USA DAWN: NEWS AND UPDATES

Muhammad Ali, perhaps the greatest heavyweight boxer the world has ever known and a cultural icon, died Friday, June 3, in Phoenix. He was 74. He died from respiratory complications, reports NBC News.   He suffered from Parkinson's disease. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's syndrome (a similar condition often caused by trauma to the head) in 1984, but was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease proper when his conditions persisted. Born Cassius Clay in 1942, Ali won his first 31 fights before suffering a loss and was named the world heavyweight champion by the World Boxing Association three different times, in 1964, 1974, and 1978. He was an Olympic gold medalist and a quick-footed dancer in the ring, lithe and smart and ready with trash talk to throw off his opponents. But he was also a global celebrity who wasn't afraid to speak his mind, at a time when black men who spoke their minds often paid dearly. His gleeful boasting about his abilities made him trem...