THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR

 

WPCNR RINGSIDE. By Johnny Cannon. February 7, 2005: Excuse me, while I tilt back my fedora, adjust the cigarette to the corner of my mouth, loosen my wide tie, pour myself a bourbon in a plastic cup and whack this  story out on my old Smith Corona….Rap-Tap-Tap-Tap—DING! back to the City Desk. Got to get this out on the wire, see, from the Las Vegas of the East, White Plains, New York.

 

THE FIGHT MOB FILING IN FOR THE NEW FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS. Balcony already was filled at 7:15 P.M. And the fans just kept on coming in up to the first gong and then some. Photo by WPCNR Sports

 

County Executive Andy Spano was there. County Legislator Bill Ryan was there. Vito Pinto was there. Those nirvanesses of nubility, the ringgirls were there to announce the rounds. The fan clubs were there with photos of their favorites.  Stiletto-heeled perfectly madeup dolls, both willowy and voluptuous in the front rows were there. Ghostly fedora-sporting Damon Runyon characters in gray rumpled suits from the 30s were there. They were joined by 3,600 fans filling that spiffy architectural artifact, perhaps America’s most architecturally significant arena, the Westchester County Center  in White Plains, Friday evening for a return to the primeval “sport” of boxing. The fight game was back.

 

THE MAN WHO BROUGHT BOXING BACK: County Executive Andy Spano, chats from his “Golden Ring” seat prior to the start of the fisticuffs. Mr. Spano told WPCNR, the last time he saw boxing in the County Center was with his father in 1948. The County Executive stayed the entire evening, joking with County Legislator Bill Ryan and enjoying the action.  Photo by WPCNR Sports.

As one of my companions said after hearing the savage slap of leather gloves on flesh punctuating the air, seeing the white spray of sweat flying off a head rocked by a overhand right,  checking out the willowly stiletto-heeled dolls in the front row, and fedora-d  Damon Runyon characters from the 30s, old men in satin jackets, appearing as ghostly reminisces of fight game hangerson from the past looming at ringside, reminscent of the Joe Palooka comic strip:  “It’s a brutal sport. Nothing sporting about it.”

 

JOEY RIOS FAN CLUB FROM DA BRONX.  Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

But fans—especially men – and the women that love them — love boxing.

 

 

RING ANNOUNCER INTRODUCES THE DAMAGER, MAX DAZUGIAN of Queens, in the blue trunks. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

Legions of fans from the Throgs Neck section of The Bronx filled the South Balcony to support “Joey” Rios, the flashy-fisted, relentless sculpted rocker, who won an 8-rounder from Alabama’s Chad Lanshawe. Fans of White Plains’ Woman of the Ring, Ann Marie Saccarato, were there to support her

 

The “Million Dollar Baby,” Ann Marie Saccarato, mixed hard nasty exchanges for 6 rounds with Victoria Cisneros , emerging with a unanimous decision. An equally strong and loud contingent of Irish lads serenaded their favorite John Duddy when he appeared for the Main Event shortly after 10:15 P.M.

 

The six-bout action Friday featured three solid bouts, and a first round knockout by the up-and-coming Irish Icon, Duddy. Buoyed by the success of the Friday night promotion, the promoter, Northeast Promotions is planning another card in April-May.

 

THE VIEW FROM THE $75 SEATS. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

There was a cathedral like buzz in the double-decked arena which to fighters it must feel as if the crowds are on their backs.

 

The cries of “Work the body. Body,  the body, kid,”  “Go after him, you got him  way to come back” were heard clear as the tolling of the gong bell to end each round. (Nothing like the mellow sombre tone of a boxing ring bell.)  

 

There were the collective gasps when a sweet punch connected and a fighter was staggered. The calls for blood when a fighter was taking it to another. The spectacle of the cutmen minimizing the swelling of their charges’ faces in the corners.

 

Parishioners of the Pugilistic Parish.

 

Unlike a baseball, basketball or hockey crowd, this crowd came to watch boxing as some would a ballet.  They hung on every punch. They were rapt with attention during the fights, good-natured, well-behaved, and did not come there to get smashed like thousands do at Yankee Stadium.

