. The following year, Sonnydetermined to reunite with his mother and siblingsthrashed the pecans from his brother-in-law's tree and sold them in Forrest City, Arkansas. Some found it suspicious that authorities could not locate any drug paraphernalia that Liston presumably would have needed to inject the fatal dose, such as a spoon to cook the heroin or a tourniquet to wrap around his arm. "I didn't know what the heck was going on", Angelo Dundee, Clay's trainer, recalled on an NBC special 25 years later. However, there were again rumors of alcohol abuse in training. ", Hutchison, Phillip J. During the fourth round Liston appeared dominant as Clay coasted, keeping his distance. A stoic Liston finished the fight, but lost in an eight-round split decision. Tobe and Helen had 12 children together; Sonny was the second youngest child. Liston did eventually rise from the mat, but soon after, the referee broke up the two boxers once again the former champion had been down for more than 10 seconds, ending the fight. Patterson, a 4-1 betting underdog, was knocked down three times and counted out at 2:10 of the first round. There's never been anybody as ruthless. Then again, you can also have guys like Ali or Mike Tyson. I want to prove to the world there's dirty work afoot.' "And I suppose Sonny Liston always stuck with me. Roy Harris, who had gone 13 rounds with Floyd Patterson in a title match, was crushed in one round by Liston. A few years before Tocco died, he allegedly told one of his good friends, Tony Davi, that he went to Liston's house and found the door locked and his car in the driveway. Dave Anderson of the New York Times said Liston "looked awful" in his last workout before the fight. In his own words in Thomas Hauser's 1991 biography: "The punch jarred him. Liston said he quit because of a shoulder injury. However, when Clay returned to his corner, he started complaining that there was something burning in his eyes and he could not see. Although the opening round saw Clay largely on the defensive, it was soon established that Clay could reverse roles quickly and take to the offensive with a remarkably fast series of combinations delivered to Liston's head. Interview with Floyd Patterson - Washington University in St. Louis Tale of the tape: Fight poster for Sonny Liston v Cassius Clay in 1964. . His fists measured 15 inches (38cm) around, the largest of any heavyweight champion. He also cited medical evidence: "A team of eight doctors inspected Liston's arm at St. Francis Hospital in Miami Beach and agreed that it was too badly damaged for Liston to continue fighting. "[96], Many people who knew Liston insisted he was afraid of needles and never would have used heroin. Half a mile above and beyond the shrine, looking down from the summit of the mountain, is a statue of the Sacred Heart. [35] Liston's victory was loudly booed. He won eight fights that year, six by knockout. There's something really primal about the whole thing, obviously. Technically, contracts for boxing matches werent supposed to have rematch clauses, though pretty much all of them had some sort of loophole and agreement when each side wanted to guarantee a return bout again, the laws by which boxing governed itself were really more suggestions at the time. I never saw. When Machen clinched in . "Now (after seeing video) I think Clay, seeing the opening, snapped the punch the last six inches. I don't think there was any way for him to beat Clay at that time, but if he entered the ring in a different mindset, to box and not try and get him like Patterson and others, he could of went the distance. Stuttgarter Amtsblatt No. Joe Frazier vs Sonny Liston : r/Boxing - Reddit [58] Despite Liston carrying an injury and being undertrained, Clay stated in 1975 that the first fight with Liston was the toughest of his career. [14], Tobe Liston inflicted whippings so severe on Sonny that the scars were still visible decades later. [79][80][81] These include Muhammad Ali, who stated in a 1975 interview that he was a great admirer of Liston's talents: "Liston had a tremendous jab, could punch with either hand, was smart in the ring and as strong as any heavyweight Ive ever seen. [105], Singer/Songwriter Rod Picott wrote and recorded a song titled "Sonny Liston" for his 2022 album "Paper Hearts and Broken Arrows. ", It was later theorized that a substance used on Liston's cuts by Joe Pollino, his cut man, may have caused the irritation. Wepner, who also fought George Foreman and Muhammad Ali, said after his career was over that Liston was the hardest puncher he faced. [19], On June 23, 1953, a team consisting of ten recent St. Louis Golden Gloves champions of all weight classes, with Liston on top as the heavyweight, was gathered to represent the United States in an International Golden Gloves (USA vs. West Europe) competition at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis. He claimed the officer used racial slurs. "[18], After Liston was released from prison on October 31, 1952, he had a brief amateur career that spanned less than a year. