Classic American West Coast Boxing

[dagosd2000]

The Good With The Bad

Redd Foxx would say if he didn't like you,"I hope your daughter marries a jazz musician." He could have also said,"I hope your daughter marries a prizefighter."

Take a kid who grew up poor,never finished school,and lived in an unsettling house;and then he finds boxing's niche and rises to the top.Now he's got money and fame and girls throwing themselves at him faster than a flurry of punches from Ali's gloves.What's he gonna' do?He's surrounded himself with people who are going to obey his every beck and call. They bask in his limelight and in return he struts around like the cock of the walk. He's living in his moment and doesn't contemplate that it's ever going to end.But the time will come when his skills and his halo will wane and the money he should have put in the bank will have been spent in every saloon in town. Also all the blonds out of a bottle will find another contender and instead of him carrying that strut his gait denigrates into a stagger.

Archie Moore had a slew of wives. While I was lending a hand at his boys club I never heard him mention anything of his personal life. His list of former wives never came up in a conversation.Archie's talk revolved around the righteous way of living. Character,honor,telling the truth,adhering to the Good Book-all those common buzz words. If he'd brought up his marriage experiences it probably would have lent itself to some uncomfortable questions.Only once did I hear something that he said that alluded to a nuptial nuance.

One afternoon ,after I had gotten off work at the school for the handicapped kids, I stopped by the Any Boy Can Club to see if the old champ could find something for me to do. I passed by his club everyday coming back from work so it was an easy way out for me to savor what was happening with Archie the mentor. Archie's son was there and around ten kids,mostly ones in single digits,that were practicing pugilism under the watchful eye of the Mongoose and also having to bear the brunt of listening to his words of wisdom.

A couple of the kids were getting prepped to get into the ring to spar with each other. Archie's son had one of the kids in his corner and i was acting like the boxing sage with the other. Then something happened. I'm not quite sure but Moore began yelling at his son about not having his little charge warmed up properly. Well,my kid wasn't sweating either and i couldn't understand the beef. Archie's son then began to rebuff his dad loudly in front of everybody. The room fell silent.i thought that Archie was either going to put his son in his place and maybe even throw him out. It got real serious for a moment. But no,Archie didn't say anything. He climbed up on the ring apron and leaned his arms on the top rope. Then he looked out the open door and just stared.Everyone was still waiting still a little stunned. Then Archie spoke still staring out the door.
"I was married five times,"he said meekly.
And that was it. He climbed down from the apron and walked to the backroom and never came out.

A jazz musician. A fighter. They both live a pretty heady life. They have invested a lot and thus have a lot to lose. If they've got a woman who can take it all -the good with the bad-they've got more than a lot of people.


The Old Mongoose

[dagosd2000]

Where There's Smoke There's Ashes

A friend of a friend of mine wanted to give me free tickets to the fights.
"I hear you like to go to the fights,"he said."We're putting together some fights at Pechanga.Our first event is Saturday.Would you be interested in some free tickets?"
At first I wasn't interested.I never cared for going out to the Indian reservations to watch the fights. You have to drive on these winding two lane asphalt roads at night through the foothills and it takes a good hour to get there. But there wasn't much of anything else going on in San Diego when it came to the boxing matches. The only venues that were offering anything were the Indian casinos.I answered that i'd be interested.
"How many tickets do you want?"
"Two will be fine."
"You can have more.As many as you want.They're free."
"Two will be good.Thanks."
This friend of a friend handed me the tickets and then gave me his card.
"If you know anyone else who wants to go give me a call. Remember they're free."
"I will,"I said.
I put his card in my wallet and didn't give it a second look. I didn't know anyone that would be interested.Even with the extra ticket I had I couldn't come up with a name that would want to drive out to Pechanga to watch boxing matches.

Fight crowds are different than fans of the main stream sports. I know a lot of guys who wouldn't go the fights because they think "something" might happen. A baseball game,basketball,even a football game that has plenty of contact, doesn't pose the paranoia to the cherry sports enthusiast who envisions that HE might be getting into a fight inside or outside the arena. I've never asked a female to go to the fights. Just on general principles I don't think it's right to ask a lady to the fights. I wouldn't want to expose her to all the blood and gore. Any woman who relishes that kind of entertainment is not what I consider an example of the softer sex. Now I've gone on about my treks into the sordid realms of ill repute,but then again I wouldn't ask a hooker if she'd like to accompany me to a prize fight.It's not in their genetic makeup unless their last name is Quarry. But when the time came for fight night at Pechanga none of my timid buddies wanted a free ticket. They had other things going on but they didn't tell me what those other things were. So I was off in my car by myself crawling up those skinny roads in the dark hoping I didn't hit a deer.

I didn't know who was on the card.When I got a program at the door I scanned the bouts and still was in the dark after reading the names. I thought about getting liquored up but then I'd have drive back on that road and I knew the local sheriffs made their quotas righting DUI's for all the suckers who lost their money at the card tables.My seat was up in the back but since the crowd was pretty thin i got up and found an empty seat closer to ringside.

There were around a half a dozen matches and they all stunk. they all went the distance and though the participants were willing there was a want of significant action. The skill levels with these boys was something you'd see at the local YMCA. They flailed away and couldn't land a solid blow.Everything about them was wrong. The first thing that jumps out at me is distance. If a fighter doesn't have the proper distance between him and his opponent he'll never get anything behind his punches.They all miss and then the duo falls into a clinch and have to be separated and then it's back to square one. It makes for a long night.

After downing a couple of soggy hot dogs and a bag of old peanuts washed down with a lukewarm Sprite I found little consolation that I got in the door for free. I decided that I wasn't going to put myself through the main event. I just wanted to get back home without having Bambi jump out in front of my car.

I made my move but then something caught my eye. Prior to the start of the main go I noticed a large man donned in a black leather jacket and a floppy felt hat being led to a front row to a folding chair by one of the security people.The fans around him began to get animated.Then it hit me. This guy dressed in black was Joe Frazier. The security man led him to his seat and Joe popped into it real heavy. He was beaming and smiling and waving his arms. I don't know who he was waving at but he was having the time of his life,and feeling no pain.I thought I'd stick around for awhile. i figured they'd announce Smokin' Joe to the crowd.

Well, that was the plan all right.Before the two headliners were exposed the announcer grabbed the mic and made his spiel.
"Ladies and gentlemen before we go on with the main even i want o introduce you to an honored guest sitting at ringside. I want to bring the former heavyweight champion of the world,the man from Philly,the Olympic champion,the first man to beat Muhammad Ali -Smokin' Joe Frazier up into the ring."
I don't know if Frazier was cognizant to what was said. He was still beaming and smiling and waving his arms. The security guy then offered his hand to help Joe out of his chair. Frazier got about halfway up to his feet and then fell backwards knocking the chair from under him and thudded to the floor.

