LOS ANGELES TIMES: Bruce O'Brian: Hollywood Phony or True Contender? By Joe Watson.
Sports and movies, for half a century the two are America's favorite past times and forms of entertainment with your idea of a family or romantic outing being tickets to a baseball game or the theater. Icons such as Charlie Chaplin, Joe Frazier, Debbie Reynolds and Babe Ruth have become living legends and in the halls of American culture, heroes akin to the ancient Greek demigods of legend. However, rarely will you ever encounter a man or woman who not only combines a career in athletics and film, but is successul at both. One of the few exceptions is rising high on the big screen and in the boxing ring with the tale of Bruce O'Brian.
At 18 years old, Bruce has by now achieved the Hollywood Dream with a starring role on America's new favorite show M*A*S*H, with his performance of Radar O'Reilley earning him an Emmy, a rare gift for rookie television actors. More recently, his latest film in which he produced and starred as the streetwise tough guy John Milner, American Graffiti, has been sweeping the box office and become the talk of not only America, but the greater world with European and East Asian theaters packed to see the story of cruising in 50's America. Having achieved more than most who played their hand at Hollywood ever could, one would think Bruce would be content and building the foundations for a long and illustrious acting career. However, O'Brian has been anything but content with the young man hungry for athletic achievement by throwing his gloves into the boxing ring, where already he has become a rising star in the Light Heavyweight division and is sought after by many in the sport to rise all the way to Heavyweight proper and become a true champion.
With less than two years in the sport, Bruce has created a strong record of 19-0 with no knockdowns and 15 KO victories. For those not in the know, it is an incredible record which boxing veterans would spend years fighting to attain and most professional boxers would kill for. What makes it even more incredible is that not only has O'Brian obtained this before his 19th birthday, but that his wins were achieved in a accumulative time span of two months, the first 13 in March of 1972 IN THREE DAYS (A feat that even the likes of Foreman and Ali would call suicidal) and the last six in May of 1973, all first round knockouts. While O'Brian may not be competing against the likes of Frazier and Monzon, to have obtained such a record even against LA's best of the local scene is a legendary feat worthy of praise in and of itself.
Having personally attended O'Brian's last three matches, I can verify that the rise of the Emerald Splash is not some form of theatrics or a publicity stunt to prop up M*A*S*H, but genuine boxing in all of its glory where a kid from Hell's Kitchen unleashed raw power and made quick work of his opponents to where it was more of an execution than a fight proper. O'Brian's skills have received such praise that he is reportedly under watch of Team USA for the '76 Montreal Games and was even offered a non-title fight with the reigning Heavyweight Champ, George Foreman. Sadly for fans of M*A*S*H and boxing, O'Brian declined the invitation, stating in a press release, "I am heavily honored to have received an invitation from the man who will go down as history as one of, if not the greatest of all time for the sport. However, because of my immense respect for Mr. Foreman as well as knowledge of my own limits, I must respectfully decline as I feel I cannot give a fight worthy for a Champion." Foreman himself took the concession in stride, thanking O'Brian for the kind words and admitting that the match might not have been conducted in the best manner as there was heavy miscommunication in the Foreman camp who believed O'Brian to be a heavyweight, when he is currently a light heavyweight with most of his victories being done in the middleweight class, a severe difference to the heavyweight King.
However, while it's now become accepted that O'Brian is a legitimate boxer and powerhouse as the Emerald Splash, it is heavily debated as to what the reason for his success is. There are countless theories as to why an actor whose martial arts training comes from Kung Fu and whose priority is acting is managing to deliver so many strong matches. The reigning theory is that O'Brian as evidenced by his quick knockouts simply has a lethal punch which few bodies can match, although there is a strong cynical minority who believe that O'Brian is rigging his fights by paying off his opponents, statements strongly refused by all of his defeated opponents and found to be slander with no evidence upon official investigation. To give a strong answer, I sought out the testimony of a local favorite, retired boxer Samuel MacDonald who was once ranked 20th in global lightweight and runs "Mac's Joint" a Gym primarily catered to boxers in South LA. This is what he had to say about O'Brian,
"Everyone thinks the kid's good because he's punching the hardest, but they're getting it wrong by obsessing over the knockouts. His real strengths are in his speed, footwork and blocking. The kid's fighting like a white Ali, he's too fast for opponents to see and react to, and even when they're close to landing a good punch, he just smacks the gloves away and goes ham with five or six good jabs while they're trying to react. When you never land a hit on the other guy, you get scared and confused, you're at your worst. It means you get sloppy and can't defend yourself, and when that happens, after taking multiple strikes time and time again, all it takes is one good 'Emerald Splash' to get a knockout."
No matter the reason for O'Brian's success, he has definitively cemented himself as an equal to veterans of the sport who take the Emerald Splash as a serious contender. After a hiatus from boxing to focus on the premiere of American Graffiti, O'Brian has announced to the boxing world that he is ready and eager to seek some good fights in August and September, and Light Heavyweights across the state of California and a few from the greater country are doing their best to punch tickets for an attempt to knockdown a Hollywood star and get five minutes of fame and fortune.
Just before publication, we managed to have a quick interview with Bruce O'Brian who had this to say about why he chooses to pursue both acting and boxing, "There's really nothing complicated to it. My Dad always encouraged us to follow our dreams and make our careers doing what we love, and I'm doing just that. I love making art in film and TV, and I love facing tough opponents in the boxing ring and coming out on top. So long as I get good roles and my body continues performing at its best, I'll continue to do so for many years to come."
With the rise of Bruce O'Brian at the box office and in the ring, it raises major questions on the future of both film and sports if we are going to see more crossovers in the near future? Will America get to see their favorite hereos in the likes of Roger Staubach, George Foreman and Cy Young land major roles on the big screen, or will we see a reverse with the likes of Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Clint Eastwood throwing down or playing ball? Whoever answers the call, it seems that America is ready and eager for more Bruce O'Brians.
