Confusing the Enemy - The Cus D'Amato Story

It is often said that he who controls the heavyweight title controls boxing. For several years during the late 50's and early 60's legendary boxing trainer and manager Cus D'Amato held a grasp on the division as Floyd Patterson became a contender and, eventually, the youngest boxer ever to win the title. He was also the first to reclaim the title, having lost it briefly to Ingemar Johansson. 
 
Patterson was only D'Amato's first titleholder. In the 1960's, he helped Jose Torres claim the light heavyweight championship and, in his early 70's, he discovered 12-year old Mike Tyson who was introduced to him by Bobby Stewart, a social worker at a school for troubled boys. D'Amato took Tyson in and taught him everything he knew about laying claim to the championship. Tyson won it in 1986, a year after Cus D'Amato died of complications related to pneumonia. 
 
This biographical novel explores the enigmatic life of Cus D'Amato with all the accuracy possible, given the fact that everybody you talk to has a different version of the facts and a different spin on the truth. Many people loved and respected Cus. Others thought he was crazy. To this day, hundreds of boxing fans think he is one of the greatest trainer/managers who ever lived. Just as many think he so carefully matched his fighters, that they ascended to the title more on strategic selection of opponents, than on ring prowess. He is often characterized as a knight in shining armor on a quest to clean-up the sport of prizefighting. Several others suggest he was the biggest gangster of them all. Regardless, of your position, if you love boxing, you will not be able to put this book down. 
 
Along the way he was an advisor and strategist for Muhammad Ali. D'Amato worked feverishly, during the period Ali was unable to obtain a license to fight, to put together the match with Joe Frazier. Cus also worked in an advisory capacity with Wilfred Benitez, Gerry Cooney, the Hilton Brothers, and Wilt Chamberlain. 
 
Cus had close friends in high places - Roy Cohn, Howard Cosell, and "Fat Tony" Salerno. He was revered by the members of the Lion's Gate writer's circle - Norman Mailer, Pete Hamill, Budd Schulberg, and George Plimpton. He was arrested, had his license suspended, chased by the tax authorities, and adjudicated bankrupt. And his life was threatened on more than one occasion by the likes of Rocky Graziano, Sonny Liston, and various associates of the Five Families of New York. 
 
The authors have interviewed virtually everyone in the boxing world willing to discuss Cus D'Amato. Many don't want to be quoted. Others only want to rehash the same information that has circulated on the grapevine for years. Very few wanted to take a stand. Weiss and Stover have worked tirelessly to get to the essence of this man who dedicated his life to covering his tracks. This book raises as many questions as it answers about the life of Cus D'Amato, but in doing so tells a captivating story about one of the most dramatic moments in the history of the heavyweight title.  



♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time. EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 All photos other than those specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Impress Photo-Studios♔ and KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Blog-Online Publication all rights reserved.

Mike Tyson on his criminal past, new stage show, and going vegan

Mike Tyson on his criminal past, new stage show, and going vegan

“I love Mike Tyson because he did it his way.” –Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Today, Mike Tyson finds happiness in simplicity. During our visit to his home in suburban Las Vegas, the former heavyweight champion was a bit reserved until he got the opportunity to show off his beloved pigeon coop.

Tyson explains the nuances and habits of his pigeons just like an accomplished trainer would break down the fundamentals of boxing. Once Tyson allowed his pigeons to fly, he pointed out how the tumbler pigeons would roll over backward during flight. Some pigeons would do so at speeds so fast that they would often kill themselves or come close to death because they didn’t have time to land correctly.

In a sense, the tumbler pigeons mirror Tyson’s life during his younger days. Living fast and reckless only to narrowly escape death or destruction.

Growing up poor in Brooklyn, N.Y., during the 1980s could have that type of effect. Tyson became another soul consumed by the tragedies created by poverty.

“All of my friends were animals,” Tyson revealed while reminiscing about his turbulent childhood.

“We would rob guys. I grew up in a dysfunctional situation where drugs and violence were normal. I would’ve been a drug dealer. When I was starting my pro career and only making like $500 per fight, I used to always hook my boys up with money for crack to sell. But my whole life changed when they killed my friend over a drug deal gone bad. From then on, I never went back to hustling and I stayed focused on boxing.”