Everyone was laughing and beside themselves. Frazier tried to get up under his own power but couldn't make it. The security guy had to come to his rescue. I wasn't laughing. It looked pretty sad but I didn't feel any sympathy.Joe sure didn't seem embarrassed.The only thing that bothered him was that he had spilled his beer.I decided I'd had my fill for the night and headed for the door..

As I was diving back I thought about Frazier's last fight with Foreman.In fact when I got home I looked at it again on YouTube.Not many remember that one. It really wasn't worth remembering. There was Smokin' Joe standing in his corner with a shaved head and looking doughy 10 pounds heavier than when he fought his last fight with Ali in Manila I wondered why in the hell he took that fight. He had a style made to order for Foreman.They always talk about "Smokin" Joe. How how pressed. .Came into you bobbing and weaving,moving his head and snorting like a wild animal. Well,against Foreman that night in Uniondale when Joe came forward,Foreman teed off on him with everything he had in his arsenal .Joe got so gun shy that after awhile he didn't want to get near Foreman. Foreman would shove him back with both gloves with contemptuous thrusts.When Foreman dropped him the second time it reminded me of Smokin' Joe landing on his backside when he was at those fights that night at the Indian reservation.


Smok,in' Joe

[dagosd2000]

Another Comeback

Ok.Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. are going to fight an exhibition. Tyson says his life hasn't amounted to a low blow since he hung up his gloves. He needs to get back into the ring.He's in his 50's and so is Roy. They say it's an exhibition-another name for a sparring match.Who wants to see two of the all time greats who haven't fought in decades spar with each other? But now we have another all time great who says he wants to take off his pants,but this time it's for real. He wants a real fight against the best in the division. If i had to give you three guesses you'd probably would have narrowed one of your choices to Oscar De La Hoya. Is this guy serious.? Pacquiao is still around,but that was Oscar's opponent in his last fight and Oscar stunk up the joint. Triple G or Canelo?Better have an ambulance ready .

They used to have these Old Timers Games in baseball.I could never see the point in all that. I would wince when I'd see an arthritic Willie Mays swing the bat like a rusty gate and miss the pitch by a mile. Or Whitey Ford wind up on the mound and let go with a Little League fastball. It was harmless but left a sad taste in the mouth. But boxing is of a different ilk. Even in an exhibition between two ex pugs there'll sooner or later be a punch thrown with bad intentions behind it.99 times out of a hundred the swing will miss or land on a shoulder or a glove. However,Oscar wants to fight the top guys in a real fight.Forget the ambulance and get a priest.

You can train the human body as hard as you want but there's one thing,and in this case the most important factor,you can't train the brain to take a shot to the head. As time marches on the wiring between the ears becomes frayed and is working delicately on a thread. A 50 year old anybody who gets caught with a big shot...well,what's the number of that funeral parlor.?

Any commission who gives Oscar a license to fight again should be put before a war crimes tribunal. Oscar is a good looking kid. He's still got all his faculties. I can't believe he has spent all his dough he made with fighting and promoting.Stuff like this gives boxing a black eye. P.T. Barnum would even hesitate with this venture,or maybe not. If Oscar is serious he must believe there are enough suckers out there who would pay money to see this.Let me give you suckers who want to take the bait a word of wisdom.Let Oscar live to a ripe old age and die in his sleep




Oscar De La Hoya

[dagosd2000]

The Picture

A quick footnote to what i posted about Oscar De La Hoya's wanting to get back into the ring at age 47.it has to do with my wife. You see when I married my wife,Maria,and got all the legal rigmarole paper work in order to bring her to the U.S. ,I began to get a perspective on how much she knew about America. Almost zilch. When it came to a cultural side,the only American that she showed an interest in was Elvis Presley. Oh,I guess she had heard of John Kennedy(he was a president) but she couldn't tell you if a was a Democrat or a Republican,and oh yeah someone shot him.

Elvis Presley did more to change the culture from taking it out of the hands of the grown ups and putting it in the soft palms of America's baby boomers. And to take it a step further, that went for the rest of the world. Elvis and Rock N' Roll spread faster through the world than the virus-and that's what a lot of parents thought Elvis and his sideburns were doing to their little darlings. Contaminating their impressionable minds.Hell, my father thought that Elvis Presley was a communist agent who was undermining the social fabric of what was the flag,apple pie,and,and Father Knows Best all rolled into one. We had Elvis and his gyrations manifested into Mexico. Enrique Guzman,Angelica Maria, Sylvia Pinal ,and Beto Vasquez were rocking around the clock south of border and in the process the kids had bumped and grinded the old guard like Pedro Infante and Jorge Negrete back to the hacienda. Well, my wife didn't necessarily turn her back on the Epoca De Oro but her record collection was comprised of bands that didn't have any horns or strings on the bandstand. Three guitars and a drum sufficed.

So where does Oscar De La Hoya fit in with Elvis Presley?It's a stretch but it adds up. First of all Oscar was and still is a good looking kid. A great smile,a real heart breaker with the girls.His presence alone says more than a thousand words. With the ladies he's a gentleman and someone a father and a mother would be proud to have waiting on the porch to take out their sweet senorita of a daughter.

At the last West Coast Boxing Hall Of Fame Event,Oscar and his entourage were their to support one of the inductees,Eric Gomez,one of the promoters of Oscar's Golden Boy Productions.Of course I was there with my wife,Maria.When Oscar and his following entered the banquet room at the Garland Hotel all eyes were on the Golden Boy. He was seated at the front table and immediately drew an enthusiastic crowd.I didn't think much of it.I could see why all the fuss was being made. I'd say half of the admirers were women. Whether they had followed his boxing career intently I seriously doubt. it was his male macho magnetism without all the rough exterior that won the gals over. Then i got a poke in the ribs.It was my wife's elbow.
"I go get a picture of De La Hoya,"she said all excited.
"Well,it's pretty crowded up there",I said ,but that made no difference.
There went Maria with her camera muscling her way through the throng until she got right up close to Oscar.
"I take you picture,"she said to De La Hoya like she owned the joint.
The people around her looked at her a little stunned. I could tell they had no idea who this pushy broad was.I had no idea what was going to go down next. But then something happened that was priceless. Oscar who was caught off guard looked up at my wife with a big smile.He posed sitting still so my wife could take her picture. Maria seemed to take forever to get Oscar into focus,but she took her time until she got it right.AND OSCAR WAITED.It was like he knew.Here's this Mexican woman who admired him for whatever reason and he wasn't going to press the matter until she got her picture.He was a perfect gentleman.A class act. What I like about Mexican fighters is that they may get sidetracked,caught up in the whirlwind,and lose their focus;but they remember their roots. Most Mexicans are not comprised of societies' upper crust.It doesn't matter where you sit on the social ladder.If you're genuine they know it. If you're wearing your heart on your sleeve you won't get the cold shoulder. Oscar saw that with my wife. My wife knew that he'd wait patiently for her to get her picture. It was a beautiful moment.

So there's the affinity with Oscar and Elvis. They understood that their fan base was of the common people. Oscar and Elvis never let their fame go to their heads.Ali was the same. It didn't matter who you are,it was what you are.They could tell without running a back round check.

