Jim Thorpe

Infobox NFLretired


caption=Jim Thorpe seated at a desk.
position=RB, DB
number=31
birthdate=birth date|1888|5|28
Prague, Oklahoma
deathdate=death date and age|1953|3|28|1888|5|28
Lomita, California
debutyear=1920
finalyear=1928
college=Carlisle Indian
teams=
* Canton Bulldogs
(1915–1917, 1919–1920, 1926)
* Cleveland Tigers (1921)
* Oorang Indians (1922–1923)
* Rock Island Independents (1924–1925)
* New York Giants (1925)
* Chicago Cardinals (1928)
stat1label=Games
stat1value=52
stat2label=Rushing TD
stat2value=6
stat3label=Passing TD
stat3value=4
nfl=THO812308
highlights=
* All-Pro selection (1923)
* NFL 1920s All-Decade Team
HOF=213
HOFYear=1963
CollegeHOF=10005

Jacobus Franciscus "Jim" Thorpe (Sac and Fox (Sauk): Wa-Tho-Huk) (28 May 1888 – 28 March 1953Magill. pg. 2320
* Gerasimo and Whiteley. pg. 28
* [http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/gilded/jb_gilded_thorpe_1.html World-Class Athlete Jim Thorpe Was Born May 28, 1888] , americaslibrary.gov, accessed April 23, 2007. ] ) was an American athlete. Considered one of the most versatile athletes in modern sports, he won Olympic gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon, played American football collegiately and professionally, and also played professional baseball and basketball. He subsequently lost his Olympic titles when it was found he was paid for playing two seasons of minor league baseball before competing in the games (thus violating the amateur status rules).

Thorpe was a multi-racial, part Native American Indian and part ancestral European American. He was raised as a Sac and Fox in Oklahoma and named Wa-Tho-Huk, roughly translated as "Bright Path". He played on several All-American Indian teams throughout his career and barnstormed as a professional basketball player with a team composed entirely of Native Americans.

Thorpe was named the greatest athlete of the first half of the twentieth century by the Associated Press (AP) in 1950. He ranked third on the AP list of athletes of the century in 1999. After his professional sports career ended, Thorpe lived in abject poverty. He worked several odd jobs, struggled with alcoholism, and lived out the last years of his life in failing health. In 1983, thirty years after his death, his Olympic medals were restored.

Early life

Information about Thorpe's birth, full name, and ethnic background varies widely.O'Hanlon-Lincoln. pg. 129 ] What is known is that he was born in Indian Territory, but no birth certificate has been found. Thorpe's birth is generally considered to have taken place on May 28, 1888, near the town of Prague, Oklahoma. "Jacobus Franciscus Thorpe" is the name on his christening (baptismal) certificate.

His parents were of mixed descent. His father, Hiram Thorpe, had an Irish father and a Sac and Fox Indian mother, while his mother, Charlotte Vieux, had a French father and a Native American mother. Thorpe was raised as a Sac and Fox, and his native name was Wa-Tho-Huk, translated as "A path lighted by a great flash of lightning" or more simply "Bright Path". As was the custom for Sac and Fox, Thorpe was named for something occurring around the time of his birth, in this case the sunlight brightening the path to the cabin where he was born. Thorpe's mother was Catholic and raised the children in the faith, which Thorpe later observed throughout his adult life. [ O'Hanlon-Lincoln. pg. 131 ]

Together with his twin brother, Charlie, Thorpe went to school in Stroud, Oklahoma at the Sac and Fox Indian Agency School. Charlie died of pneumonia when he was nine years old. [http://www.cmgworldwide.com/sports/thorpe/fastfacts.htm Jim Thorpe – Fast facts] , cgmworldwide.com, accessed April 23, 2007. ] Charlie had helped Jim through school. Thorpe did not handle his brother's death very well and ran away from school on several occasions. Hiram Thorpe then sent him to what is now known as Haskell Indian Nations University, in Lawrence, Kansas, so that he would not run away again. When his mother died of childbirth complications two years later, Thorpe fell into a depression. After several arguments with his father, he ran away from home to work on a horse ranch. [http://www.olympics30.com/30greatest/jim-thorpe-hero.asp Jim Thorpe - Olympic Hero and Native American] , olympics30.com, accessed April 23, 2007. ]

