Bob Arum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bob Arum
|
|
|---|---|
Arum at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, April 18, 2010
|
|
| Born | December 8, 1931 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
|
| Education | |
| Occupation | Lawyer, boxing promoter, businessman |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Lovee duBoef
(m. 1991) |
| Children | 3 |
Robert Arum (born December 8, 1931) is an American lawyer and a very famous boxing promoter. He is the person who started and leads Top Rank, a big company that promotes professional boxing matches. Top Rank is based in Las Vegas. Before he became a boxing promoter, Arum worked as a lawyer for the United States government.
Contents
Early Life and Background
.jpg)
Bob Arum was born in New York City. He grew up in an area called Crown Heights in New York. His family had an Orthodox Jewish background.
School and Early Career
Arum went to Erasmus Hall High School. Then, he studied at New York University and later at Harvard Law School. He was a very good student and graduated with honors from Harvard.
After finishing law school, Arum worked as a lawyer for the United States Department of Justice. This was during the time when John F. Kennedy was president. He worked for the government until 1965.
Becoming a Boxing Promoter
Bob Arum didn't really know much about boxing until 1965. He was working for the Department of Justice when he met Lester M. Malitz. Malitz was a pioneer in showing events on closed-circuit television (CCTV), which was like an early way to broadcast events to special theaters.
In 1966, a famous football player named Jim Brown suggested that Arum become a boxing promoter. Arum credits Jim Brown with introducing him to the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. Ali then taught Arum a lot about how to be a boxing promoter. Arum even said that the first boxing match he ever saw in person was a fight with Muhammad Ali in 1966!
Promoting Big Boxing Events
During the 1980s, Bob Arum became one of the most important people in boxing. He was a big rival to another famous promoter, Don King. Arum organized many huge boxing matches, often called "superfights."
Some of the famous fights he promoted include:
- Marvin Hagler vs. Roberto Durán
- Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns
- Marvin Hagler vs. Sugar Ray Leonard
- Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns (their rematch)
- Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman
Arum also promoted many superstar boxers over the years. These include:
- Michael Carbajal
- Oscar De La Hoya, who won world titles in six different weight classes.
- Manny Pacquiao, who won world titles in an amazing eight different weight classes.
- Erik Morales, who won world titles in three different weight classes.
- The legendary champion Julio César Chávez.
In recent years, Arum has focused a lot on promoting Hispanic fighters. He found that boxing is very popular in the Hispanic community. This idea started after he had great success with Roberto Durán. He then signed other famous fighters like Julio César Chávez Jr. and Oscar De La Hoya.
He has also promoted many other successful Hispanic boxers, such as:
- Puerto Rican boxer Miguel Cotto, who won world titles in four different weight divisions.
- Mexican-American boxer Antonio Margarito.
- Mexican-American boxer José Ramírez.
- Honduran-American boxer Teófimo López.
- Mexican boxer Óscar Valdez.
Arum often holds his boxing shows in the Southwestern United States, where many people speak Spanish. He also helped put together many boxing cards for Spanish-language TV networks like Telefutura and Azteca América.
Bob Arum's hard work and success in boxing have been recognized. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 1999. In 2003, he was also inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
His Family Life
Bob Arum has been married twice. He has three children from his first marriage: Richard, Elizabeth, and John. His son, John Arum (1961–2010), was a lawyer who worked to protect the rights of Native American tribes. Sadly, John passed away in 2010 while climbing a mountain.
In 1991, Bob Arum married Lovee duBoef. He has two stepchildren with her: Todd duBoef and Dena duBoef. Both Todd and Dena also work at Top Rank, the boxing promotion company.
On Film and Television
Bob Arum has appeared in several TV shows and movies. He is often interviewed about boxers or specific fights. Sometimes, he has even acted in shows like Play It To The Bone and Arliss.
See also
