The advent of talkies in the late 1920s not only irreversibly altered the landscape of motion pictures, but impacted several other major aspects of the entertainment industry. For example, by the time most theaters nationwide were wired for sound in 1930, vaudevillians who had performed at many of these same venues found themselves on the opposite side of the stage door, to enter never again.
Standing now at an existential fork in the road, these folks were confronted with a multitude of different directions, many of them uncharted and some unappealing, from which to choose a new career path that they might find suitable from that point forward.
After more than two decades in show business, juggler, acrobat, and former boxer Art Martell chose to return to the familiar terrain of fistiana. Belle, a contortionist, trick rider, and singer who was also his spouse, was initially less than enthusiastic about the prospect of joining Art's reentry into the world of prizefighting. "I told him that was one thing I knew nothing about so I'd settle down to be a housewife," Belle at first conceded. However, she joked that "I simply couldn't keep my nose out of my husband's business."
Though boxing was indeed a road less traveled for Belle, who had also worked as a stunt woman and extra at Essanay Studios (one-time home to Charlie Chaplin), she would quickly acclimate, using her natural intellect and no-nonsense brand of determination to ultimately blaze fresh trails of her very own.
"The first time I ever saw her, 34 years ago in a hotel lobby, she was bawling out her stage partner," Art recollected in a 1954 interview. "I said to myself, 'Heaven help the man who marries her!' So I did marry her, Heaven has helped, and maybe the Martell Magic will help put amateur boxing back on its feet again."
Art converted the garage of their Van Nuys home into a boxing gym where he would mentor aspiring Golden Glovers whose bouts he would also promote at clubs in and around Southern California. Future three-division world champion Henry Armstrong was just one of the many beneficiaries of the Martells' altruistim.
Art's required absences increased at more or less the same rate as Belle's knowledge of the sweet science. So much so that she slowly transitioned from merely timing the sparring sessions and workout routines to assuming a much more hands-on role in the training of their 40 amateur fighters. Quite literally.
One "chin-crazy kid," as Art described him, needed to be reminded time and again by Belle to keep his arms tucked tight against his sides. The young man didn't take kindly to being advised by a woman and had no problem letting Belle know it. Which is when she exited the practice ring. Only to gear up and return, proceeding to deliver a message-sending blow to the solar plexus of the insolent boy. Lesson learned, needless to say. "I knocked him out and he saw then what I was trying to tell him," recalled Belle.
In 1930, Art and Belle began co-promoting amateur shows at the famous Jeffries Barn. Located at the corners of Victory and Buena Vista Boulevards in what was then downtown Burbank and has now been incorporated into modern-day Hollywood, the building was erected on the 107-acre property belonging to former heavyweight champion, James J. Jeffries, with its once-sprawling alfalfa farm. The popularity of this shared endeavor of the Martell couple can be evidenced in Belle's estimate that "we were turning away 500 cars on top nights." Around this same time, Belle hosted a radio show on KMTR she called "Old Man Boxing," regaling listeners with tales of pugilism's past.
Feeling as though her twenty-two years' worth of experience working the crowds during her many days spent on the vaudeville circuit were going to waste, Belle decided to step beneath the spotlight as a ring announcer. She was given the opportunity to do so at various venues including the world renowned Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, a historic first for a female. The way Belle looked at it, "no one else seemed to have the necessary stage sense and timing to introduce fighters and ringside celebrities."
Speaking of timing, Belle next turned her attention toward obtaining a timekeeper’s license, becoming the first ever woman to serve as such in an official capacity at places like the Olympic which welcomed her back again. "Belle always gets across," beamed Art. "It isn't every man who has a wife with a one-two punch."
Belle's prior affiliation with the Olympic Auditorium opened the door for her and Art to stage weekly amateur boxing cards there. At first drawing only 300 or so hardcore fight fans, attendance at the Martells' Olympic co-promotions eventually swelled to crowds as large as 9,000 as Belle's reputation grew appreciably in the public eye.
In fact, a petition bearing several thousand signatures was handed over to the California State Athletic Commission in an effort to secure Belle a seat at the table. Though grateful for the recognition, Belle declined so that she could continue to focus on staging the amateur shows at the Olympic.
Now a youthful, attractive, and ambitious 45 years of age, Belle set her sights on ever loftier horizons in 1940 when she applied for a license to become an officially sanctioned referee. Tutored in preparation for the 100-question entrance exam by Willie Ritchie, former lightweight world champion and then-Chief Inspector of the CSAC, Belle scored a record-breaking high of 97.5, and was sworn in by Commissioner Jules Covey on April 20.
Belle promised to stick with the regulation grey flannels so as to alleviate any concerns some may have had regarding vanity. "But I'll wear a skirt," Belle acknowledged. "No trousers." She would carry facial tissues in her blouse pocket with which to wipe away blood or handle a mouthpiece in a sanitary manner.
The May 2, 1940 edition of the San Bernardino County Sun ran an ad promising "Fights Tonight" at the S.B. Athletic Club. The main event pitted Savas Robledo against Joe Bell with "7 Other Good Bouts" featuring "Lady Referee—Belle Martell." What was the audience reaction? "Her first job," it was reported in the papers, "went off without mishap. The fans seemed satisfied."
One week later in Pasadena, 700 spectators witnessed Martell count to ten over the prostrate form of John Archuleta, who was knocked out cold in the second round by a fighter going by the name Johnny Mongz. "When the fallen man arose," concluded a writeup in the Los Angeles Times, "the Belle of the ring gently took his hand, led him to a place of safety." Belle was originally supposed to have officiated every match on the card, but the notion allegedly made the Athletic Commission "jittery" and her duties were scaled back to the one bout. After the fights, Belle hurriedly changed from her referee's outfit into a dinner dress more appropriate for the party she attended afterwards.
