Mills Bee Lane III...Born November 12 1937 is a famous television Judge and legendary Boxing Referee. Lane hails from a prominent Savannah Georgia family: his Grandfather founded the largest bank in Georgia, and his Uncle and Namesake was the president of Citizens And Southern National Bank. Lane, however, had other aspirations, and joined the Unites States Marine Corps in 1956. Mills became a Boxer while with the Marines, becoming the All-Far East Welterweight champ. After leaving the Marines, he enrolled at the University Of Nevada Reno and became the NCAA boxing champion. He turned pro while in college, eventually earning an 11-1 record as a pro. He was in the 1960 Olympics boxing finals held in San Francisco California.. He was defeated by Phil Baldwin in the Semi-Finals. As a boxer, Lane's nose was broken numerous times. Today, he can push his nose all the way into his face without pain, since all the cartilage has been surgically removed from it; the nose always springs back to its normal position. Several fans still beg him to do this trick for them.
Mills Lane was once a rifle instructor for the U.S. Marines,
Lane graduated from University Of Nevada Reno with a business degree in 1963 then a few years later enrolled at the University Of Utah to attend law school. Lane graduated as a lawyer, and later on became a prosecutor at the Washoe District Attorney’s office in Reno. In 1979, he became a Deputy Sheriff. That was the same year that he refereed his first world championship boxing match, when Vito Antuofermo retained the world's Middleweight championship with a 15 round draw against Marvelous Marvin Hagler. Lane had refereed a total of 102 championship bouts.
Lane became a household name in the United States the night he refereed "The Bite Fight" rematch between world Heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield and challenger Mike Tyson on June 28, 1997. After Tyson bit Holyfield's ear twice, Lane disqualified him. Lane's shirt was stained with blood from the incident, and he sold it to a memorabilia collector on the same night. From 1998 to 2001 his show Judge Mills Lane aired on national television. In addition to this show, the producers of MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch approached him about having his character and voice used in their show as the referee of their plasticine figure matches. Lane accepted the offer, and so also became an MTV personality. As a referee, Lane started boxing matches by declaring, "Let's get it on!", which became his catch phrase. This was reproduced in Celebrity Deathmatch as his character would shout the same phrase to initiate fights. Lane named his autobiography Let's Get It On: Tough Talk from Boxing's Top Ref and Nevada's Most Outspoken Judge. Mills Lane made a guest appearance as a voice-over for My Gym Partner's a Monkey, as Substitute Principal Wolverine (With the same voice as Mills Lane on Celebrity Deathmatch). Lane also guest voiced on an episode of Buzz Lightyear of Star Command in which his character he voiced was a judge. He appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien twice. Once on August 15, 1998 and again on September 6, 2000.
Lane also appeared on Dennis Miller Live sometime in 1998.
His most recent television appearance was on June 3, 2002, where he was interviewed on a Mike Tyson-themed episode of ESPN Classic's series SportsCentury.
After the fight between Thomas Hearns and Jay Snyder on November 6, 1998, Mills Lane had retired from being a boxing referee. He is now retired and residing in New York City. He has been married twice. He has five children. Mr. Lane can currently be spotted in television commercials for 1-800-THE-LAW2.He replaced the former athlete Ron Cey as their spokesman. Lane suffered a debilitating stroke in March 2002 which left him partially paralyzed. He still has a great deal of difficulty speaking, which is the main reason why he doesn't voice himself on the new version of Celebrity Deathmatch. His character is now voiced by Chris Edgerly, who also provides the voice of Nick Diamond on the series. Mills was the senior partner at the law firm of Lane, Fahrendorf, Viloria & Oliphant LLP in Reno, Nevada.
His adopted city of Reno, Nevada celebrated him on December 27, 2004, proclaiming it "Mills Lane Day". On this date, Lane made his first public appearance in years at the dedication of a new courthouse which now bears his name.The Mills B. Lane Justice Center. Mills Lane also edited the Georgia Civil War book Dear Mother: Don't Grieve about Me, If I Get Killed, I'll Only Be Dead: Letters from Georgia Soldiers in the Civil War.
Lane, at 65, began receiving injections of adult stem cells taken from his own bone marrow in August, 2002, after he suffered that debilitating stroke.
Mills went back for a third time to the Ukraine, where he was part of a clinical research experiment with bone marrow-type stem cells, and he feels grateful to have been part of the beginning of this very promising medical breakthrough. There has been some improvement so far and he is very optimistic in a good recovery. Still, some of the effects of the stroke are permanent. Nevertheless, Mills continues to lead an active life and continues to fight with his trademark tenacity. In early 2005, Mills and his two sons, Terry and Tommy, decided to re-enter the boxing business with Let’s Get It On Promotions. The company is currently licensed in Nevada and is operating out of Reno. Mills continues to play an active role in advising his sons and promoting the company. Mills Lane is more than just a beloved figure in the sport of boxing—he is an American Icon. But if you ask Mills what he is most proud of, he will tell you that he is most proud of the fact that his work as a referee, attorney, judge, and advocate of the less fortunate, has had a positive impact on so many lives.
His Personal Quotes:
"I'm not final because I'm right. I'm right because I'm final."
"I'm bald, and I'm short...not only in stature, but also in patience with those unwilling to give their best effort. And I'm not talking just about boxing. Life's nothing but one continuous battle from start to finish."Myspace Graphics
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