Happy Friday the 13th! This is so cool, there is actually a life-size statue of Jason Voorhees chained to the bottom of the Louise Mine Pit in Crosby, Minnesota. Installed by a scuba diver in 2013 at a depth of 112 feet, this horror-themed attraction is a nod to Friday the 13th Part VI. It remains a popular, albeit eerie, destination for advanced divers.
This is a poster for my favorite Friday the 13th film, part 3. When it was released in 1982, you could watch it in 3-D in select theaters. It is the only film in the series to be released in that format.
It's fascinating, they still show Friday the 13th part 3 in select theaters today in 3-D. You buy your tickets, get your 3-D glasses, and you're good to go!
"I don't really fight to win, l fight to survive. Survival means money. When l survive it means l move up, and when l move up l make more money. If I lose, it's back to the bottom of the pile, back to nothing. l don't ever want to go back. When you have been where l have been, you never want to go back."
Looking at that photo of Jimmy Young in the post above, man that was Young at his best, when he put on a technical masterpiece against Foreman in 77'. Young won via a 12-round unanimous decision by utilizing superior movement, elite defensive skills, and precise counter-punching to exhaust and frustrate Foreman. Young weathered early power shots, used the ring to his advantage, and secured a knockdown in the 12th round, forcing Foreman into his first retirement. When Young was at his best, it was a thing of beauty.
This story always gets me choked up everytime I see it. That time the great German heavyweight champion Max Schmeling risked his life and hid Jews from the Nazis. This happened in 1938 during "Kristallnacht", or "the crystal night" also known as "the night of broken glass", when Nazis went around Germany rounding up Jews, destroying stores owned by Jews, breaking the shop windows, it was basically the launch of the Jewish Holocaust that would eventually claim the lives of over 6 million. This is an interview conducted in 1989 with Henri Lewin, who was just a kid when Max Schmeling hid him from the Nazi Gestapo.
The Night Schmeling Risked All : Boxing: An old friend recalls how the former champion saved his life by outwitting the Gestapo in 1938.
By EARL GUSTKEY
Dec. 23, 1989 12 AM PT
TIMES STAFF WRITER
LAS VEGAS — Henri Lewin, the president of the Sands Hotel, recently threw a party for an old friend.
He figured he owed his old friend for past favors. His life, for one.
His old friend is Max Schmeling, the former heavyweight boxing champion, now 84. In 1938, Henri Lewin was a 14-year-old German Jew, hiding in the Berlin apartment of Germany’s best-known athlete.
Lewin, until recently, hadn’t talked about the experience publicly because his old friend hadn’t wanted him to.
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But before a couple of thousand people, at a special tribute to Schmeling, tears welled in Lewin’s eyes when he took the microphone and pointed to his old friend, seated at a front table next to the present heavyweight champion, Mike Tyson.
“I’m going to tell you what kind of champion Max Schmeling is,” Lewin told the crowd.
“Beginning on Nov. 9, 1938, for four days, Max Schmeling hid my brother and me in his Berlin apartment. That was the night known now as ‘the Crystal Night,’ when the Gestapo began picking up all Jews off the streets.
“Max Schmeling risked everything he had for us. If we had been found in his apartment, I would not be here this evening and neither would Max.
“And that, friends, is the kind of champion Max Schmeling is.”
In an interview later, in his office, Lewin said he has spoken only occasionally of his being protected by Schmeling after Adolf Hitler had ordered police to begin rounding up Jews.
“Max asked me several times over the years not to mention it,” Lewin said. “In fact, he sent me a letter after I invited him here this week and said he’d come, but asked me not to ‘glorify’ him. He told me that what he’d done for me and my brother Werner in 1938 was ‘doing the duty of a man.’ ”
Lewin said the Schmeling-Lewin relationship dated to the mid-1920s, when Schmeling was a relatively unknown light-heavyweight boxer and Lewin’s father owned a hotel in Potsdam, the Aristocrat, where Schmeling often stayed.
In 1930, Schmeling won the heavyweight championship on a foul from Jack Sharkey. He later lost the title in 1932 to Sharkey, on a decision. But he is best remembered for two historic fights with Joe Louis. In 1936, before Louis was champion, Schmeling handed Louis his first defeat, a knockout, and was hailed by Hitler as a symbol of “Aryan supremacy.”
In a 1938 rematch, Louis, by then the champion, knocked out Schmeling in the first round at New York’s Yankee Stadium.
Over the years, the Louis-Schmeling rivalry mellowed into friendship. After World War II, Schmeling became wealthy as a West German Coca-Cola distributor. Louis not only lost all his record earnings from boxing, but wound up heavily in debt to the Internal Revenue Service.
Louis died in April 1981, and Lewin recalled a phone call the next day.
“Max called me and asked me to go to the funeral and give a substantial sum of money to his widow, which I did,” Lewin said. “He didn’t want me to talk about that, either. But I’ve kept these secrets for all these years. The man is 84. I began to wonder how much longer will Max and I last. Max is a modest man and he won’t like me saying all this, but I wanted people to know what kind of man he is.”
There is a sound in Henri Lewin’s memory that remains vivid to this day: the sound of knocking on the door of Max Schmeling’s Berlin apartment.
“We hid from the housekeepers, waiters, other friends of Max--everyone,” he said. “The first day, Max didn’t leave the apartment. He told the front desk he was sick, and not to let anyone come up. He could have lessened the risk by just telling people we were nephews, or something. But he didn’t. He risked everything.
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“Max had a great feeling for Jews, and what was happening in Germany. His manager, Joe Jacobs, was an American Jew.
“After four days, Max felt it was safe to take us to an apartment my father owned 30 minutes away, in the Tiergarten district of Berlin. We bought tickets to Genoa, Italy, where we were to leave by boat for Shanghai.
“But my brother and I were picked up by the police and taken to Spandau prison, and we had our heads shaved. They told us we were going to be taken to a camp. But six days later they released us.
“You see, in 1938, if the police picked up Jews who were older than 30 or 35, you never saw them again. But with very young people, that was a problem for the Nazis. They didn’t want stories about children disappearing to get out.
“So we left for Genoa, met our father and left for China.”
In Shanghai, the Lewin family was running a hotel when Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese. They were arrested and spent the war in a Japanese concentration camp.
