Charles L. "Sonny" Liston, nicknamed "The Big Bear", was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round, repeating the knockout the following year in defense of the title; in the latter fight he also became the inaugural WBC heavyweight champion. Often regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time, Liston was particularly known for his immense strength, formidable jab, long reach, toughness, and is widely regarded as the most intimidating man in the history of the sport.
Donald King is an American boxing promoter, known for his involvement in several historic boxing matchups.
Charles "Chuck" Wepner is an American former professional boxer. He fell just nineteen seconds short of a full fifteen rounds against world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali in a 1975 championship fight. Wepner also scored notable wins over Randy Neumann and former world heavyweight champion Ernie Terrell. He was also the last man to fight former undisputed world heavyweight champion Sonny Liston.
Dashiell Raymond Mihok is an American actor and director known for playing Brendan "Bunchy" Donovan in the Showtime drama series Ray Donovan.
Larry Joe Campbell is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Andy on the ABC sitcom According to Jim.
Kadeem Hardison is an American actor. The son of fashion model Bethann Hardison, he rose to prominence after landing the role of Dwayne Wayne on the television series A Different World, a spin-off of the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show. He is also known for playing Craig Cooper, the title character's father, in the Disney Channel series K.C. Undercover. Hardison has also appeared in the first season of the Showtime comedy Black Monday and starred as Bowser in the Netflix series Teenage Bounty Hunters.
Grace Zabriskie is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Sarah Palmer in Twin Peaks and its film prequel Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), Lois Henrickson in Big Love, as well as in cult films such as two of David Lynch's films: Juana Durango in Wild at Heart (1990) and Visitor #1 in Inland Empire (2006). Other film roles include Norma Rae (1979), An Officer and a Gentleman (1982), Nickel Mountain (1984), The Big Easy (1986), Leonard Part 6 (1987), Drugstore Cowboy (1989), Child's Play 2 (1990), My Own Private Idaho (1991), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993), Armageddon (1998), Gone in 60 Seconds (2000), and The Grudge (2004). She is also known for her recurring roles on such shows as Seinfeld, Charmed, and Ray Donovan.
Edward Maurice Charles Marsan is an English actor. He won the London Film Critics Circle Award and the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor for the film Happy-Go-Lucky (2008).
The Game is an American television series created by Mara Brock Akil. A spin-off of UPN's Girlfriends, the series premiered on its successor network The CW on October 1, 2006.
In individual combat sports, a tomato can, or simply can, is a fighter with comparatively poor or diminished skills who may be considered an easy opponent to defeat, or a "guaranteed win." Fights with tomato cans can be arranged to inflate the win total of a professional fighter. Similarly, a fighter whose record consists of wins over easy opponents is referred to as a "can crusher". The phrase originates in the childhood pastime of kicking a can down the street—a boxer is advancing his career with minimal effort by defeating a tomato can and notching a win. "Tomato" refers to blood: "knock a tomato can over, and red stuff spills out."
CBS has occasionally broadcast boxing events; its first broadcast occurred in 1948. The network's most recent broadcasts of the sport have fallen under Al Haymon's Premier Boxing Champions banner, and its most recent primetime broadcasts have been produced by sister pay television channel Showtime.
Cory Hardrict is an American actor. He has appeared in film and television since the late 1990s.
Melanie Barnett-Davis is a fictional character, portrayed by actress Tia Mowry, who appears in the American sitcom The Game, which aired on the CW Television Network and BET from 2006 to 2015. Introduced in a backdoor pilot on the sitcom Girlfriends as Joan Clayton's cousin, Melanie chooses to support her boyfriend Derwin Davis' career with the San Diego Sabres, a fictional National Football League (NFL) team, rather than attend medical school at Johns Hopkins University. The series focuses primarily on Melanie and Derwin's complicated relationship, with her fears of his infidelity at the center of many of the episodes' storylines. Mowry left the series in 2012 upon learning that her role would be reduced as a result of co-star Pooch Hall's decision to reduce his role on The Game to appear in the crime drama series Ray Donovan. Both actors reprised their roles in the series finale, in which Melanie gives birth to twins.
Ray Donovan is an American crime drama television series created by Ann Biderman for Showtime. The twelve-episode first season premiered on June 30, 2013.
"The Bag or the Bat" is the pilot episode of the Showtime original series Ray Donovan, and premiered on June 30, 2013. The series premiere was directed by Allen Coulter and written by series creator Ann Biderman. Prior to the premiere television airing, the episode was uploaded to YouTube by Showtime and was previewed over 150,000 times.
Chuck is a 2016 American biographical sports drama film directed by Philippe Falardeau and written by Jeff Feuerzeig, Jerry Stahl, Michael Cristofer and Liev Schreiber, who also stars in the title role. The cast includes Elisabeth Moss, Ron Perlman, Naomi Watts, Jim Gaffigan, Michael Rapaport, Pooch Hall, Morgan Spector, Jason Jones and Catherine Corcoran. The film depicts the life of heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner and his 1975 title fight with the heavyweight champion, Muhammad Ali, which inspired Sylvester Stallone's character and screenplay for the 1976 film Rocky.
Muhammad Ali and Chuck Wepner fought in a boxing match on March 24, 1975, at the Richfield Coliseum in Richfield Township, Summit County, Ohio.
The Brawler is a 2019 American biographical film directed by Ken Kushner and starring Zach McGowan as Chuck Wepner. The film also stars Amy Smart and Taryn Manning.
Anthony Perez was an American boxing referee and judge of Puerto Rican descent. During his career, he refereed many major boxing fights and participated in a number of boxing related documentaries.
Ray Donovan: The Movie is an American crime drama television film directed by David Hollander, who co-wrote it with Liev Schreiber. It is the follow-up to the seventh and final season of the television series of the same name, which aired in 2020. It centers on the title character, portrayed by Schreiber, and the relationships with his family, including brothers Terry, Bunchy and Daryll, played by Eddie Marsan, Dash Mihok and Pooch Hall, respectively.
