| Artie Levine | |
| Realname: | Arthur Lindsley LeVien |
| Nickname: | Artie |
| Weight: | Middleweight Light Heavyweight |
| Height: | 5feet |
| Nationality: | American |
| Birth Date: | 1925 1, mf=yes |
| Birth Place: | Brooklyn, New York |
| Death Place: | Matthews, North Carolina |
| Resting Place: | Forest Lawn Cemetery, Matthews, North Carolina--> |
| Style: | Orthodox |
| Total: | 73 |
| Wins: | 53 |
| Ko: | 38 |
| Losses: | 15 |
| Draws: | 5 |
Artie Levine (January 26, 1925 – January 13, 2012) was an American boxer in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions in the 1940s during which time he gained top ten ratings in both weight classes.[1] Between May, 1946 and April, 1949 Levine was ranked by The Ring magazine as high as the #6 Middleweight in the world.[2]
Levine, who was Jewish and from Brooklyn,[3] [4] [5] was a legitimate contender who flattened 36 opponents with his devastating left hook.
At 5' 8", he was a right handed slugger, with an orthodox fighting style. His left hook made him a fighter who no one looked forward to facing in the ring. He was trained by Charley Goldman, the fabled trainer of boxing legend Rocky Marciano.
From 1941–42, Levine fought twenty-seven times with only two losses, and won by knockout an impressive seventeen times.[6]
On November 6, 1946, Levine challenged Sugar Ray Robinson at the Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.[3] Barely able to rise from a nine count in the fifth, Robinson later claimed Levine hit him with the hardest punch of his career, a powerful left hook to the jaw. The referee held up the fight after Robinson was down, and walked Levine to his corner, and then resumed the count, giving Robinson as much as seventeen seconds to recover, an act which may have prevented Levine from immediately following up and ending the fight. After clinching for the remainder of the round to recover, Robinson came back and knocked out Levine in the tenth round after a paralyzing blow to the solar plexus allowed him to follow up with rapid blows to the head and body that put Levine down for the full count. It was the first time Levine had been knocked out in 60 fights, and nearly the only knockdown and almost the only real knockout loss in Robinson's impressive career (Robinson was later defeated by technical knockout by Joey Maxim, but only after suffering from exhaustion in the Maxim contest).[6] [7]
On March 11, 1946, Levine matched skills with Jimmy Doyle in Cleveland, Ohio, defeating him in a ninth round knock out. Levine later told a reporter that Doyle nearly died in the ring as the result of the blows he received and required a respirator to stay alive. Doyle died a year later in a fight with Sugar Ray Robinson. Levine claimed the experience affected his aggressiveness in the ring, and reduced his desire to stay with boxing as a career.[8]
Experiencing a decline, he lost to Billy Fox at Madison Square Garden in a third-round technical knockout on June 27, 1947. Fox had been nearly knocked out in the second round, but came back to send Levine to the mat in the third before the referee ended the bout.[6]
After losses to Chuck Hunter and Dick Wagner, Levine retired in 1949 at only 24, feeling disillusioned and disgusted by the criminal element he felt had taken over his career. Using his ambition and intellect, he owned a meat business, started a local teamsters union and became a successful sales manager at Volkswagen, one of America's largest car dealerships. He died on January 13, 2012, at the age of 86 in Matthews, North Carolina, and was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery.[1] [8]
All information in this section is derived from BoxRec,[9] unless otherwise stated.
All newspaper decisions are officially regarded as “no decision” bouts and are not counted in the win/loss/draw column.
