Classic American West Coast Boxing

[dagosd2000]

I Can Hardly Remember

Oscar Levant had his own late night show in the late 50's in LA on the local network KCOP channel 13.It came on very late at night, and me not being a night owl didn't watch his show that much.

I was a fan of Levant. He's kind of a difficult guy to describe.if your in the dark. He was a cross between a concert pianist and a Tin Pan Alley tickler and a psychotic.When he moved to New York City in the late 20's he fell in with all the song writers.He was witty and funny and people for the most part liked his company because he didn't take life that seriously and made people laugh.Later,he was in demand to be a panelist on a variety of shows because you never knew that inside his percolating mind he would emit something on the borderline of being crude, yet brilliant enough to make the most somber chuckle.
"I knew Doris Day before she was a virgin.".
"Now that Marilyn Monroe married Arthur Miller and coveted to Judaism and became Kosher he can eat her."
Stuff like that.He could make it spew out of hid his head into his mouth on a dime.He was clever yet not a snobbish, superior sort.

There are no kinescopes of the show. One time Fred Astaire was a guest and he had his appearance taped for a personal memento. It's on YouTube.To say it's priceless would be an understatement.

Levant would sit at the piano and his wife,June,would be beside him sitting on a stool.The studio audience was small. A plethora of celebrities pressed Levant to be on his show. He was never a victim of having an inferiority complex..It wasn't in his make up .Nor could he be serious.One air he chained smoked, got up and walked around on the spur of the moment;all the while fidgeting showing his tics and phobias. It might seem a chore and a bit of a downer to see someone in this state of contortion ,but like I said the guy you keep you stitches.

Another reason for not watching the show, besides me being an early to bed person, was that the local LA channels(KTLA channel 5,KTTV channel 11,and KCOP channel 13)had poor reception down here in San Diego. You could wad up the rabbit ears with aluminum foil and move it around on top of the TV but the chances of getting a clear picture were dim. If the weather was bad you could forget it.

One of his shows I didn't want to miss was the time Archie Moore was a guest.Levant was born in Pittsburg ,PA and as a teen became a big fan of boxing.He wasn't what you'd call a Jim Thorpe but he liked to follow sports, especially boxing.Harry Greb.the local, was his guy.

I don't think Levant had any other fighters on his show. I couldn't imagine Rocky Marciano wanting to trade punches with him.He left Joe Louis alone. I could see Sugar Ray with him but I don't have any recollection of that.Archie Moore would be a fit.

The night of the show the weather was good,not a cloud in the sky,and the reception came in clear. However,as time marches on my memories of that show faded slowly but surely. I can barely remember anything from it.One thing that I didn't forget was the time Levant told Moore that when he punched a punching bag his anxieties would wane along with his stamina. It was therapeutic.Moore said he would make it a point to get Levant a punching bag.

I don't know if Archie Moore ever delivered that punching bag to Oscar Levant's house.Like I said,it was so long ago I can hardly remember.


Fred and Ginger.If you get a chance,watch the tape on YouTube of Levant's show the time he had Astaire as his guest.Astaire petitioned Levant to appear and Levant had no problem with that. Both being pals with George Gershwin(Levant's closet friend)I'd never seen Astaire letting his hair down like he did on that show, To use a worn cliche,It's priceless.

[dagosd2000]

Birds Of A Feather

Gangsters and fighters often seem to go hand in hand. A lot of males like to hang out with fighters.It's like a vicarious fantasy,a Walter Mitty thing, that makes a guy think he's a tough guy too.He thinks he's in in the fraternity,but he's not.Deep down inside he knows that. But a lot of fighters like the adulation.I don't think Joe Louis ever bought a drink or a meal when he was with company.

But getting back to gangsters. They're tough guys.So what's the attraction they have with an ex pug? In a way it's condenscending.They know that fighters for the most part don't know how to do anything else to make a buck than to fight in the ring.When that's over many of them are lost in the storm.That's when the local boss of the neighborhood can throw them a bone. Run numbers,sling drinks behind a bar,break a few welshers' legs, even whack a few who guys that got the thumbs down at the sit down.

Yet there's a pecking order and the ex pug is always a step down. Look at Sonny Liston.Here was a guy who was the heavyweight champ of the world ,but the smart guys took him for a stooge. His left hook and menacing scare didn't mean a thing to the Wise Guys. Neither was his accomplishments as a fighter. The Mob never asked him for his autograph.

Gangsters looked at fighters as suckers for the most part. They get their brains beat out for chump change when a Wise Guy had enough street smarts and nerve to take what he wanted without having to get up at 5 in the morning to do roadwork,kill himself to make weight, and then get slugged in the head in a boxing ring.


Now don't get me wrong.A lot of those criminals wound up floating face down in the East River or dying in prison. But once an ex pug sells his soul to the Mob the canances of him winding up a statistic are better than even odds.

Mobsters call the world they live in "The LIfe." I don't know what fighters call their world. But I've seen enough of them afterwards to know that that wasn't the life for for me.


Sonny Liston.He never made Blinky Palermo s--t in his pants.

[dagosd2000]

My Sister Did All The Fighting

I mentioned the other day about Archie Moore being a guest on Oscar Levant's late night show that was broadcast up in LA.Levant said that he found punching the heavy bag therarpeutic for his frayed nerves.The exercise tired him out in turn calming him down. Moore then remarked that he'd provide Levant with a heavy bag.

I then wrote that I didn't recall Sugar Ray Robinson being on Levant's show. I said that because Levant was a big boxing fan and that Robinson seemed to be right up Levant's alley when it came to providing inciteful banter. Well, I surfed around the internet and flipped through the pages of Levant's autobiography ,printed in 1965, called ,"The Memoirs Of An Amnesiac" and sure enough I stumbled upon Levant telling of the time he had the Sugar Man on his show.

