Giulio Gallucci (1924–2006), also known as Johnny Duke, was an American,

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

-born

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing * Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

and coach. Duke fought professionally from 1942 to 1946 and was inducted into the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame's inaugural class. He also is a member of the

National Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves of America is an organization that promotes annual competitions of amateur boxing in the United States, in which winners are awarded a belt and a ring, and the title of national champion. The organization currently owns 30 fr ...

Hall of Fame. His is beloved and remembered for his work with inner city youth. The youngest of three brothers, Duke grew up in the North End of Hartford to a poor immigrant Italian family. His father, Lucie Gallucci, deserted the family when he was a child. Perpetually on welfare, Duke and his brothers, Joseph and John, struggled for stability. Duke was introduced to boxing by legendary champion

Willie Pep Guglielmo Papaleo ( Middletown - September 19, 1922 – November 23, 2006) was an American professional boxer, better known as Willie Pep, who held the World Featherweight championship twice between the years of 1942 and 1950. Papaleo was born ...

when they were both shoeshine boys in downtown Hartford. Duke joined a gym and became a

sparring partner Sparring is a form of training common to many combat sports. It can encompass a range of activities and techniques such as punching, kicking, grappling, throwing, wrestling or submission work dependent on style. Although the precise form varies, ...

for Pep. Duke also trained at Stillman's Gym in New York alongside boxers such as

Sugar Ray Robinson Walker Smith Jr. (May 3, 1921 – April 12, 1989), better known as Sugar Ray Robinson, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1940 to 1965. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. He is often regarde ...

and

Henry Armstrong Henry Jackson Jr. (December 12, 1912 – October 22, 1988) was an American professional boxer and a world boxing champion who fought under the name Henry Armstrong. He is the only fighter to ever hold world championships in three divisions (fea ...

. He was 23-21-4 under his birth name, and also fought a handful of fights at the end of his career as Johnny Duke. He picked the name "Duke" for his well tailored suits and sharp dress.

Career

As a corner man, Duke helped develop top amateurs such as Jimmy Blythe, Donnie Nelson, Herb Darity,

Marlon Starling Marlon Starling (born August 29, 1959) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1979 to 1990. He held the World Boxing Association, WBA welterweight title from 1987 to 1988 and the World Boxing Council, WBC welterweight title f ...

and former U.S. Olympian

Lawrence Clay-Bey Lawrence Marvin Clay-Bey (born December 14, 1965) is an American former professional boxer who fought at heavyweight. As an amateur he was a two-time winner (1995 and 1996) of the United States National Championships as well as a bronze medali ...

. He coached Starling to a national Junior Olympics championship. Later, Starling won the

World Boxing Association The World Boxing Association (WBA), formerly known as the National Boxing Association (NBA), is an international professional boxing organization based in Panama. The WBA awards its world championship title at the professional level. Founded ...

(WBA)

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

title. Duke's influence is still felt. Mike Oliver, one of the fighters at Duke's service, is unbeaten as a super

bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

and won the USBO title on February 18, 2006. Duke was a manager at the Bellevue Square Boys Club during the 1960s and 1970s. His connection to the multicultural North End of Hartford earned him a job with the city acting as a go-between for the cops. Bellevue Square boxers dominated the Western Massachusetts Golden Gloves tournaments for several years. That tournament is now called the Western New England Golden Gloves and was held for the first time in Connecticut at The Colony in Vernon early 2006. The Bellevue Square housing complex underwent a $14 million reconstruction, and the gym building was demolished in 1997. Jim Jedrziewski was so captivated by Duke's stories that he decided to write a biography of the Hartford boxing coach and trainer. The book, ''No Pretender Johnny Duke: an American Original'', was published in 2003. Duke was buried at the Cedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford. He is survived by his daughters Helen, Nancy, and Diana.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duke, Johnny American male boxers 1924 births 2006 deaths Boxers from Hartford, Connecticut Burials at Cedar Hill Cemetery (Hartford, Connecticut) 20th-century American sportsmen