Certainly Johnson had more going for him than enormous hands. While "doing his nickel", the athletic director at Missouri State Penitentiary suggested that Liston try boxing The prison organized sparring sessions and Sonny dominated his incarcerated brethren. Liston's last fight was a 10-round beating he delivered to Chuck Wepner in June 1970. Around the age of 20, Liston inevitably turned to crime and led a gang of young urbanites who committed muggings and armed robberies He was eventually caught and sentenced to 5 years in prison. Liston believed his date of birth to be May 8, 1932, and used this for official purposes[11] but by the time he won the world title an aged appearance added credence to rumors that he was actually several years older. ", During an era when white journalists still described black athletes in stereotypes, Liston had long been a target of racially charged slurs; he was called a "gorilla" and "a jungle beast" in print. You could feel the deflation, see the look of hurt in his eyes. In a pre-fight poll, 43 of 46 sportswriters picked Liston to win by knockout. On April 21, 1955, he defeated Marshall in a rematch, dropping him four times en route to a sixth-round knockout. The heavyweight champion's mysterious death is covered in tonight's all-new episode of. Fans rejected Liston after he won the heavyweight title over Floyd Patterson in 1962. The connections to organized crime were an advantage early in his career but were later used against him. He won by a seventh-round technical knockout, and seemed on the verge of making a comeback to the big time. [83] Herb Goldman stated that Liston, when in his prime between 1958 and 1963, was the most feared fighter in boxing history. "There is power in both his left and his right, even though the fists move with the languor of motoring royalty or as if passing through a gaseous envelope more dense than air." Liston, one of 25 children by his father, is reputed to have been born in May 1932, yet prison records show various birth dates, among them 1928. Liston was found dead by his wife in their Las Vegas home on Jan. 5, 1971. [61] The new date was set for May 25, 1965. What are you doing? Or it would be history, if boxing "historians" would stop sweeping the legacy of Sonny Liston under the ring canvas. 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. The Devil and Sonny Liston. He rolled over, got to his right knee and then fell on his back again. He got out of prison in 52, won the Golden Gloves in Chicago, and went pro after less than a year Unfortunately, the only financial backers willing to put up the necessary money for him to turn professional were local mobsters, and Liston supplemented his income by working for the local mob as an intimidator-enforcer. When Patterson met with the president in January 1962, Kennedy suggested that Patterson avoid Liston, citing Justice Department concerns over Liston's ties to organized crime. The ending of the fight remains one of the most controversial in boxing history. Liston won his final fight, a tough but one-sided match against future world title challenger Chuck Wepner in June 1970. The opening round was fought an extra eight seconds, since both fighters and referee Barney Felix apparently did not hear the bell. Sports Illustrated predicted a Patterson victory in 15 rounds, stating: "Sonny has neither Floyd's speed nor the versatility of his attack. Clay countered in verse, "If you want to lose your money, then bet on Sonny! Liston was supremely confident of easily beating Clay, trained minimally for the fight and went ahead with it despite an injury to his left shoulder.[44]. "[54] Hall of Fame matchmaker Teddy Brenner also disputed the shoulder injury, claiming he saw Liston use the same arm to throw a chair in his dressing room after the match. The former heavyweight champion is perhaps best known for being laid out on the canvas by Muhammad Ali in one of the sports most iconic bouts. Wepner, who also fought George Foreman and went 15 rounds with Ali before being knocked out (that fight was Stallones inspiration for Rocky), said after his career was over that Liston was by far the hardest puncher he faced. The rematch between . He also wrote that Liston's win over Patterson proved that "in a fair fight between good and evil, evil must win." Curriculum Vitae. Death April 29, 2016 - Carrhubane Beg, Limerick, Ireland. "The timekeeper was waving both hands and saying, 'I counted him outthe fight is over,'" Walcott said after the fight. I know!" Mother Bridget Sheehan. Unfortunately for Martin, however, his career ended after that fight due to a detached retina he suffered during the bout. 