Abhiroop Das
While the name Muhammad Ali is hardly unknown to anyone tuned into the world of sports, Ben Watkins’s ‘The Greatest‘ brings in a touch of fiction to tell us about the many people in Ali’s life who went on to define his future. While this includes his rivals, coaches, friends, and allies, among the most important characters in the show is the one who started it all. Odessa Clay, Ali’s mother, can safely be called the biggest driving force in the making of the boxing legend, and with this biographical drama series, we get to spend more time by her side and truly understand all the suffering she went through in different spheres and periods of her life.
Odessa Clay Worked as a Domestic Helper While Taking Care of the Family
Odessa Grady Clay was the mother of the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali, and her depiction in ‘The Greatest,’ while fictionalized to an extent, draws largely from real-life accounts. Born on February 12, 1917, in Hopkins County, Kentucky, she came from a family with a diverse history, one reflecting the realities of slavery in the homeland. Her grandfather, Abe Grady, had emigrated from Ireland shortly after the Civil War and married a free Black woman. Odessa’s own childhood had seen its fair share of ups and downs, as she recalled during a later interview with biographer Thomas Hauser. She explained that her parents separated when she was young and that her mother, who had three children, faced challenges raising them all. As such, Odessa frequently stayed with an aunt and soon began working so that she could attend school.
Odessa was 16 when she met 20-year-old Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr., after a friend called him over while he was walking home from work one afternoon. The two soon entered a relationship, eventually marrying in the 1930s and settling into a home at 3302 Grand Avenue in Louisville’s West End. It is there that Odessa and Cassius welcomed their two sons, Cassius Jr. and Rudolph Valentino. While her husband earned a living as a sign painter and muralist, Odessa worked as a household domestic worker, cooking and cleaning for white families. At the same time, she played a crucial role in her children’s religious upbringing, taking both boys to Mount Zion Baptist Church every Sunday, a detail that is integrated into the show.
Odessa Clay Played a Defining Role in Muhammad Ali’s Journey as a Boxer
Odessa Clay’s involvement in her son’s boxing journey began well before he became an international sporting icon. Cassius Clay Jr. started boxing at the age of 12, and, as she recalled in her conversations with Thomas Hauser, the two would often sit together at night while he spoke about his ambition to become the heavyweight champion of the world. Although she admitted that watching her son fight made her nervous, there was also the belief that he could take care of himself. There was yet another dimension to her support for Cassius, though, and it comes to light from the words of her niece, Coretta Bather. In an obituary piece published by the Washington Post, Bather recalled that Odessa “went into every greasy little gym she could to see him fight,” breaking the unspoken conventions of the time that discouraged women from entering boxing gyms.
Even after Cassius and Rudolph Valentino moved to Miami in 1960 to train under the legendary Angelo Dundee, Odessa didn’t stop being a supportive pillar for the family, while also finding her own space and expression within the local church community. By 1965, Cassius had adopted the name Muhammad Ali, defeated Sonny Liston twice, and consolidated his position as the world champion. At the same time, however, Ali’s association with the Nation of Islam came under heavy public scrutiny. Odessa reportedly did not regard his religious conversion as something that should come between mother and son, reiterating that this was “the land of the free; worship as you please.”
Odessa Clay Died in 1994 and is Remembered as an Inspirational Figure
As Muhammad Ali became a globally famous figure, not just for his boxing prowess but his human rights advocacy and anti-drafting stance, Odessa Clay’s own life also underwent many shifts and turns. Her marriage to Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr. became increasingly difficult, particularly because of his drinking and what Thomas Hauser describes as instances of physical abuse in his book ‘Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times.’ According to his account, Odessa had contacted the police on several occasions in the past to seek protection from her husband. The situation eventually led her to separate from Cassius Sr. and move into a different home in Louisville. The two remained legally married until his death in 1990.
Odessa died in August 1994, aged 77, at Hurstbourne Health Center in the Louisville area, having been disabled by a stroke since February that year. As per reports, Ali and his mother had been unable to speak in the months preceding her death because of her weak condition. Her funeral was held at St. Stephen Church in Louisville, where Reverend Kevin Cosby delivered the eulogy, with Ali present. In his own conversations with Hauser, Ali described his mother by saying, “She taught us to love people and treat everybody with kindness. She taught us it was wrong to be prejudiced or hate.” The show carries this sentiment forward in its own rendition of Odessa as a character, depicting her not just as Ali’s mother, but as a fleshed-out, empowered character.
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