1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:03,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:03,760 --> 00:00:13,680 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot Com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:16,799 Speaker 1: I'm Sarah Dowdy and I'm Deblina Chalk Reboarding, and we 4 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:21,120 Speaker 1: are of course covering Black History Month for February and today. 5 00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:24,439 Speaker 1: It's pretty hard to imagine professional sports in the United 6 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:28,680 Speaker 1: States were once segregated, perhaps especially a sport like boxing, 7 00:00:28,680 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 1: where some of the biggest names guys like Muhammad Ali, 8 00:00:31,720 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 1: Joe Louis, George Foreman, the recently departed Joe Frasier are 9 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:39,680 Speaker 1: African American. But at the turn of the twentieth century, 10 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:43,440 Speaker 1: the idea that there could be a black heavyweight champion 11 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 1: was impossible. And surprisingly, the issue wasn't just about a 12 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:52,360 Speaker 1: white man fighting a black man and the physical contact 13 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:56,360 Speaker 1: that that would necessitate, which, unfortunately, in the context of segregation, 14 00:00:56,400 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: that kind of makes sense. Uh, we're sharing a water fountain, 15 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:03,280 Speaker 1: were sharing a waiting room was considered not okay. It's 16 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:07,520 Speaker 1: gonna figure by extension that something is physical is boxing, 17 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:10,840 Speaker 1: where you're gonna swap sweat and blood and embrace in 18 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:14,360 Speaker 1: the ring would also not be okay. But black and 19 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:18,440 Speaker 1: white boxers did fight each other exhibition matches, weren't uncommon, 20 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:21,320 Speaker 1: and just as the white Major League Baseball players would 21 00:01:21,360 --> 00:01:26,080 Speaker 1: barnstorm with their Negro League counterparts decades before integration, boxers 22 00:01:26,080 --> 00:01:29,039 Speaker 1: of different races would fight at pretty much all levels, 23 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:34,560 Speaker 1: except at the highest level, the heavyweight championship. For several reasons, 24 00:01:34,640 --> 00:01:38,040 Speaker 1: which will discuss some more. The heavyweight title was considered 25 00:01:38,120 --> 00:01:41,959 Speaker 1: so prestigious, so honorable, it couldn't be sullied by a 26 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:46,560 Speaker 1: black contender in some people's opinion, let alone a black champion. 27 00:01:46,959 --> 00:01:51,280 Speaker 1: So it took Texas born Jack Johnson. We're not talking 28 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:53,600 Speaker 1: about the singer, of course, we're talking about the boxer 29 00:01:54,000 --> 00:01:56,680 Speaker 1: to break that color line. And to do it, he 30 00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:59,960 Speaker 1: had to be not only a powerful fighter, but really 31 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,120 Speaker 1: dogged in his pursuit of the fight, trying to get 32 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: somebody to actually fight him. He hounded his potential opponents, 33 00:02:07,760 --> 00:02:11,560 Speaker 1: knowing that eventually the honor of defending that title, which 34 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:15,160 Speaker 1: was so such an important thing in the boxing world, 35 00:02:15,200 --> 00:02:17,960 Speaker 1: plus of course the purse money that would come with 36 00:02:18,080 --> 00:02:21,760 Speaker 1: defending it, would eventually make it worthwhile for a white 37 00:02:21,880 --> 00:02:24,840 Speaker 1: champion to step into the ring and fight with a 38 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:27,240 Speaker 1: black man. So first we're gonna give you a little 39 00:02:27,240 --> 00:02:30,680 Speaker 1: bit about Jack Johnson's background before we get to the fighting, 40 00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:34,400 Speaker 1: the really exciting part. John Arthur Johnson or Jack, was 41 00:02:34,440 --> 00:02:37,960 Speaker 1: born March thirty one, eight seventy eight, in Galaston, Texas. 42 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:41,400 Speaker 1: His parents were former slaves who educated all six of 43 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:44,600 Speaker 1: their kids, working as a school janitor and a laundress. 44 00:02:45,160 --> 00:02:47,800 Speaker 1: And though Jack only had five years of schooling, he 45 00:02:47,840 --> 00:02:51,840 Speaker 1: became a voracious student of history, with a particular fondness 46 00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:56,680 Speaker 1: for Napoleon. And he also played bass fiddle, loved classical music, 47 00:02:56,840 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 1: and invented stuff he invented. He had a patent on 48 00:02:59,760 --> 00:03:01,919 Speaker 1: a I think we should have put him in our 49 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:07,679 Speaker 1: earlier podcast on Unlikely Inventor Unlikely Inventors one. So as 50 00:03:07,680 --> 00:03:11,399 Speaker 1: a kid, Johnson started fighting in battle royals, which were 51 00:03:11,800 --> 00:03:15,920 Speaker 1: these really horrible sounding underground fights where a white audience 52 00:03:15,960 --> 00:03:19,200 Speaker 1: would gather to watch a group of black boys fight 53 00:03:19,400 --> 00:03:23,640 Speaker 1: round robins style until one champ remained. That champion would 54 00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 1: be able to collect, you know, a pretty modest purse 55 00:03:26,200 --> 00:03:28,680 Speaker 1: of change that had been thrown on the stage. But 56 00:03:29,040 --> 00:03:33,560 Speaker 1: from that sort of inauspicious start, Johnson worked his way up, 57 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:37,280 Speaker 1: moved up to fights with actual purses, and started riding 58 00:03:37,280 --> 00:03:40,840 Speaker 1: the rails to barnstorm around the country and also helping 59 00:03:40,920 --> 00:03:44,320 Speaker 1: more experienced boxers train as a as a sparring partner. 