By Joe Calamito 

Photos by Steve Mack 

I am certain that audiences all over the world are going to fall in love with the movie CHUCK  starring Liev Schreiber as Chuck Wepner and Naomi Watts as Chuck’s wife Linda. 

This movie is a tough, gritty, “other side of the tracks,” love story.

It combines boxing with romance, personal pain and triumph. 

It’s also about, loss, human error, redemption and pride.

CHUCK lets you see Wepner with his goodness (Never knew he wrote poetry), and his human frailty,  his run in with the law, his partying, his coming to grips with the man he should become.

Schreiber in his performance also makes you really like Chuck Wepner and what’s not to like, in real life Chuck Wepner is a likeable guy.

I first met  him  right after he fought Muhammad Ali in the mid- seventies and have run into him on many occasions  through the years, he always offers a big smile and a hello to  everyone  he meets.

So that is why at the Premiere of CHUCK at  Bayonne’s Frank Theater on Friday, May 12th family, friends and fans  of  Chuck Wepner joined together in his honor, and were proud of Bayonne’s favorite son.

Chest busting proud, wide smiles proud, back slapping proud.

 Bayonne  loves Chuck Wepner and perhaps after you watch the movie CHUCK  you will too, and feel  proud that Chuck Wepner got the shot  to fight Muhammad Ali and  the recognition he deserved for being the inspiration for the movie Rocky.

In reality, CHUCK the movie is letting the world know  “Chuck Wepner is the real Rocky.” The Everyman who beats the odds.

And that is a cause we all can get behind.

Here are some photos by Steve Mack from May 12th Premiere event of the movie Chuck in Bayonne 

To see more photos and read more about the movie Chuck go to: 

www.facebook.com/riverviewosbserver 

The post Chuck Premiere in Bayonne May 12th 2017 is All Smiles and All Pride first appeared on River View Observer.

By Sally Deering

Early on in his amateur career Muhammad Ali won the title of Golden Gloves Heavyweight Champion of the World with champs like Sugar Ray Leonard, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield and Floyd Mayweather following in Aliâ€s footsteps. The Golden Gloves was their training ground, the place where they learned to “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee”.

The Golden Gloves is still training future champs and its franchise, the NJ Golden Gloves continues to provide amateur boxers the opportunity to shine in the ring and take home the title. This year, Jersey City became the first city to host all NJ Golden Gloves tournaments on its turf, and the tournaments, which began on Saturday, March 1 will be held every Saturday at Dickinson and Ferris High Schools and Elementary Schools No. 7 and 17. The location for the championship bout on April 12 is still to be decided.

“With a brand new boxing program and a progressive agenda to promote health and fitness, we couldnâ€t think of a better partner for the Golden Gloves than Jersey City,” Dan Doyle, President of the NJ Golden Gloves says.  “With its great location and many outstanding amenities for visitors, Jersey City is the perfect place to host the tournament. Golden Gloves boxing has found a home in Jersey City, which has a rich history in boxing.”

Champion of the World

For the NJ Golden Gloves, 300 New Jersey boxers have registered to compete for the New Jersey Championship Title and one championship hopeful is Tony “Show Time” Rivera, 22, of Jersey City, representing the Jersey City Recreation Department. Rivera, who works nights as a security guard goes for a 5-mile run as part of his training as soon as he gets off work. He then sleeps until early evening and hits the gym for three hours. Itâ€s a rigorous schedule, but one that definitely pays off. Last year, Rivera won the Diamond Gloves at the NJ Golden Gloves and this year he wants to win the big title. On Mar 8, Rivera won his bout and on Sat, Mar. 15 he boxes in the semi-finals at Ferris High School his alma-mater.

“I would love to go to the Olympics, but my main goal is to become champion of the world and represent my city, Jersey City,” Rivera says, just back from the gym after a training session. “I look up to guys who trained in Jersey City like Arturo Gatti and the ‘old school†boxers like Mark Medal. They were champs.”

Rivera owes a lot to his trainer Luis Cancino who pushes him to train hard. He says: “I couldnâ€t do this without Luis. He believes in me and pushes me. For every champ thereâ€s a trainer who believes in him. He has a great heart.”

Boxing helps you mentally and physically, Rivera says. He also says it has been a great outlet for him that keeps him focused on believing in himself and setting goals.

“It pushes you to go after what you want,” Rivera says. “It has kept me off the streets and helped me focus.”

Boxing keeps him close to family and friends who come to the bouts to cheer him on, all wearing Tony “Show Time” Rivera T-Shirts to show their support. Win or lose, after the bouts Rivera and his opponents are good friends, even after feeling the effects of their swift and mighty jabs and hooks.  There may be sore muscles, but never sore feelings after a bout.

‘You feel bad of course, but itâ€s never personal, itâ€s just business,” Rivera says. “At the end of the day, outside the ring I respect my opponent. He trained hard, too, and thereâ€s a mutual respect. I know heâ€s going through the same thing Iâ€m going through.  Once the fight is over thereâ€s nothing but love at the end of the day.”

