TheBoxingExchange

1 day ago

Frank Cariello (left), Percy Richardson (right), Larry Holmes and Ernie Butler (in front) in 1972. Ernie Butler started training as a boxer because “I got tired of being beat up. Kids would beat me up all the time.” He kept winning, so he stayed with it. After retiring as a boxer, Butler (27-18-1 with 10 KO wins at middleweight from 1944-54) worked as a guard at a county jail and trained boxers in Easton, Pennsylvania. One of them was a young Larry Holmes. Butler began training Holmes in 1968 at the St. Anthony’s Youth Center in Easton. “He used to tell me about everybody he fought, about Sugar Ray Robinson and his sparring partners,” Holmes said, in September of 2000, from his Easton home, hours after receiving a phone call at his training center that Butler, 76, had died earlier in the day at the Gracedale nursing home in Northampton County. “I know his whole story because I heard it so many times, while we were traveling up and down the road,” Holmes said. “And everybody else knew it, too, because he didn’t mind stopping a sparring session to tell people. I have lots of good memories because I tell you what, him and I put a lot of miles on the road together, driving back and forth from New York, Trenton and Scranton, wherever we had to go to get boxing in,” Holmes said. “We boxed a lot. We did everything. We didn’t have a lot of money when we traveled. We used to share gas money.” “(Promoter Don) King pushed Butler out,” Holmes said. “I was naive and young then, and I went wherever they took me, but I stayed straight with Ernie and we were always friends. Even when I became champion, I brought him to fights, gave him some money. People move forward. They don’t stop one thing and that’s what I was doing. Me and Ernie always respected each other.” Butler had a five-year managerial contract with Holmes, he was also his trainer, dated March 21, 1973, the day of Holmes' pro debut. Holmes would win a 4-round decision over Roddell Dupreee at the Catholic Youth Center in Scranton (PA) on March 21, 1973 and go on to become one of the more dominant Heavyweight Champions. In December of 1973, Butler entered into a contract with Don King under which the two men would become co-managers of Holmes, sharing the manager's end of the purses as 50-50 partners. "I never got any money from the contract with Don King," Butler later told Jack Newfield, author of The Life and Crimes of Don King: The Shame of Boxing in America. "Don was pushing me out, telling Larry I didn't know anything, that I didn't have the right connections to move him up." By the middle of 1975, Butler was completely eased out of the picture. In October 1975, Butler filed a lawsuit against Holmes for breach of contract. As soon as he filed the lawsuit, Butler said, he began receiving threatening and harassing phone calls in the middle of the night. He also accused King of altering their 1973 contract and forging Butler's name to a new contract. "I was depressed for a long time over I how got dumped," Butler told Newfield (all quotes in this post are from Newfield's book). Ironically, it had been Butler who had told King early on, King didn't see Holmes as becoming anything special at that point, "You'd better pay attention to this kid, He's pretty good." King, however, did trust Richie Giachetti's judgement enough to decide to try to get acess to Holmes. In June of 1973, Giachetti called Holmes and convinced him to travel with him to New York to meet King. King informed Holmes that he would like to become his manager, whereupon the young fighter reminded him that he had already signed a five-year deal with Butler. King asured Holmes that he would work it out with Butler. "I'd like to keep Ernie in my corner in some way." stated Holmes, who was again reassured by King that they would "work things out" regarding that. King, Holmes and Giachetti then drove to NYSAC headquarters and signed papers making King the future titlists' legal manager in New York State. "I was with Larry for his first twenty fights, but Don was pushing me out, telling Larry that I didn't know anything, that I didn't have the right connections to move him up." stated Butler. Butler would make the fateful decision to let Holmes stay at Deer Lake to work with Muhammad Ali as the former champion prepared to face George Foreman in Zaire. According to Butler he was working as a prison guard at the time, an hour plus drive away, saying "I had to raise my two children and I couldn't get there every day. Don just wormed his way in while i was working and being a family man." In a 1977 Sport Magazine article detailing the corruption of King's U.S. Boxing Tournament (Holmes was fighting in it), Butler would go into how he felt he had been pushed out by King. By the middle of 1975 Butler was completely out of the picture and he would file a lawsuit against Holmes in October of that year. Butler would also tell Ed Howarth, a Philadelphia matchmaker, that KIng had forged his signature on a new contract. Howarth would give that information to the FBI but nothing would result. Butler would say that he got no money from this whole mess but that, somehow, he and Holmes remained on friendly terms. Holmes would later say that he felt that Butler "cared about me too much" and that he wouldn't match him with tougher fighters early in his career. Holmes would immediately have problems with King once Butler was out; he felt King thought him inferior to the others in his stable of heavyweights - Kevin Isaacs, Jeff Merritt, Roy Williams and, later, Michael Dokes and Greg Page - and that King would take advantage of him, as Holmes had no official representation, paying him in cash amounts that King would dictate.....after the fights. It would be a point of pride, and amusement to Holmes, that King had lost a significant amount of money betting on Earnie Shavers to beat Holmes in their first fight. On the undercard of the Roberto Duran-Leoncio Ortiz fight in San Juan in 1975, King had promised Holmes $1000 for the bout. Prior to the fight, he (according to Holmes) had instructed "The Easton Assassin" to carry journeyman heavyweight Billy Joiner. Holmes later claimed that, after he TKO'd Joiner in the 3rd round, King would hand him three $100 bills after the bout. The two got into a screaming match in the dressing room after the fight, which almost led to Holmes getting violent, before King ponied up the other $700 he had promised. King would then essentially threaten Holmes were he not to take the Roy Williams fight, which the then honeymooning future titlist did on two weeks notice, breaking his thumb in the process. King promised him $2500 for the Williams fight and, apparently after not getting paid for it, King even refused to pay for Holmes medical cost for the broken thumb. Holmes would quit as Ali's sparring partner shortly after the Roy Williams bout. Holmes would also tell Newfield for his book that after asking for more money to fight Young Sanford, Bob Arum was now vying for his services by this point, he intimated to King that he was considering taking Arum's offer even if it was for slightly less as he felt he'd be treated fairer. "I'll have your legs broken" is what Holmes told Newfield that King replied to him. King would be a key instigator in breaking up the heavyweight title after Leon Spinks' upset of Ali in 1978. After having an undisputed champion for a decade, and for many decades before Ali's exile, boxing would have over a dozen "Heavyweight Champions" in the next decade preceeding the unification of the titles by Mike Tyson. Larry Holmes, however, would be the one consistent and consumate pro of the bunch. We could go on and on about Don King but I think most of our members know his history. Ernie Butler retired from the Northhampton (PA) Corrections Department in 1988, revered by the inmates he tutored and trained, and stated at that time that he was going to continue to operate the shoe-shine stand he owned in the parking lot of one of Larry Holmes' buildings in Easton.