In 1904, Thorpe returned to his father and decided to join Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where he was coached by Glenn Scobey "Pop" Warner, one of the most influential coaches in early American football history. Later that year, Hiram Thorpe died from gangrene poisoning after a hunting accident. Hoxie. pg. 628 ] Thorpe once again dropped out of school. He resumed farm work for a few years and then returned to Carlisle, where his athletic career commenced.

Amateur career

College career

Thorpe reportedly began his athletic career at Carlisle in 1907 when he walked past the track and beat the school's high jumpers with an impromptu 5-ft 9-in jump while still wearing plain clothes.Encyclopedia of World Biography. [http://www.bookrags.com/Jim_Thorpe Jim Thorpe] , Thomson-Gale, June 2005, accessed April 23, 2007. available online at bookrags.com.] His earliest recorded track and field results are indeed from 1907. Track and field were not the only events in which Thorpe engaged at Carlisle—he also participated in football, baseball, lacrosse and even ballroom dancing, winning the 1912 inter-collegiate ballroom dancing championship.cite web |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/olympics/2004/08/08/bc.olympics.athletics.thorpe/ |title=Sports Illustrated : Jim Thorpe cruelly treated by authorities |accessdate=2008-04-15] Reportedly, Pop Warner was hesitant to allow Thorpe, his star track and field athlete, to compete in a physical game such as football.Jeansonne. p. 60.] Thorpe, however, convinced Warner to let him run some plays against the school's defense; Warner assumed he would be tackled easily and give up the idea of playing football. Thorpe "ran around past and through them not once, but twice." He then walked over to Warner and said, "Nobody is going to tackle Jim," while flipping him the ball.

He gained nationwide attention for the first time in 1911. [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60C12FC3B5E13738DDDA10A94DC405B828DF1D3 Indian Thorpe in Olympiad.; Redskin from Carlisle Will Strive for Place on American Team.] , "The New York Times", April 28, 1912, accessed April 2, 2007.] As a running back, defensive back, placekicker, and punter for his school's football team, Thorpe scored all of his team's points—four field goals and a touchdown—in an 18–15 upset of Harvard. His team finished the season 11–1.

The following year, he led Carlisle to the national collegiate championship, scoring 25 touchdowns and 198 points. Carlisle's 1912 record included a 27–6 victory over Army. In that game, Thorpe scored a 92-yard touchdown that was nullified by a penalty incurred by a teammate; Thorpe then scored a 97-yard touchdown on the next play. [http://www.usoc.org/26_37888.htm Jim Thorpe] , usoc.org, accessed April 26, 2007.]

During that game, future President Dwight Eisenhower injured his knee while trying to tackle Thorpe. Eisenhower recalled of Thorpe in a 1961 speech, "Here and there, there are some people who are supremely endowed. My memory goes back to Jim Thorpe. He never practiced in his life, and he could do anything better than any other football player I ever saw."Botelho, Greg. [http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/07/09/jim.thorpe/ Roller-coaster life of Indian icon, sports' first star] , CNN.com, July 14, 2004, accessed April 23, 2007. ] Thorpe was given All-American honors in both 1911 and 1912.

Football was—-and would remain—-Thorpe's favorite sport, [O'Hanlon-Lincoln. p. 144
* [http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=213 Jim Thorpe] , profootballhalloffame.com, accessed April 23, 2007.] and he competed only sporadically in track and field. Nevertheless, track and field would become the sport in which Thorpe would gain the most fame.

Olympic career

For the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden, two new multi-event disciplines were on the program, the pentathlon and the decathlon. A pentathlon based on the ancient Greek event had been organized at the 1906 Summer Olympics, but the 1912 edition would consist of the long jump, the javelin throw, 200-meter dash, the discus throw and the 1500-meter run.

