PARROT TALK

Wednesday was Muhammad Ali’s 65th birthday. You can wish Ali a Happy Birthday yourself on this site.
One of our favorite pieces on the walls here is this photo of Ali with The Beatles taken at the 5th Street Gym in Miami Beach in the early sixties. The Beatles were on their first visit to America and Ali was in Florida training with Angelo Dundee for his bout with Sonny Liston I believe. Also pictured ringside,on Ali’s right wearing glasses and a bowtie is Don Dunphy, The voice that brought the Gillette Cavalcade of Sports into many a barroom and living room for more than 2 decades during the Golden Age of the sweet science.

Fast Forward to twenty years or so after that photo was taken, I’ll say 1983. I was standing on the curb on this corner in front of the bar, holding my son, who was about 2 years old, in my arms waiting to cross the street.
A limosine pulls up directly in front of us, the tinted glass of the back window glides down and we are less than a foot from what is arguably the most recognizable face in the world: Ali. He stares directly at my son Nick, cocks his head slightly towards his upraised left fist and remaining completely deapan, he points with his right hand at the now swaying menacing left. The light changes and, without anyone of us uttering a word, as the limo pulls away, he gives us a nod and a wisp of a smile that was so sweet I’ll never forget it. Happy Birthday.