SHOT AT A BROTHEL
EVEN as one of the most visible heavyweight contenders of the division’s golden age in the 1960s and ‘70s, Oscar Bonavena always had an air of mystery around him. That aura only got more mysterious when he was shot and killed at the Mustang Ranch in Nevada in 1976, dying at the age of 33.
A new book by boxing historian Patrick Connor – Shot at a Brothel (Hamilcar Publications) – does an excellent job of unraveling the wild life and death of “Ringo,” but it does leave one hanging question: How did he manage to make it alive to 33?
“It was like he couldn’t help himself from double crossing somebody,” said Connor. “It was so crazy. And I think the really difficult part though is getting to the psychology of it and
