by Jonathan Eig
1. Even as a baby, Cassius Jr. was not camera shy. Courtesy of Victor and Brenda Bender
2. Rudy Clay (left) helps his brother Cassius prepare for the 1960 Olympics. Associated Press
3. Ready to rumble at age twelve and 95 pounds. Associated Press
4. Cassius Clay Sr. and Odessa complained that the Nation of Islam brainwashed their son, but they remained involved in his life. Associated Press
5. In 1961, the young boxer’s entourage included his ever-present brother, his mother, and a small but growing following of women. © Art Shay
6. After a poor start, Clay nailed Alex Miteff with a right to win his ninth professional fight in 1961. © Art Shay
7. Soon after turning pro, Clay left trainer Joe Martin to work with Angelo Dundee. Associated Press, Dan Grossi
8. In June 1962, Clay met Malcolm X, who would become a close friend and spiritual mentor until their relationship’s abrupt end. Associated Press
9. Heavily favored, Sonny Liston was unprepared for the speed, power, and unrelenting jab of the challenger Cassius Clay. Associated Press
10. “I shook up the world”: Clay becomes heavyweight champ at age twenty-two. Associated Press
11. After winning the heavyweight title, Ali announced his loyalty to the Nation of Islam and Elijah Muhammad. Elijah honored the boxer with a new name, Muhammad Ali. Rudy Clay (left) also joined the Nation and became Rahaman Ali. © Lowell K. Riley
12. Sonji Roi, Ali’s first wife, was a dancer, a barmaid, and a model. They eventually clashed over her refusal to follow the Nation of Islam’s dress code. Associated Press
13. In the rematch, Ali knocked out Liston in the first round, although rumors swirled that Liston took a dive. Associated Press, John Rooney
14. Don King, Ali, Herbert Muhammad, and jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. Courtesy of Safiyya Mohammed-Rahmah
15. Ali loved a crowd, and often found one on 79th Street in Chicago, near the offices of Muhammad Speaks and the popular Tiger Lounge. © Lowell K. Riley
16. Ali cheers at a Nation of Islam rally, dressed in the uniform of the Fruit of Islam, a male-only paramilitary wing within the organization. © Lowell K. Riley
17. Howard Cosell (in hat) interviews Ali in 1967 as the fighter refused induction to the Army, saying he was a conscientious objector. Ali was convicted of draft evasion and banned from boxing. Associated Press
18. “I married a man with no job”: Belinda Ali, a faithful member of the Nation of Islam, was seventeen years old and working two jobs when she became Ali’s second wife. Associated Press
19. The Fight of the Century: Ali got up but lost a fifteen-round decision to Joe Frazier in one of the greatest and most brutal heavyweight bouts of all time. Associated Press
20. Drew “Bundini” Brown, Ali’s friend and chief motivator, tapes the fighter’s hands at their new training camp in Deer Lake, Pennsylvania. © Kwame Brathwaite
21. Ali loved entertaining crowds at his cabin in Deer Lake. © Peter Angelo Simon
22. Stokely Carmichael looks on as Ali works the speed bag. © Peter Angelo Simon
23. Gene Kilroy (front left) adjusts the TV as Ali and a few friends gather in the champ’s hotel suite to watch one of his fights. © Michael Gaffney Photo
24. To regain his championship, Ali would have to go to Zaire and defeat the seemingly invincible George Foreman. Associated Press
25. Promoter Don King brought heavyweight boxing to Africa, bragging that the ancestors of slaves were returning to conquer the continent. Associated Press, Horst Faas
26. In Zaire, Ali met and fell in love with Veronica Porche, one of the young women hired to promote the fight (seated second from the right, next to Foreman). Associated Press, Horst Faas
27. “I know what I’m doing,” Ali shouted as he let one of the greatest punchers in heavyweight history bang away in a technique he would later dub “rope-a-dope.” Associated Press, REX, Shutterstock
28. After the Foreman fight, Ali relied increasingly on the rope-a-dope style, which endangered him against powerful punchers like Earnie Shavers, shown here in 1977. © Michael Gaffney Photo
29. “Quit, son, before you get hurt,” says Cassius Clay Sr. to his son in the locker room after the Shavers fight. © Michael Gaffney Photo
