8" x 10" Image Size. Oval Photo is 5" x 6" Signed lower right by Tom Sharkey. Tom “Sailor Tom” Sharkey (January 1, 1873 - April 17, 1953) began his career quite auspiciously as he ran away from home (Dundalk, Ireland), hopped a ship to theUnited States serving as a cabin boy, joined the Navy to which he was stationed in Hawaii and started fighting professionally in 1893. He took a 14 consecutive knockout streak to the mainland, stretching it to 20. Sharkey possessed a granitejaw and was a skilled puncher with extraordinary power that served him well when facing veteran fighters. In 1896, he faced off against Joe Choynski beating him in eight rounds with heavyweight champion Jim Corbett watching. Corbett then challenged Sharkey to a fight and the two fought to a draw two months later in San Francisco. Known for his face-to-face street fighting style, Tom was pitted against Bob Fitzsimmons in what was billed a heavyweightchampionship matchup. When Fitzsimmons caught Sharkey with a vicious uppercut to the solar plexus, virtually incapacitating Sharkey, referee Wyatt Earp erroneously disqualified Fitzsimmons for a striking Sharkey while he was down, thereby