20thCentBoxIMM's tweet photo. Frank Cariello (left), Percy Richardson (right), Larry Holmes and Ernie Butler (in front) in 1972.

Ernie Butler started training as a boxer because “I got tired of being beat up. Kids would beat me up all the time.” He kept winning, so he stayed with it.

After retiring as a boxer, Butler (27-18-1 with 10 KO wins at middleweight from 1944-54) worked as a guard at a county jail and trained boxers in Easton, Pennsylvania.

One of them was a young Larry Holmes.

Butler began training Holmes in 1968 at the St. Anthony’s Youth Center in Easton.

“He used to tell me about everybody he fought, about Sugar Ray Robinson and his sparring partners,” Holmes said, in September of 2000, from his Easton home, hours after receiving a phone call at his training center that Butler, 76, had died earlier in the day at the Gracedale nursing home in Northampton County.

“I know his whole story because I heard it so many times, while we were traveling up and down the road,” Holmes said. “And everybody else knew it, too, because he didn’t mind stopping a sparring session to tell people. I have lots of good memories because I tell you what, him and I put a lot of miles on the road together, driving back and forth from New York, Trenton and Scranton, wherever we had to go to get boxing in,” Holmes said. “We boxed a lot. We did everything. We didn’t have a lot of money when we traveled. We used to share gas money.”
“(Promoter Don) King pushed Butler out,” Holmes said. “I was naive and young then, and I went wherever they took me, but I stayed straight with Ernie and we were always friends. Even when I became champion, I brought him to fights, gave him some money. People move forward. They don’t stop one thing and that’s what I was doing. Me and Ernie always respected each other.”

