Classic American West Coast Boxing

[dagosd2000]

Who's In 2nd?

Flippin' the TV channels this morning I stumbled on ESPN covering the U.S. Open Tennis Tournament. A match was to start so prior to commencing the panel of commentators made a list of the " greatest athletes of the past 50 years." Steven A. Smith was the first to showcase his list engraved in stone. Now I didn't write any of this down,but here it is from my 72 year old memory. Steven A. said that Lebron James deserved the 5 spot. 4 belonged to Tiger Woods. Serena Williams got to No. 3.M.J. was rated 2.Numero UNO was Muhammad Al. When determining the rankings things like world impact, social significance,visibility,humanitarianism,and legacy were factored . The other list makers/commentaters were Max Kellerman,Chrissie Evert,and John McEnroe Right away,after Steven A. revealed his picks, there were protests.Evert said that Billie Jean King should be No. 2 because what she did to enhance the sport for women.Steven A. apologized and said that he was wrong(first time I'd ever heard him say he was wrong)and said he'd remove Tiger Woods from his list and supplant the slot with King's name. McEnroe then interjected that Wayne Gretzky would merit a runner up placement because of all the hockey records he set in the NHL.Kellerman then spoke on behalf of Arthur Ashe and what he did to bring black players into the game of tennis.

Everybody by this time was stepping on each others lines suggesting athletes like Jim Brown,Tom Brady,Michael Phelps,Derek Jeter,etc,etc,etc.But these samplings were for places 2 through 5.There wasn't one red flag raised for Muhammad Ali. He was the no brainer.The lead pipe cinch. No one even hinted that there was another No 1 in the Universe.

Well,as soon as the criteria was established before the group had a chance to announce their choices, the first guy that popped into my head was Ali. In Vegas he would have been the odds on favorite. So much a favorite the book wouldn't have taken any action.I'm not here to say Ali deserved the impromptu honor,or why it should have been someone else. If you were to pose that question to some Eskimo living in an igloo in Alaska,a pigmy running through the jungle in the Congo,or a Chinaman in a rice paddy in the middle of the most populated country in the world,I bet you they'd say "Ali."

Yeah,Muhammad is going to last the test of time.But as far as boxing goes,name another fighter that might have made those scribes' top 5?(Remember the time frame is the last 50 years).I couldn't see adding Tyson or Duran.Not much social impact there. SRL? No.He was flashy ,but didn't shake things up much.Frazier and Foreman? Not enough clout except in their gloves..BoxRec would most likely submit Floyd,but that would fall on deaf ears.The ESPN contributors,while arguing with each other, didn't mention any other fighters' names.

But the guy on top:No. 1 -Muhammad Ali. Hurray for boxing! Let's face it. If Ali were alive today he'd just say,"I'm the greatest.I've been tellin' you that all along."


No. 1

[dagosd2000]

Some Things Will Never Change

When I was working at that private school in Tijuana,CETYs,coaching American football there was a kid on the team that was also a professional fighter. This was back in the late 80's. The kid's name was Alfonso Rhoades. He was a good athlete.He played both ways on the football team.He was our tight end on offense and a strong safety on the defensive side of the ball.He wasn't afraid of sticking his helmet into somebody. I saw him fight one time at the Municipal Auditorium on the Boulevard in the east section of te city.The other day I bumped into him at a farmacia on Revolution Street. I was there to buy some bottles 800 mg. tablets of Ibuprofen.Here in San Diego, to get that strength through my HMO, I have to get a prescription from the doctor and which entails an appointment.. So I just drove down to TJ where you don't need a prescription.If they say you do there's a doctor's office attached to he farmacia and you can go in there and tell the doc that you need the medicine. No questions asked except you have to fork over 5 bucks to get the doc to write the prescription. There are a lot of Americans that buy medicine in Tijuana because they don't want to hassle with the U.S. docs.. As the girl behuind the counter was putting my Ibuprofen in a bag I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and saw it was Alfonso.
"Hey coach.How are you?"said Alfonso with a beaming smile.
He was a good looking, clean cut kid.Straight white teeth,dark skinned,thick wavy black hair,eyes that lit up and looked right at you.He still looked like he could suit up to play a game,or for that matter step back into the ring.
"Hey amigo.Good to see you.What are you doing here?"
"I'm picking up some medicine for my mom,"he said in perfect English.
"Walk back with me to the car,"I said.
We walked back to where my car was parked on the street. We leaned against the door watching the all the cars go by.
"Do you want to get a bite to eat?A cup of coffee?"I asked.
"Coach,"he said furtively."I told them at the store that I needed to get home and take my mom to the doctor.All I did was get this medicine and now I can f--k off for a while..It's for morhine,but I bribed the pharmacist so he sells it to me without a prescription and for morphine they won't write one next door."
"I thought you went to work for Mexican immigration down in Chiapas? That's what you told me the last time I saw you."
"I couldn't take it anymore,"said Alfonso looking away from me.
"What do you mean?"
"In the beginning the guys I was working with would shoot those people trying to cross the river.The crocodiles would eat them."
"That's what you were telling me the last time."
"You know me coach. I couldn't do that. Then they saw there was money in it. So now they take all their money instead. Take their watches.Jewelry.cell phones.If those people don't have that stuff they'd shoot them,rape the women."
"And they talk about our Immigration people."
"It's a nightmare. I couldn't take it.. Those Immigration people in Chiapas pay money to get assigned there. It's a money maker.I think that's how you say it."
I knew it was a rhetorical question,but I wanted to hear it from one of the guys who lived that life. I wish more Americans knew.
"Did you continue with boxing?"I asked wanting to get on to something different.
"That time you saw me at the Auditorio was my last fight.I got married so I took the immigration job.Besides, I was going nowhere with fighting."
"You were undefeated."
"Yeah.But because I went to the university they stuck me with that name "El Estudiante".I was never popular with the aficianados.Even when I'd fight a Chilango they still hated me.Students are considered maricones. when it comes to boxing."
"Hey do the Las Rudas at the lucha libre still chant in the stands calling people "ass holes" and "your mother is a whore" and "suck my dick"?I asked laughing loudly.
"No.They don't allow that anymore in TJ.. But I still think they do that in the south."
"Do the teachers still hit the kids?"
"I don'tthink so. The kids and parents here won't stand for it.But I think they still do that in the south."
"You know my wife told me that when she was a little girl in Michoacán her mother rented out her oldest son as a slave,kind of an indentured servant to some guy who had a ranch in Vera Cruz."
"I think they still do that kind of thing down there,"he said.
Alfonso took a look at his watch.
"Look .I've got to go. I have to see la novia.."
I chuckled shaking my head.
"Well,that's one thing they still do all over Mexico.",as I gave Alfonso a good abrazo.
"That's one thing that will never change,"said Alfonso as he looked at his watch again.


Tijuana Municipal Auditorium

[Ric]

Here's a current video re: Slapsie Maxie's (of Maxie Rosenbloom fame). Today it is a movie theater called The Beverly Theater (now owned by famous director Quentin Tarantino):

[Ric]

And here's a Dec. 2017 video re: James J. Jeffries Barn (https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Jeffries_Barn), once long located in Burbank, Calif., but now mostly forgotten at Knotts Berry Farm:

[dagosd2000]

My Kind Of Barn

When I was kid loving in San Diego,aside from the zoo,there wasn't much the city had to offer for the out of towners. LA had all the good stuff:Disneyland,the movie studios,bus tours of the stars houses,landmark hotels and restaurants, and then there was Knotts Berry Farm. I'll level with you.I'm not into going on rides that much. Roller coasters make my throw up.So when it came to going to Disneyland I passed on Magic Mountain.Later,they built 6 Flags and that was nothing but rides that would make me sick. I took a group of kids from the Chicano Club at the high school I was at(I was their advisor) to Magic Mountain once.The kids would stand in line for a hour to ride some ride that lasted 40 seconds. I just sat around all day in the "Kiddie Park" waiting till they had their fill and wanted to go home. My favorite place was Knotts Berry Farm.

