[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. Watch the interview you be the judge. Concert Preview/Interview: John Lodge of the Moody Blues on Reprising "Days of Future Passed . 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. [24], In 1958, Liston returned to boxing. The most iconic photo in boxing history documents the knockout that almost nobody saw happen. What are you doing? "[98], Some claim Liston was murdered. [74], Writer Gilbert Rogin assessed Liston's style and physique after his win over Zora Folley. Rare interview of Sonny Liston colorized. Ali called it "the anchor punch." When caught in January 1950, Liston gave his age as 20, while the St. Louis Globe-Democrat reported that he was 22. "And I suppose Sonny Liston always stuck with me. RARE Sonny Liston Interview before the first Ali fight 1964 in Color Legends of Boxing in Color 22K views 10 months ago On the Spot show with Max Goldberg featuring the heavyweight champion. I didn't want anything to do with him. [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. 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. A couple weeks later, he was still complainin' about that needle mark. Liston decked Martin with a left hook in the fourth round and dominated most of the fight, but Martin came back and knocked Liston out cold in the ninth round. Dave Anderson of the New York Times said Liston "looked awful" in his last workout before the fight. He sunk to the canvas, and as he was down, Ali stood over him, taunting and demanding his stunned opponent get back up. "He said: 'Look what they did!' [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 would lose his title a year later, though it didnt happen in the ring. Audiences at home were confused and outraged. 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 mysterious life of Sonny Liston. [107] The story speculates that Liston threw the Ali match for the good of society. Sonny Liston in Denver, Colorado. There are echoes of slavery in his upbringing." While valuing the photograph, appraiser Kathleen Guzman told. Liston angrily responded by questioning whether Dempsey's failure to serve in World War I qualified him to moralize. Inter-Continental said local veteran Sam Silverman was the promoter. "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. [8], Liston turned to crime and led a gang of thugs who committed muggings and armed robberies. ", This page was last edited on 7 February 2023, at 06:36. Beat me to it! Emily Post would probably recommend a ticker-tape parade. Night Train is like $11 on Amazon, peep that if you want to get more of the story, i don't like how max was squeezing sonny's bicep. Although Clay often carried his gloves down at his waist, seemingly open to attack, he proved very difficult to hit. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Boxings brightest young star was again squaring off against a renowned bruiser in a rematch of their thrilling and controversial heavyweight championship fight one year prior, a fight that was followed by 14 months of international intrigue and the combustible politics of the 1960s. The match had more storylines than a soap opera. Liston had thrown a jab with his left arm and, leaning forward, took a right hook from Ali right to the skull. I dont have to be what you want me to be, Clay told agitated reporters. That would prove to be an understatement. He was also seeking to prove himself after his two embarrassing and suspicious losses to Ali. Wepner needed 72 stitches and suffered a broken cheekbone and nose. He died circa December 30,. There are no official records of his birth [43] A month later, Liston was accused of impersonating a police officer by using a flashlight to wave down a female motorist in Fairmount Park, although all charges were later dropped. ", Still, some found it hard to believe that the punch could have floored a man like Liston. [60] The extent to which Liston's heavy drinking and possible drug use may have contributed to his surprisingly poor performances against Ali is not known.[15]. [84], Liston married Geraldine Chambers in St. Louis, Missouri, on September 3, 1957. Unlike Dylan or Carter, however, Knopfler does not present Liston as innocent of a crime for which he was imprisoned. His father, Tobe Liston, was in his mid 40s when he and his wife, Helen Baskin, who was almost 30 years younger than Tobe, moved to Arkansas from Mississippi in 1916. A stoic Liston finished the fight, but lost in an eight-round split decision. Tocco left the house before the police did. The Real Story behind the Ali-Liston Fights. 9, 1 March 2018, p. 8, New York Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions, "Photographic image of 'Tale of the Tape', "Sonny Liston vs. Floyd Patterson (Tale of the tape)", "From THE RING: The greatest heavyweight of all time", "25 Greatest Fighters of All Time (Heavyweight)", "ESPN Classic - Liston was trouble in and out of ring", "Jacob's Beach by Kevin Mitchell: review", "Hard Times, Good Times: Charles "Sonny" Liston - Boxing.com", "Dismayed D'Amato Is Expecting To Get Back Manager's License", "Esquire covers commemorate boxing's prime", "Cassius Clay-Sonny Liston I: 50 Years Later", "Sonny Liston vs. Cassius Clay (1st meeting) - BoxRec", "1964 Clay vs. Liston Judges' Scorecards from Miami Beach Bout. | Lot #80073 | Heritage Auctions", "Muhammad Ali's Toughest Fight Wasn't Against Joe Frazier", "Fifty Years Later: The Mystery of Muhammad Ali's 'Phantom Punch', "I WAS THERE: George Chuvalo Watches Sonny Liston Take a Dive - YouTube", "Fifty Years Later: The Mystery of Muhammad Ali's 'Phantom Punch' | Boxing News", "Daytona Beach Morning Journal - Google News Archive Search", "Sonny Liston the most talented Heavyweight in history", "George Foreman Discusses Friendship With Sonny Liston", "Sonny Liston: Say Goodnight to the Bad Guy Boxing News", "LOTIERZO'S LOWDOWN Sonny Liston: The Most Underrated Heavyweight Champ In History", "The Most Feared Fighter in Boxing History: Charles 'Sonny' Liston remembered", "Liston KO'd Popular Patterson for Title", "O Unlucky Man: Fortune never smiled on Sonny Liston", "Sonny Liston Meets the Press - Boxing.com", "Like Fights Against Ali, Liston Death a Mystery", "December 30, 1970: Mysterious Death of Sonny Liston", "19 YEARS LATER: Liston Death Remains Mystery to His Friends". He also had a reputation for bullying people such as porters and waitresses. 