His father, Bernie, was a boxer, and his uncle, Tom "One-Man" McCluskey,[2] fought professionally in Maine and competed in the White Hope Tournament in New York.

From 1946 to 1947, "Young Tom" turned pro and went 2-1 throughout 3 professional bouts in the United States until his boxing career ended abruptly.

[4] While serving as a stoker in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II, McCluskey, then 24 years old, sustained a double skull fracture in 1948.

Following a brief split, McCluskey returned to corner Berbick in a bout against John Tate on the undercard of Sugar Ray Leonard-Roberto Durán in 1980.

During the late 1970s, McCluskey was hired and employed for several years teaching self-defence to the Montreal Canadians farm team based in Nova Scotia, the Halifax Voyageurs.