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Joe Thomal: Australian Champion Boxer,
Actor and Celebrity
by Paul Convy
Joe Thomal was a top Australian boxer from the time of the Australian Federation era until about 1908 and was the Bantamweight champion of Australia for five years. He became a well known actor and a celebrity until he died in 1952. Yet, African born and black, he managed to achieve this success in a time when the White Australian Policy was a cornerstone of Australian society. How did he do it?
Non-Europeans Not Welcomed
Australia, until recent decades, was not very welcoming to non-Europeans. It seemed most people thoroughly agreed with the motto of the Bulletin magazine: "Australia for the white man".
The first act of the federal parliament of the newly federated states of Australia in 1901 was the Immigration Restriction Act which sought to enshrine the White Australia Policy into immutable law.
We have written elsewhere on this site about the poor treatment meted out by authorities to those it felt were unworthy to be in Australia. This was the case especially if you were thought to
be "black" either from the Americas, Africa or elsewhere. See for instance our story on the treatment of Sonny Clay and his band when they toured eastern Australia in the 1920's.
In the post-World War Two era, these attitudes began to be relaxed until the mid-1970s when the Whitlam Labor Government abolished the White Australia Policy, starting the process of creating an open multi-cultural country.
Joe Thomal : Coming to Australia
It is surprising, therefore, to come across in the historical record, cases of people of African heritage who made their way to Australia and managed to settle here and enjoy reasonably settled and successful
lives, in spite of official sanctions and unofficial prejudice.
One of those people was the boxer and actor Joseph Francis "Joe" Thomal. In a profile of Thomal in Melbourne's Sporting Globe in 1923, he was described as being tall, slim, well poised, with the well cut suit a model of sartorial artistry. He gave the impression of dignity and cultured assurance. (See note no. 1)
He went on to describe to the writer how he came to Australia. Joe Thomal was born in what was then British Somaliland, near the Horn of Africa. At an early age, as an orphan, someone took him over the straits to Aden. He did not remember who. He was educated at an Aden convent, learned to read and write Latin, French and English and quickly became the smartest boy in the school. He took a job as a clerk in a French shipping company which necessitated him going aboard the boats that were travelling to and from Australia. Though just a child, he recounted, he thought that Australians looked like a happy people so he stowed away. At sea he was soon discovered. "I'll throw you overboard." roared the brutal captain. "Spare him." cried a beautiful lady. "He is only a child.
Another telling has him stowing away with three other boys. Three of the boys were sent down to shovel coal as stokers. However, it was discovered Joe had been an alter boy and knew how to serve mass to the French priest traveling on board, and so he had a much more pleasant journey than the other boys
Learning the Pugilistic Arts
On board, he met a man who would then have been called a Syrian, (but came the area we now know as Lebanon), who owned a clothing warehouse in Redfern, an area then populated by many Syrians
or Lebanese settlers, which acquired the title of "Little Lebanon" . He was offered a job in the warehouse doing odd jobs, and came across a Sydney identity called Sydney "Chiddy" Ryan who was a
champion boxer in late 19th century Sydney. Ryan ran a boxing gym in Elizabeth Street Redfern, which some claimed was really a front for his much more profitable two-up gambling school out the back.
However, Joe Thomal took to boxing enthusiastically, and tried to learn as much as possible about the pugilistic arts.
Later documents show that Joe was born in 1878, so that he must have arrived in Sydney in the early 1890s. This was fortunate for Thomal because prior to Federation in 1901, colonial immigration laws were not as hard and fast as later federal immigration laws. The colonies had a particular dislike and fear of Chinese immigrants, and other non-Europeans could sometimes slip-in. It also meant that being a permanent resident in 1901 and coming from another British colony, he seems to have achieved Australian resident British subjectship (what from 1948 became Australian citizenship).
Of course there is the possibility that Thomal had disguised his real origins to escape harsh immigration restriction laws. His daughter Esme would testify in a 1948 court case that her father and grandfather were both "American Negroes". Even just being an American (and therefore not a British subject) would have meant a problematic immigration status for Joe Thomal! Joe was good a self-publicist and often popped into newspaper editorial offices in any city he was visiting to promote himself, and to tell the story of how he came to Australia.