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. "From Bad Buck to White Hope: Journalism and Sonny Liston, 19581965. Rogin discounted speculation that Patterson had thrown the fight, writing: "The genesis of all this wide-eyed theorizing and downright baloney was the fact that many spectators failed to see the knockout blows. On May 5, 1956, a policeman confronted Liston and a friend about a cab parked near Liston's home. I didn't think it was a powerful punch when I saw the fight from ringside," he said. Three days before the fight, Ali needed emergency surgery for a strangulated hernia. 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. [93] Liston had been hospitalized in early December, complaining of chest pains. During the fourth round Liston appeared dominant as Clay coasted, keeping his distance. The Devil And Sonny Liston. The interference of ringside reporters regarding interpretation of the rules, the fight stoppage and the controversy after the fight had not been seen since The Long Count Fight between champion Gene Tunney and challenger Jack Dempsey in 1927. Thom Jones titled his 2000 collection of short stories Sonny Liston Was a Friend of Mine. [38], Patterson finally signed to meet Liston for the world title on September 25, 1962, in Comiskey Park in Chicago. "But can he hit!" Lennox is a conqueror? Tale of the tape: Fight poster for Sonny Liston v Cassius Clay in 1964. . He had a whiplash, so they took him to the hospital," said boxing trainer Johnny Tocco. He rolled over, got to his right knee and then fell on his back again. Reminds me of former UFC fighter Shane Carwin. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. After two rounds, Wilson had taken enough. Shaun Assael wrote "The Murder of Sonny Liston: Las Vegas, Heroin, and Heavyweights", published in 2016. Liston was particularly known for his immense strength, formidable jab, long reach, toughness, and his infamously intimidating appearance. He was paroled after serving six months of a nine-month sentence, and was not prohibited from boxing during 1957. And it was probably for the best ticket-buyers didnt exactly get their moneys worth. 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/ "[96], Many people who knew Liston insisted he was afraid of needles and never would have used heroin. 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. "[59], Liston is ranked second in the ESPN.com list of "The Hardest Hitters in Heavyweight History. Traduo Context Corretor Sinnimos Conjugao Conjugao Documents Dicionrio Dicionrio Colaborativo Gramtica Expressio Reverso Corporate [37] Frustrated, Liston changed his management in 1961 and applied pressure through the media by remarking that Patterson, who had faced mostly white challengers since becoming champion, was drawing the color line against his own race. The Murder of Sonny Liston: A Story of Fame, Heroin, Boxing & Las Vegas. . 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 knocked out Hermann Schreibauer of West Germany at 2:16 of the first round. Boston: Little, Brown. A few months after Alis fight, Liston was dead from lung congestion though even that was shrouded in mystery and controversy. Time magazine said Liston had worked himself into the best shape of his career. 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 official time of the stoppage was announced as 1:00 into the first round, which was wrong. Tosches, Nick (2000). At about 30 seconds into the round he hit Liston with several combinations, causing a bruise under Liston's right eye and a cut under his left, which eventually required eight stitches to close. ", Knopfler compared writing a song about Liston to the work a sculptor performs on a statue. [59], Liston trained hard for the rematch, which was scheduled to take place November 13, 1964, in Boston. 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 . ", confirmed most people's belief that Liston had taken a dive. [94], On January 1, Liston's wife, Geraldine, called Johnny Tocco and said she had not heard from her husband in three days and was worried. [97], "The month before he died, some guy ran into Sonny while he was making a left turn. I want to prove to the world there's dirty work afoot.' Less than 10 days later, he was Muhammad Ali, a name given him to Elijah Muhammad, the head of the Nation of Islam. During these same years Sonny Liston was on the comeback trail as well. [14], Tobe Liston inflicted whippings so severe on Sonny that the scars were still visible decades later. "[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. Sonny Liston had a very sad upbringing & had to learn to survive at a young age. A wax model of Liston appears in the front row of the iconic sleeve cover of the Beatles' Sgt. [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. As