 

Other than the occasional howl for blood, the crowd was one of the best behaved this veteran observer has been in. There was no unruliness. No profanity, except for Irish fans good naturedly calling John Duddy, with admiration “You’re a sexy b—–d!” But they said it nicely, all in good fun.

 

The Lure of the Ring. 

 

I loved the feel of the County Center. It was dark. The ring spotlighted. There was the echoing  buzz of anticipation, as the crowd filed into the Cathedral of  Crunch. Northeast Promotions provided atmosphere with their ushers in satin ring jackets, while the courteous, headset-equipped County Center “Green Jackets” bantered and ushered very good naturedly.

 

Crowd-control was excellent. There was security, but it was cordial – kudos to the Parks and Rec boys for the  “at muss feah.”

 

 The debonair  announcer, resplendent in tux,  had all the panache of Las Vegas, with the big booming voice that gets the bloodlust flowing. There were the photographers shooting through the ropes. This was serious business. Boxing matches are the last place you can get the feel of what the old Roman Coliseum gladiator matches were like, or what it was like to go up against a man in the street with a gun in a showdown in Tombstone, Arizona, or Dodge City, and watch it. 

 

You arrive pumped, a little on edge inside, the tension tight in you. I cannot imagine what it must be like to be a fighter, getting into the mindset to face another man intent on hurting you and you intent on hurting him. It speaks to the aggression in all of us, I guess.

 

A Game Card.

 

The first Lightweight match featured Max  Daguzian, the Damager from Queens, in his second professional bout, that ended in Max’s second professional Draw with Keiron Armour. But the fight mob (all fight crowds are called mobs, it has nothing to do with their character), loved the fight, and was very disappointed in the majority Draw. They thought Max had pulled it out.

 

Max had his opponent backing away and clinching in the 3^rd and 4^th round, but kept just missing with the Finisher. Armour boxed him well and Daguizan mixed it up rough in the first two with Armour getting the better of it, making Max shake his head a couple of times, but no knock-downs.  The Damager came back in the third narrowly missing with a few roundhouses that put Armour on the defensive in Rounds 3 & 4. There were a lot of punches thrown in this warmup melee that caught the attention of the fans. One judge scored it in favor of Armour, the two other judges scored it a draw.

 

As one of my companions said, “This is good. The fighters are getting experience.”

 

The second Welterweight match found Mikel Williams injuring himself trying to elude a left from Del Rodriguez (13-1-1) at 1:53 of the first round. It appeared Williams had pulled a hamstring in his left thigh and the bout was stopped. This did not sit well with the fans.

 

New York Welterweight Champ, Russell Jordan (in Red Trunks) staggering Darien Ford on the ropes in Fight Three. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

The Third melee brought out White Plains Darien Ford against Russell Jordan (9-2), the New York State Welterweight champion, in the Welterweight class. This one went the distance with Jordan with a longer reach and punish rights and left crosses getting the better of Ford (10-8), who was consistently on the defensive. Ford made progress in the 5^th and 6^th rounds obviously hurting Jordan a couple of times when he got inside and punished with body shots. 

JORDAN AND FORD Going at it. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

 However, Ford could not get in that one shot. Ford’s inability to get inside and uppercut effectively, despite the encouraging of the local crowd cost him this fight. You never know, and though Jordan had a solid lead, Ford’s heart kept him dangerous.

 

Match of the Night.

 

The top fight of the night featured Joey “Mr.” Rios, Pride of the Bronx,  in the Light Welterweight division whose lightning fists and relentless pursuit kept the slower, more powerful Chad Lanshawe from Mobile, Alabama on the defensive for a full eight rounds.

LIGHTNING FISTS OF JOEY RIOS PUNISHING CHAD LANSHAWE INSIDE. Photo by WPCNR Sports

 

Lanshawe could not cover up quick enough in the first two rounds as Rios landed punch after punch, driving Lanshawe into the peek-a-boo cover up frequently. In the last 15 seconds of Round Two, Rios threw a  brutal down-and-under smashing left flush to Chad’s nose and mouth and it staggered him,  the fighter sagging against the far ropes.

