AstroDatabank - Ali, Muhammad Birth Data

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Name: ALI, MUHAMMAD

17/01/1942

Time: 18:35 CST (+6:00)

Gender: M

Place: Louisville, KY

Lat: 38 N 15

Lng: 85 W 46

RoddenRating: AA

DataSource: BC/BR in hand

 

SourceNotes: B.C. in hand from Steinbrecher (Same in Gauquelin Book of

American Charts)

 

Jose Torres wrote the biography, " Sting Like a Bee. " " Muhammad Ali: His

Life and Times " was by Thomas Hauser, 1991

 

Biography: American light-heavyweight gold medalist, the only man to win

the heavyweight championship of the world three times. He began boxing

professionally on 10/29/1960 and became world champ in 1964 by knocking

out Sonny Liston. His title was declared vacant after he refused

military obligation as a Muslim and a conscientious objector. He later

changed his name and reentered the ring in 1970, fighting with singular

grace and beauty for 25 years. Muhammad Ali earned a reputation as a man

dedicated to his goals and beliefs. A consummate showman, he used to call

himself " the Greatest, " and many of his fans believe that the nickname

fits.

 

Clay’s great grandfather was an Irishman who had married a black girl.

Ali was raised in a middle-class neighborhood, the eldest of two sons

born to Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr. and Odessa (Grady) Clay. Ali's father

supported his family as a sign and mural painter, while his mother worked

as a domestic. Ali worshiped with his family on Sundays at Mount Zion

Baptists Church and attended school with brother Rudolph. He was a rather

poor student, which he blames on his preoccupation with boxing as a boy.

Ali has confessed that he wished he had put forth more effort

academically, because he has struggled as a slow reader his entire life.

 

It was due to a stolen bicycle that Ali began to box, at age 12. When he

reported the theft, Policeman Joe Martin invited the boy to train with

Fred Stoner, who taught him to move with the speed and grace of a dancer.

While still in high school, he won 100 out of 108 matches and earned six

Kentucky and two national Golden Glove championships, as well as two

Amateur Athletic Union Championships. Ali mastered his renowned skill at

ring chatter; talking a poetic jive while in the fight, geared to

distract and frustrate his opponent, and at age 18, he won the boxing

Olympic gold medal in the light heavyweight category at the 1960 Olympics

in Rome. Upon returning to Louisville, he signed a lucrative fifty-fifty

split contract turning him into a professional boxer. With arrogance and

wit he spouted off catchy jive talk such as his famous chant, " float like

a butterfly, sting like a bee. " Still known as Cassius Clay, Ali fought

Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship title, beating him to

become the world’s heavyweight champion at age 22 on 2/25/1964, beating

him again on 5/25/1965.

 

While in Miami, he met Malcolm X who gave voice to Ali’s disgust with

racism. At one time he was refused service at a soda fountain counter

because he was black and in outrage, he threw his Olympic gold medal into

a river. Joining the Nation of Islam, he was given the name Muhammad Ali

by Elijah Muhammad, his new title meaning " beloved of Allah. " It was the

beginning of his social and political activism.

In June 1965, Ali defended his title by once more defeating Liston by a

knockout punch that was so powerful that it lifted Liston’s left foot

clear off the mat. Despite his popularity in the sports world, he was

loathed by many Americans when it became known that he had become a

Muslim. When he took a stance as a conscientious objector to America's

involvement in the war in Vietnam, he was called everything from traitor

to coward. When he refused to accept the draft, in May 1967 Ali was

stripped of his title and boxing license by the World Boxing Association

and charged for violating the Selective Service Act by the government.

Even boxing fans and sports journalists joined the outcry, to which Ali

commented, " I'm giving up my title, my wealth, maybe my future. Many

great men have been tested for their religious beliefs. If I pass this

test, I'll come out stronger than ever. "

 

Sentenced to five years in prison and released on appeal, Ali's

conviction was overturned three years later and he returned to the ring.

