Time flies when you’re on vacation and I’m writing this live in Santa Fe New Mexico…
I’m going to keep it short because, after all, it is a vacation but I’ve got some important news updates to share that I’ll be fleshing out later today and tomorrow.
For starters, the Tommy Morrison news that Brandon broke locally Friday – I checked the Star, Pitch and that Tony character and they had nada – was huge. And Brandon put it in perfect perspective. Kansas City has a huge inferiority complex which is why we put our sports heroes – however few – on such loft pedestals.
And Tommy Morrison – even though he wasn’t even close to being from KC – was right up there with Len Dawson, George Brett and Tom Watson, just like Brandon said.
Except that Tommy was a known bad boy.
Don’t get me wrong, Dawson, Brett and Watson have plenty of skeletons in their closets.
There were the rumors of the alleged playing around by Lenny back in the day, and his former wife’s somewhat mysterious death. Then of course, there were the persistent rumors of Brett’s being gay. And then Watson’s divorce and remarriage to golfer Dennis Watson‘s wife (she didn’t even have to change her last name) that was the talk the the PGA tour at the time. I can’t even tell you the rumor about what Watson’s first wife allegedly did on the tour leading to their divorce.
I know about the Dennis Watson dea lbecause a friend of mine who manages a number of heavy hitter alt rock bands played in a pro-am tourney at the time and told me that’s all everyone on the tour was talking about.
Tommy though was in a league of his own.
There was no tip-toeing about, no behind closed doors rumors, no whisper campaigns. Morrison’s peccadillos were out there front and center for all to see and marvel over.
Sources in his boxing camp at the time of his HIV diagnosis told me there wasn’t anybody he wouldn’t have his way with.
Seriously.
Old young, fat, skinny, good-looking, ugly – if they could stand up and walk into a room Tommy was in – he was ready, willing and able to thrash the daylights out of them.
And for that, Tommy paid the price.
There are 8 million Tommy Morrison stories in the Naked Cowtown and over the course of the last 20 years and I’ve covered about 7 million of them.
Tommy’s dalliances were so bold, bad and bodacious they made Craig Glazer’s seem like Boy Scout good deeds by comparison.
I’ll be following up on the news and reliving some of Tommy’s “greatest hits” in the days to come.
Stay tuned.
Tommy use to come into the Longbranch Saloon a lot and yes I have seen the bad boy side more than once. But how it was then, you got famous and went nuts all at the same time.
Are you thinking about which of your enemies you will be using Tommy’s passing to take a swipe at? Considering how much ink you spilled over Tommy at the Star, I would imagine it will have to be someone there.
Obsess much?
kettle calling the pot black?
KSHB-TV41 had it in their Friday early news. Meanwhile the Star’s paper edition didn’t have it until Saturday.
Please don’t tease Hearne. What did Watson’s first wife do? Was Dennis Watson’s wife hot or something?
She’s Tom Watson’s wife not. So a lateral move, last name wise.
How about you do a little reading between the lines. Shouldn’t be too hard. There was a story going round at the time that Mrs. Watson surprised Mrs. Watson on the tour someplace she was not supposed to be.
Watson got the divorce sealed for a very questionable reason, I might add. That the business informations, sponsors, etc, would damage his career.
Like other pro golfers would lear what kind of deals he had and that would hurt him. A joke.
I have a better idea as to why he wanted it sealed.
Well, if I can say this without sounding crass, hotter
Man, all the great times I had with Tommy partying is Westport. One day he came to the club where I was coaching young boxing students, future champions and as a personal favor to me, since he and I were so close, he……….oh, wait; that wasn’t me.
You nut
Oh harlinator! Wait, that isn’t you.
Harley, you’re a tool. A little teenie tiny tool. The kind you use to work on your glasses.
I will say this for Morrison or at least his pre diagnose days, he may well have been self destructive, but compared to the Ray Lewis, Mike Tyson ,Aaron Hernandez, type atheletes today, Morrison wasn’t so bad.
****Disclaimer: This comment is based on pure supposition. I don’t personally know tommy Morrison, Ringo Starr, or even Chuck for that matter. I did once see Squiggy of Laverne and Shirley fame at LAX .He was in a wheel chair. Lenny wasn’t with him. That’s all I got.*
and I had a beer with Telly Savalas.
just sayin…
I had beer with Paul Newman on several occasions
Little known fact Dave, Harley choreographed Fred Astaire’s dance number in “The Towering Inferno”.
Whats with all these “I know stories about Tommy Morrison but I can’t say anything” Grow up. If you have something to share, share it. Otherwise don’t act like a bunch of little girls keeping secrets.
Kind of an inside joke thing and the joke may let his presence be known soon like a bad flareup of the herpes.
I’m going to share my stories but I’m on vacation dude and it’s going to take some time.
I’m not going to spell out the Mrs Watson’s stories for you no matter how much you goad me. But c’mon. You’re smart. You know what I’m saying.
Gave you a bit more in my comment answer above.
I knew harley. I worked with harley. You’re no harley babe. He was one cool cat. He choreographed my Mr. Bojangles dance routine and suggested the glass eye over the patch.
Harley was also the stunt double for the fireplace in “Citizen Kane”.
Harley taught chuck Norris and cosmo kramer karate.
OK, tell my about Lenny and his first wife. Never heard about that.
Her death as I recall was very unexpected and mysterious.
Huh, I thought Tommy died a long time ago at the hands of Ray Mercer.