BTW.My wife's picture came out all blurry.To me it didn't matter.I'll always have that image in my mind.


Elvis

[scartissue]

Another Comeback

Ok.Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. are going to fight an exhibition. Tyson says his life hasn't amounted to a low blow since he hung up his gloves. He needs to get back into the ring.He's in his 50's and so is Roy. They say it's an exhibition-another name for a sparring match.Who wants to see two of the all time greats who haven't fought in decades spar with each other? But now we have another all time great who says he wants to take off his pants,but this time it's for real. He wants a real fight against the best in the division. If i had to give you three guesses you'd probably would have narrowed one of your choices to Oscar De La Hoya. Is this guy serious.? Pacquiao is still around,but that was Oscar's opponent in his last fight and Oscar stunk up the joint. Triple G or Canelo?Better have an ambulance ready .

They used to have these Old Timers Games in baseball.I could never see the point in all that. I would wince when I'd see an arthritic Willie Mays swing the bat like a rusty gate and miss the pitch by a mile. Or Whitey Ford wind up on the mound and let go with a Little League fastball. It was harmless but left a sad taste in the mouth. But boxing is of a different ilk. Even in an exhibition between two ex pugs there'll sooner or later be a punch thrown with bad intentions behind it.99 times out of a hundred the swing will miss or land on a shoulder or a glove. However,Oscar wants to fight the top guys in a real fight.Forget the ambulance and get a priest.

You can train the human body as hard as you want but there's one thing,and in this case the most important factor,you can't train the brain to take a shot to the head. As time marches on the wiring between the ears becomes frayed and is working delicately on a thread. A 50 year old anybody who gets caught with a big shot...well,what's the number of that funeral parlor.?

Any commission who gives Oscar a license to fight again should be put before a war crimes tribunal. Oscar is a good looking kid. He's still got all his faculties. I can't believe he has spent all his dough he made with fighting and promoting.Stuff like this gives boxing a black eye. P.T. Barnum would even hesitate with this venture,or maybe not. If Oscar is serious he must believe there are enough suckers out there who would pay money to see this.Let me give you suckers who want to take the bait a word of wisdom.Let Oscar live to a ripe old age and die in his sleep




Oscar De La Hoya

Rog, Oscar should consult Danny Lopez on how he and his brother Ernie made out when they came back at the ages of 40 and 42 respectively. And they were against clubfighters. There will always be one constant in boxing; it's a young man's sport.

[dagosd2000]

Rog, Oscar should consult Danny Lopez on how he and his brother Ernie made out when they came back at the ages of 40 and 42 respectively. And they were against clubfighters. There will always be one constant in boxing; it's a young man's sport.
[/quote]

Dan
This just doesn't make any sense to me. After losing to Trinidad ,Oscar could never win a big fight again. What makes him think after a 12 year retirement he wants to jump right back in there with the best in his weight class? No tune ups.Just get in there with Canelo or Triple G.He's got plenty of dough. He knows he can't beat the top class guys or even the fighters on second tier.You want to fight again? Go find some doctors in Malaysia you can pay off and will give you a clean bill of health.If they let him back into boxing it will damage the sport. Whoever he fights it will be a joke. He was a joke when he fought his last fight against Pac Man.Let Manny clean his clock for good and you can charge him with manslaughter.

[dagosd2000]

Oh Yeah,He Can Fight Alright

I never saw Danny Lopez in a lousy fight.Some of his wins ended pretty fast,but you always knew what you were going to get with Little Red. He came out punching. He wasn't a clubber.He could box and throw combinations. He had a beautiful straight right hand and used his left hook with his combinations.He could pop you with the jab.All his menu of punches were lethal. With all this said though his defense wasn't the best.He was willing to trade and would be on the receiving end just so he could show the other guy what was in store for him.

On his way up he was going through everybody they put in front of him.His Mexican/American counterpart,Bobby Chacon was having similar success until he ran into Ruben Olivares.Olivares would always gave him fits. i know when they first fought a lot of the South Land crowd believed Bobby was too young and strong for the former bantamweight champ. Their three fight series was a matchmakers dream.I went up to the Forum to see the second fight. if you were a Chacon fan you wondered if anyone had told him about El Puas' left hook.But getting back to the Danny and Bobby show.

It was a great fight. It was a battle of LA turf. Bobby Chacon had Danny's number that night. I thought it was going to be Bobby on the losing end,but it was his fight all the way.But man did those two give the fans their money's worth.

After Danny won the featherweight title from "Poison" Kotey",a fight where Danny's defense almost cost him the fight until he had to dig down deep and pull the coals out of the fire,everyone in town knew that the fireworks had only just begun.He defended against Kotey again this time stopping him early. His points win over Mike Ayala in San Antonio has to go down in boxing annals of one of the great featherweight title fights ever. No.When Danny Lopez stepped into the ring he didn't hold anything back.He was a 125 pound wrecking machine.

When Danny signed to fight Mexico's Salvador Sanchez just about everyone thought it would be a bout filled with bombs bursting in air ,but just another notch on Danny's gun.Well,when they talk about the fighter with the toughest beard(and remember I'm not a list maker)I'll submit Sanchez's name at the top.Talk about back and forth toe to toe. I thought eventually Sanchez would cave in first but it was Danny who couldn't have mustered another punch when the fight ended in the hard lick round. There had to be a rematch,but in a deja vu Danny could only last til round 14.It was Danny's last fight. He knew he couldn't beat this guy.12 years later he got the idea in his head that he could fight again. Bad idea.

Around 20 years ago Larry Merchant,for me a real gutter snipe,interviewed Danny about his fight with Bobby Chacon. Merchant tried to play on Danny's mind and asked him if he thought, because of Bobby's current struggles with dementia,that HE came out the winner when it was all said and done.Danny gave him an incredulous look.
"Oh no. Bobby beat me fair and square,"answered Little Red.
(Man, am I glad that Larry Merchant has left the boxing scene)
Merchant then asked him no more trick questions and wanted to know what Danny was doing now.
"I was working construction ,but I've had some health problems(that dementia thing again)and I'm not doing that anymore. I don't want to put the other guys at risk because I might not be able to handle something."

Danny can always be seen at the South Land boxing events(a few years ago he went on a cruise to Europe with his wife Bonnie).Danny is showing wear. I think they wanted to get some good quality time in before that couldn't be fulfilled anymore.Bonnie,you can see,is very close to her husband at these events.I gave them a painting of Danny in his post fighting years. They hung it above the mantle.They are two of the nicest people around. One time I asked if I could take a picture of them together.
"Remember Danny.Don't touch your glasses when he's taking the picture,"she reminded him.
At one of the events I had some of my art out for display. One of the paintings was of older brother Ernie. They stopped and were looking at it.
"Look Danny,"said Bonnie."It's Ernie."
They got that painting on the house.