Tyson’s gift for obliterating opponents in the boxing ring rescued him from the poverty and criminal activity that gripped most of his peers. Under the guidance of legendary trainer Cus D’Amato (who died in 1985), Tyson became the youngest heavyweight boxing champ in history at the age of 20.

Indeed, Tyson found a way to escape poverty, but he couldn’t escape the allure that comes with money and fame. He slept with countless numbers of women, purchased dozens of exotic cars, threw wild parties, and delved into drug use.

One prison stint, a controversial biting of Evander Holyfield’s ear and two divorces later, Tyson lost nearly $400 million of the money he earned throughout his career.

“When I was younger, all I thought about was fame, fortune, girls, sex and drugs,” Tyson says. “When my career was over, I left a massive wreckage in my past. I realized I won a lot of superficial victories such as sex and money. I’m now trying to make amends. I love moral victories more. And that’s real love when you care more about morals than anything else.”

By the late 2000s, Tyson found himself attempting to walk the straight and narrow for the first time in his life. However, the tragic death of his 4-year-old daughter, Exodus, in 2009 caused Tyson to briefly relapse. She was killed in the family home after playing with a faulty treadmill.

“Where I come from, people aren’t happy, so they get hooked on drugs,” Tyson says. “People get drunk, snort cocaine, smoke marijuana and use syringes because they can’t stop [the] pain. They’re trying to kill pain. Drug use won’t stop until someone can stop the hurt. We’re in pain out here.”

Tyson walked away from drugs and alcohol and has been sober for three years. He’s a devout Muslim and has adopted a strict vegan diet for the past 12 months. The diet allowed Tyson to flush many of the impurities out of his system and he eventually lost 100 pounds.

Tyson now looks back on his past hardships and realizes that they made him stronger and led him to approach life differently.

“I’m glad I went through those experiences because I survived them, and look at where I’m at now,” he says. “Nothing’s perfect in life and I love who I am and who I’m becoming. I’m establishing a relationship with my wife and staying committed. I’m really enjoying this stage of my life.”

This stage of Tyson’s life actually has him on stage. Nearly two years ago, Tyson sat down with his wife, Kiki Tyson, and the two found an interesting way for him to tell his story to the masses. They came up with the one-man stage show, Mike Tyson: The Undisputed Truth.

The nearly two-hour show, directed by Spike Lee, features an unfiltered Tyson divulging stories on fi ghting Don King; time in prison; his mother’s drinking issues; his sexual conquests and how he once caught Brad Pitt making out with his ex-wife, Robin Givens.

“There’s not much of a difference in preparing for boxing and preparing for the stage,” he says. “Everything must be precise. You just have to possess a great deal of confidence and understanding of where to go and how to maintain energy.”

♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2021, 2013 All photos other than those specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Impress Photo-Studios♔ and KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Blog-Online Publication all rights reserved.

Rare,early Mike Tyson Documentary (1983)

♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time. EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

HOOK TO THE LIVER By José Sulaimán;The conversion of the Baddest Man on Earth

WORLD BOXING COUNCIL NEWS

July 17, 2012 – Mexico City.

From the office of WBC President Dr. José Sulaimán:

The following is one of the weekly “Hook to the Liver” columns by WBC President Dr. José Sulaimán that are published in El Universal every Sunday. From July 15, translated from Spanish:

HOOK TO THE LIVER

By José Sulaimán

The conversion of the Baddest Man on Earth

A moment in our lives comes when fragrance, music, taste, old photos, make us remember times long gone, about beautiful places where you ate a certain food, danced with someone that you enjoyed. A smell that makes you remember long-gone loves, but which have gone away forever. The presence in Mexico of the boxing destroyer Mike Tyson took me to countless mementos that make me live again the thrills and emotions of past boxing

The opening press conference in Mexico City had as many cameras as I had seen in a long, long time. It brought me back to a long time ago day when my dear friend, the late Jim Jacobs, brought to me a video showing the future bomber, even more than Joe Louis, he said, with his 18 KOs in the first round of his first 18 fights. I was impressed, but recommended Jim to keep him fighting to really become what he said.