Joe Thomal, 1946
Professional Boxer
By 1899, when his name first appeared in newspaper accounts of boxing matches, Joe Thomal was an up and coming champion professional boxer whose fights were regularly reported in the press.
He participated in a number of bouts where he won some and lost a few. At first, the matches were over four rounds, but by the early 20th century, they often went on for a punishing 20 rounds, and more!
The press described him as a ‘scientific boxer’ with a weighty punch, someone who planned his moves in the ring, as opposed to sluggers. He was sometimes referred to as Snaky Thomal for
his agility and ability to avoid the punches.
According to the BoxRec and BoxerList online databases of past boxers, Thomal made his professional boxing debut in April, 1899 against someone just recorded as "Sam", with a final bout against Joe Newton on 24th October, 1904 at Queen's Hall, Melbourne. That resulted in a win, and it is noted that he retired. Press reports say this last win resulted in him being declared the Bantamweight champion of Australia, a position that he held for four years. He is recorded as having 15 bouts, with three wins, and seven losses, though press reports of Joe Thomal taking part in boxing bouts continue through 1905 and into 1906, sometimes as part of amateur and charity events.
By August 1906, Thomal had started to run a boxing studio in Elizabeth Street, Sydney where he taught boxing and managed a number of boxers, and taught a "big school of pupils". Joe, though, was still trying to persuade a boxer by the name of ""Yank" Pearl to have a bout with him. He also acted as a second to the black American champion Jack Johnson during the tumultuous bout against the Canadian and "great white hope" Tommy Burns at the Stadium in Sydney, in which Johnson won to become World Heavyweight Champion, much to the chagrin of supporters of the White Australia Policy. The increasing numbers of Black boxing champions led many to hold out hope that a "great white hope" would emerge to restore the championship status of the "white man", and Joe Thomal was only too happy to oblige by training and touting the skills of a New Zealander George Fernandez as his own "white hope" from 1911 to 1913.
In 1924, Joe was giving boxing lessons, as newspaper reports noted, in the New Zealand town of South Taranaki. This was perhaps in conjunction with his other work as part of touring groups of actors, including the play White Heat, which saw him appear in Dunedin in 1926.
Married Margaret Rivers
In 1904 he married Margaret Rivers (sometimes referred to as "Maggie") in Sydney, the daughter of a Mr Jeffrey Rivers. A 1946 Adelaide News profile describes her as a
"half-caste" New Zealand girl". Unfortunately there is no other information available about her. Margaret died
on 28th September, 1919, and must have been relatively young. Her cause of death was influenza, struke down by the world-wide Spanish Flu Pandemic. She was buried at the Church of England Cemetery at Rookwood.
At that time the family was living in suburban Burwood Street, Bexley NSW.
They had three children:
In 1938 the Australian artist from Victoria , Violet Teague (1872 to 1951), was commissioned to paint works to be hung in the All Saints "Arctic" Cathedral in the remote Canadian settlement of Aklavik in the North-West Territories, part of a series called Epiphany of the Snows designed to be hung over the altar. One of the works was called the Toilet (i.e. a woman dressing) and required one of the subjects to be a black servant. Teague, it was said, found "an African negress living in Surry Hills" a somewhat incongruous description of Josephine "Joyce" Thomal considering she had been born in Australia to Australian parents!
Teague completed the painting and had it shipped to Canada and hung in the cathedral. Unfortunately, the cathedral burnt down in 1974 - but there is a surviving photograph from PIX magazine which clearly shows Josephine as one of the subjects.