TRAINING THE NEXT ALI

Paul Dunleavy grew up in Jersey City and learned to box at the local PAL (Police Athletic League) when he was just 13. He boxed three times in the NJ Golden Gloves and for the past five years heâ€s been training boxers and NJ Golden Gloves competitors.

“Boxing changed my life,” Dunleavy says, “and it wasnâ€t about being a champ. It was the people I had been around. The confidence I built. You walk into a gym and youâ€re dealing with guys from all over the world. You realize weâ€re all the same. It gives you experience with other people and other cultures. I have nothing but good friends and great things happen to me from boxing.”

Dunleavy says you can take a kid who may have a drug problem and if you introduce him to boxing, you can wean him from a path of drug abuse to a life with purpose.

“A kid can have a drug problem because he has nothing going on,” Dunleavy says. “In the gym, they respect the rules and everybody in the gym and slowly that feeds into their personal life.”

You canâ€t just be a trainer, you have to be a friend, Dunleavy says.

“They want someone to hear them,” Dunleavy says. “They want someone to believe in them.”

JERSEY CITYâ€S GOLDEN RING

Jersey City has always been a big boxing town with several gyms for kids to learn the sport and recently, the cityâ€s recreation department launched a youth boxing program. And as host to the NJ Golden Gloves, Jersey City Mayor Steven M. Fulop sees the program and the Golden Gloves as a positive outlet for kids.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Jersey City to host all eight Golden Gloves matches, which not only provides a recreational outlet for our families, but also showcases the sport to our youth,” Mayor Fulop says. “As part of expanding our recreation department, this year we launched a youth boxing program which has nearly 100 registered participants. Hosting the Golden Gloves is a chance for our youth to see the sport in action.”

IF YOU GO:

NJ Golden Gloves

General Admission: $15 and $20 for ringside seats.

Children under 12 can attend for free with the supervision of an adult.

All fights begin at 7 p.m.

For more info; www.njgoldengloves.com

REMAINING SCHEDULE:

March 22:    Dickinson High School, 2 Palisade Ave

March 29:    Middle School No. 7, 222 Laidlaw Ave

April   05:    Dickinson High School, 2 Palisade Ave

CHAMPIONSHIP SHOW:

April 12:      Location TO BE DETERMINED

The post The Champ -Jersey City Hosts Golden Gloves; Young Boxers Duke for Title first appeared on River View Observer.

The post Golden Gloves 2014 -The Champ-Jersey City Hosts Golden Gloves; Young Boxers Duke for Title first appeared on River View Observer.

The Real “Rocky”

  Bayonne Boxing Champ Chuck Wepner – the real Rocky Balboa – Star of ESPN Documentary

 By Sally Deering

At 72, Chuck Wepner of Bayonne stands 6â€5”, weighs 250 lbs, has biceps like ropes of steel, and looks like he can still go a few rounds in the ring – even though itâ€s been 36 years since his match with Muhammad Ali for the World Heavyweight title.

In 1975, Wepner boxed 15 rounds with Ali and lost with a broken nose, cuts over his eyes and a bruised ego. But what the Bayonne boxer didnâ€t know was that an unknown named Sylvester Stallone was watching the fight on his TV set and three days later would write “Rocky” based on underdog Wepner. The film became a major hit in 1976 winning three Academy Awards and earning Stallone fame and fortune. Yo! Letâ€s not forget the sequels, too.

On Tues, Oct 25 at 8 p.m., “The Real Rocky” a documentary about Wepnerâ€s life as a championship boxer and the story behind his bout with Ali airs on ESPN. (It also airs Wed, Oct 26 at 11 p.m. and Sat, Nov. 26 at 7:30 a.m. on ESPN2.)  And a film based on Wepnerâ€s amazing story is in pre-production and will star Liev Schreiber as Wepner.

The one-hour documentary is directed by Jeff Feuerzeig, an award-winning director whose feature film “The Devil and Daniel Johnston” won top documentary directing honors at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.  On ESPN.go.com, Feuerzeig, who grew up in New Jersey, explained his inspiration for making the Wepner documentary.

“ I’ve been a Chuck Wepner fan ever since 1975, when I was 10 years old and my father took my brother and me to Sports Night at the Raritan High School gymnasium in Hazlet to see Chuck, aka ‘The Bayonne Bleeder,†just months before he was set to go up against Muhammad Ali for the heavyweight title,” Feuerzeig told ESPN. “There were no figures who loomed larger in this 10 year-oldâ€s imagination than Evel Knievel, Andre the Giant and, especially, Muhammad Ali – “The Greatest” – and here was a 6-foot-5 behemoth (Wepner) in a full-length fur coat…and ridiculous amount of jewelry leading us in a chant of ‘Who’s gonna beat Ali? WEPNER!†And in that instant, Chuck Wepner became a real-life mythological figure — as real to me as the Jersey Devil that haunted the local Pine Barrens.”