Back in the 50's Knotts Berry Farm didn't have any rides.I always asked my parents to go to Knotts Berry Farm as first choice..I remember the fried chicken restaurant in front before you walked in the gate. Home style. Country style. Whatever they called the cooking. The chicken dinner would make Colonel Sanders lick his lips.. All the trimmings:mashed potatos,country corn,and homemade biscuits and gravy,and washing it all down with fresh made lemonade.For dessert there was an ample chunk of flaky scrumptious apple pie(mine would come with fresh churned vanilla ice cream on top).After filling our stomachs and letting it settle a little,we'd stroll into the park as the digestive juices helped churn up some of the just eaten repast to rechew and savor again.

I might be wrong about this,but I think it was free to get into Knotts Berry Farm back then. One of my favorite spots was the Ghost Town. There was the Bird Cage Theater where the dancing girls would come on stage and kick up their heels flashing their garter belts while everyone drinking a sarsaparilla looked at their legs. Then there was Judge Roy Bean's combination courthouse and bar with the wooden sign hanging out front on the porch that read "The Jersey Lilly".The judge named his place after the famous American /British actress Lily Langtry("The purdiest woman I ever seen"said the judge after seeing a picture of her in a magazine..BTW:he spelled her name wrong on the sign).There were pictures all around of famous lawmen and notorious bad guys. I'd stare for hours at old tintypes of Jesse James,Wyatt Earp, and Wild Bill ;Hickok;outgenned cowboys sprawled out in the street dead as doornails; old photographs of wild west towns like Dodge City and Tombstone;and there were pictures of the last of the great Indian chiefs like Sitting Bull and Geronimo..That was for me. I never gave a roller coaster any thought what so ever.

However,on the fringe of Ghost Town just before entering,there was my all time favorite attraction-Jim Jeffries Barn. After the ol' Boilermaker passed away in 1953 the barn,that showcased fights,was dismantled and resurrected at Knotts Berry Farm. But there no fights,let alone any cows and pigs. They stuffed a bunch of boxing memorabilia from that honkytonk era inside instead. I remember when you walked in there was always one of those player pianos making ragtime music. Old photographs of Jack Dempsey in his fighter's pose,Stanley Ketchel in his crouch left hand out right hand ready,Joe Gans erect and proud holding out his boxing gloves.There was "Terrible" Terry McGovern snarling and Jack Johnson smiling off his golden tooth. And last but not least there was Jeff striking a proud pose,his beefy arms folded across his barrel chest,ready to take on any man alive.With the piano music resonating and the faces of those bygone fighters when fighters where men and could take it as good as they gave,well,that was my slice of heaven for an afternoon.

The last time I went back to Knotts Berry Farm was around 20 years or so ago. First thing I looked for was Jim Jeffries Barn.There it was.But it was closed up.it was a mystery to me what was inside. There was a tiny little sign on the side of the building that said"Jim Jeffries Barn."Today,Knotts Berry Farm has gone the way of the "theme park."Rides that make me vomit and a high price tag on everything . A months rent if you want to take your family. .(Stand waiting in the roped off lines to pay at the gate sucker)

I figure thousands of people walk past that old barn everyday,and if they saw the little sign,they'd forget what it said before they got on the roller coaster.


Joe Gans(Old Bones)

[Ric]

Thank you for sharing your memories of visiting Jeffries Barn at Knotts Berry Farm.
https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Jeffries_Barn

[dagosd2000]

As Sharp As A Smack

I don't there's anyone around today that saw Maxie Rosenbloom in the ring. His last fight was against Al Ettore in 1939. If you were sitting in the arena that night you're probably in your 90's by now. I don't know how accurate 90 year olds are when it comes to recalling the past very vividly.There's no film footage around of any of Rosenbloom's fights even though he has 274 recorded bouts listed on BoxRec.He was a world champion in the light heavyweight class-the division that had as much public appeal as being the vice president.

I grew up as a kid watching Rosenbloom in those black and white movies and TV shows.. I remember him mostly in the Joe Palooka TV series and in those Red Skelton Comedy Hour shows in the 50's.He acted in almost 80 shows on the silver screen and the tube.He was always billed as "Slapsie" Maxie. You might think he got that moniker because he was punch drunk. Even out in public he never shed that character of the fighter who was feeling the effects of taking too many on the noggin'.But that "Slapsie" Maxie role brought him in more money than what he ever earned in the ring. You couldn't help but love the guy. He was funny mixing his malapropisms in his lines like when he'd throw his array of goofy punches in the ring. In all his fights he only recorded 19 KO's.He hit with an open glove.He'd cuff and slap with his mitts,and that's how Damon Runyon,when watching him fight for the first time, bestowed the "Slapsie" on the front of the Maxie.

But like I said,I never saw him fight-just what I read in the papers is all.He played "Slapsie" Maxie to the hilt. In the ring,on the screen,or getting a shoe shine on Hollywood and Vine. I guess the people close to him knew it was an act,but why would he put on a straight face anywhere else? His screen character was either the stooge(ala Rags Ragland) or an ex pug(ala a type cast Max Rosenbloom). He didn't have Gable's face nor Laurence Olivier's intellect. I couldn't envision putting "Slapsie" in front of those two guys' names.

Back in the early and mid 50's television was still sprouting its wings. Television sets were bulky and boxy.Just about all the shows were in black and white. If someone had a "color" TV the image on the screen was weak and smeary.There also wasn't a broad range of programs that were broadcast across the country. local shows were still the bread and butter of TV entertainment.There was one game show aired from Los Angeles that was very popular called Pantomime Quiz.The show won an Emmy in 1949 for "Most Popular Television Program." The show's success influenced CBS to pick up the program and show it nationally.

The foundation of the game was to have two teams of four contetants.In each round one member of the team would mime a phrase or slogan to the other three and they would try to guess it. There was a time limit and the team that had guessed the phrases and slogans in the fewest amount of time won the game. I always thought it was very difficult to act something out without talking to get someone to come up with the solution. The show moved quickly.The pace was frenetic.The guests were on their toes and very astute.

I remember one night when I tuned in the show,Mike Stokey,the host and originator of the program,announced that "Slapsie" Maxie Rosenbloom was to be one of the guests.I almost switched the channel.I didn't want to see "Slapsie" Maxie be made a fool of himself. How could they do that to the guy? Well,let me tell ya'-Maxie wasn't so "Slapsie" that night.He was sharp a tack,focused, and grasping inferences like he was picking off the other guy's punches in the ring.He was the "go to guy" on his team.

But none of the other celebrities nor Mike Stokey seemed surprised by Rosenbloom's deftness. He wasn't cuffing or slapping. He went in there for the knockout.Good thing Sir Laurence wasn't on the other team that night.He would have shown a KO loss on his record.


"Slapsie" Maxie Rosenbloom

[dagosd2000]

Thank you for sharing your memories of visiting Jeffries Barn at Knotts Berry Farm.
https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Jeffries_Barn

You're welcome Ric

[dagosd2000]

He Was The Greatest

By the time of the close of the 20th century there were more kinds of different sports out there that you could shake a stick at.Title IX was passed in 1972 making it federal law that females could partake in any sport that excreted sweat from a man.Watch the Olympic games being played out. There is such a hodge podge of sports that are all a bunch of Johnny Come Latelys to me,some I question that are sports at all-kayak racing,skateboarding,sport climbing(climbing up a wall),table tennis. Then you add on all the off beat ilks that are played in burgs like Bum F--k ,Iowa-extreme ironing,underwater hockey,toe wrestling,egg throwing,wife carrying,to name just a handful(I had to look these oddities up on the internet).But hell,for the partcipants(men and women alike )these sports are as true to them as baseball was to Mickey Mantle.Or boxing was to John L. Sullivan. Now there's a name you don't hear much anymore-John L. Sullivan.