"Boxing is a fine sport, and amateur clubs do a great thing in keeping boys and young men off the streets and out of mischief," offered Martell in response to naysayers insisting that the boxing ring was no place for a female. "It teaches self-defense, sportsmanship, clean living, and the care of the body. Who is better qualified to teach these things than a woman?"
Obviously, there was resistance enough to the very idea of a female referee to cause the CSAC to reverse course and revoke Belle's license a mere five weeks after it was issued. "A rule was passed in which only males may be granted licenses to act as referees, boxers, wrestlers, seconds, or any other capacity which requires that person be present in the ring during an amateur or professional boxing or wrestling contest or exhibition," read the rather verbose statement released to the press by the Athletic Commission. "The rule was made retroactive, automatically cancelling licenses or permission granted to members of the opposite sex."
Even if this disappointing change of events did not deter Belle from continuing to promote her and Art's amateur fight cards, it effectively kept her on the outside of the prize ring looking in. Until January 1943, that is, when the Commission-appointed referee sent to preside over a night of fights ran out of gas and couldn't make the event promoted by Belle. If only out of sheer necessity, Martell was called into action and officiated the entire card, working the first half in a long black velvet hostess gown she had worn for the occasion before getting the chance to slip into referee's attire during the intermission.
Not only that, she simultaneously timed and announced every last bout as well, meaning that she had to wear all four hats (promoter, referee, timekeeper, ring announcer) on the same night. "It definitely made boxing history," summarized the U.P. report, "of a pleasant sort, for a change."
This was a one-time-only refereeing comeback, and the Martells soon after decided that the moment was right for a semi-retirement of sorts. Belle put on shows during the war years to benefit the Woman's Ambulance and Defense Corps, in which she served as Lt. Colonel. She organized numerous War Bond drives, recruiting the likes of Abbott and Costello to help raise in excess of $800,000. Otherwise, Belle took advantage of her newfound leisure time to become an active leader of the Benevolent Thespians Association. But, by 1952, the Martells were feeling the itch to toss their hats back into the boxing ring.
They took possession of what Valley Times sportswriter Chuck Sexauer described as a "small-scale ghost town" surrounded by a picturesque redwood forest for the purpose of setting up what would double as a training camp and amusement center. Just off Colorado Boulevard, the centerpiece of the property at 4911 San Fernando Road in Glendale was a sizeable building that suited their needs perfectly.
Once a winery, it became known as Belle Martell Arena Gardens and housed a practice ring, performance stage, café, bar, shower stalls, and dressing rooms. An outdoor ring was also erected adjacent to a derelict collection of oversized wine vats which were repurposed into living quarters for boxers in need of a place to stay. In the hopes of reaching as many youths from the surrounding areas as possible, the Martells' services were rendered free of charge.
Belle felt strongly that the venue which got its name from her also pay homage to the proud history in show business which she shared in large part with her husband. Art was in complete agreement. The Belle Martell Arena Gardens would, therefore, cultivate local talent in the form of actors, singers, comedians, and entertainers of all varieties who would actively participate in reviving the glory days of old vaudeville.
Hard times and poor health were to plague Belle by the early 1960s. Stricken with crippling arthritis and other ailments which necessitated extended hospital stays or remaining bedridden at home in Van Nuys, the woman who gave so much to help so many was now the recipient of compassionate generosity.
An all-star vaudeville show held at the Troupers Club Playhouse in Hollywood raised some much-needed funds for the aging and ailing Martell, as did a fight film festival featuring highlights from the careers of Gene Tunney, Sam Langford, Jack Sharkey, Jim Jeffries, Jess Willard, Les Darcy, Georges Carpentier and many others hosted by the House of Serfas, a View Park hangout for athletes and sports enthusiasts alike.
Belle passed away at the age of 77 in 1972, gone but by no means forgotten. She left behind not only her beloved husband Art, who would die four years later, but a unique legacy built on numerous historic accomplishments which will live forever.
Sources:
Jane Cochran. Belle Martell, of Los Angeles, Is Regular Fight Announcer and First Licensed Woman Timekeeper (Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, September 6, 1939)
Jeanne Hoffman. Martells Sure Cure For Ailing Amateur Boxing in Southland (Los Angeles Times, May 9, 1954)
Thom McGraham. Artful Artie Reflects on Colorful Past (Van Nuys Valley News, May 16, 1974)
Robert Myers. There's A Place For Women In Boxing Says Woman Referee (Harrisburg Telegraph, June 4, 1940)
Claude Newman. Grand Lady Remembered For Her Deeds (North Hollywood Valley Times Today, December 8, 1961)
Cecilia Rasmussen. 1st Woman Boxing Referee Rolled With Punches (Los Angeles Times, May 21, 2006)
Chuck Sexauer. Innocent Bystander (North Hollywood Valley Times, June 4, 1952)
Belle Martell Loses License (Pasadena Post, May 25, 1940)
Belle Martell Makes Debut (Los Angeles Times, May 10, 1940)
Benefit For Belle Martell (Hollywood Citizen-News, September 22, 1962)
Fights Tonight (San Bernardino County Sun, May 2, 1940)
First Woman Referee Puts Pulchritude in Pugilism (Bradford Evening Star and Daily Record, May 17, 1940)
Woman Handles Boxing Program (Raleigh News and Observer, January 24, 1943)
Woman Will Referee California Battles (Spokane Spokesman-Review, April 21, 1940)
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