The beleaguered boxer was ensnared in more legal trouble, including a $49 million lawsuit filed by his former trainer Kevin Rooney for wrongful termination. A jury ordered the boxer to pay Rooney a little more than $4.4 million in October 1996.
Mike Tyson awed the world with his 140 pound division boxing skills in the ring in the 1980s. But in the 1990s, he started making headlines for the wrong reasons. On Feb. 10, 1992, he was convicted of raping Desiree Washington, an 18-year-old beauty pageant contestant.
And indeed, Whitmill’s lawsuit has been criticized for attempting to take credit for designing a tattoo pattern that strongly resembles the unique facial tattoos of the Maori, an indigenous people residing in New Zealand.
Following his undisputed championship win, Tyson’s troubles grew. He left his manager Bill Cayton and fired longtime trainer Kevin Rooney, who helped build his career following D’amato’s death. The issues he faced in his personal Life affected him in reality as he couldn’t train well.
In his prime, the 5-foot-10 Tyson generally competed at just under 220 pounds. His day-to-day weight became much higher after retirement. He revealed in November 2020 he had lost around 100 pounds, thanks to a new vegan diet and a lot of time on a treadmill, ahead of an exhibition fight against Roy Jones Jr.
Tyson’s mother died when he was 16, leaving him in the care of D’Amato, who would become his legal guardian. Tyson later said, «I never saw my mother happy with me and proud of me for doing something: she only knew me as being a wild kid running the streets, coming home with new clothes that she knew I didn’t pay for. I never got a chance to talk to her or know about her. Professionally, it has no effect, but it’s crushing emotionally and personally.»
From 1992 to 1995, while in prison for the rape of Desiree Washington, Tyson read a large number of books, including works by Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong. Spike Lee sent Tyson a copy of tennis player Arthur Ashe’s deathbed memoir, Days of Grace. Tyson was moved by the book and respected Ashe’s ability to be nonconfrontational and admired his political views and his success as a black athlete in a white-dominated world. Tyson got prison tattoos of both men on his biceps: A portrait of Mao, captioned with «Mao» in all-caps, on the left; a portrait of Ashe beneath the words «Days of Grace» on the right. Gerald Early views the Mao and Ashe tattoos as together «symboliz both newfound self-control and his revision of black cool», with Mao representing strength and authority. Clifton Brown in The New York Times describes the Ashe tattoo as «a contradiction» with Tyson’s «fits of rage». Early and biographer Richard Hoffer cast the two bicep tattoos as an unusual combination of, in Hoffer’s words, «alternate icons».
In 2023, an unnamed woman filed a $5 million lawsuit against Tyson, accusing him of raping her in his limousine in the early 90s. She accused Tyson of kissing her several times before pulling off her pants and raping her, despite repeatedly telling him to stop. The woman claims to have experienced «guilt, loss of self-esteem, shame, embarrassment, sadness, anger, depression, anxiety, violent tendencies, drug and alcohol addiction and confusion», as well as inability «to maintain and/or develop healthy relationships with men or other people in general».
Mike Tyson face tattoos were created by renowned tattoo artist S. Victor Whitmill, and it was his skill and creativity that made him a sought-after celebrity. Whitmill, who has experience and talent in creating unusual and symbolic designs, was chosen by Tyson to do this important work. С. Victor Whitmill is known for his considerate approach to the world and principled ideas in life that reflect people’s personal histories and inner worlds. His work with Tyson has become one of the most famous tattoos in the world and has played a crucial role in shaping the new image of the classic boxer.
On his right forearm, Tyson has a dragon tattoo which is easily the most impressive of all his artwork. This is the one tattoo there is little information on, with nobody being sure of the tattoo artist or the actual meaning behind the tattoo. Tyson himself hasn’t discussed the ink but as The Sun detailed, «In Chinese culture, the dragon represents strength, wisdom, and freedom,» so it wouldn’t be a stretch to think Tyson knows this and wanted the tattoo to represent these things. Or maybe he just really likes dragons? We will never know until he comments on the artwork.
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Meaning: The boxer went under the needle in the year 2003 by the tattoo artist, Victor Whitmill. The tribal tattoo is inked on the left side of Tyson’s face. This unique design stirred some commotions like lawsuit and trials when ‘The Hangover’ movie doctor’s character ‘Stu Price’ depicted a temporary tribal tattoo with the same design as Tyson’s tattoo on his face.