30. In 1978, Ali trained lightly and suffered a shocking loss to Leon Spinks. “I lost fair and square,” he said after the fight. © Michael Gaffney Photo
31. After divorcing Belinda, Ali married Veronica Porche. With their daughter Hana, the couple is seen here on a bus headed to Washington, D.C., for a meeting with President Jimmy Carter. © Michael Gaffney Photo
32. Ferdie Pacheco (left) quit the Ali camp, saying it was unhealthy for the fighter to continue, but most others stuck with Ali. © Michael Gaffney Photo
33. Ali came out of retirement in 1981 and lost a hopelessly brutal fight to Larry Holmes, his former sparring partner. Associated Press
34. Ali stands before a Che Guevara mural on a 1998 visit to Havana. © David Turnley
35. Hands shaking, feet shuffling, Ali lit the Olympic torch in 1996 in Atlanta, shocking the crowd and helping to remake his image as a man fighting illness. Associated Press, Doug Mills
36. In 2005, President George W. Bush presented Ali with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, calling him “a fierce fighter and a man of peace.” Associated Press, Evan Vucci
37. Clay holds up five fingers to show how many rounds he predicted Henry Cooper would last in their fight in June 1963. His brash pronouncements offended many, but the crowds still flocked to get a sight of him. PA Images
38. Clay entered the ring in a red and white satin robe, made specially for the occasion at the cost of twenty pounds – here was the king! Getty Images
39. His prediction wasn’t looking too good when Cooper knocked him down in the fourth round as ’enry’s ’ammer found its target, but he ended the contest in the next round – just as predicted. PA Images
40. In 1966, and now known as Muhammad Ali, the world champion prepared himself for a rematch against Cooper, taking time out to visit a play group in Ladbroke Grove in London. Getty Images
41. Cooper required sixteen stitches to stem the bleeding after he was beaten in six rounds at Highbury Stadium on 21 May 1966. PA Images
42. Ali returned to England a few weeks later to take on Brian London when he was arguably at the peak of his career. Getty Images
43. London, who had fought Floyd Patterson for the world title in 1959, was no match for Ali, landing just seven punches before he was knocked out. Getty Images
44. In 1964, Ali visited Egypt to help develop his understanding of his new faith. Getty Images
45. During his goodwill visit to Pakistan in 1987, Ali is presented with a photograph of himself. He believed that such journeys helped draw him closer to Allah. Getty Images
46. In less than four months in the middle of 1972, Ali fought four bouts in four different countries, the last of them Ireland. He brought his mother Odessa with him for the journey. Getty Images
47. Alvin “Blue” Lewis out for the count in the eleventh round at Croke Park in Dublin. Getty Images
48. Richard Dunn may have hit the canvas on five occasions in his 1976 fight, but it was clear that Ali was no longer the boxer he had once been. PA Images
49. Ali arrived in Australia early in 1979 and went to visit Fitzroy, a deprived area of Melbourne, to see for himself the situation facing Aboriginal people there. Getty Images
50. Forty years after winning Olympic gold and twenty-five years since they last fought, Ali meets Joe Bugner at the Sydney Games in 2000. Getty Images
51. Ali and Veronica Porche visit a mosque in South Shields in the north-east of England in July 1977 to have their marriage blessed. Mirrorpix
52. David Beckham greets Ali at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards in 1999, at which the boxer was named Sports Personality of the Century. Getty Images
53. Ali visits Ricky Hatton’s gym in Hyde, M
anchester, in 2009. PA Images
54. Global icons: Nelson Mandela and Ali greet each other in June 2003 in Dublin. Getty Images
INDEX
A note about the index: The pages referenced in this index refer to the page numbers in the print edition. Clicking on a page number will take you to the ebook location that corresponds to the beginning of that page in the print edition. For a comprehensive list of locations of any word or phrase, use your reading system’s search function.
