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Ali
Jun 4, 2016 4:42:57 GMT
via mobile
Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2016 4:42:57 GMT
Greatest ever.
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Ali
Jun 4, 2016 18:08:12 GMT
Post by mr3putt on Jun 4, 2016 18:08:12 GMT
The Greatest....RIP. Float like a Butterfly, Sting like a Bee!
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Ali
Jun 4, 2016 23:05:44 GMT
Post by bangkokbobby on Jun 4, 2016 23:05:44 GMT
I considered a long post about Muhammad Ali. I'm bangkokbobby, but I'm also half-African American. What Ali meant to our community goes far beyond the ring. What he did...and what he wouldn't do...during the Vietnam era and beyond is a mark of his true greatness. But I hesitate. For me to say what I would want to say, I'd have to get into political and social issues. I have no fear of doing that, it's just that I come to these kind of boards for fun...getting into heated political debates on a golf forum...that's not fun for me.
So with that said, let me just wish Muhammad Ali peace on his journey and honor him for a life well-lived.
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Ali
Jun 4, 2016 23:31:42 GMT
don likes this
Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2016 23:31:42 GMT
I stopped paying attention to what the morons on ESPN have to say, the day they voted Michael Jordan the greatest athlete of the 20th Century.
I have almost no recall of past sporting events, but I can remember what we had for dinner, what my father and mother were wearing and the location of my transistor radio on the dining room table the night of the first Clay-Liston fight. That was 52 years ago.
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Ali
Jun 5, 2016 6:58:16 GMT
Post by HappyFan on Jun 5, 2016 6:58:16 GMT
I'm a bit too young to remember Ali in his prime. My dad was a boxing fan, and I remember watching some of Ali's final fights with him. This would be the late seventies, when he was a shadow of his former self, but even as a grade schooler, I could tell he was important and I was thrilled to get a chance to see him in action. Plus he always cracked me up when he got into it with Howard Cosell pre and post fight, as he inevitably did.
Looking back, I kind of wish he had retired a few years earlier and spared himself the pummeling he received in some of those fights, but at least I can say I got to see the Greatest in action at least a couple of times.
RIP Muhammad Ali!
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Ali
Jun 6, 2016 16:47:53 GMT
Post by HappyFan on Jun 6, 2016 16:47:53 GMT
If you have never seen it before, I highly recommend the documentary When We Were Kings. It details the hullaballoo surrounding Ali's heavyweight championship fight with George Foreman. If you only know Foreman as the jolly fellow selling grills on TV, this doc will completely change your impression: he was a straight up death machine back in the day, and most everyone thought Ali might get himself killed fighting him. The fight became known as the Rumble in the Jungle because they decided to have it take place in Zaire of all places. Ali is treated like a king there. The dictator running the place is scary. Some great music at the pre-fight concert by James Brown and others. A must watch! Here's the trailer And here is a link to the other indispensable bit of pop culture involving Ali. OK, maybe you can skip this one, but the first couple of minutes is a priceless funk tune sung by the Greatest himself (well, spoken/sung):
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Ali
Jun 6, 2016 17:09:27 GMT
Post by bangkokbobby on Jun 6, 2016 17:09:27 GMT
When We Were Kings is one of the best sports documentaries ever.
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Ali
Jun 7, 2016 17:15:38 GMT
Post by HappyFan on Jun 7, 2016 17:15:38 GMT
When We Were Kings is one of the best sports documentaries ever. I agree. It's not just fascinating if you are interested in Ali, it's flat out a great movie. The film was held up 20 years because of the music rights to the concert footage, but when it finally came out, it went on to win the Oscar for Best Documentary. And deservedly so. Here's the Oscar win. Ali and Foreman were both there!
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Ali
Jun 7, 2016 20:40:59 GMT
Post by mr3putt on Jun 7, 2016 20:40:59 GMT
Our library has the DVD....I'm going to put a hold on it....I assume Ali's death has made it popular again. I'm still on a 4 weeks and counting hold on the Steve Jobs DVD.
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Ali
Jun 8, 2016 0:27:11 GMT
Post by philknj on Jun 8, 2016 0:27:11 GMT
Just want to see that his legacy is a little more 3-dimensional...Ali was no angel. Ever see those films of Ali just before his first fight with Frazier? He's holding a GI Joe-sized rubber gorilla in his hand, calling it Joe Frazier, and giving it little punches to its head. Called Joe "ignorant" during the Cosell interview before their second fight, which set off a real wrestling match in the TV studio. I remember that Sports Illustrated cover article from about twenty years ago...Frazier was practically gleeful over Ali's medical condition...stating that Ali suffered from "left hook-itis."
On a more positive note, I have a hardcover copy of Ali's autobiography, published in 1975, right after his 3rd fight with Frazier...received as a birthday gift. Is it totally true? Probably not...but I strongly recommend finding it in the library for one section. In August 1970, Joe Frazier gave Ali a car ride from Philly to NYC. They had a tape recorder running during the trip and the transcription (24 pages!) strikes me as genuine and funny. They argued most of the time, but the mutual respect was obvious. I'll bet Frazier felt betrayed when Ali went after him later in such a personal way.
I lost interest in boxing at least 25 years ago...never had interest in MMA, either...and the thought of women doing either, yech!!!
But, back in the '70s, heavyweight boxing was an awesome spectacle...a division of MONSTERS and to his credit (and maybe premature demise) Ali fought almost all of them (OMG, nine times with Frazier, Norton, Foreman, Lyle, and Shavers). Even the "lesser" guys of this era like Bonavena, Quarry, Chuvalo, Jimmy Young, and Mike Weaver were certified BAD ASSES! Plus, he had undefeated Larry Holmes as a sparring partner!
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Ali
Jun 8, 2016 16:32:26 GMT
Post by HappyFan on Jun 8, 2016 16:32:26 GMT
I think we all realize that Ali was no saint. I mean, none of us is calling him a superhero...
Except for Walter Cronkite, that is:
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Ali
Jun 10, 2016 4:31:48 GMT
Post by verdantgarden on Jun 10, 2016 4:31:48 GMT
I did have the pleasure of seeing When We Were Kings in the theater. I agree. A great movie.
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