[55], There is ample evidence that Liston did carry an injury to his left shoulder into the fight. Even Sonny's mother, who was called Big Hela, didn't know, though she believed him to be born during the month of January. 5.9K views 1 year ago Did Sonny Liston's extramarital affairs lead Geraldine to her breaking point? Tocco left the house before the police did. I was down but not hurt, but I looked up and saw Ali standing over me. "Johnny wasn't a braggart," Davi told Liston biographer Paul Gallender. 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 went from being a big-shouldered street thief with no education to heavyweight champ of the world and household name. 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. Certainly Johnson had more going for him than enormous hands. Muhammad Ali vs Sonny Liston, 1965 Source: AFP. Name: Sonny Liston Birth Name: Charles L. Liston Hometown: Saint Louis, Missouri, USA Birthplace: Johnson Township, Arkansas, USA Died: 1970-12-30 (Age:40) Stance: Orthodox Height: 185cm Reach: 213cm Referee: Record Pro Boxer: Record Amateur Boxer: Record Managers: Jack Nilon, Joe (Pep) Barone, Eddie Polino, George Katz, Frank Mitchell, Dick Sadler Governor John H. Reed of Maine stepped forward, and within a few hours the promoters had a new site: Lewiston, Maine, a mill town with a population of about 41,000 located 140 miles (230km) north of Boston. There are a ton of other dubious deaths and (hopefully) little-known facts about Vegas in this week's episode. There is no official record of his date of birth but a writer claimed that he was born on July 22, 1930. He cited Liston's inability to lift his arm: "There is no doubt that Liston's arm was damaged. . Larry Merchant, then a writer with the Philadelphia Daily News, wrote: "A celebration for Philadelphia's first heavyweight champ is now in order. Liston's last fight was a 10-round beating he delivered to Chuck Wepner in June 1970. Subsequently, Liston spent some months in Denver where a Catholic priest who acted as his spiritual adviser attempted to help bring his drinking under control. Patterson finally agreed to meet Liston for the world title on September 25, 1962, in Comiskey Park in Chicago And everyone had Patterson. And that guy did come along and beat him Twice And it was Muhammad Ali. Charles "Sonny" Liston was an enigma that, by way of testimonial, put fear in the hearts of men all throughout the 1960s. A grateful Liston found there was no need to give chase. 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". Liston went down on his back. In 2013 the son of a deceased mafia hitman published a book claiming that his father confessed to murdering Liston via forced drug overdose. Alois Stevens, suggested to Liston that he try boxing, and his obvious aptitude, along with an endorsement from Stevens, who was also a priest, aided Liston in getting an early parole. Daniel (Dan) Liston is Professor of Education in the Educational Foundations, Policy and Practice (EFPP) program and in the Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) program. Fifty years later, the mystery still remains. It was the third-fastest knockout in a world heavyweight title fight, and the first time the defending champion had been knocked out in round one. Sonny Liston, once the heavyweight champ, died at the age of who-knows-what some days before Dec. 30, 1970. "He said: 'Look what they did!' And I said, 'Whoa, whoa, back up, baby. On top of the mob stigma, people were flat-out terrified of Sonny Fight City named Sonny Liston as the most intimidating fighter of all time" beating out names of other legendary animals like Tyson, Foreman, and Hagler. In the 2001 film Ali, Liston was portrayed by former WBO Heavyweight Champion Michael Bentt. [10] His family, but not one Charles (or Sonny) Liston, can be found in the 1930 census, and in the 1940 census he was listed as 10 years old. The two American fighters met again 15 months later, Ali winning . He would not close in until the accumulated inside damage and Liston's own frustration had sapped the challenger's strength and will." Painting by Damien Burton. "[35], U.S. President John F. Kennedy also did not want Patterson to fight Liston. [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. "He said, 'Cut the gloves off. [76][77] Foreman stated: "There wasn't anything missing from Sonny Liston. The NAACP had urged Patterson not to fight Liston, fearing that a Liston victory would hurt the civil rights movement. He was hardly leading a life of health and fitness. [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. "[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. Boulder, CO 80309-0249. Geraldine remembered her husband as "Great with me, great with the kids. [10][11] It has been suggested Liston himself may not have known what year he was born, as he was not precise on the matter. ", This page was last edited on 7 February 2023, at 06:36. I want to prove to the world there's dirty work afoot.' He was a bit of a physical freak He was 6 ft 1 in with a disproportionately long reach at 84 inches. Sonny Liston, I think was possibly the greatest intimidator of all time. However, there were again rumors of alcohol abuse in training. Although in the second fight, Liston appears to have taken a dive Again with the mob stuff. The Murder of Sonny Liston: A Story of Fame, Heroin, Boxing & Las Vegas Pan publisher; 2017. But upon arrival, Liston was met by only a handful of reporters and public-relations staff. Tosches, Nick (2000). CU Experts. 