Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr.

Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr.
Born
Cassius Marcellus Clay

(1912-11-11)November 11, 1912
DiedFebruary 8, 1990(1990-02-08) (aged 77)
Occupation(s)Painter, musician
Spouse
(m. 1934)
ChildrenMuhammad Ali
Rahaman Ali

Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr. (November 11, 1912 February 8, 1990) was an American painter and musician. He was the father of three-time World Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali and Rahaman Ali, and the paternal grandfather of Laila Ali. He married Odessa Lee O'Grady in 1934 and worked as a painter. He was described as "a handsome, mercurial, noisy, combative failed dreamer" and a "hard-drinking, skirt-chasing dandy of a daddy". His son Muhammad Ali described him as "the fanciest dancer in Louisville".