Ali Family History & Genealogy

The Greatest is a 1977 biographical sports film about the life of boxer Muhammad Ali, in which Ali plays himself. It was directed by Tom Gries.[2] The film follows Ali's life from the 1960 Summer Olympics to his regaining the heavyweight crown from George Foreman in their famous "Rumble in the Jungle" fight in 1974. The footage of the boxing matches themselves are largely the actual footage from the time involved. The film is based on the book The Greatest: My Own Story written by Muhammad Ali and Richard Durham and edited by Toni Morrison.[3] The song "The Greatest Love of All" was written for this film by Michael Masser (music) and Linda Creed, (lyrics) and sung by George Benson; it was later covered by Whitney Houston. Cassius was quick, dedicated and gifted at publicizing a youth boxing show, “Tomorrow’s Champions,” on local television. He was soon its star. For all his ambition and willingness to work hard, education — public and segregated — eluded him. The only subjects in which he received satisfactory grades were art and gym, his high school reported years later. Already an amateur boxing champion, he graduated 376th in a class of 391. He was never taught to read properly; years later he confided that he had never read a book, neither the ones on which he collaborated nor even the Quran, although he said he had reread certain passages dozens of times. He memorized his poems and speeches, laboriously printing them out over and over. Muhammad Ali’s Words Stung Like a Bee, Too Outside the boxing ring, Ali fought his battles with his mouth. In boxing he found boundaries, discipline and stable guidance. Martin, who was white, trained him for six years, although historical revisionism later gave more credit to Fred Stoner, a black trainer in the Smoketown neighborhood. It was Martin who persuaded Clay to “gamble your life” and go to Rome with the 1960 Olympic team despite his almost pathological fear of flying. Clay won the Olympic light-heavyweight title and came home a professional contender. In Rome, Clay was everything the sports diplomats could have hoped for — a handsome, charismatic and black glad-hander. When a Russian reporter asked him about racial prejudice, Clay ordered him to “tell your readers we got qualified people working on that, and I’m not worried about the outcome.” Rise of Muhammad Ali Milestones and career highlights of Ali, a showman in and outside of the boxing ring. Of course, after the Rome Games, few journalists followed Clay home to Louisville, where he was publicly referred to as “the Olympic n*****” and denied service at many downtown restaurants. After one such rejection, the story goes, he hurled his gold medal into the Ohio River. But Clay, and later Ali, gave different accounts of that act, and according to Thomas Hauser, author of the oral history “Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times,” Clay had simply lost the medal. Clay turned professional by signing a six-year contract with 11 local white millionaires. (“They got the complexions and connections to give me good directions,” he said.) The so-called Louisville Sponsoring Group supported him while he was groomed by Angelo Dundee, a top trainer, in Miami. At a mosque there, Clay was introduced to the Nation of Islam, known to the news media as “Black Muslims.” Elijah Muhammad, the group’s leader, taught that white people were devils genetically created by an evil scientist. On Allah’s chosen day of retribution, the Mother of Planes would bomb all but the righteous, and the righteous would be spirited away. Years later, after leaving the group and converting to orthodox Islam, Ali gave the Nation of Islam credit for offering African-Americans a black-is-beautiful message at a time of low self-esteem and persecution. “Color doesn’t make a man a devil,” he said. “It’s the heart and soul and mind that count.

Saleh Ali of Oakland, Alameda County, California was born on March 17, 1898, and died at age 74 years old in January 1973.

Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Sahra Abdullah Ali.

Charles W Ali of Waco, McLennan County, Texas was born on August 10, 1911. Charles Ali was married to Ruby C. (Baker) Ali on August 30, 1969 in Nueces County, TX, and died at age 61 years old in February 1973.

Arthur Ali of Brooklyn, Kings County, NY was born on October 30, 1921, and died at age 67 years old on October 1, 1989. Arthur Ali was buried at Calverton National Cemetery Section 5 Site 2955 210 Princeton Boulevard - Rt 25, in Calverton.

Jennie B Ali of Arlington, Tarrant County, TX was born on July 9, 1960, and died at age 46 years old on December 6, 2006. Jennie Ali was buried at Dallas - Ft. Worth National Cemetery Section 12 Site 309 2000 Mountain Creek Pkwy, in Dallas.

Tammy Ali of San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas was born on July 17, 1960. Tammy Ali was married to Hamoud M. Ali on August 7, 1987 in Bexar County, TX, and died at age 49 years old on March 19, 2010.

Bassam I Ali of Odessa, Ector County, TX was born on June 23, 1960, and died at age 50 years old on February 11, 2011.

Syed Arif Ali of Electra, Wichita County, Texas was born on June 6, 1946. Syed Ali was married to Maryam (Janjua) Ali on June 23, 1988 in Harris County, TX and they separated on April 2, 1993, and died at age 63 years old on January 23, 2010.

Chester F Ali of Clarksburg, Harrison County, WV was born on September 20, 1919 in Italy or San Marino, and died at age 89 years old on September 6, 2009.

Dominic A Ali of Albany, Albany County, NY was born on August 22, 1917, and died at age 64 years old in February 1982.

Maysure Ali of New York County, New York United States was born on August 21, 1902 in Ceylon or India or Maldive Islands, and died at age 62 years old on August 2, 1965. Maysure Ali was buried at Long Island National Cemetery Section T Site 5347 2040 Wellwood Avenue, in Farmingdale.

Frank R Ali of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA was born on July 20, 1924, and died at age 78 years old on January 6, 2003.

Frank J Ali of Albany, Albany County, NY was born on September 30, 1924, and died at age 84 years old on June 16, 2009.

Noor M Ali of San Antonio, Bexar County, TX was born on April 3, 1933, and died at age 70 years old on October 4, 2003.

Kasam N Ali of Sugar Land, Fort Bend County, Texas was born on July 2, 1944. Kasam Ali was married to Nazlin K. (Ali) Ali on July 16, 2001 in 101 County, TX, and died at age 66 years old on August 24, 2010.

Munther Jamil Ali of Pasadena, Harris County, Texas was born on June 10, 1962, and died at age 45 years old on July 3, 2007.

Sayed Ali of Texas was born on September 7, 1962. Sayed Ali was married to Terry E. (Zakrzewski) Ali on September 15, 1983 in Harris County, TX and they separated on June 25, 1986, and died at age 44 years old on April 14, 2007.

Ollie E Smith-Ali of San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, California was born on May 21, 1959, and died at age 52 years old on August 22, 2011. Ollie Smith-Ali was buried at Riverside National Cemetery Section 52A Site 3911 22495 Van Buren Boulevard, in Riverside.

Salvatore A Ali of Hartford, Hartford County, CT was born on January 1, 1913 in Italy or San Marino, and died at age 80 years old on January 6, 1993.