Classic American West Coast Boxing

[kikibalt]

Anybody know how long Jimmy Lennon Sr. was the ring announcer at the Olympic, and who was the announcer before him.

I remember Jimmy from about 1950, I was at the Art Aragon/Jimmy Carter title fight in 1951 and he was the announcer for that fight, before Jimmy it was Dan Toby that I remember

[kikibalt]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and finds the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He wouldn't stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

[THEHAMMER321]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and find the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He won’t stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

Frank,Willie seemed to be a hard luck guy, I have known a few guys like that, but all the people I have known like that had a heart of gold.

[kikibalt]

Paul, Willie was like that, he would do anything for a friend, he was a simple guy, and like you said, with a heart of gold

[raylawpc]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and find the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He won’t stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

[kikibalt]

Willie was always good for a laugh or two.....

[THEHAMMER321]

Frank remember Jimmy Montoya's heavyweight Tony FUlillangi from Tonga, one day he was fighting on ESPN back in about 1983, after he knocks out some stiff, Al Bernstein is interviewing him and Montoya and says we will fight anybody in the top ten, Fullilangi in his next fight for Pat O'Grady's WAA heavyweight championship against O'Grady's son in law Monte Masters and gets knocked out in the 14 round, as I think back about Montoya he was a likable guy but he talked a lot of B.S

[Rick Farris]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and find the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He won’t stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

Frank, great story. You know, that Memorial Day weekend took place a few days before my first pro fight at the Olympic. I can picture that time clearly, the Grapevine, etc. Willie sounds like a good guy, and so are you. Those are great memories. FORTY YEARS AGO!!!!!!!

[Rick Farris]

Frank remember Jimmy Montoya's heavyweight Tony FUlillangi from Tonga, one day he was fighting on ESPN back in about 1983, after he knocks out some stiff, Al Bernstein is interviewing him and Montoya and says we will fight anybody in the top ten, Fullilangi in his next fight for Pat O'Grady's WAA heavyweight championship against O'Grady's son in law Monte Masters and gets knocked out in the 14 round, as I think back about Montoya he was a likable guy but he talked a lot of B.S

Jimmy will go into the WBHOF this coming November, in the expanded catagory along with Joe Goossen and Graham Houston.
When a WBHOF Museum is built, Jimmy's "Meat Wagon" will be cast in bronze by Steve Harpst and parked in the street in front of the building.

[raylawpc]

Frank remember Jimmy Montoya's heavyweight Tony FUlillangi from Tonga, one day he was fighting on ESPN back in about 1983, after he knocks out some stiff, Al Bernstein is interviewing him and Montoya and says we will fight anybody in the top ten, Fullilangi in his next fight for Pat O'Grady's WAA heavyweight championship against O'Grady's son in law Monte Masters and gets knocked out in the 14 round, as I think back about Montoya he was a likable guy but he talked a lot of B.S

Jimmy will go into the WBHOF this coming November, in the expanded catagory along with Joe Goossen and Graham Houston.
When a WBHOF Museum is built, Jimmy's "Meat Wagon" will be cast in bronze by Steve Harpst and parked in the street in front of the building.

On a fight trip to Providence, Rhode Island, Lew Eskew drove me and Pat down to NYC. It was my first trip back east, so we made a side-trip to Boston to do some sight seeing before heading down to NYC. In Boston, we walked the Freedom Trail, and one of the stops was an old colonial cemetery. As we were walking through the cemetery, Lew Eskew turned to me and said, "This is were O'Grady gets opponents for his fight cards in Oklahoma City."

[THEHAMMER321]

Frank remember Jimmy Montoya's heavyweight Tony FUlillangi from Tonga, one day he was fighting on ESPN back in about 1983, after he knocks out some stiff, Al Bernstein is interviewing him and Montoya and says we will fight anybody in the top ten, Fullilangi in his next fight for Pat O'Grady's WAA heavyweight championship against O'Grady's son in law Monte Masters and gets knocked out in the 14 round, as I think back about Montoya he was a likable guy but he talked a lot of B.S

Jimmy will go into the WBHOF this coming November, in the expanded catagory along with Joe Goossen and Graham Houston.
When a WBHOF Museum is built, Jimmy's "Meat Wagon" will be cast in bronze by Steve Harpst and parked in the street in front of the building.