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. He then left the fighters to go over to McDonough. Tocco left the house before the police did. That got him killed. The bout would need to be delayed by six months. [101], Liston played a fist fighter in the 1965 film Harlow, made a cameo appearance in the 1968 film Head, which starred The Monkees, and played the part of The Farmer in the 1970 film Moonfire, which starred Richard Egan and Charles Napier. He particularly resented a 1961 arrest by a black patrolman for loitering, claiming to have merely been signing autographs and chatting with fans outside a drugstore. Also, McDonough did not bang on the canvas or motion a number count with his fingers. The coroner said he died from natural causes. (1) Liston had been deeply involved as a bill collector of a loansharking ring in Las Vegas. Sonny Liston, once the heavyweight champ, died at the age of who-knows-what some days before Dec. 30, 1970. In his next fight, he had a rematch with Summerlin and again won an eight-round decision. Joe Louis commenting on TV at ringside said "It's looking good for Sonny Liston". Born in Forrest City, Arkansas, sometime in the late 1920s and early. When he tried to muscle in for a bigger share, his employers got him very drunk, took him home, and stuck him with a needle. Patterson's fatal mistake was that he "did not punch enough and frequently tried to clinch with Liston. [72], "I was an 'intimidator' until I fought Sonny Liston. He claimed the officer used racial slurs. 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. The fight lasted four seconds longer than the first one. Liston was knocked down in the first round, but came back to control the next two rounds and had Griffin hanging on at the end. Liston's noticeably more muscular left arm, crushing left jab and powerful left hook lent credence to the widely held belief that he was left-handed, although he fought in an orthodox stance. The year 1959 was a banner one for Liston: after knocking out contender Mike DeJohn in six rounds he faced Cleveland Williams, a fast-handed fighter who was billed as the hardest-hitting heavyweight in the world against whom he showed durability, power and skill, nullifying Williams' best work before stopping him in the third round. (. Theories regarding the circumstance of Liston's death. [103], Sonny Liston was featured in a novel "Girl Fighter" with a brief reference to his early life, his rise to WBC heavyweight champion and his eventual losses to Clay/Ali.[104]. His father . According to Liston's trainer, Willie Reddish, Liston cancelled a planned tour to Africa in 1963 because he refused to get the required inoculations. January 5, 2017. During the fourth round Liston appeared dominant as Clay coasted, keeping his distance. His father Tobe loved to fuck. Sonny was probably born in 1929, but no one knows for sure. [34] Many African-Americans disdained Liston. Sheed says that the punch and the knockdown "may have been genuine, but when referee Joe Walcott blew the count and gave him all evening to get up, Liston's rendition of a coma wouldn't have fooled a possum. He threw 99. . I never realized how much of a freak of nature Sonny Liston was. Rogin called Liston's physique "awesomearms like fence posts, thighs like silos." ", Ali clearly did not think he knocked Liston out. He said he could not hear McDonough, who did not have a microphone. There was something caustic in both eyes." Sonny Liston stands over Albert Westphal in first round of bout in Philadelphia, Dec. 4, 1961. Larry Merchant, then a writer with the Philadelphia Daily News, wrote: "A celebration for Philadelphia's first heavyweight champ is now in order. "[42], Liston made his second title defense on February 25, 1964, in Miami Beach, Florida against Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali). Liston had a noticeably more muscular left arm, but fought orthodox Meaning his power hand was out front, so he had this crushing left jab and powerful left hook. This was his first visit. Sports Illustrated writer Mort Sharnik said his hands "looked like cannonballs when he made them into fists." In the third round, Marshall nailed Listonreportedly while he was laughingand broke his jaw. The torn tendon had bled down into the mass of the biceps, swelling and numbing the arm. The Ring magazine ranks Liston as the tenth greatest heavyweight of all time,[4] while boxing writer Herb Goldman ranked him second and Richard O'Brien, Senior Editor of Sports Illustrated, placed him third. [5][6] Alfie Potts Harmer in The Sportster also ranked him the third greatest heavyweight and the sixth greatest boxer at any weight. Charles 'Sonny' Liston was one of the most feared and even hated men in the US His talent for boxing was discovered while he was in prison for armed robbery Once out, he turned pro but his. Facebook gives. "[35], Patterson and Liston had a rematch clause in their contract. [25][26], In 1960 Liston won five more fights, including a rematch with Williams, who lasted only two rounds. On