By all accounts, Liston had a woeful childhood. Known for scowling at opponents, he combined an intimidating ring presence with awesome power. He died in Vegas as mysteriously as he had lived, a man bent under a great shadow, afflicted by a legion of personal demons that no one could exorcise. New York: Skyhorse, 2011. As for the rematch between the two fighters in an ice rink in Lewiston, Maine, in May of 1965, there are a lot of possible explanations for Liston's bizarre actions that night. He quickly learned how to box and within three years was fighting on the amateur circuit. This is how Tosches describes Liston's birth place: "It was in the sector of Morledge Plantation that lay in Johnson Township, St. Francis County, that Tobe Liston and his family came to live and farm, on a low patch where a rill of muddy water, a mile and a half or so long, dribbled dead to its end in a slough of sandy dirt where nothing could grow. Sunny Hostin - Wikipedia At the age of 16, Listonmore than 6 feet tall and weighing 200 poundsbecame a menacing presence in his neighborhood, occasionally working as a strike-breaking labor goon. Inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame, 1990. On this date in 1964, a heavily favored Liston lost his title to upstart Cassius Clay, soon to be Muhammad Ali. Sonny Liston was born in Sand Slough, AR on May 8, 1932. His 17-year ring log was an impressive 50-4 with 39 knockouts. Along with his many siblings, Liston grew up . He was caught and charged with first-degree robbery and larceny, and was sentenced in 1950 to 5 years in the Missouri State Penitentiary. with Cornelia Winfrey, born in April 1873 - Montgomery Co., MS, deceased. He was one of many childrenone account lists twenty-two siblings and half-siblings. In St. Louis, he quickly encountered problems with the local police. On this date in 1964, a heavily favored Liston lost his title to upstart Cassius Clay, soon to be Muhammad Ali. Steen, Rob. All Rights Reserved. He continued fighting until June 29, 1970, when he knocked out Chuck Wepner, but he never got another title shot. Liston started boxing at the age of 14 because there were no sports available in Florida at the time. Liston went back to the ring. The rematch in Las Vegas on July 22, 1963, was another first-round knockout. Education: Sonny Liston Net Worth: Sonny Liston net worth or net income is estimated to be between $1 Million $5 Million dollars. His mother believed he was born in January, 1928, but Liston would later claim his birth date to be May 8, 1932. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. Liston won 26 consecutive bouts, moving inexorably toward the heavyweight championship. The match was held in Miami Baech, Florida. Deceased persons are not concerned by this provision. When Liston died, he was rated 7th in the world heavyweight rankings by Ring Magazine. Liston had a huge physique. He was trained by Charles Hills and has raced for Chelsea Thoroughbreds, and was bred in [Add Data] by [Add Data] . His sporting agility was electrifying to watch. As Liston made himself a serious challenger to Floyd Patterson for the heavyweight title, Liston made his alliance with the Devil, as Tosches refers to the mob. In St. Louis, he quickly encountered problems with the local police. in rural St. Francis County. contient des milliers de photos et GeneaStars. This project is funded in part by a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan grant award. His wife found his lifeless body in their home on January 5, 1971. He, however, won in the subsequent rematch. Listons career was interrupted for nine months beginning in December 1956, when he was sent to the St. Louis workhouse for assaulting a policeman and stealing the officers gun. Heavyweight Boxer Sonny Liston Liston won 13 of his first 14 bouts before trouble with the law cost him his freedom a second time. Hardly. Much of what Tosches gleans about Liston's youth stem from interviews with people who lived on the Morledge Plantation in the 1930s and from Sonny's older half-brother E.B. The son of tenant farmer Tobey Liston and his second wife, Helen, Liston was the 24th of his father's 25 children. In the end, one can't help feeling some sympathy for Liston. All Rights Reserved. The author begins appropriately at the beginning with his subject, providing more comprehensive information about Sonny's childhood than probably even Sonny himself knew. WebSonny Liston is 6 feet 0 inches tall. But the champ went down in a hurry: two minutes and six seconds in the first round. His alcoholic and violent father was thirty years older than Sonnys Sonny Liston was born on May 8, 1932 in Sand Slough, AR. He had earned the title shot with an impressive string of 195960 victories over top contenders. In the films the good guy always wins, but this is one bad guy who ain't gonna lose. Liston, who posted a career record of 50 wins and 4 losses with 39 knockouts, reveled in this role of the fighter America loved to hate. (LogOut/ There, he committed various muggings and robberies. Those dark forces were also at work when Liston willingly placed himself in the hands of the mob that ran the fight game during the time of Liston's ascendancy to the crown. As a young man in 1949, Liston left Arkansas for good and followed his mother's footsteps to St. Louis. Some Thoughts on Boxing, Jake Paul, and Asking Why We Fight Liston was the 12th of 13 children born to Tobe and Helen Liston (and one of 25 children sired by Tobe). Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2000. contains thousands of pictures and GeneaStars. Lets take a look at Sonny Liston past relationships, ex-girlfriends and previous hookups. The son of tenant farmer Tobey Liston and his second wife, Helen, Liston was the 24th of his fathers 25 children. . In 1950, he was convicted of two counts of larceny and two counts of first-degree robbery and spent more than two years in the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City. Scroll below and check our most recent updates about Sonny Liston Net Worth, Salary, Biography, Age, Change). Apart from his demeanor, Liston was a charming man with a captivating smile. Liston had a rough and violent childhood. Assael, Shaun. He was arrested twice in a period of months in Philadelphia in the summer of 1961. In his next fight he bounced back to TKO Chuck Wepner shortly before his mysterious death in 1970. His ring style was the essence of simplicity; he displayed little finesse but much raw power, especially in his left hand. At the age of 13, he ran away to St. Louis, following his mother who had left earlier. At least two sexual assaults. As most boxing fans know, it was in the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City that Sonny learned to box. WebThe son of tenant farmer Tobey Liston and his second wife, Helen, Liston was the 24th of his father's 25 children. If there is a flaw in Tosches' book, it's that the author seems bent on carrying the theme of Liston and the mob beyond its logical parameters. For those interested in knowing more about the life and times of one of the most enigmatic and troubled heavyweight champs, the book "The Devil and Sonny Liston," by Nick Tosches (Copyright 2000, published by Little, Brown and Company), is a wealth of knowledge. However, his career was marred by criminal activity and, later, accusations of mob connections and throwing fights. Liston, who was viewed as nearly invincible before the fight, was unable to answer the bell for the seventh round, and Clay (soon to take the nameMuhammad Ali) was named champion on February 25, 1964. 2023 Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Boxer Charles L. "Sonny" Liston was born in St. Francis County, Arkansas on May 8, 1932. 100 Rock Street He was one of many children one account lists 22 siblings and half-siblings. Ali and Liston: The Boy Who Would Be King and the Ugly Bear. James Ellroy portrayed Sonny Liston as a fight loser, a heroin addict, a black racist, and a Mafia jawbreaker in his novel "The Cold Six Thousand.". Geraldine married Sonny Liston in 1950 1932-1970 Sonny Liston was the heavyweight boxing champion from 1962 to 1964. American professional boxer who became world heavyweight champion in 1962, Born on May 08, 1932 Sonny Liston is a 4 year old colt and has raced in 2022. But there is another side. Along with his many siblings, Liston grew up working in the local cotton fields. If two unmarried celebrities are seen in public together, they are often described as dating which means they were seen in public together, and it is not clear whether they are merely friends, exploring a more intimate relationship, or are romantically involved. Served 7 months in jail for beating up a police officer over a parking ticket in St. Louis in the mid-1950s. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Owing to his bold physique and strict upbringing, Liston loved training. Least of all, Sonny himself. While Liston was incarcerated, prison athletic director Father Alois Stevens introduced him to the sport of boxing. He became a professional fighter in 1953. Sonny Liston With the help of a farsighted, black St. Louis businessman and some other backers who were aware of Sonny's potential, Liston pursued a ring career after leaving the joint and rejoining society at large. Liston, one of 25 children by his father, is reputed to have been born in May 1932, yet prison records show various birth dates, among them 1928. London: Aurum Press, 2008. {{ mediasCtrl.getTitle(media, true) }} Boxer Charles L. Sonny Liston was bornin St. Francis County, Arkansason May 8, 1932. Hungry fighters eager to break free from the shackles of their own environment bring an element of savage desperation into their ring encounters. Liston, in fact, had great respect for Father Murphy and behaved admirably around him. The place had a name, but it was not to be found on any map. Official Sites. They called it Sand Slough. Clay, later to be known as Muhammad Ali, may have had the fastest hands of any heavyweight ever to lace on a pair of gloves. He was referred to as the man with the steel punch and an iron chin.. In 1962, Liston went officially from being the poverty-stricken, illiterate child of an abusive tenant farmer in Arkansas to being the heavyweight champion of the whole world. Sonny Liston was born in Sand Slough, AR on May 8, 1932. Sonny Liston was featured in a novel "Girl Fighter" with a brief reference to his early life, his rise to WBC heavyweight champion and his eventual losses to Clay/Ali. Liston's formative years were spent growing up as a physically and mentally abused child living in a forsaken patch of land known as Sand Slough, Ark. Ironically, by the time Liston finally became champ in September of that year with his 1-round KO of Patterson, the mob was beginning to lose its iron grip on the sport and on Liston himself. His time at the summit was brief. 