On a fight trip to Providence, Rhode Island, Lew Eskew drove me and Pat down to NYC. It was my first trip back east, so we made a side-trip to Boston to do some sight seeing before heading down to NYC. In Boston, we walked the Freedom Trail, and one of the stops was an old colonial cemetery. As we were walking through the cemetery, Lew Eskew turned to me and said, "This is were O'Grady gets opponents for his fight cards in Oklahoma City."

Was Pat involved in boxing before Sean started fighting.

[raylawpc]

Jimmy will go into the WBHOF this coming November, in the expanded catagory along with Joe Goossen and Graham Houston.
When a WBHOF Museum is built, Jimmy's "Meat Wagon" will be cast in bronze by Steve Harpst and parked in the street in front of the building.

On a fight trip to Providence, Rhode Island, Lew Eskew drove me and Pat down to NYC. It was my first trip back east, so we made a side-trip to Boston to do some sight seeing before heading down to NYC. In Boston, we walked the Freedom Trail, and one of the stops was an old colonial cemetery. As we were walking through the cemetery, Lew Eskew turned to me and said, "This is were O'Grady gets opponents for his fight cards in Oklahoma City."

Was Pat involved in boxing before Sean started fighting.

Oh yeah. Pat had been a boxer himself, and then began promoting and managing fighters throughout the SW and MW from the 1950s onward. He was headquartered mostly in Texas before moving to Oklahoma City in 1969. For a brief time, when Pat was managing heavyweight Tony Longoria in the mid to late 60s, he headquartered in LA and then very briefly in Las Vegas.

[CNorkusJr]

Rick and Tom, Thanks ! as if I wasn't traumatized enough with Barney Ross sticking his kisser out at me.

I was 2 or 3 then so I dont remember much personally about this meeting but I do know that my father held Barney in high esteem, not only as a champ , but as a war hero too.

Same with Danny Nardico. For years my father tried to contact Danny after his two fights with him. My father was told, and I think my father realized, that he did alot of damage to Danny in those two fights, that Danny was not the same afterwards and hung them up shortly after. My father said he was the only man to talk to him in the ring as the fights progressed. He was calling my father all sorts of names and that my father felt he had to answer with his fists.
They were both former US Marines, and there was an element there that made the two fight like they did. My father always did respect Danny though for his time in the service. A hero in WW II.

[raylawpc]

Rick and Tom, Thanks ! as if I wasn't traumatized enough with Barney Ross sticking his kisser out at me.

I was 2 or 3 then so I dont remember much personally about this meeting but I do know that my father held Barney in high esteem, not only as a champ , but as a war hero too.

Same with Danny Nardico. For years my father tried to contact Danny after his two fights with him. My father was told, and I think my father realized, that he did alot of damage to Danny in those two fights, that Danny was not the same afterwards and hung them up shortly after. My father said he was the only man to talk to him in the ring as the fights progressed. He was calling my father all sorts of names and that my father felt he had to answer with his fists.
They were both former US Marines, and there was an element there that made the two fight like they did. My father always did respect Danny though for his time in the service. A hero in WW II.

This is from Wiki, but it is accurate based on everything I've read about Ross:

"In retirement in his early thirties, Ross decided to fight in World War II and joined the United States Marine Corps. However, the Marines wanted to keep him stateside and use his celebrity status to boost morale. Most of the athletes of the era like heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey had ceremonial roles in the military, but Ross insisted on fighting for his country. Before he was to go overseas, Ross hit another officer who had offended him. He was to have a court martial at the Marine Corps Recruiting Depot, San Diego. Captain Berthol E. Davis, Medical Corps, US Navy Reserve was on the court martial board. The other board members wanted to throw the book at Ross. But, Bert, who was also Jewish and knew of Ross' achievements, convinced the board to allow him to go overseas and not be punished. He was sent to Guadalcanal in the South Pacific, where one night, he and three other comrades were trapped under enemy fire. All three of his fellow Marines were wounded, as was Ross, and he was the only one able to fight. And fight he did. Ross gathered his comrades' rifles and grenades and single-handedly fought nearly two dozen Japanese soldiers over an entire night, killing them all by morning. Two of the Marines with him had died in the battle, but he carried the remaining man on his shoulders to safety; the other man weighed 230 lb (104 kg) compared to Ross' 140 lb (64 kg). Because of his heroism, Ross was awarded America's third highest military honor, the Silver Star as well as a Presidential Citation. As America's greatest "celebrity" war hero he was honored by President Roosevelt in a Rose Garden ceremony."