The decathlon was an entirely new event in athletics, although it had been competed in American track meets since the 1880s and a version had been featured on the program of the 1904 St. Louis Olympics. However, the events of the new decathlon were slightly different from the U.S. version. Both events seemed a fit for Thorpe, who was so versatile that he alone had formed Carlisle's team in several track meets. He could run the 100-yard dash in 10 seconds flat, the 220 in 21.8 seconds, the 440 in 51.8 seconds, the 880 in 1:57, the mile in 4:35, the 120-yard high hurdles in 15 seconds, and the 220-yard low hurdles in 24 seconds. [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40A15FF3D59107A93CBAB1788D85F478585F9 Jim Thorpe Is Dead On West Coast at 64] , "The New York Times", March 29, 1953, accessed April 23, 2007. ] He could long jump 23 ft 6 in and high-jump 6 ft 5 in. He could pole vault 11 feet, put the shot 47 ft 9 in, throw the javelin 163 feet, and throw the discus 136 feet. Thorpe entered the U.S. Olympic trials for both the pentathlon and the decathlon.

He easily won the awards, winning three events, and was named to the pentathlon team, which also included future International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Avery Brundage. There were only a few candidates for the decathlon team, and the trials were cancelled. Thorpe would contest his first—-and, as it turned out, only-—decathlon in the Olympics. Thorpe's Olympic record 8,413 points would stand for nearly two decades.

Thorpe's competition schedule for the Olympics was crowded. Along with the decathlon and pentathlon, he also entered the long-jump and high-jump competitions. The first event scheduled was the pentathlon. Thorpe was the class of the field, winning four events. He placed only third in the javelin, an event he had not competed in before 1912. Although the competition was primarily decided on place points, points were also calculated for the marks achieved in the events.

The same day he won the pentathlon gold, Thorpe qualified for the high-jump final. In that final, he placed fourth and took seventh place in the long jump. Thorpe's final event was the decathlon, where tough competition from local favorite Hugo Wieslander was expected. Thorpe, however, also easily defeated Wieslander, finishing nearly 700 points ahead of him. He placed in the top four of all ten events. Overall, Thorpe won eight of the two competitions' 15 individual events.

As was the custom of the day, the medals were presented to the athletes during the closing ceremonies of the games. Along with the two gold medals, Thorpe also received two challenge prizes, which were donated by King Gustav V of Sweden for the decathlon and Czar Nicholas II of Russia for the pentathlon. Several sources recount that, when awarding Thorpe his prize, King Gustav said, "You, sir, are the greatest athlete in the world," to which Thorpe replied, "Thanks, King."Flatter, Ron. [http://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016499.html Thorpe preceded Deion, Bo] , ESPN.com, accessed April 23, 2007. ] ["Jim Thorpe, Sac and Fox Athlete" by Bob Berontas, Chelsea House Publications (London, 1993), ISBN-13: 978-0791017227.] (See Sportsperson.)

Thorpe's successes had not gone unnoticed at home, and he was honored with a ticker-tape parade on Broadway. He later remembered: "I heard people yelling my name, and I couldn't realize how one fellow could have so many friends."

Apart from his track and field appearance, Thorpe also played in one of two exhibition baseball matches held at the 1912 Olympics, which featured two teams made up of U.S. track and field athletes. It was not Thorpe's first try at baseball, as would soon become known to the rest of the world.

Controversy

In 1913, strict rules regarding amateurism were in force for athletes participating in the Olympics. Athletes who received money prizes for competitions, who were sports teachers, or who had previously competed against professionals, were not considered amateurs and were not allowed to compete in the Olympics.

In late January 1913, U.S. newspapers published stories announcing that Thorpe had played professional baseball. It is not entirely certain which newspaper first published the story; the earliest article found is from the "Providence Times", but the "Worcester Telegram" is usually mentioned as the first. Thorpe had indeed played professional baseball in the Eastern Carolina League for Rocky Mount, North Carolina, in 1909 and 1910, receiving meager pay; reportedly as little as $2 a game and as much as $35 a week. College players, in fact, regularly spent summers playing professionally, but most, as opposed to Thorpe, used aliases.