A few years later, Don King came as his new promoter and Jim's associate, to give him the opportunity to fight champion Trevor Berbick for the WBC heavyweight world title. Tyson became the youngest heavy weight champion of the world at 20 years of age.

A kid, an orphan, and in jail since he was 14, received a gift from God with the coming of Cus D'Amato as his trainer. D'Amato could not enjoy his boy becoming champion, as he passed away about a year before. That evening, Tyson went all over the hotel, casinos, lobbies, and more, wearing his WBC green and gold belt. The following day, with the style of Don King, Tyson was crowned, yes, he received a diamond crown that Muhammad Ali and I gave him, embarrassing for me, the red robe of a king. That night the poor child jumped from poverty to a first step to become one of the greatest of all time.

The day came when he set the highest income in sports by winning more than $30 million in only a little more than the one minute when he defeated Michael Spinks, who stayed on the canvas as long as the fight lasted. Some said that Mike did it out of his outrage caused by Butch Lewis, my late dear friend, for making him wrap his hands twice. It is impossible to ever forget that little piece of Evander Holyfield's ear, which fell to the canvas very close to where I was sitting, after two bites on the ear from Tyson. Nobody in the arena or on TV could explain what had happened. Tyson was desperate for the many head butts from Evander, without any action from the referee. Tyson showed that night what he always claimed: that he was the baddest man on earth.

During the last WBC convention in Las Vegas, I asked Evander to present Mike with his Lifetime Boxing Excellency Award, that he hesitantly presented, while those two boxing barbarians hugged amicably with esteem and mutual respect, an example of what boxing is. What would I give for politicians and promoters doing the same…

How can I forget the savage knockout of Larry Holmes, also one of the greatest ever. I was sad to see that, but it was the punishment that life gives to all those that don’t understand when their cycle of glory is gone. It also happened to Joe Louis, Ali, Ray Leonard, J.C. Chavez, and so many, many others, including Tyson himself.

Tyson, in his prime, married an artist who pushed him into decline, a real drama of someone born in a humble bed, reaching the skies and being dropped mercilessly by one he loved. The same happened when he was blatantly discriminated against by an all-white jury who sent him to jail for the accusation of sex abuse of a girl who went late at night to his room in a hotel — like, for an autograph?

He could not mentally accept the actions of his first wife, and later going to jail. The life of that extraordinary fighter who always had sold-out arenas, who provoked passion and excitement with the power of his fists, with the cheering of his race and the discrimination of others, fell all the way down in the deepest of vices and disgrace. It looked as if the great Mike Tyson was following the path of most fighters who are born in the humblest of beds: to reach glory, money, and beautiful women, then to fall after the lights of their career are off into poverty, hunger, pity, and only dreaming in nostalgia with tears of their times of glory.

But no, Mike Tyson flew from his ashes again into the world, after finding a gracious new wife who has led him away from the dirt to send him back to live in glory. A new Mike Tyson, representing still the greatness of his career in boxing, but now into the lives of those who get up from the canvas and continue their lives struggling for being good, and with success. I will leave the life of this man, whose life I lived very close to during all of his career with his ups and downs, as an example for the young of the world of how to struggle to leave the night behind and move into being someone to follow with his deeds of a good man, carrying with pride his life, like a diamond in boxing, to leave an indelible mark of his passing through life.

Mexico received him in victory with millions of flashes, the applause and admiration that he has always had from Mexicans. Mauricio and I took him to the airport with a feeling of being so proud of the man that once was the baddest man on earth, to one who today is a good human being with a history of glory.

Thank you for reading my thoughts.

♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

No Holds Barred: Mike Tyson, Keisha Morrisey; Spike Lee, James L. Nederlander to announce the opening of the show called Undisputed Truth".

