Mills Bee Lane III (born November 12, 1936) is a retired boxing referee, a former boxer, was a two-term Washoe County District Court Judge, and television personality. He is best known for having officiated several major heavyweight championship boxing matches in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and for starring in the television show Judge Mills Lane.^[1]

Biography[link]

Lane hails from a prominent Georgia family: his grandfather founded the largest bank in Georgia, and his uncle (and namesake) was the president of Citizens & Southern National Bank. Mills, however, had other aspirations, and joined the United States Marine Corps in 1956, after his graduation from Middlesex School. He became a boxer while serving as a Marine, becoming the All-Far East welterweight champ. After leaving the Marine Corps, he enrolled at the University of Nevada, Reno and became the NCAA boxing champion. He turned pro while in college, eventually earning an 10-1 record as a pro. He was in the 1960 Summer Olympics boxing finals held in San Francisco, California. He was defeated by Phil Baldwin in the semifinals.^[2]

Lane graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno with a business degree in 1963, then a few years later enrolled at the University of Utah to attend law school. Lane graduated as a lawyer, and in 1979, he became Chief Deputy Sheriff of Investigative Services at the Washoe County Sheriff's Office. He was elected District Attorney in 1982 and District Judge in 1990.^[1]

Boxing referee[link]

Lane refereed his first world championship boxing match in 1971, when Betulio González had a fifteen-round draw with Erbito Salavarria for the WBC flyweight title.^[1] Lane became a household name in the United States the night he refereed "The Bite Fight" rematch between world heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield and challenger Mike Tyson on June 28, 1997. After Tyson bit Holyfield's ears twice, Lane disqualified him. Lane's shirt was stained with blood from the incident, and he sold it to a memorabilia collector on the same night,^[3] Mitch Halpern was supposed to referee the fight, but Tyson's camp protested him, so Lane was brought in at the last minute.

Television[link]

From 1998 to 2001 his court show, Judge Mills Lane, aired on national television.^[1] In addition to this show, the producers of MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch approached him about having his character and voice used in their show as the referee of their plasticine figure matches.^[1] Lane accepted the offer, and became an MTV personality. As a referee, Lane started boxing matches by declaring "Let's get it on!", which became his catchphrase. This was reproduced in Celebrity Deathmatch as his character would shout the same phrase to initiate fights.^[1] Lane titled his autobiography Let's Get It On: Tough Talk from Boxing's Top Ref and Nevada's Most Outspoken Judge.^[4]

Lane guest voiced on an episode of Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, in which he played a judge.

After TV[link]

After the fight between Thomas Hearns and Jay Snyder on November 6, 1998, Lane retired as a boxing referee.^[5]

Stroke[link]

Lane suffered a debilitating stroke in March 2002 which left him partially paralyzed, and affected his ability to speak.^[5] This led to his Celebrity Deathmatch alter-ego being voiced by Chris Edgerly (who played Nick Diamond) for the remainder of series' run. His adopted city of Reno celebrated him on December 27, 2004, proclaiming it "Mills Lane Day". In May 2006, Lane made his first public appearance in years at the dedication of a new courthouse which is named after him.

Professional boxing record[link]

10 Wins (6 knockouts, 4 decisions), 1 Loss[6]
Result	Record	Opponnent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
Win	10–1	Buddy Knox	Unanimous decision	6	May 9, 1967	Centennial Coliseum, Reno, Nevada
Win	9–1	David Camacho	Unanimous decision	10	February 28, 1963	Mathisen Hall, Reno, Nevada
Win	8–1	Al Walker	Unanimous decision	6	January 31, 1963	Mathisen Hall, Reno, Nevada
Win	7–1	Larry Sanchez	KO	2 (6), 1:04	December 12, 1962	Mathisen Hall, Reno, Nevada
Win	6–1	Artie Cox	KO	3 (8), 0:43	August 7, 1962	Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California
Win	5–1	Al Carroll	TKO	5 (8), 3:00	July 17, 1962	State Building, Reno, Nevada
Win	4–1	Dick Smith	Decision	6	June 26, 1962	Sacramento, California
Win	3–1	Marva Hawkins	KO	6 (6)	June 12, 1962	Sacramento, California
Win	2–1	Sonny King	TKO	1 (6), 2:10	May 27, 1962	Wagon Wheel Convention Center, Stateline, Nevada
Win	1–1	Carlos Loya	Unanimous decision	10	May 10, 1962	State Building, Reno, Nevada
Loss	0–1	Artie Cox	TKO	1 (4), 0:35	April 7, 1961	State Building, Reno, Nevada	Lane's professional debut.

References[link]

External links[link]

Biography portal

• Professional boxing record for Mills Lane from BoxRec
• Mills Lane at the Internet Movie Database

Larry Holmes
Holmes with the Jaycees trophy in 1979
Statistics
Real name	Larry Holmes
Nickname(s)	Easton Assassin
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Reach	81 in (206 cm)
Nationality	American
Born	(1949-11-03) November 3, 1949 (age 62) Cuthbert, Georgia, USA
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	75
Wins	69
Wins by KO	44
Losses	6
No contests	0

Larry Holmes (born November 3, 1949) is a former professional boxer. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which gave birth to his boxing nickname, The Easton Assassin.

Holmes, whose left jab is considered one of the greatest weapons in the history of sports,^[1] was the WBC Heavyweight Champion from 1978 to 1983, The Ring Heavyweight Champion from 1980 to 1985, and the IBF Heavyweight Champion from 1983 to 1985. He made twenty successful title defenses, second only to Joe Louis' twenty-five.

Holmes won his first forty-eight professional bouts, almost matching Rocky Marciano's streak of 49 straight wins, including victories over Ken Norton, Muhammad Ali, Gerry Cooney, and Marvis Frazier.^[2] He is frequently ranked by many boxing experts as one of the greatest heavyweight fighters of all time.^[3]

Early life[link]

Holmes was the fourth of twelve children born to John and Flossie Holmes. When the family moved to Easton in 1954, Holmes' father went to Connecticut, where he worked as a gardener until his death in 1970. He visited his family every three weeks. "He didn't forsake us," said Flossie Holmes. "He just didn't have anything to give." The family survived on welfare.

