Please, rave about Archie Moore for me.

He really was a mongoose back then. Bold, precise, quick. Makes the Old Mongoose nickname all the more captivating, because later on he really did look like an ancient, wise mongoose avoiding the snake's bite albeit with adjusted tools.

 

I truly adore the nickname. Praise Jack Murphy for giving it to him. The killer of snakes. The one animal a snake cannot bite. So apt after seeing him fight Ron Richards (immense thanks for showing it to me). A bold, precise, experimental fighter dancing in and out and moving in for the killing blow. I once read an article saying Greb should have been given the name, because Archie resembled a snapping turtle more. Well, disagreed. Young Archie is the embodiment of an animal immensly courageous, yet aware it only takes one bite -- one false move -- to bring it down. A Darwinian artist in a dance of death.

Then came the Old Mongoose. An oxymoron, as mongooses rely on their reflexes, boldness, and killer insinct to overcome a foe. And yet, Moore truly embodied versatility, craftiness, and encyclopedic adjustements worthy of an ancient snake-killer. All the angles, othodox or southpaw, every punch in the book thrown, no guard was left unutilized, inside and outside, and finally the mastery of the crossguard to fend off the venomous bite. To "armor" the head movement. To permit positions and flow standard head slots would be too risky for.

Jesus, the man had character. Nearly killed while hitching a train. Nearly killed by ulcers. Denied the title shot for so many years. A road warior. Got in the ring with Charles three times (and it is my belief he beat him the second time around, much like Archie insisted, as it was a razor edge MD in Cincinnati.) Moved up to heavyweight and fought anacondas. That knockdown of Rocky Marciano lives rent free in my head. Like some Hollywood scripted choreography, that's how pitch perfect it was.

Trained George Foreman along Sandy Saddler. Turned him into an absolute beast; Norton shot himself in the knee by even thinking about using the crab defence. Later passed down the legacy of the crossguard through George's comeback career and lived to see the man exorcise Zaire. One of the most notable fighters-turned-trainers in general, having helped shape Earnie Shavers and the likes. Knew how to hone those punchers.

Always humble, always kind. Cared for the kids like few others. Instructor Moore they called him, and he believed in them like I have hard time believing. Believed Any Boy Can, and any man can for that matter. Trained Nigerian boxing team; trained Jamaican rising stars for the Olympics; was a civil right activist; worked with the government as youth boxing instructor; was asked to be a Minister of Welfare of Children by Argentinian president; was an actor, a humanitarian...

.. a god of war, and yet when asked in an interview about his life's greatest accomplishment he still answered Any Boy Can.

Self-Reliance, Self-Control, Self-Defence.

 

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And to further praise the symbolism of the mongoose (courage, determination, precision) a clip of the greatest literary hero of my adult life: Rikki Tikki Tavi.