| Birth: | Mar. 28, 1916 | | Death: | Jan. 7, 2003 | 
Star fullback for Notre Dame who survived the Bataan Death March during WWII. He was best known for a 77-yard run that helped Notre Dame beat the University of Southern California. At the beginning of the death march, a Japanese guard ordered him to remove his Notre Dame graduation ring only to have the ring returned moments later by a Japanese officer who said in perfect English that he had attended the USC game and watched the famous run. He spent 42 months as a POW and saw his weight drop from 212 pounds to only 92 pounds. He is a member of the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame. (bio by: Ron Moody)
Search Amazon for Mario Tonelli | | | Burial:
Memorial Park Cemetery and Crematorium
Skokie
Cook County
Illinois, USA |
Maintained by: Find A Grave
Originally Created by: Ron Moody
Record added: Apr 23, 2003
Find A Grave Memorial# 7377067 |
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