Kenny Lane was a famous southpaw boxer. He fought for lightweight and light welterweight titles of the world, once against Joe Brown

Joe Brown (boxer)

Joe Brown was an accomplished boxer who won the undisputed Lightweight Championship of the World in 1956, making 11 successful defences before losing his crown in his old age to Carlos Ortiz in 1962. Brown was a classic boxer and a knockout puncher...

 and twice against Carlos Ortiz

Carlos Ortiz

For the Cuban wrestler with the same name see Carlos Julian OrtízCarlos Ortiz is a Puerto Rican who was a three time world boxing champion, twice in the lightweight division and once in the Jr. Welterweights....

.

Early life

Kenny was raised on a farm in Big Rapids Michigan with his four brothers and sister. According to his family he was always fighting with his brothers and it is assumed that his southpaw stance was adopted to defend himself against his older brother who later became an Olympic boxer.

Professional boxing career

Lane was known for having a very unorthodox way of fighting. This combined with the fact that he was a southpaw made him an excellent boxer and in 1953 started his professional career.
Quote from Ortiz.
"No one was more difficult to figure out than Kenny Lane, the guy was unbelievably clever"

Noteworthy opponents

Controversial decision loss to Joe Brown for undisputed lightweight championship of the world.

The Ortiz rubber match for light welterweight title.

Comeback at age 50

Lane decided at age 50 to round out his professional career to 100 bouts.
He dropped back down to his fighting weight from almost 200 pounds.

After beating 3 much younger opponents he lost to the fourth.

Kenny decided to retire for the final time, making the even 100 bouts he sought.

Family life

Kenny Lane married his wife Ruth as a teenager in Big Rapids, MI. Kenny and Ruth had four children (Lori, Kenny Jr., Todd, and Melody). They later became grandparents of 14 grandsons and grand daughters (Andy, Ryan, Josh, Keith, Jasmine, Lucas, Cole, Cody, Grady, Olivia, Suzie, Bethany, Emily, and Kyle) as well as 2 great grandchildren (Hailey and Ethan).

Later years

After retiring Kenny continued teaching boxing in the Muskegon area. Kenny ran the boxing program at the Muskegon Recreation Center at Smith-Ryerson Park in Muskegon Heights. Several times Kenny drove less fortunate members of the program to meetings and matches across Michigan, often on his own dollar.

In 1995 Morrissey

Morrissey

Steven Patrick Morrissey , known as Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the alternative rock band The Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career,...

 released an album called Southpaw Grammar

Southpaw Grammar

Southpaw Grammar is the fifth solo album by the British alternative rock singer Morrissey. It was released in August 1995 and charted at number 66 in the United States and at number 4 in the United Kingdom...

. The cover featured an old photograph of Lane from the April 1963 issue of The Ring magazine..
Lane was admitted into the world boxing hall of fame in 2004.
Later in life Lane became an avid golfer and had a tournament named for him. He died of a heart attack on August 5, 2008 while golfing at The Bent Pine golf course in Whitehall, MI. After Kenny's funeral on August 8, services were held for family and friends at Bent Pine Golf course courtesy of the owners.

Professional boxing record

|-
|align="center" colspan=8|82 Wins (19 knockouts), 16 Losses, 2 Draws

|-
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Result
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Opponent
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Type
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Round, Time
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Date
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Location
|align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Notes
|-align=center
|Loss || Dave Guerra || Split Decision || Unknown || 1985-11-02 || Grand Rapids, MI || Second retirement.
|-align=center
|Win || Willie Floyd McIntosh || KO || Unknown || 1983-06-18 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
|Win || Paul Lewis || KO || Unknown || 1983-04-16 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
|Win || Bobby Plegge || PTS || Unknown || 1982-07-17 || Muskegon, MI || Lane comes out of retirement at age 50.
|-align=center
|Loss || Eddie Perkins || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1965-10-25 || New Orleans, LA || Lane retires.
|-align=center
|Loss || Carlos Hernandez || KO || Unknown || 1964-10-05 || Maracaibo, Venezuela || none
|-align=center
|Loss || Dave Charnley || PTS || Unknown || 1964-06-02 || Wembley, London, UK || none
|-align=center
|Win || Stoffel Steyn || TKO || Unknown || 1964-05-09 || Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa || none
|-align=center
|Loss || Carlos Ortiz

