Artie Diamond
Artie Diamond was a Jewish-American welterweight and middleweight boxer who fought professionally from 1949 to 1951. Diamond turned pro in 1949 when he was 20 and fought for a little over a year before retiring in 1951 with a 24–9 record. After retiring, he got in trouble with the law and was sentenced to 7.5–15 years for armed robbery. After he got out, he worked for a time as an assistant trainer to José Torres before he was jailed again. Diamond later worked as a security guard and was killed when he and a night club owner were shot by a stranger.
Boxing career
Diamond served in the Navy before moving to New York City where he was trained by Cus D'Amato, who later trained Floyd Patterson, José Torres, and Mike Tyson. As an amateur, Diamond fought 20 fights, winning 18.Diamond turned pro in 1949. His boxing record was W24 and L9 and DRAW-0. He boxed 150 rounds and finished with a 48.48 KO%. He was known for never ducking a punch. In fact, D'Amato was so concerned that Diamond took too many punches that Diamond was forced to retire in 1951.
Later life
Later that year, Diamond and some friends decided to rob an armoured truck. Diamond was sentenced to 7.5–15 years and spent time in Clinton Correctional Facility in New York for shooting a guard during the robbery. His first day in Clinton, he beat up all the boss heads including one fight where he bit off another inmate's ear. He got a month in solitary confinement for biting another inmate's ear.After almost 8 years, Diamond was paroled and got a job as assistant trainer for conditioning for Jose Torres. However, Diamond got in trouble again for planning a payroll robbery. Diamond was sent to Green Haven prison where he was jumped by four inmates and was unconscious for several days. After his release, he got a job as head of security for a night club.
Death
Diamond and his boss were shot by a stranger. He died aged 46 at Bellevue Hospital in New York City. Predeceased by his first wife, Artie was survived by his second wife and a daughter.Diamond was featured in Inside Sports in February 1982 in a 5-page article titled "Artie Diamond: The Toughest SOB Who Ever Lived".