Known for movies

Short Info

Date Of BirthMay 6, 1937
DiedApril 20, 2014, Toronto, Canada
SpouseMae Thelma
MarkPanther design on his robe
FactReleased on November 7, 1985 when a judge ruled he had been wrongfully imprisioned.


Rubin “Hurricane” Carter (May 6, 1937 – April 20, 2014) was an American-Canadian middleweight boxer who was wrongfully convicted of murder and later freed following a retrial. In 1966, Carter and another man were convicted of a triple homicide in Paterson, New Jersey. The two men maintained their innocence and spent almost 20 years in prison before their convictions were overturned in 1985.

Carter was born in Clifton, New Jersey, and grew up in Paterson. His father, Rubin Carter Sr., was a factory worker and his mother, Leola Wright, was a domestic worker. His parents divorced when he was seven years old and he was raised by his mother and stepfather, John Artis. Carter dropped out of high school in the ninth grade and began boxing professionally in 1961.

Carter had a successful boxing career, winning 27 of his 32 fights. In 1964, he fought for the world middleweight title against Joey Giardello but lost by decision. On June 17, 1966, Carter and Artis were arrested for a triple homicide that took place at the Lafayette Bar and Grill in Paterson. The two men were convicted of the murders in 1967 and sentenced to life in prison.

Carter and Artis maintained their innocence and filed appeals of their convictions. In 1974, Carter wrote his autobiography, The Sixteenth Round: From Number 1 Contender to Number 45472. The book attracted attention to his case and helped generate support for his appeals. In 1985, a federal district court overturned Carter’s conviction after finding that the prosecution had suppressed evidence and used racial discrimination in its jury selection.

Carter was released from prison in November 1985. He moved to Toronto, Canada, where he worked as a motivational speaker and continued to campaign for the exoneration of wrongfully convicted people. He died in 2014 at the age of 76.

Rubin “Hurricane” Carter was born on May 6, 1937, in Clifton, New Jersey. He was the second of three children born to Rubin Carter Sr., a factory worker, and Leola Wright, a domestic worker. His parents divorced when he was seven years old and he was raised by his mother and stepfather, John Artis.

Carter dropped out of high school in the ninth grade and began boxing professionally in 1961. He had a successful boxing career, winning 27 of his 32 fights. In 1964, he fought for the world middleweight title against Joey Giardello but lost by decision.

On June 17, 1966, Carter and Artis were arrested for a triple homicide that took place at the Lafayette Bar and Grill in Paterson. The two men were convicted of the murders in 1967 and sentenced to life in prison.

Carter and Artis maintained their innocence and filed appeals of their convictions. In 1974, Carter wrote his autobiography, The Sixteenth Round: From Number 1 Contender to Number 45472. The book attracted attention to his case and helped generate support for his appeals. In 1985, a federal district court overturned Carter’s conviction after finding that the prosecution had suppressed evidence and used racial discrimination in its jury selection.

Carter was released from prison in November 1985. He moved to Toronto, Canada, where he worked as a motivational speaker and continued to campaign for the exoneration of wrongfully convicted people. He died in 2014 at the age of 76.

General Info

Full NameRubin Carter
Date Of BirthMay 6, 1937
DiedApril 20, 2014, Toronto, Canada
Height1.73 m
Weight71 kg
ProfessionPublic speaker, Author, Professional Boxer

Family

SpouseMae Thelma

Accomplishments

MoviesThe Hurricane, 45 Fantastic Fights of the Century, Bob Dylan: Revealed

Social profile links

Marks

#Marks / Signs
1Fu-Man Chu Mustache and beard
2Shaved head
3Extremely muscular build
4Panther design on his robe

Quotes

#Quote
1To live in a world where truth matters and justice - however late - really happens, that world would be heaven enough for us all.
2Prison is the lowest level of human existence, without being dead. Being able to overcome that, that's the miraculous nature of every human being. It is great, absolutely fantastic.
3[on preparations for producing 'The Hurricane'] Denzel Washington was only an actor doing his most to sell himself for a role he wanted, but my feelings, my likeness , sitting across that table, showed me how far I had come from self-hatred to the love of self. What a wonderful experience that was.
4Hatred and bitterness and anger only consume the vessel that contains them. It doesn't hurt another soul. If I were to allow myself to continue to feel that anger and the bitterness of being a victim, I never would have survived prison itself. Prison can deal with anger, prison can deal with hatred, because prison is about all those things.
5When I went to prison in 1966, that was it for me as far as prizefighting was concerned. I was fighting for my life, not for a prize in the ring, and not with boxing gloves and referees. I was fighting for my life in the absolute dungeon called Trenton State Prison.
6Hate made me a prisoner but love set me free.

Facts

#Fact
1Defeated future World Boxing Association World Heavyweight Champion Jimmy Ellis.
2Defeated by Rocky Rivero in his last fight.
3His autobiography was published in 1974.
4Bob Dylan's song "The Hurricane" was about him.
5Released on November 7, 1985 when a judge ruled he had been wrongfully imprisioned.
6Sentenced to life in prison for the murder of three men in 1967. He claimed he was innocent.
7Boxer, author and public speaker.

Movies

Writer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Hurricane1999book "The 16th Round"

Thanks

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Edición Especial Coleccionista2014TV Series in memory of - 1 episode

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Long Distance Revolutionary: A Journey with Mumia Abu-Jamal2012DocumentaryHimself
Bob Dylan Revealed2011DocumentaryHimself
The Hour2011TV SeriesHimself
Tavis Smiley2011TV SeriesHimself
Bob Dylan 1975-1981: Rolling Thunder and the Gospel Years2006Video documentaryHimself
Spotlight on Location: Hurricane2001Video documentary shortHimself
Politically Incorrect2000TV SeriesHimself
The 57th Annual Golden Globe Awards2000TV SpecialHimself - Presenter
60 Minutes1999TV Series documentaryHimself - Former Prisoner (segment "Cop Killer")
American Justice1992TV Series documentaryHimself
Renaldo and Clara1978Himself
Fight of the Week1962-1963TV SeriesHimself / Himself - Guest
The Ed Sullivan Show1957TV SeriesHimself

Archive Footage

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Hurricane1999Himself (uncredited)

Awards

Won Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
2000USC Scripter AwardUSC Scripter AwardThe Hurricane (1999)

Source: IMDb, Wikipedia

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