Jeff Chandler, longtime bantam champ, lands a punch on Javier Flores.

CANASTOTA, N.Y. -- Jeff Chandler expects to have his hand shaken a lot this weekend, and he will be grateful for the gesture. Still he hopes some greetings will have more than smiles and regards behind them.

The former WBA bantamweight champion will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, N.Y., and as far as he is concerned, the honor won't come a moment too soon.

Chandler, who estimates he took home around $1.5 million during his career, hasn't held a steady job since he retired in 1984. The 43-year-old Philadelphian routinely scours the help wanted ads in vain, trying to acquire the means to bolster his shriveling funds.

He thinks he might have $50,000 left.

"I'm not sure if it's that much right now," Chandler said. "That's being generous. God bless me, I was able to hang on to a little boxing money as long as I can. But it's dwindling. We're getting to the end of the road now."

Chandler will be inducted in the modern category Sunday afternoon along with former lightweight champion Ken Buchanan, former middleweight champ Carl "Bobo" Olson and promoter Tito Lectoure. This year's posthumous inductees include Jimmy Barry, Jimmy Carter, Arthur Chambers, Jeff Dickson, Battling Levinsky, Dan Morgan, Billy Petrolle and Ad Wolgast.

Chandler, arguably the greatest bantamweight in U.S. history, was 33-2-2 with 19 knockouts. He became the first American in 33 years to win the 118-pound title when he knocked out Julian Solis in 1980. Chandler defended his title nine times before Richie Sandoval gave him his lone knockout loss in 1984. Cataract surgery later that year on Chandler's left eye forced him into retirement.

Nearly a third of the entries on his fight ledger occurred when he was champion (two bouts weren't for the title). Chronologically speaking, he spent nearly half his career atop the division.

Promoter J Russell Peltz claims Chandler might be the highest-paid bantamweight in history based on seven network television appearances back when that meant something. Peltz noted Chandler had "several fights where he made $200,000."

"He brought the bantamweights to a whole new level," Sandoval said. "Nobody used to pay attention to the bantamweights. He took bantamweights out of the gutter."

Now Chandler's nearly broke, and his poor vision has limited his employment options. It's a common story in the boxing world, which features a multitude of head-shaking tales of financial despair that often lead fighters into questionable situations -- like returning to the ring despite advanced age and deteriorated skills.

"I always did consider making a comeback," he said. "Even in my early-40s I still thought about it. My eyes were starting to feel better, and I thought 'Maybe I could do this again.' But after sitting down with my eye doctor, he told me no way I'd be able to do that again.

"I've had one job, a construction job for a year and a half. Other than that it's been freelance. I had a couple fighters I worked with and made a couple dollars there, been at (autograph) signings and made a couple dollars there. Not too much else."

Many people would like to have $50,000 to their names. But as a divorced father of three boys and with a resume as outdated as a Commodore 64, those dollars won't stretch much further.

Close friend and fellow Philly fighter Matthew Saad Muhammad, a 1998 Hall of Fame inductee, recently was offered a job at a recreation center. Something like that would be nice. Or maybe work as a spokesman of some sort.

It's hard to say how much Chandler will benefit from induction, but it probably won't turn his life around.

The International Boxing Hall of Fame, which opened in 1989, isn't as established as the other major halls, and being enshrined in Canastota doesn't compare to Cooperstown, where the Baseball Hall of Fame is an hour drive away.

Entering the Baseball Hall of Fame can be a lucrative honor, as the players immediately become commodities on the memorabilia and public speaking circuits. But that's not necessarily the case for boxers. At least not yet anyway.

Three years ago in Las Vegas, a major sports memorabilia show featured a panel of autograph guests comprised exclusively of legends from the various halls of fame. The event was held in the boxing capital of the world, yet only one fighter was deemed worthy of inclusion. It was Muhammad Ali.

"I believe the 10th-year anniversary of the International Boxing Hall of Fame was a landmark occasion for longevity and credibility," the hall's executive director, Ed Brophy, said. "The importance of being elected in continues to rise, and that's a benefit for the boxers like Jeff Chandler. With election comes more popularity and marketability for opportunities that perhaps didn't exist before. It surely adds an extra dimension to their portfolios."

Chandler says that's exactly what he needs right now.

"The Hall of Fame means hope that some new things could come my way that I can participate on, hopefully work-related," Chandler said. "It means more recognition, and being in the public, people will realize I'm there more than they did before.

"Somebody might need a name or a face to associate with their business or whatever. I can go on speaking engagements. I had cataract surgery, but there's nothing wrong with my mind."

Chandler owns a three-bedroom house in the city, but that asset isn't enough.

"Having a roof over your head without being able to take care of the rest of you responsibilities don't feel too good," he said. "Once you take that retirement thing and don't keep an active, steady job you have more trouble getting back into it. I'm finding that out. That's what I'm going through right now.

"I'm hoping something happens."

If nothing else, Chandler will leave the upstate New York shrine with the honor of forever being linked to legends like Ali, Joe Louis, John L. Sullivan, Roberto Duran, Marvin Hagler, Ray Robinson.

"I've been waiting for this," Chandler said. "There's a lot of anticipation right now, but I guess you never really get the feeling until it happens, until you see your name up there with all the other inductees. It won't hit hard until then, but I'm so happy.

"From Day One in my career this is what I'd been fighting for, to be known with the best guys. I went into the sport with the single mind to be the best I could be."

Chandler turned professional in 1976 after only two amateur bouts, losing one to Johnny Carter.

"I was already 19 years old, and most of the amateurs were younger, except Johnny 'Dancing Machine' Carter," Chandler said. "I had two fights to get my feet wet, just to see what it was, and then I turned professional. I thought it was time -- time to make money and time to be a man."

Chandler's pro debut was a four-round draw with Mike Dowling, but he went on to win his next 25 straight. And even though he was known as "Joltin' Jeff," he didn't find his knockout punch until his 10th pro fight. From there, however, he stopped 15 of his next 22 foes.

He wasn't the stereotypical Philadelphia brawler. He didn't go toe to toe and left hook opponents into submission.

"He was a technical boxer," Sandoval said. "For being a tall bantamweight, he knew how to use himself well. He knew how to use his reach, his movements in terms of getting out of the way. A lot of guys couldn't get to him. He used that jab, right hand. When he knew his opponent wasn't a serious puncher he got in close and worked the body."

Other than Sandoval and Dowling, Chandler avenged the other blemishes on his record.

In 1981 he fought to a 15-round draw with Eijiro Murata at Tokyo in his second title defense. Chandler scored a seventh-round KO in the rematch. In 1983 he suffered his first loss in a non-title bout with Oscar Muniz. Chandler knocked Muniz out in the sixth round when they fought for the belt later that year.

He also vindicated his amateur loss. He knocked Carter out in a 1982 title defense.

It's not certain what Chandler will be known more for in the ring -- being a tireless counterpuncher or a fearless champion.

"Jeff never wanted easy fights," Peltz said. "Once, I told him I was going to put him in with Jose Resendez, a tough veteran Mexican. He turned around, looked at me and said 'Can't you get me anybody better than that?' That's so unlike today's fighters, so many of whom are always looking for the easy way out. But Jeff wanted every fight to mean something."

Added Chandler: "I thought I was good enough. I tried to be that fighter from the very beginning. I fought the best. I didn't think the dogs would put me in the place I wanted to be. (Resendez) didn't have the record or the respect to get in the ring with me. Give me somebody who is somebody.

"I worked to have those high standards."

ESPN.com boxing writer Tim Graham has covered the Sweet Science for The Buffalo News, The Ring Magazine, Las Vegas Sun and The Washington Post.