# Tony Burton

Anthony Mabron Burton (March 23, 1937 – February 26, 2016) was an American actor and boxer. He was known for his role as Tony "Duke" Evers in the Rocky films.

## Early life

Burton was born in Flint, Michigan. He had a younger sister named Loretta. A Flint Northern High School graduate, he was a Michigan Golden Gloves heavyweight boxing champion and two-time all-state football player. At Northern, he played halfback. In 1954, he scored 13 touchdowns and led his team in scoring. Many of his scoring runs were of 50 yards or more. He gained 820 yards rushing that year, and one of his runs was for 95 yards. That same year, he was selected to the first teams of the All City and All Valley teams as a halfback. He was also chosen as an All State honorable mention. He was the team's co-captain and Most Valuable Player. Burton led his team in yards gained and receiving yards. In one game against Grand Rapids Catholic, he gained 213 total yards. At Northern, Burton was also the leading baseball pitcher, pitching the team to the city championship title.

## Career
### Boxing

Burton's boxing career included the Flint Golden Gloves light heavyweight championship in 1955 and 1957. Burton won the State Golden Gloves Light Heavyweight Championship in 1957 and lost in the Chicago Tournament of Champions semi-finals. He fought as a professional boxer in 1958 and 1959. During that time he was knocked out by knockout artist, Lamar Clark, who holds the record for most consecutive knockouts at 44.

### Prison

After his brief professional boxing career, Burton served more than three years in a Chino, Calif., prison for robbery. The acting exercises he performed as part of a therapy program helped steer him into an acting career after his release. NEA's Frank Sanello in March 1988:
   Prison for me was productive because I got my high school diploma and a degree from the University of California. But most important, I got myself together and found out who I was and how I could proceed without destroying myself.
More specifically, one of the skills acquired at Chino landed Burton his wife, Rae, whom he met on a TV repair house call. Moreover, a workshop in the prison, that used psychodrama as a form of therapy, pointed Burton towards his acting career, when an emotional breakthrough achieved by one of his partners in an acting exercise dramatically demonstrated theater's potential power.

### Acting

After prison, Burton started getting work with small theater companies in and around Los Angeles, garnering favorable notices early on.
A life member of the Actors Studio, Burton numbers among his many credits a co-starring role in Frank's Place and parts in films, such as Stir Crazy and The Toy. He also appeared as Wells, one of the prisoners trapped in the besieged police station in John Carpenter's 1976 Howard Hawks-inspired action film, Assault on Precinct 13. He later starred in the Rocky films as a trainer to Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) and later Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone). He appeared in an episode of Gibbsville in 1976. Burton also appeared in The Shining, House Party 2, and Hook. He had guest appearances in Kojak, The Rockford Files, CHiPs, Twin Peaks, and The A-Team. Burton also guest starred as Conrad King Baylor on In the Heat of the Night in the episode "King's Ransom", which aired in January 1990.

## Personal life

Burton resided in California for 30 years. He attended Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, California. He was married to Aurelain (Rae) from 1980 until his death. The couple had two sons, one of whom, Martin, died of a heart attack at the age of 43 on May 8, 2014. They also had two daughters, Juanita and Christal.
Burton was a talented chess player. He defeated Stanley Kubrick on the set of The Shining, in which Burton played Larry Durkin, the garage owner. Speaking with Kubrick biographer Vincent LoBrutto, Burton recalled his first day on the set:
   My contract was for a week. I just had two short scenes in the movie. I stayed for six weeks because Stanley and I were playing chess... Stanley was a stronger player than I but I was strong enough to give him sufficient struggle to where he enjoyed it. I beat him in the first or second game we played, and then I didn't win any more after that, but it was always a tight struggle. That's what he loved; I guess there was no one else around that played strong.

### Recognition

In 1993, Burton was inducted into the Greater Flint Afro-American Hall of Fame.