[Randyman]

Kerry Riley

When I was in the seventh grade at Mary Meller Junior High School in Pico Rivera I had a friend by the name of Kerry Riley. In appearance, mannerism and almost every other way, he was the living incarnation of Opie Taylor of Mayberry. There wasn’t a friendlier or more innocent guy to be found. He was from either Kentucky or Tennessee , I don’t remember which. He was a red haired, freckled face kid. He couldn’t fight worth a lick but he a had a champions heart and I will never forget him.

Kerry moved away at the end of the seventh grade. He was gone and I never really expected to see him again. Time moved on and so did I. Sometime after ninth grade began Kerry came back to California and to Meller Jr High. I had other friends by this time and he no longer fit in with the crowd that I hung with. We remained friends but we no longer hung out together. We were both okay with it and we would talk from time to time.

One day at lunch time one of my friends came up to me and said “Hey Randy, your friend Kerry is fighting Ribachi after school!”. Ribachi was Richard Ribachi. Now Ribachi was almost twice Kerry’s size, both in height and in width. He was a known fighter and Kerry was no match for him. I had to find him. There was just no way that I could let Kerry fight Ribachi. Ribachi had that high pompadour that was popular in the fifties and sixties and a walk to match, sort of like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It was an acquired walk and one he perfected. You had to be a good fighter to walk the way he did and get away with it.

I caught up with Kerry after school was out. They were going to fight in the alley behind the old McDonald’s on Rosemead and Mines. I saw him walking by himself and walked with him. He didn’t really have any friends at school. I said to him “Kerry. Don’t do it man, Ribachi is a good fighter, he’ll kick your ass. Just go home and forget about it” I figured he would listen to me, but no, he was determined not to back down. All he said to me was “I have to”. I never saw a braver or more determined guy than Kerry. I was suddenly filled with admiration for him, and a little ashamed of myself for not being a better friend to him when he came back to school. I just followed him and said nothing. I thought to myself, the least I can do is be there in case anyone jumps in.

When we got to the alley it was jam packed. Every kid in school came out to see Kerry get his ass kicked. You just knew it wouldn’t end any other way. To Ribachi’s credit, he kept it clean. As Kerry walked into the alley he took off his shirt. He had a white tee shirt on underneath. He didn’t have anything remotely resembling a muscle. I was beginning to panic for him. With courage that I never knew he had, and with out so much as the slightest hesitation, he walked straight up to Ribachi and put his hands up in the best boxing form that he was capable of mustering up.

Ribachi threw a right hand that immediately bloodied Riley’s mouth and sent him straight to the ground. He got back up, tried to throw a punch but missed. Ribachi just moved in a threw several punches. Every one of them landed. Again Riley was on the ground. He got up again. This time he had a bloody nose and his face was scuffed up from all the punches. There was no quit in Kerry Riley, not an ounce. All I could do was stare in disbelief. He got up over and over. It wouldn’t end. By this time, it was quiet. No one wanted to see this guy get hurt. They were screaming at him to stop but he just kept getting up. He braced himself for what was coming but he never took a backward step. It never occurred to him to duck.

Finally and to everyone’s relief, Ribachi had a look of compassion on his face. He didn’t want to hit him anymore. He walked up to him, took his hand and helped him up, smiled at him and left. Riley was a mess. His face was bloodied and bruised, his clothes filled with dirt and oil from the alley. but he had the respect of everyone there that day. He moved again before ninth grade was out. I never saw him again. It’s been forty years, and I have never forgotten him, or that fight.

[Randyman]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and find the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He won’t stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

Frank, that was classic!! I've been down that stretch of road before. I was laughing my ass off!

[Randyman]

For Frank (and Johnny, and Mel, and Howie, and Angelo, and Eddie, and Freddie, and . . . ):

Here we were walking down the aisle toward the ring. Man, was I nervous! After all the hard work with the boxing club, the big moment had finally arrived. Victory, I thought, meant a trip to the state finals and defeat means more hard work until another big chance comes along. We climbed the stairs to the ring and I easily slid my skinny frame through the ropes and stood there gaping at the opponent. Good Gosh! He looked like King Kong in a man suit! Man, I wasn’t nervous anymore – I was scared stiff! The bright lights gave off too much heat and I began to sweat. I wanted to get out of that ring and fast. The announcer sang out the two fighter’s names and weights and the referee called us to the center of the ring for the instructions. All of a sudden, the bell rang and my hair stood up on end. The big brute advanced from the other side of the ring. I slid carefully through the ropes and perched outside the ring. Man, I’m glad I’m just the trainer. I’d sure hate to have to fight that monster!