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. In 1950, Sonny Liston was arrested six times for muggings, one . All rights reserved. "Get up and fight, sucker," is the famous quote. Skeptics called the knockout blow "the phantom punch." [62] The promoters needed a new location quickly, whatever the size, to rescue their closed-circuit television commitment around the country. 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. Philadelphia wanted nothing to do with him. Odds makers gave Liston 71 to win. After some run-ins with the law near St Louis, Liston moved to Philly and picked up a new manager in 1958: another mafia guy named Joseph "Pep" Barone, who was a front man for mobsters Frankie Carbo and Frank "Blinky" Palermo. Advertising InquiriesTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyContent PolicyMessaging Terms, AppAdvertising InquiriesTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyContent PolicyCookie PolicyBest Sports Betting SiteMessaging TermsSubscription Terms. Liston retired in his corner due to an inflamed shoulder. 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 . "The timekeeper was waving both hands and saying, 'I counted him outthe fight is over,'" Walcott said after the fight. It was the first time in his career that Liston had been cut. Childhood & Early Life. 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. The fight ranks as one of the shortest heavyweight title bouts in history. Liston would keep Frazier out of range with that monster of a jab which was better than Foreman's! [61] The new date was set for May 25, 1965. Liston. 1 contender by 1960, but the handlers of the heavyweight champ at the time, Floyd Patterson, refused to give him a shot at the title because of Liston's links to the mob. 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." Liston was a heavy favorite. He had the whole package. Referee Jersey Joe Walcott, a former world heavyweight champion, had a hard time getting Ali to go to a neutral corner. He was paroled after serving six months of a nine-month sentence, and was not prohibited from boxing during 1957. "The public is not with me. daniel weiss sonny liston by | posted on 10 septiembre, 2021 | 0 Comments Time magazine said Liston had worked himself into the best shape of his career. The torn tendon had bled down into the mass of the biceps, swelling and numbing the arm. "But they'll have to swing along until somebody comes to beat me. But by the sixth round his sight had cleared, and a clearly enraged Clay fought a blisteringly aggressive round landing numerous combination punches. He won eight fights that year, six by knockout. ", Hutchison, Phillip J. Tocco called the police, and they broke into the house. He died on December 30, 1970 at the age of 38 years. Sonny Liston Born to an Arkansas tenant farmer named Tobe Liston and his second wife, Helen, Charles L. Liston was one of twenty-five children. For those too young to remember, Sonny The Big Bear Liston was a legendary heavyweight boxer. Wepner needed 72 stitches and suffered a broken cheekbone and nose. The Devil And Sonny Liston. Liston is a Hall of Famer. Because of that, the dealers may have thought Sonny ratted on them and they shot him with a hot dose as retribution. Young Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, knocked out opponent Sonny Liston for his first world title in boxing on this day in history, Feb. 25, 1964. Patterson defended against Liston in Comiskey Park, Chicago, on September 25, 1962, and the rest is history. [74], Writer Gilbert Rogin assessed Liston's style and physique after his win over Zora Folley. Former champions Jim Braddock (Cinderella Man), Jersey Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles, Rocky Marciano, and Ingemar Johansson all picked Patterson to win. Roy Harris, who had gone 13 rounds with Floyd Patterson in a title match, was crushed in one round by Liston. In the third round, Marshall nailed Listonreportedly while he was laughingand broke his jaw. He was 6ft 1in (1.85m), and had an exceptionally powerful physique, with a disproportionately long reach at 84 inches (2.13m). Overall, Liston earned around $500,000 during his career. Three days before the fight, Ali needed emergency surgery for a strangulated hernia. Wepner needed 72 stitches and suffered a broken cheekbone and nose And the ref needed a new shirt. Or it would be history, if boxing "historians" would stop sweeping the legacy of Sonny Liston under the ring canvas. January 5, 2017. He's like Foreman except stronger, more powerful, and slightly smaller. "[59], Liston is ranked second in the ESPN.com list of "The Hardest Hitters in Heavyweight History. 2023 Barstool Sports. $2,499.99. JustinvR Brown Belt. "Nat Fleischer [editor of The Ring] was sitting beside McDonough and he was waving his hands, too, saying it was over." 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. "He was afraid of needles," echoed Father Edward Murphy. Muhammad Ali-Sonny Liston rivalry Before Cassius Clay took on the name Muhammad Ali, he was a young and brash fighter who worked his way up the ranks. Sonny Liston is a remarkable physical specimen, and seldom if ever has a fighter so dominated the sport by sheer muscular mass. He was a gentle man. I know!" (3) The mob promised Liston some money to throw the second Ali fight, but they never paid him. So that means his reach was practically a . Controversy followed with claims that Liston had been drinking heavily the night before the fight and had entered the bout with a lame shoulder. Walcott never did pick up the count. 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. That got him killed. Clearly, it was time to turn pro. Ali initially stood over his fallen opponent, gesturing and yelling at him, "Get up and fight, sucker!" 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. What the . Patterson's fatal mistake was that he "did not punch enough and frequently tried to clinch with Liston. 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. After two rounds, Wilson had taken enough. Liston claimed he was born in 1932, yet his rap sheet for his 1950 arrest for armed robbery listed his age as 22, making him born in 1928. Was Pariah boxing legend Sonny Listons OD really a mob murder? During the fourth round Liston appeared dominant as Clay coasted, keeping his distance. His fists measured 15 inches around, which was the largest of any heavyweight champion. [8] Convicted and sentenced to five years in the Missouri State Penitentiary, Liston started his prison time on June 1, 1950. I knew that he had a long reach and a very powerful jab, but i never realized he had a 84 inch reach. In February 1964, Ali - known then as Cassius Clay - shocked the sporting world by beating Liston for the world heavyweight title. The ending of the fight remains one of the most controversial in boxing history. Dennis Caputo of the Clark County Sheriff's Department was one of the first officers on the scene. Helen had one child before she married Tobe, and Tobe had 13 children with his first wife. Liston's death four decades ago was. Listons last fight as a professional was against Chuck The Bayonne Bleeder Wepner He was given that nickname because his eye would open up during the National Anthem. Because of that, Cage may have thought Sonny was an informant and shot him with a hot dose as retribution. It's been 43 years since Sonny passed. Several reports say Liston had fresh needle marks on his arms when he died. [89], Following an investigation, Las Vegas police concluded there were no signs of foul play and declared Liston's death a heroin overdose. [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 previous month, Schreibauer had won a bronze medal in the European Championships. ", It was later theorized that a substance used on Liston's cuts by Joe Pollino, his cut man, may have caused the irritation. Liston injured his shoulder early in the 1964. At one point, Liston had Clay against the ropes and landed a hard left hook. [35] There are several theories as to why: (1) publicist Harold Conrad and others believed Liston had been deeply involved as a bill collector of a loansharking ring in Las Vegas. Unfortunately for Martin, however, his career ended after that fight due to a detached retina he suffered during the bout. He inflicted whippings so severe on Sonny that the scars were still visible in the ring decades later as an adult. The Real Story behind the Ali-Liston Fights. ", ("You know what they say about big fists, sweetheart?"). Name: Sonny Liston Birth Year: 1932 Birth date: May 8, 1932 Birth State: Arkansas Birth City: St Francis County Birth Country: United States Gender: Male Best Known For: Sonny Liston was. Maybe he was. He claimed the officer used racial slurs. "[69] The fact that Liston did not complain about the clear breach of boxing rules (being declared knocked out without a count) and Ali's obvious state of bewilderment, shouting at Liston "Nobody will believe this" and asking his handlers "Did I hit him? 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. A widely publicized account of Liston resisting arresteven after nightsticks were allegedly broken over his skulladded to the public perception of him as a nightmarish "monster" impervious to physical punishment. As the years passed and Liston's financial situation worsened, he got angry and told the mob he'd go public with the story unless they gave him the money. [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. [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. During these same years Sonny Liston was on the comeback trail as well. ", 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. [24], In 1958, Liston returned to boxing. 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. Tobe and Helen had 12 children together; Sonny was the second youngest child. After the second loss to Ali, Liston stayed out of the ring for more than a year. Only a rising contender at the time named Cassius Clay predicted a knockout by Liston in the first five rounds. He said they found Liston lying on his bed with a needle sticking out of his arm. [105], Singer/Songwriter Rod Picott wrote and recorded a song titled "Sonny Liston" for his 2022 album "Paper Hearts and Broken Arrows. Ali did neither. In his sixth bout, he faced ranked heavyweight Johnny Summerlin (18-1-2) on national television and won in an eight-round decision. (12) 7.3 1 h 29 min 2019 18+. Now you know who he is Heres how he died. 249 UCB. When caught in January 1950, Liston gave his age as 20, while the St. Louis Globe-Democrat reported that he was 22. Emily Post would probably recommend a ticker-tape parade. [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. Stuttgarter Amtsblatt No. I know it", Liston said afterward. Ali called it "the anchor punch." [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]. Officially, Liston died of lung congestion and heart failure. [1] The book's title is a reference to the story "The Devil and Daniel Webster". In his own words in Thomas Hauser's 1991 biography: "The punch jarred him. [38], Patterson finally signed to meet Liston for the world title on September 25, 1962, in Comiskey Park in Chicago. (, Shaun Assael. 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