Governors Behaving Badly: Denver Dickerson and Illegal Fight Films
Breaking federal film piracy laws is commonly associated with the era of FBI warnings preceding VHS and DVD movies. But a former Nevada governor found himself facing incarceration in a California jail in 1921 after charging admission to watch a filmed recording of a boxing match.
The “Fight of the Century” occurred in Reno in 1910 between Jack Johnson and Jim Jeffries. Nevada Governor Denver Dickerson gained national attention for his promise that Nevada would see no outbreaks of violence regardless of the winner. Dickerson later faced federal charges after leaving office for illegally transporting fight films across State lines. (Wikipedia)
the fight of the century
Lieutenant Governor Denver S. Dickerson took over Nevada’s top job starting in 1908 after the death of Governor John Sparks before completing his term of office. Dickerson gained national attention in the lead up to the 1910 boxing match dubbed “The Fight of the Century” between Jack Johnson and Jim Jeffries in Reno when he promised a clean match and vowed there would be no racial violence in his State the fight’s aftermath.
True to Dickerson’s word, calm generally prevailed in Nevada after Johnson won the bout against Jeffries, though there were tragically explosions of white supremacist violence across the country after the fight that resulted in scores of deaths and injuries. In response to the nationwide riots, Congress outlawed the transport of films featuring boxing matches across State lines.
Any fame Dickerson garnered from the Fight of the Century faded quickly. He failed to win reelection and lost to Tasker Oddie in the 1910 race for governor.
Nevada Governor Denver Dickerson.
the warden
The former governor secured a new career in prison administration following his defeat. Dickerson replaced the warden of the Nevada State Prison after he was fired following a series of prison breaks.
Dickerson was later appointed head of the U.S. Federal Prison system in 1920. Jack Johnson’s life continued to intersect with Dickerson’s in his new role as head of the national prisons when Johnson was remanded to the custody of the federal penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas in 1920.
Johnson was brought up on spurious charges of violating the Mann Act in 1912 as a result of his marriage to Lucille Cameron. Johnson served his sentence at Leavenworth under the administration of Denver Dickerson. Dickerson advocated for Johnson’s early parole until he was relieved of his post in 1921.
Denver Dickerson’s run in with federal authorities made news back in Nevada. (Las Vegas-Clark County Library District)
fighting federal charges
The former governor stumbled into legal woes not long after leaving his position with the federal prisons due to the legislation passed in the aftermath of the race riots that occurred following the Johnson-Jeffries match. In late 1921, Dickerson transported film of a boxing match between Jack Dempsey and Georges Carpentier from Nevada to Los Angeles. In L.A., Dickerson showcased the film before an audience for a vaguely defined “semibenevolent purpose.”
The U.S. Attorney for Southern California filed charges against Dickerson for violating the federal ban on transporting fight films across State lines. Dickerson argued that because the film had already been illegally transported between New York and New Jersey, his actions were perfectly legal. Despite Dickerson’s protestations, no less than the U.S. Attorney General ordered the local U.S. Attorney to proceed with the charges. Dickerson, through his attorney John Foley, plead guilty to the charges and agreed to pay a $1,000 fine in lieu of serving a jail sentence.
Gee Jon was the first person put to death in a gas chamber at the Nevada State Prison in 1924. (Las Vegas-Clark County Library District/UCR)
the executioner
Dickerson’s legal troubles did not harm his ambitions back home in Nevada. The former governor again found work in penal administration when he resumed his role as warden of the Nevada State Prison. Dickerson oversaw the first use of poison gas as a form of execution during his tenure as warden. Tong gang member Gee Jon had been sentenced to death for the murder of elderly rival Tong gang member Tom Quang Kee.
Nevada pioneered the use of the gas chamber as a more humane means of execution. However, Dickerson ran into logistical issues in obtaining lethal gas when the largest cyanide manufacturer in California refused to sell Nevada the chemical for use in an execution. Dickerson circumvented this problem by sending his deputy to Los Angeles to purchase twenty pounds of cyanide.
Gee Jon was executed at the Nevada State Prison in a makeshift gas chamber on February 8, 1924.
Dickerson told reporters following the execution, “Lethal gas executions are merciful for the condemned, but I will not approve of them until the gas can be handled less dangerously.”
Meanwhile, the San Jose Mercury News said of the execution, “One hundred years from now Nevada will be referred to as a heathen commonwealth controlled by savages with only the outward symbols of civilization.”
Denver Dickerson’s son, George, went on to become District of Attorney of Clark County in the 1950’s. (Las Vegas-Clark County Library District)
Despite his run-in with the law, Dickerson’s children went on to make quite the impact on Nevada political life. His son Denver served in the Nevada Assembly, while his other son Harvey served multiple terms as Nevada Attorney General, and his youngest son George was the District Attorney of Clark County. Both Harvey and George headed the Nevada State Bar.