Jim Healy was a local LA sports buff who did a show on channel 13 once a week. He was interviewing Danny Lopez.Well,my father walked into the living room and stopped to watch what was going on.
"Who's that little twerp with the funny hair?"asked good ol' dad.
"That's Danny Lopez.He's the featherweight champ of the world."
"Him?What the hell is the boxing coming to?is he any good?"
"Oh yeah,"I said not looking up from the television."He can fight alright."


Danny ,touching his glasses,with wife Bonnie




Danny remembered this time.God bless them

[dagosd2000]

"Little Red"

[klompton]

Anyone recognize these guys? This fight was held at the Olympic sometime around 1968. The referee is Rudy Jordan. The guy in the white trunks is a southpaw. The other guy, with the huge tattoo on his arm looks to be a righty but he keeps switching to southpaw, I assume to compensate for his southpaw opponent. They appear to be smaller than middleweights, likely featherwights or lightweights. Maybe welterweights at most.

[dagosd2000]

Found this on the internet. Father and son boxing banquet ,Steven's
Steakhouse ,City Of Industry outside LA 2008
L-R Mando Ramos,Ray Mancini,Danny Lopez,and Bobby Chacon in the middle. I was glad to be there that day. Shane Mosley was there as well as all the Baltazar boys.

[dagosd2000]

A Pal Instead Of A Brother

When the famous war correspondent,Ernie Pyle,was killed by a snipers bullet on Okinawa the G.I's buried him on the island and etched on his tombstone "A Pal."Those Marines and Army guys really liked him,but when it came down to putting something on his headstone,they didn't want to have the words "A Brother" inscribed on the marble. "A Pal" was more appropriate. It wasn't that those grunts had anything against him,but he wasn't a part of what they had gone through together. That was a special bond. They were that band of brothers. Even something more unique and closer that what those boys had with their parents and wives. A separate entity that was holy in respect to everything outside that realm.They knew that they could make it through a battle because they were willing to die for each other-and of course a lot did.

When it comes to boxing it's not that kind of a brotherhood. Fighters aren't going to put their lives on the line for each other,but they indulge in a sport that is very dangerous. Whether he's a rank amateur,a semi wind up guy,or a headline main eventer;something very wrong can happen inside a boxing ring that they all share when the gong goes off.

When i was going to the annual California Boxing Hall Of Fame ceremonies in Los Angeles,it always used to get me when the man in charge,Don Fraser,would have all his scribe buddies seated at their respective tables up on the dais.Some of those fellas' would be inducted also, and you could bet the farm that when they got their plaques they'd wear out the microphone making their long winded speeches. They were so self indulged they thought everyone in the room was on the edge of their seats listening to what they had to say.If they were it was because they probably had to go to the bathroom.The inductee fighters would be seated around their tables on the floor with their family and friends waiting for Fraser to give them the OK so they could get to the podium and say a few words.For fighters a few words of thanks sufficed.

Yesterday I posted a picture of Mando Ramos,Ray Mancini,Danny Lopez,and Bobby Chacon at a father and sons banquet that took place 12 years ago in LA. I forgot to mention that Art Aragon was their with his son Audie(Art named his son after his pal who he worked with in the movie "To Hell And Back",medal of honor recipient,Audie Murphy).Also,I was in the room.Being the senior guest of honor and not to mention that during the 50's Aragon was one of the biggest name in South Land sports,The Golden Boy was drawing quite a crowd of admirers. However,you see it a lot at these functions. You get some guy that wants to get too close coming off as a real horse's ass.

I don't know if Aragon had maybe a little too much to drink or he was just feeling his oats,but he was kind of looking to get into it with someone.Well,he didn't have to wait around because in comes this reporter ,who was one of Fraser's handpicked to sit up on the stage, a red faced weisenheimer with a cocktail glass in hand, and he goes right up to Aragon chest to chest blowing his booze breath in his face.
"So you're The Golden Boy.You know I did some fighting in the Navy.Amateur stuff,but I was pretty good.,I could have turned pro if I wanted,"this blowhard went on.
Aragon gave him the once over and then couldn't hold back.
"So you think you're a fighter,"he spat out.
"I could have been a pretty good pro. Maybe even won a championship. Maybe even fought you," he said with the nervous laugh.
Aragon stiffened his back.
"It's a good thing you never got into the ring with me or you wouldn't be alive talking to me now."
Mr. Loudmouth tried to say something to that but by the time he got to spewing something out of his mouth Aragon had turned on his heel and showed him his back.

At least Ernie Pyle earned the respect of being "A Pal."This guy's tombstone would have read "A Real Ass Hole."


Art Aragon

[dagosd2000]

Speed

The emphasis with all sports now is SPEED. A time in the 40 yard dash can mean the difference of millions of dollars when it comes to inking a contract. Today, a Serena Williams can serve a tennis ball faster than the best of my era,Pancho Gonzalez,ever was able to deliver over the net. The Boston Celtics of the 60's were the best team in the NBA mainly because they ran their fast break speedier than all the other also rans. Your college teams today would have those Celtics gasping for air in a fast break race.With the technology we have at our fingertips they've computerized the results of looking at film of baseball pitchers like Walter Johnson and Bob Feller(who were considered the hardest throwers back in their times) and the info spitted out is that their arms could fling the ol' pill somewhere in the 90's.Look at the major league rosters of your favorite teams now and every pitcher,starters and relievers,all can bring it to the plate in the 90's. To boot, there are over 30 pitchers who have a fastball that can bury the needle of the radar gun at a hundred miles per hour or more. I remember the top NFL wide receivers back in my day like Ray Berry and Max McGee plodding their way downfield to catch a pass.The fellas' that run patterns now would make those old pigskinners look like Stepin Fetchit.Speed is also a priority with fighters.

But here's the flaw that I see. Sure these kids today have the hand speed,but their footwork,distance,combinations,and ability to see and create openings are not up to the standards of the fighters a few decades back. There are exceptions of course. Floyd Mayweather Jr. was a complete fighter. He had the speed ,but he also knew how to move in the ring and get out of the way. If he had been around in the Emile Griffith/Luis Rodriguez era of welterweights he would have known what it was to be in the loss column.

I was watching Shaun Porter last night on the tele.He has those fast hands,but his distance is wrong most of the time and he finds himself running with his punches.His punches are more like wild swings. But if fighters are lacking skills we can attribute this want for the lack of good trainers. There's no money in being a trainer. Then when we have today's crop of fighters hanging up their gloves THEY become the trainers.But because they weren't taught correctly...well you get my drift.

