Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth Page #4

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over 20 years,

but he never told me that, "Mike,

you need a f***ing interpreter.

I don't know what the f***

you're talking about. "

( laughter, applause )

This was not even on the show.

This is some real sh*t.

So anyway...

Cus was born in like 1905.

So he sees a big...

what's that word?

Transition. He sees the big

transition in the black community.

So he goes like, "You

ain't afraid of white men.

You're not afraid

of mustaches and beards.

I've been around a lot of black fighters

that are afraid to hit white people.

You better not be

one of those kind.

Wasting my goddamn time.

I'm an old man.

I don't got time

to waste. "

I'm like, "Whoa, Cus.

It's the '80s.

I'm okay with hitting

a white person.

Just tell me. As a matter

of fact, Cus, I'm cool.

Just tell me. I'll hit

anybody you tell me to, Cus. "

Because I love Cus.

You know, even though

he's an old man and small,

he was

very intimidating.

Here I am,

a boy of 14 years old,

and I have this old man

in my face intimidating me.

Just like this. "Mike, you

got to punch with both hands.

And don't

let him hold you. "

He's a mean-ass

old Italian man.

It's just intimidating

with his words

telling me not

to be intimidated.

But yet I'm intimidated

with the way he's trying

to tell me not to be...

you kind of getting me?

I was intimidated

across the board.

I was just

f***ed up, man.

But Cus was beautiful.

I love Cus

because I'm a street kid.

I never had a mother

or a father really that close.

But he taught me

how to read, write.

He was very patient

with me.

He encouraged me to read

anything I could get my hands on.

So one day

I'm in Cus's living room

and I'm reading

the boxing encyclopedia.

"Encyclopedia. "

That's a word I learned.

I had to work on that

with a speech coach.

Encyclopedia.

A record of great fighters

like Sam Langford,

Harry Greb, Jack Britton,

Ted "Kid" Lewis,

Willie Pep and the great

legendary Sugar Ray Robinson.

And these are six

funny-looking guys, right?

But when you add up all their

fights, that's like 1,500 fights.

I gave up right there. I said,

"Cus, I can't do this sh*t. "

I didn't say sh*t. But I said,

"Cus, I could never be like them.

I can't do this. "

Then he looked at me

in the eye with angry passion.

"Mike, you got to read

the whole records, Mike.

Look at 'em.

What you doing trying

to accomplish what these guys

tried to accomplish

if you're not willing to endure the

misery and pain these guys endured?

We never hear any more about the guys that

knocked them out early in their career.

Know why, Mike? Know why? 'Cause at one

point somebody knocked them out, Mike.

But they quit. But these

men you're reading about,

these champions,

they never quit.

They never

got discouraged.

You know? And that's why the other guys,

their demons are following

them forever, Mike.

'Cause they had a chance to face

their demons and they didn't.

No, they didn't.

You have to face your demons.

You hear me, Mike?

'Cause if you don't,

they will follow you

to eternity.

And you remember, Mike, be

careful how you fight your fights

'cause the way you fight your fights

be the way you live your life. "

And I never quit again.

A little later in my amateur

career when I had this big head...

( audience laughs )

What the f***?

This looks like the 1910...

don't I look...

no, really,

I was psyched.

Don't I look

like these guys?

Look at this guy. It was all

about the bulge back then.

It was all

about the bulge.

In my early career,

I had this big head.

I was national champ.

And my talents were pretty

awesome back then, right?

I was a 14-year-old kid

knocking out grown men.

Cus was so happy. Guys in

the middle of the night,

my sparring partners, in the middle

of the night, they would leave.

Pack their bags

in the middle of the night

when there's no lights

and just walk...

and leave

without getting paid.

But, you know, after getting

a bad beating by me, of course.

But who doesn't want

to get paid?

It was the house joke. Cus would

say, "Another one bites the dust.

Another bites the dust. "

So Cus would be around me

telling me,

"If you listen to me,

you'll be a god beyond means.

People will carry

your mother's bag. "

Cus thought I would be

a god of war.

This is what this old Italian

man kept saying to me.

He f***ed me up.

You know what I mean?

That's why I got

in all this trouble.

I thought I was

a f***ing god.

'Cause I was kicking

niggas' ass like I was a god.

Cus said I was the baddest man

on the planet one day.

I was just a kid

and I thought I was.

I'm a local celebrity.

Catskills stuff.

I'm always in the papers.

The professional boxing world

had their eye on me.

And so every now and then,

I'd go back to Brownsville

to hang out with my old

friends I used to hustle with

and talk about my crazy life

with these white people, right?

I go down there

carrying a photo album.

Nigga, I blew my friends away

with pictures of me

and my little happy white...

no, not white friends.

I got

happy white friends.

I got well-fed,

nourished,

a happy white school,

hugging, kissing.

I'm holding white babies.

I looked like I was

running for mayor up there.

You know? I looked like

a fly in buttermilk.

Look at my black ass

up there.

I just don't belong

in that picture.

Look like I'm about

to rob them

after their last supper.

I just don't fit there,

but these motherfuckers

loved me, right?

You know, they loved me.

I was one of those guys

that lived upstate.

I came from upstate,

lived with a good white family.

Liberal kind

that take in

badass blacks

and Puerto Ricans and sh*t.

Like the Fresh Air Fund. "Come

up and get some fresh air.

They're okay,

they just need fresh air. "

You know that sh*t, people

that have been in group homes.

You know about that, right? "They just

need some fresh air. They're good kids. "

Then I'd go back to Brooklyn

and I'm still robbing people.

Give me the... give me the

f***ing chain, you stupid...

Then I'd go back upstate

with my white family.

"Hi, guys. "

I'd go,

"What's for dinner?

Lamb chops?

Oh, God! Oh, sh*t.

Oh, God. Camille, I love

your lamb chops so much. "

I say Camille, I'm talking

about Camille Ewald.

That's Cus's life partner.

She's a Ukrainian lady.

Right here.

Not the first, that's the

sister. But right here.

And she was a beautiful woman

'cause she had great food

that I never ate before

and I loved the food

and she loved me because I

loved to eat all her food.

And... I'm sorry,

I'm sorry.

Back to the robbing spree.

Okay, as we were passing

the joint around, of course,

looking

in the photo album,

Panamanian Ernie said,

"Hey, papi, what the f***, papi?

You f***ing with

these crackers, boy.

Papi, you kissing

these babies, bro.

You f***ing... don't fall

for the okey doke, boy.

I'm telling you, bro.

Don't go for it, dawg. "

So my man Black goes, Black

goes like this, Black said,

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