[1] He used the proceeds to pay off the mortgage on the Chicago Stadium and also purchase Madison Square Garden in New York City and the St. Louis Arena.
[citation needed] In 1949, he and Jim Norris (the son of James) founded the International Boxing Club which presided over 47 of 51 championships through 1955.
[1] As Wirtz and Norris had control over most of the major sporting venues east of the Mississippi, federal authorities ended their boxing monopoly in 1958 and forced them to sell Madison Square Garden.
[1] Wirtz was an important showbiz figure with his presentation of the Sonja Henie Ice Show, which toured arenas for many years.
He succeeded Bill Tobin as President of the Chicago Black Hawks in 1954 and quickly turned the franchise around, winning the Stanley Cup in 1961.