It takes a hell of a lot of guts to put some kid in the ring with a monster!! DD

Randy (thanks for mentioning Mel)

[kikibalt]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and find the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He won’t stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

Frank, that was classic!! I've been down that stretch of road before. I was laughing my ass off!

Thanks Randy. Even I have laugh at some of the things I remember about Willie...

[Randyman]

Thanks Tom. I'm sure that you wouldn't put these kids through another war either....

No, I wouldn't, but lots of people would. Howard Cosell said that if he ever had a son who wanted to be a boxer, he would want Angelo Dundee to manage him. Uh uh. Not me. I would have wanted you. You have your priorities right, and I wouldn't worry that you would protect my boy - from others and from himself.

These guys remind me of what an old time trainer told me in regards to fighters who ''duck'' someone, he said ''fighters don't duck other fighters they have to much pride and ego they think they could beat king kong'', ''trainers and managers on the other hand are the ones who steer there fighters away from certain fighters''

Marquez and Vasquez might not get the attention that Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather Jr get, or any number of elite fighters but to those that know boxing these two are the cream of the crop. No over blown entrances, no bullshit surrounding the fight, no embarrassment to the sport, just pure fighting in the ring. The way it was meant to be.

I was at their last fight. If the fourth fight is half as good as the last three fights it will be twice as good as the crap we have been fed lately. That being said, like the rest of you, I fear for their safety. A fourth fight just can't be good for their health!

Randy

[Randyman]

Memorial Day 1970

Forty years ago we took a motorcycle trip to Northern California. There was Gibby, his wife Gloria, Gibby’s brother, John and his wife, I don’t remember her name, there was also Guzman and his girlfriend Mary Lou, and Connie and I.

A week before we were leaving my late brother-in-law Willie said he wanted to go too, one problem, Willie didn’t have a motorcycle, Gibby said to Willie.
“Willie there’s a 305 Honda in my backyard, get it running and you can go with us”
Willie goes into Gibby backyard and find the Honda in the chicken coop full of chicken poop. The Honda had been sitting for about a year, but with a bit of work/new parts Willie got it running, clean it and he was ready to go.

Memorial weekend comes, its Saturday morning, 7:00 AM, we were meeting at my place, Gibby, John and Guzman and wives/girlfriends ride up, then Willie and Annie , when they ride up I ask Willie.
“Willie, where is the Honda?”
“We are sitting on it, don’t you see it?”
“No”

Willie was a big boy, so with him and Annie on the small bike, well, you couldn’t see the bike, the handle bar’s were embedded in Willie stomach and in back of Annie you could barely see the tail light.

After having coffee we take the I-5 to the San Fernando Valley, as we reach the Valley Willie gets a flat tire, we pull into a gas station and get it fix, we get back on the I-5, now we are on the Ridge Route/Grapevine and Willie gets another flat tire, the same tire, rear,. No gas station for miles, what to do?. We tried flagging down anybody driving a pick up, none would stop, finally an old ‘58 Chevy station wagon stopped, all the windows but the windshield were broken, and that one had a big crack on it, an old man and woman got out to help, but they could barely walk, they were drunk! At 10:00 AM!. We didn’t have much choice, we put the Honda in the back of the wagon with Willie, Annie gets in the back seat. As we’re going down the Grapevine I could see Willie drinking the old couples beer, we get to a gas station, gave the old people a few bucks and got the tire fix one more time.

We now get Highway 99, somewhere between Bakersfield and Fresno, damn if Willie didn’t get another flat, same tire. This part of Highway 99 is a freeway where the semi’s are going 80-85 miles per hour. We stopped and told Willie we would wait for him at the off-ramp which was about 75 yards up the freeway, Connie got of our bike and said she would walk with Annie while Willie pushed the bike, right of the off-ramp was a gas station with a store, after all these flat tires we needed a beer, Willie comes up the ramp hopping mad and Annie and Connie behind him laughing their butts off, I looked at Willie’s bike an I could see that the handle bar on the right side is broken, the broken piece is just hanging on the brake cable, I ask Connie what happened.