4 among heavyweights, on Dec. 4, 1961. He won in the first round against Don Smith. Liston scored another knockout in a rematch with Patterson, but his 17-month reign as heavyweight champion ended at the hands of a brash fighter named Cassius Clay. Armed robbery. aged 38years old. After being unable to reach Liston for 12 days, his wife Geraldine returned to their Nevada home on January 5, 1971, at which time she discovered Liston's dead body. Some believed that the fight was fixed as reported in later biographical works likeThe Devil and Sonny Liston(2000)by Nick Tosches. The continual conflicts with the police. Sonny Liston has been died on Dec 30, 1970 ( age 38). When he won the heavyweight title in 1962 at age 30, he had a daughter age 25. WebListon retired on his stool citing an injured shoulder; After this fight Cassius Clay changed his name to Cassius X and then to Muhammad Ali; 1964 Ring Magazine Fight of the Year. Eddie Dooley, chairman of the New York Boxing Commission in the 1960s, said that as long as he was chairman of the commission Sonny Liston would never be granted a license to box in New York State. Maybe Liston was concerned about the death threats that had been made against Ali in the wake of the assassination of Malcolm X and Liston just wanted to get out of the ring that night as quickly as possible. He had earned the title shot with an impressive string of 195960 victories over top contenders Cleveland Williams, Nino Valdes, Roy Harris, Zora Folley, and Eddie Machen (all knockouts except for Machen). Former World Heavyweight Champion who learned to fight while in jail. In 1966, following his loss to Clay, Liston launched a comeback. Rate and review titles you borrow and share your opinions on them. Sonny had to put the proper face forward to the public. gnalogique Dowling avec plus d'un demi-million de parents, Sonny Liston was officially born on May 8th 1932, even if no one knows exactly when he was born, that is the date that he set up for all the official records. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. It was a defense mechanism designed to keep people from getting too close. He started boxing in prison and was likely over 30 then. Sonny Liston: His Life, Strife, and the Phantom Punch. Reverend Stevens was both the prisons chaplain and sports director. He was trained by Willie Redish and later by Dick Sadler. That doesn't make sense. Tosches does a nice piece of reporting on the incident that led to Liston's arrest, objectively revealing all available viewpoints. Username and password are case sensitive. in Sand Slough, Arkansas, USA , United States, Died on December 30, 1970 Nine years of steady fighting later, and following additional scrapes with the law (fourteen arrests between 1953 and 1958 and a conviction in 1956 for assaulting a police officer), Liston finally fought Floyd Patterson for the Heavyweight Championship. Liston and Geraldine had no children, but Liston loved kids and enjoyed being in their company. In prison, encouraged by Catholic chaplains, Liston took up boxing, where he was an immediate and spectacular success. Liston was arrested more than 20 times. He was born in St. Francis in the state of Missouri, USA. It was scandal on top of scandal; Listons reputation, already tainted by prison time, allegations of mob connections, and charges of sexual assault, never recovered. Liston had a short and successful amateur career, following which he turned pro. However, his career was marred by criminal activity and, later, accusations of mob connections and throwing fights, according to the Encyclopedia of Arkansas. New York: Blue Rider Press, 2016. The map below shows the places where the ancestors of the famous person lived. Lets check, How Rich is Sonny Liston in 2020-2022? It was just a matter of semantics, though. Dating is to describe a stage in a persons life when he or she is actively pursuing romantic relationships with different people. He won 11 consecutive fights by knockout in 1968 and added three more wins in 1969 before losing a brutal bout to Leotis Martin. This enabled him to get hired as a manual laborer in the farms. Cox, who was interviewed extensively by Tosches, went as far as to say that Liston would still be alive if he had "spent more time with Father Murphy."). First World Heavyweight Boxing Champion banned from fighting in New York State by the New York Boxing Commission. He quickly destroyed all the leading heavyweight contenders--Roy Harris, Zora Folley, Cleveland Williams--to earn a title shot against Floyd Patterson. He died circa December 30, 1970, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tosches here betrays an ignorance of boxing that no doubt hurts his credibility with those know know the sport. WebAnswer (1 of 2): At anytime in their careers Clay / Ali would have been too fast and elusive for Sonny. What advantage would there be to having the brash young boxer from Louisville installed as heavyweight champ in place of Liston? Geneastars | Facebook. Some suspect foul play; others believe Liston died of a self-inflicted drug overdose. Special thanks to the Department of Arkansas Heritage. | The Murder of Sonny Liston: Las Vegas, Heroin, and Heavyweights. She had been away on holiday. He knocked out Floyd Patterson in 1962 to become world heavyweight champion. Charles "Sonny" Liston was born into a sharecropping family who farmed the poor land of Morledge Plantation near Johnson Township, St. Francis County, Arkansas. Paroled in 1952, Liston quickly captured the local Golden Gloves championship. He was friendly with his fans and had a soft spot for children. The coroner picked December 30, 1970, as the date of death, and Liston was buried in the Paradise Memorial Gardens in Las Vegas under the simplest of epitaphs: A MAN.. He was still a fringe contender at the age of 40 or so when he died under mysterious circumstances in December of 1970 at his house in Las Vegas. The subsequent rematch with Clay on May 25, 1965, included the infamous "phantom punch." He was officially knocked out by Muhammad Ali in one minute for the fastest KO in heavyweight history up to that time. However, it turned out to be his stepdaughter, the daughter of his wife. | Honor or memorial gifts are an everlasting way to pay tribute to someone who has touched your life. There were rumors of drug peddling, heroin use, and murder, but no answers. Celebrating Sonny Liston Liston is another. After winning most of his matches by knockout, he turned pro in 1951. Family tree of Sonny LISTON - Geneastar Sonny Liston In June of the following year, Liston won the rematch with another knockout. Fighter in Boxing History: Charles 'Sonny' Liston
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