Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter Terminally Ill, Battling Prostate Cancer

carter the man
Former middleweight world champion contender Rubin “Hurricane” Carter (pictured) has won may battles in his boxing career but now he is up against one that could take him down permanently: prostate cancer. The fierce fighter, who has reportedly whittled down to 90 pounds and whose life story was made into a movie, is presently confined to his Toronto home, according to the New York Daily News.

SEE ALSO: 9 Facts about Rubin “Hurricane” Carter

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Carter, who is 76-years-old, was convicted of a triple homicide that took place in 1966 at a New Jersey bar.  Even though eyewitnesses could not identify Carter as a suspect and police made harmful oversights, such as not taking fingerprints at the crime scene and not conducting a test for gunshot residue, the fighter and his lifelong friend John Artis were convicted twice for the murders and sent to prison.  The second conviction however was overturned by a judge in 1985.

golden-globes
Carter’s story so inspired folk singer Bob Dylan that he composed his famed song “Hurricane” based on the fighter’s plight. In the late ’90s, Hollywood came a-calling and Carter’s life story was made into a film starring Denzel Washington in the lead role. Washington earned an Academy Award nomination for “Best Actor in a Leading Role” for the film and he also won a Golden Globe for “Best Performance by An Actor in a Motion Picture.  The film and Washington went on to receive numerous other accolades for the poignant story and riveting on-screen performances.

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Over the years, Carter became an advocate for those who had been wrongly convicted and a motivational speaker. He also received honorary doctor of Law degrees from universities in Australia and Canada.

Now Carter is being cared for by Artis, who moved in with him as soon as he heard about his friend’s prognosis.  The two share a single family home in a residential area. Even though the bedridden Carter, who was given up to six months to live by doctors back in 2011, he still summons up the energy to write letters on behalf of those individuals he considers wrongly convicted.

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