Former Heavyweight Champion Charles L. "Sonny" Liston, whose record was an incredible 50, 4, with 39 by way of knockout, was nicknamed 'The Big Bear.' He stood 6 feet 1, and had an 84 inch reach and was one of the hardest punchers in the history of combat sports.
Supposedly, Liston was born in 1932 at a location known as Sand Slough, Arkansas—although many experts claim that Liston himself didn't truly know exactly when he was born nor how old he actually was.
Liston learned his trade, the great sport of boxing, while serving five years in Missouri State Penitentiary—one of the toughest of America’s prisons. The young Liston then went on to become one of the greatest of all time chalking-up two huge knockout wins (video below) over the dominant heavyweight champion at that time, Floyd Patterson.
Ironically, if Liston's birth was a mystery, then his death was even more-so. 'The Bear' died as he had lived, under an umbrella of controversy and suspicion.
Liston's very next fight was supposed to be against Toronto Ontario, Canada's brutal slugger, George Chuvalo. Unfortunately however, the potentially classic match never happened.
On December 30, 1970, in Las Vegas, Liston's wife Geraldine arrived home early from a shopping trip, and entered the master bedroom after smelling something rotting.
The woman was shocked to find her Husband, Liston, slumped over against the bed, a broken foot stool at his side, dead.
A subsequent autopsy, along with the findings of the Las Vegas police, first concluded that Liston had overdosed—due to traces of morphine and codeine found in his body post-mortem.
In the end, however, the results were deemed inconclusive, and Liston's death was officially listed as due to cardiac arrest.
Now, 32 years later, the talk of mafia connections, police-cover-ups, and scandals are still going on.
Liston however, is bothered by none of it.
He lies peacefully in Vegas.
Paradise Memorial Gardens cemetery is Liston's final resting place—under a headstone that says, simply, "A Man."
Liston's favorite song was 'Night Train.' I will dedicate to him now.
'RIP' Sonny.
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