My father is a tremendous Ali fan and so growing up I was made aware of the boxing legend every single time any reference to boxing came up.
My father made a point to tell me no matter how good X,Y,Z fight is Ali in his prime would whip him.
So when I see a story like this, I can’t help but smile.
Muhammad Ali Goes to Mars: The Lost Interview
It was in the summer of 1966 when a star-struck 17-year-old set out to interview his idol: Muhammad Ali. Twenty miles from the South Side of Chicago, in Glencoe, Ill., Michael Aisner was calling repeatedly to the gym where the boxing champ was training. Finally, a man named Mr. Shabazz — Jeremiah Shabazz, perhaps? The man who introduced Ali to Islam? — picked up.
“Where are you from?” Shabazz asked the boy.
“I’m from WNTH, a high school radio station,” Aisner said.
“The champ doesn’t have time to talk,” he told him.
Aisner called back two days later. And then two days after that.
“Can I interview the champ?” he asked again.
Finally, Shabazz relented.
“Ok,” he said. “The champ will meet you.”