Carlos Ortiz

For the Cuban wrestler with the same name see Carlos Julian OrtízCarlos Ortiz is a Puerto Rican who was a three time world boxing champion, twice in the lightweight division and once in the Jr. Welterweights....

 || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1964-04-11 || San Juan, Puerto Rico || WBA and WBC Lightweight titles
|-align=center
|Win || Johnny Bizzarro || Split Decision || Unknown || 1964-02-19 || Erie, PA || none
|-align=center
|Win || Paul Armstead || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1963-08-19 || Saginaw, MI || Michigan lightweight title
|-align=center
|Win || Vicente Milan Derado || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1963-03-02 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
|Win || Len Matthews || TKO || Round 9, Unknown || 1962-09-15 || Philadelphia, PA || none
|-align=center
|Win || Carlos Hernandez || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1962-07-14 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
|Win || Tommy Tibbs || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1962-06-11 || Boston, MA || none
|-align=center
|Win || Luis Molina || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1962-04-14 || San Jose, CA || none
|-align=center
|Loss || Garland Randall || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1962-01-23 || Houston, TX || none
|-align=center
|Win || Aissa Hashas || PTS || Unknown || 1961-10-16 || Paris, France || none
|-align=center
|Win || Virgil Akins || PTS || Unknown || 1961-09-22 || Annapolis, MD || none
|-align=center
|Win || Garland Randall || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1961-08-30 || Amarillo, TX || none
|-align=center
|Win || TJ Jones || PTS || Unknown || 1961-08-14 || Chicago, IL || none
|-align=center
|Win || Willie Robertson || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1961-06-30 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ray Portilla || TKO || Unknown || 1961-06-16 || San Antonio, TX|| none
|-align=center
| Draw || Curtis Cokes || PTS || Unknown || 1961-06-08 || Dallas, TX || none
|-align=center
| Win || Manuel Gonzalez || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1961-05-16 || Odessa, TX || none
|-align=center
| Win || Garland Randall || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1961-05-01 || Dallas, TX || none
|-align=center
| Draw || Carlos Hernandez || PTS || Unknown || 1961-02-20 || Caracas, Venezuela || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Jose Stable || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1961-01-23 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || Lahouari Godih || MD || Unknown || 1960-12-06 || Philadelphia, PA || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Len Matthews || TKO || Unknown || 1960-10-08 || Los Angeles, CA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Sid Adams || TKO || Unknown || 1960-09-27 || Philadelphia, PA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Douglas Vaillant || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1960-08-16 || Miami Beach, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Jerry Black || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1960-04-25 || Philadelphia, PA || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Ralph Dupas || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1960-01-13 || Mobile, AL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ray Lancaster || KO || Unknown || 1959-12-29 || Minneapolis, MN || none
|-align=center
| Win || Virgil Akins || MD || Unknown || 1959-10-28 || Washington DC || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Carlos Ortiz || TKO || Unknown || 1959-06-12 || New York City, NY || World Light Welterweight Title
|-align=center
| Win || Johnny Busso || TKO || Unknown || 1959-04-17 || Hollywood, CA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Carlos Ortiz || MD || Unknown || 1958-12-31 || Miami Beach, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Lahouari Godih || Split Decision || Unknown || 1958-11-07 || Syracuse, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || Orlando Zulueta || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1958-09-06 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Joe Brown || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1958-07-23 || Houston, TX || World Lightweight Title
|-align=center
| Win || Davey Dupas || KO || Unknown || 1958-05-26 || Dallas, TX || none
|-align=center
| Win || Johnny Gonsalves || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1958-01-09 || Oakland, CA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Luke Easter || TKO || Unknown || 1957-12-09 || San Francisco, CA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Orlando Zulueta || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1957-10-30 || Chicago, IL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Johnny Gonsalves || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1957-08-20 || Oakland, CA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Teddy Davis || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1957-08-03 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Henry Brown || KO || Unknown || 1957-05-22 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Danny Davis || TKO || Unknown || 1957-04-06 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Frankie Ryff || TKO || Unknown || 1957-01-30 || Norfolk, VA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Frankie Ryff || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1956-11-14 || Miami, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ludwig Lightburn || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1956-09-19 || Miami, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ralph Capone || TKO || Unknown || 1956-08-30 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Glen Flanagan || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1956-08-02 || Minneapolis, MN || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ralph Dupas || Split Decision || Unknown || 1956-07-09 || New Orleans, LA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Danny Davis || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1956-05-10 || Minneapolis, MN || none