Aaron, Hank, 292, 306, 523
AARP Bulletin, 532
Abboud, Robert, 468, 469
Abernathy, Ralph, 277
Abraham, Seth, 525
Acosta, Luis, 479
acting/offers and Ali, 119, 270–71, 333–34, 446, 468
Alberti, Jules, 161
Alcindor, Lew (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), 245, 248
Ali, Asaad, 519, 531
Ali, Belinda. See Boyd, Belinda
Ali Center, Louisville celebration, 532–34
Ali, Hana, 439, 455, 459, 467, 505, 527
Ali, Jamillah, 277, 336, 423, 506
Ali, John
Gabon/prison and, 371
Malcolm X/murder and, 180, 181
Nation of Islam/Elijah Muhammad and, 156, 174, 177, 180, 181, 268, 364
sports companies/money and, 209, 267, 288
Ali, Laila, 455, 467, 505, 506
Ali, Lonnie. See Williams, Lonnie
Ali, Maryum (“May May”), 261–62, 336, 376, 423, 506, 537
Ali, Muhammad
adultery/children and, 272–74, 276, 314–15, 333, 345, 346, 354, 377, 387, 388, 415–21, 422–24, 424, 431, 471, 507
Africa/Middle East travels (mid-1960s), 167–69
African diplomacy tour/1980 Olympics, 476–77
biography (1990) and, 518–19
as boxer vs. other paths, 64
boxing exhibitions/preparations (in retirement), 472, 473, 500, 505
branding/products (in retirement), 530–31
career mementos and, 522
charity/humanitarian efforts (in retirement), 492, 499, 510, 512–13, 519, 521, 528, 531, 537
comeback plans/associates’ reactions (late 1970s/1980), 477–86, 491–92
descriptions, ix, 55, 133–34, 135–36, 156, 160, 169, 176, 286–87, 311–12, 333, 364, 373–74, 387, 390–91, 401–2, 404, 405, 469, 470, 473, 502, 513, 532, 535
driving issues/parking and, 242, 255, 262–63
finances/experts attempt to manage (in retirement), 468–72
funeral/funeral procession, 535–37
gold medal, losing, 422
honors/recognition (in retirement), 530
hospitalization/death, 534
interviews/pretending to fall asleep (in retirement), 509
Islam/Allah (summary), 444–45, 518
on last fight, 497–98
Lebanon/American hostages, 510–11
lectures/speaking engagements, 254, 256, 259–61, 262, 263, 285–86, 291, 475–76
life/popularity summary (1974), xiv, 363–65
life/routine (in retirement), 509–10, 526–27, 528, 531–32
politics (in retirement), 528, 529–30
popularity/as hero, xiv, 164–65, 168, 169, 216, 277, 308–9, 313, 327, 363–65, 404–5, 406–9, 421, 422, 455, 462, 463, 476, 509–10, 512–14, 517, 522, 523–25
reluctance to appear on camera (in retirement), 519, 524
on retirement, 513
speaking of death/afterlife, 429, 498, 499–500, 537
torch lighting/1996 Olympics, 523–24
travels/religion (in retirement), 476–77, 500, 502, 503, 505–6, 510–11, 512–14, 516–17, 518, 526
unpopularity/criticism of, xiv, 215–17, 220, 224–25, 226–27, 229–30
voting and, 344, 407
weight (in retirement), 472, 477, 484–85, 493
See also boxing; Clay, Cassius Marcellus, Jr.