Josephine Thomal poses as a servant for the painting The Toilet from PIX magazine
Tragically, soon after posing for the painting, Josephine was killed as a passenger aboard the Sydney harbour ferry, the Rodney which overturned and sank in the harbour as those aboard waved goodbye to the sailors aboard the visiting United States cruiser USS Louisville on the 13th February, 1938. The Louisville was one of seven foreign warships in Sydney for the sesquicentenary celebrations of the 1788 arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove. As the warship neared Bradley's head, the ferry packed with 150 passengers, turned to come around behind the Louisville. Passengers on the top deck rushed across to the other side of the deck and caused it to become unstable and suddenly capsize. Nineteen passengers from the ferry drowned, the majority, 17, were young women who had come for a final glimpse of boyfriends from the warship. Sadly one of those young women was Josephine Thomal.
The Sun reported on Josephine's funeral:
Colored People Present. Paying tearful tribute to the memory of Josephine Phoebe Thomal, 24, white and colored people filed past the grey casket in Kirby's chapel. Her girlfriend, Olive Gorman, was a pitiful figure. They were together on the Rodney, but were separated when thrown into the water. A spray of red roses was laid inside the casket by the girl's sister, Mrs. Esme Albany. Her father's beautiful wreath rested on top of the casket. Scores of Sydney's colored people were among the mourners. The chief mourners were the girl's father, Mr. Joe Thomal, and sister, Mrs. Esme Albany.
Difficult Financial Position
By 1938, Joe was 60, no longer a young man, and finding income from boxing enterprises no longer met his needs.
In May 1938, Joe Thomal made representations about the distributions of funds raised in a public appeal in memory of those lost on the Rodney as well as the five further victims of the Bondi surf tragedy on the same weekend - a total of 24 deaths. Of the £3840 collected for the victims, Thomal received just over £17 for his daughter's funeral. If the funds had been divided equally, each family's victim would have received £160, then a substantial amount of money. Joe Thomal noted that he was in a poor financial position with another dependent daughter and therefore could not see how he would be any less worthy than others. Whether Joe, ever the articulate publicist, was making the appeal with all the victims in mind, or only because of his own circumstances, is difficult to discern. How the funds were eventually distributed is not known, but it does show Joe felt he needed that equal share.
Later that year in November, his friends and supporters staged a testimonial event at The Hub theatre in Newtown, and according to the The Labor Daily:
JOE THOMAL BENEFIT: Prominent boxers and theatrical artists are to appear in the Joe Thomal testimonial at the Hub ... Newtown, to-night. Special displays will be given by the star colored middleweights at present in Sydney. Atlllo Sabatino, Alabama Kid, Ossie Stewart, Syd Brown, and Allen Matthews will box. Australian welter champion Hockey Bennell and flyweight Roy Underwood will be present. Joe Wallis will supervise the boxing exhibitions, with Cyril Angles officiating as M.C. Artists include Amy Rocheile, Fred Bluett, Les Wharton, Ward Lear, and Vera May.
Denied Pension Because he was Black
In 1944, when he reached the pensionable age of 67, Joe applied to federal authorities for an old age pension, and was surprised to find his claim, which should have been routine, denied. What Joe, and
indeed some other Australians discovered, was that social security payments were denied to anyone who, as the Act described them as being "aboriginal natives of Asia, the Pacific Islands or
Africa" even if they were full citizens of the country. Joe was born in Africa! If you were "white" and had got off a ship yesterday and were a
British subject, you could qualify for a pension. This discriminatory practice was so outrageous, even ardent supporters of the "White Australia Policy" were taken aback.
Officials, it was said, felt Joe deserved a pension, and after all, who in Australia would deny a sporting star! The Minister for Social Services at the time, Senator Fraser, investigated Joe's case and within a month had granted Joe a special compassionate allowance of 27 shilling per week, which was equal to the old age pension. So, while Joe gained a measure of justice for himself, this stratagem meant that the general injustice of the legislation remained!.
Acting and Films
Racism and racist attitudes permeated Australian society in the early 20th century, but in one respect Thomal found it fortunate to be black. He found he was in demand in films, live theatre and vaudeville
playing black characters. And as he became more experienced, he was found to be a good actor and was found employment in his own right as an actor.
