CBS Julie Chen Moonves of Big Brother.
The “Big Brother” Season 23 cast list has been announced, at least one of the new players could have an athletic edge.
According to Entertainment Weekly, contestant Derek Frazier is the son of a late boxing legend Smokin’ Joe Frazier. On his bio for the CBS reality show, the 29-year-old “Big Brother” contestant revealed that he lives in Philadelphia and works as a safety officer. And he also dropped the bombshell about his personal life, which could be a game-changer if any of his housemates find out.
“My dad is Smokin’ Joe Frazier, the boxer,” Frazier revealed. “I can lift a lot of weight. Bench 315 pounds, deadlift 500 pounds, and back squat 520 pounds…. I know how to box in a boxing ring.”
Derek Frazier will compete against 15 other contestants for the $500,000 “Big Brother” grand prize.
Smokin’ Joe Frazier Had a Famous Rivalry With Muhammad Ali
GettyIn a title fight at Madison Square Gardens, New York, Muhammad Ali goes down in the 15th round to a left hook from world heavyweight champion Joe Frazier who kept the title with a unanimous points win.
Smokin’ Joe Frazier was one of the most iconic boxers of his era. After growing up with humble beginnings in South Carolina, he made his way to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics when he won a gold medal as an amateur fighter, per CNN. He later moved to Philadelphia, where he worked in a meat locker. His penchant for pounding sides of beef with his fists while in his refrigerated workspace helped him become the inspiration for a storyline in the 1976 Sylvester Stallone movie “Rocky,” CNN noted.
Smokin’ Joe Frazier was also one half of the famous “Fight of the Century” against Muhammad Ali in 1971, and became the first boxer ever to beat him. Frazier was the undisputed heavyweight champion from 1970 to 1973, per Biography. He later lost to Ali in the famous “Thrilla in Manila” match in the Philippines in 1975.
Frazier died on November 7, 2011, of liver cancer, according to an obituary posted by the New York Times. He was 67-years-old.
While Ali taunted Frazier in the boxing ring, when his rival passed away he paid his respects with a heartfelt statement.
“The world has lost a great champion,” Ali said in 2011, per The Washington Post. “I will always remember Joe with respect and admiration. My sympathy goes out to his family and loved ones.”
Derek Frazier Is Not the Only ‘Big Brother’ Contestant With a Famous Relative
InstagramFrankie and Ariana Grande
With more than 20 years of gameplay in its books, it’s no wonder that this is not the first time a “Big Brother” player had a famous relative. One of the most memorable players with a celeb sibling was Frankie Grande. The Season 16 player entered the “Big Brother” house in 2014, just as his younger half-sister was starting to topping the charts with her breakout song, “Problem.” Grande kept his celebrity connection secret—at first. He later told his housemates that his sister was one of the biggest pop singers in the world.
Not only Grande dish “I have a famous sister” before revealing his sibling was Ariana Grande, but he outed himself as a “multimedia mogul” with his YouTube channel, per Big Brother Network. Grande also told his housemates that he was playing “Big Brother” for charity and that if he won he planned to help to build schools in Africa.
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