To help support his family, Holmes dropped out of school when he was in the seventh grade and went to work at a car wash for $1 an hour. He later drove a dump truck and worked in a quarry.^[4]

Amateur boxing career[link]

When Holmes was nineteen, he started boxing. In his twenty-second bout, he boxed Duane Bobick in the 1972 Olympic Trials. Holmes was dropped in the first round with a right to the head. He got up and danced out of range, landing several stiff jabs in the process. Bobick mauled Holmes in the second round but couldn't corner him. The referee warned Holmes twice in the second for holding. In the third, Bobick landed several good rights and started to corner Holmes, who continued to hold. Eventually, Holmes was disqualified for excessive holding. ^[5]

Early boxing career[link]

After compiling an amateur record of 19-3, Holmes turned professional on March 21, 1973, winning a four-round decision against Rodell Dupree. Early in his career, he worked as a sparring partner for Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Earnie Shavers, and Jimmy Young. He was paid well and learned a lot. "I was young, and I didn't know much. But I was holding my own sparring those guys," Holmes said. "I thought, 'hey, these guys are the best, the champs. If I can hold my own now, what about later?'"

Holmes first gained credibility as a contender when he upset the hard-punching Earnie Shavers in March 1978. Holmes won by a lopsided twelve-round unanimous decision, winning every round on two scorecards and all but one on the third. Holmes's victory over Shavers set up a title shot between Holmes and WBC Heavyweight Champion Ken Norton in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 9, 1978.

WBC Heavyweight Champion[link]

The fight between Holmes and Norton was a tough, competitive fight. After fourteen rounds, all three judges had the fight scored dead even at seven rounds each. Holmes rallied late in the fifteenth to win the round on two scorecards and take the title by a split decision. ^[6]

In his first two title defenses, Holmes easily knocked out Alfredo Evangelista and Ossie Ocasio. His third title defense was a tough one. On June 22, 1979, Holmes faced future WBA Heavyweight Champion Mike Weaver, who was lightly regarded going into the fight sporting an uninspiring 19-8 record. After ten tough rounds, Holmes dropped Weaver with a right uppercut late in round eleven. In the twelfth, Holmes immediately went on the attack, backing Weaver into the ropes and pounding him with powerful rights until the referee stepped in and stopped it. "This man knocked the devil out of me," Holmes said. "This man might not have had credit before tonight, but you'll give it to him now."^[7]

Three months later, on September 28, 1979, Holmes had a rematch with Shavers, who got a title shot by knocking out Ken Norton in one round. Holmes dominated the first six rounds, but in the seventh, Shavers sent Holmes down with a devastating overhand right. Holmes got up, survived the round, and went on to stop Shavers in the eleventh.^[8]

His next three defenses were knockouts of Lorenzo Zanon, Leroy Jones, and Scott LeDoux.

On October 2, 1980, at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, Holmes defended his title against Ali, who was coming out of retirement in an attempt to become the first four-time World Heavyweight Champion. Holmes dominated Ali from start to finish, winning every round on every scorecard. At the end of the tenth round, Ali's trainer, Angelo Dundee, stopped the fight.^[9] After the win, Holmes received recognition as World Heavyweight Champion by The Ring magazine.

Ali blamed his poor performance on thyroid medication that he had been taking, claiming that it helped him lose weight (he weighed 217½, his lowest weight since he fought George Foreman in 1974), but it also left him drained for the fight.^[10]

After eight consecutive knockouts, Holmes was forced to go the distance when he successfully defended his title against future WBC Heavyweight Champion Trevor Berbick on April 11, 1981. In his next fight, two months later, Holmes knocked out former Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Leon Spinks in three rounds. On November 6, 1981, Holmes rose from a seventh-round knockdown (during which he staggered into the turnbuckle) to stop Renaldo Snipes in the eleventh.

Holmes vs. Cooney[link]

On June 11, 1982, Holmes defended his title against Gerry Cooney, the undefeated #1 contender and an Irish-American. The lead up to the fight had many racial overtones. Holmes said that if Cooney wasn't white, he wouldn't be getting the same purse as the champion (Both boxers received $10 million for the bout).^[11] Although Cooney tried to deflect questions about race, members of his camp wore shirts that said "Not the White Man, but the Right Man."^[11]

Many^[who?] felt Holmes was unfairly slighted leading up to the fight. In their fight previews, Sports Illustrated and Time put Cooney on the cover, not Holmes. President Ronald Reagan had a phone installed in Cooney's dressing room so he could call him if he won the fight. Holmes had no such arrangement. Lastly, boxing tradition dictates that the champion is introduced last, but the challenger, Cooney, was introduced last.^[11]

The bout was held in a 32,000 seat stadium erected in a Caesar's Palace Parking lot, with millions more watching around the world. After an uneventful first round, Holmes dropped Cooney with a right in the second. Cooney came back well in the next two rounds, jarring Holmes with his powerful left hook. Holmes later said that Cooney "hit me so damned hard, I felt it - boom - in my bones.|^[12]

Cooney was tiring by the ninth, a round in which he had two points deducted for low blows. In the tenth, they traded punches relentlessly. At the end of the round, the two nodded to each other in respect.^[12]

Cooney lost another point because of low blows in the eleventh. By then, Holmes was landing with ease. In the thirteenth, a barrage of punches sent Cooney down. He got up, but his trainer, Victor Valle, stepped into the ring and stopped the fight.^[12]

After the fight, Holmes and Cooney would become close friends.^[12]

Trouble with the WBC[link]

Holmes' next two fights were one-sided decision wins over Randall "Tex" Cobb and Lucien Rodriguez. On May 23, 1983, Holmes defended his title against Tim Witherspoon, the future WBC and WBA Heavyweight Champion. Witherspoon, a six to one underdog and with only 15 professional bouts to his name, surprised many by giving Holmes a difficult fight. After twelve rounds, Holmes retained the title by a disputed split decision.^[13] Boxing Monthly named it one of the ten most controversial decisions of all time.

On September 10, 1983, Holmes successfully defended the WBC title for the sixteenth time, knocking out Scott Frank in five rounds. Holmes then signed to fight Marvis Frazier, son of Joe Frazier, on November 25, 1983. The WBC refused to sanction the fight against the unranked Frazier. They ordered Holmes to fight Greg Page, the #1 contender, or be stripped of the title. Promoter Don King offered Holmes $2.55 million to fight Page, but the champion didn't think that was enough. He was making $3.1 million to fight Frazier and felt he should get as much as $5 million to fight Page.^[14]

Holmes had an easy time with Frazier, knocking him out in the first round.^[15] The following month, Holmes relinquished the WBC championship and accepted recognition as World Heavyweight Champion by the newly formed International Boxing Federation.^[16]

IBF Heavyweight Champion[link]

Holmes signed to fight Gerrie Coetzee, the WBA Champion, on June 15, 1984 at Caesar's Palace. The fight was being promoted by JPD Inc., but it was canceled when Caesar's Palace said the promoters failed to meet the financial conditions of the contract. Holmes was promised $13 million and Coetzee was promised $8 million. Even after cutting the purses dramatically, they still couldn't come up with enough financial backing to stage the fight.^[17] Don King then planned to promote the fight, but Holmes lost a lawsuit filed by Virginia attorney Richard Hirschfeld, who said he had a contract with Holmes that gave him right of first refusal on a Holmes-Coetzee bout. Holmes then decided to move on and fight someone else.^[18]

On November 9, 1984, after a year out of the ring, Holmes made his first defense of the IBF title, stopping James "Bonecrusher" Smith on a cut in the twelfth round. In the first half of 1985, Holmes stopped David Bey in ten rounds for his 19th title defense. His next against Carl "The Truth" Williams was unexpectedly tough. The younger, quicker Williams was able to out-jab the aging champion, who was left with a badly swollen eye by the end of the bout. Holmes emerged with a close, and disputed, fifteen-round unanimous decision.

