Autograph written by Cassius Clay
date: label: Date
content: 1963
name: label: Manufactured by
content: Unidentified
label: Written by
content: Muhammad Ali, American, 1942 - 2016
label: Subject of
content: Sonny Liston, American, 1928 - 1970
label: Subject of
content: Gill Deford, American
notes: label: Caption
content: This note was written in the summer of 1963, months before the World Heavyweight Championship fight between Clay and Sonny Liston in February 1964. The Sports Illustrated reporter Frank Deford was on the train with Clay, headed back to New York, when he asked for an autograph for his younger brother Gill. Clay wrote the note on a piece of paper from Deford’s reporter’s notepad. Though the fight with Liston was months away, Deford noted that “[Clay] had recently begun to predict victory for himself.” He added that “So far as I know, though, this was the first written declaration of the prediction which would so shock the sports world.”
label: Description
content: A handwritten autograph note from Cassius Clay to Gill Deford, brother of Sports Illustrated Reporter Frank Deford. The note is handwritten in pencil in cursive text that reads [To Gill / From / Cassius / Clay / Next Champ / Liston / in 8]. The note is written on white, college rule paper, torn from a pocket sized, top bound, spiral notepad. The back of the note is blank.
place: label: Place made
content: New York, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Athletes
label: Topic
content: Boxing
label: Topic
content: Sports
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Memorabilia and Ephemera - Other
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Given to Frank Deford, a writer for Sports Illustrated, in August 1963
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2018.33
objectType: label: Type
content: autographs
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: graphite on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 6 × 3 3/8 in. (15.2 × 8.6 cm)