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Why a Joe Frazier Statue Should Replace Rocky
Date: Wednesday, November 09, 2011, 6:24 am
By: Chris Wilder, Special to BlackAmericaWeb.com
Joe Frazier, the son of a South Carolina sharecropper who won Olympic gold and beat an undefeated Muhammad Ali to become one of the all-time heavyweight greats, died of liver cancer on Monday. He was 67. With him being widely recognized as the greatest fighter ever to come out of Philadelphia, it’s time for the city to erect a statue of Frazier and get rid of the "Rocky" one.
In Philadelphia, locals and tourists alike visit, worship and make pilgrimages to the statue of fictional film hero Rocky Balboa, which has been moved several times, acting as though Balboa were a real person. The statue was originally in front of the Art Museum, which is at the top of the steps that Balboa famously climbed in the 1976 movie. After its filming, the city moved the statue to the front of the Spectrum, the arena in South Philly where Balboa fought in the original movie. (In real life, the 76ers played there, and a statue of Julius “Dr. J” Erving was positioned much less visibly in the back.) Eventually, it was moved to a pedestal near the bottom of the Art Museum steps and is now a must-see for tourists in Philadelphia.
At the ceremony when it was placed there, then-Philadelphia Mayor John Street said that the steps had become a huge tourist attraction and that New Yorker Sylvester Stallone, the creator of "Rocky" and the actor who played him, had been gladly adopted by Philadelphia.
The "Rocky" statue represents the fictitious character who was a gritty, underdog boxer from Philly who, against all odds, gets a fight against the champion, Apollo Creed, and gives him all he can handle. With both men completely spent, the fight goes the distance, with Creed retaining his title via a split decision.
Meanwhile, Joe Frazier is one of the actual all-time greats and certainly the best fighter to ever come out of Philadelphia - a city that has produced dozens of outstanding boxers.
"Smokin' Joe" was small for a heavyweight, but his left hook was murder. He constantly moved forward in his fights, throwing crazy punch combinations, but ultimately that left would do his opponents in. It’s that left hook that won him the title in 1968 and left Muhammad Ali sprawled on the floor in their first meeting in 1971.
When he was 15, Frazier moved to Philadelphia, where he worked in a meat packing company and had been seen punching meat nearly two decades before "Rocky" was created. He won three national Golden Gloves titles and a gold medal at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo.
Frazier won the title in 1968 during the time that Muhammad Ali was banned from boxing for refusing to enter the military draft for the Vietnam war, so many fans still viewed Ali as the real champion. Finally, in 1971, the two met in New York City as an estimated 300 million people watched worldwide. Ali dominated the fight early, but that left hook that was always there for Joe eventually floored Ali in the 15th round, and Frazier won a unanimous decision.
They met two more times. The last meeting, dubbed “The Thrilla in Manila,” was perhaps the most iconic fight in boxing history. The two beat each other to a pulp before Frazier lost, as he could not come out for the 15th round. Ironically, it was Ali who spent that night in a hospital.
If you ask white people who the greatest fighter ever is, many will say Rocky, not even acknowledging that he isn't real. This speaks to their desire to have a great white boxing champion, which, in all honesty hasn't existed since before big, black Jack Johnson hit the scene at the turn of the last century.
Back around 1900, when Johnson was fighting, white people couldn't stand that he was beating up all of the white fighters and then gloating about it. Ultimately, via the Mann Act, which made it illegal to bring white women across state lines, they found a way to bring Johnson down, albeit one that had nothing to do with boxing.
Years later, when Joe Louis came along, he had to keep it quiet and not showboat - or even appear happy - after beating a white fighter. His handlers made it clear to him that was the only way he could achieve success.
By the time Frazier came along, the civil rights movement was in full effect, and black fighters were free to just fight. Any hope of holding black fighters down by any means other than defeating them in the ring was gone, and by then, the top fighters were pretty much all black.
But some people are still reaching for that great, white hope. When none emerged, a fictitious one was created. However, Joe Frazier is a real person that represents Philadelphia boxing and should be honored with a statue, just like other Philadelphia sports icons such as Steve Carlton, Wilt Chamberlain and the notoriously racist Connie Mack.
