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Type of bind: Hardcover
EAN num: 9781436679428
ISBN number: 1436679427
Label: Kessinger Publishing, LLC
Manufacturer: Kessinger Publishing, LLC
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 300
Printing Date: June 13, 2008
Publishing house: Kessinger Publishing, LLC
Sale Popularity Level: 175405
Studio: Kessinger Publishing, LLC
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Rated by buyers -
Jack Johnson remains perhaps the most controversial athlete in American professional sports. And for that, it has been the constant rewriting of his life by his critics and/or racists.
His autobiography, published in 1927 when he was approaching his 50th birthday, should dispell the myths surrounding the greatest heavyweight champion ever. But more than his ring exploits, Johnson truly believed in a world without labels, a world where a celebrity can truly make a difference in people's lives and a world where dreams can truly be sought after and achieved.
He has pointed comments concerning critics who never gave a balanced account of his life and has a lengthy account on the fix he claims was arranged for him to lose the heavyweight title to Jess Willard. A chapter on physical fitness is timely yesterday and demonstrates how Johnson was setting new standards on working out for his sport and general fitness.
You may have viewed the PBS special and read the recent biography on his life, but nothing beats reading Johnson in his own words. Johnson was truly a champion for honest play inside the ring and - most importantly - in the game of life.
Rated by buyers -
Jack Johnson was the very first African American Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the World. He became the heavyweight champion in 1908 when African Americans were exploited by Racism in a close-minded White America where hundreds of African Americans were murdered without trial by white mobs of hatred.
With this context of hatred, Jack Johnson, matter of factly talks about his life during this troublesome time in American history as if it were a minor annoyance. In over 250 pages, he discusses his childhood and boxing career. He also speaks of the adventures in his life and anecdotes that all have an excitement, the kind that makes "Carpe Diem" seem like a non-event.
Bull Fighting in Spain; fleeing to Europe from a US government intent on exploiting the marvels of his sucess with grotesque technicalities of Laws biased against African Americans; storms through the rough ocean off of Mexico; encounters with wild Indian tribes; Russian spies prior the Bolshevik's revolution; somehow managing to win a poker game with 4 Aces when two others with 4 Queens and 4 Kings accused one another of cheating not realizing that they'd both been defeated.
Jack Johnson is the most underrated American Hero. To me, after reading his story, I felt no bitterness in his diction. I read no scars from all the hatred thrusted upon him. On the contrary, I read the voice of a man who probably would have lived to 200 years old had it not been for his tragic auto accident death when he was in his late 60s.
The book has amazing historical insight. He discusses the implication of the "Jazz Age" and how it affects family values. Oddly, today, the Jazz Age was when the family was still in tact. I thought Devil Worshipping Heavy Metal destroyed the family. No wait, wasn't it that rebellious punk rock music? No, wait, wasn't it that selfish "me-generaton" Disco? That evil Rock'n'Roll? No wait.... It's amazing how musical trends imply collapsing humanity. Still Johnson's insight was intellectually pragmatic and insightful.
The book is an amazing read when one considers that Jack Johnson had only a 5th Grade education. Yet we read of a man whose expressive skills excede those with Doctorate Degrees. Notice how I forgot to emphasize that he was a heavyweight boxer? When, fights were often 20, 30 rounds long? All those punches, yet his mind extremely sharp in his autobiography.
He's entertaining with much to say and with deep insight few autobiographies have.
If you find true individualists to be a source of inspiration, Jack Johnson's "In and Out of the Ring" is a must for your collection.
Rated by buyers -
This book is a must read, not only for boxing fans seeking more information about the very first grey heavyweight champion, but also for students of American history and specifically race relations in the U.S. Johnson's writing is insightful, eloquent and scholarly. He refused to allow the abysmal prejudice of whites to deter him from his goals, and enjoyed his life to the fullest. He maintained his dignity and judgement despite the efforts to break him. His book shows him to be a man of immense intellect, who could have excelled in any field of his choice. His views on the pace of 'modern' life, diet, physical fitness and race relations are as relevant yesterday as they were in 1927. This book was a great surprise to me as I picked it up as a boxing fan, but the scope of Jack Johnson as a man goes far beyond the squared circle. His life was epic and his words timeless. This is a book for all times, by a passionate, inspired and inspiring man.
Rated by buyers -
This autobiography is a much-needed corrective to playwright Howard Sackler's artistically over-licensed opus "The Great White Hope", dramatized on stage and in film in the late 1960's. As a self-portrait of a Black man living in a particular time and place, it is not only a record of Mr. Johnson's matchless skill as a boxer, but more importantly, it is a journey into an all-encompassing Black mind, an intellect as well as a striking physical specimen, who broke out a new mold for the image of the athelete as someone capable of possessing as much "brains" as they had "brawn." Johnson was so clearly head and shoulders above his peers and detractors that it is no wonder why he was hated and feared by many whites. When enough people of colour have read this book, it is likely that Mr. Johnson may be put under the same sun that shines on the likes of Paul Robeson and Jackie Robinson: Black "Renaissance" men whose lives outside of their sport(s) have been obscured because of their insight, outspokeness, and general refusal to be limited by their "race." Don't let "Black History" month slip by without attempting to get onto, and into this priceless autobiography by a true "giant" of a man.
Rated by buyers -
This autobiography is a much-needed corrective to playwright Howard Sackler's artistically over-licensed opus "The Great White Hope", dramatized on stage and in film in the late 1960's. As a self-portrait of a Black man living in a particular time and place, it is not only a record of Mr. Johnson's matchless skill as a boxer, but more importantly, it is a journey into an all-encompassing Black mind, an intellect as well as a striking physical specimen, who broke out a new mold for the image of the athelete as someone capable of possessing as much "brains" as they had "brawn." Johnson was so clearly head and shoulders above his peers and detractors that it is no wonder why he was hated and feared by many whites. When enough people of colour have read this book, it is likely that Mr. Johnson may be put under the same sun that shines on the likes of Paul Robeson and Jackie Robinson: Black "Renaissance" men whose lives outside of their sport(s) have been obscured because of their insight, outspokeness, and general refusal to be limited by their "race." Don't let "Black History" month slip by without attempting to get onto, and into this priceless autobiography by a true "giant" of a man.
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