Butler had a five-year managerial contract with Holmes, he was also his trainer, dated March 21, 1973, the day of Holmes' pro debut.

Holmes would win a 4-round decision over Roddell Dupreee at the Catholic Youth Center in Scranton (PA) on March 21, 1973 and go on to become one of the more dominant Heavyweight Champions.

In December of 1973, Butler entered into a contract with Don King under which the two men would become co-managers of Holmes, sharing the manager's end of the purses as 50-50 partners.

"I never got any money from the contract with Don King," Butler later told Jack Newfield, author of The Life and Crimes of Don King: The Shame of Boxing in America.
"Don was pushing me out, telling Larry I didn't know anything, that I didn't have the right connections to move him up."

By the middle of 1975, Butler was completely eased out of the picture. In October 1975, Butler filed a lawsuit against Holmes for breach of contract.

As soon as he filed the lawsuit, Butler said, he began receiving threatening and harassing phone calls in the middle of the night.

He also accused King of altering their 1973 contract and forging Butler's name to a new contract.

"I was depressed for a long time over I how got dumped," Butler told Newfield (all quotes in this post are from Newfield's book).

Ironically, it had been Butler who had told King early on, King didn't see Holmes as becoming anything special at that point, "You'd better pay attention to this kid, He's pretty good."

King, however, did trust Richie Giachetti's judgement enough to decide to try to get acess to Holmes.

In June of 1973, Giachetti called Holmes and convinced him to travel with him to New York to meet King.

King informed Holmes that he would like to become his manager, whereupon the young fighter reminded him that he had already signed a five-year deal with Butler. King asured Holmes that he would work it out with Butler.

"I'd like to keep Ernie in my corner in some way." stated Holmes, who was again reassured by King that they would "work things out" regarding that.

King, Holmes and Giachetti then drove to NYSAC headquarters and signed papers making King the future titlists' legal manager in New York State.

"I was with Larry for his first twenty fights, but Don was pushing me out, telling Larry that I didn't know anything, that I didn't have the right connections to move him up." stated Butler.

Butler would make the fateful decision to let Holmes stay at Deer Lake to work with Muhammad Ali as the former champion prepared to face George Foreman in Zaire.

According to Butler he was working as a prison guard at the time, an hour plus drive away, saying "I had to raise my two children and I couldn't get there every day. Don just wormed his way in while i was working and being a family man."

In a 1977 Sport Magazine article detailing the corruption of King's U.S. Boxing Tournament (Holmes was fighting in it), Butler would go into how he felt he had been pushed out by King. By the middle of 1975 Butler was completely out of the picture and he would file a lawsuit against Holmes in October of that year.

Butler would also tell Ed Howarth, a Philadelphia matchmaker, that KIng had forged his signature on a new contract. Howarth would give that information to the FBI but nothing would result.

Butler would say that he got no money from this whole mess but that, somehow, he and Holmes remained on friendly terms.

Holmes would later say that he felt that Butler "cared about me too much" and that he wouldn't match him with tougher fighters early in his career.

Holmes would immediately have problems with King once Butler was out; he felt King thought him inferior to the others in his stable of heavyweights - Kevin Isaacs, Jeff Merritt, Roy Williams and, later, Michael Dokes and Greg Page - and that King would take advantage of him, as Holmes had no official representation, paying him in cash amounts that King would dictate.....after the fights.

It would be a point of pride, and amusement to Holmes, that King had lost a significant amount of money betting on Earnie Shavers to beat Holmes in their first fight.

On the undercard of the Roberto Duran-Leoncio Ortiz fight in San Juan in 1975, King had promised Holmes $1000 for the bout. Prior to the fight, he (according to Holmes) had instructed "The Easton Assassin" to carry journeyman heavyweight Billy Joiner.

