'I done tussled with a whale!'
'I done tussled with a whale!'
In the near perfect documentary that is 'When We Were Kings', this is my favourite moment. Fifty years ago today.
This is such an incredible 1.17 of footage. It combines underdog storytelling, peerless braggadocio, beautifully constructed jokes, rhyming couplets, and and an emotional last line, ‘I’m going to show you how great I am’, or at least it gets imbued with emotion when you consider what Ali is about to do in Zaire, and the extent to which he’ll show the world how great he is.
If you’ve never seen it, what a joy this is.
I’ll confess I’ve rung reception at the Waldorf Astoria to ask if there is anyone still working there who was in the room fifty years ago. If you know a journalist or Ali handler or pretty much anyone who can talk about this speech, let me know in the comments. I’d love to have them on the podcast.
Thanks to recent new paid subscribers ⭐ Renee Burch ⭐Bianca Walton ⭐ Kim Ferguson ⭐ Falcon Cleft ⭐ Amanda Beecroft ⭐ Peter @ The Whytes ⭐Peter Evans ⭐ Peter Quill ⭐ Benjamin Barrington-Higgs ⭐ David Bravos ⭐ and the ever generous Phillipa Smyth
Muhammad Ali: 'That's right. I have wrestled with an alligator. I done tussled with a whale', The Greatest speech - 1974
17 September 1974, Waldorf Astoria, New York, USA
‘It is befitting that I leave the game just like I came in, beating a big bad monster who knocks out everybody and no one can whupp him. That's when little Cassius Clay from Louisville, Kentucky, came up to stop Sonny Liston. The man who annihilated Floyd Patterson twice. HE WAS GONNA KILL ME! But he hit harder than George. His reach is longer than George's. He's a better boxer than George. And I'm better now than I was when you saw that 22-years old undeveloped kid running from Sonny Liston. I'm experienced now, professional. Jaws been broke, been knocked down a couple of times, I'm bad! Been chopping trees. I done something new for this fight. I done wrestled with an alligator. That's right. I have wrestled with an alligator. I done tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail. That's bad! Only last week I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick! I'm so mean I make medicine sick!
DON KING: Bad dude!
Bad, fast! Fast! Fast! Last night I cut the light off in my bedroom, hit the switch and was in the bed before the room was dark.
DON KING: Incredible.
And you George Foreman, all you chumps are going to bow when I whupp him. All of ya. I know you've got him. I know you've got him picked. But the man's in trouble. I'm going to show you how great I am.’
On the subject of great sporting documentaries, I’ve made one! Ange & The Boss will screen in Sydney (17th October), Melbourne (20 October) and Palermo (first week of December).
It’s the story of the great Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas’ time in Australia. He coached South Melbourne Hellas in the NSL, and his 1991 championship winning captain was current Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou.
Here’s the trailer:
My fellow filmmaker Cam Fink wrote a good spruik on social media yesterday, and I’ll copy that below. You can buy tickets to Sydney and Melbourne shows through the Greek Film Festival. (links below)
I made a film! And you’re invited to the premiere
Santo Cilauro thinks it’s “genuinely astonishing, beautifully nostalgic, and bloody funny”. Santo’s from the team behind the classic Australian movie The Castle. I’ll take it!
It’s a sports documentary, but it’s also a film about life in Australia. It’s about immigrant identity and belonging, gluttonous pasta consumption, and the broken window winder in Ange Postecoglou’s Datsun 200B.
It's called Ange & The Boss: Puskas in Australia.
It tells the improbable story of all-time great Hungarian footballer Ferenc Puskas finding himself in Melbourne in the late 80s, coaching the Greek NSL team South Melbourne Hellas. Barely able to speak English and comedically overweight, he united and inspired the team to a dramatic championship win in 1991. Eating, drinking, and enjoying himself along the way.
My co-directors Tony Wilson, Rob Heath and I had a great time interviewing the stars of the team; Ange Postecoglou, Paul Trimboli, Miki Peterson. We interviewed more than twenty people for the film, and all were full of fondness and appreciation for this amazing chapter of their lives.
We had less of a great time finding out exactly how complicated making a proper film can be, and how expensive using footage from World Cups and Olympic Games is!
But we’re at the finish line, and excited to invite you to the premiere. Well, premieres. I’m not sure how many premieres you’re technically allowed to have, but I’m going for minimum three.
Sydney
Thursday 17th October @ 6:30 - Palace Norton Street
Melbourne
Sunday 20th October @ 4:30pm - The Astor Theatre
We’re doing a live Q&A with Paul Trimboli (both) Miki Peterson (Melbourne) and Simon Hill (Sydney) after the screenings. I’ll be there an hour before each session if you want to hang out and have a chat!
Would absolutely LOVE to see you there. Grab your tickets today!
Italy
If you can’t make either of those dates, you’re welcome to join us in Palermo in Sicily. Our film has been selected for the Paladino d’Oro Sport Film Festival in December. Also quite exciting!