Charles won all of his first 17 fights before being defeated by veteran Ken Overlin. After a brilliant amateur boxing career, Charles turned pro in 1940 and went on to win twenty consecutive fights in the first eighteen months of the decade. Jim Crowe laws not only threatened the lives of the black community, but ALL opportunities. Family Life He had three children. Ezzard was born in Lawrenceville, Georgia, United States. It also earned them acclaim as the toughest men of their eras. The decade was one of learning and exploration. Charles was instead a cool ring tactician who was content to outpoint his opponents or to wear them down through a profusion of punches. Years later, Walcott recalled: "After the fight, Joe put his arm around me and whispered in my ear, 'I'm sorry.' He won the national AAU Middleweight Championship in 1939. He temporarily left boxing in 1943 to enlist in the U.S. Army. Notable Sports Figures. In fact, Ezz was part owner of the Cotton Club and saw many legendary acts come through including Duke Ellington, Scatman Crothers, Pearl Bailey, and Sarah Vaughn. http://www.njboxinghof.org/cgi-bin/henryseehof.pl?286 (October 25, 2002). Throughout his ring career, Charles was criticized for lacking the killer instinct, that highly salable knockout drive that created boxoffice bonanzas for Jack Dempsey, Louis and the late Rocky Marciano. Charles started his career as a featherweight in the amateurs, where he had a record of 420. Later that year he experienced something of a setback, losing to Joey Maxim and Elmer Ray in back-to-back bouts. From 1940 to 1959 Charles fought 122 bouts, winning 96, of which 58 were by knockout. Born in Lawrenceville, named after the doctor that birthed him, Ezzard Charless family had the bravery to leave Jim Crowe Georgia to pursue better opportunity. Fortunately for Walcott, Bocchicchio was not so easily dissuaded. I finally figured it out. In the following years he fights and beats a succession of formidable middleweights and light heavyweights, champions and ex-titlists, including Teddy Yarosz, Anton Cristofiridis, Charley Burley, Booker Beckwith, Mose Brown and Joey Maxim. He was born Ezzard Mack Charles on July 7, 1921, in Lawrenceville, Georgia. However, he served in the U.S. military during World War II and was unable to fight professionally in 1945. Your email address will not be published. Ezzard Charless birth sign is Cancer and he had a ruling planet of Moon. It was reportedly the only time Ezzard touched the canvas during his entire amateur career. He coasted through the final four rounds and lost the chance to become the first man to regain the heavyweight championship. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. Charles died on May 28, 1975. He was posthumously inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1990. My mother delivered the boy perhaps in the 1950s or 1960s. The first fight saw Ezz lose but take Marciano all 15 rounds, which no other boxer had done before. Other than his coaches and trainers, Ezz had family and friends who helped him stay focused. Charles was very close with Rocky Marciano and a neighbor and friend of Muhammad Ali when they both lived on 85th Street in Chicago. Discharged in January 1946, the career of The Cincinnati Cobra then motors on in high gear and reading about his bouts with the legendary Archie Moore in particular is a great pleasure. Ezzard Mack Charles (July 7, 1921 - May 28, 1975), known as the Cincinnati Cobra, was an American professional boxer and World Heavyweight Champion. You can give back to Cincinnati by picking up any litter you see in the Parks or on your block. He went on to win the Boxing Heavyweight Title and carried it from 1949 to 1951. Surviving are his widow, Gladys, and three children, Ezzard 2d, Deborah and Leith. [7] Charles also starred in one motion picture: Mau Mau Drums, an independent (and unreleased) jungle-adventure film shot in and around Cincinnati in 1960 by filmmaker Earl Schwieterman. The strengths of this sign are being loyal, emotional, sympathetic, tenacious, persuasive, while weaknesses can be moody, pessimistic, suspicious, manipulative and insecure. Charles retired from boxing in 1956, with two brief, unsuccessful comeback attempts in 1958 and 1959. Kelta's Kavern. Dettloff makes sure were aware that in many cases Charles had to overcome significant size disadvantages to have his hand raised. Once more details are available, we will update this section. Charles was sixfeet tall and usually weighed in the 180's. Between 1943 and 1951, a truly stacked era, Charles loses just once, an unpopular split decision to veteran heavyweight and lethal puncher Elmer Ray, a defeat which he avenges by knockout a year later. During Ezzs rise, he was forced to fight in a heavier weight class and was frequently out-weighed by up to 30 pounds. Historian Bob Mee looks back on the glorious career the legendary Ezzard Charles who was born on July 7, 1921 . Published by McFarland, 232 pages $35.00. Perhaps sensing that he was comfortably ahead on points, Walcott took it easy on Louis in the final rounds of the fight. Walcott