morning.
Abraham Jacob Hollandersky
Hollandersky's long career with the Navy included work as an independent supply boat operator or "bum boater" from which he sold magazines and newspapers to the fleet. His boat was a small motorized dingy that was rumored to have been given to him by Admiral Robley Evans. Early in his career, Abe saved several people from drowning and rescued stranded boats in Gardiner Bay off the docks of New London while "bum boating" for the Navy. "Bum boating" consisted of taking a small launch out to naval vessels and selling newspapers, magazines, and small supplies to Navy personnel. In his small launch, he also performed tasks such as delivering mail to naval ships. In his mid-career with the Navy, he worked as a boxing instructor for sailors at the pier in New London near the end of WWI, and a recruiter of 1,700 naval personnel in WWII while he was living in Los Angeles. He also gave boxing exhibitions and training, and sold newspapers to Naval ships during his world cruises. After cruising to California in 1925, Abe helped the Navy provide relief for the aftermath of the Santa Barbara earthquake that struck on June 25, 1925. He raised War Bonds in WWII, occasionally capitalizing on his contacts with former boxers, and entertainers, such as Jimmy Durante, with whom he had worked in a movie. He later assisted the Navy in providing relief following the March 10, 1933 Los Angeles area earthquake that had an epicenter near Long Beach, California, where he had his news stand. He was caught in the earthquake on the day it struck, and narrowly escaped injury. By 1947, the Navy bestowed on Abe the "Award of Merit" for his recruiting of both men and women for WWII.