Back
in 1979, when I was a young policeman, I was working uniformed patrol in
Hollywood Division. My partner and I
were driving on Hollywood Blvd one evening on a Saturday night in the middle of
summer. It was still light out, and the
sidewalks were crowded with the usual tourists and Gawkers that visit
Hollywood. We were stopped at a red
light at Hollywood Blvd and McCadden Ave when I looked over at the group of
pedestrians bunched up on the corner waiting for the light to change. There was a crowd of about 10/15 people waiting
there, and right in the middle of them, unaware to anyone in the crowd, was the
reigning heavyweight champion of the world, Mohammed Ali, and his then wife
Veronica Porsche.
I
yelled to my partner, “Stop the car,” and bolted towards the crowd. You can imagine the faces on the people there
as they watched a police officer run straight at them. I ran right up to the Champ, who had this startled
look on his face, and said, “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee!” He suddenly
relaxed, let out a laugh, and replied, “Rumble young man, Rumble!” The crowd finally realized who was standing
in their midst, let out a great cheer, and began clapping.
The
Champ couldn’t have been more gracious.
We chatted for a few minutes and then he signed my officer’s
notebook. You just never know who you’re
going to meet on the streets of Hollywood.
