It would be a shame if all people remember about noted boxing attorney Milton Chwasky, who died Sunday at age 80 after an eight year battle with cancer, is that an angry James “Lights Out” Toney once threatened to put his lights out.
This was after a hotly-disputed, December of 1991 title bout in Atlantic City between the then 23 year old Toney and Chwasky client, 35 year old Mike “Bodysnatcher” McCallum. While Toney cried robbery after the bout finished as a draw, Barrister Chwasky spoke up to say he thought his man won the scrap.
“You blind bastard!” Toney screamed at the bespectacled, Manhattan lawyer, who also represented clients involved in Broadway plays and real estate.
Toney lunged at Chwasky, then age 51, and it took two guys from his entourage and a Trump Plaza security guard to keep Toney from pummeling the older man.
“Let me go, I want to hit him,” Toney yelled.
Chwasky represented heavyweight champions Michael Spinks, Riddick Bowe and Lennox Lewis along with promoters Butch Lewis, Rock Newman and Pasnos Eliades. He also handled legal work for promoter Cedric Kushner for years.
In the interest of full disclosure, Chwasky was my lawyer/agent for employment contracts at ABC Sports and The New York Post. I believe he also worked for sportswriter Wally Matthews, now at ESPN’s New York website.
Any boxing personality who had Chwasky in his corner had a fighter working for him.
When the WBA demanded McCallum pay a $30,000 sanction fee, a $35,000 “exception fee” and a stepaside fee of $50,000 to Irish boxer Steve Collins and handler Barney Eastwood so the boxer from Jamaica could fight Toney, Chwasky balked.
The lawyer got the backing of HBO boxing boss Seth Abraham who said he would put on McCallum-Toney without the WBA imprimatur.
Chwasky client McCallum was thrilled since he wound up $500,000 purse and did not fork over $115,000 of same to the sanctioning body.
RIP, Counselor Chwasky.
