Manolith Salutes: Leon Spinks

By Ned Hepburn on March 31st, 2009

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Leon Spinks was a boxer, and for the life of me I have no idea why his life hasn’t been made into a movie yet.

He went in a little less than a decade from Heavyweight Champion of the world to completely broke and homeless, and then made it back to the middle. It’s an amazing story. In 1978 as an up-and-comer he became one of the few people on the planet to beat Muhammad Ali in a K.O, and from then on became a pretty damn impressive boxer.

Amazingly, after a rather embarrassing slip in prowess during the early 90’s, Leon admits that what ultimately did him in financially was a (very) expensive divorce and multiple bad managers and hangers-on. It’s a wild story. For a time after the divorce he moved around the country taking odd jobs, signing autographs at conventions and sports card collectible showcases where he could, before finally ending up in Columbus, Nebraska to be closer to a woman he met on the road. He now works in a YMCA.

It’s an brilliant story of Americana. Not everyone icon ends up on a postage stamp, and not every underdog triumphs in the end. Sometimes they just break even, and in that, there’s a lot to be said about the human spirit.

There’s a great article here at the Boston Globe if you’re interested in reading further, and his impressive boxing record can be found here, on Wikipedia.

So Leon, if you’re reading, we salute you.