By 1946, though, the Lewins were in San Francisco, back in the hotel business.
“All our relatives in Germany died in the concentration camps, except for an uncle of mine who was a general in the German Army in World War I. He had been awarded the Iron Cross. But he was a Jew, and was arrested in 1937. When he was released, he weighed 90 pounds.”
Lewin was a vice president at the Las Vegas Hilton for several years, then was named president of the Sands eight months ago.
“My father owned hotels and was in the clothing business in Germany,” Lewin said. “Old Germans remember today how well-dressed Max Schmeling was when he appeared in public in the 1930s. Well, he bought those suits from my father.”
You know, one can't help but to notice the parallels between Kristallnacht and what is going on in our country right now with ICE, the systemic hunting of immigrants, terrorizing of communities, families being ripped apart, kids being locked in cages and traumatized. A lot of these people are just trying to work and make a living like everyone else, kids that are just trying to go to school, these people are currently living in fear and are literally scared to step outside, wondering if they will be arrested by a squad of goons and shipped off to some hellhole. I was in Walmart the other day and saw a Mexican family that looked like they were scared to be in the store, to be out in public. They don't have to worry about me turning them in, I'm not like that. It's a shame.
Max Schmeling, "The Black Uhlan of the Rhine", world heavyweight champion from 1930 to 1932, and the only man to beat the great Joe Louis when Louis was near his absolute prime. Max Schmeling was renowned for his tactical approach, his boxing style was methodical, he was all business when he stepped in the ring, he wasted no energy and was totally focused on the task at hand. He fought out of a crouch and was a great counter-puncher. He was a well-rounded fighter with a granite chin and great knockout power in his right hand, The Ring magazine ranks him #55 on their 100 greatest punchers of all-time list.
Let's get something straight right off the bat, Max Schmeling was a fighter, period. That's what he was. That was his livelihood. That was his life. That was what he loved to do. He was born in Germany at the wrong time. He started his career in 1924 when the Nazis weren't even around, when they did come to power he got swept up in all that crap. But the man was a fighter, it's all he ever wanted to be.
Max Schmeling: Hitler’s favourite boxer?
Friday September 13, 2024
By: Laszlo Solymar
As a child in 1930s Budapest, a whole new world opened up for me when I learned to read. In the beginning I read only street advertisements. Later my main interest turned to sports news. In Hungary, sport events took place mainly on Sunday afternoons and were reported in the Sport News that appeared in the late afternoon with its characteristic green colour. This was a Sunday evening entertainment. Most people were interested in only a few sports results and discarded the journal as soon as they had read those. All we children needed to do was to pick them up from the pavement.
The headlines were very often about boxing. The boxer whose photograph I saw most often was Max Schmeling. Anything German was widely praised in the Hungarian press at the time. It was the policy of Admiral Horthy, Hungary’s authoritarian Regent.
Let me say a few words about Max Schmeling, the leading German boxer of the time. He was born in 1905 in Germany. He became interested in boxing when he saw a film with his father on the career of Jack Dempsey, a celebrated heavyweight boxing champion of the world. Still in his teens, the young Schmeling decided to become a professional, a decision that his father accepted with a moderate amount of enthusiasm.
The country where boxing was most popular was the United States. That is where Schmeling went in 1928 in search of glory. He became world heavyweight champion two years later when his opponent was disqualified for a low blow. He defended his title in several matches but lost it to Max Baer in 1933.
Meanwhile the world had changed. In January 1933 Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany and brought with him theories of racial purity. Blacks and Jews became Untermenschen (inferior people). There was something new in boxing as well. A new contender arose in the person of Joe Louis. He was certainly not born with a silver spoon in the mouth. He was the seventh child of a black couple and his mother was a slave’s daughter. Her husband succumbed to a mental disease when the children were still young. Then Joe’s mother married for the second time. She wanted her seventh child to be a musician. But Joe was not interested in music. He used the violin case to carry his boxing gloves out of sight of his mother. In boxing, however, he made a phenomenal debut. Starting his professional career in the middle of 1934, he won all 12 of his matches in that year, a feat he repeated in 1935 when again he won all 10 of his matches. One of those was against the former world champion, Max Baer. It became clear that if Schmeling wanted to regain the world championship, he must fight Louis.
The fight was scheduled for June 1936. Max Schmeling was looked upon in America as a Nazi. Conversely, Louis was regarded in Germany as a member of an inferior race. The controversy was therefore bitter. At the time many white boxers would refuse to fight a black opponent. Joe Louis changed all that. For the first time in history a black man became an all-American hero.
He had even come to the attention of President Roosevelt himself. Feeling Louis’ muscles, FDR said: “These are the muscles we need to beat Germany.” Schmeling could have avoided the hostile reception had he accepted his American friend’s advice to apply for American citizenship. He did not want to take that step (“Once a German, always a German”, he said), but the Gestapo made sure that under no circumstances would he do so by retaining his wife and mother in Germany, effectively as hostages — a practice that had already been widely used in the Soviet Union.
The Schmeling-Louis match was scheduled for June 1936. As it happened, Schmeling won in the 10th round. Germany was celebrating. America was in mourning. Some people actually wept. Goebbels immediately saw the propaganda value of the victory. He sent a telegram to Schmeling: “I know you won it for Germany. We are proud of you. Heil Hitler!” The Führer wrote separately: “Most cordial felicitations on your splendid victory.”
Schmeling returned to Germany in style on the Zeppelin named after Hindenburg. The Führer immediately invited him, his wife and some of his friends for lunch at the Reich Chancellery. But this was not the end of the story. There was to be a rematch two years later. By 1938 the political background affected the match even more than in 1936. The beginning of the Second World War was hardly a year away and the Spanish Civil War was still bitterly fought.
The result of the rematch was entirely unexpected. Schmeling was knocked out in the first round. The German reaction was easy to guess. Schmeling became a non-person. Nobody in Germany had ever taken an interest in the former celebrity. Hitler put him in the paratroopers’ regiment, the most dangerous assignment in any army. I cannot escape the suspicion that Hitler wanted him dead. I think this was analogous to the story of Uriah. King David put Uriah in the first line of battle to die so that he could marry Beer Sheba, Uriah’s wife.