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. "I'm doing a portrait of a life, really, in a way, so you are trying to get the whole thing into just a few verses. Im free to be who I want.. "[40][41], Upon winning the world heavyweight title, Liston had a speech prepared for the crowd that friends had assured him would meet him at the Philadelphia airport. "Better get me out of this ring," exclaimed Wilson, "he is going to kill me! The most iconic photo in boxing history documents the knockout that almost nobody saw happen. This is a clip out of the \"The Other Side\" Documentary. Support this Channel:https://www.patreon.com/LegendsofBoxing Merchandise:LegendsofBoxing.redbubble.com I restore \u0026 colorize your projects, PayPal Donations: LegendsofBoxingYT@gmail.comThank you!________________________________________________________________________________ Credit Original B\u0026W Footage:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CLMlEpRb9wSonny Liston Interview uploaded by haNZAgodAll My YouTube ChannelsMy Main Channel \"Legends of Boxing\": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC73ffQAknNEWJlRoFSWH_awMy Second Boxing Channel \"Legends of Boxing\": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-QLrFyDnskqz5_z95mcOAMy History Channel \"Time Travel: Colorized Archive\": https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC29VFkNvVVi6_OzwFV2oTqQMy Documentary Channel \"Tales From The Past\":https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZpFIIYrCc1lOHbG-fUo5vwMein Dokumentation Channel \"Geschichten aus der Vergangenheit\" (Tales From The Past in Deutsch) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXBfWoE1KVXEzh9d2NrwBhASocial https://www.instagram.com/legends_of_boxing1/ There are no official records of his birth Also in 1970, Liston appeared on an episode of the TV series Love, American Style and in a television commercial for Braniff Airlines with Andy Warhol.[12][102]. "You're putting things on and you're taking this out and molding it," Knopfler said. Sonny Liston became world heavyweight champion in 1962 and fought Muhammad Ali twice In January 1971, former heavyweight champion of the world Sonny Liston was found dead at his Las Vegas. You really never watched the first fight did you? Some writers thought Liston brought bad press on himself by a surly and hostile attitude toward journalists. A sudden violent combination delivered with 30 seconds left in the round electrified the crowd. Writer Jack McKinney said, "I watched Sonny. He could probably drive his thumb through your skull like Michael Myers, It's crazy to think about the fact that Sonny Liston was an actual gangster running with gangs.. and then he looks so soft spoken in the interview. In an Associated Press poll, 64 of 102 reporters picked Patterson. It was a shocking result, not only because Liston was favored in the match, but because hardly anybody saw the punch that took him down. One of the reasons why sports stays alive in us is that there's part of us that wants to keep the child alive and recognizes that there is something important in doing that. His family's home state of Arkansas did not make birth certificates mandatory until 1965. Beat me to it! During these same years Sonny Liston was on the comeback trail as well. Boston: Little, Brown. You could feel the deflation, see the look of hurt in his eyes. The grave's marker-plate bears the dedication: "A Man. He was a gentle man. Washington University Libraries, Film and Media Archive, Henry Hampton Collection. Sonny Liston had a controversial boxing career, winning 54 of 58 bouts from 1953 to 1970. He died circa December 30,. When you can kill almost anybody in the world with your bare hands, you don't really have to go around proclaiming it to everyone. I know it", Liston said afterward. Arthur Daley of the New York Times wrote that Liston's handlers knew he "didn't have it anymore,"[65] and allegedly they had secretly paid sparring partner Amos Lincoln an extra $100 to take it easy on him -[citation needed] - the same man, incidentally, that Liston dismissed in less than two rounds a full three years later. Soon, he was known as Cassius X, eschewing the last name given to his enslaved family by their owners. Banker said he was told by police that Liston had been seen at a house that would be the target of a drug raid. (. [5][6] Alfie Potts Harmer in The Sportster also ranked him the third greatest heavyweight and the sixth greatest boxer at any weight. The opening round was fought an extra eight seconds, since both fighters and referee Barney Felix apparently did not hear the bell. I didn't want anything to do with him. [107] The story speculates that Liston threw the Ali match for the good of society. RARE Sonny Liston Interview before the first Ali fight 1964 in Color [88] On returning home from a two-week trip, Geraldine had smelled a foul odor emanating from the main bedroom and on entering saw him slumped up against the bed, a broken foot bench on the floor. I dont have to be what you want me to be, Clay told agitated reporters. But by the sixth round his sight had cleared, and a clearly enraged Clay fought a blisteringly aggressive round landing numerous combination punches. Welcome to r/boxing, the official home of pro boxing on Reddit! That got him killed. He returned with four consecutive knockout victories in Sweden between July 1966 and April 1967, all four co-promoted by former world heavyweight champion Ingemar Johansson. [38], Patterson finally signed to meet Liston for the world title on September 25, 1962, in Comiskey Park in Chicago. Sonny Liston fought for only $10,000 during his