(AUG 5) At 5'1" and 108 lbs, the
last occupation you might expect Jill Morley to pursue is
boxing. But, she did and she made a movie about it.
Fight Like a Girl screened this afternoon as part of the fifth
annual Hamilton International Film Festival. Tonight's featured
film is The General, which goes on at the Hamilton Theater at 7
p.m. and tells the story of the 1990 Colgate men's hockey team
that went to the NCAA Frozen Four.
Morley, said she always active, having played tennis at
Villanova University. She said she took up tae kwon do,
eventually earning a black belt in the Korean martial art.
However, she said her instructors kept telling her she punched
too hard.
That seemed to presage the New Jersey native's entry into
boxing, which in turn opened the door to her making the film
Fight Like A Girl, which is a first person documentary about
female boxers. The film was five years in the making, with
Morley boxing in two God Gloves events.
Morley staged a boxing clinic for youngsters on the gazebo of
the village green this morning, during which she recalled the
first hard punch she took and the first one she dished out.
Boxing in New York City seven years ago, Morley says she took a
hard shot to the solar plexus.
"It wakes you up," said Morley, who originally moved to New York
City to become an actress. "You kind of don't realize it's
really happening when it does. That punch made me want to work
even harder."And, for the first time she was
on the sending end of such a punch?
"First time I really hit someone, it was a girl who was much
bigger than me," said Morley. "I hit her really hard with the
right hand and it backed her up and I saw her eyes widen and I
was like, 'I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
In another bout, she punched her opponent so hard that it
knocked her protective head gear sideways.
"I just backed off," said Morley. "I wanted her to get her
headgear on straight so we could continue to fight. It's just
not in my heart to hurt anyone."
During the clinic on the green this morning, Morley showed a
number of youngsters some basics of the sport, and posed for
pictures with them and the belt she won in a recent masters
tournament in Palm Springs.
"It's great to get the little girls out there," she said. "It
gets them out of their shells, and gives them a way to express
themselves in a way woman aren't normally allowed to express
themselves."
Morley now lives in Los Angeles, is still boxing and making
films. She is also involved with a sketch comedy group called
Casual Mondays.
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