Back in John L's day there wasn't much variety with sports. Did they even use the word "sport" when it came to labeling one. And what the hell was on the menu anyway? Not many choices. Baseball was beginning to stir,but how many baseball players can you name that played in the 19th century? Basketball was first played in 1891 ,but you had to climb a ladder to get the ball out of the peach basket to keep the game going. Football was played in a few colleges back east(again,name one player from that era). So what was the main attraction>There was horse racing,but that was set up for the gamblers.Besides,the stars weren't the jocks,but the nags. So what was the biggy? Since this is a boxing website I'll give you three guesses. Now that you answered the question on the first try, who was the greatest? You're right again you boxing historians.

It's funny that John L. Sullivan's name doesn't crop up more in discussions,or for that matter on the BoxRec forums. The "Mythical Match Up" craze doesn't have him squaring off with any of the noted heavyweight champs of yore. Or how about today?How would the Boston Strong Boy fare against,let's say,Tyson Fury?

Maybe it all has to do with the fact that John L. only fought one time using boxing gloves. So he fought in the old (or pioneer) era. Doesn't add up with me. Now we know Corbett wupped him wearing gloves,but that wasn't the reason John L. lost his crown. Corbett was a "scientific" boxer. He outmaneuvered,ducked ,weaved and countered Sullivan's assaults until he just got plumb tuckered out(and the s--t beat out of him).At least that's the way I saw it happen in that movie Gentleman Jim.

When I finally send away for my easy to assemble Time Machine kit,the first two fellas' I'm going to feed into the hopper are Tyson Fury and John L. Sullivan. I want to see if Fury could really dance circles around the Great John L.


The Great John L. Sullivan

[chrisjs1985]

At times, a very sad documentary but also shows some really nice touches from Pintor and the Owen family. Showing the nice side of boxing and forgiveness in light of the worst thing that can happen.

Did any of you guys attend this fight? I've seen stuff like the documentaries, read the stories, a brilliant book on Owen etc; but have never brought myself around to actually watching the fight. I've heard it was quite a hostile atmosphere.

[dagosd2000]

At times, a very sad documentary but also shows some really nice touches from Pintor and the Owen family. Showing the nice side of boxing and forgiveness in light of the worst thing that can happen.

Did any of you guys attend this fight? I've seen stuff like the documentaries, read the stories, a brilliant book on Owen etc; but have never brought myself around to actually watching the fight. I've heard it was quite a hostile atmosphere.

Chris
Thanks for posting that. The fight was a great one,yet tragic. Owen looked very frail and very white when he stepped into the ring.The seed of racism was germinated when he stepped through the ropes in front of a mostly Mexican crowd. I think everyone thought Owen wouldn't be up to the challenge,yet alone deserved to be in there with Pintor. But Owen took it to Pintor early.Mexicans are usually slow starters in the ring.Owen pressed Pintor,but began to fade later in the fight. The heat at the Olympic was intense that night and the hysteria built as Pintor rallied.. After two knockdowns Owen arose stunned,but still game. He was belted by a good right hand,but one that would have never brought to mind Owen's demise. Even after it was apparant that Owens was badly hurt,the crowd didn't let up the frenzy.As Owen was bearing carried on the stretcher to an ambulance someone picked one of the bearer's pockets and lifted his wallet.

Lupe Pintor was a gentle man outside the ring. Johnny Owen was a brave man inside the ring. The documentary showed the poignancy and respect both deserved,and their families in their legacies.


Lupe Pintor




Johnny Owen

[chrisjs1985]

It's sad watching his dad realize that had he stopped it due to a badly cut lip a round prior he'd perhaps have stopped the tragedy. The impact from that right hand broke his skull and sent it into his brain if I recall correctly.

Little know fact about the town Johnny is from, Merthyr Tydfil. It is the only town in the world to have statues of three boxers. Owen, Howard Winstone and Eddie Thomas. It's a very small town of about 40,000. The greatest of all Welsh (and arguably British) boxers, Jimmy Wilde was born there too but grew up in and lived in nearby Tylorstown. Merthyr

[dagosd2000]

Being Able To Take It

Death in the ring comes with boxing. It's always something a fighter thinks about.It's a factor that's considered prior,during,and after a career is over. For some it weighs on the mind. For others it's a fleeting thought.A family of a fighter has enough to worry about. A fighter's wife goes through ordeals that sometimes she can't cope with. Bobby Chacon's wife couldn't take it any longer.Listening to Johnny Owen's father speak about if he had only kept his son sitting on his stool before going out for the fatal 12th round leaves you empty.. Andy Heilman wouldn't answer the bell for the 7th round in a fight with Ronnie Wilson.Heilman afterwards said he didn't want to fight anymore. it was his last fight. He'd had it with fighting.I talk to ex fighters who worry that they're feeling symptoms of dementia. (I'm starting to forget things) A successful career is having your health intact after fighting is a done deal.Quality of life is more precious than a title. I see wives of their ex fighter husbands have to become their spouses' caretakers. They want to cram as much quality into their lives before their husbands can't recognize their faces anymore. They go on trips to Europe to see the Eiffel Tower and the Coliseum knowing that in a few years they won't e able to recall going shopping at Walmart. I saw autograph hounds approach a feeble Emile Griffith and want him to sign that picture of Griffith standing over Benny Paret sagging on the ropes.

I used to like going to the fights. I wanted to see a lot of action-the KO especially. A good card is when all the fights end in a knockout.. A fighter who doesn't have KO power isn't the draw like a fighter who can knock a man unconscious. Fight fans are comprised mostly(except for the gamblers) of men who vicariously live their lives through the actions of the fighter.-a Robert Duran or a Muhammad Ali as an alter ego. Ask a fight fan if he'd rather be the heavyweight champ or win a batting title-well you're asking a fight fan.

I know a lot of sports fans who aren't interested in boxing. Some wonder if it isn't all an act. A lot of women see it as stupid. I'd go to the cantinas in Tijuana to watch the fights on TV for free. The girls hated when there was a fight on TV. All the men would be gathered around the tube.
"When there's a fight on they don't want to f--k us or buy us a drink until it's over."
I don't want to say men will be men.It's more like boys will be boys.

I like to watch a good fight once in awhile. I don't follow it much anymore like I used to.. I don't think the fighters of today are as good as they once were. But that has little to do with it. The spin doctors of the sport are still as bad as ever. That hasn't changed.After a fighter is used up he finds himself in the junk yard.

I knew a guy once that was totally absorbed with boxing. He was a gym rat once.He told me that his biggest regret was that he never was a fighter. I guess there was a time once when I had those thoughts in my head. But today I can say that I'm glad I never went that route. Oh,I sparred around with the fighters in the gym. Then I'd go home with a headache. That told me that fighting wasn't for me. Fighting is a sport for guys that can take a it. I guess I couldn't take it. I'm not ashamed of that anymore.


Bobby Chacon

[dagosd2000]

An Empty Seat

I never knew a fighter who showed much interest in any other sport except the one he made his livelihood with.Hanging around the various gyms in San Diego I never heard any talk about the World Series,the Stanley Cup,NBA finals,college football,golf-nah.just what was going on with boxing. No questions about who was on the mound tonight ,or what place is the team in,or is he still leading the league in homeruns. It wasn't a lack of respect for Mickey Mantle or Jim Brown. Fighters were mostly ignorant of the other sports except boxing.Interest was who's the guy I have to watch in my division? Or I'm going down to the arena tonight to watch my stablemate fight on the undercard.

I remember years ago I saw Cassius Clay on the Mike Douglas Show. He was about to begin training camp for his fight with Sonny Liston. I don't know how it was brought up,but Clay didn't know how many players took the field for a baseball game.He wasn't embarrassed. He wasn't smug about not knowing. He just didn't know and wasn't interested for further enlightenment on the subject.

