Attilio N. "Rocky" Castellani (May 26, 1926 – August 31, 2008) was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 boxer

Boxing

Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

. He was born in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

- Demographics :As of the 2010 census, the county was 90.7% White, 3.4% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 3.3% were of some other race, and 1.5% were two or more races. 6.7% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino ancestry...

, to Attilio Castellani (1889–1974) and Rose Isopi Castellani (1896–1938), who later moved to Margate City

Margate City, New Jersey

Margate City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 6,354.Margate City was originally incorporated as the borough of South Atlantic City by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on September 7, 1885, from portions of Egg Harbor...

, formerly South Atlantic City, in Atlantic County

Atlantic County, New Jersey

-National protected areas:* Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge * Great Egg Harbor Scenic and Recreational River -Demographics:...

 in eastern New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

. He fought in the battle of Iwo Jima

Iwo Jima

Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...

 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 as a Marine.

The highlight of Castellani's career was probably his 1955 bout with Hall of Famer

International Boxing Hall of Fame

The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...

 Sugar Ray Robinson

Sugar Ray Robinson

Sugar Ray Robinson was an African-American professional boxer. Frequently cited as the greatest boxer of all time, Robinson's performances in the welterweight and middleweight divisions prompted sportswriters to create "pound for pound" rankings, where they compared fighters regardless of weight...

. Castellani lost a close split decision

Split decision

A split decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking in which two of the three judges score for the same fighter as the winner, while the third judge scores for the other...

 and knocked Robinson down in the sixth round. A year earlier, he had lost a fight to Carl "Bobo" Olson

Bobo Olson

Carl Olson was an American boxer. He was the world middleweight champion between October 1953 and December 1955, the longest reign of any champion in that division during the 1950s, although he is probably best remembered for his three knockout losses against Sugar Ray Robinson.His nickname, Bobo,...

 for the middleweight title. He also lost to Gene Fullmer

Gene Fullmer

Gene Fullmer is a former American middleweight boxer and world champion.-Professional career:Fullmer began his professional career in 1951 and won his first 29 fights, 19 by knockout...

, Kid Gavilan

Kid Gavilan

Gerardo González , better known in the boxing world as Kid Gavilan, was a former world welterweight champion from Cuba...

, and Joey Giambra

Joey Giambra

Joey Giambra , was a former middleweight boxer who faced and defeated most of the top contenders of his era...

, but defeated Tony DeMarco

Tony DeMarco

Tony DeMarco is a boxer and world welterweight champion. He was born in Boston and grew up in that city's North End community. Tony DeMarco's actual birth name is Leonardo Liotta. Tony’s father Vincent and mother Giacomina came from Sicily.To box in the league, the minimum age was 18...

, Joey Giardello

Joey Giardello

Carmine Orlando Tilelli was an American boxer who was the middleweight champion of the world from 1963 to 1965, and was better known by his professional pseudonym of Joey Giardello.-Early life:...

, Johnny Bratton

Johnny Bratton

Johnny Bratton, also known as Honey Boy Bratton, , was a professional boxer in the welterweight division...

, and Ralph 'Tiger' Jones

Ralph 'Tiger' Jones

Ralph "Tiger" Jones was a boxer during the 1950s. Trained by Gil Clancy, Jones was a fixture of televised boxing in the 1950s, known for an aggressive style that pleased fans. His overall record was 52 victories, 32 losses and five draws.He became a professional boxer in 1950. In 1955 he scored an...

He finished his career with a 65–14–4 record. After he retired, Castellani operated "Rocky's," a bar in Atlantic City

Atlantic City, New Jersey

Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...

.

A biography of Castellani is entitled Young Rocky: A True Story of Attilio "Rocky" Castellani by Joe Kinney.