Although the public did not seem to care much about Thorpe's past,Schaffer and Smith. p. 50.] the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), and especially its secretary James E. Sullivan, took the case very seriously. [Schaffer and Smith. p. 40.] Thorpe wrote a letter to Sullivan, in which he admitted playing professional baseball:

His letter did not help. The AAU decided to retroactively withdraw Thorpe's amateur status and asked the IOC to do the same. Later that year, the IOC unanimously decided to strip Thorpe of his Olympic titles, medals, and awards and declared him a professional.

While Thorpe had played for money, his disqualification was not within the rules in place at the time. In the rulebook for the 1912 Olympics, it was stated that any protests had to be made within 30 days from the closing ceremonies of the games. The first newspaper reports didn't appear until January 1913, about six months after the Stockholm Games had concluded. However, AAU and IOC officials were apparently ignorant of this rule or chose to ignore it. There also is some evidence that Thorpe's amateur status had already been questioned long before the Olympics but that this had been (deliberately) ignored by the AAU until they were confronted with it in 1913.

The only positive side to this affair for Thorpe was that, as soon as the news got out that he had been declared a professional, offers came in from professional clubs. [Rogge, Johnson, andRendell. pg. 60 ]

Professional career

A free agent

Declared a rare free agent in the era of the reserve clause, Jim Thorpe had his pick of teams for which to play. [ [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60E11F93D5B13738DDDA80894DA405B838DF1D3 Thorpe is to Play Ball with Giants; Famous Indian Athlete Accepts McGraw's Terms Over the Telephone.] , "The New York Times", February 1, 1913, accessed April 2, 2007. ] He turned down a starting position with the Saint Louis Browns to be a reserve with the New York Giants. One of the immediate benefits of joining the team came that October, when the Giants joined the Chicago White Sox for a world tour. [ [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70B1EF93E5B13738DDDAE0A94DF405B838DF1D3 Sox and Giants on World's Tour; Comiskey-McGraw Party Leaves Chicago Oct. 19 and Arrives in New York March 6.] , "The New York Times", , accessed April 23, 2007. ] Barnstorming across the United States and then around the world, Thorpe was the unquestioned star of the world tour. [Elfers. pg. 210 ] Everywhere the teams went, Thorpe brought them publicity and increased the tour's box office receipts. Among the highlights were meetings with the Pope and the last khedive of Egypt and playing before 20,000 in London with King George V in attendance. While in Rome, Thorpe was filmed wrestling with another baseball player on the floor of the Coliseum. Unfortunately, no copy of that film exists.

Baseball, football, and basketball

Thorpe signed with the New York Giants baseball club in 1913 and played sporadically with them as an outfielder for three seasons. After playing in the minors with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1916 [ [http://flickr.com/photos/10795049@N02/2216883254/ Jim Thorpe's Speed Big Hit In A.A.] , "The Janesville Daily Gazette ", July 10, 1916, accessed February 19, 2008.] , he returned to the Giants in 1917 but was sold to the Cincinnati Reds early in the season. In the "double no-hitter" between Fred Toney of the Reds and Hippo Vaughn of the Chicago Cubs, Thorpe drove in the winning run in the 10th inning. [Daley, Arthur. [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70A15F83D5F177B93C5A8178FD85F4D8485F9 Baseball's 'Ten Greatest Moments'] , "The New York Times", April 17, 1949, accessed April 23, 2007. ] Late in the season, he was sold back to the Giants. Again, he played sporadically for the Giants in 1918 and was traded to the Boston Braves on May 21, 1919, for Pat Ragan. In his career, he amassed 91 runs scored, 82 runs batted in and a .252 batting average over 289 games. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/t/thorpji01.shtml Jim Thorpe] , baseball-reference.com, accessed April 23, 2007. ] He continued to play baseball with teams in the minor leagues until 1922.

