Chris Dundee

Chris Dundee (born Cristofo Mirena; February 23, 1908 – November 16, 1998) was an Italian-American boxing manager and fight promoter for 63 years. He was an older brother of Angelo Dundee.

Early life Cristofo (Christopher) Mirena was born on February 23, 1908, in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. He was the second eldest son of Philomena and Angelo Mirenda who had 11 children.

As a young boy, he sold candy and newspapers on trains running from Philadelphia to New York. Dundee dropped out of school and left home at 13. Chris Dundee started managing and promoting boxers in 1928. Flyweight Midget Wolgast was his first world champion, whom he managed in 1930. Shortly after World War II, he pulled out of Norfolk. Angelo went to work for Chris in 1947, sleeping in his office at the Capital Hotel in New York. Dundee also managed Ezzard Charles, world heavyweight champion in the 1950s. The gym had a bare plywood floor, one ring, a few heavy bags, a light bag, and rubbing tables.

His younger brother Angelo moved to Miami after spending four years in New York. In the 1960s, the Miami Beach boxing promoter became the general manager of Muhammad Ali.

In 1961, Dundee promoted Floyd Patterson vs. Ingemar Johansson III held at the Convention Center. He would also promote Sonny Liston vs. Cassius Clay, held at the 8,000-seat Miami Beach Convention Hall on February 25, 1964. The no. 1 contender, Ali, won the world heavyweight title with a knockout. At the time, Dundee had promoted close to 400 shows, including 50 nationally televised cards.

For years, Dundee's successful wrestling events kept him afloat as a boxing promoter.

In the 1970s, Elisha Obed, the junior middleweight world champion, was under Dundee's management.

In January 1972, the Miami Beach City Council denied Dundee's request for a 5-year extension to his exclusive boxing and wrestling contract at the Miami Beach Auditorium. His contract expired on November 30 and he was replaced as the venue's promoter after 21 years, with Mel Ziegler outbidding him for the exclusive license. He and his brother rented office space in a Miami Beach bank building but continued handling bookings for Ali, wrestlers, and the 5th Street Gym.

In the mid-1970s, the Miami Beach Auditorium closed and Dundee moved his cards to the Miami Beach Convention Center.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Chris Dundee Enterprises promoted Championship Wrestling from Florida at the city's convention center. Dundee, who had promoted pro wrestling on Miami Beach since 1951, began to gross over $300,000-$400,000 a year from wrestling by 1977. Among his local promotions was an April 7, 1976, exhibition at Miami-Dade Community College's North Campus featuring Dusty Rhodes. After the show, a fan filed a lawsuit alleging assault by Rhodes, naming Dundee as a co-defendant.

As Ray Minus's sponsor, Dundee played a key role in his 1989 and 1990 title defenses and traveled with the Commonwealth bantamweight champion to Glasgow's Bellahouston Sports Centre in June 1989.

His leather Everlast portfolio is preserved in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.