CAPLAN DESERVES HIGHEST HONOR.

Byline: MICHAEL ROSENTHAL Boxing

A legend lives among you.

You might not know him. His name is Bill Caplan. He's a boxing publicist from Granada Hills who will be inducted in the World Boxing Hall of Fame on Saturday.

Caplan has been in the business for 40 years, working primarily as a publicist but also as a promoter, matchmaker, ring announcer and unapologetic lover of a maligned sport. You name the fighter or promoter, Caplan has worked with him or her - from Sugar Ray Robinson to Oscar De La Hoya, Eileen Eaton to Bob Arum. All of them.

And no one is better at what he does.

Public relations people bring fighters and the media together in hopes of getting some coverage in a sport that needs wide exposure to thrive. Caplan, who has close relationships with countless reporters, regularly assembles crowds at news conferences or luncheons that seem to rival the number of fans who show up at the fight he's trying to hype.

That's why he and promoter Bob Arum make such a good team: Caplan, with his daughter/partner Debbie at his side, puts members of the media in the seats and Arum, a born pitch man, convinces them that every fight is bigger than the next.

In other words, much of the boxing news you get in the papers and on television is in good part the product of Caplan's efforts.

His secret, according to Arum, is his persistence. Somehow, in the end, you can't say no to Caplan.

``Bill Caplan never quits,'' Arum said. ``He just keeps coming. He's the Energizer Bunny Rabbit. He keeps coming and coming and coming. People get so exhausted that finally they just say OK.

``That's the type of energy and dedication he brings to projects.''

That's only part of the reason the Hall of Fame voters saw fit to honor him: Bill Caplan the personality is more impressive than Bill Caplan the boxing publicist.

Caplan could be described as a jovial man with one or two extraneous inches around his waist, a booming voice, a laugh that can be measured on the Richter scale and a zest for life that packs the power of a De La Hoya left hook.

The longtime Valley resident is 67 going on 18, a fun-loving boy in an older man's body who lifts the spirit of everyone around him. He's a one-man circus, which could explain why at least one close friend affectionately calls him Bozo.

He's loud, he boisterous, he's sometimes overwhelming and he makes his own rules as he attacks life - and he doesn't care what anyone thinks of him.

We could all learn a lesson.

Put simply: Caplan makes the typically nasty, often-mundane business of boxing more fun, which is another reason he's so successful. People are drawn to him and as a result to the sport, which is the ultimate objective for a boxing publicist.

Everyone will agree: when you meet Caplan, you don't forget him.

That might explain why he seems to know people - important people, sometimes - wherever he goes. He lured some reporters to the Friar's Club for a news conference about a year ago. A few minutes before it started, he walked up to me and said, ``I want you to meet Milton Berle.'' My first thought was, ``How the heck does he know Milton Berle?'' My second thought was, ``Of course he knows Milton Berle.''

That's Caplan.

And the stories. He loves to tell stories. A favorite relates to the night he gave a teen-age George Foreman the encouragement he needed to stick with boxing after a spirit-crushing loss in an amateur fight.

Thirty-four years later, Foreman remains grateful and one of Caplan's closest friends. They cried together when Caplan told Foreman they would be entering the Hall together.

This will be an unforgettable weekend for Caplan. In addition to his induction, he's marrying his lovely ex-wife Sandy - the mother of his five children - on Friday for the second time and boxer-turned-minister Foreman will be officiating.

Sadly, the events won't be as joyous as they might've been. See, Caplan recently lost his son, Charlie. He doesn't show it in public; he's as alive as ever when he's with his friends and colleagues.

In private, he has difficult moments. And nothing is more heart-breaking than a giant spirit hit by such tragedy. Certainly, Charlie's death will be in the thoughts of Caplan and his family on what should've been one of the most gratifying weekends of his life.

Ideally, Caplan can find some comfort in one important thing: Charlie - as well as Caplan's best friend, Allan Malamud, the L.A. sportswriter who died suddenly in 1996 - would be immensely proud of him.

Not just for the remarkable job he does in his chosen field but also for the joy he brings to so many people.

Bill, we're all proud.

--De La Hoya watch: Oscar De La Hoya is very clear on whom he'd like to fight next: Felix Trinidad.

He's so determined to get the rematch of their 1999 fight, won by Trinidad, that he plans to invite Trinidad to dinner in Puerto Rico in the next few weeks in an attempt to coax him out of retirement.

Trinidad has said he will not fight again, but the two stand to make a fortune for a second fight.

``I think it's his father,'' said De La Hoya, suggesting Felix Trinidad Sr. has put pressure on his son to quit. ``I want him to look me in the eyes and say he doesn't want to fight me.''

De La Hoya believes his rival will eventually fight again.

``My guess is yes,'' he said a few hours before leaving for his home in San Juan, which he shares with wife, Millie. ``You get used to a certain lifestyle. So it can be overwhelming when the income isn't coming in like it used to.

``He might miss being in the spotlight. And, no matter what anyone says, I think he knows he didn't beat me in the first fight.''

De La Hoya won't have to travel far to get together with Trinidad: They live in the same neighborhood. How far apart?

``A 5-wood,'' said De La Hoya, an avid golfer, ``... no, a driver.''

De La Hoya would like the fight to take place in May and said he'd only fight at 154 pounds. If the fight can't be made, De La Hoya probably will face Shane Mosley.

COMING UP

FRIDAY

--Joe Mesi vs. David Izon, heavyweights, Buffalo, N.Y., ESPN2. Also, Lawrence Clay-Bey vs. Ahmad Abdin, heavyweights.

--Telefutura

SATURDAY

--Diosbelys Hurtado vs. Vivian Harris, for WBA super lightweight title, Houston, Showtime.

SUNDAY

--Taurus Sykes vs. Sherman Williams, heavyweights, Tacoma, Wash., Fox Sports Net

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COMING UP (see text)