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Title
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Joseph Levis Joins the Professional Ranks
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Date
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December 1939
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volume
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4
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issue
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7
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4
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page end
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5
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content
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en
Joseph Levis Joins the Professional Ranks
In 1922, a shy Freshman wandered into the M. I. T. gymnasium without the slightest realization that he was to experience a meeting there which would change his entire life, bring him fame, hundreds of friends throughout the world, and may even now lead to his fortune. That boy had been undergoing the cruel unfriendliness which many colleges unwittingly shower upon lone Freshmen whose natural timidity makes it hard for them to make friends. With nothing better to do, he stopped to watch some fencing and was particularly interested in a tall, well-built, kindly type of fellow who was fencing with great determination. He edged closer to listen to this fencer talking to others between bouts. Suddenly he was amazed to have this fencer actually speak to him—speak to a Freshman. "Would you like to learn to fence?" What else could a Freshman say but "Yes, I guess so," with the mental reservation of 'What can I lose?' The boy was placed on guard and taught to advance and lunge. This was the first time that George Calnan, then-recent graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy and a post-graduate student at M. I. T., crossed foils with Joseph Levis, M. I. T. Freshman.
The first lesson gave birth to the fastest advance and lunge that American fencing has yet developed. It also welded a friendship which lasted until Calnan’s death as an officer aboard the Akron when that Navy dirigible was destroyed in a storm off the New Jersey coast in the spring of 1933.
That chance meeting was remarkable in that it brought two young men together who were to make deeper marks upon the pages of American fencing history than any other men to date. It was to lead to two amazing and parallel careers beyond their fondest dreams in 1922.
Lieutenant George C. Calnan was to become American National Foil Champion in 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1930, and 1931. Joseph Levis was to hold that championship in 1929, 1932, 1933, 1935, and 1937. Between them, they were to share that championship for a period of nine consecutive years up until Calnan’s death in 1933. Lt. Calnan was also to win the National Epee Championship in 1923, the National Outdoor Epee Championship in 1931, and the National Three-Weapon Championship in 1927, while Levis was to win the National Outdoor Foils Championship in 1929 and 1933 and the National Three-Weapon Championship in 1929.
Their careers in International fencing were similarly parallel, and between them, they did more to force recognition of American fencing ability upon the world than any other two men. Calnan was a member of four American Olympic Fencing Teams, Levis was a member of three. Each man was Captain of his last American Olympic Fencing Team.
In 1928, on his first Olympic Team, Levis placed tenth in the individual Foil Championship. To place within the first ten in this competition is to achieve a fencing honor coveted by all fencers. Levis was the first American to do so (as was Calnan in epee). Four years later in Los Angeles, Levis was to go much further and amaze the entire Continental fencing world by placing second in the same great competition with Gustavo Marzi of Italy first, and Giulio Gaudini of Italy third. This was the apex of his amateur fencing career, although he was to win three American Foil Championships after this date.
Those of us who were fortunate enough to be at the Olympic Games in 1932 saw a great American Fencing Team captained by Calnan. Joseph Levis, with his string of victories, made it possible for the American Foil Team to achieve a triple tie for first place with the Italian and French Foil Teams. This achievement was outstanding, but on the following day, Levis was to scale greater heights individually. He waded through pool after pool to find himself in the finals against the ten best foilsmen of the world. No American had ever seen Levis fence as well as he did that day. No European had supposed that any American would ever fence that well. They gathered around his strip to see "Monsieur Lavees" streak through his bouts in an amazing burst of speed and elan. There was no stopping the man. He was as hard to control as a thoroughbred at the starting line. "En garde—prêt—allez" and Levis was off with an attack and "Eh-Lil," his war-cry. No one had the chance to attack him. His opponents tried stop-thrusts, time-thrusts, and ripostes, but Levis swept these all aside as he came in with his original attack or with counter-ripostes at the end of his rush. He was a deadly, berserk, point-making machine that day and probably remembers less of it himself than he does of many of his American Championships. His audience, however, remembers it only too well. Each of his attacks had been emotion-stirring with everyone in the American stands leaning in the direction of his attacks to the absolute danger of spilling the rooter on the end seat into the aisles. That night there were many hoarse throats and bitten knuckles among his American rooters who owed Joe Levis one of the most exciting days in their lives. Levis ended the day in second place, acknowledging superiority to only one other amateur in the world, the famous Marzi. Joe had come far from that day 10 years earlier when he had taken his first lesson.
He is now the newly appointed fencing master at M.I.T., his Alma Mater. We shall miss him in competition where he excelled for so many years. From 1926, when he won the Intercollegiate Foils Championship for M.I.T., he had marched on through National Junior Championships in foil and epee in 1927 to the National Championships and his Olympic achievements which we have already described. In addition to these individual achievements, Levis was also a member of the teams which won the National Foil Team Championships in 1928, 1929, 1930, and 1934. With Calnan, he shares the honor of being America’s most consistent performer over a period of years, and it is with regret that his fellow amateurs now see him leave their ranks and join the professional ranks with other leading American amateurs such as Dimond, Pasche, Peroy, Vince, and others. There is no question but that we need more professionals but, as each good amateur takes the step, there is a forgivable feeling of regret on the part of the remaining amateurs.
Levis will not say much as yet about his plans as a professional. He does admit that he has a double objective: first, to produce good collegiate fencers at M.I.T., and second, to endeavor to give his men a love for the sport that will carry them beyond the short four years of college into higher A.F.L.A. competition and possible National ranking. For this purpose, we propose the old Latin motto: “Non Scholae sed Vitae” which, if we remember correctly, means, "Not for School, but for Life," a motto which should be that of every fencing master who teaches schoolboys and collegians throughout the land.
For years the fencing squad at M.I.T. has never exceeded 30 to 35 men. The fencing squad jumped to 90 men this year upon word of Levis’ acceptance of the post of fencing master there. To realize what this means, one has only to appreciate the fact that there are now more men at M.I.T. “out” for fencing than there are for any other sport except track. We doubt that Levis, in his wildest dreams, could have anticipated any such response to his call and for a young, new professional to be faced with as large a task as a starter would give us concern if that particular man were not Levis. Fortunately, we have known Levis throughout all but his first two introductory years of fencing. Therefore, we feel that he will face this fencing problem just as he has faced every other fencing problem he has ever had and will come off as usual—with the gold medal.
—D. E.
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depicts
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Photograph : Joseph Levis
