Matt, I hadn't heard he had passed away. As of a couple of years back, he was still living here in Detroit. If I find out anything, I'll post it here.
There is no news of his death on the internet? Perhaps news of his demise has been greatly exagerated?
I've heard he died in 2004 but cant confirm this. Elmer Ray and Lee Q Murray are two more that i cant find a date for(if dead at all)
I am not aware of John's death. We worked together closely for about 15 years through 1987. I only saw him a dozen times since then, the last conversation was probably 10 years ago. John was, and hope still is, a pleasure to be around. A real gentleman. Although he often talked of boxing I never heard him say anything about being hosed in the Liston fight. He did however say that Patterson managed to avoid several contenders, including John. I will try to find out what I can. In preparation for this message I tried the last number I had. I can not find a valid number for his wife Shirley or his daughter Debbie.
Hi, I found this from archives.com and I presume Johnny Summerlin passed away in 2011. Another legend of boxing's golden era was gone. John W Summerlin First Name: John Middle Name: W Last Name: Summerlin Birth Date: Jan 23, 1932 Death Date: Jan 29, 2011 Age: 79 First Known Location: AL Last Known Residence: Southfield, MI Record Type: Death Record Collection: Social Security Death Index The birth date also matches John's record on http://boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=11957&cat=boxer
