SWC75
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Carmen began the new year with three fights in a month’s time in Buffalo, where he “made a tremendous hit”, both on the fans and press and also on his three opponents, decisioning “Sonny Jim” Hampton and Cassill Tate, (called a “red hot favorite” in Buffalo after a string of wins- although they must have been amateur wins as his record at the time was 1-1, per Boxrec.com), in 8 rounders and knocking out Adrien Mourguiart, (That’s the RRB/BoxRec spelling: the Post Standard has it as “Mogart”), of France in 7. “Basilio turned pro a year ago after winning the Golden Gloves lightweight championship and has never refused to take on any opponent suggested by matchmakers in Syracuse, Utica, Buffalo or Binghamton and is now considered on of the better welterweight prospects in the East.” Another article said that Basilio was an example of a fighter who “failed to make the championship grade” in the Golden Gloves but went onto professional success.
In those days Carmen and all the other local fighters, (there were many then), trained at Irv Robbins gym on the third floor of the 300 block of North Salina Street. He also had a job in a factory on Wolf Street. Per the Youmans book, Robbins’ gym “was a typical boxing gym, loaded with boxers, trainers, promoters, writers and fans…The emphasis was never on cleanliness, as if dirt and grit and foul orders made boxers train better. It had one ring, a couple of heavy bags and a speed bag. The best area fighters worked out at Robbins’ gym besides all the out-of-town boxers who were in town for a fight. Main event fighters were charged fifteen dollars a month whereas preliminary fighters were charged ten dollars a month. If you wanted a towel, it would cost you ten cents.” Carmen said of Robbins: “He knew how to run a gym. He wouldn’t stand for any fooling around or he would throw you out on your ear. He wouldn’t take any from anybody. It was a good place to get your work done.”
Carmen was being “managed” if that’s the word by the Amos brothers. They were Tony and Babe Amos, although their real last name was Antonacci. Tony was also called “Sam” and Babe’s real name was “Emil”. The Amos brothers ran the “Central City Boxing Club“, which did the main boxing promotions in the area in the late 40’s and early 50’s. They also owned the Rainbow room restaurant and the Kirk Hotel, where Tony had been a bartender. Ed Linn tells us that, since the Amos Brothers owned the Kirk Hotel, Carmen’s one perk was that he was allowed to live there for free, which led to a second perk- he met his first wife, Kay there. She was a waitress at the restaurant where he ate his meals.
Carmen, in the Youmans book: “It became clear I wasn’t going anyplace with them. They became greedy. They didn’t care about me. All they were interested in was the money. They weren’t coming to the gym. They weren’t teaching me anything. I was going to the gym by myself and all that. They never came around anymore.” His pal Dickie DeVeronica added: “Carmen was getting no management in the early 1950’s. These two brothers didn’t care a lick about him. They would throw him in with experienced fighters. They didn’t care. He wasn’t ready for that type of competition. Carmen would fight anybody. That is why he had a number of losses to guys he would have destroyed a few years later.”
Carmen next, (3/6), met Lou Jenkins, his first real fight against a world champion caliber fighter. Jenkins had held the lightweight crown for a year and half before Sammy Angott beat him in 1941. He was still pushing leather a decade as a welterweight later when he was matched up with the up-and-coming Basilio. It was the first time Carmen had headed a card in Syracuse. He was said to have had the advantage of “youth, fire and punching power” over Jenkins, who “had the advantage of facing the best fighters in the world in his class for a dozen years.” Jenkins was rated a slight favorite. The crafty Texan let Carmen be the aggressor for 8 rounds, fending off wild rights but absorbing some left hands, and picking his spots, “Jenkins obviously carrying the greater amount of power”. Carmen apparently looked pretty crude at times, once pushing Jenkins to his knees and another time wrestling him to the ground without getting credited for any knockdowns. He also lost the fifth round on a low blow. The home-town hero had pretty much punched himself out by the last two rounds, which Jenkins dominated. At the end Carmen was “exhausted and bleeding about the face” but was awarded a split decision, the referee and one judge saying Basilio had won and the third judge ruling the bout a draw. The decision produced many boos from the 2,703 hometown fans at the Coliseum. Jenkins graciously said “It was a good fight. But I wasn’t robbed. The kid earned it.” It was an opportunity to learn against a crafty veteran and Carmen learned plenty that night in his first 10 round fight.