Date: Wednesday, November 09, 2011, 6:24 am
By: Chris Wilder, Special to BlackAmericaWeb.com
Joe Frazier, the son of a South Carolina sharecropper who won Olympic gold and beat an undefeated Muhammad Ali to become one of the all-time heavyweight greats, died of liver cancer on Monday. He was 67. With him being widely recognized as the greatest fighter ever to come out of Philadelphia, it’s time for the city to erect a statue of Frazier and get rid of the "Rocky" one.
In Philadelphia, locals and tourists alike visit, worship and make pilgrimages to the statue of fictional film hero Rocky Balboa, which has been moved several times, acting as though Balboa were a real person. The statue was originally in front of the Art Museum, which is at the top of the steps that Balboa famously climbed in the 1976 movie. After its filming, the city moved the statue to the front of the Spectrum, the arena in South Philly where Balboa fought in the original movie. (In real life, the 76ers played there, and a statue of Julius “Dr. J” Erving was positioned much less visibly in the back.) Eventually, it was moved to a pedestal near the bottom of the Art Museum steps and is now a must-see for tourists in Philadelphia.
At the ceremony when it was placed there, then-Philadelphia Mayor John Street said that the steps had become a huge tourist attraction and that New Yorker Sylvester Stallone, the creator of "Rocky" and the actor who played him, had been gladly adopted by Philadelphia.
The "Rocky" statue represents the fictitious character who was a gritty, underdog boxer from Philly who, against all odds, gets a fight against the champion, Apollo Creed, and gives him all he can handle. With both men completely spent, the fight goes the distance, with Creed retaining his title via a split decision.
Meanwhile, Joe Frazier is one of the actual all-time greats and certainly the best fighter to ever come out of Philadelphia - a city that has produced dozens of outstanding boxers.
"Smokin' Joe" was small for a heavyweight, but his left hook was murder. He constantly moved forward in his fights, throwing crazy punch combinations, but ultimately that left would do his opponents in. It’s that left hook that won him the title in 1968 and left Muhammad Ali sprawled on the floor in their first meeting in 1971.
When he was 15, Frazier moved to Philadelphia, where he worked in a meat packing company and had been seen punching meat nearly two decades before "Rocky" was created. He won three national Golden Gloves titles and a gold medal at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo.
Frazier won the title in 1968 during the time that Muhammad Ali was banned from boxing for refusing to enter the military draft for the Vietnam war, so many fans still viewed Ali as the real champion. Finally, in 1971, the two met in New York City as an estimated 300 million people watched worldwide. Ali dominated the fight early, but that left hook that was always there for Joe eventually floored Ali in the 15th round, and Frazier won a unanimous decision.
They met two more times. The last meeting, dubbed “The Thrilla in Manila,” was perhaps the most iconic fight in boxing history. The two beat each other to a pulp before Frazier lost, as he could not come out for the 15th round. Ironically, it was Ali who spent that night in a hospital.
If you ask white people who the greatest fighter ever is, many will say Rocky, not even acknowledging that he isn't real. This speaks to their desire to have a great white boxing champion, which, in all honesty hasn't existed since before big, black Jack Johnson hit the scene at the turn of the last century.
Back around 1900, when Johnson was fighting, white people couldn't stand that he was beating up all of the white fighters and then gloating about it. Ultimately, via the Mann Act, which made it illegal to bring white women across state lines, they found a way to bring Johnson down, albeit one that had nothing to do with boxing.
Years later, when Joe Louis came along, he had to keep it quiet and not showboat - or even appear happy - after beating a white fighter. His handlers made it clear to him that was the only way he could achieve success.
By the time Frazier came along, the civil rights movement was in full effect, and black fighters were free to just fight. Any hope of holding black fighters down by any means other than defeating them in the ring was gone, and by then, the top fighters were pretty much all black.
But some people are still reaching for that great, white hope. When none emerged, a fictitious one was created. However, Joe Frazier is a real person that represents Philadelphia boxing and should be honored with a statue, just like other Philadelphia sports icons such as Steve Carlton, Wilt Chamberlain and the notoriously racist Connie Mack.
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