Leo P. Flynn

Leo P. Flynn (June 1, 1880 – May 19, 1930) was an American boxing manager and matchmaker.

Early life Leo Parnell Flynn was born in Providence, Rhode Island, United States, on June 1, 1880.

In Providence, he had been an apprentice to a jeweler and a bricklayer before becoming an amateur boxer.

Before leaving New England, he had become the champion cakewalker of Rhode Island and earned a reputation as a first-class pool player.

At 19, he moved to New York City with his wife, Catherine Conley. When they moved, their total possessions included his carpet bag and 25 cents from his wife, which he turned into $20 as a pool shark at the old Polo Athletic Club.

He introduced Panama Joe Gans to New York's boxing scene in 1917.

When Tex Rickard began to promote fights at Madison Square Garden in 1920, he offered Flynn the matchmaker's position. Flynn supposedly accepted the position without salary, yet backlash followed when 18 of his fighters quickly filled main events and only one won. The New York State Athletic Commission ruled out his dual capacity, and he departed the Garden.

After Dempsey ended his relationship with Kearns in 1926, Flynn stepped in as his advisor. He also managed Kid Norfolk, Bill Brennan, and Al McCoy.

Later in life, he pursued golf alongside his expertise in billiards.

Death Flynn, already sick, still showed up for a 1930 golf appointment at Van Cortlandt Park with a rich prospect he had groomed. Ignoring his wife's advice, he played in the damp conditions, won big, and contracted pneumonia.

Legacy American sportswriter Damon Runyon coined Flynn's nickname "The Carpetbagger."

He became the first boxing manager to own a Rolls-Royce, and one of his fighters typically drove it for him.

After 24 years in the sport's business, he left an estimated $500,000 estate and rumors of a safe stuffed with $200,000 in $1,000 notes and diamonds. He is said to have had the largest fighter roster of any American manager, and his boxers frequently worked with boxing trainer Ray Arcel. His stable of fighters reportedly totalled 64 at its peak, according to Pete Stone. A long-told story claims that on one night 17 of his fighters appeared in bouts around the country, and only one won. Flynn's motto was "Get 'em killed, or make 'em rich". Although he had been in the business for close to 30 years, he never managed an active world champion.