Charley Burley, The Life & Hard Times of an Uncrowned Champion [Paperback]

Allen Rosenfeld (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 21, 2003

Before I checked out the Charley Burley book, I visualized it to be another life story of a great fighter whose name I became familiar with during the days when I was getting my feet wet in boxing.As I examined the book there was an explosion of names like Billy Conn, Fritzie Zivic, Georgie Abrams, Ezzard Charles, Jimmy Bivins, Cocoa Kid, Holman Williams, Sugar Ray Robinson, and many others who brought back memories of my earliest days around boxing.In addition to thorough coverage of Burley's career, author Allen Rosenfeld gives you a panoramic view of the exciting middleweight picture of the late thirties and forties, which was loaded with nostalgia.I have read lots of boxing books in my time, but this one was hard to put down. Charley Burley's name was ever-present among the leaders of the golden age of middleweights.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Allen Rosenfeld earned a Master's Degree in History from Wayne State University in Detroit. He then completed the necessary hours for a Ph D at that university, lacking only a dissertation.For the most part he supported his wife and children as a member of the family businessresidential construction. But, during slow periods, he worked as a journalistas a reporter or editorwinning several awards including that of the Michigan Press Association, and as part of a team that won a Neiman for excellence in the field of labor press.In the 1940s and 1950s, he competed, undistinguishedly, as an amateur boxer. And during this period he worked as an assistant to the very distinguished trainer and cornerman Theodore McWhorter, who handled among others George Chuvalo.In the 1950s, Mr. Rosenfeld covered Michigan boxing for the magazine Boxing and Wrestling Illustrated. And during the Thomas Hearns era Rosenfeld was Michigan correspondent for The Ring. His biography of Charley Burley is the product of about five years of work. But in a larger sense it is the product of a youth misspent in gyms and arenas.

Product Details

• Paperback: 680 pages
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (October 21, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1410719855
• ISBN-13: 978-1410719850
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,275,844 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Allen Rosenfeld gives Charley Burley his crown, November 15, 2003

By 

Asil "norandeus" (Oceanside, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Charley Burley, The Life & Hard Times of an Uncrowned Champion (Paperback)

The crown that this tough, hard as nails fighter never garnered in the ring he can now wear symbolically through the efforts of the author who obviously spent years doing his homework and research. It is a must for any boxing buff's library. Rich in information and boxing lore.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Allen S. Rosenfeld shoulda been Charley Burley's manager, September 29, 2005

By 

Brian Schiff "jaywilton" (Detroit Mi. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Charley Burley, The Life & Hard Times of an Uncrowned Champion (Paperback)

Allen S. Rosenfeld's exhaustive 658-page Burley biography is like finding a rare diamond in a flea market;its length is justifiable to boxing fans fascinated by minute details of this Hall of Famer who never got a title shot.Burley,who fought from 1936-1951 retired with a record of 83-12-2 and Rosenfeld documents each of these fights,icluding an incredible seven-fight series with Holman Williams.Burley and Williams went 3-3-and their other fight ended when the two boxing geniuses were tossed out of the ring for a no-contest by a ref who just didn't appreciate greatness.But the late great Archie Moore did;he considered Eddie Booker(discussed in this book)and Burley,who dropped him four times in their 1944 fight to be the toughest guys he ever fought,including Rocky Marciano.In his preface,Rosenfeld cites the late Nat Fleischer,publisher of Ring and his 'Black Dynamite' series published in 1939 about black boxers from 1782-1938.Rosenfeld's Burley biography is a great addition to 'Black Dynamite'.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Quiet Man, February 12, 2010

By 

Tom Barnes "Actor, Writer and Hurricane Hunter" (CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Charley Burley, The Life & Hard Times of an Uncrowned Champion (Hardcover)

Tungee's Gold: The Legend of Ebo Landing

Charley Burley's boxing career spanned the better part of two decades of turmoil and history.
Bread lines were still a part of the American experience in 1936 when his fight career took off. The end came about the time the Korean War was was getting under way and the final days of the depression and World War II fell in between.
Ring writers of the era liked to say Pittsburgh produced two products - steel and middleweights.
Charley Burley came from the small town of Bessemer, Pennsylvania and even in his early armature days in Pittsburgh the young welterweight was getting the attention of boxing aficionados and making a name for himself.
Allen Rosenfeld's book 'Charley Burley - The life and hard times of an Uncrowned Champion' sticks mainly with life in the ring.
Burley came close to making the 1936 Olympics boxing team but didn't, he did however, travel to Spain with a classy bunch of amateurs. They arrived in Barcelona just in time for the Spanish Revolution, but were quickly transported to Paris and eventually back home.
A couple of his professional fights in the fall of 1936 Burley faced off with Ralph Gizzy and according to one report he buffeted Gizzy about like a cork. And in the second fight against his old rival Eddie Wirko who was making his pro debut Burley attacked Wirko's body for four rounds and Wirko failed to come out in the fifth.
These two fights were typical of Charlie Burley's early career as he fought his way across the country and back again giving the fans more than their money's worth.
Rosenfeld tells the story as a narrator supported by local sports writers at every boxing venue.
Burley was a quiet man in every way except when he put on the gloves and stepped into the ring. By 1945 Burley had 70 fights with 35 knock outs. And he kept up a good pace until his retirement.
Charley Burley represented the best in his weight class - that group of outstanding boxers that never won a title.
Those were the boxers that were the under card on boxing night, but they provided fight fans a great evening of entertainment. Some of the prominent names in the fighting arena during that period were Henry Armstrong, Barney Ross, Ezzard Charles, Ray Robinson, Billy Conn, Tony Zale, Jake LaMotta, Archie Moore, Rocky Graziano and of course one of the most popular heavyweight champions of any era Joe Louis.
If you're a boxing fan or just an interested observer pick up a copy of Charley Burley, The Life and Hard Times of an Uncrowned Champion by Allen S. Rosenfeld.
Tom Barnes author of 'Tungee's Gold - The Legend of Ebo Landing.'