vincent Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 NEW YORK (AP) - For once, Don King kept quiet. Instead of pontificating, the boxing promoter stood stiffly in the background as his lawyer discussed a defamation suit King filed Wednesday against ESPN. The attorney said King is entitled to damages of more than $2.5 billion. The lawsuit says a "SportsCentury" segment aired last May accused King of being "a snake oil salesman, a shameless huckster and worse," claimed the flamboyant promoter underpaid Muhammad Ali by $1.2 million and claimed King - convicted in a 1967 beating death and acquitted in a 1954 killing - "killed not once, but twice." Most of the material in the program had been printed or broadcast earlier about King, who has spent much of his career in court, but the wild-haired promoter said he had just had enough. "I just felt that this was the straw that broke the camel's back and I can't take it anymore, and I'm going to fight back," King said at a news conference. "I seek justice." Don King took issue with being called "a snake oil salesman, a shameless huckster and worse" in an ESPN feature. (Mary Altaffer / AP) King, wearing a garish American flag tie and two flag lapel pins, then quietly stepped back and let lawyer Willie Gary answer questions. Gary called the SportsCentury segment "a story designed to orchestrate and create an impression that is not there," and said the network had refused to retract parts of the program that offended King. The suit, filed in state court in Broward County, Fla., names ESPN and its parent company, Walt Disney Co., among the defendants. Also named are Disney-owned ABC Cable Networks and Advocate Communications, a Florida-based cable and satellite system. "We have not seen a copy of the lawsuit, so we are not in a position to comment on it," said Mike Soltys, ESPN's vice president of communications. "However, SportsCentury is a Peabody- and Emmy-award winning series of more than 250 biographies that is widely respected for its journalistic quality and integrity." The suit also says SportsCentury accused King of threatening to break the legs of heavyweight Larry Holmes and of cheating boxer Meldrick Taylor out of $1 million from a fight and then threatening to have Taylor killed. "It was slanted to show Don in the worst way. It was one-sided from day one," Gary said. "Don is a strong man, but he has been hurt by this." King has represented fighters from Ali to Mike Tyson, and has been sued by several of them - including a $100 million lawsuit filed against him by Tyson. King paid $7.5 million to former middleweight champion Terry Norris in late 2003 to settle a suit. King sued former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis for libel. King also has beaten federal charges, including tax evasion and fraud. He served nearly four years in prison for the 1967 beating death of a man who owed him money. In 1954, he killed a man who was robbing a numbers house he operated in Cleveland, but it was ruled self-defense. source: msn.foxsports.com Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 wow i could of sworn that i didnt see a topic on this. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585283975 Share on other sites More sharing options...
[yt] Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 wow... 2.5 billion! geez... :rollseyes: Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585286283 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steffan Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 the truth hurts sometimes Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585286308 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sqube Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 If it wasn't so completely, totally, and utterly true, he'd have a legitimate lawsuit. Since he is a "a snake oil salesman, a shameless huckster and worse", I don't see him winning this case. Can't you just see Mike Tyson testifying in the case against Don King, flipping out and punching some guard in the face? I mean, it's been a while since he did something crazy. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585286601 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burned Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Can you say LOSER! That guy should be in the loonie bin. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585286623 Share on other sites More sharing options...
IlliniPi Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 I seek justice! "I want justice!!" For some reason that just made me laugh. I remember the 2nd quote from a movie or something, ahh that crazy ol fella. Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585290525 Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincent Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Yea hes not gonna win, and not only that but the amount of money he's asking for wtf.. i mean WTF Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585293148 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steffan Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Yea hes not gonna win, and not only that but the amount of money he's asking for wtf.. i mean WTF 585293148[/snapback] he has to pay off the many lawsuits against him some how Link to comment https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/270586-don-king-suing-espn/#findComment-585293298 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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