Levant's first guest that night was Dean Martin who Levant found "interesting and very charming."Then Ray Robinson walked into view. Levant said that he never went back to Martin and stayed with Robinson till the show signed off.Levant only devoted a paragraph to his recollection.(The book is not only a life story of Levant up to that time but it is filled with anecdotes of just about all the people who crossed his path).Levant said that while they were going back and forth he suddenly shifted gears interrupting Robinson.
"I can tell by our talking that you don't like fighting,"remarked Levant.
Robby wasn't caught off guard.
"When I was growing up my older sister did most of the fighting in the neighborhood.She was m protector."

When Robinson was being interviewed by Edward R. Morrow he made a similar comment. When Murrow asked him if he liked fighting,Robby said that he really didn't but knew he could make money being a fighter so he could help his family and that's what made him do it.

HBO did a documentary of Robinson after he passed away. His sister was interviewed and she said that her brother didn't really like fighting and that when they were kids she was in more neighborhood scuffles than her little brother.

It would be safe to say that Sugar Ray Robinson was no street fighter;that he didn't throw his weight around. He was certainly no bully. But don't let yourself be mislead thinking he didn't like boxing. Boxing was his Lady.

I heard Robinson say once that boxing gave him fulfillment knowing he could outsmart his opponent thus knocking his brains out and making him look inept in the process..You could say that Sugar Ray Robinson was an intellectual assassin. That's a double ego feeder.


Sugar Ray Robinson

[dagosd2000]

You Don't Play Boxing

I read where Manny Pacquiao said that-"You don't play boxing." He probably heard that from somewhere but he was right.He said it after a fighter collapsed in his corner after an 8 round fight which was part of a Pacquiao promotion in the Philippines.

You play baseball and basketball; football you play;golf;hockey; tennis and pig pong. But you don't play boxing.Just the word "play" is incongruous.Could you imagine going to a boxing gym and asking,"Does anyone want to play boxing?"

Manny Pacquiao felt terrible about what happened the other night with that fighter. That's the thought in the back of the mind when any fighter enters the ring-after it's over will I be seeing my maker? Pacquiao said he'd pay for all medical expenses incurred. The kid died in the hospital that night. He had had 9 fights up to that time..

There was an added twist of irony to this tragedy. The kid collapsed in his corner before the decision had been announced.He had won the fight.What can you say after something like that?

[dagosd2000]

The Music Goes Round And Round

Got to thinking of all those fellas' who tried to put an end to Joe Louis' reign as heavyweight champ. You know Louis in his entire career was never an underdog in one of his fights.When Schmeling beat him for the first time there were some who said that Louis would go south ,but he didn't.He wasn't the champ yet when he lost to Schmeling, but Louis turned it around quick.

Two months later he was back in the ring with Jack Sharkey who was going around saying he had never lost to a black fighter and he wasn't about to lose to Louis,Louis finally beat Jimmy Braddock to win the championship after squaring things with Mike Jacobs and Braddock's manager Joe Gould(Braddock after freezing the title for 2 years was to sign to fight Max Schmeling but Jimmy dropped out of the fight saying he hurt his hand in training.But then Gould had a sit down with Mike Jacobs promising Gould that if he offered Jimmy to fight Joe that Gould would collect 10 percent of Louis' earnings for the rest of his career)

Louis never lost another fight until Ezzard Charles beat him after the war.I think about all those White Hopes(and John Henry Lewis) that tried to to pull the upset of the century. They just went round and round till they all fell down.

I told you about the time I was coaching football at the local high school and Louis's adopted son ,John,was on the team.This was after Joe had passed away. The kid was real soft spoken and slight of build.He was an all right player but he wasn't gong to get a scholly to any college. I kind of kick myself in the ass for never talking about him about his step father.No one did.I don't think John knew much about Joe Louis.He was adopted when Joe was having his physical and mental problems.

Believe it or not ,Joe Louis' real son ,Joe Jr.,posted once on the forum.I can't remember what it was about.A correction of some sort.I tried to PM him about John and what he was up to but I never got a reply. Just went round and round so to speak.

[dagosd2000]

Mothers Day

Most fighters' mothers don't want their sons to be fighters,or if they do become fighters the mothers start to agonize. Benny Leonard's mother worried like all get out.Rocky Marciano's mother wouldn't watch his fights.Some fighters take up the sport on the sly to keep their mother in the dark so they won't worry. But there was one mother of a fighter who relished his decision to take up prizefighting. This guy had a little brother who followed in his footsteps.You should know by now,especialy if your a fan in the Southland;yeah,Jerry Quarry and his little bro Mike.

Their dad ,Jack, got them to put on the gloves with the rallying cry that "There's no quit in Quarry."Mom was in lockstep.I don't know if it was an Irish thing or whether they were on some sort of obsessive quest or they had seen too many Jimmy Cagney movies. Their mom,Arwanda, was as fanatical about her boys' success as was her husband Jack who wanted to be a fighter once but because of having psoriasis on his legs was modest about wearing boxing trunks.

To elaborate about what happened to the Quarry boys in the end would open old wounds, or make a statement to ban the sport.There's no bright side. After the last round Jerry was with his mother mostly as he wandered off into oblivion.Arwanda was also his caretaker. She would sadly rue that if they had to do it over again....

I remember the Quarry clan sitting ringside to watch Mike fight the local product,Amado Vasquez,at the public park in National City located just south of San Diego proper. When Mike walked down the aisle to enter the ring with his brother Jerry,the crowd began to boil. Ma and pa Quarry and the boys' wives rose and had a look like "you go ahead and start something and we'll finish it." While the Quarry's stood their ground the crowd thought twice about turning mob.

Mothers Day is sometimes just a pause so those boys will be boys can go visit that person who brought them into this world and show a little gratitude;a moment to let their mothers know not to worry.They're so grateful to see them so close.Don't they know a boy's best friend is his mother?Norman Bates said that in Psycho.