60 00:03:44,840 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 1: And as we already mentioned, blacks did fight whites, it 61 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:50,960 Speaker 1: just wasn't for that top spot. In fact, much of 62 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 1: Johnson's defensive expertise. He could seemingly swat away punches very easily, 63 00:03:56,720 --> 00:03:59,600 Speaker 1: and that came from practicing and training with Joe choint 64 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:02,400 Speaker 1: Ski after the two were jailed together for boxing in 65 00:04:02,440 --> 00:04:05,080 Speaker 1: the first place. And just a note for you here, 66 00:04:05,160 --> 00:04:07,880 Speaker 1: just a little side note at the turning contact boxing 67 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:11,320 Speaker 1: context for you guys. Exactly around the turn of the century, 68 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:14,200 Speaker 1: boxing was a popular sport with all classes of people, 69 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:17,240 Speaker 1: but it was still a sport that was considered kind 70 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:20,200 Speaker 1: of a lista even illegal in many places. Despite the 71 00:04:20,240 --> 00:04:25,160 Speaker 1: gloves rules and timed rounds, and with new techniques picked 72 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:28,320 Speaker 1: up from Joe, plus his naturally powerful punch and his 73 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:32,160 Speaker 1: six foot one and a half inch frame, Johnson moved 74 00:04:32,160 --> 00:04:35,400 Speaker 1: on to bigger cities and he eventually made up to 75 00:04:35,560 --> 00:04:39,800 Speaker 1: one thousand dollars per fight. He was becoming a contender, 76 00:04:39,839 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 1: but one who would never be allowed or so A 77 00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:45,400 Speaker 1: lot of people thought to fight the heavyweight champion. But 78 00:04:45,800 --> 00:04:49,279 Speaker 1: why why wasn't he allowed And we're gonna talk about 79 00:04:49,320 --> 00:04:51,320 Speaker 1: that some, but at first I really want to recommend 80 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:55,159 Speaker 1: there's a fantastic Ken Burns documentary on Jack Johnson called 81 00:04:55,480 --> 00:04:59,480 Speaker 1: Unforgivable Blackness, and for me, it really helped explain the 82 00:04:59,600 --> 00:05:02,560 Speaker 1: racial politics behind boxing at the time. It's easy to 83 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:05,719 Speaker 1: find a lot of biographical information on Johnson, but it 84 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:09,120 Speaker 1: helped put some of that into context for me. So 85 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:12,720 Speaker 1: even though boxing was an illicit sport, I mean, people 86 00:05:12,720 --> 00:05:17,840 Speaker 1: would campaign against its violence, the heavyweight championship was really 87 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:21,400 Speaker 1: kind of an upstanding position. It was well respected and 88 00:05:21,960 --> 00:05:25,280 Speaker 1: John L. Sullivan, who was called the Boston strong Boy, 89 00:05:25,360 --> 00:05:28,440 Speaker 1: had a lot to do with the respect for that position. 90 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:32,719 Speaker 1: He was the first gloved heavyweight champion and really became 91 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:36,120 Speaker 1: a huge celebrity, kind of a sports hero, long before 92 00:05:37,000 --> 00:05:41,560 Speaker 1: sports heroes really existed, and he made the title something 93 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 1: that was actually important to the general audience, almost a 94 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:49,280 Speaker 1: byeword for the strongest man in the world. And he 95 00:05:49,360 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 1: even bragged that he could beat anyone in the world, except, 96 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:56,800 Speaker 1: of course, it was understood African Americans, who he just 97 00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:01,000 Speaker 1: would not fight. He refused to fight black boxer, drawing 98 00:06:01,200 --> 00:06:04,080 Speaker 1: a color line after he became the heavyweight champion. Since 99 00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:08,880 Speaker 1: the heavyweight title represented more than just physical prowess or 100 00:06:09,000 --> 00:06:14,839 Speaker 1: boxing expertise, it represented physical superiority to all other men, 101 00:06:15,000 --> 00:06:19,240 Speaker 1: and so it had this really weighty social significance to it. 102 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:23,520 Speaker 1: And Sullivan's precedent continued with later heavyweight champs all the 103 00:06:23,560 --> 00:06:27,280 Speaker 1: way through Jim Jeffries, the boiler Maker, who had made 104 00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:29,840 Speaker 1: his early name fighting some of the best black boxers 105 00:06:29,839 --> 00:06:32,400 Speaker 1: of the day, and Jeffreys was kind of the ultimate 106 00:06:32,440 --> 00:06:36,440 Speaker 1: boxing specimen of that era, who was hairy chested, he 107 00:06:36,480 --> 00:06:39,039 Speaker 1: once drank a case of whiskey in two days, and 108 00:06:39,080 --> 00:06:41,640 Speaker 1: he kept a bear as a pet. But even though 109 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:44,440 Speaker 1: up and coming Jack Johnson was winning against all other 110 00:06:44,520 --> 00:06:48,279 Speaker 1: major black boxers of the time, clinching the unofficial Negro 111 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:52,680 Speaker 1: heavyweight Championship, Jeffries wouldn't fight him. They instead engaged in 112 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:56,599 Speaker 1: a kind of battle of words and intimidation. After knocking 113 00:06:56,640 --> 00:06:58,960 Speaker 1: out Jim Jeffrey's brother Jack in an l a fight, 114 00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:02,240 Speaker 1: Johnson told the spey tater champ that he could beat 115 00:07:02,279 --> 