 

HEY SPORTS FANS, WHAT ROUND IS IT?. Ringgirls generated joke after joke from the sheepish mostly male crowd, of “Did you see what round it was?” and “What round is it anyway?” and “I don’t know, I wasn’t looking at the sign.”  Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

RIOS POUNDING  Lanshawe into the ropes with a right then a left, causing the second knockdown of the Third Stanza, below. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

MR. RIOS IN FAR CORNER AS REFEREE COUNTS DOWN THE SECOND KNOCKDOWN OF THE THIRD ROUND. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

 

In the Third Round, Rios kept on coming, decking Chad on the far ropes, and again in the near corner, but could not finish him off. The fourth and fifth were somewhat lackluster rounds with Landshawe looking for openings but only getting in a smattering of head shots. Rios face appeared a little swollen from the Chad comeback, but at no time was Joey in serious trouble. Rios agility and covering up was too quick for Landshawe’s attempts to retrieve the fight. Landshawe’s mouth started to bleed in the 7^th and his nose in the 8^th. Rios won a unanimous decision to the roars of his fans.

 

This was highly entertaining pugilism, the faster, superbly conditioned Rios sustaining a high level through eight rounds, the slugger Lanshawe showing the heart to stay in the action, hanging around, but unable to muster the combination to pull out the fight.

 

White Plains Million Dollar Baby Works the Multitudes, Brawls with the Best.

 

Then the second local fighter of the night made her entrance, leaping and pumping fists from the “coliseum depths,” surrounded by “Team Saccurato.” The corn-rowed personal trainer, National Golden Gloves Champ  Ann Marie Saccurato, a resident of White Plains Northend, took on beginner Victoria Cisneros (3-2).  She was confronted with a young woman who went right after her. Ann Marie gave it right back, the two women trading punches and flurries over and over. Not much boxing here just channeled fury.  No knockdowns, but Ann Marie clearly having Cisneros on the run.

 

 

White Plains Million Dollar Baby, right, going after Vickie Cisneros, left. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

I tell you these two women went after each other hammering in close slugging it out in rousing exchanges with Ann Marie taking a lot of shots to the head, but Cisneros getting more of it right back. These exchanges roused lusty roars of appreciation from the crowd. The exchanges were too fast to freeze.

 

Saccurato, still riding on post-fight adrenalin, signing autographs after the fight,  said “I was really excited getting in there. I just tried to stay calm and play my game. She (Cisneros) wanted to brawl. She didn’t want to box too much so I had to make some adjustments in there. I didn’t do everything I wanted to do, but came out with a win anyways. I’m happy, I’ll take it.”

 

Asked how Cisneros compared to her previous fights, Saccurato said, “She was definitely a lot sloppier. Not one of my tougher fights, no.”

 

Saccurato loves the ring, throwing t-shirts, little boxing gloves and other souvenirs to the throng and dancing around the ring after her glove was held up. (Little Richard does this after his concerts.) She says she does not know what her next fight will be, but takes it one at at time.

 

Main Event Knock Out.

 

The only knock out the evening came from Irish John Duddy (8-0), who was supported by a loud contingent of young lads with Irish accents, singin Irish soccer songs at the top of their lungs. Duddy made short work of Chuck Orso (4-6) with a strong right hand that dumped Orso into the far ropes and a left to the back of the head as Orso was going down. Duddy’s power and height appeared to have Orso intimidated, and Orso appeared to lose his footing leading into the finishing right  that put him down into the ropes and the wrap around left that finished him off, down dazed to stay.

 

JOHN DUDDY AWASH IN ROARS AFTER K-O-ING CHUCK ORSO AT 1:37 OF THE FIRST ROUND. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

 

 

4 to 6 Bouts a Year to Come: Northeast Promotions.

 

The evening drew 3,500 to the Chapel of  Pugilistic Prayer according to Walter Lambert of Northeast Promotions, interviewed by WPCNR Sports Monday.

 

WPCNR estimates the gate (with tickets at 75, 40 and 25)  at about a $200,000 gross, before the concession take. Beer was going for $5.50 a cup, but this was not a drinking crowd. They were there to watch a fight.

 

The old arena, 75 years old now, spruced up with magnificent renovations and colorful interior, is easily the most attractive arena in the metropolitan area. Its massive monumental towers make it an architectural hybrid of the Temple of Luxor in Egypt, the Baths of Caracalla in Rome and old Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto and the Detroit Olympia. Places that spoke of greatness.

