1960s Timeline

May 29, 1962 - At 10:55 last night, Stefan Redl’s left hook cut through cigar smoke, Tony Fortunato ducked, a man yelled, “Mark him up — break his nose,” a bell rang three times, and St. Nicholas Arena ended its 56th and final year as one of New York’s great boxing centers. Since 1906, it has graduated more than 15,000 professional men, many of whom went on to win glory, world championships, convex ears, and considerable fortunes for their managers. A few landed in shoeshine

May 28, 1962 - Archie Moore was the aggressor throughout his 10-round fight with Willie Pastrano tonight, but had to settle for a draw before a crowd of about 3,000 in the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Moore had been heavily favored. The decision stunned Moore, who was confident he had scored a decisive victory. Referee Tommy Hart, who had favored Moore, 5-4, also seemed surprised that the other two judges scored it even. “Archie won the fight,” he said. “Pastrano was doing all t

May 23, 1962 - Heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson said today he would defend his title against Sonny Liston in Chicago sometime in September. Patterson also revealed that officers of Championship Sports Inc. were in Chicago conferring with Mayor Richard J. Daley and others for rental of an arena. Two sites were mentioned — Comiskey Park, home of the Chicago White Sox, and Soldier Field, the stadium where, in 1927, Gene Tunney and Jack Dempsey fought for the second time. Pat

May 22, 1962 - In the wake of the death of welterweight boxer Benny Paret, who perished 10 days after he was knocked out by Emile Griffith in a title bout at Madison Square Garden on March 24, a bipartisan committee of 7 New York state legislators is conducting hearings as part of an investigation into boxing. Griffith, testifying under oath before the committee today, said that at no time during the 12th round did he realize that his opponent was helpless. “I just kept punch

May 19, 1962 - Cassius Clay, whose ebullient personality and knockout predictions have brought a refreshing breeze to boxing, scored a technical knockout tonight over Billy Daniels at 2:21 of the seventh round of their scheduled 10-round heavyweight bout at St. Nicholas Arena. #muhammadali #boxing #boxingnews #boxinghistory #boxingtraining

May 19, 1962 - Cassius Clay, whose ebullient personality and knockout predictions have brought a refreshing breeze to boxing, scored a technical knockout tonight over Billy Daniels at 2:21 of the seventh round of their scheduled 10-round heavyweight bout at St. Nicholas Arena. Before the fight, he said he would leave the country “by jet” if he did not stop Daniels in “five or maybe seven.” Clay had said such things before, but always had thwarted travel agents looking for his

May 16, 1962 - Heavyweight Cassius Clay’s oratorical tendencies came to life again today as he described himself as “the forthcoming youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history.” On Saturday night, Cassius has a 10-round bout in St. Nicholas Arena with Billy Daniels, 24, a New York fighter undefeated in 16 fights, with 7 knockouts. Cassius has won 13 of his 13 starts, with 10 knockouts. The bout will be the last fight of any significance to be held at St. Nick’s. The coun

May 12, 1962 - Something’s got to give Saturday night when two irresistible fighting forces meet at the St. Nicholas Arena in a 10-round heavyweight bout. Cassius Clay, the self-proclaimed future heavyweight champion of the world and winner of all 13 of his professional bouts, will meet Billy Daniels, an equally undefeated and equally confident fighter. Clay, who is from Louisville, won the light-heavyweight championship at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. Since turning pro in

May 2, 1962 - Sonny Liston said today that he was not upset by the New York Athletic Commission’s refusal to give him a license to challenge Floyd Patterson for the heavyweight crown in New York in September. The commission, citing Liston’s criminal record and his association with persons of unsavory background, said these factors could be detrimental to the best interests of boxing. “I only want a chance to prove myself,” said Liston. “I don’t think anyone should worry about

Apr. 27, 1962 - Sonny Liston (pictured) of Philadelphia, whose challenge for Floyd Patterson’s world heavyweight boxing championships has been accepted, was denied a license today to fight in New York State. The State Athletic Commission, in refusing to grant the license, cited Liston’s criminal record and his association with persons of unsavory background. Through 1961, Liston had been arrested 9 times. Twice, he was convicted and served time in prison — for first-degree ro