On September 21, 1985, Holmes lost the IBF title by a close fifteen-round unanimous decision to Michael Spinks, who became the first reigning World Light Heavyweight Champion to win the World Heavyweight Championship. If Holmes had been victorious against Spinks, he would have tied Rocky Marciano's career record of 49-0.^[19] After the fight, a bitter Holmes said, "Rocky Marciano couldn't carry my jockstrap." Holmes received a lot of criticism for the remarks. Shortly afterward, he apologized.^[20]

Holmes had a rematch with Spinks on April 19, 1986. Spinks retained the title with a disputed fifteen-round split decision. The judges scored the fight: Judge Joe Cortez 144-141 (Holmes), Judge Frank Brunette 141-144 (Spinks) and Judge Jerry Roth 142-144 (Spinks.)^[21] In a post-fight interview with HBO, Holmes said, "the judges, the referees and promoters can kiss me where the sun don't shine - and because we're on HBO, that's my big black behind."^[22]

On November 6, 1986, three days after his 37th birthday, Holmes announced his retirement.^[23]

Comebacks[link]

On January 22, 1988, Holmes was lured out of retirement by a $2.8 million purse to challenge reigning Undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Mike Tyson. Tyson dropped Holmes in the fourth round with an overhand right. Holmes got up, but Tyson put him down two more times in the round, and the fight was stopped. It was the only time Holmes would be knocked out in his lengthy career. After the fight, Holmes once again retired.^[24]

Holmes returned to the ring in 1991. After five straight wins, he fought Ray Mercer, the undefeated 1988 Olympic Gold Medalist, on February 7, 1992. Holmes pulled off the upset and won by a twelve-round unanimous decision.^[25] The win got Holmes a shot at Evander Holyfield for the Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship. On June 19, 1992, Holyfield defeated Holmes by a twelve-round unanimous decision.^[26]

Holmes won seven consecutive fights and then got another title shot. On April 8, 1995, he fought Oliver McCall for the WBC title. Holmes lost by a close twelve-round unanimous decision. Two of the judges had him losing by only one point, while the other judge had him losing by three points.^[27]

On January 24, 1997, Holmes went to Denmark to fight Brian Nielsen, who was 31-0. Nielsen won by a twelve-round split decision to retain the International Boxing Organization title.^[28]

Holmes and George Foreman signed to fight on January 23, 1999 at the Houston Astrodome. Foreman called off the fight several weeks before it was to take place because the promoter failed to meet the deadline for paying him the remaining $9 million of his $10 million purse. Foreman received a nonrefundable $1 million deposit, and Holmes got to keep a $400,000 down payment of his $4 million purse.^[29]

Holmes' next two fights were rematches with old foes. On June 18, 1999, he stopped “Bonecrusher” Smith in eight rounds,^[30] and on November 17, 2000, he stopped Mike Weaver in six.^[31]

Holmes in Beaufort, South Carolina in 2010.

Holmes' final fight was on July 27, 2002 in Norfolk, Virginia. He defeated Eric "Butterbean" Esch by a ten-round unanimous decision.^[32]

Honors[link]

Holmes was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2008.^[33]

Life after Boxing[link]

Holmes invested the money he earned from boxing and settled in his hometown of Easton. When he retired from boxing, Holmes employed more than 200 people through his various business holdings. In 2008, he owned two restaurants and a nightclub, a training facility, an office complex, a snack food bar and slot machines.^[34] Holmes currently co-hosts a talk show "What The Heck Were They Thinking?" ^[35]

Professional boxing record[link]

