Cocoa Kid -A Mystery No More.

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by Stonehands89, Mar 3, 2011.


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  1. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    I don't know. I wouldn't put him anywhere near the Gods of War, but my criteria smiles on him. He would have to get some high scores for experience, longevity, and intangibles.
     
    Stonehands89, Dec 13, 2011
    Stonehands89, Dec 13, 2011
    #271
  2. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Well, 31 + fights (add about another 5 unrecorded fights in Atlanta and who knows how many in Florida) back then was practically novice material. Kaplan had somewhere around 140.

    When you think about it, it really makes you shake your head when you see how often these guys were fighting, living on trains and buses and barnstorming tank towns.

    They lived like Melmoth the Wanderer.
     
    Stonehands89, Dec 13, 2011
    Stonehands89, Dec 13, 2011
    #272
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  3. SLAKKA

    SLAKKA Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Monday 12 August 1940
    > Griffith Stadium, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
    > Cocoa Kid L Georgie Abrams SD 10 10


    I may be soon getting the kitten kaboodle from the dc lib on what really went down in this tangle. I gotta strong feeling the little ******* won this one too!
     
    SLAKKA, Dec 13, 2011
    SLAKKA, Dec 13, 2011
    #273
  4. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    I have the Washington Post's coverage of that one. It says the decision "could have gone either way" and was met with a "mix of boos and cheers."

    CK was outweight by almost 10 lbs.
     
    Stonehands89, Dec 13, 2011
    Stonehands89, Dec 13, 2011
    #274
  5. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Stonehands89, Dec 21, 2013
    Stonehands89, Dec 21, 2013
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  6. Unforgiven

    Unforgiven VIP Member banned Full Member

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    Just read all eight of these today at work. Excellent stuff. :good

    Quite a sad and poignant tale, all in all.
    Certainly a fighter like this deserves this kind of attention and legacy, that immortal glory.
    But it's hard to escape the brute fact that his life didn't turn out well, especially in those last 15 or 20 years when the effects of his occupation caught up with him.
     
    Unforgiven, May 21, 2014
    Unforgiven, May 21, 2014
    #276
  7. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Yes, his is a sad and poignant tale. His occupation is definitely behind his debilitation, yes, but he was also extreme. He's the ultimate road warrior and he was more than a little reckless to fight through the mid-40s after being diagnosed with pugilistica dementia by the Navy. He went and fought Archie Moore and Bert Lytell no less. That was crazy and he could have been killed in the ring.

    His was extreme boxing.

    However, he saw his name in newspapers all over the nation. He achieved more glory that 99% of his fellow citizens. He had a name. Herbert Lewis Hardwick would have been nothing more than a dishwasher or a shoe shine boy or a gas station attendant had he never stepped into that gym in Atlanta to become Cocoa Kid, and we are talking about him 100 years after his birthday (May 2).

    Ali, debilitated, has said many times that the glory was worth it.

    Was it worth it for Cocoa Kid? I don't know. That would be a tough sell in my book. But something tells me that he knew the risks and stormed ahead anyway.

    We're all gonna die.
     
    Stonehands89, May 22, 2014
    Stonehands89, May 22, 2014
    #277
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  8. Unforgiven

    Unforgiven VIP Member banned Full Member

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    I agree. It's not as if we know how can know how things would have panned out differently if we took a different path. Like you suggest, almost certainly he would have been a 'nobody'. And people in ordinary menial jobs end up sick and broke too, all the time, and often due to their occupation. People turn to crime and live out their years in jail. People join the forces and get blown to pieces. Without any glory.

    On a brighter note, I'm a huge admirer of all these road warrior types. Fighters with hundreds of fights, taking on everyone, in different states, different countries, different continents. Doing what fighters do ... fighting.
     
    Unforgiven, May 22, 2014
    Unforgiven, May 22, 2014
    #278
    louis54 likes this.
  9. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Well, I'm grateful to you. I'm trying to lift these fighters up out of the ash heap of history; but if not for your interest, the work itself would end up right beside them on that ash-heap.
     
    Stonehands89, May 22, 2014
    Stonehands89, May 22, 2014
    #279
  10. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Stonehands89, Dec 27, 2014
    Stonehands89, Dec 27, 2014
    #280
  11. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Stonehands89, Dec 23, 2015
    Stonehands89, Dec 23, 2015
    #281
  12. Stonehands89

    Stonehands89 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Bill Zellman continues his December tribute to the grave of Cocoa Kid, and lays a wreath.
    This content is protected
     
    Stonehands89, Dec 28, 2019
    Stonehands89, Dec 28, 2019
    #282
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  13. louis54

    louis54 Well-Known Member Full Member

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    louis54, Dec 28, 2019
    louis54, Dec 28, 2019
    #283
  14. lufcrazy

    lufcrazy requiescat in pace Full Member

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    Just read through the full thread and corresponding articles again, in full.

    Amazing.

    Amazing.

    It's all too easy to look at his 0.75 record and dismiss him, but when you consider handcuffs and dodge decisions, it paints a very different picture.
     
    lufcrazy, Jul 9, 2020
    lufcrazy, Jul 9, 2020
    #284
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