Reginald Baker

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Reginald ("Snowy") Leslie Baker (1884 – 1953) was an Australian athlete, sports promoter and film actor.

[edit] Athletics record

Baker played 26 sports during his lifetime and excelled at most of them:

• At the age of 13 Baker was the New South Wales open swimming champion for 110 and 220 yards (100 and 200m).
• At 16 he played in the Australian Rugby Union team against Great Britain.
• At 17 he was middleweight boxing champion of New South Wales, and
• At 18 took the middleweight and heavyweight boxing titles of Australia.

Baker was also prominent at polo, water polo, cricket and diving. He appeared at the 1908 Olympics, representing Australasia in the 4x200m freestyle relay, finishing fourth, and in the diving where losed in the first round. He also took part in the Olympic boxing competition, where he lost the final match against Johnny Douglas, winning a silver medal.

[edit] Film career

In 1918 Baker took the leading role in his first Australian film, The Enemy Within. For many years, until he settled in the United States, Baker was a leading actor and matinee idol in Australian films. While residing in California he manged a polo club and coached such actors as Douglas Fairbanks in horse riding.