Posted on 05/06/2014 7:19:56 PM PDT by EveningStar
Jimmy Ellis, a heavyweight champion who sparred with an up-and-coming Muhammad Ali and later fought some of the era's best boxers, died Tuesday. He was 74.
Ellis died at a Louisville hospital, brother Jerry Ellis said. Jimmy Ellis had Alzheimer's disease in recent years.
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I liked him. Class act.
But, I liked all the Heavyweights back then. Haven’t seen George Foreman lately. I hope he hasn’t fallen into dementia the way the others did.
I’m glad boxing is pretty much dead.
Gracious words, there.
I think Ellis was Heavyweight Champ when Ali had his title revoked. Beat Quarry and Floyd Patterson. Lost to Rubin “Hurricane” Carter who just died.
George Foreman is doing well and is active in the Houston area. I met him in Yorktown, VA in 2004, and was struck by his humility. He’s more like the quiet neighbor down the street than a celebrity.
Very much so.. at his core Ali seems like a good man. He was actually pretty good friends with most of his ring rivals.
The man gave up a significant portion of his career for his beliefs. By doing so he won a lot of people over, including me.
His beliefs were hypocritical to the max. He said he could not fight for his country but he did fight for money and he supported the most violent religion in history. Cassius is just another Mohammedan zip wad.
A great human being and an underrated fighter. He was one of boxing’s really nice guys. If there had been a viable cruiserweight division at the time, Ellis would have been a natural there. Jimmy Ellis just wasn’t big enough to consistently deal with the bigger rough and tumble heavyweights.
Seems the heavyweight matches are dead. I think Mike Tyson ruined it.
RIP.
The other day I was thinking how ironic it is that, after all these years, Ali ranks as one of the great conservative heroes. He stood up to, and helped end the most monstrous big government program imaginable. At no small cost to himself.
Cassius “Ali” Clay was an almost illiterate clown who copied the style of showboating wrestlers. Running his mouth at his opponents to try and shake them up. The man didn’t have a serious bone in his body, probably with an IQ of a 10 year old. Hollywood comes out with a movie about him showing him as a serious person, always looking out for the black man and being a great civil rights leader. In reality he didn’t a damn about other blacks. He belittled Joe Frazier so bad by calling him an ape and gorilla that Frazier hated him till the day he died. Same thing with Patterson who despised him. He was scared to fight for his country and used his new found “religion” to dodge the draft. He should have went to prison. The only good thing he ever did as a fighter was hang around so long he was getting beat by no-bodies towards the end of his career and ended up punch drunk for not retiring when he should have. Never had no use for him. And I have always thought that the mob got to Listen in that second fight in Lewiston, Maine. Too much to be made on the young loudmouth for Listen to win either of their fights.
Yes and perhaps the mob got to Listen at his end in the mob town of Vegas. He may have used some drugs but at least one pal claims Liston was terrified of needles and intravenous drugs were of no interest to him. So perhaps a “hot shot” of heroin administered by the mob led to his early demise.
Of all the tough luck and hard time poverty associated with many boxers none were poorer in their childhood than Listen growing up out on the slough outside of Forrest City, Arkansas. Supposedly he was never photographed before his first mug shot in St. Louis. Clay on the other hand had a middle class upbringing.
“Clay on the other hand had a middle class upbringing”
And white businessmen bankrolled his fight career from day one.
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