the years passed and Liston's financial situation worsened, he got angry and told the mob he would go public with the story unless they gave him the money. Caputo, one of the investigating police officers, "The whole department knew about it." RARE Sonny Liston Interview before the first Ali fight 1964 in Color Legends of Boxing in Color 2.47K subscribers Subscribe 16K views 8 months ago Very Rare interview with Sonny Liston and. Suddenly, the world had to come to grips with a new kind of heavyweight champion. [34] Many African-Americans disdained Liston. (4) Liston was supposed to take a dive when he fought Chuck Wepner six months earlier, and killing him was payback for his failure to do so. Be respectful and come chat with us. Sit down!' "Nat Fleischer [editor of The Ring] was sitting beside McDonough and he was waving his hands, too, saying it was over." Liston's story, Knopfler said, "is great for a writer for many reasons. [33], Civic leaders were also reluctant, worrying that Liston's unsavory character would set a bad example for youth. In the 2020 film One Night in Miami, Liston is played by Aaron D. Alexander. He was still a world-ranked boxer when he died in mysterious circumstances in 1970. 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. Boston: Little, Brown. On May 7, backers of the rematch ended the court battle by pulling the fight out of Boston. To this day, I'm convinced that's what the coroner saw in his examthat hospital needle mark. [85] Geraldine had a daughter from a previous marriage, and the Listons subsequently adopted a boy from Sweden. Sonny Liston, I think was possibly the greatest intimidator of all time. . His wife said he was a kind & gentle hearted person who cared deeply for children & that no one ever saw that side of him except those closest to him, I believe theres a documentary somewhere on YouTube Id recommend watching it. The connections to organized crime were an advantage early in his career but were later used against him. Philadelphia wanted nothing to do with him. said Liston's Philadelphia dentist, Dr. Nick Ragni. [55], There is ample evidence that Liston did carry an injury to his left shoulder into the fight. Geraldine remembered her husband as "Great with me, great with the kids. 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. [89], Following an investigation, Las Vegas police concluded there were no signs of foul play and declared Liston's death a heroin overdose. [47] Sitting on his stool between rounds, however, Liston was breathing heavily as his cornermen worked on his cut. interview with Alex Haley in Muhammad Ali by Thomas Hauser. Was Pariah boxing legend Sonny Listons OD really a mob murder? Patterson wanted a chance to redeem himself, so they met again on July 22, 1963, in Las Vegas. But he spoke to his friend Resnick on the day of the fight and was told not to bet on the champion. Washington University Libraries, Film and Media Archive, Henry Hampton Collection. "[35], U.S. President John F. Kennedy also did not want Patterson to fight Liston. The commotion was not lost on referee Barney Felix, who was walking toward Clay's corner. In an Associated Press poll, 64 of 102 reporters picked Patterson. For those too young to remember, Sonny "The Big Bear" Liston was a legendary heavyweight boxer. But as it approached, there were fears that the promoters were tied to organized crime and Massachusetts officials, most notably Suffolk County District Attorney Garrett H. Byrne, began to have second thoughts. Sonny Liston had a controversial boxing career, winning 54 of 58 bouts from 1953 to 1970. [35] Liston's victory was loudly booed. As Liston pursued his target Clay retreated, using his foot speed to slip away into open space in the ring, largely circling to the left and away from the threat of a Liston left hook. A sudden violent combination delivered with 30 seconds left in the round electrified the crowd. Some writers thought Liston brought bad press on himself by a surly and hostile attitude toward journalists. With the proceeds, he traveled to St. Louis to live with his mother. Roy Harris, who had gone 13 rounds with Floyd Patterson in a title match, was crushed in one round by Liston. I know it", Liston said afterward. However, when Clay returned to his corner, he started complaining that there was something burning in his eyes and he could not see. Clay confessed later he had been hurt by the punch, but Liston was unable to press his advantage home. During the interim, officials in Boston also got cold feet. Dennis Caputo of the Clark County Sheriff's Department was one of the first officers on the scene. [25][26], In 1960 Liston won five more fights, including a rematch with Williams, who lasted only two rounds. For his part, Liston said that the referees inability to keep track of time doomed him, as he didnt know when to get up from the mat. Byrne sought an injunction blocking the fight in Boston because Inter-Continental Promotions was promoting the fight without a Massachusetts license. [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]. "[94], A bronze copy of a marble statue of Liston sculpted by Alfred Hrdlicka in 1964 was erected in 2008 between Old Castle and Karlsplatz in Stuttgart, Germany. [49], Clay later said that in round five he could only see a faint shadow of Liston during most of the round, but by circling and moving frantically he managed to avoid Liston and somehow survive. Underworld connections and his unrecorded dates of birth and death added to the enigma. [8][9], There is no official record of Liston's birth. Liston said he quit because of a