A towel invariably draped over his shoulder, bucket in one hand and cotton swabs tucked behind an ear as he scrambled through the ropes for five decades in Hawaii rings, Peter C.M. Jhun looked the part of the quintessential Hollywood boxing trainer and cornerman.
So much so that when the 1976 hit film “Rocky” appeared, people would nudge Jhun and jokingly inquire why Burgess Meredith got to play the part of the trainer, “Mickey.”
And Jhun, with a nod and laugh, would say the movies weren’t ready for him, yet.
That’s too bad because Jhun, who died Feb. 4 at age 86, was a good story in his own right.
The one-time “Bull of Palolo Valley” in his scrappy youth, Jhun found direction and discipline through boxing and then spent more than half his life sharing the rudiments of the sport with others.
His own boxing career ended soon after his Army years due to a hand injury. So, in his off hours from the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, where he was a submarine maintenance foreman, he turned to being a referee and a trainer.
It was in his nearly unbroken 52 years (1953-2005) as a state-licensed trainer and cornerman — one of the longest tenures of anybody in Hawaii boxing — that Jhun made his mark. He worked with pros, amateurs and biddy boxers teaching the basics of boxing — and a lot more.
In his time running Kalakaua and Palolo gyms, kids would wander in and ask for instruction. Almost without reservation, Jhun would take them on with some provisos: They had to work hard, respect others and keep out of trouble.
Seldom was there a smoker, Golden Gloves, AAU or Police Athletic League event of note where Jhun wasn’t training somebody, working corners or giving pointers. His daughters recall growing up around boxing, watching their dad train youngsters and minister to their injuries.
Former promoter Herbert Minn regularly hired him to work with promising prospects, dispatching Jhun around the globe.
“He was a straight-up, dependable guy who didn’t take crap from anybody,” Minn said. “You could trust him because he was an honest guy and, in boxing, those kind of guys aren’t easy to find.”
Jhun also managed to help those who didn’t know a punching bag from a punch bowl. After painstakingly working himself back from a stroke, Jhun founded the Kalakaua ‘Ohana Club at Kalakaua Gym to assist stroke victims. There members, who came to number as many as 180 at one time, exercised and socialized in a casual setting. Dues were $12 a year, with the money going for coffee and tea.
“He was one of the best (trainers), one of the good guys,” said Bobby Lee, former executive secretary of the Hawaii State Boxing Commission.
Indeed, in and out of boxing, there were few better to have in your corner.
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Visitation is 10 a.m. Wednesday at Diamond Head Mortuary. Services are 10:30 a.m. and burial is 1:30 p.m. at Valley of the Temples.
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Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.