May 7, backers of the rematch ended the court battle by pulling the fight out of Boston. Shaun Assael. [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. Stuttgarter Amtsblatt No. [86] Former light-heavyweight champion Jose Torres said, "I have never met an athlete in baseball, basketball or football who is smarter, more intelligent than Sonny Liston". Liston also appears in the sequel, Blood's a Rover. Overall, Liston earned around $500,000 during his career. [56] Sports Illustrated writer Tex Maule wrote that Liston's shoulder injury was legitimate. Sonny Liston fought for only $10,000 during his career. Listons body was discovered by his wife who was returning home from a two-week trip. Heavyweight champion Charles "Sonny" Liston, winner of 35 of his 36 professional bouts and one of the most intimidating athletes in any sport, was facing a lightly regarded 22-year-old from. It's widely accepted that Liston, a former heavyweight boxing champ, died from an accidental heroin overdose in 1970. Clay confessed later he had been hurt by the punch, but Liston was unable to press his advantage home. Charles L. "Sonny" Liston was born in St. Francis County, Arkansas, to Tobe Liston and Helen Baskin. Charles L. "Sonny" Liston (c. 1930 - c. December 30, 1970) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. For confetti we can use torn-up arrest warrants." Walcott never began a count in the ring because of Ali's non-compliance and his physical struggle with getting Ali to go to that neutral corner. Liston appears as a character in James Ellroy's novel The Cold Six Thousand. But upon arrival, Liston was met by only a handful of reporters and public-relations staff. Hall of Fame announcer Don Dunphy said, "Here was a guy who was in prison and the guards used to beat him over the head with clubs and couldn't knock him down." Odds makers gave Liston 71 to win. There are a ton of other dubious deaths and (hopefully) little-known facts about Vegas in this week's episode. Midway through the first round, Liston threw a left jab and Ali went over it with a fast right, knocking the former champion down. Referee Jersey Joe Walcott, a former world heavyweight champion, had a hard time getting Ali to go to a neutral corner. Sonny Liston, I think was possibly the greatest intimidator of all time. At one point, Liston had Clay against the ropes and landed a hard left hook. "[68], While Liston publicly denied taking a dive, Sports Illustrated writer Mark Kram said that years later Liston told him, "That guy [Ali] was crazy. And yet, outside of boxing, L Ali biographer Wilfrid Sheed wrote, in his Muhammad Ali: A Portrait in Words and Photographs, that Liston planned to throw the fight for reasons unknown and used the legitimate first-round knockdown for that end. Emily Post would probably recommend a ticker-tape parade. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round, repeating the knockout the following year in defense of the title; in the latter fight he also became the inaugural WBC heavyweight . Skeptics called the knockout blow "the phantom punch." Stevens organized a sparring session with a professional heavyweight named Thurman Wilson to showcase Liston's potential. Top contender Zora Folley was stopped in three rounds. Liston retired in his corner due to an inflamed shoulder. Liston's criminal record, compounded by a personal association with a notorious labor racketeer, led to the police's stopping him on sight, and he began to avoid main streets. But others contend he just was not the same Liston. [93] Liston had been hospitalized in early December, complaining of chest pains. Roy Harris, who had gone 13 rounds with Floyd Patterson in a title match, was crushed in one round by Liston. "But they'll have to swing along until somebody comes to beat me.". [33], Civic leaders were also reluctant, worrying that Liston's unsavory character would set a bad example for youth. In five months, Sonny Liston had gone from unknown ex-con to amateur champion. [27][28], Liston's streak of nine straight knockout victories ended when he won a unanimous twelve-round decision against Eddie Machen on September 7, 1960. and hit him with hooks and uppercuts when Frazier tried to get in. He's like Foreman except stronger, more powerful, and slightly smaller. And (4) Liston was supposed to take a dive when he fought Chuck Wepner 6 months earlier, and killing him was payback for his failure to do so. [47] Sitting on his stool between rounds, however, Liston was breathing heavily as his cornermen worked on his cut. 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. 9 "A blues song just for fighters: The legend of Sonny Liston. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. [92] He had been suffering from hardening of the heart muscle and lung disease before his death. Machen's mobility enabled him to go the distance but he was clearly outpointed despite Liston being penalised for a low blow in the 11th round. "Yes, it was good and honest". Charles L. "Sonny" Liston (c.1930 December 30, 1970) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. In this excerpt from his new book, The Murder of Sonny Liston, ESPN senior writer Shaun Assael recounts the final hectic days of Liston's life, and the controversial police investigation into his death . He was a gentle man. Born into poverty and the 12 th of 13 children born to Tobe and Helen Liston (and the 24 th of 25 children fathered by Tobe in total), Sonny did not enjoy a privileged upbringing. He inflicted whippings so severe on Sonny that the scars were still visible in the ring decades later as an adult. Also, scar tissue, possibly from needle marks, was found in the bend of Liston's left elbow. Liston made his professional boxing debut at the age of 21 on September 2, 1953. [105], Singer/Songwriter Rod Picott wrote and recorded a song titled "Sonny Liston" for his 2022 album "Paper Hearts and Broken Arrows. We cooked up that shoulder thing on the spot. Former champions James J. Braddock, Jersey Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles, Rocky Marciano and Ingemar Johansson all picked Patterson to win. "From Bad Buck to White Hope: Journalism and Sonny Liston, 19581965. When Patterson met with the president in January 1962, Kennedy suggested that Patterson avoid Liston, citing Justice Department concerns over Liston's ties to organized crime. Liston went down at 1:44, got up at 1:56, and Walcott stopped the fight at 2:12. That was in Liston's eight fight, in Detroit, and Marshall went on to capture the 10-round decision. Tocco called the police, and they broke into the house. [citation needed], The fight turned out to be a mismatch. In the 2015 British crime film Legend, Liston is played by Mark Theodore in a scene where gangster Reggie Kray poses for a picture with the boxer. [64] Strict interpretation of the knockdown/count rule states it is the referee's count and not the timekeeper's that is the official count. In that same book Liston was quoted two years after the fight: "Ali knocked me down with a sharp punch. Floyd Patterson was Ben Mintz's "Minty Lock Of The Week" and Megan Makin' Moneyloved Patterson in a decision. Muhammad Ali (at the time a rising contender named Cassius Clay), however, predicted a knockout by Liston in the first five rounds. In the 2001 film Ali, Liston was portrayed by former WBO Heavyweight Champion Michael Bentt. ", 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]. "But they'll have to swing along until somebody comes to beat me. [76][77] Foreman stated: "There wasn't anything missing from Sonny Liston. Writer Jack McKinney said, "I watched Sonny. The film starred Ving Rhames as Liston and was produced by Rhames, Hassain Zaidi and Marek Posival. Walcott never did pick up the count. So I get him down, I get the sponge and I pour the water into his eyes trying to cleanse whatever's there, but before I did that I put my pinkie in his eye and I put it into my eye. [citation needed] At this time, the head coach of the St. Louis Golden Gloves team, Tony Anderson, stated that Liston was the strongest fighter he had seen. This was Liston's second arrest by Fairmount Park police. Even Sonny's mother, who was called Big Hela, didn't know, though she believed him to be born during the month of January. [38], Patterson finally signed to meet Liston for the world title on September 25, 1962, in Comiskey Park in Chicago. Patterson wanted a chance to redeem himself, so they met again on July 22, 1963, in Las Vegas. Dennis Caputo of the Clark County Sheriff's Department was one of the first officers on the scene. Pariah: The Lives and Deaths of Sonny Liston. In the novel, Liston not only drinks but also pops pills and works as a sometime enforcer for a heroin ring in Las Vegas. Sports Illustrated once wrote his hands"looked like cannonballs when he made them into fists. Because of that, the dealers may have thought Sonny ratted on them and they shot him with a hot dose as retribution. Clearly, it was time to turn pro. "The only thing my old man ever gave me was a beating," Liston said. In the sixth round, he carried it at belt level so that it was of no help in warding off the right crosses with which Clay probed at the cut under his left eye." I knew that he had a long reach and a very powerful jab, but i never realized he had a 84 inch reach. Muhammad Ali knocked out Sonny Liston in first round. The heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali stood over Sonny Liston in the first round of their title fight in Lewiston, Me., on May 25, 1965, and was heard to say, "Get up and fight, sucker!" John . He won eight fights that year, six by knockout. 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