One of several documentaries about Jerry Quarry battling his demons. Arwanda Quarry adds her thoughts

[dagosd2000]

Jerry Quarry

[dagosd2000]

He Didn't Know How To Quit

"There's no quit in a Quarry" he used to tell his boys.Jack Quarry wanted to live his dream of being a great fighter through his sons.But it wasn't a hard sell;not like the Moyer brothers with their father,especially Phil who didn't have the pluck to tell his old man to find another punching bag.No. The Quarrys were all for it. They were Irish and tough and didn't have any fear.

Jerry the being the biggest of the lot was a heavyweight and that's where all the fame and glory was.Forget the money for now. Getty could have all his dough.Being the heavyweight champion of the world was a step below God.

Jerry Quarry was always a draw even when it was apparent that there was something funny about his EKG's. He loved to get in there with a big fighter who had more sock in his punch than he had. Mac Foster,the Marine who was knocking guys over like bowling pins and was undefeated, was supposed to roll a perfect game against Jerry. But Quarry came out throwing caution to the wind.There might have been a game plan but he would forget what it was after the opening bell. He was on a quest to break MacArthur down and when it was over it was Big Mac that looked like ground round.

Earnie Shavers was a guy to stay away from. If he hit you with that right and of his it was another KO to put in his win column.But Quarry came out after Shavers at the bell like go ahead and throw your right.Ive got one too. Jerry flailed away at Shavers having him befuddled and out of action before the 1st round was over.

But there were times when Quarry was in over his head.Joe Frazier stood in front of him smokin and it was Jerry who gave out first. When Jerry was hurt he didn't know how to get out of the way. He had no first gear.

Ali knew that Jerry's skin was like paper mache and he left his face out there. After enough blood was spilt the referee would call a halt and Jerry would fume.

Quarry's last big fight with Ken Norton was brutal. Jerry was beginning to show signs of wear and tear before this one and when it was over he looked like a rattle trap with 300 thousand miles on it.

But that didn't make Quarry think about stopping. That wasn't in his vocabulary. He'd find a commission somewhere to give him a boxing license. Now he was really talking goofy. They'd ask him about how he was doing and he'd say something like he got this way playing football. Jerry never played the sport.

HIs mother was with him now most of the time. She would never leave his corner.

George Foreman recently said he was glad he never fought Jerry. Big George knew that his stare down and his rep wouldn't psyche out Jerry.It would just make him more mad.

When Jerry was inducted into the World Boxing Hall Of Fame in 1996 he got up to make his speech. It was uncomfortable to watch. You could hear the silence.Then some guy in the back yelled out in a coarse voice,"We love ya' Jerry!"

Wasn't there a song called,"Your Love Is Bittersweet"?


Jerry Quarry

[dagosd2000]

Pardon The Interruption

At the 1938 Academy Awards the song below,Sweet Leilani"won the Oscar for best song.



beating out this song



Now you have an idea about how I feel about ranking things

[dagosd2000]

The Arena Of The Stars

When I was a kid my father took me up to LA to watch my favorite wrestler,Argentine Rocca,grapple at the Hollywood Legion Stadium. A few years in 1960 later the place shut its doors ,at least when it came to putting on boxing and wrestling shows. The Legion Stadium was in the midst of the big movie studios and watering holes of Hollywood's "beautiful people." Many of them were frequent attenders. They came to see fighters like Henry Armstrong(Al Jolson had a piece of him),Archie Moore,Manual Ortiz,Maxie Rosenbloom,Mickey Walker,and Chalky Wright(he later became Mae West's chauffer and drove her around through the streets and the bedroom.Mae had a thing for fighters and wrestlers especially if they had a "hook" for a schnozz.It was a fetish and I can only guess the times they got to put it in her intake valve").

Gable and Lombard,Tracy and Hepburn,Sinatra,Dean Martin,George Raft,Bogey,and Errol Flynn could be seen sitting ringside on a Saturday night,and then during the crowd chaser they would be off to The Trocadero,Slapsy Maxies or The Coconut Grove to let their hair down.

When I started to walk in on the various boxing ceremonies in Los Angeles I got to touch bases with The Legion's matchmaker,Hap Navarro. He was in his 90's then but he could still give and take His recall was total and it was too bad that I couldn't get to know him better. He passed away in 2014 at the age of 94. He had the yen to correspond with me on the internet and his stories of what it was like in the day always fascinated me. He said he approached matchmaking as an "art", like a casting director who would carefully move his stars along their careers.. He was a gentle and wise man.

The site of where the Hollywood Legion Stadium was is now a LA Fitness Center. Somehow that doesn't grab my soul.


Hap Navarro in his later years

[dagosd2000]

Heroic Passivity

I want to make one thing clear about my email conversations with Hap Navarro-we never talked boxing. I had pasted a picture on the forum many years back of the time I took my grandchildren for lunch at the roadside diner in Pine Valley that's located in the foothills east of San Diego.That's when Hap ,after seeing the picture, said that was one of his favorite eateries when traveling east to Arizona on old Highway 8. The picture brought back a lot of old memories when he used to take his family for drive in the country.

There weren't many back and forths between Hap and myself.Hap philosophized a lot about how the world has changed,most significantly the people in it. He said in his day(and we'll never see that again) people accepted what life handed them and they dealt with it. He called it heroic passivity.(There's video on YouTube constructed by Hap's daughter,a tribute to her father, and he mentions this).He said the exception was when it came to providing for the family.Then you did anything necessary.He ran this line tongue in cheek.

Hap was only the matchmaker at The Hollywood Legion for a couple of years in the late 50's. By that time most of the big fights were taking place at the Olympic Auditorium.The Hollywood Legion had no more boxing after 1960.

Hap's daughter used an old Nat King Cole favorite as a backdrop in her video. Here it is with that picture of the time I took my grandkids to lunch.

