You DID know Dick Cavett was Muhammad Ali's Best Friend? And Colin the Knee is Ali's Equal?

Like the dozens of people who claimed to be "The Fifth Beatle," a lot of people claim that THEY knew Muhammad Ali better than ANYONE.

In his eulogy for Ali, Billy Crystal mentioned that Muhammad referred to him as "little brother." Which was true.

But how about Dick Cavett? Isn't he shorter than Billy Crystal? Ah, but Dick hosted Ali on some talk shows, so maybe "BEST FRIEND" is more like it. Did Muhammad Ali ever, EVER say "Dick Cavett is MY BEST FRIEND?"

It doesn't appear to be the case, but "puffing" especially in a puff piece, is all right. Isn't it?

Today, Ali's birthday (he would've been 77...Betty White is 97) the best the Daily News could do was interview Cavett.

It's a short piece. Either Dick doesn't remember all those times Muhammad came out to Montauk to meet him and the missus, or wandered over to Dick's brownstone on 79th...or it never happened. But some Cavett shows ARE available on YouTube, by the good graces of whatever "rights owner" is claiming them and perhaps tossing a few pennies in Dick's direction. (Dick's show is STILL not available on SPECTRUM, the channel that I presume connects to his Manhattan residence. Odd irony, there. The DECADES cable channel doesn't seem to interest SPECTRUM.)

One thing you can say about Muhammad Ali and Dick Cavett...they were people you LOVED to hear talk. Cavett's various talk shows are still remarkable viewing. I've met Dick Cavett several times and he was always gracious and fun, and I always thought, "I wish we could go on talking..." But at least there are his shows, his books and his NY Times columns.

Aside from promoting himself as Ali's BEST FRIEND, and hyping a Friars Club party for Larry Storch's 95th Birthday in February, here's the meat of the puffy piece:

Cavett, in the other paragraph to the skimpy story, mused that he should have tried harder to convince Ali to stop fighting (and not to suffer a humiliating stoppage to Larry Holmes, or go the distance in a pointless loss to Trevor Berbick).

He excuses this by shrugging that Ali would not have listened to him. Ali also didn't listen to other BEST FRIENDS who were concerned about him, from Norman Mailer to Howard Cosell and back, nor his doctor Ferdie Pacheco (who left Ali because he dared to speak out about the risk of permanent damage). Nor Angelo Dundee.

Dick Cavett is a nice guy, still capable of being witty, but is sometimes just slightly disappointing in his insults (his Tweets on Trump would get "You can do better, Richard" from Carson, a man Dick used to write for). Here, the most disappointing thing is daring...DARING...to mention Colin Kaperneck (I think it's generally spelled KAEPERNICK) in the same breath as Muhammad Ali.

Maybe Ali's BEST FRIEND would remember that Muhammad Ali risked going to PRISON for not signing up to be drafted. Colin KAEPERNICK did not risk PRISON for anything.

Maybe Ali's BEST FRIEND would remember that Muhammad Ali was a Black Muslim at a time when the movement was known for white-hostile people whose message included hate. That includes Malcolm X and his "White Devil" stuff and his anti-Semitism. A lot of people were angry with Ali for being pat of a movement that was considered potentially violent and deadly. Colin KAEPERNICK was a fairly obscure over-paid football player who took a knee surrounded by players ready to defend him should some "boob" (a Cavett word) run on the field to kick him in the knee.

Unlike Muhammad Ali, a world-known figure, Colin KAEPERNICK was not known outside the USA, and his "cause" was to bitch that the National Anthem should not be song because, uh, it contained racist lyrics. When that was disproved, it was because Francis Scott Key was a racist. When that was disproved, the reason became "police brutality." As if taking a knee could do anything about police brutality against any group, be it a criminal who seems to be pointing a gun, or females holding a METOO march or some white girl getting her head smacked into the sand at a beach in New Jersey.

Muhammad Ali was an open, friendly, humorous guy who loved people and signed autographs for hours. That's not Colin KAEPERNICK. Ali changed his name to reflect his views. He was once Cassius Clay. Colin KAEPERNICK has not changed his English-German oddball name, nor pointed out that he got his name from his white adoptive parents. Colin X might be a little more dramatic in complaining about how awful America is, and how terrible it is to stand up and honor the National Anthem which is about patriotism.

Is America such a horrible country that you can't stand for the flag or the anthem...when a white woman is free to have sex with a black man (that's how Colin KAEPERNICK was born) and a white couple adopts that child? George Foreman, who has fond memories of Muhammad Ali despite losing to him, does not side with Colin KAEPERNICK.)

Nobody is sure who MUHAMMAD ALI's best friend was. I'd guess Howard Bingham. We do know: MUHAMMAD ALI was THE GREATEST. The football guy on one knee isn't anywhere near him.

"It wouldn't be hard to weld them together," says Dick Cavett. Well, little fellow, I would pay good money to see you try.