Early Life
LaMotta is an Italian-American born in New York City in the borough of the Bronx. He was forced by his father into fighting other children to entertain neighborhood adults, who threw pocket change into the ring. LaMotta's father collected the money and used it to help pay the rent. His cousin was the inventor Richard LaMotta.
In 1941, at the age of 19, LaMotta turned professional. During World War II, he was rejected for military service because of a mastoid operation on one of his ears.
Read more about this topic: Jake LaMotta
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