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Age | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 73 | Loss | 53–15–4 | Dick Wagner | KO | 10 (10), | Jun 20, 1949 | ||
| 72 | Loss | 53–14–4 | Dick Wagner | SD | 10 | Apr 11, 1949 | ||
| 71 | Loss | 53–13–4 | Chuck Hunter | SD | 10 | Feb 22, 1949 | ||
| 70 | Win | 53–12–4 | Tom McKeagney | TKO | 8 (10), | Jan 24, 1949 | ||
| 69 | Win | 52–12–4 | Tony DeMicco | TKO | 8 (10), | Dec 27, 1948 | ||
| 68 | Win | 51–12–4 | Henryk Chmielewski | TKO | 4 (10), | Nov 22, 1948 | ||
| 67 | Win | 50–12–4 | Willie Hedgemond | KO | 1 (10) | Nov 11, 1948 | ||
| 66 | Win | 49–12–4 | Joe Reddick | KO | 6 (10), | Jun 21, 1948 | ||
| 65 | Loss | 48–12–4 | Billy Fox | TKO | 3 (10), | Jun 27, 1947 | ||
| 64 | Loss | 48–11–4 | Chuck Hunter | KO | 9 (10), | May 12, 1947 | ||
| 63 | Win | 48–10–4 | Herbie Kronowitz | UD | 10 | Mar 7, 1947 | ||
| 62 | Win | 47–10–4 | Jimmy Sheppard | RTD | 6 (10) | Dec 3, 1946 | ||
| 61 | Loss | 46–10–4 | Sugar Ray Robinson | TKO | 10 (10), | Nov 6, 1946 | ||
| 60 | Loss | 46–9–4 | Jimmy Sheppard | SD | 10 | Oct 7, 1946 | ||
| 59 | Win | 46–8–4 | Charley Padalino | KO | 2 (10), | Aug 19, 1946 | ||
| 58 | Win | 45–8–4 | Vic Dellicurti | TKO | 10 (10), | Jul 10, 1946 | ||
| 57 | Win | 44–8–4 | Freddie Flores | KO | 1 (10) | Jun 24, 1946 | ||
| 56 | Win | 43–8–4 | Wilfie Shanks | TKO | 3 (10), | Jun 13, 1946 | ||
| 55 | Win | 42–8–4 | Charley Padalino | TKO | 3 (10), | May 29, 1946 | ||
| 54 | Win | 41–8–4 | Jimmy Doyle | TKO | 9 (10), | Mar 11, 1946 | ||
| 53 | Win | 40–8–4 | Billy Walker | KO | 9 (10) | Jan 14, 1946 | ||
| 52 | Loss | 39–8–4 | Sonny Horne | UD | 10 | Dec 7, 1945 | ||
| 51 | Win | 39–7–4 | Ray Rovelli | KO | 7 (8), | Sep 28, 1945 | ||
| 50 | Win | 38–7–4 | Sonny Horne | TKO | 5 (10) | Aug 31, 1945 | ||
| 49 | Loss | 37–7–4 | Jerry Fiorello | UD | 10 | Jul 24, 1945 | ||
| 48 | Win | 37–6–4 | Marvin Bryant | TKO | 10 (10), | Jul 12, 1945 | ||
| 47 | Win | 36–6–4 | Joe Bennett | UD | 8 | Apr 24, 1945 | ||
| 46 | Win | 35–6–4 | Cosby Linson | PTS | 10 | Apr 19, 1945 | ||
| 45 | Win | 34–6–4 | Willie Watkins | TKO | 4 (8) | Apr 4, 1945 | ||
| 44 | Win | 33–6–4 | Lou Miller | KO | 2 (10) | Mar 29, 1945 | ||
| 43 | Win | 32–6–4 | Lew Perez | TKO | 4 (10) | Mar 8, 1945 | ||
| 42 | Win | 31–6–4 | Ray Rovelli | PTS | 10 | Aug 17, 1944 | ||
| 41 | Win | 30–6–4 | Joe Agosta | TKO | 5 (8), | Jun 22, 1944 | ||
| 40 | Loss | 29–6–4 | Lou Bass | PTS | 9 | May 26, 1944 | ||
| 39 | Loss | 29–5–4 | Reuben Shank | PTS | 10 | Jan 14, 1944 | ||
