Former Pittsburgh Press boxing writer Roy McHugh pointed out that the term "Uncrowned Champ" has officially disappeared from the pugilistic lexicon. "Boxing today is so saturated with champions there could be no such thing as an uncrowned one."
Indeed. I'm proofreading his manuscript for his book "When Pittsburgh Was A Fight Town" and it is phenomenal. So many great anecdotes on Greb, Zivic, Conn, Angott, Burley and a whole host of others. Roy was on the Smoky City fight beat from 1947-1983 (he's 96 now) and has a wealth of stories. He wrote boxing stuff for the Cedar Rapids, Iowa papers before that. I can't wait until this book gets released. You all will love it.:smoke
I will be buying that book. I just had a convo with a an old timer from Pittsburgh today while watching football at the bar
I'll be one of the first in line to buy that one. I love Roy's writing. It's got the discipline of a seasoned newspaperman, with just the right amount of personality. I've found a lot of his articles online and will read anything that he writes. On top of all this, he is one of the nicest guys you will ever get to know. He's got many stories and calls them up effortlessly. He did an article/interview of my father, had to be forty years ago, and when I had the occasion to speak with Roy recently, he quoted the last line of the article cold: "One eye, one arm, one kidney, and I'll live to be 189."
This one is great. It involves Pittsburgh heavyweight Art Swiden, a lazy and defensive minded fighter who turned off his hometown fans with his lackadaisical, disinterested approach to his career: Even in the gym he was ostracized. Billy Conn, officially retired but preparing for an exhibition match somewhere, wanted nothing more to do with Swiden after two rounds of sparring. "The hell with this," Conn told him. "You hold me. You twist me. You turn me. What good does it do?" Rocky Marciano, training for his first fight with Jersey Joe Walcott, worked three rounds with Swiden and failed to land a punch. Having seen all he wanted to, Marciano's manager, Al Weill, sent Swiden home with an airplane ticket and a hundred-dollar bill. Marciano's farewell was a lecture. As repeated by Swiden in a dead-on imitation of a Massachusetts twang, it went like this: "Aht, you brainless jackass, look at all those bums who couldn't lay a glove on you makin' big money. Get in shape and staht usin' the talent you were born with." Classic...
My father was born in Pittsburgh in 1925, so my early boxing education was mostly the Zivic brothers (we are croatian as well) with a strong dose of Billy Conn. I have a Fritzie Zivic autograph that my aunt obtained at a charity fund raiser in 1940. That same night she got an autograph from Billy Conn, but lost it through the years.
You are going to love "The Fightingest Zivic" chapter then. Roy knew the family (and especially Fritzie) well. Lots of great stories there.
Surf, finally a fight fan MUCH older than meatsch Please let us know when his book is released. Can't wait.
Wow, thank god Roy is writing this. I'll bet he mentions the OUTSTANDING core of Pittsburgh boxing scribes who provide researchers such with a Treasure Trove, such as Regis Welsch & Harry Keck.
He does and he knew a great many of them. Funny, but regarding research Roy said something to me I'd never heard and found amusing. Something along the lines of "Steal from one writer and it's plagiarism. Steal from a thousand writers and it's research."
Finally! Pittsburgh boxing https://www.amazon.com/WHEN-PITTSBURGH-WAS-FIGHT-TOWN/dp/1070264032/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=when+pittsburgh+was+a+fight+town&qid=1574555461&sr=8-1