 

All that was missing was a lit marquee say “Boxing Tonight, 7:30 P.M.” (The Marquee is being refurbished according to the County.)

 

Walter Lambert of Northeast Promotions told WPCNR  “We’re very pleased for a first time booking. Demographically the area is just right.” He mentioned there were a lot of ethnic groups that would be drawn to future cards.

 

Lambert told WPCNR he wanted to do six fight nights a year at the County Center. “We’re going to sit down and talk with them (the county) and proceed to work it out and bring in 4 to 6 cards a year.”

 

“This was a good card Friday,” Lambert said, “but we’re going to bring in our more of our upper-echelon fighters to make even better cards, and bringing in local fighters popular in the area.”

 

Lambert said he expected the next card to be scheduled for April or May.

 

All that was missing Friday night from the past was the blue haze of cigar smoke.

 

THE COUNTY CENTER ON FIGHT NIGHT. Photo by WPCNR Sports.

 

 

WPCNR STAGE DOOR. From Oscar Sales, Jr. White Plains Performing Arts Center. February 4, 2005: Two legendary actors take the stage at the White Plains Performing Arts Center in a new dramatic play by Jeffrey Sweet. The Value of Names is an intriguing look at the aftermath of the Hollywood blacklisting of the 1950’s. The Value of Names is directed by James Glossman and plays the White Plains Performing Arts Center March 4-13, 2005.

Set on the patio of a beachside home in Malibu in 1981, Jack Klugman (The Odd Couple, Quincy) plays actor Benny Silverman, star of the hit situation comedy Rich But Happy, whose career was interrupted by the Hollywood blacklist. His daughter, Norma, has just been cast in a play to be directed by Leo Greshen, the man who testified against Benny before the House Un-American Activities Commission.

Suddenly, Benny must deal with the troubling history he has tried to forget. At Norma’s urging, Benny meets Leo, played by Louis Zorich (Mad About You, Brooklyn Bridge). The two men, who were once great friends, but have not spoken to each other in thirty years, are forced to confront one another.  The Value of Names explores issues of culpability, forgiveness, and how the next generation must deal with the mistakes from the past through a provocative and passionate exchange of ideas.

Growing up in Philadelphia, Jack Klugman knew he wanted to be an actor and after World War II, used his GI Bill to attend Carnegie Tech in Pittsburg. His first big break on the New York stage came with a role opposite Kim Stanley in St. Joan followed by Stevedore with Rod Steiger. On Broadway, he starred in Golden Boy, Mr. Roberts, The Odd Couple, Gypsy (with Ethel Merman), Tchin-Tchin and The Sudden and Accidental Reeducation of Horse Johnson. Jack then moved on to films and television. His numerous film appearances include: Timetable, Twelve Angry Men, Days of Wine and Roses, Act One, The Dective, Goodbye Columbus, The Two Minute Warning and many others. But it is his television starring roles in “The Odd Couple” and “Quincy” that have given him his greatest triumphs and have earned him many prestigious awards including three Emmys, a Golden Globe and a Chloe Award.

Louis Zorich has worked extensively in the theatre. His Broadway credits include: Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Follies, 45 Seconds from Broadway, She Loves, Me, Arms and the Man, Death of a Salesman (with Dustin Hoffman), and many others. A frequent performer at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, he co-founded the Whole Theatre with his wife, Olympia Dukakis. He has appeared in over 300 television shows and as a series regular in “Brooklyn Bridge” and “Mad About You.”

Jeffrey Sweet is resident playwright at the Tony Award-winning Victory Gardens Theatre. He has premiered or developed more than a dozen plays, many of which have gone on to successful mountings around the country and internationally. He was won two American Theatre Critics Association playwriting prizes, the Kennedy Center American Express Award, the Joseph Jefferson Award, a “Best Plays” Citation and the Outer Critics Circle Award. He is currently a faculty member of Lehman College.

The Value of Names also stars Megan Muchelmann as Norma and is directed by James Glossman.

The Value of Names plays the White Plains Performing Arts Center from March 4-13, 2005. Tickets are $32.50-$45 with Senior Citizen and Group discounts available. To order tickets, call the Box Office at 888-977-2250. Visit our web site at www.wppac.com.

The Value of Names is made possible in part with special funding from the David Schwartz Foundation.