Tommy Morrison will be appearing at the Heartland New Day BookFest Saturday, April 10, to meet people and to read for children.
Tommy Morrison - boxer, actor, speaker, author
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Biography
Tommy Morrison was born in Gravette,
Arkansas on January 2, 1969. Tim
and Diana Morrison knew he was tough but were surprised at when,
at the age of 15, Tommy had his first fist fight at a drive in movie. From the age of 13 to 19 Tommy entered every tough-man contest he could, winning 49 fights out of the 50. During this time starting
in December of 1976 he also was fighting amateur boxing matches. In 1980 he
also won the Jr. Olympics. He continued until 1988, when his total amateur
fights reached 242, with wins of 222 and only 20
losses. In the 1988 Olypmic trials, he lost a split decision to
Ray Mercer, and the exposure paid off. On November 10, 1988, he made his
professional debut in Madison
Square Garden, and he scored a first round knockout against Willliam Mohammed.. He had 8
more consecutive knockouts and captured the eye of legendary boxing manager
Bill Cayton. After signing with world renowned promoter Bob Arum, all
his fights were televised, one year with an unheard of 19 televised
fights on ESPN.
The exposure captured the eye of Sylvester Stallone who immediately cast Tommy
in the upcoming film "Rocky V". Tommy played the tough, street wise
character of Tommy Gunn. Now Tommy soon found he had international mainstream
fame and popularity.
Tommy's star kept rising as he won 2 heavyweight world
championships: one against legendary George Foreman and the other against Razor
Ruddock. His career came to a halt when he allegedly tested positive for HIV - after
signing a multi-million dollar contract to fight Mike Tyson. After 11 years of
knowing the test result was incorrect and his life spiraling out of control, he regained determination, motivation, and passion to be back in the sport he loves, as well recapture his prominence and regain the title of Heavyweight Champion of the
world once more. Tommy is currently training and working on his boxing comeback. He is also writing his
autobiography, working on a reality show, a documentary, and his acting career. But mainly he is living his biggest passion, which is to be able to speak to people around around
the country as a spiritual and motivational speaker as well as a role model.
Tommy Morrison is a dedicated Christian, is father of 4 sons, and lives an exciting and spiritual life residing in Wichita, Kansas.
