Creator
Congress Hotel
Title
Fixed Price
Coverage
Chicago
Date
September 22, 1927
Description
The rematch between world heavyweight champion Gene Tunney and former champion Jack Dempsey created more excitement in Chicago than had Lindbergh’s recent visit. The boxing match at Soldier’s Field was seen by an estimated 150,000 spectators. “The National Broadcasting Company linked eighty-two stations to form a national broadcast,” recounts Bill Bryson in One Summer: America, 1927 (2013). “More people listened to the fight that night than had witnessed any other event in history.” The bout was scheduled for 9:45 p.m., allowing time to eat dinner beforehand if you were lucky enough to get a table at one of the crowded hotels and restaurants. This menu shows that the Congress Hotel charged $10 (about $150 today) for a simple meal of chicken à la king. The hotel was a short walk from the gate, where fans could catch a pre-fight glimpse of the celebrities as they arrived, among them Charlie Chaplin, Al Jolson, Ty Cobb, and Al Capone. As it happened, Dempsey failed to immediately go to a neutral corner after knocking down Tunney in the seventh round. Dempsey’s mistake allowed Tunney a few extra seconds to recover and ultimately win the fight on a unanimous decision. The controversial event is remembered as the “Long Count Fight.”