Interview with President Rick Farris
The West Coast Boxing Hall of Fame will host its 2023 Banquet of Champions on Sunday, March 12 at the legendary Millenium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. It is a coveted event that is now completely SOLD OUT. The lucky ticket holders are in for a treat as the room will be filled with a pound-for-pound group of fighters, champs, sports stars, and more.
The list of inductees is a knockout lineup including Sugar Ray Robinson, Manny Pacquiao, George Foreman, Carlos Zarate, James Toney, Carlos Ortiz, Ken Buchanan, Eliza Olson, Alvaro “Yaqui” Lopez, Eddie Futch, Berry Gordy Jr., Larry Merchant, Jack Reiss, Mike Serrano, Bob Case and Gene LeBell. There will also be special awards such as the 2023 Book of the Year honoring J. Russell Peltz’s “Thirty Dollars and a Cut Eye.”
I caught up with the WCBHOF President Rick Farris to hear details about this upcoming induction ceremony. The Southern California former pro fighter and noted boxing historian has worked many years in television and film in the lighting department but his love for the sweet science has never wavered. He was involved in various Hall of Fame groups and in 2015, Farris co-founded his own Hall of Fame organization with Dan Hanley. Since then, the duo and their Board of Directors have hosted epic and memorable events at several storied locations.
Come March 12, the awards show will take place at their permanent home–The Biltmore. In this exclusive chat, hear details about this year’s star-studded gathering, why they’ve switched venues, what motivates them to continue to exceed expectations and which superstars guests will be attending the big show!
Michele Chong: Hi Rick, your Banquet of Champions will soon be here! Your event is on track to be sold-out event. How can people buy tickets before it completely sells out?
Rick Farris: Hi Michele, this year’s West Coast Boxing Hall of Fame event will have 500+ guests, and we are now SOLD OUT!
MC: Your awards will be at the Millennium Biltmore this time; it’s a legendary place. You know a lot about its rich history. What can you share with us?
RF: This year’s event will be at one of Los Angeles’ most iconic buildings, the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, which has hosted the Academy Awards and Presidential inaugurations over the last century, and so much more. It is a big step up for us, and we are proud to honor boxing legends in a room that was once the world’s biggest night club, the “Biltmore Bowl.”
Our Biltmore Bowl stage is considered one of the greatest in the world, and the same can be said about the champions whom we are inducting–Sugar Ray Robinson (posthumous), Manny Pacquiao (confirmed), George Foreman (confirmed), Carlos Zarate (confirmed), Carlos Ortiz (posthumous), Ken Buchanan, Eliza Olson (confirmed), Alvaro “Yaqui” Lopez (confirmed), Eddie Futch (posthumous), Motown Records’ Berry Gordy Jr (confirmed), HBO’s Larry Merchant (confirmed) referee Jack Reiss (confirmed), Cleto Reyes USA’s Mike Serrano (confirmed), Gene LeBell (posthumous), and Bob Case (confirmed).
MC: In previous years, your events were held at Vitello’s, the Beverly Garland Hotel, and Loews. All great venues too. Your inaugural Hall of Fame began with 125 guests at an intimate restaurant. And this year you will have a crowd of 600 people in attendance. Each year gets bigger and bigger. Talk about how your organization continues to grow…
RF: We started out small, in a 125 seat jazz club “Upstairs at Vitello’s” in Studio City, which was a perfect introduction to the kind of event we planned to grow into. That little stage at Vitello’s had hosted some of the greatest of entertainment personalities for more than a half century. Our world champs are among those entertainment legends! The following three events required more than three times as many seats for our guests, so we moved to the Beverly Garland Hotel Event Center in North Hollywood.
To accommodate more guests in 2021, we moved to the Loews Hollywood Hotel to host an event that was rescheduled twice due to the pandemic situation. On March 12th, we will move to our permanent home, the Millennium Biltmore Hotel. A side note, of all the hotels on earth, the Biltmore has hosted and appeared in more motion pictures than any other hotel in the world. The Motion Picture Academy (Academy Awards) was created by Jack Warner and others in the mid-1920s at the Biltmore. The “Oscar” award statue was sketched on a Biltmore Bowl napkin as this group of filmmakers created the Motion Picture Academy.
MC: Planning an awards show like this takes a lot of time and you’re known for your attention to detail. What would say has been been the most challenging aspect in planning your event?
