The Uncrowned Champion
Boxing and the Mafia in the Golden Era
by
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Deserted by his father as a young child and raised in utter poverty, the young Joey Giambra decided to become the middleweight boxing champion of the world. He almost made it. Almost. This is his story. It's the story of a naive young man who always expected the best from people, but who invariably received less. It's the story of his women; the story of his fights with Bo Bo Olson, Tiger Jones, Joey Giardello, Jimmy Herring, Tony Amato, Rocky Castellani, Andy Anderson, and many, many others; and the story of his dreams, his heartaches, his frustration, continuous run-ins with the Mob, the stars who knew and loved him, and the accident which would forever deny him the final fight to victory. This is the story of Joey Giambra, the uncrowned champion of the world. It's one of the best of all time human interest stories regarding boxing, the Mafia's control of fighters and their futures, and the hardships of the golden era of boxing. But it's also a story of a man who didn't play by the rules of the Mafia. A human interest story of family, love, integrity, and the Mafia, through the eyes of an uncrowned champion. The original self-published book, The Uncrowned Champion, has sold over 100,000 copies since its release in 1980, despite not being marketed. A lot of material was left out of the original book due to sensitivity to subject matter, people, and many situations.(RE: mafia) This is the new book and is a tell-all.
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About the Book
Stories like Joey Giambras' have been attempted many times in many different styles. So what's the difference? This is the truth. The Gods' honest, ghetto style, Italian-American truth. Dramatic and intimate details about his childhood, life and death experiences, and life in the world of boxing controlled by the mafia. Rising from poverty during the Great Depression, to dining with royalty and celebrities. The book is finally here to reconstruct each and every moment of a man who would eventually be denied of the very thing he trained and fought so hard to attain. This is a story teeming with challenge, love, abuse, and family. Both kinds... It has a heart warming love story, a quality about the underdog makes good and the seedy truths about the controlled history of the boxing world feared to be told before now. The Golden era of boxing from the forties, fifties, and sixties... Famous and infamous Italian Mafia members trying to kill and then saving the young Giambra, despite him not joining the Mafia or playing hardball with them to throw fights for an eventual title shot... Mobsters, such as Vito Genevese, Carlo Gambino, Frankie Carbo, and Jack Ruby were all key figures in Giambra's career. He had real friendships with major sports figures such as heavyweight champions Rocky Marciano and Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali), who was taught the “Rope-A-Dope” by the young Giambra. A middleweight champion, Sugar Ray Robinson, openly stated he would not fight Giambra for the title when he was champ! Lightweight champion Willie Pep and baseball legend Joe DiMaggio were two of Giambra's biggest fans! And being in Hollywood during the romantic era of the 60s, he acted in movies, such as The Misfits, and the television series, Mission Impossible and The Joey Bishop Show, a comedy series, and also had friendships with Ann Margaret, Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, and Joey Bishop. The original self-published book, The Uncrowned Champion, has sold over 100,000 copies since its release in 1980, despite not being marketed. A lot of material was left out of the original book due to sensitivity to subject matter, people, and many situations.(RE: mafia) This is the new book and is a tell-all.
About the Author
Always a class act and a gentleman. Joey Giambra was ranked number one in the world during the Golden Era of boxing. Because of Joey Giambras' outstanding record as a fighter in the ring and his exemplary conduct as a gentleman out of it, Giambra was; Awarded the Prestigious Mickey Walker Award as Boxer of the year Awarded the Prestigious Johnny Mastralla Award of Integrity Giambra was father of the year in Las Vegas Inducted into The Las Vegas Boxing Hall of Fame Inducted into The Buffalo Boxing Hall of Fame Inducted into The Boston Boxing Hall of Fame Inducted into The World Boxing Hall of Fame Recently inducted into The Rochester Boxing Hall of Fame Giambra is the ONLY fighter in history to be inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame that did NOT win the title!! The reasons for that are described fully in this story. Not only is this a serious real life story on boxing in its recognized "best" era of boxing and how the Mafia controlled fighters and there futures. But its also a story of a fighter that didn't play by "the rules". Joey Giambra has a truly amazing story to tell, and a legacy to be bestowed. The great boxing skills he possessed and the movie star good looks made Giambra a leading figure in the boxing world for over a decade. A Human Interest story of family, love, boxing, the Mafia, through the eyes of an uncrowned champion. He now resides in Las Vegas. The Uncrowned Champion..... Joey Giambra