http://amatoboxingsite.multiply.com/reviews/item/12

www.prizefightingbooks.com

---

Harry Otty's book does a commendable job of informing the reader about Charley Burley the man and the fighter. Boxing fans will like that the author provides detailed descriptions of the action in Burley's important bouts; a brief background of most of his opponents and mini-biographies of many of his top-flight adversaries (such as fellow forgotten greats Holman Williams, Jack Chase, Eddie Booker, Cocoa Kid, Lloyd Marshall, etc); details of Burley's many hand injuries, and how they often forced him to put his career on hold and how they affected how he fought; background as to how Burley learned many of the techniques and tactics he would employ in the 'squared circle'; many interesting anecdotes about incidents between Burley and other fighters in and out of the ring (such as the time that ranked heavyweight contender Elmer 'Violent' Ray tried to show up Burley during a sparring session and ended up getting coldcocked); interesting tidbits of boxing's seedier side and how boxing politics affected the careers of those who didn't 'play the game'; the cited opinions of many of Burley's great contemporaries and other boxing experts as to his abilities and where he stands among boxing greats; and Burley's professional ring record (which lists who he fought, when they fought, where they fought, how much each of them weighed, and the bout's outcome). Readers who aren't hardcore boxing fans will also enjoy this book because Otty reminds older readers and informs younger ones as to life in the 1930s, '40s, and '50s, and illustates what it was like to be a black man in that era.
As for the complaint made by fellow reviewer 'Peter' that "the mystery why Burley didn't get a world title shot is not solved", well, Peter, it was. Harry Otty actually points out several reasons why Burley (who fought from 1936 to 1950 and was in his prime from about 1941 to 1945) never fought for either the welterweight or middleweight title, including the following: two weeks after winning the welterweight title in 1940, Fritzie Zivic and his manager bought Burley's contract so that Zivic wouldn't have to give his two-time conqueror a title shot and, after he lost the championship in 1941, Zivic held onto the contract in order to prevent Burley from coming between him and another title try; after the United States entered World War II, the world titles were 'frozen' so that the boxing champs could contribute to the war effort, so NO ONE was given a welterweight or middleweight title shot from 1942 to 1946; before the 'alphabet' title organizations (like the WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO, etc, etc) came along (and ruined boxing), there were no such things as 'mandatory title defenses', so champions were free to avoid any contender they chose to ('big fights' simply came about as the result of fan demand i.e. $!); and the fight game and many of its champions were controlled by the mob, and contenders, like Burley, who refused to bow down to these thugs, were denied title shots (for example, Jake LaMotta had to throw a fight with Billy Fox before he received his long overdue try for middleweight laurels). Add to all that the fact that Burley was a great fighter and that several of the post-war champs had been ducking him since before the war, and its not hard to see why he never challenged for a title, which is a pity because Charley Burley was a hell of a fighter.
As a boxing historian I disagree with the review below. There simply is no cut and dried answer as to why Burley never received his title shot. There are several factors, many of which the author not only goes into but does so in detail. The main reasons I personally advocate:

1. Burley was good. No, GREAT. He was a maximum risk, minimal gain proposition for the champions and best avoided if they wanted to keep their titles.

2. Management/connections. Burley didn't have good connections in his career and had a habit of changing managers.

The above mentioned reasons are why many fighters throughout history never received a title shot or a chance at a fight with another great. A more recent example would be Mike McCallum who, like Burley, changed managers often and also represented a max. risk/min. gain proposition. But luckily for McCallum he was able to benifit from the multiple "championship" belts floating around and snagged one. Had there been only one, as was the case in Burley's day, he may have found himself shut-out of the title picture as well.

The only place I disagree with historians regarding Burley was his race being a factor. Blacks had been fighting for world titles since the 1800s(Joe Walcott, George Dixon, etc) and there were black titleholders at the time of Burley's prime. So I don't see race being a factor here. The problem is that when a white titleholder ducks a black it's called "racism". When a black champ does it(as Ray Robinson, Jack Johnson, Henry Armstrong and Joe Louis all did) it's called "smart business".