Yet that was not the end of the story either. Schmeling was wounded in the parachute assault on Crete in 1941, but he survived. Many years later, after the war, he visited Louis in Chicago. They became good friends. Schmeling offered financial help when Louis fell on lean times. They remained friends until Louis died at the age of 66. Schmeling was one of his pallbearers.
So what can we say in conclusion? Was Schmeling really Hitler’s favourite boxer? For a while he no doubt was — as long as he was a champion. Was he a Nazi? It must have looked that way from America: “A man who dines with Hitler must be a Nazi.” But if you live in a dictatorship you do not have much choice. If Hitler invites you to the Reich Chancellery you cannot say: “Sorry, tonight I am too busy.” That would mean playing with your life.
I would argue that Schmeling went as far as he could, and maybe even beyond that, to prove that he was not a Nazi. He never joined the NSDAP (German National Socialist Workers’ Party), in spite of being under pressure to do so from Hitler himself. He made it clear to the Sports Minister that he was just a boxer, no more, and he claimed to know nothing about politics. In spite of Goebbels’ exhortations, he refused to get rid of his Jewish manager, Joe Jacobs. It also happened that when Jacobs visited Germany and his hotel booking was cancelled on account of being Jewish, Schmeling confronted the hotel manager and told him in no uncertain terms that he should restore Jacobs’ booking. If he does not do so he will never again receive an American guest. The hotel manager complied.
This gesture required courage. However, Schmeling’s bravest deed became known only fifty years later. During the Kristallnacht outrages in 1938, he offered shelter in his hotel room to two sons of a Jewish friend of his. If this had been found out at the time, his career would surely have been ended immediately. This, far more than any exploits in the boxing ring, was Max Schmeling’s bravest act.
The International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) profile on Max Schmeling.
Max Schmeling
PERHAPS BEST remembered in the ring for his two fights with Joe Louis, heavyweight champion Max Schmeling remains unjustly associated with Nazi Germany and was unfairly depicted as a villain in the United States. His title and image were used as a propaganda tool by Adolf Hitler to demonstrate Aryan supremacy. But by all accounts, Schmeling conducted himself as a gentleman and sportsman.
In fact, many years later, it was revealed that Schmeling risked his own life by hiding Jewish children in his hotel room and helping them escape Germany.
Schmeling turned pro in Germany in 1924 and won the German light heavyweight title in 1926. He'd also win the European 175-pound title and German heavyweight crown before coming to the United States to fight. In New York, in 1929, Schmeling made his mark by defeating a pair of top heavyweights -- Johnny Risko and Paolino Uzcudun. Those victories earned him a number-two ranking and a shot at the heavyweight title.
In 1930, he met Jack Sharkey at Yankee Stadium for the vacant heavyweight title and won the crown via disqualification when Sharkey was DQ'd in the fourth round for hitting Schmeling low. It remains the only time in history that the heavyweight title was won on a foul.
Schmeling fought once in 1931, successfully defending the title against Young Stribling with a 15th-round TKO. In his next defense, he lost a controversial split-decision and the title in a rematch with Sharkey. Two months later he battered former welterweight and middleweight king Mickey Walker into submission in eight rounds. Then, in 1933, Schmeling was knocked out by Max Baer.
Schmeling's next significant bout came in 1936 when he knocked out the unbeaten 22-year-old Joe Louis. The German knocked Louis down in the fourth round and knocked him out in the 12th. When Louis won the title a rematch was scheduled for 1938.
With Hitler's power base widening in Europe, the Louis-Schmeling rematch became more than just a heavyweight title fight. It took on political ramifications as Louis was cast in the role of representing America with Schmeling being projected as the symbol of Nazi Germany. The rematch didn't last long, as Louis scored a devastating first-round knockout.
Schmeling served as a German paratrooper during World War II and resumed his career when the war ended. He fought until 1948 before retiring.
‘I would not like to be remembered as someone who amounted to do so much as an athlete, but who was good for nothing as a person. I couldn't stand that.’
- Max Schmeling
Maximilian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling, better known as Max or Maxey, was Germany’s first ever European and world heavyweight champion.
Born on 28 September 1905 in the Prussian province of Brandenburg to parents Max Sr and mother Amanda, 16-year-old Max grew a strong interest in boxing after watching a film of Jack Dempsey against Georges Carpentier with his father. Taken in by Dempsey’s style Schmeling modelled himself on The Manassa Mauler and soon started to compete as an amateur. Shortly after winning the light heavyweight division in the German National Championships, Maxey turned pro.
Eighteen-year-old Schmeling made his professional debut on 2 August 1924, in Tonhalle, Duesseldorf, knocking out Hans Czapp early doors and weighed a little under 170lbs (a touch over modern day super middleweight). By the end of the year he had notched up nine wins, eight by knockout, one points decision and one retirement loss against debutant Max Diekmann due an ear injury.
1925 hardly showed the form of a future world champion as Schmeling won six, drew two and lost two, which included a knockout stoppage from The Toronto Terror, Larry Gains. None of this mattered though because Germany’s favourite fighting son embarked on a 21-fight streak (20 wins, one draw), picking up those all important stepping stone straps along the way to world title contention. Perhaps one memorable milestone for Maxey in 1925 was sparring his idol Jack Dempsey, who was in preparations for defending his world title and was by all accounts impressed with the 19-year-old.
Schemeling’s first fight of 1926 was at the Kaiserdamm Arena on 12 February against old foe Max Diekmann. Eager to avenge his loss, Schmeling was only able to produce a lacklustre draw. However, as the stakes rose, the crowds started to see the best of Schmeling. After two first round knockout victories, they met for the third and final instalment of their trilogy at Luna Park, Halensee, but this time the German light heavyweight title was on the line. On 24 August, weighing in a touch over 173lbs, Schmeling disposed of Diekmann in 30 seconds, which not only stated his claim as the best 175lbs fighter in his homeland, but also announced him on the European stage.
Over the next nine months, Schmeling won nine fights on the bounce, with only one going the distance, but it was his next fight which elevated the 21-year-old into the limelight. On 19 June 1927, Max took on Belgian Fernand Delarge for his European light heavyweight strap. Despite weighing only a touch over 171lbs, Schmeling disposed of Delarge in the 14th of 15 scheduled rounds at the Westfalenhalle in Dortmund.
