Not a lot of people know this but...

JG, I don't know how I missed this one but that's funny-y! I've been there, seen that, know that Super Fly guy....

 

Mr. Garfield has told some of those stories over the years, as any of us has repeated things. But I was supposed to go to be an hour and a half a go.
If John was to go back and get many of his posts it would help to do the book.

Both Liston and Clay/Ali were dyslexic.

Jake LaMotta was so dammed tough because he had robbed and killed a man by hitting him in the head.... and was doing hard penance..letting folks beat on him some....
..well one day after winning a big fight, the dead man crawled into the ring to congradualte him...after that Jake was not quite so tough...

Could well be the man didn't remember who cold konked him, the mind often forgets the last few minutes.
That must have been one of the worlds greatest shocks.

 

Repeating stories is the scurge of getting old, BBO. When my wife shoots me a look, I know I'm guilty. But, as you suggest, I'm filing them away.

 

John, from your older posts, I think your DiMaggio story you left off the ending,
The guy took down all his DiMaggio pictures.


Boxing was killed as a sport by the Neilson rating boxes. He did not put the boxes in bars, where most men watched boxing...so I love Lucy killed boxing.
There were at one time 4 TV stations. (Until Cable TV came in from 1956/7?, there were only three) The TV channel that died, carried more boxing than the other three.
I'm sure I've repeated this a hundred times and done a better job of it on occasion too. There was at least 8 and maybe 10-12 hours of boxing on TV every week. By 1964, all you had was Gillette's Cavalcade of sports and suddenly all you had was the highlights of some big fights.

To see how good some of the "bad" fighters everyone bad mouths, one must really see the real bad or beginning boxers actually are....back then we got to see, some bad to mediocre fighters too.
Vidio can be a great as a training aid. I saw one of me hitting golf balls on the range. I knew what was the right way....but sure wasn't doing it.

Somewhere I think on this post or some other some one wanted to know how much some old fighter benched. Someoen made a snide remark of how today's fighers are "better in shape" than the older figher...ie more defination on the whole.
From waht I read, Trainers did not want muscle mass that was working at cross purpoes.
If one looks at scrawny chested Tunney, compaired to today's guys...one gets the impression he's not much of a physical specimen.....well then take a look at his back. Take a look at his physical training program, where he was training only the muscles he needed to box with.

Excess body beautiful muscles are only excess muscles that have to be oxinated, help make chickenwing jabs, by forceing the elbow out from the side fo the body, making the jab start easier to see. Too big a chest with too big a bicept.

I am sure that if someone lifted weights ONLY under the eye of a good boxing trainer today, it is very helpful.
But lifting weights is additive, and many must be doing it in "private", lifting benches, and building excessive big bicepts, that get in the way. Bulking up out of ther height and reach weight class.

Those old time boxers were in condition, which is better than being in shape. Condition being the step beyond shape. Even if they did not look as pretty as many boxers of today. The old time boxers had to fight to stay in their weight class, because back before all the half weights came in, the next step up was 15 pounds from Welter to Middleweight limit.
Robinson was freaky tall for Welter at 5' 10 1/2, like Hearns. Basicilio was normal back then for a Welter at 5' 6 or 8". The next weight class up was filled with lean big guys.

John, you could tell me if I'm dead wrong or not....you were of that time. You did train folks.
I sometimes try to find my elbow with both hands.

 

You've got it right, BBO, SRR was tall for a welter; the norm was about 5'6"-5'8", and probably 5'10" for a middle.