Show BILL BRENNAN IS KILLIO KILLED BY 61 THUGS heavyweight SHOT AND KILL ED IN OWN CAFE TWO SUS TAKEN once contender for heavyweight honor meets death at hands of gangsters who carried grudge new york william bill bre brennan prominent heavyweight bodei aas was shot and lulled killed sunday in the tijuana cabaret of which he was the proprietor james cullen a state trooper was shot in the neck as he ran to brennann Bren nans rescue james hughes and frank rassi believed to be two of a band of five which did the killing are under arrest brennan was chatting with frinda when hughes who is described as an unkempt individual with a prison record asked the pugilist to step outside for a moment shots were heard almost immediately afterward brennann Bren nans sister known on the stage as shirley sherman told the police that she ran outside and saw five men all of whom ran away when she appeared she seized hughes by the arm and screamed for help hughes however threw her to the floor A bullet halted cullen who was close behind the girl he staggered back into the cabaret and fell on the floor hughes and rassi became separated from their companions and turned up a corridor the door of which w was anz closed breaking the glass of the door with the butts of their pistols they walked into the arms of police lieutenant john hagerty they beat hagerty into unconsciousness commandeered a taxicab and fled two policemen attracted by the firing took up the chase in another taxi and captured the pair after a breakneck t drive both have served terms in prison the police said the pair according to the police are members of a hell kitchen gang who have apparently borne a grudge against the pugilist for some time brennan whose home formerly was in in chicago was a noted pugilist figure for ten years becoming a formidable m challenger for the heavyweight title in 1920 ile he was knocked out by jack dempsey at madison square garden that year but surprised critics by carrying the fight to the champion and staying twelve rounds before taking the count of terl ten he was knocked out once more by dempsey before the latter de thrones jess willard as titleholder that was in 1918 when dempsey j scored a knockout in six rounds brennan figured as a trial horse in ili tle the heavyweight campaign after losing a decision to floyd johnson brennan was knocked out in the twelfth round by luis angel firpo a defeat that threatened for a time to end fot for the veteran who spent several days in a hospital with f p slight concussion of the brain and other injuries as a result of the terrific pounding he received from the south american then battling his way to the front that bout really marked the end of brennann Bren nans career although he made one more appearance inside the ropes in november when he was knocked out by billy in four rounds at omaha neb starting his professional career in 1914 brennan engaged in ring battle record books show he gain the the sobriquet of knockout bill by flattening his opponents in sixty five of these contests the only men who knocked him out were dempsey firpo and but he also lost decisions to john harry grob greb make and battling levinsky |