He really cared for us kids who had the privilege of meeting him, which I did in Dec 1969 at our local Junior High School.
He certainly was Richard. I read something about him now my memory is a touch hazy but it went something like this. “One day I was on a tram, out of nowhere a man tried to strike me with a club i reacted so quickly thank my training I jumped off the moving tram. And the thing that concerned me most was how can a man I’ve never met in my life hate me so much to want to end it”
All Boys Can. The man deserves his own Netflix series about his life. From the time he was a youth getting into trouble to him hitting the road working on the works projects and lumber yards out west to when he was a traveling fighter w nothing but his Napsack over his shoulder. He once helped raise money for a blind girls operation whom he didn’t even know while traveling before he was big time. Then his traveling to South America and Australia and finally getting a title shot getting paid nothing for it no less. Then basically going on the run of his career. Then acting then training and charity. The man never stopped. Netflix get on this
As I posted before, he paid for an eye surgery for a youth whose parents could not afford to have it done. Too bad we do not have fighters today who think of others like Archie Moore did. That Boys Club that he had built for us was very nice, his words and advice really made an impact on my life as an adult.
Archie showed us that fight the day he saw us at the local Junior High in Dec 1969, he said Rocky Marciano hit him the hardest, and that Muhammad Ali was very fast.
Great stuff Richard. Archie was definitely one of the old guard, the ones that fought everywhere, all over the country, in all the far out towns. Then runs up an incredible record. Back then it didn't matter if you had a few losses on your cv, it wasn't seen as a black mark.
Surprised he said Rocky hit him the hardest he said Sheppard did in another interview. Awesome stuff though. Only guy to ever fight both of them
I was thinking that or like many other fighters on televised or published interviews don’t like giving their opponents they lost to their due. But who knows cool story either way.
Amazon alerted me today that there’s an original first-printing hardback of ‘The Archie Moore Story,’ the Mongoose’s 1960 autobiography, for the oddly specific price of $768.57. There are not-original-printing used copies (paperback maybe?) of the same tome in good condition for around $5. I may spring for the non-collector’s item to reach his story in his own words.
Let us know what you glean from it! Seeing a youtube documentary on him showed what an unusual-& erudite, studied up on things at local libraries between fights-charitable & kind man he was.