Muhammad Ali: A Tribute to the Greatest (8 page)

Series of meetings in Arum’s office. Jesse Jackson roughly rebutted. Christmas coming when Bruce Wright calls Joe and says it looks like something about to happen . . . Jerry Perenchio offer; $2.5 million for each fighter. Fight set for Madison Square Garden.

Nation polarizing . . . Ali becoming hero of left and Frazier hero of right . . . Clay escalates feud to unsettle Frazier for fight . . . JF: “It got out of control.”

JF hurt by Clay’s better ability to communicate to white press . . . JF becomes symbol of Ali’s oppression. Clay trying to make him appear enemy of black people.

JF becoming aware of unpopularity with blacks. Began to find self perceived as “Uncle Tom.” Unfair but inevitable.

JF: “Clay is a phony. He never worked. He never had a job. He don’t know nothing about life for most black people. He talks out both sides of his mouth. Doesn’t act as he preaches. Lies to the public. Gets people riled up. Exploits race problems and real black pride. No real minister would act that way.”

Clay issues more inflammatory quotes. JF hurt and surprised when he intensifies insults. Real dislike growing.

JF often teased in street . . . Reaction to being called ugly.

JF: “Black people are ashamed of me. They don’t know what I’m really like.”

JF thought Clay liked him . . . JF: “He never did. He wants to be bigger than everyone else, so he tries to make them small. Even when we signed to fight, he still looked down on me as nothing. I’m his black brother, but he used me.”

Night before the fight. Joe tense, didn’t sleep . . . Believes he’ll win, but will feel no shame if he loses.

In dressing room before fight, Futch is calm center of storm.

Joe beats Clay in the most famous fight of all time. Knockdown, unanimous decision, little press disagreement. JF says afterward, “He’s the greatest I ever fought.”

Traditionally, fighters who achieve great victory allowed to enjoy acclaim that goes with it. Loser treats winner with respect of fellow athlete, even if momentary controversy or rivalry very intense.

JF victory tarnished. . . . Ali attacks Frazier after fight: “I didn’t lose the fight. The white people said I lost it.” . . . Spends next two years trying to diminish JF victory. Occasionally admitted he lost. But most often, in public, claimed he had won; that fight was “stolen” for “political reasons.”

Period of title not as pleasant for JF as might have been. Clay attacks make victory appear suspect. JF not fully appreciated as a fighter or a man.

JF: “Clay was responsible for my time as champion not being as happy as it could have been.”

What it’s like to be champ: People awed. Everyone recognizes you, feels it’s an honor to be in your presence. JF visits Nixon at White House. Invited to speak before South Carolina legislature. Requests to appear on major TV shows. Marvels at how far he has come.

JF setting stage for losing title. Too involved with being champ. Demands on time.

Relationship with Yank changed. Not together as often. Joe more assertive.

JF much too involved with music group, Joe Frazier and the Knockouts. Argued with Yank over music. Yank caved . . . Bad reviews for group. European tour bombs.

Yank privately hurt by Joe. But Yank had changed also. Much more abrasive and self-important. Decided secretly that Joe should avoid tough fights. Didn’t tell Joe, who thought no contender would fight him.

For 22 months, no tough fights . . . Two overmatched opponents, Terry Daniels and Ron Stander . . . JF didn’t work as hard. Overweight for both fights. Put less pressure on opponents, not doubling up. Wins came too easily.

Eddie Futch saw changes in Joe. Tried to tell him. Can’t when still winning. JF feeling invincible.

JF: “I lay my hands on and they fall.”

JF: “Nobody can knock me out.”

Joe decides he wants to fight George Foreman . . . Loses in two rounds.

Dealing with defeat . . . “The former heavyweight champion of the world.”

Back to the drawing board . . . JF gives up most outside activity. Draws closer to Yank. Happy in training . . . Decision over Joe Bugner in London.

August 1973; Yank dies.

Eddie Futch takes over.

Negotiations for Clay II . . . Fight made.

JF feelings about Clay had mellowed . . . Thought attacks were over . . . Clay escalates feud, stirs racial issue again.

Joe cries in back of car . . . Still not accepted or understood by many blacks . . . Many painful incidents . . . Hassled by people in street.

JF: “We’ll never get along. I got the best of him in ring, but he caused a lot of my own people to turn on me.”

Bombardment continues.

Joe bothered by lack of formal schooling. Can’t read.

JF: “Clay goes out of his way to mock my education. Makes this image of me that I’m dumb and ugly. I don’t think this guy have any kind of feeling for anybody. Maybe his wife and his kids. But general people, I don’t think so.”

Problems in training . . . Joe misses Yank . . . Inconsistent and unimpressive in gym. Up too high, taking too many rights . . . Complaining about sore shoulder and other aches, lingering cold.

Studio brawl when Clay calls Joe “ignorant.”

Joe increasingly paranoid, restless . . . Self-doubts without Yank . . . Futch admits JF uptight too soon [before the fight]; fears JF losing confidence in him.

On fight night, dressing room too chaotic . . . Confusion on exit time. JF warms up twice.

First fight without Yank . . . Clay wins unanimous decision.

Clay beats Foreman to regain championship.

JF: “I admire him regaining the title. He KO’d the man who KO’d me.”

Ali-Frazier III in Manila.

Pre-fight, Ali labels Joe a gorilla.

JF: “Every once in a while, the ugliness that’s behind that cocky smile sees the sunshine . . . Clay is a phony and a hypocrite who uses people, mostly his own people . . . He must be bigger than anyone else or he tries to make them smaller.”

Wanted to actually kill Clay in ring, hated him so much.

[Ali-Frazier III was contested on the outskirts of Manila at 10:45
A.M.
on October 1, 1975.]

Evening of September 29 . . . Joe on kingsized bed, watching TV, running fingers over guitar strings . . . “One day, I’m gonna learn how to play this thing.”

Ali on TV, predicting, “The first combination, he will fall.”

JF: He’s still trying to make himself believe. But it’s too late, way too late. I got the noose around that cat’s neck.”

TV coverage of Ali workout . . . JF hand tightens around handle of guitar when Ali jokes, “Joe’s so ugly, when he was a baby and cried, the tears turned around and ran back up his face into his eyes.”

Commentator in ring with Ali says, “He calls you ‘Clay’ because he can’t spell ‘Muhammad.’” . . . JF face clouds and he shakes his head silently . . . “Shut it off.”

September 30 . . . JF up at 3:30
A.M.
Walks one mile . . . Back in room, pulls off boots, strips to underwear, pours alcohol on chest, lets it run down . . . Discusses letters he’s getting from Christians.

JF: “They say don’t worry about the fight. God will take care of everything . . . That’s cool. When the bell ring, I’ll just sit on the stool and say, ‘Okay, God; take over.’ . . . Maybe I better not take no chances. I’ll do a little fighting too.”

Takes a nap. Sleeps till 10:30
A.M.
. . . Stays in room playing blackjack most of afternoon . . . Face grim.

Lies on bed, watches TV . . .
The Flying Nun
and
Porky Pig
. . . Chewing gum, cracking it.

At 5:30, JF eats fried fish, peas, and rice.

Florence comes into room and sits by bed . . . Florence sacrifices. JF doesn’t always appreciate her . . . JF and Florence have long quiet talk . . . Florence leaves.

JF: “Florence been sacrificing for years to make things happen for me. When we got married, we was so poor, she needed her sister’s ring. Now she’s got her own Cadillac.”

8:10
P.M.
: JF shuts off light, goes to sleep.

October 1, 1975 . . . Joe leaves room at 7:15
A.M.
. . . Wearing green shirt, beige slacks, brown suspenders . . . Siren wailing . . . Arrives at arena . . . Sits on red couch.

7:45
A.M.
Ali-Frazier III in three hours . . . JF lays back with head on red pillow, closes eyes, and sleeps.

A HOLIDAY SEASON FANTASY

2004

I
n the 1960s and ’70s, Muhammad Ali’s most important contribution was to force an understanding of the divisions between black and white in American society and, ultimately, to help bridge that gap. Now there’s a more-threatening chasm; the horrible hatred that exists between the Islamic and non-Islamic world.

Ali is only one man. But he might be the most recognized and most loved person on the planet. He has a reservoir of good will that draws upon the love and good feeling that he has earned from all races, all nationalities, and all religions.

