thoughts on Rocky Graziano

That characterizes Rocky's whole life, R. That rebellion against everything is what made fans love him.

He was like Paul Newman's character in COOL HAND LUKE. When he was asked what he was rebelling against, he replied, "Whatya got?"

 

Yes I did B. My dad took me to MSG to see the new sensational knockout artist Billy Arnold take on old wily Fritzie Zivic in 1945 at MSG. Zivic was considered cannon fodder as Fritzie was 32 at that time and was past his prime...But Zivic used his toughness and vast experience to evade Arnold's blasts and handed Billy arnold his first loss in about 46 bouts...Two months later in March, 1945 I saw the 8-1 underdog dead end kid Rocky Graziano
flatten the new "Joe Louis" in 3 rounds...Billy Arnold was never the same after his ko loss to Rocky...Went downhill fast...

 

Much to my surprise, discovered some years back, one of my UCLA students was Billy Arnold's son. Bright, ambitious guy.

 

Isn't that something ? His dad was some powerful puncher...
My dad would tell me how he and my uncle went to see their idol Ruby Goldstein ,who was undefeated take on the tough midwesterner Ace Hudkins at Coney Island...Goldstein was touted the next Benny Leonard and Nat Fleischer called Goldstein the best LW puncher since Aurellio Herrera. Well Hudkins flattened Goldstein just as Graziano kod Arnold and
both Goldstein and Arnold were never the same...:good

 

Well, he had his last fight a month and a half before I was born in 52, so I only saw some of his fights on film or TV.

I loved to watch him when he was a guest on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. The stories he would tell and the way he delivered them kept me in stitches. I bet he was a hell of a guy to just hang around with.

 

I'll be back with an incident that illustrates that, g

 

Stayed tight with Rocky after he hung'em up

He was the darling of N.Y. Never paid for anything. Just to rub shoulder wih him, doctors, lawyers 'n dentists invited him -- on the arm-- to play golf at their lavish country clubs.

Often he'd invite me to be in his foursome.

They always played for money, 'n Rocky was a duffer

After a round,a dentist said to Rocky:"You owe me sixty-five-dollars"

"Id much rather owe it to you than not pay you," Rocky replied

 

Who doesn't love power punchers who know their limitations and go for broke? Especially those with a ton of personality. I don't think Graziano ever thought he was the best boxer in the world. He seemed to just want his chance at the brass ring.

 

This thread is worth reading for the dialogue between Burt and JGarf:good

Think I'll hang around for awhile :smoke

 

The public, at large-- after Rocky hung'em up-- viewed him, basically, as a punchy, slouching, self-effacing clown and foil cameoed in movies 'n commercials.

But that was a time without TMZ, a 24/7 news cycle 'n ubiquitous cell-phone cameras.

Like a gunfighter targeted, every wanna-be G challenged Rocky to fight, in the street, in a bar -- anyplace. He looked an easy mark, 5'7" 'n a belly instead of abs. Rocky tried every way possible to mollify 'em (buying 'em a drink, whatever), but the moment they laid hands on him, the defanged clown turned into the snarling beast that near murdered Red Cochran

 

Colourful character no doubt with a storybook history. Also a great argument why the 40's weren't such a fantastic era for MWs. I don't see many eras since then that he would be undisputed champion at MW. Almost shudder to think what most of the top MWs of the late 80's, early 90's would do to him.

Robinson's exhibition against him is one of my favourites. He did put Ray down, though, so he clearly had some dynamite in that right. His fights with Zale are also classic and he shows some terrific heart, as well as punch, in them.

 

:good

 

I have posted this before but it bears repeating : in the early 1940s i went to Stillman's gym on a summer afternoon. I would as a youngster go weekly to the famous gym...
This afternoon I saw a tough looking young guy sitting on the cold radiator, with his feet resting on the ring apron...Dressed in a polo shirt he was watching two boxers spar and he was spitting on the floor. A big burley heavyweight finished his punching bag session and wanted to get past this tough kid sitting with his feet on the ring. He the big heavyweight asked the tough guy to take your feet off the ring so he could walk past...
The guy on the radiator spit on the floor and told the big heavyweight to "walk under my feet ", which HE DID ! I said to myself this is a freakin tough guy...Well a few days later my dad and I went to St. Nicholas Arena to see the fight card, and who is in one of the prelims ? This same tough guy from Stillman's gym who made a heavyweight walk under his legs rather than remove his feet...It turned out this tough guy fought under the name of Rocky Graziano, and his real name was Thomas Rocco Barbella, and he was AWOL from Camp Dix Army barracks where he flattened an officer, fled Camp Dix and went AWOL ,took the name of Rocky Graziano but was soon apprehended...
After he served his time his friend lightweight Terry Young brought him to Stillman's gym and under Whitey Bimstein became the legendary Rocky Graziano...But he had balls to do what he did...When i would see his early bouts, it was like watching a street fight...
Marriage refined Rocky somewhat....

 

Once a killer....always a killer. No matter what they look like. Awesome stuff JG.

 

First time I caught this...Thanks for the story Burt.:good