00:07:04,640 Speaker 1: him too, egging him on really, and then in a 116 00:07:04,720 --> 00:07:09,280 Speaker 1: San Francisco saloon, Jefferies, after Jackson had again said why 117 00:07:09,279 --> 00:07:13,480 Speaker 1: don't you fight me. Jefferies offered Jackson two dollars on 118 00:07:13,680 --> 00:07:17,880 Speaker 1: the bar to fight him completely alone in the seller 119 00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:22,320 Speaker 1: you know this really sketchy sounding scenario. Johnson refused that 120 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:23,920 Speaker 1: he was only going to fight him if it was 121 00:07:23,960 --> 00:07:27,800 Speaker 1: a real fight. Finally, though, in nineteen o five, the 122 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:32,000 Speaker 1: undefeated Jefferies decided that he was going to retire from boxing, 123 00:07:32,360 --> 00:07:36,840 Speaker 1: retire and become an alfalfa farmer. And of course, though 124 00:07:37,040 --> 00:07:41,920 Speaker 1: retiring like that, he needed to um crown a new champion, 125 00:07:41,960 --> 00:07:45,360 Speaker 1: a new heavyweight champion, and so he refereed about between 126 00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:50,120 Speaker 1: two white contenders and name the winner the new heavyweight champion. 127 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:56,240 Speaker 1: Johnson obviously was really mad that this had happened this way. 128 00:07:56,280 --> 00:07:59,640 Speaker 1: He hadn't gotten his chance to fight the undisputed champion, 129 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:03,640 Speaker 1: and so he started still just going after the title 130 00:08:03,680 --> 00:08:07,080 Speaker 1: anyway he could, going after the new title holders. Eventually, 131 00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:10,920 Speaker 1: that title holder was Tommy Burns, who was a Canadian 132 00:08:11,400 --> 00:08:16,640 Speaker 1: born Noah Brusso, and Burns, like his predecessors, wouldn't fight 133 00:08:16,760 --> 00:08:18,840 Speaker 1: Johnson either though, so it seemed like it was going 134 00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:22,040 Speaker 1: to be a losing battle. Yeah, but Johnson wouldn't relent. 135 00:08:22,160 --> 00:08:26,800 Speaker 1: He followed Burns around the world challenging him everywhere he went, 136 00:08:27,320 --> 00:08:30,080 Speaker 1: and eventually it started to get embarrassing for Burns, even 137 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:34,040 Speaker 1: though in some twisted logic, Burns would call Johnson yellow, 138 00:08:34,280 --> 00:08:36,120 Speaker 1: even though he was the one where don't get that. 139 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:39,280 Speaker 1: I don't either, So he said what he thought would 140 00:08:39,280 --> 00:08:43,240 Speaker 1: be an insurmountable barrier between him and Johnson. Burns said 141 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:45,760 Speaker 1: he wouldn't break the color line for less than thirty 142 00:08:45,760 --> 00:08:48,800 Speaker 1: thousan dollars. So he thought, Okay, surely nobody's going to 143 00:08:48,880 --> 00:08:53,600 Speaker 1: go for that. But sure enough, somebody did agree to 144 00:08:53,640 --> 00:08:55,640 Speaker 1: pay that much. In the fall of nineteen o eight, 145 00:08:55,679 --> 00:09:00,120 Speaker 1: Australian Hugh known as Huge Deal McIntosh agreed to put 146 00:09:00,200 --> 00:09:02,800 Speaker 1: up the money and put on the fight. So Burns 147 00:09:02,840 --> 00:09:05,960 Speaker 1: accepted the thirty thousand dollars. Johnson, by the way, only 148 00:09:06,000 --> 00:09:08,880 Speaker 1: got five thousand. And their fight took place the day 149 00:09:08,920 --> 00:09:12,920 Speaker 1: after Christmas night in Sydney, Australia. So we're gonna give 150 00:09:12,960 --> 00:09:15,200 Speaker 1: you a brief play by play of how the fight 151 00:09:15,240 --> 00:09:19,000 Speaker 1: went down. It started amid huge cheers for Burns and 152 00:09:19,120 --> 00:09:22,160 Speaker 1: jeers for Johnson, even though, and you can see this 153 00:09:22,240 --> 00:09:25,040 Speaker 1: in the footage, he was still blowing the crowd kisses 154 00:09:25,160 --> 00:09:29,760 Speaker 1: quite kindly Johnson had Burns on the floor within seconds, 155 00:09:29,880 --> 00:09:34,040 Speaker 1: and even though Burns started to call Johnson racial slurs, 156 00:09:34,400 --> 00:09:38,520 Speaker 1: Johnson really had a more effective way to um anger 157 00:09:38,760 --> 00:09:42,360 Speaker 1: or embarrass his opponent. He would point at spots on 158 00:09:42,440 --> 00:09:45,040 Speaker 1: his own body, like on his side or on his stomach, 159 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:48,400 Speaker 1: just point at it with his glove, urging Burns to 160 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:51,960 Speaker 1: punch him there. And when Burns, after clearly a second 161 00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:54,280 Speaker 1: of hesitation, like what on earth is going on here, 162 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:58,240 Speaker 1: would really punch him, Johnson wouldn't even flinch or react, 163 00:09:58,360 --> 00:10:01,800 Speaker 1: I mean really kind of stuffed to psych him out. Johnson, meanwhile, 164 00:10:02,000 --> 00:10:05,160 Speaker 1: would hug Burns, holding him up to keep him fighting 165 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:08,240 Speaker 1: when he was starting to get tired. By the fourteenth round, 166 00:10:08,280 --> 00:10:10,920 Speaker 1: it was clear that Johnson was going to be the winner. 167 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:14,800 Speaker 1: Police stopped the fight and the cameras. You can see 168 00:10:14,840 --> 00:10:18,560 Speaker 1: a freeze frame the last the last second of the 169 00:10:18,600 --> 00:10:21,960 Speaker 1: cameras rolling, and then Johnson was declared winner. They stopped 170 00:10:21,960 --> 00:10:24,920 Speaker 1: the cameras because they didn't want to see They didn't 171 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:28,160 Speaker 1: want everybody to see Johnson defeating this white guy. But 172 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:30,000 Speaker 1: it didn't matter if people saw it or not. At 173 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:34,040 Speaker 1: thirty years old, Johnson was the new heavyweight champion, so 174 00:10:34,080 --> 00:10:36,720 Speaker 1: now it's time to start talking a little bit about 175 00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:39,920 Speaker 1: Johnson's personal life, because