According to a story in the The Newcastle Sun Joe Thomal was employed by the Australia/British theatre impresario and actor Oscar Asche (1871 - 1936) to perform in the production of Chin Chin Chou touring Australia, as well as in New Zealand. Asche produced around 2,500 performances of this "Oriental Spectacle" from around 1917 to 1923. (See note 2)
In 1926, Joe was playing the part of Wanna Singhe in Leon Gordon's play about the tropics called "White Cargo". He said he liked to give a good account of his portrayal of "the native". Thomal also used his training skills to ensure Gordon stayed fit. The "White Cargo" production, including Joe Thomal, also found its way to New Zealand, and was still being performed in Sydney in 1938 (by then the production also included the later Hollywood star, Peter Finch). Joe played many roles in live productions and films until the 1950s, and used his acting skills to earn a living from some unusual ways.
 1931 Press clipping showing Joe Thomal dressed as Prince Tomate |
Prince Tomate Stunt In 1931, the son of an African ruler, Prince Tomate, turned up in Melbourne. He stayed in first class hotels, dined at the best restaurants, only took taxis around Melbourne and dressed in exotic robes and always carried a fetish containing the blood of the first enemy warrior he had killed. He was said to be able to command the loyalty of 10,000 warriors in his homeland, to have had six wives and many children. He knew the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Gloucester and acted as their gun bearer. People were awed by the Prince's imperious, regal, demeanour. The producers of a motion picture about African safaris and adventures called Trader Horn, then showing in Australia, could not believe their luck. The Prince's appearance caused a sudden upsurge in public interest in all things African Later, the Prince visited Adelaide, and upon visiting Adelaide zoo, there was a huge public expectation that he would enter the lions' cage and calm the beasts (he decided against doing that). Except, he was not Prince Tomate, but Joe Thomal, dressed for the part and paid by the publicists of Trader Horn. Nonetheless, the press and public fell for the stunt and took the "Prince" at face value. It was not until 1945, that Prince Tomate's true identity was revealed. |
Peter French, Joe Thomal and Gwenda Wilson in 1946 production The Hasty Heart
Sesquicentenary Celebrations - "Africa"
During the 1938 sesquicentenary celebrations of European settlement in Sydney, Joe rode in celebratory parade of "nations" on a float representing "Africa". Dressed in flowing robes, he waved heartily
to the assembled crowds as the vehicle passed by.
Fined for Advertisement
Thomal also had a hand in advertising for a film being screened in Sydney, an action which saw him achieve a court conviction. It was reported that Thomal, "dressed in white, with horizontal stripes,
representing a convict, and with his hands connected together with an imitation chain, he did parade King Street, Newtown, on September 4 [1936], carrying a notice about a local talkie on his chest
and back". He was arrested and Newtown court fined him 10 shillings with 8-shilling costs for displaying a placard by way of advertisement. Poor Joe, walking ads must have been illegal!
Death
In November 1952, Joe Thomal was on his way from Sydney to the "Actors's Retreat" at Sussex Inlet on the New South Wales south coast, when he became ill and was admitted to Wollongong Hospital.
He died later that day on Sunday 23rd November, 1952. After a service at the chapel of Labor Funerals or Crown Street, Surry Hills, Joe was buried in Rookwood Cemetery.
If the strict interpretation of the intent of the "White Australia Policy" was followed, Joe should never have been allowed to remain in Australia, yet he lived a long and full life in this country. The incipient racism within the community always followed him and his family, and sections of the press could always be relied to snipe away at him because of his colour : even with grudging acknowledgement of his successes, misapprobations like" native, "white" black man, darkie, negro, African, coloured" always followed him. Sometimes it was baldly stated that he had no right to compete against "white men". Despite this, he was a successful boxer and trainer and went onto become a popular actor and celebrity - contributing much to the Australian community.
References
Note 1. On finding letters he had published in newspapers, Thomal comes across as being very articulate, much more so than you would expect from, perhaps unfairly, a professional boxer.
Note 2. Oscar Asche (1871 - 1936) was an amazing historical figure in theatrical circles. His early 20th century productions, of course, featured much which would be considered inappropriate today: including “blackface”, cultural appropriations, and exaggerated theatrical representations of Asians.
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