Speed is paying off in sports.It began to get more attention a few decades ago. Here's a good example. I was a pretty good power hitter on my high school baseball team. i led the league in home runs.When the major league San Diego Padres were getting ready to take the field in 1969 they had an open tryout to make the team. Well,here was my last shot at being a pro athlete. I dusted off my cleats and brought my trusted shillelagh to the field where there was a line of anxious kids like myself wanting to put on a Padres uni. All I had in mind was to have a chance to step into the batter's box and then I'd show them .I'll knock that ol' pill from here to San Clemente.I'll tear the horsehide off the ball. Duke Snider,who was going to be one of the announcers for the Padres,was in charge of some of the drills. We're all waiting in line waiting for instructions. Well,what does Duke announce to the group of hopefuls?
"Pair off.We're going to time you in the 40 yard dash."
I wasn't what you'd call a speed burner. But that didn't worry me because once they saw me with a bat in my hands I'd be going to spring training. I don't know how it happened but I got paired off with a black kid. Well,Duke is holding the stop watch at the other end of the track and tells us to get ready. He looks at me and says "Don't be nervous." He starts us and the black kid crosses the finish line and I'm eating his dust. I felt kinda' down,but all I could think of was taking out my frustration with the bat in my hands. I never got the chance. Duke put his arm around me and said,"Nice try.but you can take a shower."

Didn't Satchel Page say "Don't look back because someone might be gaining on you?"I never had to worry about anyone catching up with me.Besides,if I looked over my shoulder I'd probably fall on my ass.


Old Lane Field the home of the minor league Padres. Also a boxing venue. Archie Moore fought a few times there. The ballpark was torn down in 1958.

[goose 5]

Roger:Whenever you mention the Padres, for some reason, the name Nate Colbert comes to me. Your post on "speed" was right on the money !

[dagosd2000]

Roger:Whenever you mention the Padres, for some reason, the name Nate Colbert comes to me. Your post on "speed" was right on the money !

Goose
Thanks for bringing up the name Nate Colbert.He was the first big star of the team back when the club got going in 1969. He could hit the ball a ton.Back then the Padres played in the old Jack Murphy Stadium.Colbert was a right handed pull hitter.The left field wall was 350 to left with a 30 foot wall. The year he led the team with 31 home runs they say that he hit another 30 shots against that wall.Colbert also holds the record for hitting 5 home runs in a double header in St. Louis.

[dagosd2000]

Nate Colbert

[dagosd2000]

Just Have To Wait It Out

Mexico,if your just a face in the crowd,has always been a tough place to make a go of it. When Nixon took the dollar off the gold standard in the early 70's countries' currencies bounced around like a red rubber ball. Soon Mexico's peso wasn't worth the paper it was printed on. From a 12 to one ratio with the U.S. dollar it went to 20 to 1 overnight. By the end of the year it was a 100 to 1. Anyone who had put their money in a Mexican bank developed heart palpitations. Today.if you check the exchange rates of the U.S. dollar with the peso it's something like 20 to 1. That's misleading .With Mexico defaulting on numerous bank loans and a staggering inflation rate you could realistically put several more zeros behind that 20.Yet you'd think that your dollar can go far in Mexico. That's also deceiving. With the exception of housing,things are just as expensive,if not more,as in the USA. And now the world has had to deal with this big bad germ. The WHO says that Mexico has the third highest rate of infections behind number two Brazil and the U.S. that has the stigma of leading the world.With Mexico's rapid spread of the disease making the news everyone from president Obrador on down to the man on the street is feeling very uneasy. Beginning last weekend the U.S. has clamped down on the border crossings into and coming back from Mexico.

I have what they call a Sentri card.So does the wife.This Sentri card entitles you to cross the border much faster because it means that you're not a security risk.You apply for this card online through Homeland Security. After doing a back round check, and if they clear you,you get an appointment to meet with Federal officials for an interview, and then after getting the nod you pay your 122 dollars and your set to go for five years. My Sentri card expires next year in April. You're encouraged to start a renewal process a year before the expiration date. I've done that already. However,I got an email from Homeland Security saying that because of the big bad germ the application center has been downsized and the wait for renewal is now indefinite. Yet, if my date expires I will get a one year grace period because of the backlog.

With the clamping down at the border the wait for cars and foot traffic has gone through the roof. Even with the Sentri card the wait has stalled from maybe a 20 minute wait to a 2 hour trek.. Without the Sentri card you can be in the line for 8 hours.

A few months ago Homeland Security said that Mexicans with regular tourist visas will have that privilege put on hold indefinitely.They will have to stay home. The international border at Tijuana is the most crossed border in the world. 50,000 cars and 20,000 pedestrians daily. Just about all of that traffic crossing into San Diego is job related. Mexicans(and some Americans) that live in Tijuana and who have jobs in San Diego and have their proper papers are feeling it.

But it's not just a Tijuana problem. The entire republic is being locked down. in my wife's hometown,Jiquilpan,which is in the middle of nowhere, is going through the same restrictions that people are enduring in TJ-masks,social distancing,the closing of schools and non essential businesses,and a glut of hospitalizations.Compound all that with no government bailouts like unemployment money,accessibility for loans,and a lack of health insurance ;and Mexico is in free fall.

A couple of weeks ago Rodolfo Gonzalez called me up to touch bases. The conversation eventually leads to the times when Gato started his career in the middle of Mexico struggling with tough seasoned fighters in small venues in pueblos like my wife's hometown,Jiquilpan. Gato fought there a few times in the beginning. The aficianados saw him fight in the local bullring. Every pueblo has their bullring.
"Roger,you think they still remember me in Jiquilpan?"asked the former champ.
"The last time I was there there were still some that remembered."
"When will you go again?"
"I don't think it will be for sometime. I hate to waiting in line."


Jiquipan's bullring where Gato got his licks in.

[dagosd2000]

Brave,Courageous,And Bold...

Remember that theme from the TV show The Life And Legend Of Wyatt Earp starring Hugh O'Brian?"Brave,Courageous,and,Bold."The show was inspired by the book of the same name written by Stuart Lake who had sat down with the old gunslinger before he died in 1929 and began penning his biography. I think just about everybody thinks of Wyatt Earp of being a lawman-the marshal of Dodge City and Tombstone. But Wyatt Earp was never a marshal or a sheriff. In Dodge City and Tombstone he was a deputy. He also was a deputy in Wichita ,Kansas prior to moving to Dodge City and Tombstone.All in all Wyatt Earp was only involved being a lawman for less than seven years. The salary he pulled in toting his six guns walking up and down Front Street wasn't enough to live the kind of lifestyle he craved.That way of life consisting of gambling at Faro and the horses,drinking ample amounts of alcohol,and then blowing the rest of his wad on the fallen flowers of the West. Also, to have enough gold pieces to keep those ladies happy,Wyatt Earp was a sought after referee for the turn of the century boxing matches.

His most famous and infamous stint at being third man in the ring was the first Bob Fitzsimmons/Tom Sharkey fight in San Francisco. The fight was supposed to be for the heavyweight championship because Jim Corbett had announced to the world that he wasn't going to fight anymore so who wants the belt? As quite often the case there was arguing from both camps about who should be the ref. In those days the ref was also the sole judge and he had more power than a judge with all those robes on.

