Bushy Graham pugile

Bushy Graham (18 June 1903 – 5 August 1982) was an American boxer from New York City. He took the World Bantamweight Championship on May 23, 1928, when he defeated Corporal Izzy Schwartz at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. Unwilling to defend the title at the bantamweight limit, he vacated it in January, 1929, and in the 1930s became a top rated World Featherweight contender.He had a number of managers who included Peter Carro, Bill Parr, Dewey Fragetta, Joe Netro, and Joe Falcone.Angelo Gerraci was born on June 8, 1905 in Calabria, Italy. He took the ringname Graham from a Canadian boxer he admired, and possibly to honor the many accomplished Irish boxers of his era who were popular in New York. He adopted the nickname "Bushy" from the look of his thick, dark, wavy hair. In New York, particularly in his early career, Graham frequently boxed under the name Micky Garcia, or in rare cases Bobby Garcia. Graham had a brother who boxed under the name of "Frankie Garcia" and "Frankie Graham".Bushy Graham became a professional boxer in 1921, and initially boxed exclusively near his hometown of Utica, or in the state of New York.On March 28, 1924, Graham defeated Frankie Ash in a six-round points decision in Syracuse, New York.Graham fought American and future NBA World Flyweight Champion Frankie Genaro On July 7, 1924, in Rochester, New York to a draw. In a spirited rematch on September 23, Genaro defeated Graham by a twelve-round decision in Brooklyn. Genaro took seven rounds, and scored knockdowns in the fourth, eighth, and twelfth, pulling ahead most decisively in the last three rounds. He was the aggressor with fast left jabs and right crosses, and mixed frequently with Graham throughout the bout.