Billy Fox
Born
William McKinley Fox

(1926-02-01)February 1, 1926
Tatums, Oklahoma, U.S.
DiedJanuary 1986(1986-01-00) (aged 59)
New York City, New York, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Statistics
Weight(s)Light Heavyweight
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights59
Wins49
Wins by KO48
Losses9
Draws1

William McKinley Fox (February 1, 1926 – January 1986), better known as "Blackjack" Billy Fox, was an American light heavyweight boxer who is best known for having won a controversial fight against future middleweight champion Jake LaMotta.[1]

Early life

William McKinley Fox[2] was born in Tatums, Oklahoma on February 1, 1926,[3] to Melvin Calvin Fox (died 1984)[4] and Beulah Carter (died 1933).[5] After his mother died when he was a child, he was raised by his stepmother, Viola Harris Fox.[4][6]

Fox enlisted for service in World War II in 1944, when he was 18. At the time, he was resident in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[3]

Boxing career

Billy Fox, known as "Blackjack", started off his career by winning 37 consecutive fights, all by knockout, before he was knocked out by Gus Lesnevich in ten rounds for the world light heavyweight title. Fox had the champion hurt in round three.[7] He would rack up 7 more wins, including a win in a bout thrown by Jake LaMotta.[8] That fight was fixed by the notorious Frank "Blinky" Palermo, a member of the Philadelphia crime family, who owned Fox under the table.[9] Fox then lost two fights in a row against Red Willis Applegate and Gus Lesnevich, to whom he lost in the first round by a knockout in 1:58 seconds, in a rematch that was also for the world light heavyweight title.[10]

Fox would fight 12 more fights, and amass a record of 49 wins (48 by knockout), 9 losses, and 1 draw. His knockout streak of 42 fights is the second longest in boxing history. [11]

Personal life and death

Fox married Clara Rosemary Allen in Dauphin, Pennsylvania, on May 5, 1947.[12][13] They met at the USO-Variety Club canteen whilst Fox was a soldier and Allen was a hostess.[14]

In 1956, Fox was tracked down by Sports Illustrated journalists, at which point he was described as "living on the edges, desolate, vagrant, despairing". By July 1960, Fox was residing at a mental institution in Long Island, New York, and was said to be "seriously ill".[1] He died in New York City in January 1986, at the age of 59.[6]

Billy Fox was portrayed in Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull by Eddie Mustafa Muhammad.

References

  1. 1 2 Rogin, Gilbert (11 July 1960). "Billy Fox: "Just Riding Into Evening"". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  2. ↑ Professional Boxing: Hearings Before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopoly, Eighty-Sixth Congress, Second Session, Eighty-Seventh Congress, First Session, Eighty-Eighth Congress, Second Session, Parts 1–4. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1960. p. 41. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  3. 1 2 "William Mckinley Fox". U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  4. 1 2 "Fox". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 10 October 1984. p. 1. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  5. ↑ "Mrs. Beulah Fox". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 7 January 1933. p. 4. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  6. 1 2 "Fox". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 23 January 1986. p. 18. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  7. ↑ "Gus Lesnevich vs. Billy Fox (1st meeting) - BoxRec".
  8. ↑ Jeff Merton, ESPN.com. Page 2 - "Reel Life: 'Raging Bull'" Accessed 7 January 2008.
  9. ↑ "BLINKY PALERMO, MOBSTER WHO RAN BOXING DIES!". Ring Talk. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  10. ↑ "Fight:46680 - BoxRec".
  11. ↑ "Most Consecutive Knockouts in the History of Boxing!". 4 August 2022.
  12. ↑ "William Mckinley Fox". Pennsylvania, U.S., Marriages, 1852–1968. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  13. ↑ "Billy Fox". The Detroit Tribune. 4 October 1947. p. 12. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  14. ↑ "Jackie Robinson Deserves Honor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 24 September 1947. p. 16. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
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