### Death

Burton had been frequently hospitalized for the last year of his life, according to his sister. On February 26, 2016, he died at the age of 78, from complications of pneumonia at a hospital in Menifee.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1974 | The Black Godfather | Sonny Spyder Brown | A blaxploitation film, directed and written by John Evans. |
| 1976 | The River Niger | Black Policeman | |
| 1976 | Trackdown | Zelds | Crime drama exploitation film, directed by Richard T. Heffron. |
| 1976 | The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings | Issac | A comedic sports film, directed by John Badham. |
| 1976 | Assault on Precinct 13 | Wells | Action thriller film written, directed, scored, and edited by John Carpenter. |
| 1976 | Rocky | Tony Duke Evers | Sports drama film, directed by John G. Avildsen, and both written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. |
| 1977 | Heroes | Chef | Drama film, directed by Jeremy Kagan. |
| 1978 | Blackjack | Charles | Crime drama film, written and directed by John Evans. |
| 1979 | Rocky II | Tony Duke Evers | Written and directed by, and starring Sylvester Stallone. Sequel to the 1976 film Rocky. |
| 1980 | The Shining | Larry Durkin | Psychological horror film, produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. Scenes not in European cut. |
| 1980 | The Hunter | Garbageman #2 | Thriller film, directed by Buzz Kulik. |
| 1980 | Stir Crazy | Guy Who Punches Big Mean | Comedy film, directed by Sidney Poitier. Uncredited. |
| 1980 | Inside Moves | Lucius | Drama film, directed by Richard Donner Based on the book of the same name by Todd Walton. |
| 1982 | Rocky III | Tony Duke Evers | Third installment in the Rocky film series. Sports-drama film, written and directed by, and starring Sylvester Stallone. |
| 1982 | The Toy | Stanley | Uncredited |
| 1985 | Beyond Reason | Dangerman | An independent film, written and directed by, and starring Telly Savalas. |
| 1985 | Rocky IV | Tony Duke Evers | Fourth installment in the Rocky film series. Sports film, written and directed by, and starring Sylvester Stallone. |
| 1986 | Armed and Dangerous | 'Cappy' | Action-crime comedy film, directed by Mark L. Lester. |
| 1990 | Side Out | Louie | Directed by Peter Israelson. |
| 1990 | Rocky V | Tony Duke Evers | Fifth film in the Rocky series. Sports drama film, written by Sylvester Stallone. |
| 1991 | House Party 2 | Mr. Lee | Sequel to the 1990 film House Party, directed by Doug McHenry and George Jackson. |
| 1991 | Hook | Bill Jukes | Fantasy adventure film, directed by Steven Spielberg. |
| 1992 | Mission of Justice | Cedric Williams | |
| 1995 | Fatal Choice | Columbus | |
| 1996 | Flipping | Chuckie, 2-2 Card Club Manager | |
| 1996 | Black Rose of Harlem | Turner | |
| 1997 | Me and the Gods | | |
| 2000 | Knockout | Sergent Hawkins | |
| 2003 | Shade | Fedora | Neo-noir crime drama film, directed and written by Damian Nieman. |
| 2003 | Exorcism | Bishop Harris | |
| 2005 | Assault on Precinct 13 | Wells | Uncredited |
| 2006 | Rocky Balboa | Tony Duke Evers | Sports drama film, written and directed by, and starring Sylvester Stallone. |
| 2007 | Hack! | Sheriff Stoker | Horror film, directed and written by Matt Flynn. (final film role) |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1974 | Kojak | Eddie Ellis | Episode: "The Betrayal" (Season 2: Episode 14) |
| 1975 | The Invisible Man | 3rd Prisoner | Episode: "Go Directly To Jail" (Season 1: Episode 7) |
| 1975 | Baretta | Teak | Episode: "Count the Days I'm Gone" (Season 2: Episode 12) |
| 1976 | Harry O | Peter Macklin | Episode: "Ruby" (Season 2: Episode 20) |
| 1976 | Future Cop | Terrorist #2 | Episode: "Future Cop (Pilot)" (Season 1: Episode 1) |
| 1976 | Gemini Man | 'Biggie' Moore | Episode: "8, 9, 10...You're Dead" (Season 1: Episode 9) Unaired |
| 1976 | Good Times | Aide | Episode: "Evans Versus Davis" (Season 4: Episode 6) |
| 1976 | Gibbsville | Guest | Episode: "All the Young Girls" (Season 1: Episode 5) |
| 1977 | Switch | Joey | Episode: "The Snitch" (Season 2: Episode 14) |
| 1977 | The Six Million Dollar Man | Manager | Episode: "The Infiltrators" (Season 4: Episode 18) |
| 1977 | Sanford and Son | Guard | Episode: "Fred the Activist" (Season 6: Episode 21) |
| 1977 | The Rockford Files | Joe Moran | Episode: "Second Chance" (Season 4: Episode 4) |
| 1978 | The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries | Gilmore Lee | Episode: "The Lady on Thursday at Ten" |
| 1978 | C.P.O. Sharkey | Scotty | Episode: "Tell It to the Marines" (Season 2: Episode 15) |
| 1979 | The Incredible Hulk | Taylor George | Episode: "Like a Brother" (Season 2: Episode 14) |
| 1980 | Tenspeed and Brown Shoe | Skeeter McClintock | Episode: "Savage Says 'There's No Free Lunch'" (Season 1: Episode 3) |
| 1981 | Fitz and Bones | Sid | Episode: "Terror at Newsline 3 (Pilot)" (Season 1: Episode 1) |
| 1981 | The Greatest American Hero | 'Curley' | Episode: "Hog Wild" (Season 2: Episode 4) |
| 1981 | CHiPs | Avrom | Episode: "Mitchell & Woods" (Season 5: Episode 12) |
| 1981 | Quincy, M.E. | Marvin 'Starvin' Marvin' | Episode: "Dead Stop" (Season 7: Episode 8) |
| 1982 | The Fall Guy | Algebra Jones | Episode: "Ladies On the Ropes" (Season 1: Episode 16) |
| 1982 | Bret Maverick | Arthur | Episodes: "Faith, Hope And Clarity, part 1" (Season 1: Episode 14) "Faith, Hope And Clarity, part 2" (Season 1: Episode 15) |
| 1982 | T.J. Hooker | Luther Travis | Episode: "Blind Justice (a.k.a. Blind Watch)" (Season 2: Episode 4) |
| 1984 | The A-Team | Burke | Episode: "It's a Desert Out There" (Season 2: Episode 18) |
| 1985 | Moonlighting | Bartender | Episode: "Gunfight at the So-So Corral" (Season 1: Episode 3) |
| 1986 | Airwolf | 'Moose' | Episode: "Wildfire" (Season 3: Episode 3) |
| 1986 | The Fall Guy | Eddie Barber | Episode: "The Bigger They Are" (Season 5: Episode 22) |
| 1987 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Moustache | Episode: "You Ruined My Life" |
| 1987 | The Law & Harry McGraw | Leah | Episode: "Solve It Again, Harry" |
| 1987–1988 | Frank's Place | Arthur 'Big Arthur' | Contract role |
| 1988 | The Wil Shriner Show | Himself | Episode: "March 18, 1988" (Season 1: Episode 120) |
| 1988 | Police Story | Henry | Episode: "The Cop Killers" (Season 6: Episode 1) |
| 1989 | Amen | Officer Anderson | Episode: "TV or Not TV" (Season 4: Episode 7) |
| 1990 | In the Heat of the Night | Conrad Baylor | Episode: "King's Ransom" (Season 3: Episode 10) |
| 1990 | A Different World | 'Cap' Connors | Episode: "A Campfire Story" (Season 3: Episode 18) |
| 1990 | Over My Dead Body | 'Curly' | Episode: "Dad and Buried" (Season 1: Episode 4) |
| 1991 | Twin Peaks | Colonel Riley | Episode: "Episode Nineteen 'The Black Widow'" (Season 2: Episode 12) |
| 1991 | Adam-12 | Guest | Episode: "The Fighter" (Season 2: Episode 26) |
| 1996 | NYPD Blue | Floyd 'Good News' Gates | Episode: "Burnin' Love" (Season 3: Episode 11) |
| 1996 | Poltergeist: The Legacy | Simon Walters | Episode: "The Inheritance" (Season 1: Episode 19) |
| 1996 | Chicago Hope | Dr. Joseph Little | Episode: "Divided Loyalty" (Season 3: Episode 9) |
| 1998 | The Magnificent Seven | 'Tennessee' Eban | Episode: "Pilot" (Season 1: Episode 1) |
| 2001 | The Lot | Jerome Jeter | Episode: "Nebraska Johnston" (Season 2: Episode 6) |
| 2003 | Exorcism | Bishop Harris | Made-for-TV-movie, directed and written by William A. Baker. |
| 2011 | Biography | Himself / Tony 'Duke' Evers | Episode: "The Rocky Saga: Going the Distance" |