[dagosd2000]

Maceton And Marcos

I took my cab driver friend,Bonifacio, with me to the fights at the Municipal Auditorium in Tijuana.Oh,this was back in the early 80's as I recall. Me and Bonifacio had been drinking it up pretty good beforehand.We had walked up and down Revolution Street ,one side and then the other, hitting every watering hole. We were certainly in no pain by the time we arrived at the arena,

The main event that night was the big draw. Maceton Cabrera and Marcos Geraldo were going to fight for the Mexican light heavyweight championship. Geraldo was no stranger to Southland boxing and the rest of the state of California,The Silver Slipper in Las Vegas(he fought there 25 times),and Baja California.By the time he wanted to find another way to make a living hanging up his gloves he had a a hundred fight even HIs record shows he won 71,losing 28,and having only a single draw. In that loss column it shows that he was stopped 21 times.

But Marcos Geraldo was sort of a mystery man.He was prone to to taking a dive when there was more money in it for him. He ran afoul of the Mexican commission and was suspended for partaking in some funny fights.He fought a lot of big names-3 of the 4 Kings:Leonard,Hagler,and Hearns. He came out on the short end in all three but Sugar Ray said that when he stepped up a weight to feel out the 160 pounders that Gerado was one the toughest hombres he ever fought, the decision going the distance. It was the same with Marvelous Marvin. Hagler had all he could handle winning a close 10 rounder. Tommy iced him in the 1st round but then it might have been set up that way.

I saw Geraldo in action a lot at the San Diego Coliseum. His fights with David Love and Renato Garcia were all losses but then you never knew with Marcos.Like I posted awhile back,there weren't a bevy of big name Mexican fighters who fought at The Coliseum.Geraldo was about as top drawer as it got, yet with all the Mexicans who went to the fights at The Coliseum I never heard a lot of "Matalos"(kill him) coming from the Hispanic section. When it came to backing their "carnal." Marcos wasn't exactly a "compadre."

Marcos Geraldo reminded me of that Mexican fighter that was brought up to fight Billy Tully in John Huston's movie "Fat City." He'd get on the bus;suitcase in hand;and go fight anyone ,anywhere, win loose or draw;and then get back on the bus.He was a Mexican "everyman" of boxing. Baby Vasquez and Kid Azteca were of similar ilk.Never a champ but never a chump either

That night at The Municipal Auditorium Gerado was in there with another iconic figure of Mexican boxing-the big lug who walked with a limp and sported that iron gray crew cut-David "Maceton" Cabrera."Maceton" is slang for a Frankensten monster type who plods along on life's pathway. He's not vociferous as mech as he is a hulk of few words.

Legend has it that "Maceton" got that limp in his step in a gunfight, but the truth was it was a car accident.But why should the Mexican commssion refuse him a license?The allure had more to offer than thinking of his health.

On paper the fight seemed a mismatch.Geraldo had fought better quality of oppostion ,and I couldn't imagine him losing to a guy with a limp.But surprisingly it was Geraldo who came out of his corner "limping." He looked drugged.The crowd was growing on "Maceton" and now they wanted to see the old guy pull the upset.(Actually I think Marcos was older).

Well, like I said,I was feeling no pain and had told my taxista amigo that Geraldo would mop the floor with this guy.I started to get upset with the manner Geraldo was going about his work so I left my seat and staggered to his corner between rounds and admonished him to kick this guy's ass.

I can't recollect word for word what I blurted out but in the next round there was "Maceton" stretched out on the canvas. Thinking about it now maybe Geraldo was supposed to carry the guy for a spell. You never knew what was going on with Marcos. But it was all said and done so me and Bonifacio went back into town and finished of where we had left off. We still had some bills left in our wallets and we didn't want to get rolled and have the thieves getting off with any of our money As I recall we spent it on booze and broads and blew the rest.


Tijuana Municipal Auditorium

[Joson]

Maceton And Marcos

I took my cab driver friend,Bonifacio, with me to the fights at the Municipal Auditorium in Tijuana.Oh,this was back in the early 80's as I recall. Me and Bonifacio had been drinking it up pretty good beforehand.We had walked up and down Revolution Street ,one side and then the other, hitting every watering hole. We were certainly in no pain by the time we arrived at the arena,

The main event that night was the big draw. Maceton Cabrera and Marcos Geraldo were going to fight for the Mexican light heavyweight championship. Geraldo was no stranger to Southland boxing and the rest of the state of California,The Silver Slipper in Las Vegas(he fought there 25 times),and Baja California.By the time he wanted to find another way to make a living hanging up his gloves he had a a hundred fight even HIs record shows he won 71,losing 28,and having only a single draw. In that loss column it shows that he was stopped 21 times.

But Marcos Geraldo was sort of a mystery man.He was prone to to taking a dive when there was more money in it for him. He ran afoul of the Mexican commission and was suspended for partaking in some funny fights.He fought a lot of big names-3 of the 4 Kings:Leonard,Hagler,and Hearns. He came out on the short end in all three but Sugar Ray said that when he stepped up a weight to feel out the 160 pounders that Gerado was one the toughest hombres he ever fought, the decision going the distance. It was the same with Marvelous Marvin. Hagler had all he could handle winning a close 10 rounder. Tommy iced him in the 1st round but then it might have been set up that way.

I saw Geraldo in action a lot at the San Diego Coliseum. His fights with David Love and Renato Garcia were all losses but then you never knew with Marcos.Like I posted awhile back,there weren't a bevy of big name Mexican fighters who fought at The Coliseum.Geraldo was about as top drawer as it got, yet with all the Mexicans who went to the fights at The Coliseum I never heard a lot of "Matalos"(kill him) coming from the Hispanic section. When it came to backing their "carnal." Marcos wasn't exactly a "compadre."

Marcos Geraldo reminded me of that Mexican fighter that was brought up to fight Billy Tully in John Huston's movie "Fat City." He'd get on the bus;suitcase in hand;and go fight anyone ,anywhere, win loose or draw;and then get back on the bus.He was a Mexican "everyman" of boxing. Baby Vasquez and Kid Azteca were of similar ilk.Never a champ but never a chump either

That night at The Municipal Auditorium Gerado was in there with another iconic figure of Mexican boxing-the big lug who walked with a limp and sported that iron gray crew cut-David "Maceton" Cabrera."Maceton" is slang for a Frankensten monster type who plods along on life's pathway. He's not vociferous as mech as he is a hulk of few words.

