THE ORIGINAL GOLDEN BOY: ART ARAGON, Continued....The Post Below

The Trigo fight was one of many controversies that marked Aragon's career. Warming up in the bowls of the Olympic Auditorium, Aragon and his handlers were overwhelmed by charcoal burner fumes so severe that chief second Billy Connyers had to be rushed to the hospital. Weakened by the fumes, Aragon fought gallantly, but lost a decision. He avenged the loss a month later, paving the way for a showdown with the top attraction in town, Enrique Bolanos. "That was the fight that made the 'Golden Boy," recalled Aragon. "He was 'the man.' So when I beat him, I became 'the man." Ten thousand fans packed the Olympic to see the bout, generating Aragon's biggest payday, with his 22 1/2 per cent of the gate worth the then-princely-sum of $6.700. Aragon battered Bolanos from the opening bell, after knocking him down in the 12th, saw his Idol rise, glassy-eyed and weak-knead. "He was really hurt and shaking, standing there with his hands at his sides, so I didn't hit him and the ref finally stopped it." While this sportsmanship wowed the writers, the fans never forgave Aragon for toppling there hero. "When they raised my hand everyone booed. I thought my next fight they'd cheer, naturally, but when I came into the ring 'Boo!'-and for the rest of my life when they mentioned my name in the ring they all booed...but they filled up the joint every time." The Hollywood crowd, on the other hand, embraced the handsome lightweight. Aragon quickly became a fixture on the nightclub scene, palling around with Bob Hope, golfing with Mickey Rooney and frequenting the Coconut Grove, Mocambo and Brown Derby, often with a well-known starlet." The Ink-stained wretches of the Times, Daily Mirror and Herald Express aslo stayed loyal to the man who provided them with juicy copy, including one even predicting his knockouts, a practice he stopped fairly quickly. "In those days everyone had action on the fight, so when I actually got lucky and knocked the guy out when I said I would, people thought things were fishy, so I stopped," said Aragon, who was spending money faster then he made it. While the predictions stopped, the attention didn't. His brashness filled the stands and his fists did the rest..