But Thorpe had not abandoned football either. Back in 1915, Thorpe had signed with the Canton Bulldogs. They paid him $250 a game, a tremendous wage at the time.Neft, Cohen, and Korch. pg. 18 ] Before Thorpe's signing, Canton was averaging 1,200 fans a game; 8,000 showed up for his debut against Massillon. The team won titles in 1916, 1917, and 1919. Thorpe reportedly ended the 1919 championship game by kicking a wind-assisted 95–yard punt from his team's own 5-yard line, effectively putting the game out of reach. In 1920, the Bulldogs were one of 14 teams to form the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which would become the National Football League (NFL) two years later. Thorpe was nominally the APFA's first president; however, he spent most of the year playing for Canton and a year later was replaced by Joseph Carr. [Neft, Cohen, and Korch. pg. 20 ] He continued to play for Canton, coaching the team as well. Between 1921 and 1923, Thorpe played for the LaRue, Ohio, (Marion County, Ohio) Oorang Indians, an all-Native American team. Although the team went 3–6 in 1922, [Neft, Cohen, and Korch. pg. 34 ] and 1–10 in 1923, [Neft, Cohen, and Korch. pg. 40 ] Thorpe played well and was selected to the "Green Bay Press-Gazette's" first All-NFL team in 1923 (the Press-Gazette's team would later be formalized by the NFL as the league's official All-NFL team in 1931). [Neft, Cohen, and Korch. pg. 41 ]

Thorpe never played on an NFL championship team. He retired from pro football at the age of 41, having played 52 NFL games for six teams from 1920 to 1928.

), pbs.org, accessed April 23, 2007. ]

=Later life and death= In 1913, Thorpe married Iva Miller, whom he had met at Carlisle. They had four children: Jim Jr. (who died at age 2), Gale, Charlotte and Grace. Grace died in 2008. [cite news|url=http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096417117|title=Daughter of Olympic great, Oklahoma native Jim Thorpe, dies |date=2008-04-21|work=Indian Country Today|accessdate=2008-05-14] Thorpe was a chronic alcoholic in his later years. [ Jeansonne. pg 61 ] Miller filed for divorce from Thorpe in 1925, claiming desertion. [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,720180,00.html List of marriages, divorces, births, and deaths] , "TIME", April 6, 1925, available online via time.com, accessed May 21, 2007. ] In 1926, Thorpe married Freeda V. Kirkpatrick (b.September 19, 1905, d. March 2, 2007). She was working for the manager of the baseball team on which he was playing at the time. [cite news|author = Associated Press|url = http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/306603_thorpe08.html|title = Freeda Thorpe, former wife of Jim Thorpe, dies at 101] , Seattle Post-Intelligencer|date = March 7, 2007|accessdate = 2007-11-23] They had four sons: Carl, William, Richard and John. William, Richard and John "Jack" survived their mother, who had divorced their father in 1941 after 15 years of marriage. After the end of his athletic career, Thorpe struggled to support his family. He found it difficult to work outside sports and never kept a job for an extended period of time. During the Great Depression in particular, Thorpe held various jobs, among others as an extra in several movies, usually playing an Indian chief in Westerns. But he also worked as a construction worker, a bouncer, a security guard, and a ditch digger, and he briefly joined the United States Merchant Marine in 1945. [O'Hanlon-Lincoln. pgs. 144–5 ] [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,774347,00.html Briefs] , "TIME", February 22, 1943, available online via time.com, accessed May 21, 2007. ] By the 1950s, Thorpe had no money left, and when he was hospitalized for lip cancer in 1950, he was admitted as a charity case.Associated Press. [http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0E1EF63A5A127B93C2A8178AD95F458585F9 Thorpe Has Cancerous Growth Removed From Lip in Hospital at Philadelphia] , "The New York Times", November 10, 1951, accessed April 23, 2007. ] At a press conference announcing the procedure, Thorpe's wife wept and pleaded for help, saying: " [W] e're broke.... Jim has nothing but his name and his memories. He has spent money on his own people and has given it away. He has often been exploited." In early 1953, Thorpe suffered his third heart attack while eating dinner with his third wife, Patricia Askew, in his trailer home in Lomita, California. Artificial respiration briefly revived him, and he was able to speak to those around him but lost consciousness shortly afterward and died on March 28.