John Gibbs,the promoter favored Earp because already his legend had spread across the country thanks to the hyperbole of the days' dime novelists.Gibbs had hollered that Earp was the "bravest fighter,squarest gambler,and best friend and worst enemy on the frontier." The Hearst paper in town also lauded Earp mainly because he would often be hired by the old man to provide security for his family. But Fitzsimmon's amp was wary of Earp having to officiate the bout. Their boy was a heavy favorite and though Earp may have been "Brave,Courageous,And Bold," that didn't mean he didn't cheat at cards. With the fight now having a chance of not coming off,Fitz's people backed down and OK'd the sure shot at The OK Corral to be the referee.One last anecdote. Earp who was known to be" fixed" when he was out in public was asked to turn over his 45 to the promoter before the gong went off for round one.

The fight started off with Fitzsimmons having his way with Tom The Sailor. Everything was going to plan and in the 6th round Ruby Robert sent Sharkey to the canvas with one of his fusillades. The blow delivered was at the belt.Sharkey is now in big trouble but then Earp steps in and calls the fight over. Sharkey on a DQ. The blow according to Earp was south of the border, and besides, Fitz hit him another one when he was down. Nobody saw any of this.

There was an inquiry and even Sharkey's people got a hold of a doc(not the one named Holiday)to say in court that he was in Tom's dressing room after the fight and saw that Sharkey's balls were as big as battleships and blue like the ocean.The judge threw the case out because he said that the fight was illegal because it wasn't allowed in the city anyway so he couldn't make a judgement on something that shouldn't have happened in the first place. Earp's decision prevailed and all bets were good.

Did Earp have any money down on Tom? Probably.And so did a lot of other characters.But what the hell could they do? Wyatt Earp was the paragon of the honest lawman,a fair and square shooter,and a man's man. There was a second fight between Tom and Bob and this time everybody wanted Earp out of Dodge(so to speak) Bob won the fight like he should have won the first one and now Fitzsimmons could fight Gentleman Jim who had changed his mind about being an actor on the stage.

Wyatt Earp is one of those figures of the Wild West who is bigger than life.But with all I've read about the man he was one the toughest and bravest dudes to ever wear a badge.When he was a deputy in Wichita,Dodge City,and Tombstone the bad guys feared him the most. if you are old enough like me and grew up watching Wyatt Earp on television you'd think he filled up Boot Hill all by himself.While he was enforcing the law in Dodge, Earp only put one man face to face with his maker.-a drunk cowboy in rode into town hurrahing the saloons when Earp shot him off his horse. The guy died a month later from an infection of his wound. No.Earp didn't like to use his peacemaker unless necessary(BTW.In the TV program Hugh O'Brain is always carrying his Buntline Special with the long barrel.Earp was given that gun by it's namesake Ned Buntline the writer many years later after Earp had left the shooting to guys with steadier hands and keener eyesight. He hung the gun above the mantle).It wasn't that any lawbreaker feared that Earp would empty his gun into him. Wyatt Earp preferred using his fists or the barrel of his gun to subdue a desperado.Wyatt Earp never blinked if he had to step into a foray to handcuff a man after he crossed the line. But Earp's mode of arresting wasn't having to draw his gun. He loved fighting with his fists(or using the barrel of his gun).

When we think of cowboys and heroes of the Purple Sage we often look at a good ol' John Ford movie to get a frame of reference. Ford used John Wayne most often as the cowboy wearing the white hat.Wayne's persona in oaters stretched to all his other non" I'll kiss my horse before I kiss the girl" type movies. From the Sands Of Iwo Jima to The Quiet Man, John Wayne was the prototype of the American male. Every role he played it the same. A man of few words.Just his presence told you what kind of hombre he was.In one of the scenes in The Shootist,(his final film)Wayne is explaining to a young Ron Howard about his philosophy on life.
"I won't be wronged.I won't be insulted.And I won't be laid a hand on.I don't do those things to other people and I require the same from them."
That line wasn't written into the script on a whim.

Early in John Wayne's quest to be a Hollywood actor he met with Wyatt Earp who was on the set of one of John Ford's early movies.Wayne had a small role in the film.. One afternoon he sat down with Wyatt Earp with The Duke taking in everything Earp had to say like a thirsty sponge.Wayne said he was never so impressed by a man . A guy who shot from the hip and backed up his word and meant what he said. That line in the Shootist was how John Wayne thought of Wyatt Earp. Wayne said that after meeting Wyatt Earp he tried to be like him in all his movies.Except Wyatt Earp wasn't acting.


Wyatt Earp

[dagosd2000]

In The Middle Of Things

I remember one time i was flipping the remote and decided to give my thumb a rest when i got to the ESPN channel.There was Leon Spinks in the ring with Muhammad Ali.I didn't know if it was the first fight or the second one until Ferdie Pacheco, ,who was doing the color commentary,began jumping out of his chair raving about how Ali was on the cusp of regaining his title.So now I knew it was fight number two. But I'm sitting there watching this(the fight was somewhere in the middle rounds)and wondered if they hadn't overlapped a tape of another one of Ali's fights and mixed it into the action of what I was seeing on the TV. But of course I knew that was impossible. I'm saying this because I thought Spinks was giving a good account of himself.

By that time Pacheco had left Ali's camp. After the Thrilla' In Manila ,Ferdie told Muhammad that if he wanted to go on fighting that he'd have to find another doctor. The red flags were going up all over the place.In a nutshell,Muhammad was used goods.That third fight with Smokin' Joe in Manila played both those guys out. But Ali thought he could go on forever. The public had finally embraced him as something spiritual. The world didn't want to see him fade away-and neither did Ali want to be relegated to doing sports commentary. That would have been demeaning.But as this fight progressed to the bitter end I couldn't believe what Pacheco was spewing out of his mouth. it was more significant than Lazarus rising from the dead. But it just wasn't Ferdie that was seeing all this through his biased prism. The crowd and the rest of the boxing fans on the planet all concurred that Muhammad Ali could work miracles.He would always come back after a defeat and get his pound of flesh. Frazier and Norton could testify to that. Now it would be Leon to serve as an example.

Ali retired after that fight.A fight that was scored by the judges as Spinks only winning 4 of the 15 rounds. Like I said earlier, ,when I tuned in in the middle of this I thought it might be the first fight.There was no way Ali won by such a long bridge. He was lethargic,doing his holding behind the neck thing that was like having the ref on his side,and never landing a staggering blow. But the world didn't want Leon Spinks supplanting The Greatest. They knew Leon wasn't made of the stuff that would put him with names like Louis,Marciano,and Ali. He was too goofy. Not focused. Could barely put two words together.And needed bridge work. He would be another champion that wouldn't be asked to be on any of the talk shows.He had his brief moment in the sun.Now it was time to go into the shade.




So Ali retired,but we all knew that sooner or later his ego needed to be replenished.Somehow he had gotten it in his head that he could beat Larry Holmes. All he could remember about Larry was that he was once his sparring partner. Muhammad looked at a few feet of film of the guy and concluded that Larry had no head movement. Well,Holmes sure moved Ali's head around.Almost tore it off his shoulders.