Ali, Muhammad, Jr., 336, 532
Ali, Noble Drew (Timothy Drew), 47
Ali, Rahaman. See Clay, Rudolph Arnett
Ali, Rasheda, 277, 336, 423, 506, 537
Ali, Veronica. See Porche, Veronica
Allen, Woody, 315
Alzado, Lyle, 472
Ameer, Leon 4X (Leon Lionel Phillips Jr.), 180–81
Amin, Idi, 364
Anderson, Dave, 382, 423–24
André the Giant, 438
Anka, Paul, 410
Anthony, Spiros, 436–37
Apollo 14 astronauts, 315
Arcel, Ray, 449
Armstrong, Louis, 27
Arum, Bob
Ali’s business decisions/fights and, 208, 209, 216, 217–18, 246, 287, 288, 335, 337, 436, 454, 460, 463, 477, 478, 482
Ali’s funeral, 536–37
Ali’s military service and, 245–46
background/description, 197, 208
Herbert Muhammad and, 197, 198, 288
Atkins, C. B., 354, 376
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 515, 516
autobiography of Ali
Ali/Frazier trip to New York and, 279–84
Ali on, 275, 278, 279, 422
description/gold medal story, 421–22
questions/contradictions and, 275–76
writer/publisher and, 275, 421
Autobiography of Malcolm X, The, 324
Bacall, Lauren, 104
Bacharach, Burt, 315
Baez, Joan, 103
Baker, Corky, 35–36, 428
Baldwin, James, 24, 61, 102
Banks, Sonny, 91–92
Barrett, Reggie, 287–88, 339, 345
Barwick, Bill, 264
Beach, Walter, 245
Beatles, 135–36, 141, 466–67
Becot, Yvon, 65
Bedol, Brian, 517–18
Belkin, Gary, 127, 131
Belli, Melvin, 288
Bender, Vic, 34, 71–72, 533
Benny, Jack, 119
Benson, Harry, 136
Benton, Barbi, 315
Berbick, Trevor, 493, 494, 495–98
Berra, Yogi, 145
Berrigan, Daniel/Philip, 258
Besmanoff, Willie, 84
Bethea, Wayne, 95
bin Laden, Osama, 514
Bingham, Howard, 131, 152, 183, 198, 200, 354, 419, 466, 486, 509, 523
Bingham, Ross Worth, 74, 200, 201
Bitter End, 103
Black Panthers, 160, 216, 261, 269, 277, 344
Black Power, 203, 248, 250, 258, 260, 261, 270, 277
Black Pride, 107, 156
Black Scholar, 216
Blazing Saddles (movie), 376–77
Blin, Juergen, 333, 335
Board of Education, Brown v. (1954), 18, 31–33
Bolton, Wanda
Ali affair/Islamic wedding ceremony, 415–16, 417
daughter/child support lawsuit, 415–16
Bonavena, Oscar
Ali fight and, 297–98, 301–2
background/description, 245, 297, 329
Bond, Julian, 250, 277, 292
Bongo, Omar, 371
boxing
call for abolition of, 501
challenger/champion and title, 434
Clay/Ali’s importance to, 97, 129
corner men/handling boxer in stupor, 122–23
cultural status (1954), 26
cuts/cuts above the eye and, 121
deaths and, 430, 501
decline in 1950s, 42
fighters financial problems and, 84
mafia/mobsters and, 79, 97, 130, 187, 191
newspaper coverage importance, 103
race and, 23–28
rematch clauses and, 161–62
southpaws and, 66
statistical analysis of boxers/CompuBox, 299–301
World Boxing Association role summary, 460
World Boxing Council role summary, 460
See also brain damage/boxing; specific individuals
boxing and Clay/Ali (childhood beginnings)
; AAU championship (1959), 50
alcohol/diet and, 25
before Madigan fight (1959), 44–45
bicycle theft and, 20–21, 22, 23, 31
boxing descriptions (1954 to 1960), 22–23, 35–43, 44–45, 50–52
canvassing neighborhood and, 25
celebrity/money aspirations and, 23–24, 45
Chicago and, 39–43, 44–45
confidence/predictions and, 25, 37–39, 43
first fight, 22
running/racing the bus, 24–25
talents, 23, 35, 36–37
wanting to turn pro, 52, 55
See also Olympics and Clay
boxing and Clay/Ali (process of becoming professional)
boxers offering to handle career, 72
Cash Clay and, 72, 73, 76
Clay’s money/pink Cadillac and, 75
Reynolds/friends offer and, 70–71, 72
See also Louisville Sponsoring Group and Clay/Ali
boxing and Clay/Ali (professional)