George Chuvalo, 1937 – 2026

Boxer and occasional actor George Chuvalo, 89, died on Sept. 12. Chuvalo was a five-time national heavyweight champ, and fought such people even I have heard of, as Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, and George Foreman. But I would look a right prat if I pretended to know anything about boxing, so I will jump right to his acting career: like so many other boxers, he played supporting roles, usually as a boxer or some other hulking character. He was seen in both films (Stone Cold Dead, The Fly, Last Man Standing, Dirty Work, Lee’s Offering) and on TV (The New Avengers, Night Heat, The Great Detective). Chuvalo had a tough life: two of his children died of drug overdoses, and his wife committed suicide. In recent years he suffered dementia, due to repeated head blows.