February 3–10, 2000
hit and run
Hall Call
The thought of squaring off toe-to-toe with a guy who’s five foot seven and 118 pounds soaking wet doesn’t exactly make you quake in your boots, does it? Probably not, unless you were one of the 37 unlucky professional fighters to face Joltin’ Jeff Chandler in the ring.
Chandler, a South Philly native who now makes his home in Germantown, dominated the bantamweight division as the undisputed champion in the early 1980s, amassing a 33-2-2 record with 18 knockouts and some truly memorable butt-kickings before an eye injury forced his retirement in 1984.
The powers that be in boxing have finally seen fit to bestow on Chandler an honor that some think is long overdue. In June, native son Joltin’ Jeff Chandler will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, NY, where his likeness and ring statistics will be enshrined alongside some of the greatest names in boxing history.
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"I’m truly grateful to the nominating committee and ecstatic about the whole thing," Chandler said last week. "Going to the Hall of Fame to me means immortality. It will be here when I’m gone."
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"I’m truly grateful to the nominating committee and ecstatic about the whole thing," Chandler said last week. "Going to the Hall of Fame to me means… immortality. It will be here when I’m gone. I have three sons now, and the oldest was only 3 years old when I retired. So they never really saw me fight. Now they’ll get to see what I did for a living and what I was able to accomplish. They’ll be able to take their children, and their children’s children, to the Boxing Hall of Fame and say, ‘Your grandpop was champion of the world.’"
Chandler, now 43, is still in great shape and only five pounds over his fighting weight. He managed his money wisely, and is able to live a quiet and comfortable life on his investments. Even though his biggest purse was only $200,000 (peanuts by today’s standards), he doesn’t begrudge modern fighters the multimillion dollar paydays he was never able to command.
"All that money hasn’t produced better fighters," Chandler said. "And for every dollar those guys get, somebody is waiting to steal it from them. I own my own home, and if I take care of my money, I’ll be fine. I had a great career, so I have no complaints. I’m happy."