Schmeling finished the year with six further victories, including a title defence of his European and German light heavyweight straps against Hein Domgoergen, who was 79-3-6 at the time, and a well respected points victory over British and Commonwealth light heavyweight Gipsy Daniels. Unfortunately for Schmeling, after a very impressive first round knockout victory, retaining his European title against Michele Bonaglia (21-1-1 at the time), he was knocked out in the first round by Welshman Gipsy Daniels in the first round of a non-sanctioned contest.
By now, Schmeling was struggling to get below 180lbs and started to progress in the heavyweight ranks – albeit, as a small heavyweight. Six weeks after the Daniels loss, he took on the reigning German heavyweight champion, Franz Diener. The Berlin resident had been in with good company, including a loss to Larry Gains and a draw with Paulino Uzcudun. Later on he would also fight Primo Carnera twice, gaining victory on one occasion. However, on 4 April 1928, despite outweighing Schmeling by 12lbs, Diener lost his title on points over 15 rounds. The newly crowned champion now decided to head Stateside for those career defining fights which would ultimately give him that all essential traction towards a world title shot.
Schmeling made his debut at Madison Square Garden on 23 November 1928 against Joe Monte, stopping the Brockton resident in eight rounds. His arrival in America was polar opposite to his exit a decade later. He was an up and coming European fighter with no connections in the fight trade, but that all changed when he met esteemed boxing manager Joe Jacobs, who would become a close friend and confidant through a colourful decade.
After a points victory over durable Pennsylvanian Joe Sekrya on 4 January 1929 and a one round demolition against Pietro Corri, Schmeling locked horns with Slovakian born Johnny Risko, AKA ‘Cleveland Rubber Man,’ on account of his ability to absorb blows.
On 1 February 1929, Risko and Schmeling fought at Madison Square Garden in a barnburner of a contest. In the ninth round the referee stopped Risko from further punishment after a gruelling encounter for both fighters. It was the first time Risko had ever been stopped and the contest unsurprisingly won 1929 Fight of The Year for Ring Magazine.
Four months later Schmeling took on former European heavyweight champion, teak tough Spaniard Paulino Uzcudun, outpointing him over 15 rounds at Yankee Stadium. The German was now considered to be the No.1 contender for the world heavyweight title, but with Gene Tunney having recently retired, the title was now up for grabs.
On 12 June 1930, Schmeling took on Jack Sharkey for the vacant title at Yankee Stadium, however, the fight finished in a manner which neither fighter was happy with. In the fourth round, Sharkey let loose with a low blow to Schmeling’s groin, which rendered him incapable of continuing. Angered by the manner in which he acquired the world heavyweight strap and the negative media which followed him in the days and weeks after, Schmeling, now given the moniker of ‘Low blow champion,’ set about proving his worth.
SCHMELING V SHARKEY 2 1932
Three weeks later he stopped Young Stribling in the 15th round at Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, before allowing ‘The Boston Gob’ a second chance on 21 June 1932 at Madison Square Garden Bowl, Long Island City, Queens. Unfortunately for Schmeling, he was on the bad end of a hometown split decision. One judge had it 10-5 for the German, with the other two giving Sharkey a marginal advantage on the scorecards. Straight after the fight the New York State Athletic Commission barred most of the individuals involved with the scoring skulduggery from ever being involved in a boxing contest again. On a positive note, Schmeling married movie star Anny Ondra and they remained wed until Ondra passed away in 1989.
In the meantime, Hitler’s ideology and anti-Semitic mindset was festering at rapid speed. As Max became a recognised name in the U.S., the world’s most repugnant dictator started to design moves for his unknowing political pawn
Three months after the Sharkey loss, Schmeling stopped the ‘Toy Bulldog,’ Mickey Walker in eight rounds, however, the next three fights proved to be hard work. On 8 June 1933 Schmeling lost to Max Baer on Jack Dempsey’s first promotional card, in front of over 53,000 people at Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, the fight had already started to get overshadowed by political bias. Baer, a non-practising Jew, wore the star of David on his shorts as he went toe to with the German, who was already in Hitler’s vile slipstream as a reluctant Nazi mouthpiece. Despite the tenth-round stoppage, Schmeling gave a great account of himself and in what was a very competitive fight. The contest was Ring Magazine’s 1933 Fight of The Year and in his next fight, Baer stopped Primo Carnera to become world champion.
Eight months later Schemling lost a points decision to New Jersey tough man, Steve Hamas, then drew against old foe Paulino Uzcudun. Despite only fighting twice in 1935, Schmeling reappeared with a new found gusto, avenging his loss to Hamas with a ninth round stoppage and beating Uzcudun convincingly on points four months later. The German only fought once in 1936, but it was said fight which engrained him in boxing folklore for eternity.
On 19 June 1936, Schmeling took a huge risk taking on unbeaten Joe Louis who was taller, heavier, younger and had stopped 20 of his 24 opponents by this stage. In essence, Schmeling, a 10-1 underdog was out-of-date cannon fodder for the young gun, however, contrary to the majority, he had other plans.
At the weigh-in, Schmeling was very relaxed and wished Louis good luck. When asked by the media why he was so confident, Schmeling replied, ‘I see something,’ without divulging any information. The German had noticed that every time Louis threw a jab, his hand would drop and leave him open to an overhand right.
From the opening bell at Yankee Stadium, Schmeling worked out of a crouch with his chin tucked tightly into his left shoulder, thus making it difficult for Louis to land. However, the younger fighter’s jab did connect and caused a decent swelling of the German’s left eye in the opening stanza. Second round saw Louis unload his destructive left hook, however, Schmeling was comfortably moving with the motion, then countering with his right hand. Louis recalled the blow at a later date and said, ‘I thought I’d swallowed my mouthpiece.’
Entering the fourth round, Schmeling was down 3-0 on all of the scorecards, was cut under his right eye and was working with a partially closed left eye. Then came ‘that’ moment. As Louis flicked out a jab, Schmeling, who had patiently waited for his moment, saw the left hand drop and threw his trademark overhand right. The moment it connected, Louis hit the canvas for the first time in his career. Despite making a powerful onslaught in the tenth round, Louis was knocked out in the twelfth in front of 40,000 roaring fans. They had just been treated to Ring Magazine’s 1936 Fight of The Year. The winner of the fight had already been pencilled in to fight the reigning champion, James Braddock, but it never materialised, which forced Max back home.
