Remember A ‘Garden’ Of Bouts
Local boxers came together in Sunnyside on Saturday, Oct. 6 as a plaque was unveiled on the site of the old Sunnyside Garden Arena at 44th Street and Queens Boulevard.
The 2,000-seat site, originally built for tennis by in 1926 by millionaire Jay Gould. Once it was sold in 1945, it became home to professional boxing, pro wrestling, roller derby, bingo games and more. It also hosted John F. Kennedy during his presidential campaign in 1960.
In 1977, the building was torn down; a Wendy’s franchise currently sits on the site, and the plaque was placed in the front yard.
“The way this place closed, it never had a sendoff,” said David Diamante, the voice of the new Barclays Center who served as the master of ceremonies.
The ceremony was spearheaded by Ring 8, an organization that helps former fighters with medical expenses. The organization meets regularly at the Waterfront Crabhouse in Long Island City.
History
According to Diamante, the Sunnyside
Garden Arena was one of 20 fight clubs that existed during that time period.
Many of the boxers who fought in those days returned to the site for the ceremony, including Bobby Cassidy Sr. (whose son became a boxing writer), Charley Norkus Sr., Bobby Bartels and Lenny Mangiapane.
Cassidy fought 25 times in Sunnyside at middleweight and light heavyweight, compiling a 22-3 record.
Cassidy’s first fight was at the Sunnyside Garden, he noted, was a 38-second knockout; he was 18 years old at the time.
According to Norkus’ son Charley Jr., his father, a Bellerose native had 14 televised fights, and was once ranked fifth in the heavyweight division.
The online boxing site BoxRec.com shows Norkus took forby mer world heavyweight champion Ezzard Charles the distance in a February 1955 bout at Madison Square Garden, losing a unanimous decision.
Diamante would note that the late Bill Gallo, who wrote boxing columns for the New York Daily News, called Sunnyside Garden “the minor leagues of boxing.”
Henry Hascup, a historian for the nonprofit group Ring 8, noted that Gerry Cooney fought his first professional bout at in Sunnyside, and 10 world champions fought in the ring in Queens.
Actor Tony Danza fought his second professional bout in Sunnyside, Hascup noted; “he was knocked out in the first round.”
In all, 2,039 men donned the gloves for 439 shows.
“They didn’t have fights here, they had wars,” said Harold Lederman, a former judge who serves as the unofficial scorekeeper for HBO boxing telecasts. “These guys here were really great fighters.”
“One of the guys was talking about how great it was to walk into Sunnyside Gardens,” he noted. “Let me tell you, it wasn’t too great for us judges walking out of here because there was always a manager with a ice pick right behind me saying ‘how did I score it against my guy.”
“What boxing could use today was another Sunnyside Garden, that’s for sure,” he concluded. “Anyone who loves boxing loves Sunnyside Gardens.”
The site also featured numerous pro wrestling events. In one bout in 1961, wrestling legend Bruno Sammartino would battle Chick Garibaldi in a match where Garibaldi would die in the ring of a heart attack.
According to Leonore Lanzillotti, one of those who helped organize the ceremony, the site also featured roller derby; she played on a team called The Chiefs in the 1950s.
Paying respects
Assembywoman Catherine Nolan, City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer and Community Board 2 Chairperson Joseph Conley also came to honor the old arena. Both Nolan and Van Bramer noted their families’ ties to boxing, as Nolan’s father was a Golden Glove from the Queensbridge Houses, while Van Bramer’s father was a regular attendee of fight nights at the Sunnyside Arena.
Conley lauded Ring 8’s Tony Mazzarella, founder of the state Boxing Hall of Fame, for his work in organizing the dedication.
“I think this is such a wonderful, momentous, historic, yet humble occasion,” Melvina Lathan, chairperson of the New York State Athletic Commission, told the crowd. “I’m so proud to be a part of this for the community and for all the boxing participants and the boxing family.”
At the ceremony, Patricia Dorfman of the Sunnyside Chamber of Commerce unveiled the original ring bell from the arena.
The bell was used for a final 10-count honoring the boxers of the old arena at the urging of Bob Duffy, Ring 8’s president.
After the 10-count, the plaque was finally unveiled. The inscription reads:
“This monument is in honor and dedicated to those men who fought in the amateurs and professional bouts.”