Racism

Thorpe's accomplishments occurred during a period of racism and racial inequality in the United States. It has been often suggested that his medals were stripped because of his ethnicity, [ Watterson. pg. 151
* Elfers. pg. 18 ] and although this has never been proven, public outcry at the time largely reflected this view. [ Schaffer and Smith. pg. 50 ] He also won his gold medals before all Native Americans were recognized as citizens; American Indians were granted dual citizenship in 1924. [ Lincoln and Slagle. pg. 282 ]

While at Carlisle in particular, Thorpe's ethnicity was openly used as a marketing tool. For many, he embodied the racial stereotype of Native Americans as fierce savage warriors. A photograph of Thorpe and the 1911 football team emphasized the purposeful racial split between the competing athletes. The inscription on the football reads, "1911, Indians 18, Harvard 15." [ [http://www.historicalsociety.com/thorpe.html Jim Thorpe Photo Collection] , historicalsociety.com, accessed May 14, 2007. ] Additionally, the school often categorized sporting competitions as conflicts pitting Indians against whites. Newspaper headings such as “Indians Scalp Army 27-6” or “Jim Thorpe on Rampage” characterized the Indian-ness of Carlisle's football team. Bloom quoted in Bird. pg. 97 ] His first appearance in "The New York Times" ran with the headline "Indian Thorpe in Olympiad.; Redskin from Carlisle Will Strive for Place on American Team"; his accomplishments were described in a similar racial context by other newspapers and sportswriters throughout his life. [Demaree, Al. [http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/362613712.html?dids=362613712:362613712&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Nov+24%2C+1926&author=AL+DEMAREE&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(1886-Current+File)&edition=&startpage=C4&desc=Thorpe%2C+the+Indian%2C+Best+All-American Thorpe, the Indian, Best All-American] , "Los Angeles Times", November 24, 1926, accessed May 12, 2007.
* [http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/502266132.html?dids=502266132:502266132&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Mar+29%2C+1953&author=&pub=Chicago+Daily+Tribune+(1872-1963)&edition=&startpage=A1&desc=JIM+THORPE+DIES+OF+HEART+ATTACK+AT+64 Jim Thorpe Dies of Heart Attack at 64] "Chicago Tribune", March 29, 1953, accessed May 12, 2007.
* "Buffalo Courier" columnist Billy Kelly quoted in Miller. pg. 66 ]

Legacy

When Thorpe's third wife, Patricia, heard that the small Pennsylvania town of Mauch Chunk was desperately seeking to attract business, she struck a deal with the town. Mauch Chunk bought Thorpe's remains, erected a monument to him, and renamed the town in his honor (see Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania), despite the fact that Thorpe had never set foot in the city. [O'Hanlon-Lincoln. pg. 148 ] Thorpe's monument, featuring the quote from Gustav V, can still be found there.Thorpe also received great acclaim from the press. In 1950, an Associated Press poll of nearly 400 sportswriters and broadcasters voted Thorpe the greatest athlete of the first half of the 20th century. [ [http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761574686/Thorpe_Jim.html Jim Thorpe] encarta.msn.com, accessed April 23, 2007. ] In 1999, the Associated Press placed him third on their list of athletes of the century, behind Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan, [Associated Press. [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/ssat2.htm Top 100 athletes of the 20th century] , "USA Today", December 21, 1999, accessed March 15, 2007.] and ESPN ranked him seventh on their list of North American athletes of the century. [ [http://espn.go.com/sportscentury/athletes.html Top N. American athletes of the century] , espn.com, accessed March 15, 2007. ] In addition, on May 27, 1999 the United States House of Representatives passed resolution 198 designating Thorpe as "America's athlete of the century". [Landrum. pg. 17. In 1973, Congress passed public law 93-19, a joint resolution to authorize the President to proclaim April 16, 1973, as "Jim Thorpe Day". ]

