Tony Baltazar

They're the kind of fights that fighters learn from Frank. Too many fighters these days are over protected on the way up worried about losing that 0.
What can you tell us about Kabakoff Frank? I'm Probably way off base here but I'm sure I read somewhere or heard something about him being originally from Liverpool. I also heard he was hard to work with. Attempts were made twice to match Pimental with my dad, once in England and once at the Forum, both fell through. I know he was supposed to be in the opposite corner the night Rose took the title from Harada, any idea what happened there?

 

OBITUARY
Harry Kabakoff, colorful boxing trainer and manager, dies at 82
The eccentric handler swapped his real name, Melville Himmelfarb, for
Kabakoff in honor of his uncle. Among his best fighters were Jesus
Pimentel, Don Jordan and Tury Pineda.
By Valerie J. Nelson
November 22, 2009

After boxing's Melville Himmelfarb started going by Harry Kabakoff,
sportswriters invariably marveled over the unorthodox trading of one
unwieldy name for another.

Why not "Tyrone Youngblood" or something with "Lancelot" in it?, The
Times' Jim Murray wrote in 1979.

The re-christened Kabakoff, once known as the premier handler of Mexican
fighters in the U.S., always said he took the name of his uncle to honor
his relative, a successful boxer.

Kabakoff, who had cancer, died Tuesday of cardiac arrest at Northridge
Hospital Medical Center, said Jesse Pimentel, who considered Kabakoff
his grandfather. He was 82.

Six weeks before his death, he had returned to Los Angeles from
Mexicali, where he retired at least a decade ago.

"He was maybe the most colorful character in boxing that I've ever met,
and everyone in boxing is colorful," said Bill Caplan, a boxing
publicist. "He was a rogue and a rascal and he was funny and lovable."

One of Kabakoff's best fighters was Jesus Pimentel, father of Jesse, and
"perhaps the greatest bantamweight fighter who never won a world
championship," Mike Hiserman wrote in The Times in 1995.

Known for scouring the barrios of Mexico in search of young talent,
Kabakoff met Pimentel in Mexicali.

"They were together for 12 years, from beginning to end," the younger
Pimentel told The Times on Friday. "Harry would say, 'Your father held
my hand in 1958 and hasn't let go since.' "

As he sought a world-championship belt, Pimentel's career was marked by
near-misses that often were blamed on Kabakoff.

He "was a good trainer and good manager" but "ran from title fights" if
he thought his boxer was at risk, Caplan said.

For publicity, Kabakoff would do outrageous things, Caplan said,
including dressing as the dynamic duo during the Batman craze in the
late 1960s. The portly Kabakoff and Pimentel called themselves Fatman
and Bobbin.

By 1972, Kabakoff was "the General Motors of fight managers," with a
roster of 67 names but only 10 who could "really fight," Murray wrote in
The Times.

Kabakoff's loyalty to his men was "unmatched," John Hall noted in a 1971
Times column that made light of the fact that Kabakoff had nicknamed
himself "the Mad Russian."

"At least, he's got insight," Hall quipped.

Born July 13, 1927, in St. Louis, Kabakoff was the son of Sam
Himmelfarb, a bread-truck driver from London and his wife, the former
Stella Kabakoff, who was from Poland.

Growing up, Kabakoff went to eight schools between St. Louis and Los
Angeles and claimed he was thrown out of them all.

At 16, he eloped in Mexico with his girlfriend, who was pregnant, but
the marriage was annulled after five days.

In 1944, Kabakoff joined the Navy and became a cook on a minelayer.
After World War II, he moved to Los Angeles and started boxing.

"I was an average fighter as an amateur and a poor one as a pro,"
Kabakoff later recalled.

As a manager and trainer, he worked with a number of good fighters,
including former welterweight champion Don Jordan and lightweight Tury
Pineda.

In the 1950s, Kabakoff ran into trouble as assistant matchmaker at the
Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles when he was accused of secretly
handling fighters for Babe McCoy, who as the Olympic's matchmaker could
not own fighters.

Kabakoff always denied the charges but the fallout caused him to "lose
everything," he told The Times in 1968.

He managed to buy a beer parlor in Santa Ana in 1958 and then made the
fortuitous trip to Mexicali, where he met Pimentel. The fighter, who
lives in North Hills, named one of his sons Melville.

Kabakoff "was manager, trainer, father-confessor and cook" for his
fighters, Caplan recalled.

He was just too soft-hearted for the business, Aileen Eaton, then the
Olympic promoter, told Sports Illustrated in 1977.

"Even after they retire . . . he keeps giving them money," Eaton said.
"He's 1,000 percent loyal. . . . Because of the movies, people think
managers are some kind of monsters. They should know Harry."

He has no immediate survivors.

A memorial service was being planned.

valerie.nel...@latimes.com

 

Please pardon my ignorance, but who was your father?...

Imo Harry was over protective of Jesus Pimental. He won't turn him loose when Jesus was in his prime, by the time he did Jesus was well on his way down hill....I seen Harry get the **** kicked out off him at the Olympic one night, he was on all four trying to hide under the seats...It was funny seeing fat Harry trying to get under the low seats, he just didn't fit...LOL!...I met Harry before he was
"Fat Harry". When I first met Harry I don't think he weight more then 130 pounds, he want up to about 250 pounds in later years...

 

Wow thanks Frank, that is more info than I was expecting, he must of been some character.
By the way I'm Alan Rudkin's son. George Parnassus wanted to put my dad and Pimental on the undercard of the Olivares Rose fight. They offered dad great money and it would of been an eliminator for the winner of the title bout. Anyway for one reason or another it never came off and dad got the shot at Olivares anyway, he was no1 contender at the time.

 

Tony had a great left hook which I've seen him drop both Howard Davis Jr, and Buddy McGuirt with.And Buddy took a pretty good shot at that time, if I remember correctly.:good

 

Alan, you're my FB friend...LOL!!!...Sorry 'bout that....

 

He did have a great left hook, but sometimes it worked against him because he would go left hook crazy and forget about everything else....

 

delete delete

 

Haha

 

At a press conference after the Tony Baltazaz/Howard Davis fight a reporter asked Tony a question.


Reporter: Tony, after dropping Howard twice; were you surprise at the decision?

Tony: well, you know; I am a long way from home.

 

Just been looking at some old Boxing News'. Turns out Pimental was supposed to fight Jofre pn October 28th 1964 in San Antonio. The fight was called off at 5 days notice. Don't know the reason.

 

Harry wanted more money is what I heard, and was told to take a hike....I think he did that to get out of the fight. I don't think he wanted Jesus to fight Jofre in the first place...Like I said "over-protective"

 

Hoed you think Pimental would have done against Jofre then?

 

Imo, Jofre beats Pimental at anytime in their careers...

 

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(L-to-R)
Jimmy Lennon Sr., Frankie Balrazar, John Martinez, Johnnie Flores and Frank Baltazar....Olympic Auditorium..1976