Best PURE boxer,my weight, bad chin hurt me

It wasn't great by any means, but not terrible. I'd say his chin was pretty average though. And nor was Barkley feather-fisted. Agree about Bruno aswell, he just had terrible survival skills.

 

Oh, yes... Errol Christie! A great example of a boxer with great skills - but not a chin to go with it.

 

I first met Tippy Larkin in 1978. They had a article about me in the Bergen Record called "Henry Hascup: He's Quiz Whiz" and when I went to my 2nd Ring 9 meeting, the secretary read it to the membership. When he got done another former boxer by the name of Billy Kilroy said, OK kid, when and who did Tippy Larkin win the World title off of. I said April 29, 1946 against Willie Joyce. He then said, your right, now sit down and say hello to Tippy Larkin.

We became friends since that day. I would take him with me anytime we had a boxing function. He got the name of Larkin from his brother Bobby Larkin, who also fought as a pro and Bobby got it from another ex-boxer, manager, Jack Larkin Amato. Jack took the name of Larkin when in 1928, he went to see his brother Sammy Amato box. The match-maker wanted to know if anyone weighed 147 pounds that wanted to box that night. Jack said I'm 147, and then discovered he was to box his own brother, so he gave the name of Jack Larkin. The name of Tippy was suppose to be his initials, his real name was Tony Pilleteri (TP), But he once told me that he got it because his younger brother couldn't pronounce his name. He tried to say Tony, and it came out TP. I think between the 2 they came up with Tippy.

I once asked Ike Williams, who was the best boxer he ever fought, he he said Tippy Larkin. I said, you knocked him out in 4 rounds, and Ike said, yea but he gave me a boxing lesson until I caught up with him.

You can read what I posted a while back by going to the following link:

http://www.eastsideboxing.com/forum/showthread.php?p=6539342

When he passed away on December 10, 1991, I was asked to give the Eulogy.

 

WHATTA TREAT TO READ, hh

 

Coming from someone like you, is a real treat as well.

 

Several years ago, we put up a monument of Tippy at the Girls Club in Garfield, New Jersey and his brother and several other members attended. Again, I was the MC.

 

My first thought was Floyd Patterson....

 

Hardly a pure boxer. In my opinion Hearns doesn't quite fit the bill of best pure boxer of his division either.

 

Used to read Dan Parker religiously, burt, as well as anxiously awaiting Willard Mullin's latest sports cartoon in the World Telegram & Sun.

 

I also knew Allie Stolz as well. I went to boxing show many years ago because they stated that they were going to honor him in the middle of the ring. All the ring announcer said was that he over 70 bouts and then gave him an award.

People around me started asking who he ever beat and what was his record. I stood up and started telling everyone that could hear, all about Stolz. I even made a couple of 100 copies of his record on 1 side and the other side I scanned a picture of him.

When Stolz finally came back to his seat, which was right in front of mine, the people all around gave him a standing ovation. He then turned to me and said, I know you had something to do with this. For the next 15-20 minutes, he signed autographs for everyone, most of them were on the papers I gave out. Allie was smiling from ear to ear.

 

I'm loving having you 3 guys around to share your stories.

 

Lovely recollection, Burt. Originally wanted to be a cartoonist. Mullin was my idol -- captured someone's personality perfectly.

 

I think we have the SRR,Greb and Pep, of raconteurs here. HH, JG and BB, you can fight it out who represents which boxer. Always a pleasure to read your to and fro's and half the time i forget what the thread was originally about!!