SCHMELING V LOUIS 1 1936
Following the victory over Louis, Schmeling returned to Germany on board the famous Hindenburg Zeppelin. The vessel would perish in one of aviation’s most famous blazing disasters in 1937, which was perhaps a sign of things to come for the victorious German. On returning to his homeland, the fight was shown throughout the country and Schmeling was honoured with a number of parades organised by Adolf Hitler, who maximised the value of the boxer in his propaganda campaigns. Americans branded Max a Nazi, which saddened him deeply, even though he refused Hitler’s countless invites to be part of the Nazi party. In addition, against the instructions of Hitler who was making him out to be a Nazi hero with the Louis victory, Max publicly associated with German Jews and refused to sack his manager, Joe Jacobs who was an American Jew.
After three victories against nondescript opponents, Schmeling was set for the rematch against Louis on 22 June 1938 at Yankee Stadium. The American on the other hand had beaten 11 opponents, knocked out nine, become world heavyweight champion by knocking out James Braddock exactly one year to the day prior on 22 June 1937, not to mention defending the title three times.
With 70,000 fans in attendance this time, the fight had almost been marketed as good versus evil, with Louis being the golden boy. As Schmeling walked to the ring he was subject to a tirade of verbal abuse, Nazi salutes and a number of objects, including lit cigarettes, bottles and banana skins.
From the opening bell, Louis unloaded on Schmeling, hurting him with the first two punches. It was a one sided beating with no return from Schmeling which saw the contest halted after two minutes and four seconds. The German suffered a multitude of injuries including fractured vertebrae in his back and was put in an ambulance shortly after the final bell. In Hitler’s eyes, losing against Louis was tantamount to losing for The Third Reich. Schmeling had gone from being in every newspaper and publication in Germany to disappearing from the public eye, which suited him down to the ground.
SCHMELING V LOUIS 2 1938
Louis said after the fight, ‘I had nothing personally against Max, but in my mind, I wasn't champion until I beat him. The rest of it, black against white, was somebody's talk. I had nothing against the man, except I had to beat him for myself.’ Schmeling was also purely about the boxing and expressed that in an interview in 1975. ‘Looking back, I’m almost happy I lost the fight. Just imagine if I would have come back to Germany with a victory. I had nothing to do with the Nazis, but they would have given me a medal. After the war I might have been considered a war criminal.’
Later that year, as Hitler’s war on the Jews reached new spiteful heights, Schmeling hid two teenage sons of a friend of his, David Lewin at his apartment in the Excelsior Hotel in Berlin, telling reception that he was very ill and for nobody to come up and see him. Brothers Henry and Werner Lewin survived, with Henry moving to the US and becoming a big success in the hotel industry.
Two months before the start of World War II, on 2 July 1939 at the Adolf-Hitler-Kampfbahn in Stuttgart, Schmeling stopped Adolf Heuser in the first round to win the German and European heavyweight titles again. Unfortunately, as opposed to Louis who fought 15 times during the war, Schmeling didn’t fight again until 1947. Hitler in the meantime held a bitter grudge over Max and decided to have him drafted in the paratroopers and swiftly sent him on numerous suicide missions. Despite being wounded with shrapnel on the first day of the 1941 invasion of Crete, he received an Iron Cross for bravery and saw out his duty of service until 1943, where he was deemed unfit for service.
Appalled by Hitler’s dictatorship, Max visited a number of prisoner of war camps in Germany and did his utmost to help ease the conditions for American and Jewish captives. Once the war came to an end, British authorities cleared him of any Nazi war crimes which had been falsely connected to his name.
When Schmeling did return to the square ring after the war, it was purely for financial reasons. The 42-year-old was a mere shadow of his former self and despite winning three fights and losing two, Max hung up the gloves after a points loss to Richard Vogt on 31 October 1948. He retired with a very respectable 56 victories, which included 39 KO’s, 10 losses and four draws, not to mention being a two-weight German and European champion and also reaching the heights of world heavyweight king.
Post war and retirement, Schmeling and his wife Anny did everything they could to scrape by. Tobacco, mink and chicken farming provided a modest income, however, it was an approach from the soft drink giant Coca Cola in the 1950’s which proved to be pivotal in Schmeling’s fortunes.
By now, a former New York boxing commissioner had become a big wig in Coca Cola and was looking for a fresh face to re-introduce the brand back into Germany, post Nazi rule. Schmeling fitted the bill perfectly and after many meetings and he not only jumped on board as brand ambassador, but by 1957 Coca Cola had granted him control of operations in Hamburg. He went on to become president of Coca Cola in Germany and became possibly the most influential character of the company, right up to he stepped away, shortly before his passing.
Years after their epic fights, Schmeling tracked Louis in Chicago and visited him at his home. In an interview with the LA Times in 1988, Max recalled saying to his old foe, ‘‘Joe, you didn’t believe all those bad things they wrote about me, did you?’ He said he knew that it was all bull, and so we struck up a warm friendship.’ They remained close friends until Louis death in 1981. It was no secret that Louis retired broke and stayed penniless until he perished, and it was his old friend Max who paid for the majority of the funeral, in addition to being a pallbearer for his friend and foe.
Schmeling was Inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992 and died on 2 February 2005, six months shy of his 100th birthday. He remains the oldest lived heavyweight boxing champion in history.
In an interview with The LA times in the 1980’s, rising tennis star Steffi Graf asked how he maintained his popularity. Schmeling replied, ‘I told her that a smile doesn’t cost anything and your fans won’t forget it. And, most important, to keep both feet on the ground.’ That sums up the legend, Max Schmeling.
I'll start off the Max Schmeling photos with this little gem, the photo that was used for his appearance on the cover of TIME magazine on June 24th, 1929.
Max Schmeling and "The Cleveland Rubberman" Johnny Risko facing off before their fight on February 1st, 1929, at Madison Square Garden. Schmeling stopped Risko in the 9th round in an exciting battle named Fight Of The Year by Ring Magazine.