Legend has it that "Maceton" got that limp in his step in a gunfight, but the truth was it was a car accident.But why should the Mexican commssion refuse him a license?The allure had more to offer than thinking of his health.

On paper the fight seemed a mismatch.Geraldo had fought better quality of oppostion ,and I couldn't imagine him losing to a guy with a limp.But surprisingly it was Geraldo who came out of his corner "limping." He looked drugged.The crowd was growing on "Maceton" and now they wanted to see the old guy pull the upset.(Actually I think Marcos was older).

Well, like I said,I was feeling no pain and had told my taxista amigo that Geraldo would mop the floor with this guy.I started to get upset with the manner Geraldo was going about his work so I left my seat and staggered to his corner between rounds and admonished him to kick this guy's ass.

I can't recollect word for word what I blurted out but in the next round there was "Maceton" stretched out on the canvas. Thinking about it now maybe Geraldo was supposed to carry the guy for a spell. You never knew what was going on with Marcos. But it was all said and done so me and Bonifacio went back into town and finished of where we had left off. We still had some bills left in our wallets and we didn't want to get rolled and have the thieves getting off with any of our money As I recall we spent it on booze and broads and blew the rest.


Tijuana Municipal Auditorium

I remember Marcos Geraldo. He sort of gatecrashed the world-class boxing scene by going the distance in losing efforts to SRR and MMH. At the time, 1979 and 1980, SRR and MMH were knocking everyone out, so Geraldo looked like a "maybe" good fighter just for finishing on his feet.

Geraldo certainly had the look of a fighter. Mean, lean, sinewy, a bit tallish, the dude must have been eight percent body fat tops. He was a sunbaked mofo too, like he'd passed his life boxing in outdoor arenas somewhere. He had a lot of losses on his record, no doubt. But his efforts against SRR and MHH made clear he could fight.

But then, inexplicably, Marcos got sparked in one round by Detroit's Caveman Lee, a prospect who was nowhere near the world ratings. The Lee wipe out somehow didn't make sense, at least not in my mind. After that came another first round KO loss, this one to Hitman Hearns. The loss to Hearns wasn't so hard to understand, given that Tommy was a big-time bomber during those years. But after that loss, Geraldo just sort of drifted away from the boxing's world stage.

It's interesting that you say Geraldo was known for taking the short-money in California and Mexican rings. I see a lot KO losses on his record, dating even from just before his SRR and MHH performances. Funny money is perhaps the only explanation for Gelaldo's inconsistency.

But yeah, I really did think that Geraldo was a good fighter, based on his SRR and MMH bouts. In my opinion he could easily have ranked among the world's top-ten middleweights for years. No doubt about it.

[Joson]

Maceton And Marcos

I took my cab driver friend,Bonifacio, with me to the fights at the Municipal Auditorium in Tijuana.Oh,this was back in the early 80's as I recall. Me and Bonifacio had been drinking it up pretty good beforehand.We had walked up and down Revolution Street ,one side and then the other, hitting every watering hole. We were certainly in no pain by the time we arrived at the arena,

The main event that night was the big draw. Maceton Cabrera and Marcos Geraldo were going to fight for the Mexican light heavyweight championship. Geraldo was no stranger to Southland boxing and the rest of the state of California,The Silver Slipper in Las Vegas(he fought there 25 times),and Baja California.By the time he wanted to find another way to make a living hanging up his gloves he had a a hundred fight even HIs record shows he won 71,losing 28,and having only a single draw. In that loss column it shows that he was stopped 21 times.

But Marcos Geraldo was sort of a mystery man.He was prone to to taking a dive when there was more money in it for him. He ran afoul of the Mexican commission and was suspended for partaking in some funny fights.He fought a lot of big names-3 of the 4 Kings:Leonard,Hagler,and Hearns. He came out on the short end in all three but Sugar Ray said that when he stepped up a weight to feel out the 160 pounders that Gerado was one the toughest hombres he ever fought, the decision going the distance. It was the same with Marvelous Marvin. Hagler had all he could handle winning a close 10 rounder. Tommy iced him in the 1st round but then it might have been set up that way.

I saw Geraldo in action a lot at the San Diego Coliseum. His fights with David Love and Renato Garcia were all losses but then you never knew with Marcos.Like I posted awhile back,there weren't a bevy of big name Mexican fighters who fought at The Coliseum.Geraldo was about as top drawer as it got, yet with all the Mexicans who went to the fights at The Coliseum I never heard a lot of "Matalos"(kill him) coming from the Hispanic section. When it came to backing their "carnal." Marcos wasn't exactly a "compadre."

Marcos Geraldo reminded me of that Mexican fighter that was brought up to fight Billy Tully in John Huston's movie "Fat City." He'd get on the bus;suitcase in hand;and go fight anyone ,anywhere, win loose or draw;and then get back on the bus.He was a Mexican "everyman" of boxing. Baby Vasquez and Kid Azteca were of similar ilk.Never a champ but never a chump either

That night at The Municipal Auditorium Gerado was in there with another iconic figure of Mexican boxing-the big lug who walked with a limp and sported that iron gray crew cut-David "Maceton" Cabrera."Maceton" is slang for a Frankensten monster type who plods along on life's pathway. He's not vociferous as mech as he is a hulk of few words.

Legend has it that "Maceton" got that limp in his step in a gunfight, but the truth was it was a car accident.But why should the Mexican commssion refuse him a license?The allure had more to offer than thinking of his health.

On paper the fight seemed a mismatch.Geraldo had fought better quality of oppostion ,and I couldn't imagine him losing to a guy with a limp.But surprisingly it was Geraldo who came out of his corner "limping." He looked drugged.The crowd was growing on "Maceton" and now they wanted to see the old guy pull the upset.(Actually I think Marcos was older).