it's what everyone else was doing 176 00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:43,120 Speaker 1: at the time anyway, And if you've studied the Harlem Renaissance, 177 00:10:43,280 --> 00:10:45,840 Speaker 1: Red w E, DWO Boys, or even listen to our 178 00:10:45,880 --> 00:10:49,240 Speaker 1: Mark Scarvey podcast, you've heard of the New Negro. A 179 00:10:49,280 --> 00:10:52,320 Speaker 1: Michael Walsh article in The Smithsonian does a lot to 180 00:10:52,360 --> 00:10:55,520 Speaker 1: put that era of the New Negro into context. It 181 00:10:55,600 --> 00:10:59,080 Speaker 1: came after a dark post reconstruction era where Jim Crow 182 00:10:59,160 --> 00:11:03,679 Speaker 1: Laws caught a segregation and lynching's really increased. And by 183 00:11:03,679 --> 00:11:06,280 Speaker 1: the turn of the century, though, with the Great Migration 184 00:11:06,360 --> 00:11:11,000 Speaker 1: providing African Americans with new opportunities in industrial work up north, 185 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:13,719 Speaker 1: things seemed to be looking up a little bit. The 186 00:11:13,760 --> 00:11:16,880 Speaker 1: idea of the New Negro developed. They were born free, 187 00:11:17,240 --> 00:11:20,440 Speaker 1: ready for opportunity, and not content to just hang back 188 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:24,240 Speaker 1: and wait. So Johnson was the epitome of that New Negro. 189 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:28,720 Speaker 1: He dressed immaculately, he lived finally, and he spoke freely. 190 00:11:29,040 --> 00:11:32,560 Speaker 1: But for many African Americans and certainly for many white Americans, 191 00:11:32,600 --> 00:11:36,400 Speaker 1: he took things a little bit too far. He drank heavily, 192 00:11:36,720 --> 00:11:40,199 Speaker 1: he raced and crashed fast cars. He had gold crowns, 193 00:11:40,559 --> 00:11:42,960 Speaker 1: he got into arguments with the owners of the vaudeville 194 00:11:43,040 --> 00:11:46,760 Speaker 1: theaters that he'd moonlight in. Most seriously, though, he dated 195 00:11:46,800 --> 00:11:50,200 Speaker 1: white women who he would often meet at Chicago's Fancis Bordello. 196 00:11:50,920 --> 00:11:53,520 Speaker 1: When the news that the new champion, Johnson was traveling 197 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:57,600 Speaker 1: around with a white companion his hometown of Galveston canceled 198 00:11:57,640 --> 00:12:00,320 Speaker 1: the big parade they had planned for him. So was 199 00:12:00,360 --> 00:12:02,360 Speaker 1: the big issue, and it's important to keep that one 200 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:04,600 Speaker 1: in mind as we go forward. But there was another 201 00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:07,480 Speaker 1: issue going on for Johnson, to one that was actually 202 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:12,120 Speaker 1: pertinent to boxing. Since the old champion, Jim Jefferies, had 203 00:12:12,240 --> 00:12:16,160 Speaker 1: retired undefeated to his elf Alfa farm, some people began 204 00:12:16,280 --> 00:12:20,120 Speaker 1: questioning whether Johnson was really a legitimate champion at all. 205 00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:23,000 Speaker 1: Had really bothered folks when they're there when there were 206 00:12:23,040 --> 00:12:26,120 Speaker 1: the white champions in between, but was bothering them now? 207 00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:31,000 Speaker 1: So Johnson answered that he would fight Jeffreys or anyone 208 00:12:31,040 --> 00:12:34,120 Speaker 1: else who wanted to fight him, and almost immediately the 209 00:12:34,240 --> 00:12:38,160 Speaker 1: search to find that anyone who was considered or called 210 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:43,040 Speaker 1: the great White Hope started. So seriously, anyone who was 211 00:12:43,120 --> 00:12:46,480 Speaker 1: white could be a challenger. They'd come from the fields, 212 00:12:46,559 --> 00:12:49,920 Speaker 1: from circuses and if they finally got to Johnson, he'd 213 00:12:49,920 --> 00:12:53,840 Speaker 1: steamrolled them. And after running out of white hopes, Johnson 214 00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:56,400 Speaker 1: took on his pal and drinking buddy, Stanley Ketchel, the 215 00:12:56,400 --> 00:12:59,080 Speaker 1: white and middleweight champion of the world, and, according to 216 00:12:59,080 --> 00:13:02,120 Speaker 1: the Burns document or, fight promoters dressed Ketchell up for 217 00:13:02,160 --> 00:13:05,200 Speaker 1: photos and high healed cowboy boots and a bulky coat 218 00:13:05,280 --> 00:13:08,600 Speaker 1: to make him look more comparable to Johnson. They also 219 00:13:08,640 --> 00:13:12,280 Speaker 1: had each fighter promised something, so Ketchell promised that he 220 00:13:12,280 --> 00:13:15,400 Speaker 1: wouldn't try to actually win and in the process wind 221 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:18,600 Speaker 1: up getting really badly hurt. It was much smaller, and 222 00:13:18,720 --> 00:13:23,000 Speaker 1: Johnson promised that he wouldn't knock out Ketchell. Broken promises 223 00:13:23,120 --> 00:13:26,280 Speaker 1: all around. However, things did not go according to plan 224 00:13:26,400 --> 00:13:28,240 Speaker 1: what they did for a little bit. For the first 225 00:13:28,240 --> 00:13:31,280 Speaker 1: part of the fight, it seemed like everybody was happy. 226 00:13:31,440 --> 00:13:33,600 Speaker 1: It was gonna turn out to be a great movie. 227 00:13:33,679 --> 00:13:35,760 Speaker 1: The boxers could make a lot of money off of it. 228 00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:39,079 Speaker 1: Everybody would be good. But in the twelfth round, Ketchell 229 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:43,360 Speaker 1: really started trying to win, and he knocked down Johnson 230 00:13:43,640 --> 00:13:45,520 Speaker 1: as soon as he was up. There was obviously a 231 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:48,600 Speaker 1: huge mistake. As soon as he was up, Johnson knocked 232 00:13:48,640 --> 00:13:52,320 Speaker 1: out Ketchell in the process, knocking out all of his 233 00:13:52,559 --> 00:13:55,480 Speaker 1: front teeth at the route, which is I'm looking at 234 00:13:55,480 --> 00:14:00,360 Speaker 1: to Blina is cringing right now. It's maybe one of 235 00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:04,480 Speaker 1: the more disturbing physical parts of this podcast, getting your 236 00:14:04,520 --> 00:14:08,960 Speaker 1: teeth knocked out. Eventually, though, after all of these defeats 237 00:14:08,960 --> 00:14:11,920 Speaker 1: of the Great White Hopes, the defeat of Catchel, it 238 00:14:12,040 --> 00:14:15,680 Speaker 1: was clear that there was only one legitimate contender out 239 00:14:15,720 --> 00:14:19,080 Speaker 1: there for Johnson. That was, of course, Jim Jefferies. Even 240 00:14:19,120 --> 00:14:21,680 Speaker 1: though now he was thirty four, he was nearly three 241 00:14:21,720 --> 00:14:25,840 Speaker 1: hundred pounds and he was seriously enjoying his alfalfa farming. 