It had been reported that heavyweight champion Ezzard Charles would be in town to watch the Jenkins fight, on his way to Buffalo to fight Freddie Bashore but the Basilio-Jenkins bout was postponed due to a blizzard and Charles didn’t fight Bashore until 8/15. There was no mention of his presence in the post-fight article. The article did say that Al Weill of the International Boxing Club, which controlled boxing in New York, Chicago, and Detroit was “asking for reports on Basilio”.
On March 27th, Carmen “got his big break in New York”. Actually, it was in Brooklyn, where he lost in 8 rounds to Mike Koballa of Pittsburgh in the Parkway Arena. Koballa had won some fights there before and was favored but Basilio was becoming recognized as “one of the best welterweight prospects in the East.” But Koballa won a unanimous decision, scoring with “good combinations, especially in the fifth round, when he rained blows at Basilio from all directions.” The fight was the first time Carmen had been on television and that visibility figured to help his career, despite the loss. Across the ring, in Koballa’s corner, was Angelo Dundee, who would later be in Carmen’s corner for so many fights.
Carmen now had a series of fights in New Orleans, the first two against Gaby “Frenchy” Ferland of Montreal, who he knocked down four, (or five, depending on the account), times on 4/12 but had to settle for a much-booed 10 round draw. Ferland had been a local favorite and was cheered for during the bout but when Carmen got so clearly robbed the fans booed Ferland as he left the ring and cheered Basilio. The result made Carmen a favorite with the Big Easy fans. He made $1000.00 a fight down there, a lot more than he’d ever made in Syracuse. ($1000.00 more in many cases.) In a rematch a month later, (5/5), Carmen settled matters with a first round knock-out. A third fight with Ferland was announced for Montreal on June 6th, with a shot at Canadian welterweight champion Johnny Greco in the offing for the winner. But this was another bout that never came off. Instead Carmen had an exciting two bout series with Guillermo Jiminez “of South America”, (Argentina). He won the first “bloody slugfest” with an 8th round knock-out on 6/21 in New Orleans. “The referee stopped the bout after Basilio had punished his opponent badly.”
There was a report that recent Middleweight champ Rocky Graziano would come to Syracuse to fight at McArthur Stadium if a suitable opponent could be found. But nothing came of it, (Rocky was nursing an injured hand), and Carmen signed to fight Giminez in New Orleans again on 7/31. This time it took nine rounds to end it, with the same winner.
The Post Standard reported that Carmen would be going for his “28th victory in 31 professional fights” as he wrapped up his stint in the Crescent City with a battle against Eddie Giosa of Philadelphia in Pelican Stadium on 8/28. (The RRB/BoxRec has him 22-3-3 at that point). The paper reported that Carmen, with three knockouts in a row, had become “a favorite of New Orleans fans”. They said that “critics” down there were claiming Carmen for their own and boosting him for a shot at the welterweight crown should Sugar Ray Robinson move up to try for Jake LaMotta’s Middleweight crown. Carmen had Giosa on the canvas in the 6th round but lost a split decision. Bill Reddy later reported that Giosa was asked about a rematch but refused, supposedly because Basilio “hit too hard”, according to his manager.
The year ended with Carmen getting his first televised fight and his first fight in Madison Square Garden, on the occasion of the arena’s 25th anniversary, where he ran into Vic Cardell, “a sharp-punching youngster from Hartford, Connecticut”, “who stung Basilio repeatedly with a right hand wallop to the head”. Carmen broke his right hand halfway through the fight but kept battling. “Wild-swinging Basilio, a crude but willing battler, tired in the late rounds. Still, he came back with a late rally in the 10th. He shook up Cardell with a terrific left hook to the jaw. Basilio was cut around the right eye in the fifth round. However, the cut didn’t seem to bother him. He swarmed to the attack with his head down, swinging wildly.” Carmen won the referee’s card, 5-3-2. But Cardell won both judge’s 3-7. It was another setback, with more to come. But Carmen went 7-3-1 for the year and now had a record of 22-5-3 with 14 knockouts, more than half his career total.