RF: The most challenging aspect to creating this event is the time in which it takes me to do so. I never rest between events. The moment one event is over I find myself making arrangements for the next year.
MC: Your events are always so unique and very entertaining. Your career in TV and film and your life as a boxer is a one-two punch. What influences you when producing your Banquet of Champions?
RF: My goal is to outdo my previous event. It’s important for me to entertain our guests, and do so in an organized fashion. My involvement with other Hall of Fames did not teach me what to do, but what not to do. Most of these events were great, but they were also disorganized.
In order to keep things running smoothly, you have to be able to keep things organized and moving, otherwise people will be distracted by other things and not paying attention to what is going on. When somebody is at the podium speaking there is nothing more disrespectful than their audience not paying attention.You cannot blame an audience for being distracted if you cannot control their attention with what is happening on stage. It’s my job to make sure that what happens on stage is more interesting than what’s going on elsewhere. In the entertainment industry, if people’s eyes are not focused on the screen or stage, your production will fail.
MC: This year you have special guests that have been invited such as famed referee Joe Cortez, baseball players Bill Russell and Darrell Evans, and more. And Eder Jofre (who passed away) was at your last awards show. The guest list is always so impressive. Who else will be there (if you can reveal any surprise names)?
RF: HBO’s Larry Merchant will be honored, and he and Big George Foreman will be united once again, both part of the great boxing history broadcast over the cable TV network. And one of the greatest, most exciting boxers not to win a world title is a legend in his own right, Alvaro “Yaqui” Lopez! Yaqui was not only a great fighter, but a great attraction, and the same is true today. Of all of our 2023 inductees, none has generated more ticket sales than Yaqui Lopez!
In addition to our boxing superstars like Israel Vazquez in attendance, we also have an impressive contingent of major league baseball players who will be in the house. Former L.A. Dodgers Bill Russell, Ron Cey, Al “The Bull” Ferrara and Mike McDermott. Darryl Evans will also be in attendance sitting with his friend, inductee Bob Case, USC’s Anthony Davis, former San Francisco Giants’ Bill Bordley and more.
MC: And the one and only Manny Pacquiao will be there in person to accept his induction award?
RF: We are beyond honored to be celebrating the career of Manny Pacquiao by being the first to induct this very special man. Manny will be attending with his wife Jinkee and beautiful family, as will the great George Foreman and family, plus the family of legendary trainer Eddie Futch, and former pro boxer and Motown Records creator, Berry Gordy.
MC: You have an appreciative eye for art. World-renowned artist Jun Aquino displays his paintings of each inductee at your awards. And this year, Native American Master Beader Echo Lynn will also be showcasing her work at your event?
RF: We use a variety of visuals to create interest, and there is none greater than the “Art of Boxing” created by the world’s greatest contemporary boxing artist, Jun Aquino! For the fifth straight event, Jun Aquino has painted all of our “Hall of Famers”, and in 2023 this includes one of his best friends, the great Manny Pacquiao! I consider Manny the greatest world champion of the 21st century, and he has the stats and history to back up my opinion.
Native American artist Echo Lynn will once again share her art with our inductees, providing all with the classic beaded art of her lanyards.
MC: And, of course, I have to ask you a boxing question. You’ve been involved in the sport for decades now. Who are your favorite fighters of the past and who are your current top picks?
RF: Who is my favorite boxer today? At the moment, my absolute favorite world champion is undisputed world bantamweight king, Naoya Inoue!
I have so many favorites from the past, but the best of all is one I met and will induct this year, the great Sugar Ray Robinson. I know that Berry Gordy Jr. (who was a friend or Robinson) feels the same. Sugar Ray Robinson, Eddie Futch, and Berry Gordy Jr. all started their boxing careers at the Brewster Recreation Center on the eastside of Detroit (as did the great Joe Louis). All ended up moving to Los Angeles.
MC: Wishing you a great event on March 12 and see you soon!
RF: Looking forward to seeing you & Steve at our event in a few weeks! You two are both a gift to West Coast boxing!
MC: Thank you, Rick.
Congrats to all of the 2023 honorees!
2021 WCBHOF Awards: hwww.myboxingfans.com/2021/10/2021-west-coast-boxing-hall-of-fame-gala
Photos by Michele Chong/Fliers courtesy of WCBHOF