Thorpe was named the "greatest American football player" of the first half of the century by the Associated Press in 1950, [ [http://www.cmgworldwide.com/sports/thorpe/bio3.htm Jim Thorpe Biography] , cgmworldwide.com, accessed April 23, 2007. ] and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963. He is often said to be the first player inducted, although the first person inducted was Chicago Bears founder, owner, coach and player George Halas. He is memorialized in the Pro Football Hall of Fame rotunda with the larger-than-life Jim Thorpe statue as well as being a member of the college football, U.S. Olympic, and national track and field halls of fame. In 1986 an award was established in his name by the Jim Thorpe Association. The Jim Thorpe Award is awarded annually to the best defensive back in college football.

Thorpe was memorialized in the film "Jim Thorpe--All-American" (1951) starring Burt Lancaster and directed by "Casablanca's" Michael Curtiz. Although Thorpe was listed as a consultant in the credits, he did not earn any money for the movie, as he had already sold the film rights to MGM in 1931 (for $1,500). [O'Hanlon-Lincoln. pg. 145 ] The movie—titled "Man of Bronze" when released in the UK—-included archival footage of the 1912 and 1932 Olympics as well as a banquet in which Thorpe was honored. Thorpe was seen in some long shots in the film.

Olympic awards reinstated

Over the years, several attempts were made to reinstate Thorpe's Olympic titles. [Anderson, Dave. [http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F10E17FE355F15768FDDAB0A94DE405B858BF1D3 Jim Thorpe's Medals] , "The New York Times", June 22, 1975, accessed April 23, 2007. ] US Olympic officials, such as former teammate Avery Brundage, rebuffed several attempts, with Brundage once saying, "Ignorance is no excuse." [Reuters. [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/olympics/2004/08/08/bc.olympics.athletics.thorpe/ Jim Thorpe cruelly treated by authorities] , sportsillustrated.cnn.com, August 8, 2004, accessed April 23, 2007. ] Most persistent were Robert Wheeler and Florence Ridlon. They succeeded in having the AAU and United States Olympic Committee (USOC) overturn their decisions and restore Thorpe's amateur status prior to 1913. [Wethe, David and Whiteley, Michael. [http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2002/07/22/newscolumn1.html Legends lunches begin this fall with Bob Lilly] , "Dallas Business Journal", July 19, 2002, accessed April 27, 2007. ]

In 1982, they established the Jim Thorpe Foundation and managed to get support from the US Congress. Armed with this support and evidence from 1912 showing Thorpe's disqualification had occurred outside of the 30-day limit, they finally got attention from the IOC, which had not made any attempts to reinstate Thorpe.

In October 1982, the IOC Executive Committee approved Thorpe's reinstatement. In an unusual ruling, however, they declared that Thorpe was now co-champion with Bie and Wieslander, even though both athletes had always said they considered Thorpe to be the only champion. In a ceremony on January 18, 1983, two of Thorpe's children, Gale and Bill, were presented with commemorative medals;Anderson, Dave. [http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F60F12FA3C5F0C748CDDAB0894DB484D81 Jim Thorpe's Family Feud] , "The New York Times", February 7, 1983, accessed April 23, 2007. ] the original medals had both ended up in museums but were stolen and are still missing. [ O'Hanlon-Lincoln. pg 132 ]