Holmes later claimed that, after he TKO'd Joiner in the 3rd round, King would hand him three $100 bills after the bout. The two got into a screaming match in the dressing room after the fight, which almost led to Holmes getting violent, before King ponied up the other $700 he had promised.

King would then essentially threaten Holmes were he not to take the Roy Williams fight, which the then honeymooning future titlist did on two weeks notice, breaking his thumb in the process. King promised him $2500 for the Williams fight and, apparently after not getting paid for it, King even refused to pay for Holmes medical cost for the broken thumb.

Holmes would quit as Ali's sparring partner shortly after the Roy Williams bout.

Holmes would also tell Newfield for his book that after asking for more money to fight Young Sanford, Bob Arum was now vying for his services by this point, he intimated to King that he was considering taking Arum's offer even if it was for slightly less as he felt he'd be treated fairer. "I'll have your legs broken" is what Holmes told Newfield that King replied to him.

King would be a key instigator in breaking up the heavyweight title after Leon Spinks' upset of Ali in 1978. After having an undisputed champion for a decade, and for many decades before Ali's exile, boxing would have over a dozen "Heavyweight Champions" in the next decade preceeding the unification of the titles by Mike Tyson.

Larry Holmes, however, would be the one consistent and consumate pro of the bunch.

We could go on and on about Don King but I think most of our members know his history.

Ernie Butler retired from the Northhampton (PA) Corrections Department in 1988, revered by the inmates he tutored and trained, and stated at that time that he was going to continue to operate the shoe-shine stand he owned in the parking lot of one of Larry Holmes' buildings in Easton.

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MONTE17 retweeted

3 days ago

Emile Griffith is all smiles after regaining the Welterweight title from Luis Rodriguez on June 8, 1963.

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2 days ago

@KevG163 I don't know if it was Tucker or Tucker Fredrickson who owned a bar on 59th and 1st. Maybe they co-owned it.

2 days ago

@Hania16836 1976

2 days ago

@TrumpsHurricane Take off the wig.

MONTE17 retweeted

Top Rank Boxing

@trboxing

2 days ago

DANGER DEFENDS IN SIN CITY. 🏆 Raymond Muratalla vs @RobsonR60 is OFFICIAL 🇧🇷 #MuratallaConceicao will serve as the co-feature to #RoachZepeda live on @TNTSportsUS & @DAZN.

trboxing's tweet photo. DANGER DEFENDS IN SIN CITY.

🏆 Raymond Muratalla vs @RobsonR60 is OFFICIAL 🇧🇷

#MuratallaConceicao will serve as the co-feature to #RoachZepeda live on @TNTSportsUS & @DAZN. https://t.co/1MDY2HaKlb

2 days ago

@cptdankkk Ran FedEx operations for twenty years. After that, I was a fish out of water. The hustle and bustle stops, and you have to go cold turkey --- it happens to many. And it can be very depressing.

MONTE17 retweeted

3 days ago

In their third meeting, on June 8, 1963, Luis Rodriguez (right) throws a right at Emile Griffith, at Madison Square Garden. Rodriguez had taken the Welterweight Championship from Griffith in March, at Dodger Stadium, via 15-round unanimous decision. Griffith will regain the title in this bout with a disputed 15-round split decision. Both the AP and the UPI scored the bout (8-6-1 in rounds) for Rodriguez on their unofficial scorecards. 17 writers at ringside scored the bout for Rodriguez, six for Griffith, and one had it even. We have done plenty on both Griffith and Rodriguez here; Griffith is one of the most underrated multiple weight division titlists in boxing history while Rodriguez, sometimes forgotten because he only held a world title for 47 days, beat a "Who's who?" of great fighters that kept him in the welterweight and middleweight rankings for an incredible 13 (1959-72) consecutive years. The list of champions & top 10 contenders (getting rated in those days really meant something ), near & all-time greats that Rodriguez beat is staggering. Among the champions were Benny "Kid" Paret (twice), Virgil Akins, Emile Griffith, the very under-rated Curtis Cokes & Denny Moyer. Some of the other top welterweight contenders he beat were Isaac Logart, Johnny Gonsalvez, the also under-rated Frederico Thompson, L.C. Morgan, Garland Randall, & Charley Austin. At the same time he campaigned as a welter he'd jump up to 149-150 lb's. and take on and beat top middleweights in his spare time. A partial list of his middleweight victims: Wilbert "Skeeter" McClure (twice), Holly Mims, Percy Manning, Bennie Briscoe (he even beat him in Benny's hometown, Philadelphia, by decision no less), George Benton, Ernie Buford, Jimmy Lester, Tony Mundine, Vicente Rondon, Gene Armstrong, Tom Bethea, Joey Giambra & Rubin "Hurricane" Carter. Rodriguez (Griffith as well) is an All-Time Great and he shouldn't be forgotten by boxing fans.

