The Boxing Promoter Who Killed Two People
Don King had a reputation of stealing from his boxers
“I had just sold the rights to this book to HBO, and King had read about the transaction. He looked at me from the adjacent urinal, and broke a tense silence. ‘I read in the newspapers,’ King roared, ‘that I’m now feeding your whole motherfucking family.’” — Jack Newfield, author of The Life and Crimes of Don King: The Shame of Boxing in America.
Don King has a mixed reputation within the boxing community. He has been inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame, helping many Black boxers rise to fame. However, King is also famously associated with ripping them off. He promoted events like “The Rumble in the Jungle” and the “Thrilla in Manila.” Some of the boxers King promoted included not only Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali, but King also promoted Joe Grazier, George Foreman, and others.
Many of these boxers sued King for defrauding them. Mike Tyson later called King “ruthless” and “deplorable.” Tyson, in particular, filed a $100 million lawsuit against King — which eventually settled with Tyson receiving $14 million from King.
And King was a man who took justice into his own hands, never being afraid to take what he wanted, when he wanted. King was born on August 20, 1931, in Cleveland, Ohio. he attended John Adams…
