If you’ve ever seen “Rocky” or most of it’s sequels then you definitely know who Tony Burton is, even if not by name. He first came to fame in the first Rocky movie as World Champion- Apollo Creed’s trainer- Tony “Duke” Evers. Later in the series he went on to coach Rocky as well.
Burton died on Feb. 25th at the age of 78. Most know of his acting career but he was also a legitimate amateur boxer and even went pro. From wiki
“His boxing career included the Flint Golden Gloves light heavyweight championship in 1955 and 1957. Burton won the State Golden Gloves Light Heavyweight Championship in 1957 and lost in the Chicago Tournament of Champions semi-finals. He fought as a professional boxer in 1958 and 1959. During that time he was knocked out by knockout artist Lamar Clark who holds the record for most consecutive knockouts at 44.”
Rip “Duke”
Eric Scott
Photo credit- Rocky IV still.