Farewell to Monselesan, boxing master
The father of Lucchese Boxing in the seventies had starred in cult films alongside Bud Spencer and Terence Hill.
Edition Lucca
By Nicola Nucci
February 26, 2015
LUCCA. The boxing world mourns the historic coach Antonio Monselesan, who died in the night between Monday and Tuesday at age 74. A serious mourning from the sport of boxing in Lucca where he was one of the protagonists. The master Monselesan, together with his son Julius and his nephew Leonardo, who collected and inherited his passion for the noble art, has been a mainstay of Pugilistica Lucchese, training dozens of boys and discovering talents, leading them to collect successes and laurels in many national events. From the time he was sick. His death leaves a great void. He left in silence, surrounded by the love of his family and his students will remember that during the last farewell. The funeral is scheduled for today, starting from the room at the mortuary Champ de Mars at 14.10, then at 14.30 to the church of St. Anne. The body will be buried in the family chapel in Borgo a Mozzano. Born in Libya by a Venetian father and a mother of Puglia, after the Second World War had returned to Lucca, Tuscany. In his last hours he learned of the removal of Pugilistica Lucchese, after more than 40 years, from its historic location at Porta Elisa because of the dispute with Lucchese to continue training at the stadium. Just last Monday, the company had to move the boxing, provisionally, the ITC Carrara. To announce the death of "don" Antonio Monselesan, as they called her boys, was the Pugilistica with a message on Facebook. "Tonight we left our teacher Antonio Monselesan, until the last we've followed in the gym, without you Pugilistica Lucchese would never be where it stands now. You will always remember and we are sure that by the next release will be with us in the corner." As a boxer fought for the Italian title middleweight before becoming the master of Pugilistica and until recently, when his health allowed him, was at the side of his son Giulio’s corner in his most important challenges. Perhaps less known to Lucca was his acting career at the turn of the sixties and seventies. A character actor with small bit parts in cult films like "They Call Me Trinity" and "Trinity is STILL My Name" alongside Bud Spencer and Terence Hill, legends of the spaghetti western films. In Rome, where he boxed, was noticed by some producers in the world of celluloid that offered him some small parts. His career continued for another fifteen years, sometimes using the stage name of Tony Norton. Films like “The Colossus of Rhodes”, “Maciste”, “The Armata Brancaleone” and especially the two lucky cult moviea with the great comedy duo Bud Spencer-Terence Hill, where Monselesan is the cowboy dressed in black and the villain playing a poker game, a scene still one of the most clicked on the web. Another important feature to which he participated was "The Bloody Hands of the Law." The Pugilistica Lucchese through social networks has "invited boxers current, former and friends to wear to the funeral a piece of clothing with symbols of the company in honor of the master. They will also be offered for sale caps of Pugilistica, whose proceeds will go to charity.
MONSELESAN, Antonio (aka Tony Norton)
Born: 8/2/1941, Libya
Died: 2/25/2015, Lucca, Tuscany, Italy
Antonio Monselesan’s westerns – actor:
Colorado Charlie – 1965
The Two Sergeants of General Custer – 1965
Ballad of a Gunman – 1967
Lynching – 1968 (Jess Tappman) [as Tony Norton]
Sonora – 1968 (Jose) [as Tony Norton]
The 5-Man Army - 1969 (Mexican officer)
They Call Me Trinity – 1970 (bounty hunter)
Drummer of Vengeance – 1971
Trinity is STILL My Name – 1971 (Wildcat Hendricks)
They Called Him Amen - 1972
Man of the East – 1972 (bounty hunter)
The Man Called Invincible – 1973 (Veleno/Poison/Twinkletoes) [as Tony Norton]
The Crazy Bunch - 1974 (Poison/Veleno/Twinkle Toes) [as Tony Norton]
Keoma – 1975
California - 1977