career. C'mon now, this is for the title, this is the big apple. Never before seen Sonny Liston interview. Support this Channel: https://www.patreon.com/join/LegendsofBoxing Merchandise: https://www.redbubble.com/peo. Muhammad Ali talking about Henry Cooper, Sonny Liston, and - YouTube He would later employ McCarter as a sparring partner. "[35], U.S. President John F. Kennedy also did not want Patterson to fight Liston. Rocky Marciano, the former heavyweight champion, said that he appreciated the punchs strength upon re-examination. He found a quarter-ounce of heroin in a balloon in the kitchen, and a half-ounce of marijuana in Liston's pants pocket, but no syringes or needles. To this day, I'm convinced that's what the coroner saw in his examthat hospital needle mark. Former champions James J. Braddock, Jersey Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles, Rocky Marciano and Ingemar Johansson all picked Patterson to win. [34] Many African-Americans disdained Liston. Good lord, Sonny's mitts are massive. said Liston's Philadelphia dentist, Dr. Nick Ragni. The Murder of Sonny Liston is an absorbing, albeit speculative, attempt at addressing the mystery that died with the man. Sonny Liston was one of the hardest hitters the boxing world has ever seen. "[18] The only backers willing to put up the necessary money for him to turn professional were close to underworld figures, and Liston supplemented his income by working for racketeers as an intimidator-enforcer. Be respectful and come chat with us. [21], Liston made his professional debut on September 2, 1953, knocking out Don Smith in the first round in St. Louis, where he fought his first five bouts. Ali initially stood over his fallen opponent, gesturing and yelling at him, "Get up and fight, sucker!" Remembering One Of Boxing's Storied Bouts : NPR With Clay quickly ducking his head left, right or away, Liston's leading left jabs largely failed to land. ", One of the most vivid verses creates a word-picture of Liston in his prime with photographic clarity: "Black Cadillac, alligator boots, money in the pockets of his sharkskin suits." But then again, he took a pretty good beating in the fight. ", Liston appeared on the December 1963 cover of Esquire magazine (cover photograph by Carl Fischer) "the last man on earth America wanted to see coming down its chimney".[106]. For confetti we can use torn-up arrest warrants." The victim sought out the executioner." He also had a reputation for bullying people such as porters and waitresses. Inter-Continental said local veteran Sam Silverman was the promoter. [70] There have been a number of unproven theories as to the background to the purported dive including that Liston was threatened by the Muslims, or agreed to lose in return for a share in the more marketable Ali's future purses. "Some songs just seem to reverberate with people.". In "Song for Sonny Liston," Knopfler's voice is backed by electric guitar, a bass and drums as he tells the story of a sharecropper's son who went from prison to the championship to an early death under mysterious circumstances. In the months ahead of the fight, Muhammad Ali went all sorts of routes to get into Sonny Liston's head. Both fights were in Summerlin's hometown of Detroit.[23]. No, I'm Alexanderhe's no Alexander. The suspension was honored in all states. [citation needed], Rogin wrote that Patterson backers expected him to "go inside on Liston, fire away and then run like a thief in the night. [62] The promoters needed a new location quickly, whatever the size, to rescue their closed-circuit television commitment around the country. Less than 10 days later, he was Muhammad Ali, a name given him to Elijah Muhammad, the head of the Nation of Islam. He would not close in until the accumulated inside damage and Liston's own frustration had sapped the challenger's strength and will." Three days before the fight, Ali needed emergency surgery for a strangulated hernia. "Nat Fleischer [editor of The Ring] was sitting beside McDonough and he was waving his hands, too, saying it was over." Emily Post would probably recommend a ticker-tape parade. Don't confuse shyness with dullness, Sonny was. While valuing the photograph, appraiser Kathleen Guzman told. Biographer Wilfrid Sheed wrote in his book, Muhammad Ali: A Portrait in Words and Photographs, that Clay's protests were heard by ringside members of the Nation of Islam who initially suspected Dundee had blinded his fighter, and that the trainer deliberately wiped his own eyes with the corner sponge to demonstrate to Clay's approaching bodyguards that he had not intentionally blinded him. . He was still a world-ranked boxer when he died in mysterious circumstances in 1970. Never before seen Sonny Liston interview. 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Tocco left the house before the police did. But former Las Vegas police Sgt. Rogin called Liston's physique "awesomearms like fence posts, thighs like silos." [55], There is ample evidence that Liston did carry an injury to his left shoulder into the fight. [71] Credence to the latter theory is provided by the fact that Liston, immediately after his fight with Chuck Wepner, seemed more concerned about supporting the proposed Ali-Frazier bout and Ali's claims to be champion than promoting his own career.
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