Muhammad
Ali, the eloquent, colorful, controversial and brilliant three-time
heavyweight boxing champion who was known as much for his social
conscience and staunch opposition to the Vietnam War as for his dazzling
boxing skills, died Friday.
Ali,
who had a long battle with Parkinson's disease, was taken to a Phoenix
area hospital earlier this week where he was being treated for a
respiratory issue. He was 74.
Once
the most outrageous trash talker in sports, he was largely muted for
the last quarter century of his life, quieted by a battle with
Parkinson's.
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Born
Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. on Jan. 17, 1942, in Louisville, Ky., Ali
learned to box after his bicycle was stolen when he was 12 years old.
When young Clay vowed to "whoop the behind" of the thief, a local police
officer encouraged him to learn to box to channel his energy.
He would go on to become known as "The Greatest," and at his peak in the 1970s was among the most recognizable faces on Earth.
He
was known for his tendency to recite poems while making predictions
about his fights – "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. The hands
can't hit what the eyes can't see." – as well as for giving opponents
often unflattering nicknames. He referred to Sonny Liston as "the big
ugly bear," George Chuvalo as "The Washerwoman," Floyd Patterson as "The
Rabbit" and Earnie Shavers as "The Acorn."
But
his most controversial, and some would say cruel, nicknames were
reserved for his fiercest rival, Joe Frazier. He first dubbed Frazier
"Uncle Tom" and then later called him "The Gorilla."
[Slideshow: Muhammad Ali's life in photos]
When
Ali prepared to meet Frazier for a third time in Manila, Philippines,
on Oct. 1, 1975, he frequently carried a toy rubber gorilla with him. At
one news conference, he pulled the gorilla out of his pocket and began
punching it as he said, "It's going to be a killa and a thrilla and a
chilla when I get the gorilla in Manila."
Frazier, though, took it personally and harbored a decades-long grudge.
"It sure did bother him," Gene Kilroy, Ali's friend for more than 50 years, told Yahoo Sports.
Kilroy said Ali was simply promoting the fights and meant no harm, and said Ali regretted the impact his words had upon Frazier.
"I
used to tell Ali, 'Someday, me, you and Joe are going to be three old
men sitting in the park laughing about all that [expletive],' " Kilroy
recalled. "And Ali said, 'That would be great!' I talked to Joe and Joe
said, 'No, [expletive] him. I don't want to be with him.' But he
loosened up later and they mended fences."
Not
long before Frazier's death in 2011, he attended an autograph signing
and memorabilia show in Las Vegas. Frazier grabbed a copy of an old
Sports Illustrated magazine that had a photo of the two fighters and
promoter Don King on the cover.
"Man," he said, sounding wistful, "we gave the people some memories, me and Ali."
Ali
was at the peak of his professional powers after knocking out Zora
Folley in New York on March 22, 1967. He battered Folley throughout and
stopped him in the seventh.
After the bout, Folley shared his thoughts with Sports Illustrated.
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