69 Wins (44 knockouts), 6 Losses, 0 Draws [1]
Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Rounds	Date	Location	Notes
Win	69–6	Eric Esch	UD	10	27/07/2002	Norfolk Scope, Norfolk, Virginia
Win	68–6	Mike Weaver	TKO	6 (10)	17/11/2000	Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, Mississippi
Win	67–6	James Smith	TKO	8 (10)	18/06/1999	Crown Coliseum, Fayetteville, North Carolina
Win	66–6	Maurice Harris	SD	10	29/07/1997	MSG Theater, New York, New York
Loss	65–6	Brian Nielsen	SD	12	24/01/1997	Brondby hallen, Copenhagen, Denmark	For IBO heavyweight title.
Win	65–5	Anthony Willis	KO	8 (10)	16/06/1996	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	64–5	Quinn Navarre	UD	10	16/04/1996	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	63–5	Curtis Sheppard	KO	4 (10)	09/01/1996	Casino Magic , Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	62–5	Ed Donaldson	UD	10	19/09/1995	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Loss	61–5	Oliver McCall	UD	12	08/04/1995	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	For WBC heavyweight title.
Win	61–4	Jesse Ferguson	UD	10	09/08/1994	Mystic Lake Casino, Shakopee, Minnesota
Win	60–4	Garing Lane	UD	10	08/03/1994	Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, Connecticut
Win	59–4	Jose Ribalta	UD	10	28/09/1993	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	58–4	Paul Poirier	TKO	7 (10)	18/05/1993	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	57–4	Ken Lakusta	TKO	8 (10)	13/04/1993	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	56–4	Rocky Pepeli	TKO	4 (10)	09/03/1993	Casino Magic, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
Win	55–4	Everett Martin	UD	10	05/01/1993	Mississippi Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, Mississippi
Loss	54–4	Evander Holyfield	UD	12	19/06/1992	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	For Lineal, WBC, WBA, & IBF heavyweight titles.
Win	54–3	Ray Mercer	UD	12	07/02/1992	Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win	53–3	Jamie Howe	TKO	1 (10)	12/11/1991	Coliseum, Jacksonville, Florida
Win	52–3	Art Card	UD	10	17/09/1991	Marriott World Center, Orlando, Florida
Win	51–3	Michael Greer	KO	4 (10)	24/08/1991	Neal S. Blaisdell Center, Honolulu, Hawaii
Win	50–3	Eddie Gonzales	UD	10	13/08/1991	Hyatt Regency, Tampa, Florida
Win	49–3	Tim Anderson	TKO	4 (10)	07/04/1991	Diplomat Hotel, Hollywood, Florida
Loss	48–3	Mike Tyson	TKO	4 (12)	22/01/1988	Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey	For WBC, WBA, & IBF heavyweight titles.
Loss	48–2	Michael Spinks	SD	15	19/04/1986	Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada	For The Ring & IBF heavyweight titles.
Loss	48–1	Michael Spinks	UD	15	21/09/1985	Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada	Lost The Ring & IBF heavyweight titles. Ring Magazine Upset of the year.
Win	48–0	Carl Williams	UD	15	20/05/1985	Lawlor Events Center, Reno, Nevada	Retained The Ring & IBF heavyweight titles.
Win	47–0	David Bey	TKO	10 (15)	15/03/1985	Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained The Ring & IBF heavyweight titles.
Win	46–0	James Smith	TKO	12 (15)	09/11/1984	Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained The Ring & IBF heavyweight titles.
On 11 December 1983, Holmes relinquished the WBC title and accepted recognition as champion by the newly-created IBF
Win	45–0	Marvis Frazier	TKO	1 (15)	25/11/1983	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained The Ring heavyweight title.
Win	44–0	Scott Frank	TKO	5 (15)	10/09/1983	Harrah's Marina Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	43–0	Tim Witherspoon	SD	12	20/05/1983	Dunes Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	42–0	Lucien Rodriguez	UD	12	27/03/1983	Watres Armory, Scranton, Pennsylvania	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	41–0	Randall Cobb	UD	15	26/11/1982	Reliant Astrodome, Houston, Texas	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	40–0	Gerry Cooney	TKO	13 (15)	11/06/1982	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	39–0	Renaldo Snipes	TKO	11 (15)	06/11/1981	Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	38–0	Leon Spinks	TKO	3 (15)	12/06/1981	Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	37–0	Trevor Berbick	UD	15	11/04/1981	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC & The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	36–0	Muhammad Ali	RTD	10 (15)	02/10/1980	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC & won The Ring heavyweight titles.
Win	35–0	Scott LeDoux	TKO	7 (15)	07/07/1980	Metropolitan Sports Center, Bloomington, Minnesota	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	34–0	Leroy Jones	TKO	8 (15)	31/03/1980	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	33–0	Lorenzo Zanon	KO	6 (15)	03/02/1980	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	32–0	Earnie Shavers	TKO	11 (15)	28/09/1979	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	31–0	Mike Weaver	TKO	12 (15)	22/06/1979	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	30–0	Ossie Ocasio	TKO	7 (15)	23/03/1979	Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	29–0	Alfredo Evangelista	KO	7 (15)	10/11/1978	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win	28–0	Ken Norton	SD	15	09/06/1978	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	Won WBC heavyweight title.
Win	27–0	Earnie Shavers	UD	12	25/03/1978	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada	WBC heavyweight title eliminator.
Win	26–0	Ibar Arrington	TKO	10 (10)	05/11/1977	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	25–0	Fred Houpe	TKO	7 (10)	14/09/1977	Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	24–0	Horace Robinson	TKO	5 (10)	17/03/1977	Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Win	23–0	Tom Prater	UD	8	16/01/1977	Aboard USS Lexington, Pensacola, Florida
Win	22–0	Roy Williams	UD	10	30/04/1976	Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland
Win	21–0	Fred Askew	TKO	2 (10)	05/04/1976	Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland
Win	20–0	Joe Gholston	TKO	8 (10)	29/01/1976	Kirby Sports Center, Easton, Pennsylvania
Win	19–0	Billy Joiner	TKO	3 (10)	20/12/1975	Roberto Clemente Coliseum, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Win	18–0	Leon Shaw	KO	1 (10)	09/12/1975	D.C. Armory, Washington, D.C.
Win	17–0	Rodney Bobick	TKO	6 (10)	01/10/1975	Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Philippines
Win	16–0	Charlie James	PTS	10	26/08/1975	Honolulu, Hawaii
Win	15–0	Obie English	TKO	7 (10)	16/08/1975	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	14–0	Ernie Smith	KO	3 (8)	16/05/1975	Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win	13–0	Robert Yarborough	KO	4 (?)	26/04/1975	Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Ontario
Win	12–0	Oliver Wright	TKO	3 (?)	09/04/1975	Honolulu International Center, Honolulu, Hawaii
Win	11–0	Charley Green	KO	1 (8)	24/03/1975	Richfield Coliseum, Richfield, Ohio
Win	10–0	Joe Hathaway	TKO	1 (8)	11/12/1974	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	9–0	Bob Mashburn	TKO	7 (8)	29/05/1974	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	8–0	Howard Darlington	TKO	4 (6)	24/04/1974	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	7–0	Kevin Isaac	TKO	3 (6)	28/11/1973	Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Win	6–0	Jerry Judge	PTS	6	14/11/1973	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	5–0	Bob Bozic	PTS	6	10/09/1973	Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
Win	4–0	Don Branch	PTS	6	22/08/1973	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	3–0	Curtis Whitner	TKO	1 (4)	20/06/1973	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	2–0	Art Savage	TKO	3 (4)	02/05/1973	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania
Win	1–0	Rodell Dupree	PTS	4	21/03/1973	Catholic Youth Center, Scranton, Pennsylvania

See also[link]

• List of heavyweight boxing champions
• List of WBC world champions

References[link]

External links[link]

	Book: Larry Holmes
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Larry Holmes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Larry Holmes

• Larry Holmes Official Web Site
• Larry Holmes fight-by-fight career record at About.com
• Professional boxing record for Larry Holmes from BoxRec
• Bio - file profile QA with Larry Holmes at Boxinginsider.com

This article's lead section may not adequately summarize its contents. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of the article's key points. (February 2010)

Jenna Elfman
Elfman at the The Heart Truth's Red Dress Collection Fashion Show 2012
Born	Jennifer Mary Butala (1971-09-30) September 30, 1971 (age 40) Los Angeles, California
Occupation	Actress/producer
Years active	1990–present
Spouse	Bodhi Elfman (m. 1995) «start: (1995)»"Marriage: Bodhi Elfman to Jenna Elfman" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Jenna_Elfman) 2 children
Website
http://www.jennaelfman.com/

Jennifer Mary "Jenna" Elfman (born September 30, 1971) is an American television and film actress. She is best known for her roles as Dharma Freedom Finkelstein Montgomery on the 1997-2002 American television sitcom Dharma & Greg and as Anna Riley in the 2000 feature film Keeping the Faith.