References

Notes

ources

*Bird. Elizabeth S. "Dressing in Feathers: The Construction of the Indian in American Popular Culture", Boulder: Westview Press. 1996 ISBN 0813326672
*Bloom, John. "There is a Madness in the Air: The 1926 Haskell Homecoming and Popular Representations of Sports in Federal and Indian Boarding Schools," ed. in Bird. Boulder: Westview Press. 1996
*Elfers, James E. "The Tour to End All Tours", Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 2003 ISBN 0803267487
*Gerasimo, Luisa and Whiteley, Sandra. "The Teacher's Calendar of Famous Birthdays". McGraw-Hill, 2003 ISBN 0071412301
*Hoxie, Frederick E. "Encyclopedia of North American Indians" New York: Houghton Mifflin Books, 1996 ISBN 0395669219
*Jeansonne, Glen. "A Time of Paradox: America Since 1890". Rowman & Littlefield, 2006 ISBN 0742533778
*Landrum, Dr. Gene. "Empowerment: The Competitive Edge in Sports, Business & Life", Brendan Kelly Publishing Incorporated, 2006 ISBN 1895997240
*Lincoln, Kenneth and Slagle, Al Logan. "The Good Red Road: Passages into Native America", University of Nebraska Press, 1997 ISBN 0803279744

*Magill, Frank Northern. "Great Lives from History". New York: Salem Press, 1987 ISBN 0893565296
*Miller, Jeffrey J. "Buffalo's Forgotten Champions", Xlibris Corporation, 2004 ISBN 1413450059
*Neft, David S., Cohen, Richard M., and Korch, Rick. "The Complete History of Professional Football from 1892 to the Present." New York: St. Martin's Press, 1994 ISBN 0312114354
*O'Hanlon-Lincoln, Ceane. "Chronicles: A Vivid Collection of Fayette County, Pennsylvania Histories", Mechling Bookbindery. 2006 ISBN 0976056348
*Rogge, M. Jacque, Johnson, Michael, and Rendell, Matt. "The Olympics: Athens to Athens 1896–2004", Sterling Publishing. 2004 ISBN 0297843826
*Schaffer, Kay and Smith, Sidonie. "The Olympics at the Millennium: Power, Politics and the Games", Rutger University Press, 2000 ISBN 0813528208
*Watterson, John Sayle. "College Football: history, spectacle, controversy", Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000 ISBN 080187114X

Further reading

* "The Best of the Athletic Boys: The White Man's Impact on Jim Thorpe", by Jack Newcombe, 1975. ISBN 0385061862
* "Jim Thorpe, the Legend Remembered", by Rosemary Kissinger Updyke, 1997 ISBN 1565545397
* "In the Matter of Jacobus Franciscus Thorpe", published in "The 1912 Olympic Games - Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary" by Bill Mallon and Ture Widlund, 2002. ISBN 0786410477
* "The Complete Book of the Summer Olympics (Sydney 2000 Edition)" by David Wallechinsky, 2000. ISBN 1585670464
* "Jim Thorpe: The World's Greatest Athlete" by Robert W. Wheeler, 2003 ISBN 0806117451
* "Doctors, Lawyers, Indian Chiefs" by Tom Benjey, 2008 ISBN 9780977448678 devotes a chapter to Jim Thorpe

External links

* [http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=213 Pro Football Hall of Fame member profile]
* [http://www.collegefootball.org/famersearch.php?id=10005 College Football Hall of Fame member profile]
* [http://www.jimthorpeassoc.org/ Jim Thorpe Association]
* [http://www.usolympicteam.com/26_37888.htm Jim Thorpe's U.S. Olympic Team bio]
* [http://www.olympic.org/uk/athletes/profiles/bio_uk.asp?PAR_I_ID=54230 Jim Thorpe's IOC bio]
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pif&GRid=1031&PIgrid=1031&PIcrid=45203&ShowCemPhotos=Y Pictures in Jim Thorpe's entry] at Find A Grave (includes pictures of monument)
* [http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1126038/1/index.htm The Regilding Of A Legend]

Persondata
NAME= Thorpe, Jim
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Thorpe, Jacobus Franciscus; Wa-Tho-Huk; Bright Path
SHORT DESCRIPTION=athlete
DATE OF BIRTH=May 28, 1888
PLACE OF BIRTH= Prague, Oklahoma
DATE OF DEATH=March 28, 1953
PLACE OF DEATH=Lomita, California