Predictably poor Leon went into the twilight zone.He lost to a fighter that had never fought before.Leon was KO'd in one round. Ali went on to be immortalized. I saw Leon Spinks in San Diego a few years back. It was at the 4 Points Sheridan Hotel. He was there to watch his nephew Leon Spinks The Third fight someone who I've forgotten the name.Leon was brought up to the ring. He got a good hand. I have a picture of him with my grandson. My grandson didn't know who he was.
"He was the heavyweight champ of the world,"I said."He beat Muhammad Ali."
"Who was Muhammad Ali?"asked my grandson.
I didn't go into a long explanation. It wasn't worth it.


Leon Spinks

[dagosd2000]

My grandson Adam in the ring with the champ,Leon Spinks

[dagosd2000]

It's The Little Things That Give You Away

Yesterday I posted a few things about what I thought of Leon Spinks. I think his second fight with Ali was a lot closer than how the judges had it. In fact I thought he won the fight. But Ali was so damn popular and carried his magic around with him everywhere that you could call his fan base a cult.Boxing didn't want to go on without him and Ali thought he could go on forever. He'd retire and then out of boredom and to refeed his ego he'd return to fight again. It was the fateful bout with Larry Holmes that exposed to the world that Ali would never be in that elite group of heavyweights anymore. We quickly think of the Holmes fight as his last,but Muhammad wanted to go out a winner.But he didn't want to fight a stiff so he chose Trevor Berbick as his opponent Ali would never be great again no matter how much he was kidding himself.

Leon Spinks on the other hand went from his high water mark in his two encounters with Ali and then began sliding into an abyss that would see him lose 17 out of his next 38 fights including failing to finish in 9 of them. Some of those losses were against fighters that couldn't have carried his jockstrap prior to his fight with Ali. One of his KO losses was against a fighter who was making his pro debut.Compounding his problems was another fight he had with substance abuse. He was homeless and broke and then dementia started to eat at him. Last year he was dealing with prostate cancer.

Ali left boxing with his image intact.He had the physical issues but he was Ali and no matter what became of him afterwards his name was already enshrined with boxing's immortals. In fact when it comes right down to it there is no other name in boxing that has had a greater impact than Muhammad Ali.But don't leave that thought just with boxing. The Greatest is considered the greatest athlete ever.The sport of boxing has a lot with doing that. Put the best baseball player or football player at the top and that wanes in comparison with the greatest fighter.Like George Foreman once said"All the other sports aspire to boxing."Boxing,simply,is more macho. A man can climb Mt. Everest or surf an 80 foot wave,but he's doing that against an inanimate object.

In comparison,Ali's fall was bitter sweet,but we still worshiped him.Leon Spinks went out in flames.He was quickly forgotten except when it came to him being the butt end of a joke.

So what am I getting at? Yesterday I wrote about Spinks in all my hoity toitiness and this morning I posted my photo of my grandson Adam posing for a picture in the ring with him. Did you see the red flag?I'll call it that.Under the picture I wrote "My grandson Adam in the ring with the former champ,Leon Spinks.The word "former" is the tip off.Now let's say my grandson would have been in that ring with Ali or Frazier or Foreman-even Holmes;I know I would have left out the word "former." No.Those other guys would still be referred to as "champ." They are in that paragon of the best.No "former " or "ex" in front of champion for those guys,in a way,it is a slight against Spinks. That was my subtle slur I used on Leon Spinks. Because he went out so pathetically I felt that "former" was to be included in his address. Yes.Spinks was once a champion,but Ali would always be a champion. It's not fair on my part. Spinks was just as much a champion as Ali in the technical sense. I was trying to be slick that's all. Tried to get one by you. But I was just fooling myself. When you get to the Pearly Gaits,St. Peter isn't going to take into account any popularity polls. So after reading this if you go to my post this morning with my grandson and Spinks posing in the ring you'll see that I did some editing.


George Foreman

[dagosd2000]

The Standard-Bearer

Muhammad Ali is the standard-bearer when it comes to comparing how the other heavyweight champions would have fared against him in the ring.Of course it's always the question of how would a Dempsey or a Louis would have performed against a Prime Ali. The Ali that was floating and stinging prior to the boxing commissions yanking his license because he didn't have anything against the Viet Cong thus he wasn't going in the Army.

After three and a half years attitudes turned in the country with the war becoming unpopular and Ali not being out of line after all.The state of Georgia let him back in the ring again and of course the public and all the spin doctors involved with making fights were licking their chops. Ali's test would be against Jerry Quarry. That seemed fair enough. Ali was the logical favorite to win that fight,but the question in the back of our minds was "did Ali lose a step?"

it was hard to tell.The fight didn't last three rounds because Quarry's cuts opened up and they couldn't let him continue. But it was Ali's punches that caused the damage,but was he still the same fighter that showed all that talent against Zora Folley in his last fight before Uncle Sam put the kibosh on his boxing?We wanted to believe he was. But we also knew that Ali was always very active and never ducked anybody so we'd just have to wait a little.

The New York commission relented wanting to jump on the Ali gravy train so Oscar Bonavena was summoned to Madison Square Garden to provide Ali with test umber two.But it was with this fight that we saw something was wrong. Ali wasn't floating.He was flatfooted.His legs looked dead.He labored. Howard Cosell who was calling the fight thought that Ali was physically ill. No. He wasn't ill. He was growing old.Ali was ahead in the fight but was getting tagged by the big slow bruiser Ringo. In the 14th round with everyone thinking that Bonavena would have no problem going the distance,Ali caught him with a punch he seldom used-a left hook. It was over. But for the Ali contingent there were concerns. How long could he go on if he fought like he did against Bonavena? A hungry Smokin' Joe was waiting and though Ringo had put him on the canvas twice Frazier had too much hustle for the bulky Argentinian.

They called it The Fight Of The Century but it wasn't.The tagline made sensed but the fight stunk.Ali tried to fend off Frazier fighting on the ropes..His legs couldn't get him out of trouble.And now we began to see an Ali tactic that was unbecoming-holding behind the head.

But it was the post banishment where Ali he built his legend. His body was heavier and he was seldom on his toes. We kept thinking if we waited long enough Ali would catch lightning in the bottle. Anyone that thinks especially that an old fighter will find The Fountain Of Youth is using peyote.

The young lions that stood in his path would make the world take notice and show that Ali had the heart of the king of beasts. Joe Frazier wanted to grind him into mince meat. Ken Norton wasn't afraid of him. And George Foreman wanted to kill him. The division was deep with quality fighters. It's not like we see today. Fat guys,slow guys. Fighters who look like they haven't spent enough time learning the sport. Some of these fighters are Herculean! They're put together impressively,but their intestinal fortitude is lacking.

There is no doubt in my mind that Joe Louis would have never found Ali in the ring. Dempsey's rushes would be smothered. Marciano would have gotten vertigo trying to catch up with him. And Tyson wouldn't have had the will. Holmes beat him but good,but we also remember Larry when was a sparring partner when Ali was at his best.

