Boxing champion Joey Giardello dies at 78

Joey Giardello, 78, one of the first in a long line of great Philadelphia middleweight boxers whose 19-year professional career was highlighted by a reign as world champion, died Thursday at the Cadbury Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Cherry Hill.

He had been suffering from congestive heart failure and diabetes, his family said.

Mr. Giardello compiled a record of 101 victories, 25 defeats and 8 draws with 33 knockouts, and he was inducted in 1993 into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Although he was not known for a knockout punch, he was considered a fine technician, with a dancing style.

Born July 16, 1930, in Brooklyn, N.Y., as Carmine Tilelli, he adopted the name Joey Giardello when he used the birth certificate of an older friend of his cousin to enlist in the Army in 1946. He was discharged in 1948, moved to Philadelphia, and began a professional boxing career.

"I never had amateur fights," he said in a 1993 interview. "I walked into the gym when I was 18, and all I ever wanted to be was a champ. I dreamed about it all the time. I met Joe Louis and I told him, 'I'm going to be the champ one day.' "

Mr. Giardello fought the best middleweights of the day in his rise up the ranks. He earned his first title shot in 1960 but failed to win the crown in a disputed draw with Gene Fullmer. He finally broke through to the top of the division Dec. 7, 1963, when he beat Dick Tiger in a 15-round decision in Atlantic City.

Mr. Giardello made four successful title defenses before losing the title to Tiger in 1965.

One of Mr. Giardello's defenses was a unanimous decision over Rubin "Hurricane" Carter on Dec. 14, 1964, at Philadelphia's Convention Hall. Carter later was convicted of a triple murder and served 19 years in prison before the verdict was set aside.

The Carter fight was depicted in the 1999 movie

The Hurricane,

resulting in a lawsuit by Mr. Giardello. His lawyer said the movie "horribly and falsely depicts Joey as a hapless, no-good fighter who got beat up and had no business being middleweight champion of the world, and that portrayal couldn't be further from the truth."

Mr. Giardello and the film's producers later reached an undisclosed financial settlement.

Mr. Giardello is survived by his wife of 58 years, Rosalie; four sons; and five grandchildren.

A viewing will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday and from 8:30 to 9:45 a.m. Wednesday at Queen of Heaven Roman Catholic Church, 700 Marlton Pike (Route 70), Cherry Hill. A Funeral Mass will be held at the church at 10 a.m.