No Holds Barred: Mike Tyson, Keisha Morrisey http://nhbnews.podomatic.com/entry/2012-06-18T09_46_14-07_00

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman presents the June 18 news conference in New York featuring former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson, director Spike Lee, and producer James L. Nederlander to announce the opening of the show called "Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth". This one-man, autobiographical show, featuring Mike Tyson and also marking the Broadway directorial debut for Lee, will run for a limited engagement from July 31 to August 5 at the Longacre Theater in Manhattan's Theater District. At the news conference, the media present participated in an extended question-and-answer session with the speakers.

James L. Nederlander and Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson and Spike Lee

After the news conference, we spoke with our correspondent Keisha Morrisey, who has known Mike Tyson for over 25 years. We discussed whether or not this show, which premiered in Las Vegas in March but may be altered for Broadway, will actually provide the undisputed truth about the controversial life and career of Mike Tyson both inside and outside the ring. (photos by;Keisha Morrisey)

Mike Tyson and Spike Lee


A.J and NYSAC, Melvina Lathan


NYSAC, Melvina Lathan and Eddie Goldman



♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

“Iron” Mike Tyson the youngest ever claimant of a world heavyweight title gets enshrined in The Hall of Fame

"Iron" Mike Tyson set to officially become an immortal boxer tomorrow; Tyson still commands heavyweight attention

Back in the 1980s, before he became an out of control, walking car crash of a public figure, Tyson was seen as an invincible wrecking machine. Serious, experienced writers were debating just how great Tyson actually was; with publications such as Boxing Illustrated and others putting out a number of articles that imagined “Tyson Vs. The All Time Greats.” Some seasoned followers of the sport even suggested Tyson was the finest heavyweight fighter in history next to the peak Muhammad Ali.

Mike Tyson Truly Deserves His Hall of Fame Induction

When most people think of Mike Tyson, they either think of his out of the ring problems or his appearances in movies like Hangover.

It is odd to see a whole new generation of kids coming up who don’t remember Tyson and his unbelievable ability to knock almost anybody out.

Even if people do remember Tyson’s boxing, they think of the Holyfield ear biting incident and his epic loss to Buster Douglas in 1990, but Tyson was so much more than that.

Tyson started his career with 19 straight knockouts, and was one of the most dominant punchers that ever lived. Before the loss to Douglas, Tyson won his first 37 professional fights, with 33 coming by knockout.

The buster Douglas loss set Tyson back, but not as far back as his four year prison sentence set him back. Even after four years away from the sport of boxing, Tyson came back to win nine more fights before eventually calling it a career after a loss to Kevin McBride.

Between his 50-6-2 career record and his knockout power, Tyson will always be remembered as one of the best fighters the sport had ever seen, and for that period of time from his first fight until his jail time, there was no better fighter in the world.

Tyson deserves this honor of being inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame.

EL Boxing Empress See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress" Keisha Morrisey- Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and Starlite Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved

Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing appoints Kevin Rooney Jr., Director, Media Relations

Bronx, NY- Joe DeGuardia, President of Star Boxing announced today, the appointment of Kevin Rooney Jr., Director of Media Relations.



Rooney, a 2006 graduate of Fordham University, is no stranger to the boxing world being the son of world renowned trainer Kevin Rooney and godson of 6-time world champion Vinny Pazienza. In addition to Kevin Jr.'s work with Kevin Sr. and the world renowned Cus D'Amato Boxing Club, Jr. has also worked on several high profile boxing events in his young career.

"It's an honor to be joining the Star Boxing team." stated Rooney. "In the past few years Star has become a serious force throughout the boxing world. I look to add to that success, and keep moving Star in the direction of becoming one of the elite Promotional Companies in boxing. I have a great team around me and we have some very exciting world rated contenders and young prospects that I am looking forward to working with.

"We are excited to add Kevin Rooney Jr. to the Star Boxing team. Kevin's background and experience make him a great addition to our growing staff," said Star Boxing CEO Joe DeGuardia.

Star Boxing

About Star Boxing
Star Boxing has been in operation since 1992. Star Boxing's stable features world-class athletes and has consistently brought credibility, integrity, and exciting fights to the boxing industry.

To Read More About Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing Visit: http://www.starboxing.com
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Honorable Keisha Morrisey http://www.keishamorrisey.com

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