Some photos of Max Schmeling before his first fight against "The Basque Woodchopper" Paolino Uzcudun in 1929. Much like Johnny Risko, Uzcudun was a tough SOB with a granite chin, a difficult opponent to fight against due to his cross-arm defense and awkward style. This is a photo of Schmeling and Uzcudun at their contract signing.
Max Schmeling helping Paolino Uzcudun back to his corner at the end of their fight in 1929. Schmeling won a 15-round decision and really wore Uzcudun out, notice the marks on Uzcudun's body from the body shots he took from Schmeling throughout the fight.
On June 12, 1930 at Yankee Stadium in New York, Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey fought for the vacant heavyweight title. Schmeling was awarded the win and the title on a foul by Sharkey in the fourth round. Sharkey had won the first three rounds, but lost his title bid on a low blow. With that, Max Schmeling became the only fighter in boxing history to win the heavyweight title due to a foul and remains so to this day. Here are a couple of photos of Max Schmeling training for Sharkey in 1930.
These are photos taken after the low blow from Sharkey, you can see Max Schmeling down and holding his groin. Check out the bottom photo of Max Schmeling being literally carried back to his corner.
Max Schmeling posing with the heavyweight title belt. The bottom photo shows Max Schmeling with the belt around his chest, he is pictured with The Ring magazine founder Nat Fleischer and famous fight promotor Joe Jacobs.
Max Schmeling vs "The King of the Canebrakes" William "Young" Stribling in 1931. Stribling was a great pound-for-pound fighter, he was moving up from light heavy to challenge Schmeling. I love a good yarn, and there's a good story behind this fight. Stribling was a daredevil, and he almost got himself killed before the fight.
By: Chris Lillstrung
Cleveland Stadium hosted an arsenal of stars throughout its history.
Bob Feller. Jim Brown. Even the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.
But it was another occasion that rocked the Stadium on its first day of operation July 3, 1931.
Cleveland Stadium was christened by a world heavyweight boxing title bout, the first of 64 years of events in that grand venue.
Max Schmeling‘s 1931 did not get off to a roaring start as world heavyweight champion.
After Gene Tunney had retired as champion, Schmeling won the vacated title June 12, 1930. Jack Sharkey had hit Schmeling with a low blow, after which the referee stopped the fight and awarded the title to Schmeling. The New York State Athletic Commission reviewed and confirmed the decision.
Jan. 6, 1931, the NYSAC stripped Schmeling of title recognition because he wouldn’t agree to a rematch with Sharkey. The NYSAC wanted to crown the winner of a Sharkey-Young Stribling fight as new champion.
Schmeling’s camp balked, and Pa Stribling, his son’s manager, stated he was not interested in facing Sharkey.
Jan. 13, some clarity was brought to a chaotic title picture. Schemling and Stribling signed for a fight, which would have to be held outside of New York, with Primo Carnera also on board as challenger for the winner in September.
Cleveland matchmaker Tommy McGinty announced March 3 he was informed by promoter Damon Runyon on a call from Miami that Runyon would come to town. Runyon wanted to assess the city and its new stadium, expected to be completed by summer, as a possible fight host.
“Cleveland has a great chance to land the bout,” McGinty said.
In April, Schmeling’s manager Joe Jacobs was enamored with selecting Cleveland after negotiations with stadium manager George Bender.
“Your new stadium is the greatest place in the country for that fight,” Jacobs said.
In his syndicated newspaper column, Runyon stated April 6 that Cleveland would host the bout and Chicago, which had reportedly put in a $500,000 bid for the fight to be at Soldier Field, had lost out due to “petty jealousy.”
“The fight will go to Cleveland,” Runyon wrote. “The date will be July 3, and I venture the prediction that the bout will draw a gate that will astound the critics.”
The announcement came officially April 15, when Jacobs informed Schmeling that Cleveland had been chosen.
The 15-round fight was hopeful to gross $1.5 million if the stadium’s 110,000-seat boxing capacity could be sold. Tickets would be sold for $5.49, $12.50 and $25 at ringside.
Schmeling attended the Kentucky Derby on May 16 and came in shortly thereafter to start training camp at a site chosen by Jacobs.
May 5, with Schmeling and Jacobs in Cleveland to tour the stadium, it was revealed the finalists for the training site would be Conneaut Lake Park, Pa., or Cedar Point.
Conneaut Lake Park was chosen, with Stribling electing to head to Geauga Lake Park.
Schmeling arrived at Conneaut Lake Park on May 19, and Stribling departed his native Atlanta in a four-car party to drive to Geauga Lake Park. He was expected to get in May 21.
Tickets went on sale June 1, with the Public Hall box office set to be open 24 hours a day. Both boxers took that as a rest day, each getting in 27 holes of golf.
“There is some talk about how the old fighters trained and how the modern ones play golf and take it a bit easy,” Pa Stribling said. “They must remember that the old fighters always broke training and had a time getting in shape. The modern fighters are rarely out of condition. Golf and a few days of boxing each week is all they need.”
June 7, former middleweight champion Billy Papke watched Schmeling knock out sparring partner Pedro Lopez.
“You can put me down on record right now that Schmeling will whip Stribling July 3 at Cleveland and whip him plenty,” Papke said. “Those short right-hand blows and those beautiful left hooks of Max’s will have Stribling legging it after the third round.”
The Cleveland Boxing Commission, after consulting with Jacobs and Pa Stribling, announced June 18 the fight could not be won or lost by low blow, and a boxer forfeited his purse if he refused to continue after being hit with a low blow if the referee demanded he do so.
Being the heavyweight champion of the world was a far cry for Schmeling from his introduction to the sport.
“I was working with a well drilling gang that went from place to place drilling wells for factories and factory sites,” Schmeling wrote in his syndicated column. “So I was in a strange city for six months, the small town of (Muhlheim). And you know how it is when a boy is lonesome and work is over. He does not want to sit home alone.
“So I go out for a walk through the dark streets, and I pass what we call a turnhalle. I guess it is the same thing as your amateur gymnasiums. So I looked in, and there is amateur boxing going on and a director stands there, and pretty soon he asks me if I am a boxer. So I tell him no, I have never done this, but it looks interesting. Well, he says, if you like, come back next Friday, and maybe you will like it. We will try you.”