20thCentBoxIMM's tweet photo. In their third meeting, on June 8, 1963, Luis Rodriguez (right) throws a right at Emile Griffith, at Madison Square Garden.

Rodriguez had taken the Welterweight Championship from Griffith in March, at Dodger Stadium, via 15-round unanimous decision.

Griffith will regain the title in this bout with a disputed 15-round split decision.

Both the AP and the UPI scored the bout (8-6-1 in rounds) for Rodriguez on their unofficial scorecards.

17 writers at ringside scored the bout for Rodriguez, six for Griffith, and one had it even.

We have done plenty on both Griffith and Rodriguez here; Griffith is one of the most underrated multiple weight division titlists in boxing history while Rodriguez, sometimes forgotten because he only held a world title for 47 days, beat a "Who's who?" of great fighters that kept him in the welterweight and middleweight rankings for an incredible 13 (1959-72) consecutive years.

The list of champions & top 10 contenders (getting rated in those days really meant something ), near & all-time greats that Rodriguez beat is staggering.

Among the champions were Benny "Kid" Paret (twice), Virgil Akins, Emile Griffith, the very under-rated Curtis Cokes & Denny Moyer. Some of the other top welterweight contenders he beat were Isaac Logart, Johnny Gonsalvez, the also under-rated Frederico Thompson, L.C. Morgan, Garland Randall, & Charley Austin.

At the same time he campaigned as a welter he'd jump up to 149-150 lb's. and take on and beat top middleweights in his spare time. A partial list of his middleweight victims: Wilbert "Skeeter" McClure (twice), Holly Mims, Percy Manning, Bennie Briscoe (he even beat him in Benny's hometown, Philadelphia, by decision no less), George Benton, Ernie Buford, Jimmy Lester, Tony Mundine, Vicente Rondon, Gene Armstrong, Tom Bethea, Joey Giambra & Rubin "Hurricane" Carter.

Rodriguez (Griffith as well) is an All-Time Great and he shouldn't be forgotten by boxing fans.

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MONTE17 retweeted

3 days ago

Willie Joyce (pictured), knocked down in the 10th for a two count rebounds to get up and floor NBA Lightweight Champion Ike Williams on June 8, 1945 at Madison Square Garden pulling out a 10-round split decision non-title fight win. Williams had TKO'd Juan Zurita in Mexico just seven weeks earlier to win the title. In the span of seven months, from November of 1944 to June of 1945, Joyce will split two bouts with former Featherweight Champion Chalky Wright (Chalky will win a 10-round UD in LA in that April rematch), and he'll take two of three decisions (Joyce winning both 12-round fights) from all-time great future Lightweight Champion Ike Williams (Williams takes a 10-round decision in the second of their three meetings in that five-month span). Joyce is certainly in ANY discussion of the greatest fighters to never win a world title. Willie Joyce, 71-21-10 (16 KO's, who had been the 1936 National AAU Championship at Bantamweight, was good enough as a pro to win three of his four meetings with Ike Williams. He also had wins over champions, and contenders, such as Lew Jenkins, Leo Rodak, Henry Armstrong, Chalky Wright, Jackie Wilson and Williams. He also lost (decisions) three times to Tippy Larkin and twice to Willie Pep. A light puncher, nevertheless, Joyce was never stopped in his career while facing several all-time greats. Many argue for Joyce to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, as he had numerous "quality" wins during his career (71-21-10) including defeats of World Champions Ike Williams (twice), Jackie Wilson, Chalky Wright, Ray Lunny, Lew Jenkins and Leo Rodak. Seems odd to me, personally, that even though he never won a world title; a guy that went 2-0-1 against Lew Jenkins, that beat Armstrong twice in four fights, and the great Ike Williams three out of four fights, is not in the International Boxing Hall of Fame. How the hell Willie Joyce is not in the IBHOF is a disgrace to that organization. That's a pretty impressive resume, title or not. As for the IBHOF, it's omissions (Escalera, DeJesus, Joyce, etc.) are as glaringly incoherent as it's admissions are at times.

