Jack Johnson, (1878-1946), World Heavyweight Champion
Theodore “Tiger” Flowers (1895-1927), World Middleweight Champion
“The golden smile tells the story, and the golden smile is [Jack] Johnson’s.” – Jack London, San Francisco Call, 1908.
Nearly 100 years ago, two world-famous Black prizefighters broke racial barriers and sported a “golden smile” while doing it.
Jack Johnson, the first African-American world heavyweight boxing champion, was internationally respected for his boxing prowess. In the early 1900s, Johnson was a cultural phenomenon. Reporters remarked at his keen wit, his turbulent personal life, and flashy gold-capped uppers. Johnson once said: “Before [boxer Tommy Burns and I] got into the ring, I told Tommy, ‘the only reason I got gold uppers was to make my bite twice as expensive as it used it be."
Tiger Flowers became the first African-American world middleweight boxing champion in 1926. Like Jack Johnson, he also had an entire mouth of gold teeth. Flowers did not court attention from the press; the press depicted him as religious and kind, a loyal husband and father, and a good businessman. His gold caps were probably not meant to be intimidating, like Johnson’s, but likely hid teeth damaged due to prizefighting.