Watches old fights with friends, takes in sights
Several St. Charles Parish residents gathered together last week in Hahnville for a “Fight Night,” where they watched footage of boxing great Muhammad Ali destroy opponents. But out of the 50 people gathered together in front of the TV, one had a larger than life presence – Ali’s brother Rahman.
Rahman, 68, shares an uncanny resemblance with the champ and was actually a successful boxer in his own right, finishing his career with a 14-3-1 record as a professional. Rahman gave up his boxing career to travel with his brother as his bodyguard.
While he lives in Louisville, Ky., the former boxer spent a week in St. Charles Parish where he visited longtime friends and toured New Orleans attractions.
Rahman’s trip to St. Charles was set up by Glenn Singleton and his friend Dwayne LaGrange. Singleton has been called Ali’s biggest fan and has an entire showroom dedicated to the boxing great. Besides having a decades-long relationship with Ali, Singleton has also gotten to know Rahman well and the two are like long-lost brothers.
“My brother would always tell me that every time he went to New Orleans on a radio show he would always meet Glenn outside and it would be a handshake or a hug,” Rahman said. “He knew Glenn was a big fan of his and when Ali was training at the Superdome for his 1978 fight against Leon Spinks, Glenn and I met and became friends.”
Singleton was invited to be part of Ali’s entourage at that time and the two have stayed close ever since.
“He really is Muhammad’s No. 1 fan and he is like a younger brother to me,” Rahman said. “I love him just like Muhammad does.”
Rahman had not been back to the New Orleans area since 1978, when his brother defeated Spinks and became the first three-time heavyweight world champ. During a telephone conversation in June, Singleton and LaGrange asked Rahman to plan a trip to St. Charles Parish.
“After getting off the phone, I told my wife, Caroline, that Glenn has been to our house many times and that it would be nice to visit Glenn and his family in Louisiana,” Rahman said.
Rahman stayed in Hahnville with the LaGrange family and came away impressed with the “Parish of Plenty.”
“We told him that this was a nickname that was given to the parish years ago because of the commerce it brings in and he said that he understood because we had everything,” LaGrange said. “He loved the layout of the land, especially how green the grass was, and thought it was such a warming place to be.
“He said that not only would he like to come back more often, but that he wouldn’t mind making his home in Louisiana at some point.”
Rahman toured the parish during his week stay, and was impressed with the government buildings as well as how beautiful the homes were. He also made some new friends.
“He couldn’t stop talking about the people he met while he was here,” LaGrange said. “From getting off the plane to sitting around with neighbors at my home or at Glenn’s home, he just thought this was a unique place.”
When neighborhood kids found out that Rahman was in town, several stopped by the LaGrange home to take a picture with the champ’s brother. One such student was R.K. Smith middle schooler Dedric Alexander, who just happened to be working on a project on Ali.
“It really came as a shock to me and I was really surprised that someone as great as Muhammad Ali’s brother was just right across the street from my home,” Alexander said. “Not many people get to experience something like that, so I’m grateful.”
Rahman also came away impressed with Singleton’s Ali showroom.
“I had seen pictures of the showroom, but I had no idea the effect it would have on you when you are looking at it in person,” he said. “I was speechless and in shock when Glenn walked me inside the room and turned on the lights. I got teary eyed.”
Rahman then got to relive his brother’s fights with friends of both Singleton and LaGrange.
“Reliving his brother’s fights with him was such an awesome experience,” LaGrange said. “You could see the excitement in his eyes and how he held on to every moment.”
But Rahman didn’t just spend all of his time inside St. Charles, he also traveled to New Orleans where he toured areas of the Ninth Ward impacted by Hurricane Katrina, took a carriage ride, ate at Landry’s Seafood, rode the street car and went on a VIP Superdome tour.
“Right when he got onto the floor of the Superdome, he immediately saw the spot on the 50-yard line where the boxing ring had been set up when his brother fought Spinks,” Singleton said. “His eyes lit up and he started dancing around.”
Because Rahman looks so much like Ali, Singleton said the group was stopped over and over again as they toured the French Quarter.
“Everyone would come up to us thinking that it was Ali, and when we told him it was his brother they got out their cameras and they all wanted pictures,” he said.
Rahman said that most of the people he met wanted to know how his brother was doing.
“They all asked about him and wanted me to tell him that he was still the people’s champion and that they loved him,” Rahman said. “That came from people of all colors.”
And Singleton and LaGrange will get to tell Ali that in person after they were invited to attend Ali’s 70th birthday party in Louisville.
“It was a pleasure having Rahman and Caroline Ali stay with us for the week. We have formed a very close bond with them,” LaGrange’s wife, Avis, said. “They are a very loveable couple and have much respect for the human race. We look forward to spending time with them in January when we visit The Muhammad Ali Museum in Louisville.
“It will be a pleasure to meet more of the Ali family on our visit.”
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