One year ago today, my father passed away. I stumbled upon an article written by Michael Marley from the Examiner I wanted to share with you all. Honestly, there are really no words that can properly express how I feel, so thanks Michael. This is from last year, about a week after my father died. I have taken the liberty of adding a few of my Dad’s personal photo’s with clients and friends. The rest, as they say, are worth a million words….
James Anderson: Watched over Ali, Tyson, Leonard, Donna Summer
He was sort of a “Zelig” character in boxing but one with muscles and a cool temperament.
Sad news from Los Angeles. Former key member of the Muhammad Ali , Sugar Ray Leonard and Mike Tyson entourages and bodyguard/security adviser to such stars as Richard Pryor, Boyz II Men, Michael Jackson and Donna Summer, James Anderson is dead.
Details are forthcoming from the family in Los Angeles but Anderson was in his late 50’s and suffered from leukemia.
As a young man, Anderson was one of a group at West Side High School in Newark, NJ, who gravitated first to the Nation Of Islam and then to working with the Nation’s most visible personality, heavyweight champion Ali. Others in the group were Mural Muhammad, Bilal Muhammad, Bahar Muhammad and Akbar Muhammad. All these Muhammads, in boxing in one capacity or another, led Madison Square Garden fight publicist Tom Kenville to crack before a big bout “that every Tom, Dick and Muhammad” was looking for a ticket. About the same time, I joked in the pages of The New York Post that my forthcoming boxing book was called “Guide To The Muhammads.”
Dad, Muhammad Ali & Marvin Gaye
The young Muhammads were under the watchful eye of Ali manager Herbert Muhammad. The young men started off peddling Ali souvenirs at his fights.
Anderson, known to some as “Aquil,” never changed his name. He went to work alongside former Chicago cop Pat Patterson on Ali’s security team after Ali defeated Ron Lyle. Ali had acquired Patterson’s services courtesy of Chicago Boss, Mayor Dale, at a time when the champion lived in that city.
During his tenue with Tyson, Anderson was often “the good cop” working in tandem with higher-strung bodyguard Anthony Pitts. Pitts, who also protected NBA icon Magic Johnson, once coldcocked NFL star Darryl Talley in a nightclub when heated words were exchanged. Anderson avoided fights.
Magic Johnson, Tina Turner & Dad
Anderson was always known for being a smooth operator, not a roughneck. “He was a finesse guy,” Akbar told me on Sunday. “James had a license to carry but he was a very tranquil guy who worked seamlessly with security people wherever his clients went. He seldom if ever even raised his voice.”
If you’ve ever heard the expression “butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth,” well, that was James Anderson’s m.o. He’ll be missed by family, friends and all who knew him in his starry world.
Dad, Richard Pryor, Lou Rawls, Chevy Chase & Drew Bundini
Dad with Frank Sinatra
Michael is a former sports columnist at the New York Post. He was a criminal defense attorney and worked for sports legends Howard Cosell and Don King. Marley also operates
Thank you all for sharing these special memories.
Love you Dad! A.N.D all day.
J*A*M
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