(POLITICS) Flier and ticket for a campaign event for the not

Sale 2663 - Lot 357

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Estimate: $ 800 - $ 1,200

(POLITICS.) Flier and ticket for a campaign event for the notorious Major Coxson, featuring Muhammed Ali and the Temptations. Flier, 8½ x 5½ inches, and double-sided engraved ticket, 4¾ x 5¾ inches; minor wear and light folds, ticket with punched hole and faint embossed notarial stamp [Cherry Hill, NJ], 28 February 1973

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Major B. Coxson (1929-1973) was a Philadelphia nightclub owner with a long criminal record and rumored connections to organized crime. He was a friend and neighbor of boxer Muhammad Ali in Cherry Hill, NJ. As part of his campaign to become the first Black mayor of Camden, NJ in 1973, he held a gala event at Cherry Hill's Latin casino which he called an "un-fundraiser"; he claimed to have lost $35,000. This leaflet and ticket both boast of the event's impressive bill of entertainers. In addition to musical performances by the Temptations, the Supremes, the Delfonics, and others, "Muhammad Ali fights exhibitions on stage!" The next day's Camden Courier-Post confirmed that 2500 people were in attendance for the event, including "50 sleek-looking Coxson Girls roaming about."

Coxson lost the mayoral election in May 1973, and was shot in his home the following month. Members of Philadelphia's feared Black Mafia were charged but not convicted.