Mickey Cohen

Meyer Harris "Mickey" Cohen (September 4, 1913 – July 29, 1976) was a gangster based in Los Angeles and a member of the Jewish Mafia. He also had strong ties to the Italian American Mafia (especially the Los Angeles crime family) from the 1930s through 1960s.

Biography

Early life

Mickey Cohen was born on September 4, 1913, into an Orthodox Jewish family living in the Jewish Brownsville section of Brooklyn. His mother Fanny, who had become widowed in September 1914, had emigrated from Kiev, Ukraine. At age 6, Mickey was selling newspapers on the street; one of his brothers, Louie or Harry, would drop him off at his regular corner, Soho and Brooklyn Streets. Soon, however, Fanny moved her family to Los Angeles. In 1922, petty crime landed Mickey in reform school there.

Boxing career

As a teenager, Cohen began boxing in illegal prizefights in Los Angeles. In 1929, the 15-year-old moved from Los Angeles to Cleveland, Ohio, to train as a professional boxer. His first professional boxing match was on April 8, 1930, against Patsy Farr in Cleveland. It was one of the preliminary fights on the card for the Paul Pirrone/Jimmy Goodrich feature bout. On April 11, 1933, Cohen fought against Chalky Wright in Los Angeles. Wright won the match, and Mickey was incorrectly identified as "Mickey Cohen from Denver, Colorado" in the Los Angeles Times sports page report. His last fight was on May 14, 1933, against Baby Arizmendi in Tijuana, Mexico. On June 12, 1931, Cohen fought and lost a match against World Featherweight Champion Tommy Paul, having been knocked out cold after 2:20 into the first round. It was during this round he earned the moniker "Gangster Mickey Cohen".

Mickey Cohen (soccer)

Mickey Cohen is an American former professional soccer goalkeeper who played in the North American Soccer League and American Soccer League.

Cohen attended Long Island University where he played on the men's soccer team. In 1971, he signed with the Connecticut Wildcats of the American Soccer League and remained with them through the 1978 season. In 1976, he played one season for the Boston Minutemen of the North American Soccer League. Cohen was also the starting goalkeeper for the U.S. Maccabiah Games soccer team for several years.

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