Well, like I said,I was feeling no pain and had told my taxista amigo that Geraldo would mop the floor with this guy.I started to get upset with the manner Geraldo was going about his work so I left my seat and staggered to his corner between rounds and admonished him to kick this guy's ass.

I can't recollect word for word what I blurted out but in the next round there was "Maceton" stretched out on the canvas. Thinking about it now maybe Geraldo was supposed to carry the guy for a spell. You never knew what was going on with Marcos. But it was all said and done so me and Bonifacio went back into town and finished of where we had left off. We still had some bills left in our wallets and we didn't want to get rolled and have the thieves getting off with any of our money As I recall we spent it on booze and broads and blew the rest.


Tijuana Municipal Auditorium

I am curious: do you still take trips to the Tijuana Municipal Auditorium? Or to Tijuana, for that matter?

Is it safe these days?

[dagosd2000]

You often think of a guy like Geraldo if he had been connected with the right people he might have been in the mix and made a lot more money. Yes,he knew what he was doing in the ring when he wasn't going to lay down.My father was in The Outfit in Chicago where it was known that the mobsters had their hooks into a few fighters. My father said Bob Satterfield was one. He could have gone a lot further but was content to be contrlloed.If he didn't play ball he wouldn't have gotten a fight in Timbuktu.


Bob Satterfield

[dagosd2000]

Maceton And Marcos

I took my cab driver friend,Bonifacio, with me to the fights at the Municipal Auditorium in Tijuana.Oh,this was back in the early 80's as I recall. Me and Bonifacio had been drinking it up pretty good beforehand.We had walked up and down Revolution Street ,one side and then the other, hitting every watering hole. We were certainly in no pain by the time we arrived at the arena,

The main event that night was the big draw. Maceton Cabrera and Marcos Geraldo were going to fight for the Mexican light heavyweight championship. Geraldo was no stranger to Southland boxing and the rest of the state of California,The Silver Slipper in Las Vegas(he fought there 25 times),and Baja California.By the time he wanted to find another way to make a living hanging up his gloves he had a a hundred fight even HIs record shows he won 71,losing 28,and having only a single draw. In that loss column it shows that he was stopped 21 times.

But Marcos Geraldo was sort of a mystery man.He was prone to to taking a dive when there was more money in it for him. He ran afoul of the Mexican commission and was suspended for partaking in some funny fights.He fought a lot of big names-3 of the 4 Kings:Leonard,Hagler,and Hearns. He came out on the short end in all three but Sugar Ray said that when he stepped up a weight to feel out the 160 pounders that Gerado was one the toughest hombres he ever fought, the decision going the distance. It was the same with Marvelous Marvin. Hagler had all he could handle winning a close 10 rounder. Tommy iced him in the 1st round but then it might have been set up that way.

I saw Geraldo in action a lot at the San Diego Coliseum. His fights with David Love and Renato Garcia were all losses but then you never knew with Marcos.Like I posted awhile back,there weren't a bevy of big name Mexican fighters who fought at The Coliseum.Geraldo was about as top drawer as it got, yet with all the Mexicans who went to the fights at The Coliseum I never heard a lot of "Matalos"(kill him) coming from the Hispanic section. When it came to backing their "carnal." Marcos wasn't exactly a "compadre."

Marcos Geraldo reminded me of that Mexican fighter that was brought up to fight Billy Tully in John Huston's movie "Fat City." He'd get on the bus;suitcase in hand;and go fight anyone ,anywhere, win loose or draw;and then get back on the bus.He was a Mexican "everyman" of boxing. Baby Vasquez and Kid Azteca were of similar ilk.Never a champ but never a chump either

That night at The Municipal Auditorium Gerado was in there with another iconic figure of Mexican boxing-the big lug who walked with a limp and sported that iron gray crew cut-David "Maceton" Cabrera."Maceton" is slang for a Frankensten monster type who plods along on life's pathway. He's not vociferous as mech as he is a hulk of few words.

Legend has it that "Maceton" got that limp in his step in a gunfight, but the truth was it was a car accident.But why should the Mexican commssion refuse him a license?The allure had more to offer than thinking of his health.

On paper the fight seemed a mismatch.Geraldo had fought better quality of oppostion ,and I couldn't imagine him losing to a guy with a limp.But surprisingly it was Geraldo who came out of his corner "limping." He looked drugged.The crowd was growing on "Maceton" and now they wanted to see the old guy pull the upset.(Actually I think Marcos was older).

Well, like I said,I was feeling no pain and had told my taxista amigo that Geraldo would mop the floor with this guy.I started to get upset with the manner Geraldo was going about his work so I left my seat and staggered to his corner between rounds and admonished him to kick this guy's ass.

I can't recollect word for word what I blurted out but in the next round there was "Maceton" stretched out on the canvas. Thinking about it now maybe Geraldo was supposed to carry the guy for a spell. You never knew what was going on with Marcos. But it was all said and done so me and Bonifacio went back into town and finished of where we had left off. We still had some bills left in our wallets and we didn't want to get rolled and have the thieves getting off with any of our money As I recall we spent it on booze and broads and blew the rest.


Tijuana Municipal Auditorium

I am curious: do you still take trips to the Tijuana Municipal Auditorium? Or to Tijuana, for that matter?

Is it safe these days?

The last time I saw a fight at the Municipal Auditorium was around 7 years ago. I took my grandson.On the card was Luis Nery and Jaime Munguia. It didn't move me like that night with Bonifacio.Grandpa's ain't supposed to take their grandsons to whorehouses.My daughter would have disowned me.

As far as the danger-Tijuana is the murder capital per capita in the world yet always feel safe going down there.Go figure.

[Joson]

You often think of a guy like Geraldo if he had been connected with the right people he might have been in the mix and made a lot more money. Yes,he knew what he was doing in the ring when he wasn't going to lay down.My father was in The Outfit in Chicago where it was known that the mobsters had their hooks into a few fighters. My father said Bob Satterfield was one. He could have gone a lot further but was content to be contrlloed.If he didn't play ball he wouldn't have gotten a fight in Timbuktu.