“Annie and I were walking behind Willie and every time a semi passed by, the bike and Willie’s fat ass would wobble, Willie’s ass would go back and forth, we were laughing so hard he got mad, he stopped and turned around to tell us to shut up when a semi passed by and knock the bike of Willie’s hands, the handle bar broke as the bike hit the ground, that’s why he is so mad”

Damn!, we had enough of the flat tires, I told Willie.
“Willie lets find out why you keep getting flats”
We took the tire of the rim and found a crack inside the tire that was biting on the tube, I told Willie. Willie you need to buy a new tire, he puts his arm around my shoulder and said.
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have any money”
Kiki bought the tire.

That out of the way we go to work on the handle bar, I took the broken piece of the handle bar of the hand grip and put the grip on what remain of the handle bar on the right side, now Willie had a long handle bar on the left side and short bar on the right side.

Back on Highway 99 we travel about 50 miles when the Honda started leaking oil, it was leaking so bad that we started using nothing but STP, we pull into a gas station where Willie borrowed some tools to try and fix the leak, he took some parts of the bike but he couldn’t find where the leak was coming from, so he puts the parts back on, but something was wrong.
“Willie, that’s not right”
“Why?"
“Look at the kick start, it suppose to be vertical not horizontal”
The kick start was now horizontal facing forward and he was now starting the Honda like a lawn mower.

We get back on 99 and we had Willie ride in front of us, damn! we were all getting full of oil. The guys told me.
“He’s your brother-in-law, you ride behind him and we’ll ride behind you”

We finally got to Tracy, Ca. and visit with Gibby’s cousins, after drinking one or two beers we left and headed to Pittsburgh, Ca. to visit my cousin Ernie, by the time we got to Pittsburgh the charging system on the Honda had gone south, that meant only one thing, Willie and Annie would have to take the bus back home, I told Willie.
“Willie, it looks like you and Annie are going to have to ride the bus back home”
“I don’t have any money for bus tickets”
“Willie, there are some people working in the fields down the road, you can work two-three days and make enough money to pay for the tickets.
“Do I have to do that?”
He didn’t, us guys put some money together for the tickets.

We rode back home minus Willie and Annie.

About a week after getting home I seen Willie.
“Willie, how was your bus ride?”
“Okay, but for the bus driver”
“What was wrong with the driver?”
“He won’t stop for a cold one, I ask him if I could drive and he pointed to a sign that read ‘do not talk to the driver when the bus is in motion’ and told me to go sit in the back”

Frank, that was classic!! I've been down that stretch of road before. I was laughing my ass off!

Thanks Randy. Even I have laugh at some of the things I remember about Willie...

Frank, for a guy that claims he can't write you sure have been spitting out some classics lately. You should write a book.

Go to http://Blurb.com

[raylawpc]

For Frank (and Johnny, and Mel, and Howie, and Angelo, and Eddie, and Freddie, and . . . ):

Here we were walking down the aisle toward the ring. Man, was I nervous! After all the hard work with the boxing club, the big moment had finally arrived. Victory, I thought, meant a trip to the state finals and defeat means more hard work until another big chance comes along. We climbed the stairs to the ring and I easily slid my skinny frame through the ropes and stood there gaping at the opponent. Good Gosh! He looked like King Kong in a man suit! Man, I wasn’t nervous anymore – I was scared stiff! The bright lights gave off too much heat and I began to sweat. I wanted to get out of that ring and fast. The announcer sang out the two fighter’s names and weights and the referee called us to the center of the ring for the instructions. All of a sudden, the bell rang and my hair stood up on end. The big brute advanced from the other side of the ring. I slid carefully through the ropes and perched outside the ring. Man, I’m glad I’m just the trainer. I’d sure hate to have to fight that monster!

It takes a hell of a lot of guts to put some kid in the ring with a monster!! DD

Randy (thanks for mentioning Mel)

Randy, I talked to Sean O'Grady yesterday and asked him if his dad knew Mel. He said, "Oh yeah, Dad knew him. He thought alot of him." (Sean didn't remember stealing your towel. He also thought I was in his corner when he fought Danny Lopez. Danny must have really hit him hard if remembers me being in his corner that night. )

[raylawpc]

Frank, that was classic!! I've been down that stretch of road before. I was laughing my ass off!

Thanks Randy. Even I have laugh at some of the things I remember about Willie...

Frank, for a guy that claims he can't write you sure have been spitting out some classics lately. You should write a book.

Go to http://Blurb.com

They're reallly great aren't they? Keep them coming Frank!

