Bert Sugar Dead: International Boxing Hall Of Famer And Sports Writer, Historian, Dies At 74

Bert Sugar, boxing writer and sports historian, known for his fedora and cigar, passed away on Sunday from cardiac arrest. He was 74.

Sugar's daughter, Jennifer Frawley, said his wife, Suzanne, was with him when he died at Northern Westchester Hospital. Sugar was also afflicted with lung cancer, reported the Associated Press.

Just his intelligence and his wit and his sense of humor, said Frawley when asked what she will remember about Sugar, reported the AP. He was always worried about people. He was always helping people.

Sugar was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2005. Sugar wrote over 80 books including his acclaimed nonfiction novels Sting Like a Bee, Inside Boxing and The 100 Greatest Boxers of All Time.

Bert Sugar was a truly colorful character in the sport of boxing, said Hall of Fame Executive Director Edward Brophy, in a statement. His quick wit and amazing knowledge about boxing made him a fan favorite as a writer and as a commentator. As the boxing community mourns his passing, the Hall remembers him and his contributions to the sport.

Sugar also appeared in films, including The Great White Hype, which starred Samuel L. Jackson and the fourth sequel to the Rocky series, Rocky Balboa.

Around ringside, it's not going to be the same with Bert not there, said Jack Hirsch, the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America, reported the AP.

Born in Washington D.C. in 1936, Sugar attended the University of Maryland and received his J.D. from Michigan. He passed the bar exam in Washington, D.C., and moved to New York City to work in advertising before he became a sports writer.

Bert was obviously a showman in the way he did things outwardly, very flamboyant, but in quiet moments I found him to be an extremely modest individual, Hirsch said.

His daughter said the arrangements for the memorial service were still being finalized and that people wishing to honor Sugar can make a donation to the boxing hall.

He was really a brilliant man, she said.