How To Fight Tough [Paperback]

Jack Dempsey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2002

Paladin is pleased to present this rare reprint of a little-known hand-to-hand combat classic. At the outset of World War II, boxing heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey was appointed as a lieutenant in the U.S. Coast Guard and given the job of director of physical fitness. His orders: "Make 'em tough!" His task: to teach rookie Coast Guardsmen how to fight down and dirty in the face of the very real threat of enemy troops infiltrating American shores. Get in the ring with "the Manassa Mauler" as he gives 18 fully illustrated lessons in the art of bashing and brawling on the battlefield, including Subduing an Armed Enemy, The Unbreakable Strangle, Beating the Punch, Hammering Your Way Out of a Stranglehold, The Belt Trick, Fooling the Smart Knife Man, Turning the Tables with a Bayonet and Breaking a Standoff. All students of nasty close-quarters combat in the tradition of Sykes, Fairbairn, Applegate and other giants of the World War II era will thoroughly enjoy this fascinating piece of CQB history.

Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Paladin Press (March 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581603150
• ISBN-13: 978-1581603156
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #763,391 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Primarily for the combat historian, May 25, 2002

By 

Randy D. Strausbaugh (Chillicothe, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How To Fight Tough (Paperback)

I was extremely pleased to see the reprint of this previously hard-to-find book. I have, of late, renewed my interest in the martial arts as taught by the military during the 40's and 50's (don't ask what I paid for a used copy of Cosneck's "American Combat Judo"). This book presents excellent examples of the techniques of that era. The boxing/wrestling/jujutsu combo was easy to teach and mostly effective. The techniques in this book are, however, hardly unique. Virtually all of them may be found in other self-defense texts. This book shines, however, as a look back in history. The "Manassa Mauler" takes you through several lessons in basic hand-to-hand, drawing on his own boxing expertise as well as on the wrestling skills of the above-mentioned Mr.Cosneck. The photos are rather dark, and the page layout makes it difficult to get a sense of the "flow" of the techniques. Still, for all of its defects, I'm very pleased that Paladin chose to reprint this little classic. As a learning tool of self-defense, it may leave much to be desired, but if I had to rate it only on its value as a slice of American combative history, I would have given this book five stars.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars OK self-defense moves, some historic value, December 16, 2003

By 

Joseph M Burtner (Kennesaw, Georgia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How To Fight Tough (Paperback)

I like the fact that I can't really find a bad technique in this book. The tone of the book is deadly serious, though the political overtones of WWII are imposable to ignore. The reason I don't rate this book higher is because it is simply a series of self-defense sequenses; there is no real "system" presented. The combinations shown herein are all valid, workable moves, taken from street boxing, catch wrestling, Japanese jujitsu, and WWII comando training. While one can learn practical self-defense from this book, the lack of organization makes other books on the subject far more useful. The aspect that suprised me was the ammount of catch wrestling techniques included, such as the toe hold and figure-four choke. Another thing that this book had that isn't found in too many other souces was the use of your opponent's clothing, in a non-judo manner, to execute a technique. Once again, the induvidual sequenses are good; it's just the lack of an organized system that I don't like. OK for some good self-defense "tricks", but most other books are better.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not fist fightin' Neutral Rating of 3 stars, April 24, 2004

By 

S. Lodge "Shanlo" (Nagano, Japan) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How To Fight Tough (Paperback)

Interesting book from a period of modern history. However, it is devoted to basic locks and take downs. If you're looking for information on self defense based boxing techniques it is not here. Conversely, if you are looking for some quick to learn street techniques you would be satisfied.