These days, Wepner, the former New Jersey state heavyweight boxing champion who was christened “The Bayonne Bleeder” for the hits  he took in the ring boxing Sonny Liston,and his (third) wife of 18 years, Linda are riding high from the renewed interest in Wepnerâ€s career.  They ride around in the family “Caddy” with the vanity license plates “Champ” and make guest appearances in Bayonne and other cities to promote the documentary and upcoming film. Just recently, Wepner was in Philadelphia where he raced up the courthouse steps against Stallone, a publicity stunt for the documentary and a chance to meet up with his good buddy Stallone.

On a recent afternoon, Wepner took time out from his busy schedule to talk with the Riverview Observer in his beautiful Bayonne home about the renewed interest in his boxing career, his match with Ali and the upcoming documentary and film about his life in and out of the ring.

RO:  Can you talk about your early family life?

CW:  My father was a cop and became a professional fighter. He was a training partner for Jack Dempsey and James Braddock. I was born in New York City and when my parents separated my mother brought me and my brother to Bayonne to live. But even though I never saw my father until I was 25, when I was growing up my mother never said a bad word about him.  When we came to Jersey, my mother had her hat in her hand. We had no real place to live and a friend offered us a coal shed, which my mother converted into a room for us to live. She was a good mother who thought everyone was good.  Kids today think they have a tough life – theyâ€re full of it.

RO:  Did you make amends with your dad?

CW: I was 25, just turned pro and fighting for the National Championship Golden Gloves against John L. Sullivan in Madison Square Garden. My father came up to me and said, “Do you know me, son?” I said “yes.” He said to me, “Iâ€m cheering for you.” I beat Sullivan that night. My father and I made friends.

 RO:  What can you tell us about your famous bout with Ali?

CW: In Jersey City, the fight was broadcast on Closed Circuit TV at the Stanley Theater in Journal Square. I was the 40-1 underdog.  I was with Ali the night before the fight at the Cleveland Coliseum, a beautiful venue for the fight. We had dinner. The next time I saw him was in the ring.

RO:  Was it a knockout?

CW:  No. They stopped the fight with only 19 seconds left in the round. Tony Perez was the ref. Each round was three minutes. It was the 15^th round and from the 14^th round on, my legs were shaking. I was exhausted. I had been in the ring with Ali for an hour. In the 15^th round, when Ali hit me, I fell, but I was getting back up. Thatâ€s when Tony saw that my eyes were glazed and he stopped the fight with only 19 seconds left. Later, he told me, ‘If I had known there was only 19 seconds left, I would have continued the fight.” I was more shocked than anybody. I only got seven stitches. I got more cuts here (in Bayonne) on a Friday night. I was undefeated in bars, menâ€s rooms. Years ago, Bayonne was a rough town. It was a great town. It still is.

RO:  Were you scared to get in the ring with Ali?

CW: I was never scared. I was nervous about not doing well. Even if I didnâ€t win this fight, I wanted to prove I belong there. I owe Ali for so much; I became famous from the ‘Rocky†series.

 RO:  Did you see Ali after the fight?

CW:  We were friends. I made appearances with him and I made friends with his daughters. Heâ€s a great guy.

RO:  What was it like the first time you saw “Rocky”?

CW:  I went to a theater in New York City for the premier. I remember thinking I hope this movie is good. As the movie started going, Iâ€m thinking this is a good movie. I never realized ‘Rocky†would be the biggest grossing movie. Stallone made 23 billion on all the ‘Rockysâ€.

 RO:  Did you train by hitting sides of beef in a meat locker?

CW:  No. Stallone added the sides of beef. It was a good idea.

RO:  How do you stay in shape? Still boxing?

CW:  I donâ€t box anymore. I donâ€t need it anymore. I earned a Black Belt in Ju Jitsu, but dropped that. I lift weights, keep myself decent looking so when people say ‘Heâ€s the former champ†they donâ€t see me looking old and decrepit.

 RO:  Can you talk about the upcoming movie about your life?

CW:  Itâ€s been in pre-production for eight years. First it was John C. Reilly who was gonna play me, then Vince Vaughn, and now Liev Schreiber. Heâ€s right for it. Heâ€s 6â€2”, weighs 220 and heâ€s a good actor.

 RO:  Youâ€re good friends with Sly Stallone?

CW:  I love Stallone. When I was getting ready for the race up the Philadelphia Courthouse steps, he sent me an email: ‘Iâ€ll be waiting on the steps for you.†He was good to me. I think heâ€s a terrific guy.

 “The Real Rocky” based on the life and boxing career of Chuck Wepner airs Tues, Oct. 25 at 8 p.m. on ESPN

For more info, go to www.espn.go.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The post Boxing Legend Chuck Wepner “The Real Rocky” interview with Sally Deering of the River View Observer first appeared on River View Observer.