MARCIANO, ROCKY

born Sept. 1, 1923, Brockton, Mass., U.S. died Aug. 31, 1969, near Newton, Iowa Rocky Marciano (left) defeats Roland LaStarza for the world heavyweight title, New York City, 1953. byname of Rocco Francis Marchegiano, also called The Brockton Blockbuster world heavyweight boxing champion from Sept. 23, 1952, when he knocked out champion Jersey Joe Walcott in 13 rounds in Philadelphia, to April 27, 1956, when he retired from the ring. Marciano was undefeated in 49 professional fights, scoring 43 knockouts. Among his victims were two former heavyweight champions other than Walcott: Joe Louis and Ezzard Charles. First interested in a professional baseball career, Marciano began to box while in the U.S. Army during World War II. He had his first professional fight on March 17, 1947. Knockouts of Rex Layne, Louis, Lee Savold, and Harry (Kid) Matthews earned him a chance to win the championship. Marciano, knocked down by Walcott in the first round, was behind on points when, in the 13th round, he knocked the champion unconscious with a single punch. Marciano, aged 32, retired after defending the championship six times. An unscientific but hard-punching and exceptionally durable fighter, he completely dominated the heavyweight division. He was killed in the crash of an airplane in which he was a passenger. Additional reading Everett M. Skehan, Rocky Marciano (1977), was written with the help of family members.