When Ali was in San Diego training for his fight with Ken Norton,just about all the Charger football team came by to watch him workout. I told you about the time the defensive end ,Deacon Jones,showed up one afternoon and was standing in the back. He began taunting Ali. Ali stopped what he was doing and looked over the crowd.
"Who's that?"shouted Ali.
"Why that's Deacon Jones,"came a reply.
"Is he a wrestler?"
"No.He plays for the Chargers."
Jones started a nervous laugh.
"Well sucka'.Put these on and get up here!"ordered Ali as he flung a pair of boxing gloves at The Deacon.
As the gloves plopped down at Jones's feet he was already making a fast exit towards the door.

Most fighters never finished school. Most fighters didn't like school not to mention that they never went out for any of the teams. As much as Archie Moore liked to discuss just about any topic under the sun,I never heard him talk about another sport except boxing. There was never a get together with the fighters after the gym closed and then talk about going to tonight's game. They weren't snobs.It just didn't interest them.

But you'd see the other high profile athletes at the big fights. I remember the Fight Of The Century with all those Knick Players and of course the Yankees and Mets being well represented at ringside. And that ain't counting all those movie stars and singers.But fighters?It seemed back in my day all they were interested in with spending their hard earned dough on was women and drinking.That was their entertainment.

It's probably different today. The American fighters might mingle more. But Mexican fighters? I can't envision some 118 pound bantamweight born in San Luis Potosi ,not speaking any English,wanting to buy a ticket to watch the Super Bowl. Or even turning on the TV and watching it for free.


Archie Moore

[dagosd2000]

Equal Opportunity

Before clicking on to the thread I always look at the BoxRec schedule for the list of upcoming fights. It dawned on me that the major female fights are few and far between.As far as the girls getting attention on the different forums there's hardly a word. There's all kinds of categories,but their isn't a slot for the girls. You'd hate to banish them to the "Off Topic" classification,but I guess if you want to bring their names up you have to fit them into what's already available. I don't think I've ever seen females pitted against each other in the "Mythical Matchup" group. now and then.

Before I got to typing away I saw that Madison Square Garden is going to feature a women's featherweight title bout between Heather Hardy and Amanda Serrano.(Don't know too much about them except what their records show)They'll fight on the undercard of some sort of a lightweight title fight-the combatants being two men. Fight fan fanatics, being half crazed and consumed by the savagery of boxing, just can't jump into female fighting with both feet. ( unless it's some sort of sexual fantasy)


I remember Christy Martin being the first showcase female fighter. She was tough and rough and dominated while she was in her prime. But she never delivered enough clout to be highlighted on the front page of the sports section. Hall Of Famers like Ali,Foreman,and Duran watched their daughters ride on the ring robes of their famous dads ,but the interest was short lived. Then recently we saw the Ronda Rousey show. But she was a mixed martial artist. The UFC, WWE,Raw,and Strike Force gurus painted an enticing picture of her in her skimpy outfits an semi nude poses. Then the charade got a jolt of reality when she was kicked unconscious by Holly Holm. The hawkers still got mileage out of Ronda by matching her a year later with Amanda Nunes.(Ronda had straightened out her life) However,this time Ronda was out like a light in less then a round. But Ronda achieved what the other of the softer sex couldn't-people paid their cable companies to see her fight.She parlayed her fame into a small fortune.Her face also graced the silver screen and she was the wonder woman of several video games. Ronda was invited on talk shows and wrote a book.She was even on the cover of Ring Magazine..Before Holly Holm dropped her for te count there was some talk that Ronda could kick Floyd Mayweather's ass in a no holds barred .

Lucia Rijker ,from the land of windmills, was probably the best female boxer. She never lost a match and even tested herself against some male fighters. She was the opponent against Hillary Swank in Clint Eastwood's flick Million Dollar Baby. She was inducted into the California Boxing Hall Of Fame and The West Coast Boxing Hall. I talked to her for a bit and I can say she is on the level. She's devoted to women's contact sports and is still engaged instructing the girls to be tough broads in the ring.

Locally,I am a big fan of Tijuana's Jackie Nava. They call her the Aztec Princess. Erik Morales handles her. She's pushing 40 years of age. There was a time when she was ;popular as any of the male fighters in TJ. She was a main eventer down there and they'd pack the seats to the rafters to see her fight. She was not only a good fighter,but she kept her femininity .-tough and fragile. (Go ahead Lucia,hit me in the mouth)

Am I into female fighting?No. I sometimes wonder what Alexandria Ocasio Cortez or Imar Omar takes are on female fisticuffs. But before I sign off I got to tell ya' of my favorite female fighter-my wife Maria. One time I had to get her out of the Tijuana jail because some drunk grabbed her ass on a bus in Tijuana. She proceeded to beat the s--t out of him. Another time I got into a fight down there with two sailors in the street out in front of the Virgin Of Guadalupe Church.I was working over the one dude when I looked up and saw that his pal was going to sandbag me.Out of the crowd shot my wife. She jumped on the other dude's back pounding both fists on top his head. She's yelling at me to kill my guy. "Matelo Matelo."That's true love. I bet my wife could kick Gloria Steinhem's ass with one hand tied behind her back.




Rick Farris,president of the West Coast Boxing Hall Of Fame,and Lucia Rijker holding a painting I did of her. Looking at her expression,I don't think she liked it. At least she didn't take a swing at me

[dagosd2000]

Shooting Stars

Los Angeles has had its share of tough Chicano fighters. Of course the prime matchup was the Chicano fighter confronting his long lost blood brother from below the border. But often the bouts were between two local Mexican/American products. That didn't mean there was any lack of effort exerted inside the ropes. It was for local bragging rights and those stakes were as cherished as could be imagined in the Southland. Both contestants would have their followings. Two fighters with similar traits come to mind right away-Mando Ramos and Raul Rojas. Both were champs. Both battled their demons. You could say, without blinking an eye, that they were a couple of tough guys.

Ramos grew up in Long Beach and began at an early age to frequent the gym. He compiled an impressive amateur record,and when the highly regarded Jackie McCoy took over the reins ,he said of Ramos that he was the best natural talent he had ever worked with in the gym. Ramos turned pro at 17 and instantly became a favorite at Aileen Eaton's Olympic Auditorium. She referred to Mando as her "baby"(not to mention her cash cow)

Raul Rojas offered his fighting urges in the streets of East LA heading up a gang of troublemakers called "The Little Roys Gang." His experiences with the little criminals landed him a stretch at the California Youth Authority. After serving his time he took stock of himself and decided he could get paid for fighting. Jackie McCoy also had a hand with Rojas,but before long McCoy discovered he had TWO tigers by the tail.

Both boys had brief encounters with championship life. Mando finally getting the lightweight title away from Carlos Teo Cruz only to relinquish it to the slick Ismael Laguna. However,Ramos got another shot against the WBC champion Pedro Carrasco and established his authority after three fights with the Spaniard. On the eve of Ramos's title defense against Chango Carmona,Mando was sleeping it off in jail. Jackie McCoy had to put up bail only to see his charge receive a drubbing from the Mexican. Ramos never regained his stature as a world class fighter. the lifestyle of women,booze,and drugs(not necessarily in that order)was sending him into no man's land.

Rojas earned his belt at the Olympic Auditorium against the Columbian Enrique Higgins. That night the title was up for grabs.But by the end of the year Rojas gave it all up in a loss to his nemesis Sho Saijo. Rojas may have given up being a gang banger,but that lifestyle was still a monkey on his back. Like Ramos the temptations of hanging with his old street crowd was pushing into oblivion.