What shines through mostly in this work is the author's love of his subject, which is always nice in the case of a bio. If you're interested in Burley, the fighters and the climate of the times then you will enjoy this opus enormously. I highly recommend it.
  This outstanding effort from Harry Otty is an essential purchase for anyone who wants to know more about a true great of the ring. Until this book, Burley was largely overlooked by other authors prefering it seems to produce safe and marketable books on already well known fighter's such as Robinson and Ali et al. But Mr Otty has not only been meticulous in his research of possibly the greatest and most overlooked fighter to lace on a pair of gloves, but in doing so has produced a book that is quite simply brilliant. The author met the great man and relays his meetings in this engrossing read together with a detailed analysis of the "Black Murderer's Row" including other great fighter's denied a chance of fighting for the championsip. If you thought the great fighter's of the post depression era ended with Louis, Robinson and La Motta, be prepared for a shock. This book will educate you otherwise.

You will not be disappointed with this work, it really is that good.

More about the man, 4 May 2006
Reviewer: Simon Fox from(Doncaster, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom

There are 2 prominant biographies around at the moment about Charley Burley, this is the better of the 2. The biographer met the boxer and actually spoke to his family and friends. the reader does get a sense of who the man was and also a grasp of his ability, frustrations and of how american society was. This is also an easier read than the other biography. this book is worth reading.

Reviewer: Alister Scott Ottesen from Oslo, Norway

A tremendous read, July 12, 2005 Reviewer: pcubbon from Kirk Michael, Isle of Man United Kingdom.

I have read many boxing books and this is up there with the best. The work that has gone into the book is first rate and like the previous reviewers I did not realise how good this guy was. I would definately recommend this book.


An excellent read, April 24, 2005 Reviewer: tosti16 from London England.

With the majority of Boxing books covering the Heavyweight division, particularly the Ali era, this book proved to be both an enlightening and refreshingly personal account of Burley and his contemporaries. The level of research and knowledge was excellent, and the book opens up many avenues of interest for boxing history enthusiasts. However the text is not 'weighed down' by facts and figures and the personal quotes from family members and friends gives a well formed character background for Burley himself. By the time Burley's career was on the downward trend, and he was evidently not going to get a crack at the World crown, you started to feel a small part of the frustration that Burley and other black fighters of his and other era's must have felt.


ONE OF THE BEST BOXING BOOKS EVER, January 23, 2005 Reviewer: jsh5876 from Rhyl, Denbighshire United Kingdom.

I have recently sold all of my boxing books but this is one I will not sell. This excellent book is a must have for any boxing fan. The book is well researched and expertly written. The boxers featured are unheralded fighters who are unknown even to some ardent boxing fans. Avoided by all the champions of the time, including the great Sugar Ray Robinson, Charley Burley and The other boxers in the Black Murderers Row would all be, without doubt, multi weight long reigning World Champions if they were fighting today and not in the era when boxers could be so blatantly sidestepped. This book is a long overdue credit to these amazing fighters and Uncrowned Champions.


A must read book, June 19, 2004 Reviewer: Anthony Evans from Wales

This is a fantastic book, a real eye opener in so much as exposing a few forgotten facts. Sugar Ray Robinson and Henry Armstrong are usually referred to as fearless fighters only too eager to have fought anybody in their day, but these two, and many more of the well-known fighters of their day avoided all the long forgotten fighters that made up the `Black murderers row`. Charley Burley may be the better known of the avoided few, but this book also gives details on the other fighters avoided, names I had never heard of before, but looking through their records, that are included in the book, gives an indication of why they were so carefully sidestepped and frozen out. A fantastic book that everybody with an interest in boxing should read. I have read many, many boxing books and this one is one of the best.

---

REVIEW FROM THE CYBERBOXINGZONE
In a time when hard-core research has about as much appeal as asparagus ice cream, boxing historian Harry Otty has scoured the record and produced one of the best boxing books of the past 50 years. Since this review is going to be read by hardcore boxing fans, the name Harry Otty needs no introduction. It is undisputed that Burley was an excellent technician who is one of the two or three best fighters never to have won a title belt. Longtime readers of the CBZ will recall that as we developed our Black Dynamite section, Mr. Otty provided an amazing bio for Burley's Web page. Now, five years later, Otty has expanded his research and his scope and presents the story of Burley and several other top black fighters in a truly compelling way. Burley comes to life in these pages. Although obviously Otty thinks highly of Burley both as a man and as a fighter, he never crosses the line to uncritical hero worship. The book uses both archival newspaper reports and interviews conducted with Burley, his family and his friends, to reveal the story of a man whose talents should not be forgotten. This book is a classic of its kind and no good boxing library should be without a copy.

Mike DeLisa Author: The James J. Braddock Story: Cinderella Man