On Nov. 20, Jersey City resident Miles Powell was getting beaten up in Philadelphia.
No, he was not the victim of a loan shark or an Eagles fan. Instead, the Jersey City native and Manhattan resident was doing three rounds of a charity boxing match at the Philadelphia Airport Ramada Inn.
Powell, 23, was duking it out alongside the likes of Anthony Stallone, nephew of actor Sylvester Stallone (who knows a thing or six about boxing), former pro boxer James “Buster” Douglas (remember the first Mike Tyson knockout in 1990?) and Rodney King (whose merciless beatdown by Los Angeles police led, in part, to the 1992 L.A. Riots).
“I am not a celebrity.” – Miles Powell
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The match in which Powell took part was a fundraiser for a local breast cancer charity.
He sparred against local residents and against Stallone, a friend of his. This was no “Thrilla in Phila.”
“I’m not a boxer,” said Powell last week. “Actually, Anthony and I are cool with each other and hung out before, and the folks from the Celebrity Boxing Federation have seen me at various events and asked me if I wanted to participate.”
Powell did not hesitate, remembering that one of his aunts died from breast cancer.
As far as being an amateur pugilist, Powell said he was not “nervous” and didn’t train at all.
“I’m African, so I’m naturally built,” boasted Powell of his Liberian heritage. “Also, I grew up fighting in a tough neighborhood, so not much makes my heart beat faster.”
‘I am not a celebrity’
Powell is also given to deflecting attention, saying “I am not a celebrity.”
Yet he is starting to make a name for himself in the nearly two years he has been modeling, having showed off the fashions of up-and-coming designer Stacey Angela. More significantly, he has a bit part in the upcoming cop flick “Brooklyn’s Finest,” starring Don Cheadle and Richard Gere.
Powell traces his modeling and acting aspirations back to dipping his feet in the acting pool when he was 8 years old and doing plays at church. He then becomes cocky again.
“I am used to being in the spotlight, getting attention,” Powell said. “Eyes always were on me.”
He grew up in the Lexington and Bergen Avenue area, where his grandmother still resides. He began thinking about his future when he visited his uncle at a job in the NBC building at Rockefeller Center and saw famous people walk by.
Powell was educated at Public School 24, Academy 1; Dickinson High School, and business school.
Now, he has several goals beyond acting.
“I feel I can pursue teaching, be a schoolteacher,” Powell said. “I know myself and I don’t have too many weaknesses, and I am also of the belief that knowledge is power.”
And it doesn’t hurt to be known, either.
Ricardo Kaulessar can be reached at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com.