20thCentBoxIMM's tweet photo. Willie Joyce (pictured), knocked down in the 10th for a two count rebounds to get up and floor NBA Lightweight Champion Ike Williams on June 8, 1945 at Madison Square Garden pulling out a 10-round split decision non-title fight win.

Williams had TKO'd Juan Zurita in Mexico just seven weeks earlier to win the title.

In the span of seven months, from November of 1944 to June of 1945, Joyce will split two bouts with former Featherweight Champion Chalky Wright (Chalky will win a 10-round UD in LA in that April rematch), and he'll take two of three decisions (Joyce winning both 12-round fights) from all-time great future Lightweight Champion Ike Williams (Williams takes a 10-round decision in the second of their three meetings in that five-month span).

Joyce is certainly in ANY discussion of the greatest fighters to never win a world title.

Willie Joyce, 71-21-10 (16 KO's, who had been the 1936 National AAU Championship at Bantamweight, was good enough as a pro to win three of his four meetings with Ike Williams.

He also had wins over champions, and contenders, such as Lew Jenkins, Leo Rodak, Henry Armstrong, Chalky Wright, Jackie Wilson and Williams. He also lost (decisions) three times to Tippy Larkin and twice to Willie Pep.

A light puncher, nevertheless, Joyce was never stopped in his career while facing several all-time greats.

Many argue for Joyce to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, as he had numerous "quality" wins during his career (71-21-10) including defeats of World Champions Ike Williams (twice), Jackie Wilson, Chalky Wright, Ray Lunny, Lew Jenkins and Leo Rodak.

Seems odd to me, personally, that even though he never won a world title; a guy that went 2-0-1 against Lew Jenkins, that beat Armstrong twice in four fights, and the great Ike Williams three out of four fights, is not in the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

How the hell Willie Joyce is not in the IBHOF is a disgrace to that organization.

That's a pretty impressive resume, title or not.

As for the IBHOF, it's omissions (Escalera, DeJesus, Joyce, etc.) are as glaringly incoherent as it's admissions are at times.

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2 days ago

@RepDanGoldman The more laws, the less justice. You can pass all these Acts, but unless you get to the core of the problem, people like you will be saying the same thing many decades from now.

MONTE17 retweeted

Historic Boxing

@BoxerJoeGrim

3 days ago

Future heavyweight king Max Baer beat former world champion Max Schmeling via a Round 10 TKO at Yankee Stadium in New York #OnThisDay in 1933. Referee Arthur Donovan stopped the fight a little under two minutes into the 10th stanza to save a groggy Schmeling from further punishment shortly after he rose from a heavy knockdown (pictured).

BoxerJoeGrim's tweet photo. Future heavyweight king Max Baer beat former world champion Max Schmeling via a Round 10 TKO at Yankee Stadium in New York #OnThisDay in 1933. Referee Arthur Donovan stopped the fight a little under two minutes into the 10th stanza to save a groggy Schmeling from further punishment shortly after he rose from a heavy knockdown (pictured).

856

3 days ago

@VickieforNYC The time to limit and vet who comes in and out of this Country was like . . . 40 years ago.

209

3 days ago

@oldhockeycards Rogie the Goalie.

3 days ago

@GovPritzker Sicko.

MONTE17 retweeted