the name Wa-Tho-Huk, translated as "a path lighted by a great flash of
lightning" or, more simply, "Bright Path".
Winning Olympic gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon, excelling
at football, baseball, lacrosse, track and field, and even ballroom
dancing.
Considered one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century, or of any
century.
After his retirement from professional sports at age 41, Thorpe was a
construction worker, a bouncer, a security guard, and a ditch digger,
and he briefly joined the United States Merchant Marine in 1945. He
also played in 64 Hollywood movies mainly as a uncredited bit-actor
including 1934's classic King Kong.
By the 1950s, Thorpe had no money left. When he was hospitalized for
lip cancer in 1950, he was admitted as a charity case. At a press
conference announcing the procedure, Thorpe's wife wept and pleaded
for help, saying, "We're broke.... Jim has nothing but his name and
his memories. He has spent money on his own people and has given it
away. He has often been exploited."
In early 1953, Thorpe suffered his third heart attack while eating
dinner with his third wife, Patricia Askew, in his trailer home in
Lomita, California. Artificial respiration briefly revived him, and he
was able to speak to those around him, but lost consciousness shortly
afterward and died on March 28 at the age of 64.
In October 1982, the IOC Executive Committee approved Thorpe's
reinstatement. In an unusual ruling, however, they declared that
Thorpe was now co-champion with Bie and Wieslander, even though both
athletes had always said they considered Thorpe to be the only
champion. In a ceremony on January 18, 1983, two of Thorpe's children,
Gale and Bill, were presented with commemorative medals. Thorpe's
original medals had both ended up in museums but were stolen and still
have not been recovered.
When Thorpe's third wife, Patricia, heard that the small Pennsylvania
towns of Mauch Chunk and East Mauch Chunk were desperately seeking to
attract business, she struck a deal with the towns. Mauch Chunk and
East Mauch Chunk bought Thorpe's remains, erected a monument to him,
merged and renamed the newly united town in his honor (see Jim Thorpe,
Pennsylvania), despite the fact that Thorpe had never set foot there.
Thorpe's monument, featuring the quote from Gustav V, can still be
found there. The grave rests on a mound of soil from Thorpe's native
Oklahoma and the stadium where he won his Olympic medals.
Thorpe's son Jack filed a federal lawsuit in June 2010, against the
borough of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania to have his father's remains
returned to his homeland in Oklahoma. Citing the Native American
Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, Jack Thorpe is arguing to
bring his father to their reservation in Oklahoma. If his remains were
moved to Oklahoma Jim would be buried with his father, sisters, and
brother, and would be one mile away from the place he was born. Thorpe
says the agreement between his stepmother and borough officials was
made against the family's wishes and now they want him buried on their
Native American soil.
---
A true American in every sense of the word.
--
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