Edward Mills Machen was born in
Redding, CaliforniaRedding is a city in far-Northern California. It is the county seat of Shasta County, California, USA. With a population of 89,861, according to the 2010 Census...
, on June 15, 1932. Machen was a
convictA convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison", sometimes referred to in slang as simply a "con". Convicts are often called prisoners or inmates. Persons convicted and sentenced to non-custodial sentences often are not termed...
turned boxer. His 64-bout career began on March 22, 1955, and he went on to win his first 24 bouts.
Machen often fought at Civic Auditorium or the
Cow PalaceCow Palace is an indoor arena, in Daly City, California, situated on the city's border with neighboring San Francisco, notable as a sporting arena.-History:...
in San Francisco. His first bout was with fellow first-timer Raul Flores, whom he
knocked out"Knocked Out" is the first song Paula Abdul Recorded and the first single, released in 1988 from the album Forever Your Girl. It was written by Babyface, L.A. Reid and Daryl Simmons and produced in early 1988 by the former two.-Song information:...
in the first round. He had eleven fights in 1955 and the six-feet, 195-pounder won them all, ten by knockout or technical knockout. He had eight more wins in 1956 against better competition. In 1957, he won all five fights he had, including two over former
light heavyweightIn boxing, the light heavyweight is a weight division above 168 pounds [12 Stone or 76.204 kilograms] and up to 175 pounds [12.5 stone or 79.38 kilograms]), falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight...
champion
Joey MaximGiuseppe Antonio Berardinelli was an American boxer. He was a light heavyweight champion of the world. He took the ring-name Joey Maxim from the Maxim gun, the world's first self-acting machine gun, based on his ability to rapidly throw a large number of left jabs.-Early career:Maxim was born in...
. The Maxim wins made him a ranked contender. He was around this time by some considered the perfect fighting machine.
In April 1958, he met highly-ranked
Zora FolleyZora Folley was an American heavyweight boxer. He was well skilled with a good defence and also a punch to go with it....
and fought to a draw over 12 rounds. But he was then knocked out in one round by undefeated
Ingemar JohanssonJens Ingemar Johansson was a Swedish boxer and former heavyweight champion of the world. Johansson was the fifth heavyweight champion born outside the United States. In 1959 he defeated Floyd Patterson by TKO in the third round, after flooring Patterson seven times in that round, to win the World...
, a future heavyweight champion, in September. Being hit several times whilst 'down'.
On the comeback trail in 1959, Machen posted seven straight wins to return him to contention. In January 1960, he lost a decision to Folley at the Cow Palace. Later that year he met a ring legend and future champion,
Sonny ListonCharles L. "Sonny" Liston was a professional boxer and ex-convict known for his toughness, punching power, and intimidating appearance who became world heavyweight champion in 1962 by knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round...
, and although lost a 12-round decision fought a sharp hit and move match that many felt
Muhammad AliMuhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
later studied a lot. Liston was penalized three times for low blows in that match, a sign of desperation.
1961 began with two wins, then a very controversial loss to Harold Johnson by decision. Again, he came back with three very good wins, including a decision over undefeated
Doug JonesDoug Jones is the name of:* Doug Jones , American film actor* Doug Jones , American heavyweight boxer* Doug Jones , American MLB relief pitcher...
. In 1962, Machen had two more wins before he had a draw to high-ranked big hitter
Cleveland WilliamsCleveland "Big Cat" Williams was an American heavyweight boxer who fought in the 1950s through the 1970s. A Ring Magazine poll once rated him as one of the finest boxers who never won a title...
in Houston in July 1962. In 1963 he resumed fighting and scored four straight knockouts to finish the year. He fought just twice in 1964, battling his personal issues. One was a win the other a close 12-round loss to another former heavyweight champion,
Floyd PattersonFloyd Patterson was an American heavyweight boxer and former undisputed heavyweight champion. At 21, Patterson became the youngest man to win the world heavyweight title. He was also the first heavyweight boxer to regain the title. He had a record of 55 wins 8 losses and 1 draw, with 40 wins by...
in Sweden in July 1964.
In 1965, Machen nonetheless received his first world title shot when he and 6'6"
Ernie TerrellErnie Terrell is an American singer, record producer, and former World Boxing Association heavyweight boxing champion. At , he was very tall, by the standards of the day....
met for the vacated
World Boxing AssociationThe World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...
title that had been stripped from
Muhammad AliMuhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
. Terrell won the 15-round decision. In 1966 he lost a decision to German southpaw
Karl MildenbergerKarl Mildenberger is a retired German heavyweight boxer. He was the European Heavyweight Champion from 1964 to 1968...
in Germany, then lost a close split-decision to slugging styled powerful Manuel Ramos. But he closed that year with two wins, one particularly notable over future contender
Jerry QuarryJerry Quarry , nicknamed "Irish" or “The Bellflower Bomber,” was an Irish-American heavyweight boxer. Quarry was rated by Ring Magazine as the most popular fighter in the sport, 1968–1971, and was one of the biggest stars of arguably the greatest era in the history of the heavyweight division.-...
, which was Quarry's first defeat.
Machen closed his career with three straight losses, one in late 1966 to future heavyweight champion
Joe FrazierJoseph William "Joe" Frazier , also known as Smokin' Joe, was an Olympic and Undisputed World Heavyweight boxing champion, whose professional career lasted from 1965 to 1976, with a one-fight comeback in 1981....
by a tenth-round technical knockout. Machen was admitted to the Napa State Hospital in the fall of 1962 after threatening to commit
suicideSuicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
. Biographies state he suffered from clinical depression. He later filed for
bankruptcyBankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
in 1966 and retired from boxing in 1967. His final record was 50-11-3, with 27 KOs.
Machen died in San Francisco on August 8, 1972, by falling from an apartment window at the age of 40.
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