[Rick Farris]

For Frank (and Johnny, and Mel, and Howie, and Angelo, and Eddie, and Freddie, and . . . ):

Here we were walking down the aisle toward the ring. Man, was I nervous! After all the hard work with the boxing club, the big moment had finally arrived. Victory, I thought, meant a trip to the state finals and defeat means more hard work until another big chance comes along. We climbed the stairs to the ring and I easily slid my skinny frame through the ropes and stood there gaping at the opponent. Good Gosh! He looked like King Kong in a man suit! Man, I wasn’t nervous anymore – I was scared stiff! The bright lights gave off too much heat and I began to sweat. I wanted to get out of that ring and fast. The announcer sang out the two fighter’s names and weights and the referee called us to the center of the ring for the instructions. All of a sudden, the bell rang and my hair stood up on end. The big brute advanced from the other side of the ring. I slid carefully through the ropes and perched outside the ring. Man, I’m glad I’m just the trainer. I’d sure hate to have to fight that monster!

It takes a hell of a lot of guts to put some kid in the ring with a monster!! DD

Randy (thanks for mentioning Mel)

Randy, I talked to Sean O'Grady yesterday and asked him if his dad knew Mel. He said, "Oh yeah, Dad knew him. He thought alot of him." (Sean didn't remember stealing your towel. He also thought I was in his corner when he fought Danny Lopez. Danny must have really hit him hard if remembers me being in his corner that night. )

Hey Tom . . . Good to know you will here for the CBHOF lunch. Is Sean coming?

[raylawpc]

It takes a hell of a lot of guts to put some kid in the ring with a monster!! DD

Randy (thanks for mentioning Mel)

Randy, I talked to Sean O'Grady yesterday and asked him if his dad knew Mel. He said, "Oh yeah, Dad knew him. He thought alot of him." (Sean didn't remember stealing your towel. He also thought I was in his corner when he fought Danny Lopez. Danny must have really hit him hard if remembers me being in his corner that night. )

Hey Tom . . . Good to know you will here for the CBHOF lunch. Is Sean coming?

Unfortunately, no. He has had a long standing conflict with that date, so Frank has kindly asked me to accept for him. The main reason I called him was to make sure that his schedule hadn't cleared. He'd like to come, but he just can't.

[Randyman]

For Frank (and Johnny, and Mel, and Howie, and Angelo, and Eddie, and Freddie, and . . . ):

Here we were walking down the aisle toward the ring. Man, was I nervous! After all the hard work with the boxing club, the big moment had finally arrived. Victory, I thought, meant a trip to the state finals and defeat means more hard work until another big chance comes along. We climbed the stairs to the ring and I easily slid my skinny frame through the ropes and stood there gaping at the opponent. Good Gosh! He looked like King Kong in a man suit! Man, I wasn’t nervous anymore – I was scared stiff! The bright lights gave off too much heat and I began to sweat. I wanted to get out of that ring and fast. The announcer sang out the two fighter’s names and weights and the referee called us to the center of the ring for the instructions. All of a sudden, the bell rang and my hair stood up on end. The big brute advanced from the other side of the ring. I slid carefully through the ropes and perched outside the ring. Man, I’m glad I’m just the trainer. I’d sure hate to have to fight that monster!

It takes a hell of a lot of guts to put some kid in the ring with a monster!! DD

Randy (thanks for mentioning Mel)

Randy, I talked to Sean O'Grady yesterday and asked him if his dad knew Mel. He said, "Oh yeah, Dad knew him. He thought alot of him." (Sean didn't remember stealing your towel. He also thought I was in his corner when he fought Danny Lopez. Danny must have really hit him hard if remembers me being in his corner that night. )

It's funny how all the old timers knew each other. Someone would come into town, wander into the gym and Mel knew him. Fighters would come into the gym from all over the country or from mexico, and Mel knew them. Pops O'Grady must have been the same way. This was before the internet. back then Mel would correspond by mail and news clippings with people across the country.

There is a picture floating around that was originally published in, either the Los Angeles Times or the Herald Examiner, that shows Sean with a towel slung over his shoulder. That was my mother's towel. Tell Sean I know it wasn't on purpose. It was the first day in town. It must have been hectic. Sean got whooped pretty good by Danny but showed tremendous heart going into that fight and in every fight that I ever saw him in. I was rooting for him against both Watt and Kenty. I hope to shake his hand again someday.

Randy