His opponent was rounding into form June 22 at Geauga Lake Park.
“The boy’s about ready, and we’ll have to keep him from working too hard,” Pa Stribling said.
The official tale of the tape was unveiled June 27, and there wasn’t much separation. Schmeling was one pound larger, three-quarters of an inch taller and had a one-inch reach advantage, 75-74.
Schmeling’s handlers charged fans daily to watch camp, 50 cents at first, then $1 apiece. June 28, 4,317 fans showed up to watch the champion do four rounds of sparring, bag work and calisthenics. Stribling drew 1,900 as the heaviest portion of his training concluded the same night.
“Unless old Kid Jinx comes along between now and fight night,” Stribling wrote in his syndicated column, “I’ll go into action with Schmeling in the greatest condition of my career.”
George Blake, a Los Angeles-based official, was selected June 29 as the referee.
Schmeling was feeling confident – and not just because of his training. On a rest day, Schmeling notched his best-ever golf score with a 41 for nine holes.
“On one hole, I drive 270 yards,” Schmeling said. “That felt good, boy, I say to myself. If I can hit that Stribling on the chin with the same timing that I hit that ball, the fight is over.”
Stribling averted disaster that day. In a borrowed airplane he was piloting, Stribling took a nearly three-hour ride. He passed over Schmeling’s camp at Conneaut Lake Park – then nearly crash-landed at Cleveland Air Service Field coming back.
He dodged telephone wires and trees by a few feet, unable to see due to a tall barn. Then, trying to land, the plane wasn’t straight and bounced back into the air with a stalled engine.
Stribling nailed the second attempt to land, much to the delight of his handlers and the boxing world.
Fight promoters expected a crowd of 60,000 for the seven-match card – which nearly included Al Capone. The Chicago mafia boss was reported to be attending the fight until Cleveland’s safety director sternly warned Capone he would be jailed if he entered the city limits.
Cleveland Stadium took 370 days to complete after groundbreaking June 24, 1930, at a cost of around $3 million.
For the title fight, 3,500 ushers and ticket takers, along with 300 policemen in the stadium and hundreds more outside, trained for two weeks for the big day.
After all the hype, the actual fight finally commenced deep into the night July 3, 1931.
Stribling had his moments early, with a pair of left hooks to Schmeling’s head in Round 2 and a straight left to the head in Round 3. A left-right combination made Schmeling’s eye swell in Round 4.
The champion began to take control in the middle rounds. A hard right that connected on Stribling’s chin in Round 9 left him wobbly, and Stribling was battered toward the end of Round 10. By Round 13, The Associated Press’ Edward J. Neil reported, “All Stribling could do was shoot occasional punches, hold when he could, and take his beating like a man when he could not.”
With 14 seconds left in the 15th and final round, Stribling was knocked down but rose at a count of nine. Schmeling turned to Blake, who after inspection ruled the fight over, with the champion successfully defending by technical knockout.
The initial crowd estimates, at the height of the Great Depression, were wildly inaccurate. Promoter Bill Carey stated attendance was 36,936 for a gate of $349,416 and loss of around $25,000. Schmeling got $106,138 for his title defense, while Stribling earned $33,168.
The fight was declared as Ring Magazine’s Fight of the Year for 1931.
Stribling fought 253 times, with 224 wins, 129 by knockout. The only time he was knocked out was by Schmeling.
He died Oct. 3, 1933, after a motorcycle crash in Georgia at the age of 28.
Schmeling went 57-10-4 in his career, with 41 wins by knockout. After losing the title to Sharkey in 1932, he never regained the crown but had two famous fights with a young Joe Louis.
The 1992 International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee died Feb. 2, 2005, at the age of 99.
Cleveland Stadium played host to quite a few stars in its time – and the first was a world heavyweight champion, in a landmark clash for him and for Northeast Ohio.
This is a photo of Max Schmeling and Young Stribling with the chief of the Seminole Native Americans, Corey "Chief" Osceola, the chief's wife and child. These photos were taken in Florida in 1931 a few months prior to their fight. Notice that Chief Osceola is missing his left arm, he lost it in an alligator attack or a train accident, depending on which story is true. Considering how notorious Florida is for alligators, I wouldn't be surprised if it was an alligator attack.
Photos from the Max Schmeling vs Young Stribling fight on July 3rd, 1931, at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. Max Schmeling won by TKO in the 15th, the fight was notable as the very first sporting event held at the new Cleveland Municipal. Max Schmeling was the only fighter to ever knock Stribling out.
The second fight between Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey took place on June 21st, 1932, at Madison Square Garden. I really don't know what else to say about this fight except that it was a blatant robbery, Sharkey was awarded the fight and the heavyweight title via 15-round split decision. Watching this fight, it's clear Schmeling won it, he was the aggressor throughout and won the majority of the rounds. After the decision was announced, Schmeling's manager Joe Jacobs shouted into the radio microphone, "We wuz robbed!"
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Happy Friday the 13th! This is so cool, there is actually a life-size statue of Jason Voorhees chained to the bottom of the Louise Mine Pit in Crosby, Minnesota. Installed by a scuba diver in 2013 at a depth of 112 feet, this horror-themed attraction is a nod to Friday the 13th Part VI. It remains a popular, albeit eerie, destination for advanced divers.
This is a poster for my favorite Friday the 13th film, part 3. When it was released in 1982, you could watch it in 3-D in select theaters. It is the only film in the series to be released in that format.
It's fascinating, they still show Friday the 13th part 3 in select theaters today in 3-D. You buy your tickets, get your 3-D glasses, and you're good to go!
"I don't really fight to win, l fight to survive. Survival means money. When l survive it means l move up, and when l move up l make more money. If I lose, it's back to the bottom of the pile, back to nothing. l don't ever want to go back. When you have been where l have been, you never want to go back."
Looking at that photo of Jimmy Young in the post above, man that was Young at his best, when he put on a technical masterpiece against Foreman in 77'. Young won via a 12-round unanimous decision by utilizing superior movement, elite defensive skills, and precise counter-punching to exhaust and frustrate Foreman. Young weathered early power shots, used the ring to his advantage, and secured a knockdown in the 12th round, forcing Foreman into his first retirement. When Young was at his best, it was a thing of beauty.
