Who are some of the most interesting boxing characters and stories about them?, i know abit about Battling Siki who apparently had a pet lion he used to walk around with on the streets of Paris and he also used to fire his guns in the air to get his dogs to do tricks i think it was, and Galento was a pretty interesting guy fighting bears in cages and comedians outside of clubs ect ?
Once again, apologies all around if it seems like I'm "plugging" my work. But I write these articles for these types of posts and questions. So just read and enjoy: http://www.ibroresearch.com/?p=3320
Well hey now......listen, if Galento was fighting bears outside of clubs, I think that's a story we could ALL enjoy.......
Keep on pluggin' Surf-Bat...they only enrich the forum with quality:good....and God knows, with the epidemic of Trollery here, we need that.
Theron your mention of a "character" and a bear put me in mind of a story I've posted before. There could be no bigger character than Tommy Galagher, a trainer 'n my partner in a Queens, N.Y hardcore gym in the early '70s. He was the closest thing to Popeye Doyle from the FRENCH CONNECTION. He was larger-than-life, profane, mean as a junk-yard dog, opinionated, impatient, very loud, crude, brutally honest, very loyal, a former undercover cop and laugh riot 24-hours-a-day. Being with his family is like an episode of the Ozbournes. Author William Saroyan put it best, describing his dad: "My father lived his life at the top of his lungs"...That's Tommy Gallagher. Tommy was Donnie Lalondes trainer when he defended his light heavy title at Caesars Palace in Vegas against Sugar Ray Leonard. Gallagher asked me to join him. Because Lalonde was the headliner, everybody in his entourage was given VIP treatment by the management of the hotel. One evening I was in the lobby with Tommy, his family and some neighborhood friends. A very official looking guy in a three-piece suit came over: "Good evening, Mr. Gallagher. "Speaking for the management of the hotel, I'd like to extend a warm welcome to you and all of your friends. Now, If you'll follow me, I'll take you to be seated at the Pointer Sisters show." Gallagher looked at me. His voice echoing through the marble lobby: "WHO IS THIS HALF-A-***? When we went to the Pointer Sisters show, the room was a semi-circle of tiered wooden benches pews. No one had his own table. Everybody was bunched together. We were a party of about 15, but all around us were families lookin' like they stepped out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Gallagher was in top form, crackin' wise rapid-fire . Somebody asked him: "Tommy, did you ever fight out of the country as an amateur?" As if trying to be heard over gym noise, Tommy shouted, "I was a young Irish Catholic kid and I never was no place. They asked me to fight for the U.S. team in Spain. So, when I got to Spain, I walked around and there was, like, this little circus." "There was a sign on one of the cages, and somebody told me it said: Anybody that could last a round with the bear would get $50. I never seen that much money...or a bear." "So, I looked in the cage, and there's this big mop of fur on the floor. I figure: No problem; I'll knock this thing out." "So, when I turned around to tell the guy I wanted to do it, the bear REACHED THROUGH THE BARS AND TRIED TO **** ME ITS A GOOD THING I WAS WEAR'N SHORTS!" I crumpled to the floor laughin'. Families fled in horror.
That's him, jd. He's one of the few guys in my life that always has me crumpled on the floor, doubled-over with laughter till I can't breathe.
Great story, JG. Curtis "Hatchetman" Sheppard also had/has (is he dead or alive???) quite a life. Long read, but well worth it. http://www.phillyboxinghistory.com/.../20100201_sheppard_hatchetman_alkazoff_01.htm