After defeating Jerry Quarry in November 1970, he met Joe Frazier in New

York 3/08/1971 – who gave him his first professional defeat. By the end

of his career, Ali had fought Joe Frazier twice more. These three bouts

have been one of the most widely discussed series in the sport because of

their intensity and duration. In 1974 Ali avenged his loss to Frazier

with a unanimous decision victory. This retaliation did not earn Ali the

title, however, since newcomer George Foreman had dethroned Frazier as

the champion. Ali arranged to fight for the title against Foreman in

Kinshasa, Zaire on 10/30/1974, a bout billed as the Rumble in the Jungle.

Foreman was favored as he was young, strong and known as the hardest

hitter in boxing. Ali rested on the ropes and danced around Foreman for

eight rounds, biding his time and conserving his force. When he finally

made his move, he sent Foreman to the canvas – and regained the title.

He met Joe Frazier for the third time and defeated him after 14 rounds in

Manila, October 1, 1975. Although Ali lost a title defense early in 1978

to Leon Spinks, he later defeated Spinks in a rematch to win his title

for the third time. On 6/26/1979, at the age of 37, Ali retired as

champion with a professional record of 59 victories and three defeats.

 

In July 1964, Ali met a beautiful half-black woman. She was Sonji Roi, a

model and a cocktail waitress. On 8/14/1964, they were married in Gray,

Indiana. For their honeymoon, they went on a tour of Africa. The fairy

tale marriage didn’t last more than a year as a result of their conflicts

with each other on Ali being extremely loyal to the Nation of Islam. His

second wife Khaliah [belinda] filed for divorce in 1976. A year later,

he married Veronica, one of the four poster girls who promoted the Rumble

in the Jungle. Ali lived a lavish lifestyle, needing to support high

maintenance. He had four wives, two mistresses and nine kids (one

adopted) that ranged from college age to infancy. Kids are one of his

great pleasures, his own or any. Ali stops and goes out of his way to

pick up a child or ask about people's children. Khaliah, one of his

daughters, has successfully built up her boxing career following in the

footsteps of her champion father. Now, Laila too has followed suit,

taking up boxing as a career.

 

He lives with his fourth wife, Yolanda, who also acts as his manager, in

Berrien Springs, Michigan. At home, he spends many hours signing Muslim

handouts and photos of himself, replying to fan mail, reading the Koran

and praying. Islam means to him submitting to the will of God and being

at peace. He feels that there is truth in all religions imbued with love.

 

In 1981, Ali appeared to be sluggish and weak in motor skills, moving

slowly and trembling. Originally misdiagnosed as having a thyroid

condition, it was another year before he was found to have Parkinson’s

disease at UCLA, and started treatment. The disease was caused, said his

doctor in 1987, by injuries sustained in his 61-event boxing career. He

became more involved in political activism and philanthropy and his

illness matured him and made him a serious man, to whom people listened

as he slowly formulated the words.

 

In the '90s, he lived comfortably on a farm in Michigan with his fourth

wife, Lonnie. He travels frequently, usually in the company of his

longtime friend and personal photographer, Howard Bingham, for book

signing of Bingham's book of photographs, " Muhammad Ali: A Thirty Year

Journey. " People flock to him, one of the most popular and beloved

figures of the sports world of the 20th century. Financially, he's

comfortable for his later years. In addition to his 200-acre farm in

Berrien Springs, MI, Ali owns his Deer Lake training camp and much of the

mountain on which it was built - the camp is now being used as a home for

abused children - as well as sizable tracts of land in Virginia. He has

several vehicles, including a Rolls-Royce and a Winnebago motor home.

 

At the Summer Olympics in Atlanta in August 1996, he lit the torch, an

emotional moment for a nation of fans who saw him not only as a champion

but as a very real and vulnerable man, his arm shaking visibly as he

raised the torch.

In December 2001, a movie commemorating the life of Muhammad Ali was

released, starring Will Smith in the title role. Smith was born

9/25/1968, Philadelphia, PA.

With the help of his daughter, Ali has written a new book, an

autobiography reflecting on his life with a spiritual and philosophical

perspective. “Soul of a Butterfly” was published in November 2004.