Bosfest 2007 Next Thursday

Johnny Bos gets roasted Thursday night in Manhattan

The Johnny Bos Roast is going on as scheduled next Thursday night at 7 pm at Hurley’s Steakhouse, located at 48th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues.

Johnny Bos, aka the Bosmanian Devil, aka Wizard of Bos, has been entrenched in boxing for over 40 years and is one the most knowledgeable, honorable and honest (hence the need for the Roast) matchmakers in the biz. He has also been in poor health for as long as anyone can remember, with congestive heart failure being the most serious of several maladies that ail him.

(Bos has also, unfortunately, been stiffed by almost every fighter he has brought to the top since the illness came on several years ago which is unconscionable, even for boxing, even for those consumed by greed and devoid of scruples.)

The gutsy Johnny Bos has been all but unemployable (i.e. blackballed) in the New York area since speaking out about the controversial Arturo Gatti/Joey Gamache weigh-in, which resulted in Gamache almost getting killed when he and Gatti, with wildly disparate weights, fought in Feb. 2000 at Madison Square Garden.

If you think that’s no way to run a sport, you’re not alone, and maybe it’s time to put your money where your mouth is.

Jack-of-all-trades Mike Marley came up with the idea of sponsoring a benefit to help Bos, so kudos to Marley and his co-sponsors Lou DiBella and Alan and Jay Wartski for taking their heads out of the sand and out of the clouds to help a boxing brother in need.

A few tickets for BosFest 2007 are still available at $250 per seat. If you can’t make the event but want to contribute, donations of $100 or more will get you a DVD of the event.

Send contributions to Mike Marley at 250 W. 100th St./Suite 1102/New York, NY 10025, or call 917.853.4484 for more information.