Ed Linn: “For the next three months he was out of action. At Christmas he was broke. A couple of weeks later, his left hand still in a cast, he spent three successive nights shoveling snow from the streets of Syracuse. The $24.00 he earned was eating money.” It was at this point that he took a factory job. Carmen later said that he asked himself “Am I going to spend the rest of my life having that boss look at me? No way. I decided I had to make a comeback.” Linn: “Carmen, who was brought up on a farm, hated the stuffy, enclosed factory atmosphere. But even after he returned to the gym, he didn’t quit his job. He held onto it for two solid years, working days and training nights. He did not leave it until he won the New York State welterweight championship from Billy Graham. You do not easily forget the time when there was no money in the house on Christmas.”
In those days Carmen and all the other local fighters, (there were many then), trained at Irv Robbins gym on the third floor of the 300 block of North Salina Street. He also had a job in a factory on Wolf Street. Per the Youmans book, Robbins’ gym “was a typical boxing gym, loaded with boxers, trainers, promoters, writers and fans…The emphasis was never on cleanliness, as if dirt and grit and foul orders made boxers train better. It had one ring, a couple of heavy bags and a speed bag. The best area fighters worked out at Robbins’ gym besides all the out-of-town boxers who were in town for a fight. Main event fighters were charged fifteen dollars a month whereas preliminary fighters were charged ten dollars a month. If you wanted a towel, it would cost you ten cents.” Carmen said of Robbins: “He knew how to run a gym. He wouldn’t stand for any fooling around or he would throw you out on your ear. He wouldn’t take any from anybody. It was a good place to get your work done.”
Carmen was being “managed” if that’s the word by the Amos brothers. They were Tony and Babe Amos, although their real last name was Antonacci. Tony was also called “Sam” and Babe’s real name was “Emil”. The Amos brothers ran the “Central City Boxing Club“, which did the main boxing promotions in the area in the late 40’s and early 50’s. They also owned the Rainbow room restaurant and the Kirk Hotel, where Tony had been a bartender. Ed Linn tells us that, since the Amos Brothers owned the Kirk Hotel, Carmen’s one perk was that he was allowed to live there for free, which led to a second perk- he met his first wife, Kay there. She was a waitress at the restaurant where he ate his meals.
Carmen, in the Youmans book: “It became clear I wasn’t going anyplace with them. They became greedy. They didn’t care about me. All they were interested in was the money. They weren’t coming to the gym. They weren’t teaching me anything. I was going to the gym by myself and all that. They never came around anymore.” His pal Dickie DeVeronica added: “Carmen was getting no management in the early 1950’s. These two brothers didn’t care a lick about him. They would throw him in with experienced fighters. They didn’t care. He wasn’t ready for that type of competition. Carmen would fight anybody. That is why he had a number of losses to guys he would have destroyed a few years later.”
Carmen next, (3/6), met Lou Jenkins, his first real fight against a world champion caliber fighter. Jenkins had held the lightweight crown for a year and half before Sammy Angott beat him in 1941. He was still pushing leather a decade as a welterweight later when he was matched up with the up-and-coming Basilio. It was the first time Carmen had headed a card in Syracuse. He was said to have had the advantage of “youth, fire and punching power” over Jenkins, who “had the advantage of facing the best fighters in the world in his class for a dozen years.” Jenkins was rated a slight favorite. The crafty Texan let Carmen be the aggressor for 8 rounds, fending off wild rights but absorbing some left hands, and picking his spots, “Jenkins obviously carrying the greater amount of power”. Carmen apparently looked pretty crude at times, once pushing Jenkins to his knees and another time wrestling him to the ground without getting credited for any knockdowns. He also lost the fifth round on a low blow. The home-town hero had pretty much punched himself out by the last two rounds, which Jenkins dominated. At the end Carmen was “exhausted and bleeding about the face” but was awarded a split decision, the referee and one judge saying Basilio had won and the third judge ruling the bout a draw. The decision produced many boos from the 2,703 hometown fans at the Coliseum. Jenkins graciously said “It was a good fight. But I wasn’t robbed. The kid earned it.” It was an opportunity to learn against a crafty veteran and Carmen learned plenty that night in his first 10 round fight.
It had been reported that heavyweight champion Ezzard Charles would be in town to watch the Jenkins fight, on his way to Buffalo to fight Freddie Bashore but the Basilio-Jenkins bout was postponed due to a blizzard and Charles didn’t fight Bashore until 8/15. There was no mention of his presence in the post-fight article. The article did say that Al Weill of the International Boxing Club, which controlled boxing in New York, Chicago, and Detroit was “asking for reports on Basilio”.