242 00:14:25,880 --> 00:14:30,080 Speaker 1: He was enjoying retirement. He however, had to be the 243 00:14:30,120 --> 00:14:34,120 Speaker 1: Great White Hope, and eventually Jefferies agreed to come out 244 00:14:34,120 --> 00:14:38,680 Speaker 1: of retirement and fight us. Marshall Texts Ricord won the 245 00:14:38,760 --> 00:14:41,080 Speaker 1: rights to promote what promised to be the fight of 246 00:14:41,080 --> 00:14:45,400 Speaker 1: the century, and it was set for July four so 247 00:14:45,480 --> 00:14:48,600 Speaker 1: each fighter would be paid fifty thousand dollars, which is 248 00:14:48,640 --> 00:14:52,000 Speaker 1: about one point six million dollars today for film rights, 249 00:14:52,280 --> 00:14:55,560 Speaker 1: plus assigning bonus of ten thousand dollars, and plus the 250 00:14:55,600 --> 00:14:57,960 Speaker 1: winner would receive two thirds of a one D and 251 00:14:58,000 --> 00:15:01,760 Speaker 1: one thousand dollar purse. The governor of California ended up 252 00:15:01,760 --> 00:15:04,400 Speaker 1: banning the match, though, and after that Record moved it 253 00:15:04,440 --> 00:15:08,680 Speaker 1: to Reno, Nevada, where price fighting was legal. Basically still 254 00:15:08,760 --> 00:15:11,080 Speaker 1: kind of a wild westish area, I guess, seemed like 255 00:15:11,120 --> 00:15:13,960 Speaker 1: prize fighting was a civilized pursuit with all of its 256 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:17,520 Speaker 1: rules and gloves and people not usually getting killed. The 257 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:20,680 Speaker 1: only condition of the sudden venue switch was that the 258 00:15:20,720 --> 00:15:23,960 Speaker 1: governor of Nevada had Record swear that the fight wasn't stacked, 259 00:15:24,720 --> 00:15:27,120 Speaker 1: so Record did a lot to try to make sure 260 00:15:27,200 --> 00:15:29,960 Speaker 1: that the fight was secure. He placed deputies at the 261 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:34,360 Speaker 1: arena's entrances who confiscated firearms from the crowd of twenty 262 00:15:34,400 --> 00:15:38,720 Speaker 1: thousand celebrities and attendance included a former champ, John L. Sullivan, 263 00:15:38,840 --> 00:15:42,560 Speaker 1: and novelist slash sports commentator Jack London. There were even 264 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:45,920 Speaker 1: mock fights set up around the country with reenactors recreating 265 00:15:45,920 --> 00:15:48,640 Speaker 1: the fight. Blow for blow really was the fight of 266 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:51,360 Speaker 1: the century at this point, but don't forget for a 267 00:15:51,440 --> 00:15:54,320 Speaker 1: minute that the whole thing was largely about race. The 268 00:15:54,360 --> 00:15:57,760 Speaker 1: Smithsonian article Dablina mentioned has a quote from the New 269 00:15:57,800 --> 00:16:00,600 Speaker 1: York Times on the eve of the fight that read, 270 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 1: if the black man wins, thousands and thousands of his 271 00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:08,680 Speaker 1: ignorant brothers will misinterpret his victory as justifying claims to 272 00:16:08,840 --> 00:16:13,120 Speaker 1: much more than physical equality with their white neighbors. Pretty 273 00:16:13,160 --> 00:16:17,880 Speaker 1: serious stuff. So despite Jeffrey's rush training, though in a 274 00:16:18,120 --> 00:16:21,400 Speaker 1: massive sudden weight loss he lost about a hundred pounds, 275 00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:25,080 Speaker 1: he was still favored over Johnson ten to four. But 276 00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:28,120 Speaker 1: Johnson wasn't worried. He was quoted as saying he felt 277 00:16:28,160 --> 00:16:30,320 Speaker 1: like a kid on Christmas morning on the on the 278 00:16:30,360 --> 00:16:32,880 Speaker 1: eve of the fight. This was, after all, what he 279 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:37,400 Speaker 1: had been waiting for, you know, not just achieving the championship, 280 00:16:37,440 --> 00:16:41,480 Speaker 1: but defending it from any further claims. So now we're 281 00:16:41,480 --> 00:16:43,880 Speaker 1: going to give you a little rundown of this particular fight. 282 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:48,880 Speaker 1: Jefferies refused to shake hands with Johnson right off the bat, 283 00:16:48,920 --> 00:16:53,040 Speaker 1: and his cornerman, former champ gentleman Jim Corbett, whose defensive 284 00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:56,680 Speaker 1: style Johnson had actually emulated, started a stream of racial 285 00:16:56,680 --> 00:16:59,960 Speaker 1: slurs that lasted the entire match. According to an ebb 286 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:04,040 Speaker 1: an article by Lauren Bennett Jr. Johnson later remembered quote, 287 00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:07,120 Speaker 1: I sensed that most of the great audience was hostile 288 00:17:07,160 --> 00:17:10,280 Speaker 1: to me. But despite the sun and the jeering mob, 289 00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:12,960 Speaker 1: and the occasional thought that there might be a gunman 290 00:17:13,080 --> 00:17:16,280 Speaker 1: somewhere in that vast array of humanity. I was cool 291 00:17:16,400 --> 00:17:19,359 Speaker 1: and perfectly at ease. I never had any doubt of 292 00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:22,960 Speaker 1: the outcome. And if you watch the footage, it really 293 00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:26,080 Speaker 1: looks that way too. You can watch this uh this 294 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:30,520 Speaker 1: match online and see the two fighters basically locked in 295 00:17:31,200 --> 00:17:36,040 Speaker 1: an embrace, with Johnson just lobbing one undercut after another 296 00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:38,119 Speaker 1: at Jeffreys. This is the part that stood out to 297 00:17:38,119 --> 00:17:41,720 Speaker 1: me the most. Jeffrey's head just bounces around every time 298 00:17:41,760 --> 00:17:45,320 Speaker 1: he gets hit by Johnson. In the second round, Johnson 299 00:17:45,400 --> 00:17:48,200 Speaker 1: told him, don't rush, Jim. I can do this all day. 300 00:17:48,720 --> 00:17:51,359 Speaker 1: He asked Jefferies, how do you feel, Jim, how do 301 00:17:51,400 --> 00:17:54,080 Speaker 1: you like it? Does it hurt? And by the end 302 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:58,119 Speaker 1: of the fourteenth round, Jefferies just looked horrifying. His nose 303 00:17:58,200 --> 00:18:02,399 Speaker 1: was broken and gushing blood, eyes were swollen, even his 304 00:18:02,600 --> 00:18:05,680 Speaker 1: legs are all stained with more blood. He looks really, 305 00:18:05,720 --> 00:18:09,720 Speaker 1: really bad. In the fifteenth round, he was knocked down 306 00:18:09,920 --> 00:18:13,359 Speaker 1: and then knocked down again, falling over the lower ropes 307 00:18:13,440 --> 00:18:16,000 Speaker 1: that time, and at that point the crowd started to 308 00:18:16,040 --> 00:18:18,359 Speaker 1: cry for Jefferies not to be knocked out. They didn't 309 00:18:18,359 --> 00:18:22,360 Speaker 1: want to see their formerly undefeated champion get knocked out 310 00:18:22,359 --> 00:18:25,880 Speaker 1: by Johnson, so the fight was ended with Johnson declared 311 00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:28,359 Speaker 1: the winner. And again if you see the footage, it 312 00:18:28,400 --> 00:18:33,000 Speaker 1: shows Johnson's cornermen quickly forming this defensive circle around him, 313 00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:38,200 Speaker 1: surrounding him to protect him from the furious crowd around 314 00:18:38,240 --> 00:18:41,880 Speaker 1: the country to some people were celebrating, some were not. 315 00:18:42,040 --> 00:18:45,960 Speaker 1: African Americans came out to celebrate, but race riots began 316 00:18:46,040 --> 00:18:49,320 Speaker 1: pretty quickly and up to twenty six people died as 317 00:18:49,359 --> 00:18:52,840 Speaker 1: a result of these race riots over a boxing match. 318 00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:58,320 Speaker 1: But Jeffries at least concedes defeat really graciously. He later says, quote, 319 00:18:58,560 --> 00:19:01,720 Speaker 1: Jack Johnson was better than I ever was, and tells 320 00:19:01,760 --> 00:19:04,080 Speaker 1: his friends that he couldn't have even beaten him in 321 00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:06,680 Speaker 1: his prime, so kind of putting an end to any 322 00:19:06,920 --> 00:19:10,000 Speaker 1: purizing that, well, maybe if Jeffreys had been younger and 323 00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:13,240 Speaker 1: in better shape, things would have been different. So Johnson, 324 00:19:13,320 --> 00:19:17,040 Speaker 1: now the undisputed champ, was unbeatable, except when it came 325 00:19:17,080 --> 00:19:19,600 Speaker 1: to his private life, that is, which began to fall 326 00:19:19,640 --> 00:19:23,359 Speaker 1: apart pretty quickly. He started drinking heavily and he threatened 327 00:19:23,400 --> 00:19:26,680 Speaker 1: to commit suicide. He was also treated for nervous exhaustion 328 00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:30,760 Speaker 1: and was arrested for speeding. He established a color line 329 00:19:30,760 --> 00:19:34,000 Speaker 1: of his own, too, no longer fighting black contenders since 330 00:19:34,040 --> 00:19:36,960 Speaker 1: he considered them harder fights for not as much money. 331 00:19:37,480 --> 00:19:41,160 Speaker 1: He also beat his wealthy girlfriend at a Duria badly 332 00:19:41,320 --> 00:19:43,879 Speaker 1: enough for her to be sent to the hospital, and 333 00:19:43,920 --> 00:19:47,240 Speaker 1: after that they married, but her sad life living upstairs 334 00:19:47,280 --> 00:19:50,600 Speaker 1: from his black and tan Chicago club Cafe d Champion, 335 00:19:51,080 --> 00:19:54,560 Speaker 1: isolated from both black and white communities, drove her to 336 00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:59,000 Speaker 1: commit suicide in September nineteen twelve, and Johnson was really 337 00:19:59,040 --> 00:20:03,320 Speaker 1: inconsolable after that. But within only a month or so 338 00:20:03,560 --> 00:20:06,639 Speaker 1: he had paired up with a nineteen year old white 339 00:20:06,640 --> 00:20:11,880 Speaker 1: prostitute named Lucille Cameron Um and drove with her across 340 00:20:12,240 --> 00:20:15,600 Speaker 1: state lines. And so for all those people out there 341 00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:18,520 Speaker 1: who were ready for Jack Johnson to just go away 342 00:20:19,080 --> 00:20:23,000 Speaker 1: and stop causing so much trouble, finally this was a 343 00:20:23,040 --> 00:20:26,200 Speaker 1: way to eliminate him. So backing up a little bit, 344 00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:29,800 Speaker 1: in nineteen ten, Congress had passed the Man Act, which 345 00:20:30,359 --> 00:20:35,520 Speaker 1: was originally established to ban the transport of women across 346 00:20:35,560 --> 00:20:38,040 Speaker 1: state lines for immoral purposes. It was supposed to be 347 00:20:38,119 --> 00:20:42,280 Speaker 1: something to stop human trafficking, but the Justice Department used 348 00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:44,680 Speaker 1: it to attack Johnson. It was never meant to be 349 00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:49,600 Speaker 1: something for two consenting adults traveling together to be you know, 350 00:20:49,680 --> 00:20:52,760 Speaker 1: punished with This was just their opportunity, it was. So 351 00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:57,760 Speaker 1: Johnson was arrested October eighteenth, nineteen twelve. He was released 352 00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:01,720 Speaker 1: on bail, and in the intervening months he married Lucille, 353 00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:04,560 Speaker 1: the woman who he had been traveling with, and she 354 00:21:04,720 --> 00:21:07,520 Speaker 1: had already refused to testify against him. So with that 355 00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:11,480 Speaker 1: turn of events, without her testimony, the case against Johnson 356 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:15,520 Speaker 1: was really worthless. So the Bureau of Investigation got involved 357 00:21:15,520 --> 00:21:18,400 Speaker 1: in the whole thing, trying to find any evidence that 358 00:21:18,520 --> 00:21:22,359 Speaker 1: Johnson had broken the Man Act at some earlier point. 