| 38 | Win | 29–4–4 | Harold Gary | PTS | 6 | Jul 20, 1943 | ||
| 37 | Loss | 28–4–4 | Freddie Flores | PTS | 8 | Mar 15, 1943 | ||
| 36 | Draw | 28–3–4 | Freddie Flores | PTS | 6 | Mar 5, 1943 | ||
| 35 | Win | 28–3–3 | Frankie Young | UD | 10 | Feb 11, 1943 | ||
| 34 | Loss | 27–3–3 | Larry Fontana | PTS | 6 | Feb 5, 1943 | ||
| 33 | Win | 27–2–3 | Gene Johnson | PTS | 6 | Jan 27, 1943 | ||
| 32 | Win | 26–2–3 | Tony Grey | TKO | 5 (10) | Jan 21, 1943 | ||
| 31 | Draw | 25–2–3 | Frankie Young | PTS | 10 | Jan 7, 1943 | ||
| 30 | Win | 25–2–2 | Frankie McDougall | UD | 10 | Dec 10, 1942 | ||
| 29 | Win | 24–2–2 | Tony Pappa | PTS | 6 | Nov 27, 1942 | ||
| 28 | Loss | 23–2–2 | Marvin Bryant | PTS | 6 | Nov 23, 1942 | ||
| 27 | Win | 23–1–2 | Frankie McDougall | PTS | 10 | Nov 19, 1942 | ||
| 26 | Win | 22–1–2 | Joe Snedeker | PTS | 6 | Nov 13, 1942 | ||
| 25 | Win | 21–1–2 | Charlie 'Petey' Smith | TKO | 2 (6) | Nov 5, 1942 | ||
| 24 | Win | 20–1–2 | Al Evans | KO | 6 (8) | Jul 30, 1942 | ||
| 23 | Win | 19–1–2 | Eddie Costantino | PTS | 6 | Jul 16, 1942 | ||
| 22 | Draw | 18–1–2 | Benny Deans | PTS | 6 | Jul 9, 1942 | ||
| 21 | Draw | 18–1–1 | Buddy Farrell | PTS | 6 | Jun 25, 1942 | ||
| 20 | Win | 18–1 | Oscar Suggs | RTD | 5 (6) | Jun 18, 1942 | ||
| 19 | Win | 17–1 | Danny Nobrega | KO | 5 (6) | May 28, 1942 | ||
| 18 | Win | 16–1 | Bobby Hall | KO | 1 (6) | May 14, 1942 | ||
| 17 | Win | 15–1 | Buddy Farrell | PTS | 6 | Apr 30, 1942 | ||
| 16 | Win | 14–1 | Jack Garrity | TKO | 2 (6) | Apr 16, 1942 | ||
| 15 | Win | 13–1 | Tom Collins | TKO | 2 (4) | Apr 14, 1942 | ||
| 14 | Win | 12–1 | Buddy Farrell | PTS | 6 | Apr 1, 1942 | ||
| 13 | Win | 11–1 | Willie Bush | KO | 2 (6) | Mar 12, 1942 | ||
| 12 | Loss | 10–1 | Tony Pappa | PTS | 6 | Feb 6, 1942 | ||
| 11 | Win | 10–0 | Sammy Mancuso | TKO | 3 (6) | Jan 29, 1942 | ||
| 10 | Win | 9–0 | Don Sandham | KO | 4 (6) | Jan 22, 1942 | ||
| 9 | Win | 8–0 | Steve Bilko | KO | 3 (6) | Jan 8, 1942 | ||
| 8 | Win | 7–0 | Billy Miller | KO | 5 (6) | Jan 6, 1942 | ||
| 7 | Win | 6–0 | Tommy Milton | TKO | 2 (6) | Dec 26, 1941 | ||
| 6 | Win | 5–0 | Moishe Goldstein | KO | 1 (6) | Dec 15, 1941 | ||
| 5 | Win | 4–0 | Freddie Conn | KO | 2 (4) | Dec 11, 1941 | ||
| 4 | Win | 3–0 | Paulie Wilson | PTS | 8 | Dec 1, 1941 | ||
| 3 | Win | 2–0 | Joe Snedeker | KO | 2 (4) | Nov 21, 1941 | ||
| 2 | Draw | 1–0 | Joe Snedeker | NWS | 4 | Nov 7, 1941 | ||
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Carl Jones | KO | 2 (4) | May 23, 1941 | ||
Record with the inclusion of newspaper decisions in the win/loss/draw column.