Early life[link]

Elfman was born Jennifer Mary Butala in Los Angeles, California, the youngest daughter of three children, to Sue (Grace) Butala, a homemaker, and Richard Wayne Butala, a Hughes Aircraft executive.^[1] Her father's younger brother, Elfman's uncle, is Tony Butala, lead singer since 1958 of the American vocal trio The Lettermen. She is of Croatian ancestry on her father's side^[2] and was raised Roman Catholic.^[3]

Taking ballet class since the age of five, Elfman became a classically trained ballet dancer and attended high school at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA). She then attended college at California State University, Northridge (CSUN)^[4]

Career[link]

Elfman began her professional career as a dancer, appearing in the music video for "Halo", a song by Depeche Mode from the 1990 album Violator, a video that was exclusively included on the band's 1990 music video compilation Strange Too. She also danced in the video for Chris Isaak's 1995 single "Somebody's Crying" and toured with the rock band ZZ Top on their 1994 World Tour as a "Legs Girl".

After appearing in numerous national television commercials, most notably as the girl in the Honda ad who said "Regular or Decaf?", Elfman landed her first principle cast acting role on the short-lived 1996 American sitcom entitled Townies on ABC. Although the show didn't catch on with viewers, it did impress critics, particularly the performances of Elfman and co-star Lauren Graham. Soon after, 20th Century Fox began talking to Elfman about developing her own sitcom.^[5] Elfman thus started her five-year run as Dharma Freedom Finkelstein Montgomery in the American comedy series Dharma & Greg on ABC.

Elfman guest starred in two episodes of Two and a Half Men in 2004 and one episode of Brothers and Sisters in 2007. She made a guest appearance in the sixth episode of season four of My Name Is Earl as a cheer team leader.^[6]

Elfman starred in the CBS comedy Courting Alex in 2006^[7], then starred in Accidentally on Purpose for CBS three years later during the 2009-10 television season.^[8] The show was canceled after a single (2009–2010) season.

She appeared in a supporting role in a feature film, Friends with Benefits,^[9] starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis, released in 2011. Also in 2011, she returned to do a cameo appearance on the Two and a Half Men Season 9 premiere episode reprising her "Dharma" character together with former co-star Thomas Gibson ("Greg").

Elfman acted in the season finale of Shameless on April 1, 2012.^[10]

She will be appearing in a recurring role in Season 5 of Damages.^[11]

It was announced in May 2012 that Elfman will be playing a fictional version of the First Lady of the United States in 1600 Penn, a comedy series expected to premiere on NBC during the 2012-13 television season.^[12]

Philanthropy[link]

In February 2006, Elfman donated an hour of her time to be auctioned to the highest bidder on eBay as part of the "Lunch With A Leader" fundraiser, the proceeds of which benefit the work of Communities In Schools.^[13] She participated in the auction in both 2007^[14] and 2008^[15] as well.

Elfman donated her lip print for a limited edition U.S. postage stamp created by Zazzle to celebrate Valentine's Day in both 2007^[16] and 2008.^[17] Proceeds for the "Kiss Stamps" went to support the programs of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). In February 2011, she filmed a PSA for The Humane Society of the United States to inspire people to donate to help animals.^[18]

As a criminal rehabilitation activist, Elfman has traveled to Washington, D.C., to lobby for criminal reform. On April 5, 2007, she was presented with the Goodwill Ambassador Award for her work in human rights and criminal rehabilitation at the Women Ambassadors Foundation 12th Annual Conference.^[19] On April 9, 2008, she was a guest ^[20] at the signing of a new bill by U.S. President George W. Bush that aimed to reduce prisoner recidivism, entitled the Second Chance Act of 2007 (H.R. 1593).^[21]

In September 2008, Elfman joined the charity: water month-long "September Campaign," asking for donations in lieu of birthday gifts in order to raise money to build freshwater wells in Ethiopia.^[22] She ran a second charity: water birthday campaign in September of 2011 to aid in funding a drilling rig for wells in Northern Ethiopia.^[23]

On January 22, 2010, Elfman donated her time to participate in the Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief telethon in Los Angeles, California.^[24]

On March 2, 2011, she participated in the National Education Association (NEA) Read Across America program by reading to school children in Compton, California in honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday.^[25]

Elfman walked the catwalk in The Heart Truth Red Dress Collection 2012 Fashion Show in New York on February 8, 2012 to raise awareness for heart disease. The annual event is headed by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.^[26]

On March 6, 2012, Elfman hosted Laugh For Sight’s ^[27] comedy show at The Improv in Los Angeles to benefit the Scheie Eye Institute at the University of Pennsylvania.^[28]

On April 14, 2012, Elfman hosted an environmentally friendly themed charity event at her home in Los Angeles, California for the purpose of the party's attendees to learn more about the Healthy Child Healthy World "Healthy Child Party" program and Best for Babes, a breastfeeding advocacy organization. ^[29]

Personal life[link]

Elfman met her husband, actor Bodhi Elfman, at a Sprite commercial audition in February 1991. They married on February 18, 1995, making director Richard Elfman her father-in-law and noted composer Danny Elfman her uncle-in-law.

On July 23, 2007, Elfman and her husband's first child, a son, Story Elias, was born in Los Angeles.^[30] On September 16, 2009, when Elfman announced she was expecting her second child, she suggested that the pregnancy would help with her role in Accidentally on Purpose.^[31] On March 2, 2010, their son Easton Quinn Monroe was born.^[32]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jenna Elfman

• Jenna Elfman's official site
• Jenna Elfman at the Internet Movie Database

Mike Tyson
Tyson at SXSW 2011
Statistics
Real name	Michael Gerard Tyson
Nickname(s)	Kid Dynamite[1] Iron Mike The Baddest Man on the Planet
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Reach	71 in (180 cm)
Born	(1966-06-30) June 30, 1966 (age 45) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	58
Wins	50
Wins by KO	44
Losses	6
Draws	0
No contests	2

Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is a retired American professional boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF heavyweight titles at 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old. Tyson won his first 19 professional bouts by knockout, with 12 of them occurring in the first round. He won the WBC title in 1986 after defeating Trevor Berbick by a TKO in the second round. In 1987, Tyson added the WBA and IBF titles after defeating James Smith and Tony Tucker. He was the first heavyweight boxer to simultaneously hold the WBA, WBC and IBF titles, and the only heavyweight to individually unify them.

In 1988, Tyson became the lineal champion when he knocked out Michael Spinks in the first 91 seconds of the fight. Tyson successfully defended the world heavyweight championship nine times, including victories over Larry Holmes and Frank Bruno. Tyson lost his titles to 42-to-1 underdog James "Buster" Douglas on February 11, 1990, in Tokyo, Japan, by a knockout in round 10. Tyson continued in his quest to regain the titles, defeating Donovan Ruddock twice in 1991. Tyson was then scheduled to take on the undisputed heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield but pulled out due to injury.