359 00:21:22,840 --> 00:21:26,439 Speaker 1: Eventually they connected with a former white bordello girlfriend of 360 00:21:26,520 --> 00:21:30,440 Speaker 1: Johnson's who agreed to testify she had cross state lines 361 00:21:30,480 --> 00:21:33,719 Speaker 1: with him, even though they had done so before the 362 00:21:33,760 --> 00:21:38,000 Speaker 1: Man Act even existed, and Johnson has found guilty. He 363 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:41,119 Speaker 1: sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison. 364 00:21:41,560 --> 00:21:44,560 Speaker 1: But while he was out on bond pending appeal, Johnson 365 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:47,879 Speaker 1: just skipped down, very likely disguised as a member of 366 00:21:47,880 --> 00:21:51,040 Speaker 1: a Negro league baseball team. He then fled to Montreal, 367 00:21:51,200 --> 00:21:54,440 Speaker 1: rendezvous with Lucille, and they took off together for Europe, 368 00:21:54,520 --> 00:21:58,800 Speaker 1: where the reception was kind of icy, yeah, especially considering 369 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:01,960 Speaker 1: he had been quite well received in Europe earlier, but 370 00:22:02,080 --> 00:22:05,800 Speaker 1: after this bad press, after this conviction, people weren't so 371 00:22:05,960 --> 00:22:10,240 Speaker 1: friendly to him anymore. Johnson defended threats to his title abroad, 372 00:22:10,320 --> 00:22:12,840 Speaker 1: but he soon found it impossible to earn a living 373 00:22:12,880 --> 00:22:14,840 Speaker 1: as a boxer in the middle of a war, so 374 00:22:14,920 --> 00:22:18,160 Speaker 1: he began looking for a bigger payday, and back home, 375 00:22:18,240 --> 00:22:21,040 Speaker 1: folks were still looking for a great white hope, a 376 00:22:21,080 --> 00:22:25,560 Speaker 1: new one, because Johnson was, after all, still the heavyweight champion. Finally, 377 00:22:25,720 --> 00:22:29,600 Speaker 1: on April fifth, nineteen fifteen, Johnson met with Kansas native 378 00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:33,280 Speaker 1: Jess Willard, a six ft six twenty seven year old 379 00:22:33,440 --> 00:22:36,320 Speaker 1: who had killed an opponent once with a punch. Since 380 00:22:36,359 --> 00:22:38,840 Speaker 1: they couldn't fight in the US due to Johnson's conviction, 381 00:22:38,920 --> 00:22:43,480 Speaker 1: they fought in nearby Havana, Cuba. So Johnson he by 382 00:22:43,520 --> 00:22:46,280 Speaker 1: this point thirty seven years old, maybe not in the 383 00:22:46,320 --> 00:22:49,440 Speaker 1: best shape anymore, and kind of taking things a little 384 00:22:49,480 --> 00:22:52,760 Speaker 1: bit too lightly. He didn't train like his trainers wanted 385 00:22:52,840 --> 00:22:56,359 Speaker 1: him to. By the twentieth round of this fight with 386 00:22:56,480 --> 00:22:59,320 Speaker 1: Jess Willard, which is happening in a hundred and five 387 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:03,600 Speaker 1: degree he too. Johnson was clearly getting tired, and by 388 00:23:03,600 --> 00:23:07,280 Speaker 1: the twenty five round he asked his cornerman to see 389 00:23:07,280 --> 00:23:09,320 Speaker 1: that his wife got out safely, and I told him 390 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:11,399 Speaker 1: I'm probably not going to make it much longer. And 391 00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:16,000 Speaker 1: then finally in the round he lost to a knockout punch. 392 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:19,640 Speaker 1: Another really famous freeze frame image of Johnson lying there 393 00:23:19,640 --> 00:23:22,600 Speaker 1: on the ground with his arms thrown up over his head. 394 00:23:23,119 --> 00:23:28,080 Speaker 1: So after losing the title, finally his earning power was 395 00:23:28,200 --> 00:23:31,760 Speaker 1: just completely slashed, and Johnson went back to Europe toured 396 00:23:31,800 --> 00:23:34,720 Speaker 1: a little bit more. When the US entered the war, 397 00:23:34,840 --> 00:23:37,720 Speaker 1: he offered to volunteer for U S service in exchange 398 00:23:37,720 --> 00:23:40,639 Speaker 1: for a pardon that didn't happen. He traveled on to 399 00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:44,800 Speaker 1: Mexico and then finally in nine he was ready to 400 00:23:44,840 --> 00:23:48,360 Speaker 1: go home. After seven years on the run, he surrendered 401 00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:51,160 Speaker 1: at the US border and spent a year in leaven 402 00:23:51,200 --> 00:23:56,439 Speaker 1: Worth Prison. It wasn't a horrible prison situation, considering he 403 00:23:56,560 --> 00:24:00,280 Speaker 1: acted as a trustee, he trained other prisoner as He 404 00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:03,760 Speaker 1: even staged a few exhibition matches while he was there, 405 00:24:04,240 --> 00:24:08,280 Speaker 1: and probably my favorite detail of his prison experience. He 406 00:24:08,400 --> 00:24:14,240 Speaker 1: listed his profession as pugilist chauffeur, which, in case it 407 00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:18,360 Speaker 1: wasn't clear earlier, Johnson really liked fast cars and driving, 408 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:21,800 Speaker 1: so that was clearly important to him just right after boxing, 409 00:24:22,160 --> 00:24:25,080 Speaker 1: and Johnson did keep boxing, but the Havana fight really 410 00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: was the end of the major part of his career. 411 00:24:27,560 --> 00:24:30,440 Speaker 1: The new batch of heavyweights again wouldn't agree to cross 412 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:33,440 Speaker 1: that color line, so there wasn't a black heavyweight champ 413 00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:37,360 Speaker 1: until Joe Lewis in seven, and he was deliberately set 414 00:24:37,400 --> 00:24:40,639 Speaker 1: up by his managers as a clean, living, decent man, 415 00:24:40,760 --> 00:24:43,399 Speaker 1: in other words, not a Jack Johnson. That reminded me 416 00:24:43,400 --> 00:24:45,440 Speaker 1: a little bit of an episode from a couple of 417 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:48,040 Speaker 1: years ago Katie and I did on Satchel Page, where 418 00:24:48,359 --> 00:24:52,040 Speaker 1: Jackie Robinson was very much set up as an alternate 419 00:24:52,119 --> 00:24:56,359 Speaker 1: to Satchel Page, who had this flamboyant public personality, you know, 420 00:24:56,440 --> 00:25:01,520 Speaker 1: a real jokester. He would entertain the crowds. Jackie Robinson was, 421 00:25:01,840 --> 00:25:03,719 Speaker 1: you know, somebody who could keep his head down