More than a decade ago, Ali told me, “I got a plan. Someday I’m gonna hitchhike from New York to California with no money, no clothes except what I’m wearing, nothing. Then I’m going from California over to Asia, and from Asia to Europe and Africa and South America. I’m going all around the world with just my face to see how people greet me and take care of me. I could go just about any place in the world, knock on any door, and people would know me and let me in. I might even march on foot through Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, all them countries, and tell people to stop fighting and agree on a peace that’s fair to everyone. Some people say that might be dangerous, but you gotta take risks. Columbus discovered America by sailing around the world when people thought he’d fall off. We got men on the moon by risking their lives.”

It’s only a fantasy. But what if Muhammad Ali were to walk through the troubled regions of the world today on a year-long journey to promote tolerance and understanding among all people?

It would be a dream-like quest. But Ali is a dreamer, as were Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela when they began their journeys.

Would it be dangerous? Absolutely. But Ali was one of the most reviled people in America in the 1960s. It was a decade of assassinations in the United States. John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X were all shot down. How did Muhammad respond to the threat?

“I’m an easy target,” Ali said in 1965. “I’m everywhere; everybody knows me. I walk the streets daily and nobody’s guarding me. I have no guns, no police. So if someone’s gonna get me, tell them to come on and get it over with; if they can get past God, because God is controlling the bullet.”

If Ali undertook a walk for peace, it would be the modern equivalent of the wanderings described in the holy books of the world.

The journey could begin with a statement: “I’m embarking on this undertaking as a way of speaking out against the hatred and violence that imperil the world. I’m not going to talk about political issues. I’m not going to take sides. I’m going to embrace every person I meet regardless of that person’s religion, color, or ideology. My presence will speak for itself. My message is simple. Killing is wrong. Hating is wrong. Every person is deserving of love. Whatever happens to me on this journey, I want no blood shed or prejudice voiced at any time ever in my name.”

To be successful, Ali’s journey would have to be independent of governments and any other entity, religious or otherwise, no matter how well-intentioned that group might be. There would be no spin-masters; no spokespeople; no prearranged meetings with selected groups. It would be one man walking where he chose to walk; speaking without words; telling every person he met by virtue of his presence that hate has to be cleansed from peoples’ hearts one person at a time.

In his inaugural speech, John F. Kennedy declared, “Let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that, here on Earth, God’s work must truly be our own.”

Were Ali to undertake the journey described above, he would truly be doing “God’s work.” He would be a prophet of peace.

But it’s just a fantasy.

MUHAMMAD ALI:
A CLASSIC HERO

2013

L
et us celebrate Muhammad Ali.

We live in an age when people pay homage to celebrities, superstars, and champions.

Ali is something more. He is a hero.

Our record of heroes begins with
The Iliad
, the oldest known work in Western literature.

The Iliad
was fashioned by a series of story-tellers represented by the Greek poet, Homer. The telling began around 800
B.C.
and was codified over hundreds of years. In final form, it recounts a period of several weeks during the last year of the siege of Troy.

The ancient Greeks revered heroes as a class of men who occupied a position midway between common mortals and gods. Heroes were worshipped by communities as protecting spirits. The failure to pay homage to them was often seen as responsible for misfortune such as poor crops and pestilence.

Achilles is
The Iliad
’s greatest hero warrior. Neither his death nor his heel are referenced in the epic poem. It wasn’t until the first century
A.D.
that the Roman poet Statius advanced the idea that Achilles’ mother, Thetis, sought to make her son invulnerable by dipping him in the River Styx as she held him by the heel. Indeed, Book 21 of
The Iliad
recounts Achilles being wounded by a spear thrown by Asteropaeus that draws blood from his elbow.

The Iliad
also contains the first telling of a boxing match in Western literature: the confrontation between Epeios and Euryalos at the funeral games for Patroclus. The winner is to receive an unbroken horse; the loser, a two-handled goblet.

Prior to the contest, Epeios declares, “I say no other of the Achaeans will beat me at boxing. I will mash his skin apart and break his bones. Let those who care for him wait nearby to carry him out after my fists have beaten him under.”

Thereafter, “The two men strode to the middle of the circle and faced each other and put up their huge hands at the same time. Great Epeios came in and hit Euryalos on the cheek as he peered out from his guard, and he could no longer keep his feet.”