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Age | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 73 | Loss | 53–15–5 | Dick Wagner | KO | 10 (10), | Jun 20, 1949 | ||
| 72 | Loss | 53–14–5 | Dick Wagner | SD | 10 | Apr 11, 1949 | ||
| 71 | Loss | 53–13–5 | Chuck Hunter | SD | 10 | Feb 22, 1949 | ||
| 70 | Win | 53–12–5 | Tom McKeagney | TKO | 8 (10), | Jan 24, 1949 | ||
| 69 | Win | 52–12–5 | Tony DeMicco | TKO | 8 (10), | Dec 27, 1948 | ||
| 68 | Win | 51–12–5 | Henryk Chmielewski | TKO | 4 (10), | Nov 22, 1948 | ||
| 67 | Win | 50–12–5 | Willie Hedgemond | KO | 1 (10) | Nov 11, 1948 | ||
| 66 | Win | 49–12–5 | Joe Reddick | KO | 6 (10), | Jun 21, 1948 | ||
| 65 | Loss | 48–12–5 | Billy Fox | TKO | 3 (10), | Jun 27, 1947 | ||
| 64 | Loss | 48–11–5 | Chuck Hunter | KO | 9 (10), | May 12, 1947 | ||
| 63 | Win | 48–10–5 | Herbie Kronowitz | UD | 10 | Mar 7, 1947 | ||
| 62 | Win | 47–10–5 | Jimmy Sheppard | RTD | 6 (10) | Dec 3, 1946 | ||
| 61 | Loss | 46–10–5 | Sugar Ray Robinson | TKO | 10 (10), | Nov 6, 1946 | ||
| 60 | Loss | 46–9–5 | Jimmy Sheppard | SD | 10 | Oct 7, 1946 | ||
| 59 | Win | 46–8–5 | Charley Padalino | KO | 2 (10), | Aug 19, 1946 | ||
| 58 | Win | 45–8–5 | Vic Dellicurti | TKO | 10 (10), | Jul 10, 1946 | ||
| 57 | Win | 44–8–5 | Freddie Flores | KO | 1 (10) | Jun 24, 1946 | ||
| 56 | Win | 43–8–5 | Wilfie Shanks | TKO | 3 (10), | Jun 13, 1946 | ||
| 55 | Win | 42–8–5 | Charley Padalino | TKO | 3 (10), | May 29, 1946 | ||
| 54 | Win | 41–8–5 | Jimmy Doyle | TKO | 9 (10), | Mar 11, 1946 | ||
| 53 | Win | 40–8–5 | Billy Walker | KO | 9 (10) | Jan 14, 1946 | ||
| 52 | Loss | 39–8–5 | Sonny Horne | UD | 10 | Dec 7, 1945 | ||
| 51 | Win | 39–7–5 | Ray Rovelli | KO | 7 (8), | Sep 28, 1945 | ||
| 50 | Win | 38–7–5 | Sonny Horne | TKO | 5 (10) | Aug 31, 1945 | ||
| 49 | Loss | 37–7–5 | Jerry Fiorello | UD | 10 | Jul 24, 1945 | ||
| 48 | Win | 37–6–5 | Marvin Bryant | TKO | 10 (10), | Jul 12, 1945 | ||
| 47 | Win | 36–6–5 | Joe Bennett | UD | 8 | Apr 24, 1945 | ||
| 46 | Win | 35–6–5 | Cosby Linson | PTS | 10 | Apr 19, 1945 | ||
| 45 | Win | 34–6–5 | Willie Watkins | TKO | 4 (8) | Apr 4, 1945 | ||
| 44 | Win | 33–6–5 | Lou Miller | KO | 2 (10) | Mar 29, 1945 | ||
| 43 | Win | 32–6–5 | Lew Perez | TKO | 4 (10) | Mar 8, 1945 | ||
| 42 | Win | 31–6–5 | Ray Rovelli | PTS | 10 | Aug 17, 1944 | ||
| 41 | Win | 30–6–5 | Joe Agosta | TKO | 5 (8), | Jun 22, 1944 | ||
| 40 | Loss | 29–6–5 | Lou Bass | PTS | 9 | May 26, 1944 | ||
| 39 | Loss | 29–5–5 | Reuben Shank | PTS | 10 | Jan 14, 1944 | ||