In 1992, Tyson was convicted of raping Desiree Washington, for which he was sentenced to six years in prison but was released after serving three years. After his release, he engaged in a series of comeback fights. In 1996, Tyson won the WBC and WBA titles after defeating Frank Bruno and Bruce Seldon by knockout. After being stripped of the WBC title, Tyson lost his WBA crown to Evander Holyfield in November 1996 by an 11th round TKO. Their 1997 rematch ended when Tyson was disqualified for biting off part of Holyfield's ear.

In 2002, he fought for the world heavyweight title at the age of 35, losing by knockout to Lennox Lewis. Tyson retired from professional boxing in 2006 after he was knocked out in consecutive matches against Danny Williams and Kevin McBride. Tyson declared bankruptcy in 2003, despite having received over US$30 million for several of his fights and $300 million during his career.

Throughout his career, Tyson became well known for his ferocious and intimidating boxing style as well as his controversial behavior both inside and outside the ring. Tyson is considered to have been one of the best heavyweight boxers of all time.^[2] He was ranked No. 16 on The Ring's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.^[3] and No. 1 in the ESPN.com list of "The hardest hitters in heavyweight history".^[4] He has been inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.

Early years[link]

Tyson was born in Brooklyn, New York City. He has a brother, Rodney, who is five years older than he. His sister, Denise, died of a heart attack at age 25 in 1991.^[5] Tyson's father, Jimmy Kirkpatrick, abandoned his family when Tyson was 2, leaving his mother, Lorna Smith Tyson, to care for them on her own.^[6] The family lived in Bedford-Stuyvesant until their financial burdens necessitated a move to Brownsville when Tyson was 10 years old.^[7] Tyson's mother died six years later, leaving 16-year-old Tyson in the care of boxing manager and trainer Cus D'Amato, who would become his legal guardian. Tyson has been quoted saying, "I never saw my mother happy with me and proud of me for doing something: She only knew me as being a wild kid running the streets, coming home with new clothes that she knew I didn't pay for. I never got a chance to talk to her or know about her. Professionally, it has no effect, but it's crushing emotionally and personally."^[8]

Throughout his childhood, Tyson lived in and around high-crime neighborhoods. According to an interview in Details his first fight was with a bigger youth who had pulled the head off one of Tyson's pigeons.^[9] He was repeatedly caught committing petty crimes and fighting those who ridiculed his high-pitched voice and lisp. By the age of 13, he had been arrested 38 times.^[10] He ended up at the Tryon School for Boys in Johnstown, New York. It was at the school that Tyson's emerging boxing ability was discovered by Bobby Stewart, a juvenile detention center counselor and former boxer.^[6] Stewart considered Tyson to be an outstanding fighter and trained him for a few months before introducing him to Cus D'Amato.^[6]

Tyson was later removed from the reform school by Cus D'Amato.^[11] Kevin Rooney also trained Tyson, and he was occasionally assisted by Teddy Atlas, although he was dismissed by D'Amato when Tyson was 15. Rooney eventually took over all training duties for the young fighter.

Tyson's brother is a physician assistant in the trauma center of the Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center.^[12] He has always been very supportive of his brother's career and was often seen at Tyson's boxing matches in Las Vegas, Nevada. When asked about their relationship, Mike has been quoted saying, "My brother and I see each other occasionally and we love each other," and "My brother was always something and I was nothing."^[13]

Education[link]

Although Mike Tyson dropped out of high school as a junior and never graduated, in 1989, along with Don King, he was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Central State University, in Wilberforce, Ohio by university President Arthur E. Thomas.^[14][15]

Career[link]

Amateur career[link]

Tyson competed at the 1981 and 1982 Junior Olympic Games, and won the gold medal twice: in 1981 against Joe Cortez and in 1982 against Kelton Brown, whose corner threw in the towel within the first round. He holds the Junior Olympic quickest knockout record with 8 seconds. In addition he won every bout at the Junior Olympic Games by knockout.

He fought Henry Tillman twice as an amateur losing both bouts by close decision. Tillman went on to win heavyweight Gold at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

Rise to stardom[link]

Tyson made his professional debut as an 18-year-old on March 6, 1985, in Albany, New York. He defeated Hector Mercedes via a first round knockout.^[6] He had 15 bouts in his first year as a professional. Fighting frequently, Tyson won 26 of his first 28 fights by KO/TKO – 16 in the first round.^[16] The quality of his opponents gradually increased to journeyman fighters and borderline contenders,^[16] like James Tillis, David Jaco, Jesse Ferguson, Mitch Green and Marvis Frazier. His win streak attracted media attention, leading to his being billed as the next great heavyweight champion. D'Amato died in November 1985, relatively early into Tyson's professional career; some speculate that his death was the genesis of many of the troubles Tyson was to experience later as his life and career progressed.^[17]

Tyson's first nationally televised bout took place on February 16, 1986, at Houston Field House in Troy, New York against journeyman heavyweight Jesse Ferguson. Tyson knocked down Ferguson with an uppercut in the fifth round that broke Ferguson's nose.^[18] During the sixth round, Ferguson began to hold and clinch Tyson in an apparent attempt to avoid further punishment. After admonishing Ferguson several times to obey his commands to box, the referee finally stopped the fight near the middle of the sixth round. Initially ruled a win for Tyson by disqualification (DQ) of his opponent, the ruling was subsequently "adjusted" as a win by technical knockout (TKO) after Tyson's corner protested that a DQ win would end Tyson's string of knockout victories, and that a knockout would have been the inevitable result. The rationale offered for the revised outcome was that the fight was actually stopped because Ferguson could not (rather than would not) continue boxing.

On November 22, 1986, Tyson was given his first title fight against Trevor Berbick for the World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight championship. Tyson won the title by second round TKO, and at the age of 20 years and 4 months became the youngest heavyweight champion in history.^[19] Tyson's dominant performance brought many accolades. Donald Saunders wrote: "The noble and manly art of boxing can at least cease worrying about its immediate future, now [that] it has discovered a heavyweight champion fit to stand alongside Dempsey, Tunney, Louis, Marciano and Ali."^[20]

Because of Tyson's strength, many fighters were intimidated by him.^[21] This was backed up by his outstanding hand speed, accuracy, coordination, power, and timing. Tyson was also noted for his defensive abilities.^[22] Holding his hands high in the Peek-a-Boo style taught by his mentor Cus D'Amato, he slipped and weaved out of the way of the opponent's punches while closing the distance to deliver his own punches.^[22] One of Tyson's trademark combinations was to throw a right hook to his opponent's body, then follow it up with a right uppercut to his opponent's chin; very few boxers would remain standing if caught by this combination. Boxers knocked down with this combination include Jesse Ferguson and Jose Ribalta.