Bob Satterfield

That was back in the days when neighborhood bookies handled lots of boxing money. But I think the betting operations changed at some point. A time came when neighborhood bookies were no long the "go to" guys for waging money on fights.

At some point - I think in the early to mid-1960s at latest - it was no longer fashionable or practical to use neighborhood bookies for boxing bets. I can't explain why but I think things changed for some reason.

Am I correct?

That's why, from the early 1960s onward, there are no more big fight fixing stories. That's my perception at least.

[dagosd2000]

You often think of a guy like Geraldo if he had been connected with the right people he might have been in the mix and made a lot more money. Yes,he knew what he was doing in the ring when he wasn't going to lay down.My father was in The Outfit in Chicago where it was known that the mobsters had their hooks into a few fighters. My father said Bob Satterfield was one. He could have gone a lot further but was content to be controlled.If he didn't play ball he wouldn't have gotten a fight in Timbuktu.


Bob Satterfield

That was back in the days when neighborhood bookies handled lots of boxing money. But I think the betting operations changed at some point. A time came when neighborhood bookies were no long the "go to" guys for waging money on fights.

At some point - I think in the early to mid-1960s at latest - it was no longer fashionable or practical to use neighborhood bookies for boxing bets. I can't explain why but I think things changed for some reason.

Am I correct?

That's why, from the early 1960s onward, there are no more big fight fixing stories. That's my perception at least.

You're correct the Mob made it tough on the bookies.They would owe this Wise Guys plenty in the end. When it comes to the big fights now the way to get it your way is approaching the judges.Las Vegas is one of the worst.

[dagosd2000]

What's To Worry?

Now don't get me wrong. Yesterday when I was asked if I worried about going to Tijuana my replay was a bit flippant when I remarked that I didn't give it any thought. Well, I do think about it.Everyone that lives in Tijuana,or Mexico i,thinks about it. It being the how the narcos have taken over the country. It's a country run by drug dealers.Now there's power struggles amongst the different cartels, and that results in all the murders.The government is on their payrolls. But every Mexican knows that.

Mexico per capita for every 100 thousand people 22 are are murdered.In the U.S. the per capita figure is 6 for every 100 thousand.(the leader in this crime statistic is El Salvador with 37 murders for every 100 thousand). When you narrow it down to cities Tijuana leads the world with roughly 150 murders (depending on which source)per 100 thousand residents. Are they all gang related? Mostly I'd say. Most of those murders are unsolved and don't want to be. To say the cops aren't crooked in Mexico is like saying Donald Trump doesn't want to be president again.

^ few years ago Julio Cedar Chavez's brother was shot to death in front of his family when robbers broke into his house and demanded him to give him money. He forked over some but when the robbers wanted more Chavez's brother refused and that's when the robbers shot him.The crime is still unsolved.

Shortly after the crime Julio Cesar Chavez received a death threat that he was planning on being killed along with his wife and daughters.Chavez got a tip that the person(Chavez knows who he is) who made the threat was locked up in a Mexican prison. Chavez said he went to the head DA in the state of Baja California with the information .Chavez is still waiting for a reply. In the meantime this prisoner was released from jail and is now walking the streets.

Julio Cesar's brother was not running with any crime figures.He ran a drug and alcohol rehab center in Culiacan .He was respected by the community.

Julio Cesar Chavez is a Mexican treasure,Mexico's most famous athlete. But that just makes him a target,him and his family.Imagine someone shooting Tom Brady or Michael Jordan's brother in front of their families and have the crime unsolved?

For me the worst thought is kidnapping.All Mexicans think Americans are rich.,and there's segment that isn't shy about grabbing a gringo off the street and demanding ransom.But the victims aren't necessarily narrowed down to gringos.Anybody who has money is at risk.Going to the cops is a futile gesture.They've been bought off by the kidnappers so they can commit the crime.Trying to appease the families the cops will drag some guy off the street or from some jail cell and torture him into a confession. No one falls for that anymore but they want you swallow it.

So do I worry when I cross the border? Well, I'm far from bring a hero. But I know where and not to go in Tijuana.I don't want to get involved with the narcos. But if I do get it that's what was meant to be. It was fate.Mexicans don't worry about things they have no control over.They are going to live their lives like they want and whatever happens will happen. It's like death and taxes. Wait a minute.You can't get a Mexican to pay taxes.


Julio Cesar Chavez

[dagosd2000]

Where's The Apple?

Any fighter in Mexico that's worth his weight eventually will find his way to Tijuana ,and if he's successful there ,he'll fight in the big time in the United States.That's how it was with Julio Cesar Chavez.

He was born in Sonora but he moved with his family to Culiacan.Sinaloa when he was young.His family was poor and he didn't like seeing his mother toil as a domestic for other families and have to tend to her husband and five children. Chavez decided to try the poor man's out,boxing,to see if that was going to be his path to milk and honey.After throwing his weight round in the gym he caught the eye of Ramon Felix who became his manager. What impressed Felix was Chavez's tenacity and toughness. He stood head and shoulders above the rest.

Chavez began his career fighting in the local venues in Culiacan destroying what they put in front of him.With no more locals to beat up it was time to step up a rung and see if he could hold his own in the big city of Tijuana.He did just fine.He would sometimes return to Cuiiacan and mop up of what was left, but now his sights were winning a championship.

I never saw Chavez fight in Tijuana as he was building his rep. Later,I saw him train a little in Tijuana before his fight with Danilo Cabrera. He was wearing the super featherweight crown on his head by that time. Everybody had heard of him. He was doing a El Puas,amassing an amazing undefeated win streak.

