Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-07-24
SKEGEL Ar LARGE
Empty Words
From the VIDA
BY MORRIS SIEcEL

NOW COME THE WALLS Of the IT told you SOS" who
knew all along that Floyd Patterson should have been
matched against Charles deGaue and Charles Lston
Their protestations are practicable, but when the
lament is seconded by chorus Of haleujah shouting
"e-tooists" from the World Boxing Association 1t be-
comes too much for any stomach to take even Listens
Sonny the first to say Patterson had no chance
against him
Before modesty annexng the rest Of the universe
and becoming the World Boxing Association, the VIDA
known the National Boxing Association Since an
nexation the VIDA continues to remain tower of do
nothngsm.
n only in its own mind does it have power to legis-
late Actually the VIDA exercises much influence over
st-ghters the Fine Arts Commission does over the
building plans for a Southeast car wash
4 LITERALLY FORCING FANS to pay more than 50
million for the two matches which together consumed
less than five minutes of ring time is fraud on the
public according to Abe ]. Greene, commissioners Of
the WBA
l Just fasten your seatbelt a minute, commissioner
Nobody forced anybody to attend either Of the fights
although Patterson may have needed prodding to
get into the ring against Lston.
But nobody had gun stuck to his head nobody had
to buy ticket And far the fraud aspects of the
affairs concerned I'll have to take the word Of the
VIDA, which should be expert fraudulent fights
1t has been party to number of them
s- Where the good old fag-waving, soul-savng
gospelsinging public-deending MIA when the buidup
Ot FaUerSon was going onT
HOW COME THERE WASN'T much of a peep out of
the MIA when Pete Rademacher who never before had
been paid honest buck to fight allowed to meet
Patterson for the world heavyweight championship in his
first professional venture2
Where were you then, Commissioner Greene? And
don't recall loud MIA protest when Roy Harris, Tom
McNeeley Brian London and the other professional i'm
personators the Patterson camp manufactured also par
tcipated in a fraud"
: It was your group, Brother Greene, which quickly
champion when he decked Archie Moore that night in
Chicago in an affair that left considerable odor.
Now Mr.. Greene wires two Senators asking for Con-
gressiona investigation into the fight and also Of the
promotional cartels which control the heavyweight
championship"
PROTESTING IS THE wBAs best game, but why
can't the VIDA do something except screechP What does
the outfit do except convene at Miami Beach deter
mine II 1t Is right in lifting Carlos Ortiz lightweight
title because he refuses to fight WBASupported con-
tender he already has licked.
- The WBAs, NBAs and the rest have been poweress
since their inceptons was the law of the land
when 1t to boxing matters and the other boxing
associations not only knew it but abided it.
-" An MIA protest to Madison Square Garden was
treated with the fear the National Disters Asso
citation shows in the face of non-drinking resolution
by the OAR.
New York controlled the fight game and left the
MIA with little to do except pass legislation governing
the other States most Of which also dsregarded MIA
advice whenever it convenient to do MIA cham
pions anonymous wrestngs betholders until
they fought the New York-accaimed champ That's
where the money and that's where the authority was
Now it belongs to Liston and the WBA with all its
satellite support is poweess to do anything about It,
long history of ineffectuality has served it well