Rojas' last fight was with his off and on pal Mando Ramos. Though their ways were similar they weren't exactly on speaking terms. (Who was the MAN?)Rajas was more shot than Ramos at the time. Both boys were training in the den of iniquity more than in the boxing gym. As the story goes Ramos went over to Rojas's house and asked him if he'd take the fight on a lark. Go ahead and keep destroying yourself because I'm not going to give up my life of debauchery either. Mando hooked Raul with that plea so when they got into the ring Mando had enough left in his tank to stop Rojas.

Both boys aren't with us any longer. Both ,I guess,would make a great story for a movie. It'll probably never happen. But if you're looking for a metaphor for what they were like ,the next time a shooting star streaks through the sky and then suddenly disappears into the cosmos you'll have an idea.


Raul Rojas

[scartissue]

Rog, do you remember when Rojas was going at it with Pajarito Moreno? Man, that crowd had to be electric. A Mexican national against a Chicano in L.A., both with a following. Man, I think the city had to be divided.

[dagosd2000]

Rog, do you remember when Rojas was going at it with Pajarito Moreno? Man, that crowd had to be electric. A Mexican national against a Chicano in L.A., both with a following. Man, I think the city had to be divided.

Dan
I remember seeing one of the fights on TV. They fought twice. The aficianados never gave up on Moreno. He would either knockout the other guy or he'd get KO'd. It was a slugfest.Moreno had no defense.He'd carry his hands low and leave his chin out.After losing to Rojas twice Moreno was finished.His next fight was at the Coliseum in San Diego. I didn't see it. I watch Rojas and Saldivar once in awhile. Now that was a biggie. The Mexican national versus the Chicano.Rojas was undefeated trying to win Saldivar's featherweight title.They had to put that one in the Memorial Coliseum.

About being divided.Even Chicanos would pull for the Mexican national. I was watching the USA play Mexico in soccer the other night. The game was played in East Rutherford NJ. If you didn't know you'd have thought the game was in Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. I wonder how many Chicanos(American citizens) were pulling for the Mexican national team?

When I was coaching U.S. football in Tijuana one of the Mexican kids wanted to play in San Diego to get more recognition(He got a ride to the University of Arizona on full scholarship)I went with him to coach up here because the pay was lousy at the Mexican school. Anyway we got him up here as a "foreign exchange student.(Imagine,a foreign exchange student from right across the border )
So we had to find a family in San Diego for him to live with. The first thing out of his mouth."I don't want to live with a Chicano."
La vida loca!

[dagosd2000]

It's All In The Name

It's been kicked around,discussed,argued ,and debated:what can be done to give boxing that shot in the arm?What needs to happen to get Americans back on the boxing bandwagon?

Of the 17 divisions on the Boxrec listings there are only 3 American names that are champions. Two of the names are Ruiz(Andy Ruiz the heavyweight champ) and Ramirez(Jose Carlos Ramirez the super lightweight title holder).Terence Crawford is the 3rd name.On the P4P side there are an additional 17 names, Seven are Yanks. Back in the day there weren't all these sub categories. There weren't all these different boxing bodies,each having their separate champions determined by the promoters who are lining the pockets and calling the shots. The names compiled on the BoxRec lists are as valid as any.

I remember when the black fighters were finally given their due and were getting their shots to wear a championship crown . African/Americans were dominating the heavyweight division,the division that's the flagship of fighting. Now I mentioned Andy Ruiz and Jose Carlos Ramirez as two Americans wearing championship belts. There were a lot of the old white guard that turned away from the sport because there were fewer and fewer Marcianos and Basilios stepping into the ring. These fellas' ,I guess, were white,but Italians were often looked at as olive skinned guineas who didn't quite fit into the Anglo profile of a John L. Sullivan or a Jack Dempsey. But today most fight fans are not descendants of the passengers that sailed over on the Mayflower. So Andy Ruiz and Jose Carlos Ramirez are as American as Taco Bell. And Bud Crawford? You can mention his name in the same breath with Fred Sanford

But in the last 20 years there's been a resurgence of alabaster skin within the ring ropes. These are the pugs from the former Soviet Bloc that have finally gotten the opportunity to show their stuff and earn a U.S, buck,an English pound, or a Euro instead of waging a futile exercise behind the Iron Curtain for the fun of it. So now we have to relight an interest . These fighters from Eastern Europe and within the fringes of the Asian continent are making their marks. Here's their problem:we can't pronounce their names. Lomachenko,Gyozdyk,Usyk,Golovkin,Hovannisyan,Povetkin,Avenesyan-excuse me I have to untangle my tongue and catch my breath. If you can't pronounce the name,it's hard to build momentum.

Here's what these borscht eaters should do-Anglicize your names. The Italians did it a lot. Willie Pep nee Guglielmo Papaleo,Joey Maxim nee Giuseppe Berardinelli,Lou Ambers nee Luigi D'Ambrosio-are you following me? So here are a fww suggestions.Vassily Lomochenko,how about calling yourself "Lightning" Vinnie Loman? Gennady Golovkin,throw out that Triple G stuff and call yourself "Irish" Gerry Gooden.Here you go Sergey Kovalev-How about "KO" Sammy Kearns?

Ok.This may sound kind of dumb. But if Americans long for a boxing family tree that can be traced back to Plymouth Rock instead of Vladivostok I might be on to something. Then again,tonight I probably am just feeling the effects of swallowing too much THC oil for my arthritis pain .



"Irish" Gerry Gooden nee Gennady Golovkin

[dagosd2000]

In Another Country

I've never been awed by a fighter with an impressive won /lost record who doesn't leave his native country to fight the best competitors somewhere else. There's a question on one of the threads about "How good was Bruno Arcari?" He's a prime example of a fighter with that splendid won/lost record who,in 74 fights,ventured outside of Italy only one time to take on an opponent.Nicolino Loche is another candidate.-135 fights only twice crossing the Argentine border to engage the opposition.And that was a decision loss to "Peppermint " Fraser in Alfonso's Panama for the WBA lightweight title. The defeat was a loss,this time by TKO,to Kid Pambele in the "Keeed's" homeland Colombia also trying to win the WBA 135 crown.

Today,it's different. The U.S. has dropped from boing the Mecca for world class fighters and has to compete with foreign venues for the big matches.. A lot of aliens have migrated to the U.S.,,become citizens ,and are plying their trades and leaving their marks. But back in time when the Iron Curtain was more or less intact and the major venues were in the major cities in the U.S. (and not to mention that the wealth of talent resided in America)a fighter ,if he wanted to make a name for himself, had to leave the bullrings and the parks of Latin America for example and come over here and lay it on the line.There was a time when if a fighter couldn't cut it in the Garden,then it was back to his homeland to fight in the soccer stadium in front of the locals.

That even held true for the great Mexican fighters. A guy like Olivares ran up a big win streak in the beginning fighting in Mexico against the best the pueblos and ranchitas could muster,but he wasn't going to get his shot at a title if he didn't fight in the Forum or The Olympic Auditorium.. The Mexicans weren't a big draw in New York. The Puerto Ricans were still fighting the vida loca.There were a few defenses in Montezumaland with the Mexican champs,but it was like throwing a bone out to placate the aficianados.,

Oh boxing isn't what it used to be. The focus has shifted away to Europe and the former Soviet bloc.. Nowadays a lot of title fights are over there.But I have to admit it's deserved. It's all about the money;the gate,the Pay TV,the large followings. If the U.S. was banging out fighter after fighter loaded with talent and drive then boxing would have remained stamped in the USA.

I have to go along with BoxRec's assessment of Terence Crawford being the top P4P guy in the U.S. Terence's hometown is Omaha,Nebraska. Max Baer was born in Omaha,but he had to get out of that burg if he was to fight Carnera. For someone who lives outside the U.S. if you said "Omaha" they might guess it's a town in Japan. Crawford's last fight was in MSG in The Apple..That's probably the first time most fight fans got acquainted with him. Now we recognize his face.

What the hell. Even if I had the dough and my body wasn't so wracked with aches and pains,I wouldn't travel fly across the ocean to some arena in Eastern Europe that sold kabobs and Turkish beer at the refreshment stand.But come to think of it,I've tried kabobs and Turkish beer-pretty good stuff.


Max Baer.Native of Omaha,Japan-oops.I meant Nebraska.

[dagosd2000]

The Kid

There was this fighter once ,a young light skinned African/American kid,wasn't even 20 yet.He had a good run in the amateurs with around 50 fights. His uncle took the kid under his wing. His uncle was a fighter.I saw him fight a few times here in San Diego. He broke even on the wins and losses. When his nephew wanted to try boxing as a means to earn a buck,his uncle stepped up to take control.

I'd go to the gym to watch the kid train. He was a bantamweight,tall for his weight, a shade under 6 foot. I've always thought a tall fighter has a bit of an advantage .He's got the longer reach to go along with the edge in height. He can keep an opponent on the outside with his jab and then throw combinations behind the lead. He can punch down instead of fighting gravity by punching up like the shorter guy.. He can see better.He has more options with foot movement shifting side to side,in and out. Emanuel Steward always preferred the tall fighter. Manny Steward would have kept an eye on this kid.

The uncle hooked his nephew up with the same promoter that steered his career,not that his career was that remarkable. This promoter had the corner on what little boxing was taking place in San Diego. Boxing has been pretty much dried up in San Diego for a few decades. The fights are mostly ho hum affairs. 8 round main events are the highlights of a card. This kid started off fighting in the 4 round prelims down here. I've seen around half of his 15 or so fights.

From the outside the kid looks like he's got possibilities. Like I said,he's tall,has a balanced stance,starts off working his jab.I don't think I've ever seen him lose the first 2 rounds of any of his fights. But after a round or two he stiffens up. He doesn't work combinations,doesn't possess a big punch,and usually it goes to the scorecards.But because the talent is so thin down here,he does enough to come away with a W.

His uncle protects him. He doesn't want to risk his nephew with a boy that is close to him. It's been over 5 years now and this kid is still under wraps fighting guys that have more losses than wins on their records. What's compounding the problem is the uncle wants to call all the shots. Promoters don't like a "stage door" daddy(in this case uncle) wanting to decide where to go with his charge..

So now without anything taking place in San Diego the kid has been more or less banished to fight in Tijuana. Most of the fights are in bars. I've been to a few of these debacles.The fights outside these dives that take place in the alley are more worth watching. Most of these Mexican kids shouldn't be allowed to fight. I know boxing is the poor man's out,but watching some of these young Mexicans kids get KO'd fight after fight is a cause for human rights intervention.. It's something I won't watch anymore.

Anyway, this kid is going through these Mexican fighters at a off and on clip,but it's not worth a plug nickel.. Some of these guys he's fought before. There's no reason to duplicate the slaughter. He can't be pulling in any money to live on. After 5 years he's asea-a ship without a rudder.

He had a fight a few years back in Las Vegas. He was undefeated like his opponent. The fight took place in one of te smaller hotels. Well,the kid lost this one. It was a big break if he could have got past this guy.The fight was a co main scheduled for 8 rounds. The kid started fast. He kept his shorter opponent off balance using the jab,but as the fight progressed the kid didn't step up the action. The other guy sensed that this was all the kid had to offer and began to press him. By the 6th round the kid was spent. He wasn't returning anything worthwhile. I thought the referee might stop the fight. It was the kid's first loss.

After that fight I didn't watch the kid fight again. It was the same de ja vu. Fight in the bars in Tijuana against the taxi cab drivers. The talk from the kid's uncle was that his nephew was in line to fight a good prospect and then move to the big time. More de ja vu falling on deaf ears. The promoter wasn't going to do anything for the two.

I got a call from the uncle awhile back. He was wondering where I had disappeared. The kid was working and training out in east county. He was helping his uncle instructing the usual citizens,male and females of all ages, that wanted to learn how to put up their gloves. I was glad to see them after a lay off. The kid was showing a youngster how to hit the heavy bag. I saw that the kid was wearing a T shirt with a picture of a rising female prospect from Tijuana.
"That's his squeeze,"said his uncle grinning."He's in love."
"Isn't she handled by the same guy who's handling your nephew?"
"That's right,"answered the uncle. "That guy handled me too.Next month she's going to Mexico City to fight for the title."
I didn't say anything like why isn't your nephew being moved along like that girl. This girl was good.That I knew for sure.i'd seen her fight. The promoter had a hot prospect,but I didn't know how hot.

I got a call the other day from a friend working with one of the boxing organizations up in LA.We ran through the gamut:family friends,boxing,what's new? He wanted to know how to reach this same promoter that was calling the action down here and setting up stuff across the border. I told him to contact the 4 Points Sheraton Hotel.There was the last time he promoted a fight here in San Diego.I also mentioned that this guy had this Mexican girl who was going to fight for a title shot in Mexico City. The same girl the kid was going ga ga for.
"You know that promoter is banging her,"my friend said laughing."He's making money with her and getting into her pants.He's got it made."
Well,I gave it a thought letting the kid know,but it was none of my business. Fighting is a business where you can get screwed and not know it. But sometimes you get a screwing and it's for the best.


One of the many boxing gyms in Tijuana

[dagosd2000]

A World Of Difference

I've always said the differences,distinctions,contrasts,(whatever you want to call them)between the international border of United States and Mexico is unparalleled in the world. Now the Mediterranean Sea is the watery boundary between Western Europe and North Africa. You get down to the Straits of Gibraltar and a 30 minute boat ride can take you back and forth between Spain and Morocco. You can make a case that that's a night and day vision,but I'm not talking about having to cross a body of water to experience the divergences. The boundary that separates,let's say,San Diego and Tijuana,is a line on the ground. Oh,there are checkpoints and walls that are barriers,but you don't have to know how to swim. The Rio Grande that divides El Paso and Ciudad Juarez is a trickle. You couldn't drown in it. The name "wetback' is more of a term for an illegal alien.When I cross the border from San Diego to Tijuana(at least once a week)I feel like I'm an the other side of the world. I can stand on the Tijuana side and look across the border at the U.S. and feel I'm outside of my body.

The other day I went down to Tijuana to look up an ex fighter .He cleans up in the morning at one of the bars off Revolution Street. I"ll call him Joe.He was a bantamweight/lightweight,a short stocky guy with burnt sienna skin,wavy black hair slicked back, an Indian face laced with ex pug battle scars.Deep set black eyes accentuate his look. He'd fought a lot at the Auditorium on the Boulevard. He was born somewhere in the south,Chiapas,I think. He says he had over a hundred fights. His face was on the programs of every card in every arena in the republic.

The bars don't open until 10 o'clock in the morning. I parked the car out front of the bar where Joe was working:mopping the concrete floor with that familiar Pine Sol smell wafting out into the street.,filling the toilet tanks with buckets of water,and carrying out the trash to the alley and putting it in a rusted metal trash can. There was a bar stool at the entrance of the open door. Joe was wiping down the plastic upholstery of one of the booths when he looked up and saw me.I skirtted around the stool at the door and walked up to Joe.
"Roger,milagro ,where have you been amigo?"
Joe put down the rag and came over to give me a good abrazo.
"Here.Sit down,"said the old fighter. "Be Careful it's wet."
"Don't worry.I came by to see what you're doing."
"I told the owner he needs to get new upholstery for these booths. They're all torn up like my face,"he remarked belting out a laugh.
His voice was deep and coarse. His thick hands were thick and gnarled.He still looked fit except for a little paunch that protruded under his white T shirt.
"So fill me in Joe.What have you been doing?"
We sat down in the booth.Joe folded his hands on the table top. The formica was chipping away.The stains of tobacco yellowed the plaster walls.
"I still go around the gyms seeing if they need any help.Still looking for that fighter that's gong to make everything all right.It's a dream ,but you got to have a dream to keep on going."
"When did you start fighting anyway?"
"When I was just a kid,Around five years old my father took me to the gym and told them to make a man out of me. He didn't want no mama's boy."
"But you stuck with it."
"I liked fighting. I had to fight where I came from or I wouldn't have survived.Every day I was in a fight.Mostly with boys bigger and older than me."
"You were tough,"I said wanting emphasize his point.
"When you grow up poor you look past all the suffering or it will eat you up.You can't make the bad go away."
"I remember when you fought Calexico Valdez in the Auditorium. That was a war."
" I broke my hand in the first round."
"But you won."
"I won but my right hand was never the same after that. I got arthritis in it and I could hardly throw it without clenching my teeth.Sometimes I feel the pain at night in bed and I can't sleep."
I looked around at the inside of the bar.
"Do they still have girls in here?"I asked.
"They come in around 6 o'clock. They're not young or pretty enough to work in a place like the Adelita. It's either in a place like this or out in the street."
I leaned across the table closer to Joe.
"You know one night I came in here and banged one of the girls in one of these booths. I thought the bartender was going to call the cops."
Joe broke a smile shaking his head.
"When I was 13 yeas old my father took me to a whorehouse and paid this woman to show me what sex was all about. It was my first time."he said.
"Did you like it?"
"I was so fast that when I got it in her I exploded.She just laughed.She wanted to know if I wanted to try again.But
my father didn't have anymore money. Besides I was too embarrassed."
Joe took a deep breath and unclasped his hands.
"You know Roger.Poor people don't look out for each other. It's hard enough just to take care of oneself.. They wouldn't do anything for anybody."
"I don't think people realize how tough it is down here."
"You give somebody something for nothing and they want more.If you cut them off they'll move on without a thank you.The poor hurt the poor.It's no place for sentimentality."
"That's the same everywhere,"I said.
"All you see on the news down here is that it's Trump's fault. But it's not his fault. It's all our faults.We are to blame."
"The news in the States is the same. Blame it on Trump."
"But suffering is everywhere you go down here.It only gets worse and worse.Tijuana has become the murder capital of the world."
I just sat there trying to think of something to brighten up the conversation.
"So you used to come in this place?"asked Joe changing the subject.
"Come to think of it.I think I f----d that girl in this same booth where we're both sitting."


A poster on the side of the HSBC Bank on the corner of Revolution and 2nd Street in the heart of downtown Tijuana. It says "Kill Trump. Reward." That poster has been up there for over a year.

[dagosd2000]

That Lucky Ol' Sun

Generation X.Generation Y.Generation Z. Millennials. I don't know of too many of these kids that follow boxing. Roughly,their timeline begins in the early 1980's to the present. I get a lot of blank looks when I bring up the topic of boxing with these youngsters. Even if I mention Muhammad Ali, it's a name these kids might have heard of, but probably know as much about as Abraham Lincoln. Yeah,Lincoln was a president and Ali was a fighter,I guess. Not much knowledge there to get you to the final round of that quiz show "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" You can throw in Mike Tyson as a possible recollection,but what these kids have stored between their ears about Iron Mike is mostly that he was a psycho. Ali?Tyson? They couldn't regurgitate anything about any of their fights not to mention who they fought. I don't think I spew off more than a paragraph about boxing and I get that vacant look from these non shavers. I might as well talk about the Civil War.(Who fought in that one?).

I scribble on the forum almost every night in the "Boxing History" column. I started off at my keyboard in 2007. 12 years later I notice that most of the posts refer to boxing during the 1990's onward. I appreciate the posts about the stars of the bygone eras. Whether I agree or don't is not too important. I get that fuzzy feeling that there ARE people out there that want to learn of the history.

I was a history teacher in school. U.S. history to be more precise. In my 25 year tenure I don't think any of my kids went on to major in any form of history that's if they got to college. I can say that maybe I didn't know how to motivate. My lectures weren't inspiring. But here's my take on the X,Y,Z generations. I think they are a bunch of fatalists. Life is short.What's important is now. Tomorrow will come,but I might not be alive so I'm going to cram in as much fun as I can in the meantime. Yesterday is something that can't be controlled.It already happened. I wasn't around so what does that have to do with me? But here's the real scary part. Somehow they've absentmindedly absorbed Friedrich Nietzsche into their mantra. There is no God. The universe cares nothing for men nor mankind,and all of history is nothing but an insignificant speck in the cosmos,which no sooner began,,than it will vanish forever without a trace.No morality. No good and evil. An afterlife is just an old wives' tale. You hear about the good.it crops up. But like the old saying"No good deed goes unpunished." That's the reality.

They didn't get this out of a book. it's been taught.The teachers come from the outside.The home can't stand up to it anymore. It's a house of cards that collapses from the first bad breath. Everything and everyone is flawed. if they can't find something on someone,they'll make it up.Tell someone your problems and half don't care an the other half is smiling. History is supposed to be studied so we don't repeat the same mistakes. But there are no mistakes unless someone is trying to kick sand in my face.

I said something about sentimentality yesterday. That's for the weak. Watching "Casablanca" and then crying like bitch at the end? That's for sissies. Waking up in the morning and seeing a dead kid in the street was shot in a drive by?Get over it.It happens all the time. Now you want to tell me about some fighter that was around before I was born? Excuse me grandpa but I have to get going..That was very interesting,but my friends are waiting.

Hell. How many more years do I have anyway? One thing for sure. Everything is temporary.Fill life up with something in the meantime. Lean to live with the down time.But that's what drugs and alcohol are there for.I could tell you about that too.Hemingway said "The Sun Also Rises."Frankie Laine sang about "that lucky ol' sun just rolls around heaven all day."Try explaining that to a millennial.


Canon Jhonson.Tijuana Baja. No place for the soft hearted

[dagosd2000]

Keep 'Em Amused

When I got married i'd go to Mexico City once a year with my wife to visit her two sisters in Mexico City. We'd usually leave from my wife's hometown in Michoacan and take the bus. It was a long trip.I remember the bus line-Tres Estrellas De Oro. The buses were crowded and it took a long time on those twisting mountain roads to get to Mexico City.The buses had no air conditioning and the body odor from the everyone's sweat would permeate through the inside of the bus. I remember there were two big terminals in Mexico City. One in the north side and one in the south side of the city. There were always a lot of cops inside the bus terminals looking for people to shake down.

There are over 20 million people who live in Mexico City. it is the largest city in the western hemisphere. The streets are jammed with people selling things.You can't drive a car through the masses of people.Pickpockets are everywhere. Orphan kids run through the people occupied buying things trying to swipe purses and wallets. Many of those kids live in the streets. No one feels sorry for them. The merchants,the people buying things try to shoo them away, but they just disappear into the crowd only to reemerge and cause more trouble. They are feral in a way like packs of dogs. Many of those kids sniff glue because the effects diminish their hunger. It's an open secret that the undercover squads hunt them down in the middle of the night.It's like many of those kids vanish into thin air.

Just about every time I'd go to Mexico City I'd attend the fights at the Arena Coliseo located in the center of the city. The Arena is in a very rough neighborhood. Tepito,the infamous gang infested section of the city, lies just north of the Arena. I would never go to the fights alone..I'd usually go with my nephews or my brother in law. My brother in law was always apprehensive. He was a spoiled rich guy who was a mucky muck in the dominate political party at the time,the PRI. He went to the big university and ran his mother's uniform factory. All the school kids wear a uniform to school in Mexico City.. 20 million people translate into a lot of uniform purchases.