Apr. 23, 1962 - Undefeated Cassius Clay scored a fourth-round knockout over George Logan tonight in the main event on a four-fight boxing card at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Referee Lee Grossman stopped the action at 1 minute 34 seconds of the fourth after Logan’s corner tossed in the towel. Logan, 205 pounds, was heavily battered by Clay, 196. The 20-year-old former Olympic and Gold Glove champion made a bloody mess of Logan’s face. At the end, Logan was bleeding from a cu

Apr. 17, 1962 - Sonny Liston, the Philadelphia heavyweight who wants Floyd Patterson’s world title, was all business and a little angry today when he applied for a license at the offices of the New York State Athletic Commission on West 47th Street. After undergoing a processing that required almost three hours, Liston took time out during his medical examination to criticize what he called Patterson’s delaying tactics in agreeing to a date for the fight. Remarked Liston abou

Apr. 16, 1962 - Floyd Patterson will defend the world heavyweight boxing title against Sonny Liston in September. This statement was made in New York today at a Boxing Writers Association luncheon. As to the location of the fight: utter confusion. It could take place at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 17 or at the Polo Grounds on Sept. 26. It could be held in Philadelphia Stadium on either of the two dates. And it could be fought in Houston. The title fight has been put off for sever

Apr. 4, 1962 - Thousands of persons filed past the body of Benny (Kid) Paret in a Bronx funeral home today while demands increased in the U.S. and abroad for an end to professional boxing. Paret, a 25-year-old native of Cuba, died at 1:55 a.m. Tuesday morning from head injuries received when he lost the world welterweight championship to Emile Griffith at Madison Square Garden on March 24. Griffith is not expected to view Paret’s body at the Ortiz Funeral Home in the Bronx. T

Apr. 3, 1962 - Benny (Kid) Paret, former welterweight boxing champion of the world, died at 1:55 a.m. this morning, 9 days and 3 hours after he had lost consciousness under a rain of blows in a bout at Madison Square Garden on March 24. The collapse of the 24-year-old Cuban in the 12th round of a match in which he lost his title to Emile Griffith had set off a state investigation and a clamor for a ban on prizefighting. Unconscious with two blood clots on his brain, Paret had

Mar. 31, 1962 - Middle-aged Archie Moore knocked out 25-year-old Alejandro Lavorante in 38 seconds of the 10th round last night in Los Angeles, and the exhausted Argentine heavyweight was carried from the ring on a stretcher. Moore gave Lavorante a boxing lesson for nine rounds of the scheduled ten-rounder. The crowd of 12,500 in the Sports Arena was hushed for a few minutes while Lavorante was apparently unconscious on the canvas. Lavorante was carried off but regained his s

Mar. 26, 1962 - Benny (Kid) Paret remains in a deep coma tonight in a special-care room at Roosevelt Hospital as a result of two acute brain hemorrhages and undetermined brain damage to nerve cells of his brain. At a news conference, one of his surgeons, Dr. John E. Crisp (pictured with an X-ray of Paret’s skull), called Paret’s condition “extremely grave.” Following brain surgery Sunday, a tube was inserted in his throat to ease breathing. The surgery consisted of four cuts

Mar. 26, 1962 - Madison Square Garden has been the scene of two fatal fights in its many years as a boxing arena. One of them caused as much of a stir as the finish of Saturday’s Benny (Kid) Paret-Emile Griffith fight, but for different reasons. That was the meeting of Primo Carnera, the giant boxer from Italy, and Ernie Schaaf on Feb. 10, 1933. The other victim in the Garden was Georgie Flores (left), who succumbed after a semi-final bout with Roger Donoghue (right) in 1951.

Mar. 26, 1962 - Welterweight champion Emile Griffith, two long days after his greatest triumph, is living in a nightmare. “They say, ‘How come a sweet little boy like you who designs hats can turn tiger and hurt a man’s brain,’” Griffith said today. “They’re trying to get me to say I wanted to kill Paret. All I wanted was to be champion again. I didn’t want to hurt him.” Griffith was encountered today in a little room on the third floor of the New York State Athletic Commissi

Mar. 25, 1962 - Ruby Goldstein, the referee during Emile Griffith’s brutal championship victory over Benny Paret Saturday night, responded to charges of negligence today. The referee was charged by Manuel Alfaro, Paret’s manager, with acting too slowly in halting the battle that sent Paret to Roosevelt Hospital, where he remains in critical condition. Goldstein, a 56-year-old New Yorker who is considered one of the best in the business, stopped the fight at 2 minutes 9 second