### Video

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1995 | Cyber Track 2 | Swain | Directed by Richard Pepin. |

## Professional boxing record

Key to abbreviations used for results :
| DQ | Disqualification | RTD | Corner retirement |
| KO | Knockout | SD | Split decision / split draw |
| MD | Majority decision / majority draw | TD | Technical decision / technical draw |
| NC | No contest | TKO | Technical knockout |
| PTS | Points decision | UD | Unanimous decision / unanimous draw |
Boxing record :
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round(s) | Date | Location | Notes |
| 8 | Loss | 4–3–1 | LaMar Clark | KO | 4 (6) | April 4, 1959 | Polo Grounds, Palm Springs, California | Jack Dempsey was referee for the bout. |
| 7 | Loss | 4–2–1 | Bobby Sands | KO | 4 (6) | February 21, 1959 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California | |
| 6 | Win | 4–1–1 | Dennis Chaney | KO | 2 (4) | June 14, 1958 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood | |
| 5 | Win | 3–1–1 | Chuck Wilburn | Decision | 4 | April 7, 1958 | Bakersfield Dome, Bakersfield, California | |
| 4 | Loss | 2–1–1 | Curley Lee | KO | 4 (4) | February 8, 1958 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood | |
| 3 | Win | 2–0–1 | Chuck Wilburn | Decision | 4 | January 30, 1958 | Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California | |
| 2 | Draw | 1–0–1 | Chuck Wilburn | Decision | 4 | January 28, 1958 | Arena, San Bernardino, California | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Bob Smith | KO | 4 (4) | January 4, 1958 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood | |