Sorry to start my weekend post with the sad news of the death of Mohammad Ali….the world’s greatest boxer.
He was fast of fist and foot—lip, too—a heavyweight champion who promised to shock the world and did. He floated. He stung. Mostly he thrilled, even after the punches had taken their toll and his voice barely rose above a whisper. He was The Greatest. Muhammad Ali died Friday at age 74, according to a statement from the family. He was hospitalized in the Phoenix area with respiratory problems earlier this week, and his children had flown in from around the country. A funeral will be held Wednesday in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. The city plans a memorial service Saturday, the AP reports.
“It’s a sad day for life, man. I loved Muhammad Ali, he was my friend. Ali will never die,” Don King, who promoted some of Ali’s biggest fights, told the AP. “Like Martin Luther King his spirit will live on, he stood for the world.” With a wit as sharp as the punches he used to “whup” opponents, Ali dominated sports for two decades before time and Parkinson’s Syndrome, triggered by thousands of blows to the head, ravaged his magnificent body, muted his majestic voice, and ended his storied career in 1981. “He was the greatest fighter of all time but his boxing career is secondary to his contribution to the world,” promoter Bob Arum told the AP. “He’s the most transforming figure of my time certainly. He did more to change race relations and the views of people than even Martin Luther King.” Click for much more on Ali’s legacy.
A sad day for the US……
May he Rest In Peace…..Good-bye.
Very sad.
yes and thanx for the memories…..chuq
Sadly, far & away the most beloved Muslim in America is dead at a time when Muslims need him the most. (Hmm, assignation???) One of the few sports celebrities actually deserving of the respect they got.
One of Ali’s “Muslim things” was that he tried to grant every request for a signature as an act of humility to offset his boxing persona. The more popular he became, the more work it became, especially once word of this got out. Signing things became a part-time job, something he did almost every day for a couple of hours. My uncle took a fantastic photo of him boxing at the Olympics. Some years later, he sent Ali a copy. He signed it and mailed it back to him about 10 years later with a short note.
Most people know of his activism, but precious few know about this 1977 classic on NBC, voiced by Ali himself. Ali’s character routinely used rhyming couplets while wrestling alligators, driving steam engines and fighting robotic aliens on movie sets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9yn195wFZQ
In 1983, NBC aired a “distinctly similar” show (aka total ripoff) called Mister T. It stole the basic premise…a strong, charismatic, real-life black hero helping people in amazing animated adventures (T also voiced his own character) But I seem to recall it also stole a few plots and a few scenes were outright copies with Ali erased and replaced with T.
I’ve heard Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim is currently ripping it (& Mister T) off “ironically” with Mike Tyson Mysteries.
I remember listening to his fights on the radio in the mid-60’s….do not forget Kareem Abdul Jabar…NBA great….
Kareem is probably a solid 2nd Place in the
Most LovedLeast Hated American Muslim category.But Kareem didn’t lose it all for a cause… “What did the Vietcong ever do to me?…..They never called me nigger, they never lynched me, they didn’t put no dogs on me, they didn’t rob me of my nationality, rape or kill my mother and father.”
And then he made a (largely unwelcome) comeback in a sport full of people who hated him for what he did.
My Hero! dru
Oh and Jabar too.
They do supply many memories of years past….chuq
Well my family and Sonny Liston’s family hung out together in Vegas in the 60’s so Ali was considered a bit personae non grata in discussions when they were over BUT we sure loved watching him box anyone else. I once saw Jabar at Caesars Palace during a F1 Race there and he was walking with Teddy Yip who didn’t even come up to his belt buckle it was hilarious to watch them together. I say Jabar at the Forum where he set some points record and it was his final year, so for his prize they gave him a GIANT rocking chair.
Ali was a prince!
There really is no need to say more. dru