Research was sort of like bits I did over 10 years or more. I was always researching him, interviewing him etc; but for my own and with no intention of a book. Once I decided to write the book, it took about two years from the day I started writing. I had tons of interviews, an unpublished manuscript he was writing before he got sick plus every single newspaper and magazine article from Brazil which he was mentioned in plus more.
Roughly chronological order: Bob Fitzsimmons Joe Gans Sam Langford Packey McFarland Jack Britton Benny Leonard Harry Greb Mickey Walker Henry Armstrong Jimmy McLarnin Tony Canzoneri Barney Ross Joe Louis Archie Moore Ezzard Charles Ray Robinson Willie Pep Muhammad Ali Roberto Duran Ray Leonard Might have to find a place for Pacquiao.
Before 2013 when he broke down due to his wife’s death he was jovial. Everyone said he was the biggest joker, always pulling practical jokes on people (in good nature) but his wife’s death broke him. By the time I was with him and had him stay with me, very quiet because his mind has eroded. If you see old photos of him he’s almost always smiling. His kids shared some amazing memories with me.
It had to be a fabulous experience spending time with one of the all time great boxers. And I look forward to reading your book. While I personally have never met any prominent fighters, I have had some interesting moments. Back in the 1990s here in New York City I encountered Bert Sugar briefly on the street. He was the former editor of The Ring magazine and a familiar figure to many boxing fans with
continued— his fedora and cigar. He had written a book on boxing which contained his rankings of the best fighters ever. He had ranked Sugar Ray Leonard no. 75 on his list. I asked him how on Earth he could rank Leonard so low. He replied that I didn’t know about all these great fighters of the past. It’s true that I didn’t know nearly what I know now, but that ranking was absurd. Years later he did revise his rankings and put Leonard in the mid 20s. That was still too low but a huge improvement. Also, in the 1980s I used to call in to a sports radio show on WABC-AM in New York hosted by Art Rust jr. He was an older man who was quite knowledgeable about sports history, especially boxing. His father used to take him to Madison Square Garden and other venues where he watched Joe Louis and a prime welterweight Ray Robinson fight in the flesh. He allowed callers to speak directly to sports figures. Some days he and the callers would talk boxing and sometimes he would have current and retired fighters on the show. On his show I had the pleasure of speaking to Willie Pep, Evander Holyfield, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, and Bobby Czyz. That was great. I saw on another thread, the “good people” thread, that you met Michael Spinks. Obviously you have met many other well known pugilists. It’s fabulous that a published author posts on this site, and it’s been nice to read about your experiences with Eder Jofre. Chris, please keep posting!—Mark
These list change all the time but for now I have… 1.Ray Robinson 2.Harry Greb 3.Henry Armstrong 4.Ezzard Charles 5.Muhammad Ali 6.Sam Langford 7.Willie Pep 8.Bob Fizsimmons 9.Roberto Duran 10.Joe Louis 11.Benny Leonard 12.Ray Leonard 13.Gene Tunney 14.Roy Jones Jr 15.Jimmy Wilde 16.Archie Moore 17.Pernell Whitaker 18.Marvin Haggler 19.Joe Gans 20.Manny Pacquiao
Thanks Kell Macabe. Jimmy Wilde seems to get overlooked sometimes even by knowledgeable boxing enthusiasts.—Mark