and 422 00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:06,919 Speaker 1: go play Major League baseball. So that reminded me a 423 00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:11,119 Speaker 1: bit of that. But Johnson just did this huge range 424 00:25:11,280 --> 00:25:15,480 Speaker 1: of activities in addition to his occasional boxing. He ran 425 00:25:15,640 --> 00:25:19,879 Speaker 1: a Harlem club called Cafe Deluxe, which eventually became the 426 00:25:19,920 --> 00:25:24,160 Speaker 1: Cotton Club. He appeared in Aida. He married his third wife. 427 00:25:24,560 --> 00:25:28,600 Speaker 1: He even preached all sorts of stuff going on with him. 428 00:25:28,640 --> 00:25:32,200 Speaker 1: In the spring of while returning from a tour of Texas, 429 00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:35,880 Speaker 1: Johnson lost control of a speeding sports car near Raleigh 430 00:25:35,960 --> 00:25:38,080 Speaker 1: and he crashed into a telephone pole. So he died 431 00:25:38,119 --> 00:25:42,320 Speaker 1: at age sixty eight, and his record, according to Encyclopedia Britannica, 432 00:25:42,560 --> 00:25:46,800 Speaker 1: was one fourteen bouts, winning eighty forty five of those 433 00:25:46,840 --> 00:25:50,000 Speaker 1: by knockouts. And there was also a type of French 434 00:25:50,160 --> 00:25:54,760 Speaker 1: artillery shell called the Jack Johnson that was named after him. 435 00:25:55,200 --> 00:25:59,679 Speaker 1: To memoirs he wrote, and of course a Broadway play 436 00:25:59,800 --> 00:26:02,359 Speaker 1: that was based on his life called The Great White Hope. 437 00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:07,359 Speaker 1: It starred James Earl Jones, and apparently Muhammad Ali was 438 00:26:07,680 --> 00:26:11,040 Speaker 1: a repeat viewer of this play. He'd go back and 439 00:26:11,160 --> 00:26:15,320 Speaker 1: really found a lot of comparisons to his own life 440 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:18,920 Speaker 1: in the way he was sometimes treated. Um. Jack Johnson 441 00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:23,400 Speaker 1: was also an original inductee into the International Boxing Hall 442 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:26,320 Speaker 1: of Fame in nine along with a few other names 443 00:26:26,359 --> 00:26:29,760 Speaker 1: we've mentioned in this podcast. Um, but I think It's 444 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:34,919 Speaker 1: probably only appropriate for a man who, in addition to um, 445 00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:37,479 Speaker 1: you know, being a great fighter, was known for some 446 00:26:37,560 --> 00:26:41,359 Speaker 1: of his fantastic quotes and having the perfect response to 447 00:26:41,880 --> 00:26:45,760 Speaker 1: sometimes difficult situations. Ending the podcast with a quote of 448 00:26:45,880 --> 00:26:49,720 Speaker 1: his own, he apparently told a newspaper reporter, you know, 449 00:26:49,800 --> 00:26:53,760 Speaker 1: these newspaper reporters loved covering every aspect of Johnson's life. 450 00:26:54,240 --> 00:26:57,160 Speaker 1: Whatever you write about me, just please remember that I'm 451 00:26:57,200 --> 00:26:59,840 Speaker 1: a man and a good one. Well, I think that's 452 00:26:59,840 --> 00:27:04,000 Speaker 1: so at all. He was. He definitely had some unsavory 453 00:27:04,119 --> 00:27:07,359 Speaker 1: sides to his personality into his life, but he was 454 00:27:07,440 --> 00:27:10,679 Speaker 1: unapologetic for who he was, and he wanted to live 455 00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:14,960 Speaker 1: as professional boxers did at the time and everything that 456 00:27:15,200 --> 00:27:18,160 Speaker 1: came with that, which was kind of being a bad boy. 457 00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:21,879 Speaker 1: It seemed um and that didn't really fit with the 458 00:27:21,880 --> 00:27:25,840 Speaker 1: time he was living in. So I certainly enjoyed learning 459 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:29,200 Speaker 1: more about Jack Johnson. I won't always think of the 460 00:27:29,240 --> 00:27:33,280 Speaker 1: Hawaiian singer now and when I hear the name, and uh, 461 00:27:33,320 --> 00:27:36,080 Speaker 1: if you want to hear any more sports history topics, 462 00:27:36,119 --> 00:27:38,280 Speaker 1: we realized I don't think we've covered anything since our 463 00:27:38,400 --> 00:27:41,399 Speaker 1: Kentucky Derby episode, and that was a while back. Last 464 00:27:42,920 --> 00:27:45,919 Speaker 1: please send us some suggestions. Yeah, it's fun. It's always 465 00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:50,160 Speaker 1: a good way to encapsulate grander stories in the context 466 00:27:50,160 --> 00:27:53,600 Speaker 1: of sports. And I think it's especially interesting when we're 467 00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:58,239 Speaker 1: covering black history too, because sports with these rules that 468 00:27:58,280 --> 00:28:01,679 Speaker 1: are clearly stayed it. For some reason, things seem so 469 00:28:01,800 --> 00:28:05,680 Speaker 1: much more unfair when there's inequalities in sports, just because 470 00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:08,679 Speaker 1: the rules are so apparent. So anyway, if you have 471 00:28:09,200 --> 00:28:13,280 Speaker 1: any kind of history topics, sports, black history, whatever, send 472 00:28:13,280 --> 00:28:17,240 Speaker 1: them our way. We are at History Podcast at Discovery 473 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:20,959 Speaker 1: dot com. Remember our address has changed. We're also at 474 00:28:21,000 --> 00:28:24,000 Speaker 1: missed in History on Twitter and we are on Facebook. 475 00:28:24,280 --> 00:28:25,760 Speaker 1: And if you want to learn a little bit more 476 00:28:25,760 --> 00:28:28,080 Speaker 1: about the topic we talked about today, we have an 477 00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:30,639 Speaker 1: article called how Boxing Works on our website and you 478 00:28:30,640 --> 00:28:34,440 Speaker 1: can look that up by visiting our homepage at www 479 00:28:34,560 --> 00:28:40,360 Speaker 1: dot how stuff works dot com. Be sure to check 480 00:28:40,400 --> 00:28:43,520 Speaker 1: out our new video podcast, Stuff from the Future. Join 481 00:28:43,600 --> 00:28:46,120 Speaker 1: how Stuff Work staff as we explore the most promising 482 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:50,600 Speaker 1: and perplexing possibilities of tomorrow. The How Stuff Works iPhone 483 00:28:50,600 --> 00:28:53,520 Speaker 1: app has a rise. Download it today on iTunes.