Chavez was winding down his training for his fight with Cabrera when he arrived in Tijuana. Like all Mexican notables he made an appearance at Tijuana's famed CREA Gym .The workout was open to the public. The crowd that came to see him was like Villa and his Dorados marching into Mexico City to celebrate the fall of Diaz the dictator.I pushed my way through the throng and watched him workout. He shadowboxed,did some floor exercises,skipped some rope,and sparred a couple of round with a fighter I didn't recognize.It wasn't anything spectacular, but I could say I got to see him.

Years later after he had retired I found out that Chavez didn't include hitting the speed bag as part of his routine. He said he never got the hang of it.Thinking back at that time watching him train at the CREA he didn't hit the speed bag. The heavy bag he banged away at, but he ignored the speed bag.

Chavez eventually bought a home, after hanging up the gloves, in Tijuana. It's in the east part of the city.From time to time he boxes exhibitions to raise money for charities. His frequent adversary is Jorge Arce. Chavez also is the color man when there's an important match broadcast on the Mexican station Azteca.

Chavez had his struggles with alcohol and drug addiction. He went to rehab several times and finally straightened himself out.

Juiio Cesar's son ,Julio Jr.,wanted to try his luck fighting.I was surprised when his father never put him in an amateur program for development. I saw one of his early fights in Tijuana.It was in a nightclub.I said to myself,"This kid needs a lot of work." He didn't remind me of his father at all. No Eye Of The Tiger.They cherry picked his opposition ,and he eventually won a couple of those alphabet titles against fighters no one remembers.

Of course the big fight Mexico was anticipating was Junior against the other up and comer,Canelo Alvarez.It was pretty one sided and to top it off,boring to watch. Junior didn't seem to have his heart in it and still hadn't found that Eye Of The Tiger.The old man,frustrated,left the arena before it was over.When they asked Junior about what happened he threw a low blow.He blamed his loss on his father saying that he grew up with a father that was an addict.

Julio Cesar Chavez, the father, never blamed his parents about anything.When they say that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree they can make an exception with his son.


The Eye Of The Tiger-Julio Cesar Chavez

[goose 5]

Jr. sure didn't get his height from his old man. I think it was GQ magazine that profiled Sr. years ago and said he's really 5'5".

[dagosd2000]

CREA GYM-Tijuana,Mexico

[dagosd2000]

The Town Was A Buzzin'

When I was trying to get across to those Mexican kids ,at that school in Tijuana, about how to play the game of American football,the city had wrapped their attention around professional boxing. Julio Cesar Chavez was going great guns and looked unbeatable ,but the main focus was on two local products born and raised in TJ-Jibaro Perez and Dinamita Estrada.

The two Tijuaneros were both champions and they were satisfied to share their wealth and still fight in their hometown. One of the kids on the football team was a compadre of Romulo Quirarte who managing and training Perez. Perez was also Quirarte's son in law.

Perez won the bantamweight title from Happy Lora at the Forum in Inglewood. I remember people in TJ laughing saying there was no way JIbaro could lose a fighter named"Happy."Perez ran off a string of successful defenses before losing the crown to Greg Richardson by decision.Prior to losing to Richardson Perez was very strong in the ring. He was a beanpole but he had the strength of a Saddler. With his height and reach advantage he looked like he'd be on top for long a time.

The kid on the team ,who was close to Quirarte, (who was in charge of things at Tijuana's iconic gym The CREA)told me that Perez was getting caught up in his fane and glory.Traing was taking a second priority and that was leading to marital problems with Quirarte daughter. It became too much for Perez to handle.Now, instead of looking like Sandy Saddler he was looking like a house of sand. He went up a weight but couldn't win against Wilfedo Vasquez and Genaro Hernandez.After the loss to Hernandez, and his marriage on the rocks, Perez was back to fighting the unranked for chump change.

Dinamita Estrada had a different body makeup than Perez.He was a fireplug who had no qualms about sticking his nose in an opponents chest and wail away.He won the WBC bantamweight title from Luisito Espinoza in TJ.Then he cemented that title by winning a controversial split over Bernardo Pinango.Though Perez and Estrada wouldn't have had difficulty fighting each other they stayed away from a fight. Maybe down the road it would have happened if they could have stretched their title defenses longer.

EStrada lost his crown to Jesus Salud at The forum on a DQ.He was getting the caca kicked out of him.Estrada never won another fight after that.

JIbaro Perez eventually straightened himself out.He married again and is a familiar face in Tijuana.

Dinamita Estrada never recouped.He got himself involved with drug dealers and spent time in jail.He later was stabbed to death,a result o a family beef.

It was a good run for those two fellas'-short but exciting. I never saw Tijuana so engrossed with boxing.


Romulo Quirarte.

[dagosd2000]

They Got It Right

Just got dome watching Haney and Lomo go at it. Good fight.Both men in great shape.Fast paceed, I thought the judges got it right. Two had it 115-113,and Dave Moretti 116-112. I thought Moretti's score was truer.

Ok.Haney had the stiffer jab. It made Lomo think twice about putting on the heat. I liked the way Haney hit Lomo downstairs; some good counter body hots and that jab followed by the tight hook to the side was effective.

Funny.Most of the Boxrec followers didn't think Haney should have won;neither were most of the comments from the fans on YouTube on Haney's plus side. It's simply a matter of Lomo was the "good guy" ,the popular guy going in. Haney was the trash talking black dude who pissed a lot of white guys off(pushing Lomo at the weigh in didn't score points in his favor with the vanilla faces) But you cant deduct those"points" from Haney's score because of that.

I didn't care who won. At my age I don't care who wins or loses. Those two guys don't pay my rent.

There'll be a rematch for sure. There should be. I just hope it doesn't happen next year. At my age I'm living on borrowed time.


Looking at Haney's record I see that he had a lot of early fights in those seedy bars in Tijuana. Got to hand it to him.He went from swallowing the worm at the bottom of the tequila bottle to sipping Dom Perignon from the champagne glass.

[dagosd2000]

Two images of the Perro Salada Bar(The Salty Dog)in Tijuana. Devin Haney fought there.He was lucky to have made 50 bucks. Outhouses at the front door.Nice touch.