shoulder injury. [42], Liston's run-ins with the police had continued in Philadelphia. [51], Liston failed to answer the bell for the seventh round, and Clay was declared the winner by technical knockout. Ali did neither. [29] Machen's taunting and his spoiling tactics of dodging and grapplingat one point almost heaving Liston over the ropesso alienated the audience that Liston received unaccustomed support from the crowd. Numerous fans booed and started yelling, "Fix!" This is a place for friendly and civil debate about the greatest sport on earth. Tosches, Nick (2000). Tocco called the police, and they broke into the house. But a Senate subcommittee hearing turned up no evidence of any match-fixing, and doctors confirmed his explanation that hed taken such damage to his shoulder that he couldnt feel his arm. Gary Beckwith said, "It wasn't uncommon for family members in these cases to go through and tidy up to save family embarrassment. Both fights were in Summerlin's hometown of Detroit.[23]. . However, there were again rumors of alcohol abuse in training. "Sonnyboyliston | Race Record & Form | Racing Post", "Moonfire (1972), a film by Michael Parkhurst -Theiapolis", NYSAC World Heavyweight Champion - BoxRec, Lyrics to a song about Liston by Mark Knopfler, FBI Records: The Vault - Charles Sonny Liston, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sonny_Liston&oldid=1137950795, International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees, 20th-century African-American sportspeople, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2016, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2016, Pages with login required references or sources, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Hackman, Timothy. Sonny Liston vs Eddie Machen (1960) As usual, Liston wasted no time throwing his jab and keeping Machen at bay, who was trying to get his hands off with minimal success. When he tried to muscle in for a bigger share, Conrad thinks his employers got him very drunk, took him home and stuck him with a needle. Watch the interview you be the judge.. [61] The new date was set for May 25, 1965. According to a New York Times report the day after the fight, Clay was indeed an official member of the Nation of Islam. Liston captured the Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions on March 6, 1953, with a victory over 1952 Olympic Heavyweight Champion Ed Sanders. Sonny Liston, once the heavyweight champ, died at the age of who-knows-what some days before Dec. 30, 1970. Interviewing and trash-talk have both gone through some tremendous evolutions, havent they? Officially, Liston died of lung congestion and heart failure. It became known as the phantom punch and has been the subject of controversy and speculation for the last 55 years. From the opening bell Liston attempted to close with Clay, looking to land a hard punch to the head to end the fight quickly and decisively. Odds makers gave Liston 71 to win. [91] Coroner Mark Herman said traces of heroin byproducts were found in Liston's system, but not in amounts large enough to have caused his death. ", Ali clearly did not think he knocked Liston out. But former Las Vegas police Sgt. So I went down. Mark Knopfler enjoyed widespread popularity in the 1980's as the leader of Dire Straits, lending his husky voice to hit songs like "Sultans of Swing" and "Money for Nothing." "The only thing my old man ever gave me was a beating," Liston said. [99] (3) The mob promised Liston some money to throw the second Ali fight, but they never paid him. Liston biographer Paul Gallender claims that Liston fathered several children, though none with his wife. He then outpointed Julius Griffin, winner of the New York Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions, to capture the Intercity Golden Gloves Championship on March 26 (representing Chicago). "You're putting things on and you're taking this out and molding it," Knopfler said. Hed shown up to the fight in the best shape of his life no hot dogs or beer in his diet this time and promised to take down Ali. Unfortunately for Martin, however, his career ended after that fight due to a detached retina he suffered during the bout. The film starred Ving Rhames as Liston and was produced by Rhames, Hassain Zaidi and Marek Posival. The toxicology report said his body was too decomposed for the tests to be conclusive. Liston returned to the United States and won seven fights, all by knockout, in 1968, increasing his string to eleven. [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. His defense was described as "the gate-crossing of arms la Archie Moore. "I was rooting around in my childhood, maybe the way you do when you get to a certain age," Knopfler said. He could have remained typecast as a musician performing rock songs. [8] Convicted and sentenced to five years in the Missouri State Penitentiary, Liston started his prison time on June 1, 1950. "He would do everything to avoid taking shots." In his sixth bout, he faced ranked heavyweight Johnny Summerlin (18-1-2) on national television and won in an eight-round decision. Banker later learned that the police told Liston the same thing to his face. Half a mile above and beyond the shrine, looking down from the summit of the mountain, is a statue of the Sacred Heart. [32] Ironically, Patterson's manager, Cus D'Amato, associated with racketeers and had his manager's license revoked by the New York State Athletic Commission for alleged misconduct in connection with the Floyd PattersonIngemar Johansson title fight in June 1959.
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