The fights were on Friday nights. During the 70's and 80's there were live TV broadcasts from the Arena Coliseo unless there was a significant fight that would take precedence. Inside the building it is riound and goes up four floors. If you sit at the top you're looking almost straight down. I remember seeing signs all around saying "No Apuesta" meaning no gambling. But everyone was doing it anyway. People would shout across the ring making bets on their favorite fighters.There are all kinds of laws and rules in Mexico,but they are seldom obeyed. If you obey them you're considered weak and a fool.

Though the Arena Coliseo is a landmark,like Madison Square Garden in New York,when I started attending in person and watching the bouts on TV,the quality was beginning to ebb.Joe Louis fought an exhibition there with Arturo Godoy.The Babys Casanova and Arizmendi filled the seats during the 30's..The legend Kid Aztica was a mainstay. And of course the great Henry Armstrong put on shows.

But like I said,by the 70's and 80's the big fights were drying up at the Arena Coliseo.Back in time the future champs like Olivares,,Saldivar,and Zarate built their reps inside the old edifice.When Jose Napoles lost to Backus,he fought a tune up with the veteran Manny Gonzalez before his rematch with Billy. But the young Mexican warriors today are missing in action at the Arena Coliseo.Canelo Alvarez and Julio Cesar Chavez were no shows. Today, a hot Mexican prospect may get a running start in Tijuana or at he venues in the areas where they grew up,but once that show of promise is displayed they're gobbled up by the promoters in the U.S. There's no more fighting 60 or 70 times in the various fight spots in Mexico before they get in on the big fights stateside. The honky tonk arenas and shaky bullrings are something they can look over their shoulders at on their way to Las Vegas.

However,the Arena Coliseo has held its ground with the other sport that's performed on the mat-wrestling,or by its popular name,Lucha Libre. Lucha Libre is as big now as it was then. It's a cult.The wrestlers and the fans have melded it into the culture. All the wrestlers wear masks. That's part of the mystic. Kids keep scrapbooks. I remember seeing yellowed newspaper clippings of legends like El Santo,Blue Demon,and Mil Mascaras. The arenas would draw as good as the boxing matches. Now,it's mostly Lucha Libre that pays to keep the lights on in these venues.

My granddaughters husband is a wrestling promoter in Tijuana. He's been at it for a couple of years. I always go. He has his shows in the bars around town. The crowd is enthusiastic playing along like it's real .The wrestlers, donned in their unique masks and outfits, are absorbed. It's an alter ego for everybody. it doesn't cost much to get in. It's no problem for an entire family to go without having to forfeit the rent money.

There's an old saying in Mexico-give them parades and circuses to keep them amused. And don't forget the Lucha Libre.




Lucha Libre In Tijuana

[dagosd2000]

Mrs. O'Brian's Fancy

We all called her Mrs. O'Brian. I don't know if she was married or ever was. I never saw her with anyone who might have been her husband. I never noticed if she wore a wedding ring. But I was just a little kid and I didn't pick up on things like that. Mrs. O'Brian had the beauty parlor in the basement of the apartment building that we klived in.That's when we were living in the suburb of Riverside outside the city of Chicago after moving from Polk and Oakley Streets on the southwest side.

A lot of the Italians were beginning to move out of Little Italy by then.You could see the blacks coming into the neighborhood and it was a losing battle to stop it. Besides,the Patch was showing its wear. Riverside was like Oak Park and River Forest,two burgs that were in the vicinity -newer,kept up,safe,and white. Not necessarily Italian,but not colored. Frank Nitti lived in Riverside. He blew his brains out at the railroad station when a train was coming in(this was before I was born)because he was looking at a stint in the pen for letting a couple of rats into the Organization .These guys bungled things up out on the coast trying to shake down the motion picture unions. The feds were building a case against the Outfit and Nitti had got his tit in a wringer.Nitti's
'nickname was "The Enforcer'.If you broke the rules you paid the piper which usually meant a bullet in the head. So he knew what was coming to him. Besides,he didn't serve time in jail very well.He claustrophobic. Sam Giancana lived in Oak Park. My father would take us to visit the Giancanas,but never Tony Accardo.Accardo was Sicilian and that didn't sit well with my father who was a Neapolitan. Tony resided in River Forest.

Gettting back to Riverside and Mrs. O'Brian. Her beauty parlor was in the basement of the apartment building. No way I'd think of it as a beauty ""salon." The place was a mess. There was only one chair in the middle of something that resembled an underground yard sale-boxes stacked on top of each other,old newspapers and magazines strewn around all over the place,,broken furniture and appliances.One thing tough that has never left me. She had these colored prints of diesel train engines hung on the side wall. There was one of this diesel engine. painted in a radiant violet color. The most beautiful train engine I ever laid my eyes on.

Mrs. O'Brian lived in the back of her beauty parlor. I'll make my description of her easy.She looked like the charachter in that episode of I Love Lucy when the actress Be Benaderet played that old spinster Mrs. Lewis who had the hots for the neighborhood grocer Mr. Ritter played by Edward Everett Horton. Bea Benaderet's Mrs. Lewis was the spittin' image of Mrs. O'Brian.. But if you never saw that episode,I have a picture of Mrs. Lewis with Lucy at the end of this story.

Well,like Mrs. Lewis's obsession for Mr. Ritter, Mrs. O'Brian had a fixation on Verne Gagne the wrestler. in the early 50's wrestling on TV was as popular as the fights. The Dupont Network showed wrestling from the Marigold Gardens on Monday nights.You wouldn't think of it it now,but wrestling was up there in the top ten shows with Milton Berle and Ed Sullivan. Today,wrestling has morphed into a 3 Ring Circus.It's on Pay Per View, HBO,and Showtime. The wrestlers have bodies that have been built with every type of chemical invented in the lab. Back then the wrestlers were pretty much normal size. They wore their basic togs and weren't into all the showmanship and hype. That started later with Gorgeous George.

Verne Gagne was the star of the National Wrestling Alliance that put on shows mainly in the mob controlled venues in the Midwest.The matches at the Marigold Gardens were the flagship of these events. Gagne was a real grappler in the sense that he was a champion collegiate wrestler at the University of Minnesota winnig NCAA titles and was an alternate on the U.S. Olympic Team. He was also a big name on the school's football team. In the early 50's Gagne was as popular on the mat as Marciano was in the ring. I remember Verne Gagne as an athletic, crafty stud having all the technical moves down to perfection. He was the hero, handsome,always smiling and personable,and wearing those bun huggers he had old ladies like Mrs. O'Brian experiencing latent hot flashes.

I liked watching the wrestling on TV too. I really didn't think it was real(I never said that to Mrs. O'Brian)but I went along with it.Mrs. O'Brian knew my father was connected with the Outfit and asked me if it would be possible if we could all go to the Marigold Gardens to watch Verne Gagne flex and sweat. I asked my dad and he took care of everything. Now let me add that the Marigold Gardens also put on boxing matches,but I never went o one of these shows. The wrestling was on Monday nights. My father loaded all of us in the Hudson Hornet and off we went. Outside the door was my father's pal Johnny "Haircut." He was connected and of course he took us right through the front door without having to wait in line. Our seats? Ringside.That was the norm when you were in The Outfit. I never saw my father pay to get into a ballgame or a fight,and the seats were always top drawer.

Well, I don't think Mrs. O'Brian ever took her eyes off her big dreamboat,Verne Gagne. I can't remember who he tangled with that night,but he was in total control(always with that smile on his face).He really had the crowd going. After about 20 minutes of showing off all his flair, he pinned the bad guy like he could have done it anytime he wanted.

In the car on the way home I was sitting in the back with Mrs. O'Brian. She was beaming from ear to ear.
"Well,Mrs, O'Brian,"said my father looking in the rear view mirror."Did you have a good time?"
"I don't think I'll ever forget tonight for the rest of my life. it was a dream come true.If there's anything I could do to repay you,"she emoted.
"You know that picture of that purple train engine on your wall?"I smugly asked.


Verne Gagne



Mrs. O'Brian with Lucy.