| 38 | Win | 29–4–5 | Harold Gary | PTS | 6 | Jul 20, 1943 | ||
| 37 | Loss | 28–4–5 | Freddie Flores | PTS | 8 | Mar 15, 1943 | ||
| 36 | Draw | 28–3–5 | Freddie Flores | PTS | 6 | Mar 5, 1943 | ||
| 35 | Win | 28–3–4 | Frankie Young | UD | 10 | Feb 11, 1943 | ||
| 34 | Loss | 27–3–4 | Larry Fontana | PTS | 6 | Feb 5, 1943 | ||
| 33 | Win | 27–2–4 | Gene Johnson | PTS | 6 | Jan 27, 1943 | ||
| 32 | Win | 26–2–4 | Tony Grey | TKO | 5 (10) | Jan 21, 1943 | ||
| 31 | Draw | 25–2–4 | Frankie Young | PTS | 10 | Jan 7, 1943 | ||
| 30 | Win | 25–2–3 | Frankie McDougall | UD | 10 | Dec 10, 1942 | ||
| 29 | Win | 24–2–3 | Tony Pappa | PTS | 6 | Nov 27, 1942 | ||
| 28 | Loss | 23–2–3 | Marvin Bryant | PTS | 6 | Nov 23, 1942 | ||
| 27 | Win | 23–1–3 | Frankie McDougall | PTS | 10 | Nov 19, 1942 | ||
| 26 | Win | 22–1–3 | Joe Snedeker | PTS | 6 | Nov 13, 1942 | ||
| 25 | Win | 21–1–3 | Charlie 'Petey' Smith | TKO | 2 (6) | Nov 5, 1942 | ||
| 24 | Win | 20–1–3 | Al Evans | KO | 6 (8) | Jul 30, 1942 | ||
| 23 | Win | 19–1–3 | Eddie Costantino | PTS | 6 | Jul 16, 1942 | ||
| 22 | Draw | 18–1–3 | Benny Deans | PTS | 6 | Jul 9, 1942 | ||
| 21 | Draw | 18–1–2 | Buddy Farrell | PTS | 6 | Jun 25, 1942 | ||
| 20 | Win | 18–1–1 | Oscar Suggs | RTD | 5 (6) | Jun 18, 1942 | ||
| 19 | Win | 17–1–1 | Danny Nobrega | KO | 5 (6) | May 28, 1942 | ||
| 18 | Win | 16–1–1 | Bobby Hall | KO | 1 (6) | May 14, 1942 | ||
| 17 | Win | 15–1–1 | Buddy Farrell | PTS | 6 | Apr 30, 1942 | ||
| 16 | Win | 14–1–1 | Jack Garrity | TKO | 2 (6) | Apr 16, 1942 | ||
| 15 | Win | 13–1–1 | Tom Collins | TKO | 2 (4) | Apr 14, 1942 | ||
| 14 | Win | 12–1–1 | Buddy Farrell | PTS | 6 | Apr 1, 1942 | ||
| 13 | Win | 11–1–1 | Willie Bush | KO | 2 (6) | Mar 12, 1942 | ||
| 12 | Loss | 10–1–1 | Tony Pappa | PTS | 6 | Feb 6, 1942 | ||
| 11 | Win | 10–0–1 | Sammy Mancuso | TKO | 3 (6) | Jan 29, 1942 | ||
| 10 | Win | 9–0–1 | Don Sandham | KO | 4 (6) | Jan 22, 1942 | ||
| 9 | Win | 8–0–1 | Steve Bilko | KO | 3 (6) | Jan 8, 1942 | ||
| 8 | Win | 7–0–1 | Billy Miller | KO | 5 (6) | Jan 6, 1942 | ||
| 7 | Win | 6–0–1 | Tommy Milton | TKO | 2 (6) | Dec 26, 1941 | ||
| 6 | Win | 5–0–1 | Moishe Goldstein | KO | 1 (6) | Dec 15, 1941 | ||
| 5 | Win | 4–0–1 | Freddie Conn | KO | 2 (4) | Dec 11, 1941 | ||
| 4 | Win | 3–0–1 | Paulie Wilson | PTS | 8 | Dec 1, 1941 | ||
| 3 | Win | 2–0–1 | Joe Snedeker | KO | 2 (4) | Nov 21, 1941 | ||
| 2 | Draw | 1–0–1 | Joe Snedeker | NWS | 4 | Nov 7, 1941 | ||
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Carl Jones | KO | 2 (4) | May 23, 1941 | ||