So we see the mythical matchups.Ali against you name it. But those hypothetical fights are always couched with Ali in his "prime."That's only fair.Ali built his rep with fighters who were in their primes.Ali wasn't. He could have stayed retired numerous times,but his ego obsessed him. Holmes almost killed him,but Ali still wanted to go on.The Berbick fight was scary. Not that Ali took a beating but that the wiring in his head was frayed. Not only did Berbick outfight Ali,but the dementia was jabbing away at him.

I brought this up once before. What if those kids in Louisville hadn't have stolen Cassius' bike and thus he wouldn't have gone to the police gym to learn how to fight? Who would we be comparing each other with with all the other heavyweights that are left on the docket?That question would be a little trite.Thank God those kids stole his bike.




Oscar Bonavena

[goose 5]

Roger: If you haven't already done so, could you share some memories and thoughts about Jack O 'Halloran ?
Did you ever train with him ?

[dagosd2000]

Roger: If you haven't already done so, could you share some memories and thoughts about Jack O 'Halloran ?
Did you ever train with him ?

A Jack Of All Trades

No Goose I never trained with Jack O'Halloran. But I did get to know him a little. When he blew in to San Diego he was still on the cusp of being a legit contender or just a stepping stone. This was in early 1972. He had had his difficulties with Mac Foster and George Foreman having failed to go the distance. But he could put on his resume that he had a split decision win over Cleveland Williams and a knockout victory over Manual Ramos. When he signed to fight Ken Norton it was a crossroads fight for both boys. Norton was trying to straighten himself out after being demolished by Jose Luis Garcia a few years earlier.O'Halloran,if he could hand Norton his second defeat,would establish himself as something to be reckoned with in the heavyweight division.

I saw O'Halloran train at the Coliseum a few times.He sure was big and hairy and had a chomper could have type cast him as the shark in that Spielberg flick Jaws. He was nothing to write home about seeing him train. He was slow and didn't move well.But what he had was charisma. He was really quite a smart guy though you wouldn't think so by just looking at him. He was funny and went around bragging that he would beat Norton even without having to bite him.The local press fed into his boasts and by the time the fight went off he had most of San Diego behind him. I don't remember ever seeing a crowd at the Coliseum that was that animated before a fight. It was a circus like atmosphere with people dressed up in different costumes ,and they all were in Jack's corner. The fight was pretty even going into the 6th round. it was a good fight until then ,but not great fight.I think everyone was waiting for Norton to run out of gas like he was used to doing in previous fights.But like I mentioned before,he was getting hypnotized by this shrink Dr. Dean Ezell who told him it was something psychological that was making him hit the wall.

Anyway,Norton was still breathing regular by the 6th round when he connected on Jack's big chin.He crashed to the canvas breaking the needle on the Richter Scale at Mt. Palomar. That was the factor in Norton's unanimous decision win.But San Diego didn't want to let O'Halloran go. He became a big draw. He kind of made San Diego his home. He split a couple of fights with Henry Clark,But all in all down the road Jack was the perfect set up guy for the hot fighter. Besides, having a fan base in San Diego kept him close to his future base of operations-Hollywood. After retiring in !974(a stoppage at the hands of Howard Smith at the Coliseum)Jack began running with the Tinsel Town set and was making movies.

O'Halloran put out a story that leaves one wondering.He said one day that Muhammad Ali gave him call and asked for a favor. Ali waned O'Halloran to give his brother ,Rashan Ali,a good beating. Ali told O'Halloran that his brother shouldn't be fighting because he wasn't very good and a sound licking would make him hangup his gloves.I saw Ali's bro and O'Halloran go at it at the Coliseum. It was a slow affair with Jack hitting him often enough that Rahman was counted out in the 8th round.But I don't buy Jack's account of what Ali wanted from him.Ali wouldn't want anything bad happen to his brother.What gives me credence to of my take on this is Jack's personal description of his fight with Norton.Jack says he was beating the crap out of Norton and that Ken tried to pull the fat out of the fire by fouling him.Jack said that at the end of one of the later rounds Kenny slugged him after the bell sounded.Then according to O'Halloran,the ref Frank Rustich,went to Jack's corner and said he'd give him the fight on a foul.But again, according to Jack,he said he was so pissed off that he wanted to go on .When the final bell rang Rustich raised Norton's hand giving him the decision.Again,according to you know who,it was highway robbery.

Don't believe any of what O'Halloran says about that fight with Norton. The only thing I can figure is maybe he was practicing up on being a Hollywood actor.


Ken Norton

[goose 5]

Thank you, Roger. Great post on big Jack .He tells a great story about Joey Giardello knocking out a karate expert; it's in an interview that's easy to find on the net.

[dagosd2000]

The More You Lose

I don't know what it was with those Outfit guys in Chicago.They really liked going to the track and bet the ponies. My mother almost divorced my father because he'd go to Washington Park with all his friends and come back home broke. But then he'd go out the next day and earn some more money one way or another and he'd be back at the track again.But it was easy for those mobsters because they could do it their way and not have to worry about getting caught-at least most of the time.

One guy who tagged along with that crew at the track was a fighter. His name was Mike Sopko. I used to hear my father talk about him from time to time. He was what they call a gambling degenerate,but in a sense they all where. The thing was that Mike Sopko was always strapped. He wasn't a world beater as a fighter so he was always in hock to the gangsters and the bookies. So he would do what the Outfit asked him to do when it came to laying down in a fight,but because he wasn't Sugar Ray Robinson there wasn't a lot of action making much money with him. He also would put on his brass knuckles when asked to collect a few debts owed or if someone got out of line and needed to be taught a lesson. I don't think they asked him to kill anybody. They had other guys who did that kind of stuff.

One day when i was a little kid I remember Mike Sopko coming over to my grandfather's house on the corner of Polk and Oakley Boulevards. My grandmother was living there with her daughter,my aunt Jeanette and her two boys,my cousins,Frankie and Joey. My grandfather ,Diamond Joe,was long gone by then,but once in awhile the wise guys would congregate there for a Sunday dinner or if they wanted to discuss something.Of course the women and kids would be exiled to the kitchen.They didn't want to know what was gong on anyway. That day Mike Sopko came over it was to rendezvous with all the fellas' before going off to the track. I remember Johnny Haircut was there and so was Sam Giancana. They played golf together a lot.Johnny haircut also had a pizza joint in Melrose Park that served as a front for the bookmaking he did in the backroom.My father was there with his little brother Chuckie. He was named after the Republican senator from Chicago,Charles Dineen,who was one of my grandfathers patrons back in the 20's.

As they were ready to disembark to the track I heard my father rib Mike Sopko. I guess they were always busting his balls,but he didn't mind the attention.In fact he liked it.
"So Mike how much are you going lose today?"my father quipped.
"Somebody has to feed the horses,"the fighter came back with a laugh.
"You'll be tapped out by the end of the first race.You bet it all at once."
Then i remember the funniest thing.The bruised middleweight said something to my father I'll never forget.
"The less you bet the more you lose when you win."
Made sense,but you'd seldom see Mike Sopko at the cashier window.


My grandfather's house on the corner of Polk and Oakley.