eagerly headed for the Louis training camp, but on his very first day on the job, he dropped Louis with a left hook, abruptly ending his stint as sparring partner. Ezz Fest brings people together for an annual celebration in Laurel Park. A year after his debut, still just a teenager, Charles fights Ken Overlin, a veteran ranked by The Ring as the worlds second best middleweight. [1] Charles defeated numerous Hall of Fame fighters in three different weight classes. However, boxing failed to provide a dependable source of income. He depended on his boxing skills and ability to score points rather than delivering one powerful knockout punch and thus was criticized by some for lacking a harsh fighting instinct. Who Is Ezzard Charles's Wife? His legacy of goodwill still thrives throughout the West End and Cincinnati to this day. The following year, Charles failed in an attempt to recapture the title from Walcott, who lost it barely three months later to Rocky Marciano. American boxer The Moon represents one's nurturing and emotional instinct. So, at 9 years old Ezzard moved to Cincinnati, One day a boxer came by in a nice car and wearing a nice suit. Ezzard Charles; A Boxing Life. Ezzard Charles won the National Boxing Association heavyweight crown in a fifteen-round decision over Jersey Joe Walcott on June 22, 1949. Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. Ezzard Mack Charles, was an incredibly intelligent child, but a deeply segregated Georgia was no place to raise any African-American child at the time. When I was a little boy wed take the bus to the shopping plaza at 35th (Chicago) and Id always run to the back of the bus. Ezzard Charles was born in Lawrenceville. Ezzard Charless mothers name is unknown at this time and his fathers name is under review. Three years later, on June 17, 1954, he lost a grueling fifteen-round decision to Rocky Marciano, and in a rematch later that year Marciano knocked him out in the eighth round. But Ezz kept fighting with his eye on being the first boxer of his time to regain the heavyweight title. Ezzards education details are not available at this time. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Independent (February 28, 1994). My father would say, come up here, sit in the front. 845 Ezzard Charles Dr, Cincinnati, OH 45203 is a 1 bed, 1 bath home. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. He always wanted to sit in the front. We encourage you to research and examine these . Charles dominated the first four rounds but in typical Rocky fashion, Marciano eventually got going and dominated most of the rest of the brutal battle. Salzman, Linda "Charles, Ezzard . But on July 18, 1951, Walcott made boxing history when he knocked out Charles in the seventh round to become the oldest boxer ever to win the world heavyweight title. Chuckling at his problems, he added: It's more than a rainy day, it's a flood.. Ezzard was inducted into Ring magazines Boxing Hall of Fame in 1970. Charles was a student of the sweet science Growing Up Born Ezzard Mack Charles in July 7 1921, into a life of poverty in Lawrenceville, Georgia, the Charles family relocated to Cincinnati, Ohio, which would later earn him his nickname 'The Cincinnati Cobra'. Find your friends on Facebook. [1] Jersey Joe returned to boxing with a vengeance, winning eight of his nine bouts in 1945, three of them against top ten fighters Joe Baski, Lee Murray, and Curtis Sheppard. When I first decided to get into boxing, Id listen to all of the older guys in the game. Please subscribe, share, and leave us a comment of review if you like the show! $359,900 Last Sold Price. Ruling Planet: Ezzard Charles had a ruling planet of Moon and has a ruling planet of Moon and by astrological associations Sunday is ruled by moon. When he was a child, his family moved to Cincinnati, where he became interested in boxing. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Omissions? Family (1) Spouse Gladys Gartrell (1949 - 27 May 1975) (his death) (3 children) Trivia (14) Defeated Joe Louis on September 27, 1950 to become the undisputed heavyweight . Semifinals 147-Pound class: Defeated Ray McDonald Times-Star A.C. by decision. If Charles had won this fight, he would have become the first man in history to regain the heavyweight championship. Against top rate opposition like Archie Moore, Charley Burley, Lloyd Marshall, Jimmy Bivins, and Joey Maxim he was an impressive 16-2 combined. Incidentally, these opponents Ray, Bivins, Burley et al are not glossed over but given a proper backstory, Dettloff making them come alive on the page and increasing our appreciation for Charles achievement in vanquishing them. This page is updated often with new details about Ezzard Charles. His finest skills of ringmanship enabled him to go 15 hard rounds at Yankee Stadium in June, but the Brockton Bomber won the decision in what he called one of his toughest fights. From poor beginnings in the Jim Crow South to the top of the boxing world and beyond, Ezz overcame adversity throughout his life leaving a legacy of honor, dignity, respect, and generosity that still thrives to this day.