Undisputed champion[link]

See also: Mike Tyson vs. Michael Spinks

Expectations for Tyson were extremely high, and he embarked on an ambitious campaign to fight all the top heavyweights in the world. Tyson defended his title against James Smith on March 7, 1987, in Las Vegas, Nevada. He won by unanimous decision and added Smith's World Boxing Association (WBA) title to his existing belt.^[23] 'Tyson mania' in the media was becoming rampant.^[24] He beat Pinklon Thomas in May with a knockout in the sixth round.^[25] On August 1 he took the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title from Tony Tucker in a twelve round unanimous decision.^[26] He became the first heavyweight to own all three major belts – WBA, WBC, and IBF – at the same time. Another fight, in October of that year, ended with a victory for Tyson over 1984 Olympics Super Heavyweight gold medalist Tyrell Biggs by knockout in the seventh round.^[27]

During this time, Tyson came to the attention of gaming company Nintendo: after witnessing one of Tyson's fights, Nintendo of America president Minoru Arakawa was impressed by the fighter's "power and skill", prompting him to suggest Tyson be included in the upcoming Nintendo Entertainment System port of the Punch Out!! arcade game. The idea was implemented, and in 1987 Nintendo released Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, which was well received and sold more than a million copies.^[28]

Tyson had three fights in 1988. He faced Larry Holmes on January 22, 1988, and defeated the legendary former champion by a fourth round KO.^[29] This was the only knockout loss Holmes suffered in 75 professional bouts. In March, Tyson then fought contender Tony Tubbs in Tokyo, Japan, fitting in an easy two-round victory amid promotional and marketing work.^[30]

On June 27, 1988, Tyson faced Michael Spinks. Spinks, who had taken the heavyweight championship from Larry Holmes via a 15-round decision in 1985, had not lost his title in the ring but was not recognized as champion by the major boxing organizations. Holmes had previously given up all but the IBF title, and that was eventually stripped from Spinks after he elected to fight Gerry Cooney (winning by a 5th-round TKO) rather than IBF Number 1 Contender Tony Tucker, as the Cooney fight provided him a larger purse. However, Spinks did become the lineal champion by beating Holmes and many (including Ring magazine) considered him to have a legitimate claim to being the true heavyweight champion. The bout was, at the time, the richest fight in history and expectations were very high. Boxing pundits were predicting a titanic battle of styles, with Tyson's aggressive infighting conflicting with Spinks' skillful outfighting and footwork. The fight ended after 91 seconds when Tyson knocked Spinks out in the first round; many consider this to be the pinnacle of Tyson's fame and boxing ability.^[31][32] Spinks, previously unbeaten, would never fight professionally again.

Controversy and upset[link]

During this period, Tyson's problems outside boxing were also starting to emerge. His marriage to Robin Givens was heading for divorce,^[33] and his future contract was being fought over by Don King and Bill Cayton.^[34] In late 1988, Tyson parted with manager Bill Cayton and fired longtime trainer Kevin Rooney, the man many credit for honing Tyson's craft after the death of D'Amato.^[22] Without Rooney, Tyson's personal discipline declined.^[35] In 1989, Tyson had only two fights amid personal turmoil. He faced the popular British boxer Frank Bruno in February in a fight where Bruno managed to stun Tyson at the end of the 1st round,^[36] although Tyson went on to knock out Bruno in the fifth round. Tyson then knocked out Carl "The Truth" Williams in one round in July.^[37]

By 1990, Tyson seemed to have lost direction, and his personal life and training habits were in disarray. He also began to stop throwing to the body behind the jab, using less head movement and few combinations.^[38] This has been attributed to the number of fights Tyson had by 25 years of age. With a 41-1 record Tyson had more pro bouts by his 25th birthday than George Foreman (38), Jack Johnson and Floyd Patterson (each 37), Joe Louis (36), Muhammad Ali (27), Joe Frazier (22), Holyfield (16), Larry Holmes (nine) and Rocky Marciano (six).^[39] In a fight on February 11, 1990, he lost the undisputed championship to Buster Douglas in Tokyo.^[40] Tyson was a huge betting favorite, but Douglas (priced at 42/1) was at an emotional peak after losing his mother to a stroke 23 days prior to the fight, and fought the fight of his life.^[40] Tyson failed to find a way past Douglas's quick jab that had a 12-inch (30 cm) reach advantage over his own. Tyson did send Douglas to the floor in the eighth round, catching him with an uppercut, but Douglas recovered sufficiently to hand Tyson a heavy beating in the subsequent two rounds (after the fight, the Tyson camp would complain that the count was slow and that Douglas had taken longer than ten seconds to get to his feet).^[41] Just 35 seconds into the 10th round, Douglas unleashed a brutal combination of hooks that sent Tyson to the canvas for the first time in his career. He was counted out by referee Octavio Meyran.^[40] Though Tyson is alleged to have been out of shape for this fight, he weighed in at 220 and 1/2 pounds, only 2 pounds more than he had weighed when he beat Michael Spinks 20 months earlier. Mentally, however, he was not prepared for the inspired Douglas.^[42]

The knockout victory by Douglas over Tyson, the previously undefeated "baddest man on the planet" and arguably the most feared boxer in professional boxing at that time, has been described as one of the most shocking upsets in modern sports history.^[43]

After Douglas[link]

After the loss, Tyson recovered by knocking out Henry Tillman^[44] and Alex Stewart^[45] in the first round in his next two fights. Tyson's victory over the 1984 Olympics Boxing Heavyweight gold medalist (and 1983 Boxing Heavyweight silver medalist of the Pan American Games) Tillman enabled Tyson to avenge his early career amateur losses at Tillman's hands. These bouts set up an elimination match for another shot at the undisputed world heavyweight championship, which Evander Holyfield had taken from Douglas in his first defense of the title.

Tyson, who was the No.1 contender, faced No.2 contender Donovan "Razor" Ruddock on March 18, 1991, in Las Vegas. Ruddock at the time was seen as the most dangerous heavyweight around and was thought of as one of the hardest punching heavyweights. Tyson and Ruddock went back and forth for most of the fight, until referee Richard Steele controversially stopped the fight during the seventh round in favor of Tyson. This decision infuriated the fans in attendance, sparking a post-fight melee in the audience and the referee had to be escorted from the ring.^[46]

Tyson and Ruddock met again on June 28 that year, with Tyson knocking down Ruddock twice and winning a 12 round unanimous decision.^[47] A fight between Tyson and Holyfield for the undisputed championship was arranged for the autumn of 1991.

The match between Tyson and reigning champion Holyfield did not occur, with Tyson pulling out of the scheduled November 8, 1991 title fight at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, with a rib cartilage injury sustained during training.

Rape conviction, prison, and conversion[link]

Tyson was arrested in July 1991 for the rape of 18-year-old Desiree Washington, Miss Black Rhode Island, in an Indianapolis hotel room. Tyson's rape trial took place in the Indianapolis courthouse from January 26 to February 10, 1992. As part of its case, the prosecution documented Tyson's history of problems with attractive young women. Tyson's defense contended that Tyson was the victim and that Washington was a cold and calculated vixen out to hurt Tyson for publicity.^{[citation needed]}

Desiree Washington testified that she received a phone call from Tyson at 1:36 am on July 19, 1991 inviting her to a party. Having joined Tyson in his limousine, Washington testified that Tyson made sexual advances towards her. She testified that upon arriving at his hotel room, Tyson pinned her down on his bed and raped her despite her pleas to stop. She afterwards ran out of the room and asked Tyson's chauffeur to drive her back to her hotel.^{[citation needed]}

Partial corroboration of Washington's story came via testimony from Tyson's chauffeur, Virginia Foster, who confirmed Desiree Washington's state of shock. Further testimony came from Thomas Richardson, the emergency room physician who examined Washington more than 24 hours after the incident and confirmed that Washington's physical condition was consistent with rape.^[48]

Taking the witness stand, under Tyson's lead defense lawyer Vincent Fuller's direct examination, Tyson claimed that everything had taken place with Washington's full cooperation and he claimed not to have forced himself upon her. When he was cross-examined by the lead prosecutor, Gregory Garrison, Tyson denied claims that he had misled Washington and insisted that she wanted to have sex with him. Because of Tyson's hostile and defensive responses to the questions during cross-examination, some have speculated that his behavior made him unlikable to the jury who saw him as brutish and arrogant.^[49]

Tyson was convicted on the rape charge on February 10, 1992 after the jury deliberated for nearly 10 hours.^[50]

Alan Dershowitz filed an appeal on Tyson's behalf alleging that the victim had a history of at least one false accusation of rape^[51] and that the judge had blocked testimony from witnesses who would have contradicted Washington. The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled against Tyson in a 2–1 vote.^[52]

On March 26, he was sentenced to six years in prison followed by four years on probation.^[53] He was assigned to the Indiana Youth Center (now the Plainfield Correctional Facility) in April 1992,^[54] and he was released in March 1995 after serving three years.^[55] During his incarceration, Tyson converted to Islam.^[56] On July 2, 2010 he visited Mecca to perform the Umrah (Minor Islamic pilgrimage).^[57]

Comeback[link]

Tyson did not fight again until later in 1995 after he was paroled from prison. He had two comeback bouts against Peter McNeeley and Buster Mathis Jr., which he won easily. Interest in Tyson's first comeback fight since his incarceration was high enough that it grossed more than US$96 million worldwide, including a United States record $63 million for PPV television. The fight was purchased by 1.52 million homes, setting both PPV viewership and revenue records for that time.^[58] The brief, 89-second fight wherein McNeeley swiftly crumpled on facing Tyson, elicited criticism that Tyson's management lined up "Tomato Cans", easily defeatable and unworthy boxers for his return.^[59] TV Guide included the Tyson-McNeeley fight in their list of the 50 Greatest TV Sports Moments of All Time in 1998.^[60]

He regained one belt by easily winning the WBC title from Frank Bruno (their second fight) in March 1996 by knocking him out in the third round.^[61] Tyson added the WBA belt by defeating champion Bruce Seldon in one round in September that year. Seldon was severely criticized and mocked in the popular press for seemingly collapsing to innocuous punches from Tyson in the fight.^[62]

Tyson–Holyfield fights[link]

[edit] Tyson vs. Holyfield I

Tyson attempted to defend the WBA title against Evander Holyfield. Holyfield was in the fourth fight of his own comeback after retiring in 1994 following the loss of his championship to Michael Moorer (who subsequently lost to George Foreman by knockout during his first defense). It was said that Don King and others saw Holyfield, the former champion, who was 34 at the time of the fight and a huge underdog, as a washed-up fighter.^[63]

On November 9, 1996, in Las Vegas, Nevada, Tyson faced Holyfield in a title bout dubbed 'Finally.' In a surprising turn of events, Holyfield, who was given virtually no chance to win by numerous commentators,^[64] defeated Tyson by TKO when referee Mitch Halpern stopped the bout in round 11.^[65] Holyfield made history with the upset win by being the second person ever to win a heavyweight championship belt three times, after Muhammad Ali. However Holyfield's victory was marred by allegations from Tyson's camp of Holyfield's frequent headbutts^[66] during the bout. Although the headbutts were ruled accidental by the referee,^[66] they would become a point of contention in the subsequent rematch.^[67]

[edit] Tyson vs. Holyfield II and aftermath

Tyson and Holyfield fought again on June 28, 1997. Originally, Halpern was supposed to be the referee, but after Tyson's camp protested, Halpern stepped aside in favor of Mills Lane.^[68] The highly anticipated rematch was dubbed The Sound and the Fury, and was held at the Las Vegas MGM Grand Garden Arena, site of the first bout. It was a lucrative event, drawing even more attention than the first bout and grossing $100 million. Tyson received $30 million and Holyfield $35 million—the highest paid professional boxing purses ever until 2007.^[69][70] The fight was purchased by 1.99 million households, setting a pay-per-view buy rate record that stood until the May 5, 2007, De La Hoya-Mayweather boxing match.^[70][71]

Soon to become one of the most controversial events in modern sports,^[72] the fight was stopped at the end of the third round, with Tyson disqualified^[73] for biting Holyfield on both ears. The first time he bit him the match was temporarily stopped. Referee Mills Lane deducted two points from Tyson and the fight resumed. However, after the match resumed, Tyson did it again: this time Tyson was disqualified and Holyfield won the match. One bite was severe enough to remove a piece of Holyfield's right ear, which was found on the ring floor after the fight.^[74] Tyson later stated that his actions were retaliation for Holyfield repeatedly headbutting him without penalty.^[67] In the confusion that followed the ending of the bout and announcement of the decision, a near riot erupted in the arena and several people were injured in the ensuing melee.^[75]

Tyson's former trainer, Teddy Atlas, had predicted that Tyson would be disqualified. "He planned this," Atlas said. "That's the only reason he went through with this fight. This was a charade so he could get out and live with himself as long as in his world he would be known as savage and brutal. In his world, he was the man who attacked like an animal and people would say he was trying to annihilate Holyfield, trying to kill him, when nothing could be further from the truth."^[76]