|-align=center
| Win || Enrique Esqueda || PTS || Unknown || 1956-03-25 || Mexico City, Mexico || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ike Vaughn || PTS || Unknown || 1956-02-25 || Lansing, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Don Mason || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-12-06 || Milwaukee, WI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Kid Centella || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-11-07 || New Orleans, LA || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Paddy DeMarco || Split Decision || Unknown || 1955-10-03 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || Hocine Khalfi || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-08-16 || Miami Beach, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Noel Humphreys || PTS || Unknown || 1955-08-03 || Mt. Pleasant, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Elmer Lakatos || TKO || Unknown || 1955-07-28 || Milwaukee, WI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Jimmy Ford || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-07-12 || Miami Beach, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Richie Howard || PTS || Unknown || 1955-06-28 || Nova Scotia, Canada || none
|-align=center
| Win || Larry Boardman || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-06-21 || Miami Beach, FL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Eli Leggett || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-06-07 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Richie Howard || PTS || Unknown || 1955-05-30 || Nova Scotia, Canada || none
|-align=center
| Win || Armand Savoie || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-03-29 || Grand Rapids, MI || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Ralph Dupas || Split Decision || Unknown || 1955-03-14 || New Orleans, LA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Jackie Blair || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1955-02-14 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || Danny Jo Perez || Split Decision || Unknown || 1954-12-13 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || Orlando Zulueta || Split Decision || Unknown || 1954-11-08 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || George Collins || PTS || Unknown || 1954-10-04 || New York City, NY || none
|-align=center
| Win || John Barnes || PTS || Unknown || 1954-08-12 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Elmer Lakatos || PTS || Unknown || 1954-06-22 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Sammy Rodgers || PTS || Unknown || 1954-05-27 || Muskegon, MI || none
|-align=center
| Lose || John Barnes || PTS || Unknown || 1954-03-22 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Lose || John Barnes || TKO || Unknown || 1954-02-01 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Jesse Underwood || PTS || Unknown || 1954-01-14 || Saginaw, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Mike Tourcotte || PTS || Unknown || 1954-01-02 || New Orleans, LA || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ronnie Stribling || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1953-12-01 || Grand Rapids, MI || none
|-align=center
| Lose || Ronnie Stribling || KO || Unknown || 1953-10-20 || Lansing, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ken Hohner || PTS || Unknown || 1953-09-29 || Grand Rapids, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ralph Cervantes || Unanimous Decision || Unknown || 1953-09-14 || Saginaw, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Eddie Crawford || PTS || Unknown || 1953-09-10 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Don Grinton || KO || Unknown || 1953-08-20 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Dick Holling || KO || Unknown || 1953-08-06 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Ron McGilvery || PTS || Unknown || 1953-07-23 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Frank O'Neal || KO || Unknown || 1953-07-16 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Johnny Valentine || PTS || Unknown || 1953-06-18 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Benny Uhl || PTS || Unknown || 1953-06-15 || Chicago, IL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Milton Scott || PTS || Unknown || 1953-05-23 || Chicago, IL || none
|-align=center
| Win || John Walls || PTS || Unknown || 1953-05-11 || Chicago, IL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Jimmy DeMura || PTS || Unknown || 1953-04-30 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Bob Henry || KO || Unknown || 1953-04-20 || Chicago, IL || none
|-align=center
| Win || Jimmy DeMura || PTS || Unknown || 1953-04-16 || Detroit, MI || none
|-align=center
| Win || Clinton McDade || PTS || Unknown || 1953-04-09 || Grand Rapids, MI || none
|-align=center

External links

• YouTube video of championship fight with Ortiz