On March 27th, Carmen “got his big break in New York”. Actually, it was in Brooklyn, where he lost in 8 rounds to Mike Koballa of Pittsburgh in the Parkway Arena. Koballa had won some fights there before and was favored but Basilio was becoming recognized as “one of the best welterweight prospects in the East.” But Koballa won a unanimous decision, scoring with “good combinations, especially in the fifth round, when he rained blows at Basilio from all directions.” The fight was the first time Carmen had been on television and that visibility figured to help his career, despite the loss. Across the ring, in Koballa’s corner, was Angelo Dundee, who would later be in Carmen’s corner for so many fights.
Carmen now had a series of fights in New Orleans, the first two against Gaby “Frenchy” Ferland of Montreal, who he knocked down four, (or five, depending on the account), times on 4/12 but had to settle for a much-booed 10 round draw. Ferland had been a local favorite and was cheered for during the bout but when Carmen got so clearly robbed the fans booed Ferland as he left the ring and cheered Basilio. The result made Carmen a favorite with the Big Easy fans. He made $1000.00 a fight down there, a lot more than he’d ever made in Syracuse. ($1000.00 more in many cases.) In a rematch a month later, (5/5), Carmen settled matters with a first round knock-out. A third fight with Ferland was announced for Montreal on June 6th, with a shot at Canadian welterweight champion Johnny Greco in the offing for the winner. But this was another bout that never came off. Instead Carmen had an exciting two bout series with Guillermo Jiminez “of South America”, (Argentina). He won the first “bloody slugfest” with an 8th round knock-out on 6/21 in New Orleans. “The referee stopped the bout after Basilio had punished his opponent badly.”
There was a report that recent Middleweight champ Rocky Graziano would come to Syracuse to fight at McArthur Stadium if a suitable opponent could be found. But nothing came of it, (Rocky was nursing an injured hand), and Carmen signed to fight Giminez in New Orleans again on 7/31. This time it took nine rounds to end it, with the same winner.
The Post Standard reported that Carmen would be going for his “28th victory in 31 professional fights” as he wrapped up his stint in the Crescent City with a battle against Eddie Giosa of Philadelphia in Pelican Stadium on 8/28. (The RRB/BoxRec has him 22-3-3 at that point). The paper reported that Carmen, with three knockouts in a row, had become “a favorite of New Orleans fans”. They said that “critics” down there were claiming Carmen for their own and boosting him for a shot at the welterweight crown should Sugar Ray Robinson move up to try for Jake LaMotta’s Middleweight crown. Carmen had Giosa on the canvas in the 6th round but lost a split decision. Bill Reddy later reported that Giosa was asked about a rematch but refused, supposedly because Basilio “hit too hard”, according to his manager.
The year ended with Carmen getting his first televised fight and his first fight in Madison Square Garden, on the occasion of the arena’s 25th anniversary, where he ran into Vic Cardell, “a sharp-punching youngster from Hartford, Connecticut”, “who stung Basilio repeatedly with a right hand wallop to the head”. Carmen broke his right hand halfway through the fight but kept battling. “Wild-swinging Basilio, a crude but willing battler, tired in the late rounds. Still, he came back with a late rally in the 10th. He shook up Cardell with a terrific left hook to the jaw. Basilio was cut around the right eye in the fifth round. However, the cut didn’t seem to bother him. He swarmed to the attack with his head down, swinging wildly.” Carmen won the referee’s card, 5-3-2. But Cardell won both judge’s 3-7. It was another setback, with more to come. But Carmen went 7-3-1 for the year and now had a record of 22-5-3 with 14 knockouts, more than half his career total.
Ed Linn: “For the next three months he was out of action. At Christmas he was broke. A couple of weeks later, his left hand still in a cast, he spent three successive nights shoveling snow from the streets of Syracuse. The $24.00 he earned was eating money.” It was at this point that he took a factory job. Carmen later said that he asked himself “Am I going to spend the rest of my life having that boss look at me? No way. I decided I had to make a comeback.” Linn: “Carmen, who was brought up on a farm, hated the stuffy, enclosed factory atmosphere. But even after he returned to the gym, he didn’t quit his job. He held onto it for two solid years, working days and training nights. He did not leave it until he won the New York State welterweight championship from Billy Graham. You do not easily forget the time when there was no money in the house on Christmas.”
