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 championJake LaMotta.[1]
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]
Billy Fox, known as "Blackjack", started off his career by winning 36 consecutive fights and holds the best knockout ratio in boxing history going 36 wins with 36 knockouts 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 deathedit
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]
^ abRogin, Gilbert (11 July 1960). "Billy Fox: "Just Riding Into Evening"". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
^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.
^ ab"William Mckinley Fox". U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
^ ab"Fox". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 10 October 1984. p. 1. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
^"Mrs. Beulah Fox". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 7 January 1933. p. 4. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
^ ab"Fox". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 23 January 1986. p. 18. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
^"Gus Lesnevich vs. Billy Fox (1st meeting) - BoxRec".
^"Billy Fox". The Detroit Tribune. 4 October 1947. p. 12. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
^"Jackie Robinson Deserves Honor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 24 September 1947. p. 16. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
External linksedit
Boxing record for Billy Fox from BoxRec(registration required)
January 01, 1970
billy, boxer, other, people, named, billy, billy, disambiguation, william, mckinley, february, 1926, january, 1986, better, known, blackjack, billy, american, light, heavyweight, boxer, best, known, having, controversial, fight, against, future, middleweight, . For other people named Billy Fox see Billy Fox disambiguation 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 Billy FoxBornWilliam McKinley Fox 1926 02 01 February 1 1926Tatums Oklahoma U S DiedJanuary 1986 1986 01 00 aged 59 New York City New York U S NationalityAmericanStatisticsWeight s Light HeavyweightStanceOrthodoxBoxing recordTotal fights59Wins49Wins by KO48Losses9Draws1 Contents 1 Early life 2 Boxing career 3 Personal life and death 4 Popular culture 5 References 6 External linksEarly life editWilliam 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 editBilly Fox known as Blackjack started off his career by winning 36 consecutive fights and holds the best knockout ratio in boxing history going 36 wins with 36 knockouts 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 editFox 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 Popular culture editBilly Fox was portrayed in Martin Scorsese s Raging Bull by Eddie Mustafa Muhammad References edit a b Rogin Gilbert 11 July 1960 Billy Fox Just Riding Into Evening Sports Illustrated Retrieved 5 November 2022 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 a b William Mckinley Fox U S World War II Draft Cards Young Men 1940 1947 Retrieved 5 November 2022 a b Fox Richmond Times Dispatch 10 October 1984 p 1 Retrieved 5 November 2022 Mrs Beulah Fox Richmond Times Dispatch 7 January 1933 p 4 Retrieved 5 November 2022 a b Fox Richmond Times Dispatch 23 January 1986 p 18 Retrieved 5 November 2022 Gus Lesnevich vs Billy Fox 1st meeting BoxRec Jeff Merton ESPN com Page 2 Reel Life Raging Bull Accessed 7 January 2008 BLINKY PALERMO MOBSTER WHO RAN BOXING DIES Ring Talk Archived from the original on 25 February 2012 Retrieved 9 September 2011 Fight 46680 BoxRec Most Consecutive Knockouts in the History of Boxing 4 August 2022 William Mckinley Fox Pennsylvania U S Marriages 1852 1968 Retrieved 5 November 2022 Billy Fox The Detroit Tribune 4 October 1947 p 12 Retrieved 5 November 2022 Jackie Robinson Deserves Honor Pittsburgh Post Gazette 24 September 1947 p 16 Retrieved 5 November 2022 External links editBoxing record for Billy Fox from BoxRec registration required Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Billy Fox boxer amp oldid 1212306551, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
