Harry "The Black Panther" Wills (b. May 15, 1889, d. December 21, 1958) was perhaps the most well known victim of the "color line" drawn by white heavyweight champions after the title reign of Jack Johnson. Wills fought for over twenty years (1911-1932), was ranked as the number one challenger for the throne, but was never given the opportunity to fight for the title. May 15 is the 135th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (136th in leap years). ... 1889 (MDCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... John Arthur Johnson (March 31, 1878 – June 10, 1946), better known as Jack Johnson and nicknamed the Galveston Giant, was an American boxer and arguably the best heavyweight of his generation. ... 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ...

Wills fought many of the top heavyweights of his era. He defeated Willie Meehan, who had decisioned Jack Dempsey, Gunboat Smith and Charley Weinart. He also fought Luis Firpo in a match that ended in No Decision. Wills faced future heavyweight champion Jack Sharkey in 1926, and was being clearly defeated when he was disqualified. The next year, Wills was knocked out by heavyweight contender Paolino Uzcudun in a bout that signalled the end of his career as a title threat. His final record was 75 wins (with 47 knockouts), 9 losses and 2 draws. He was named to the Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. Edward (Gunboat) Smith was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 17, 1887. ... Luis Ángel Firpo, (October 11, 1894? - August 7, 1960), better known as Luis Firpo was a boxer of enormous transcendence in Latin America. ... Jack Sharkey, born October 6, 1902 in Binghamton, New York, United States – died August 17, 1994 in Beverly, Massachusetts, was a heavyweight boxing champion. ... 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Paolino Uzcudun (b. ... In 2003, Ring Magazine published a list of 100 greatest punchers of all time in boxing, as voted by the magazines writers. ...

The top black fighters of Wills' era were forced to continuously fight each other, as many white fighters also drew the "color line". As a result, Wills fought the redoubtable Sam Langford 22 times. His record against Langford was 6 wins, 2 losses and 14 No Decisions, although the two losses were by knockout. Wills also defeated Sam McVey three times and fought two No Decision bouts with Joe Jeanette. Sam Langford (b ~1883 - d. ... Sam McVey (Sam McVea), (b. ... Joe Jeanette (b. ...

Wills spent six years (1920-1926) trying to land a title fight with Jack Dempsey. Dempsey was willing to fight Wills and contracts for the bout were signed by both fighters. The fight, however, never took place, and Dempsey forfeited the $50,000.00 guarantee he posted for the match. Instead, Dempsey met Gene Tunney, and was outpointed by the ex-marine. The Dempsey-Tunney match was held in Philadelphia, as the bout could not be held in New York, due to litigation filed by Wills over Dempsey's breach of contract. 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar) // Events January January 7 - Forces of Russian White admiral Kolchak surrender in Krasnoyarsk. ... 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... William Harrison Jack Dempsey (June 24, 1895 - May 31, 1983), was an Irish-American boxer who won the world heavyweight title. ... James Joseph Gene Tunney (May 25, 1897 – November 7, 1978) was the heavyweight boxing champion from 1926-28 who defeated Jack Dempsey in 1926 and 1927 in what became known as The Long Count Fight and retired undefeated after winning against Tom Heeney in 1928. ... Philadelphia is a village located in Jefferson County, New York. ... Official language(s) None, English de facto Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 27th 141,205 km² 455 km 530 km 13. ...

Wills retired from boxing in 1932, and ran a successful real estate business in Harlem, New York. He was known for his yearly fast, in which, once a year, he would subsist on water for a month. Wills admitted that his biggest regret in life was never getting the opportunity to fight Dempsey for the title. Wills was confident that he would have won such a match. View of Harlem from Morningside Heights overlooking Morningside Park Lenox Avenue looking south from the corner of 124th Street. ... Official language(s) None, English de facto Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 27th 141,205 km² 455 km 530 km 13. ...