James Anthony Thornton, Postal Employee, Retired Middleweight Boxer, Services Thursday

IF I HAD had my way a couple of years ago, onetime super middleweight contender Tony \”The Punching Postman\” Thornton, who died Sept. 10 of complications from injuries from a motorcycle accident, would have been better known to fight fans throughout America.

During a private meeting in Las Vegas with boxing journalists, HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg asked about former or current fighters knowledgeable and glib enough to merit auditions for the upcoming analyst role on \”Boxing After Dark.\” I suggested Thornton, the letter carrier from Glassboro, N.J., who was good enough to earn three cracks at some version of the world 168-pound championship, but not quite good enough to win any of those dream shots.

\”Tony is not only more well-spoken than most fighters, he\’s more well-spoken than almost everyone, including you and me,\” I told Greenburg, who nodded dutifully and then hired former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis without ever having contacted Thornton. What HBO obviously wanted was someone with a very high profile, and I guess Tony – who would have been 50 on Nov. 8 – didn\’t fit the bill.