Art Lasky pugile

Arthur Lakofsky (November 16, 1909 – April 2, 1980), also known as Art Lasky, was a heavyweight professional boxer from Minneapolis, Minnesota.Lasky was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota on November 8, 1908, and called Minneapolis his home. He was of Russian-Jewish ancestry. Both he and his brother Maurice worked in a scrap metal yard before taking up boxing. His brothers Dave and Eli both had short, but less successful careers as boxers during the depression years of the 1930s. Lasky's brother Maurice acted as his trainer, and trained the boxer Young Harry Greb for a time.After his boxing career ended, Lasky went on to become a cameraman, stunt coordinator, and even dabbled in acting. Being a bit of a renaissance man, and always interested in new challenges, he had a short career in the Palm Springs police department, and later became a physical therapist with a practice in three California cities; San Bernardino, then Palm Springs, and later at his home in Sky Valley, thirteen miles from Hot Springs. Lasky was also skilled in carpentry, masonry and as a surveyor and did much of the work for a home he built in California around 1964 after his boxing retirement.His son Aron was born in 1960, and his daughter Lana was born in 1964 from his third marriage to wife Irma.Lasky made his professional debut with a knockout of Sam Baker in May 1930. He faced his first notable opponent, Jimmy Gibbons of Saint Paul, on January 8, 1931, knocking the 28-0-2 Gibbons unconscious in the second round. Gibbons was down twice in the second from Lasky's left hooks. The round ended when Lasky' blows knocked Gibbons to the mat. He was completely out when the referee reached the count of six, and Gibbons's manager threw in the towel making the victory a technical knockout.Lasky remained undefeated until his 16th bout, a newspaper decision loss to Dick Daniels, also of Minneapolis. He bounced back, however, and by September 1932 was sporting a 14-1 record when he faced Primo Carnera, one of his first rated opponents, in Saint Paul.