This story always gets me choked up everytime I see it. That time the great German heavyweight champion Max Schmeling risked his life and hid Jews from the Nazis. This happened in 1938 during "Kristallnacht", or "the crystal night" also known as "the night of broken glass", when Nazis went around Germany rounding up Jews, destroying stores owned by Jews, breaking the shop windows, it was basically the launch of the Jewish Holocaust that would eventually claim the lives of over 6 million. This is an interview conducted in 1989 with Henri Lewin, who was just a kid when Max Schmeling hid him from the Nazi Gestapo.
The Night Schmeling Risked All : Boxing: An old friend recalls how the former champion saved his life by outwitting the Gestapo in 1938.
By EARL GUSTKEY
Dec. 23, 1989 12 AM PT
TIMES STAFF WRITER
LAS VEGAS — Henri Lewin, the president of the Sands Hotel, recently threw a party for an old friend.
He figured he owed his old friend for past favors. His life, for one.
His old friend is Max Schmeling, the former heavyweight boxing champion, now 84. In 1938, Henri Lewin was a 14-year-old German Jew, hiding in the Berlin apartment of Germany’s best-known athlete.
Lewin, until recently, hadn’t talked about the experience publicly because his old friend hadn’t wanted him to.
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But before a couple of thousand people, at a special tribute to Schmeling, tears welled in Lewin’s eyes when he took the microphone and pointed to his old friend, seated at a front table next to the present heavyweight champion, Mike Tyson.
“I’m going to tell you what kind of champion Max Schmeling is,” Lewin told the crowd.
“Beginning on Nov. 9, 1938, for four days, Max Schmeling hid my brother and me in his Berlin apartment. That was the night known now as ‘the Crystal Night,’ when the Gestapo began picking up all Jews off the streets.
“Max Schmeling risked everything he had for us. If we had been found in his apartment, I would not be here this evening and neither would Max.
“And that, friends, is the kind of champion Max Schmeling is.”
In an interview later, in his office, Lewin said he has spoken only occasionally of his being protected by Schmeling after Adolf Hitler had ordered police to begin rounding up Jews.
“Max asked me several times over the years not to mention it,” Lewin said. “In fact, he sent me a letter after I invited him here this week and said he’d come, but asked me not to ‘glorify’ him. He told me that what he’d done for me and my brother Werner in 1938 was ‘doing the duty of a man.’ ”
Lewin said the Schmeling-Lewin relationship dated to the mid-1920s, when Schmeling was a relatively unknown light-heavyweight boxer and Lewin’s father owned a hotel in Potsdam, the Aristocrat, where Schmeling often stayed.
In 1930, Schmeling won the heavyweight championship on a foul from Jack Sharkey. He later lost the title in 1932 to Sharkey, on a decision. But he is best remembered for two historic fights with Joe Louis. In 1936, before Louis was champion, Schmeling handed Louis his first defeat, a knockout, and was hailed by Hitler as a symbol of “Aryan supremacy.”
In a 1938 rematch, Louis, by then the champion, knocked out Schmeling in the first round at New York’s Yankee Stadium.
Over the years, the Louis-Schmeling rivalry mellowed into friendship. After World War II, Schmeling became wealthy as a West German Coca-Cola distributor. Louis not only lost all his record earnings from boxing, but wound up heavily in debt to the Internal Revenue Service.
Louis died in April 1981, and Lewin recalled a phone call the next day.
“Max called me and asked me to go to the funeral and give a substantial sum of money to his widow, which I did,” Lewin said. “He didn’t want me to talk about that, either. But I’ve kept these secrets for all these years. The man is 84. I began to wonder how much longer will Max and I last. Max is a modest man and he won’t like me saying all this, but I wanted people to know what kind of man he is.”
There is a sound in Henri Lewin’s memory that remains vivid to this day: the sound of knocking on the door of Max Schmeling’s Berlin apartment.
“We hid from the housekeepers, waiters, other friends of Max--everyone,” he said. “The first day, Max didn’t leave the apartment. He told the front desk he was sick, and not to let anyone come up. He could have lessened the risk by just telling people we were nephews, or something. But he didn’t. He risked everything.
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“Max had a great feeling for Jews, and what was happening in Germany. His manager, Joe Jacobs, was an American Jew.
“After four days, Max felt it was safe to take us to an apartment my father owned 30 minutes away, in the Tiergarten district of Berlin. We bought tickets to Genoa, Italy, where we were to leave by boat for Shanghai.
“But my brother and I were picked up by the police and taken to Spandau prison, and we had our heads shaved. They told us we were going to be taken to a camp. But six days later they released us.
“You see, in 1938, if the police picked up Jews who were older than 30 or 35, you never saw them again. But with very young people, that was a problem for the Nazis. They didn’t want stories about children disappearing to get out.
“So we left for Genoa, met our father and left for China.”
In Shanghai, the Lewin family was running a hotel when Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese. They were arrested and spent the war in a Japanese concentration camp.
By 1946, though, the Lewins were in San Francisco, back in the hotel business.
“All our relatives in Germany died in the concentration camps, except for an uncle of mine who was a general in the German Army in World War I. He had been awarded the Iron Cross. But he was a Jew, and was arrested in 1937. When he was released, he weighed 90 pounds.”
Lewin was a vice president at the Las Vegas Hilton for several years, then was named president of the Sands eight months ago.
“My father owned hotels and was in the clothing business in Germany,” Lewin said. “Old Germans remember today how well-dressed Max Schmeling was when he appeared in public in the 1930s. Well, he bought those suits from my father.”
You know, one can't help but to notice the parallels between Kristallnacht and what is going on in our country right now with ICE, the systemic hunting of immigrants, terrorizing of communities, families being ripped apart, kids being locked in cages and traumatized. A lot of these people are just trying to work and make a living like everyone else, kids that are just trying to go to school, these people are currently living in fear and are literally scared to step outside, wondering if they will be arrested by a squad of goons and shipped off to some hellhole. I was in Walmart the other day and saw a Mexican family that looked like they were scared to be in the store, to be out in public. They don't have to worry about me turning them in, I'm not like that. It's a shame.
Max Schmeling, "The Black Uhlan of the Rhine", world heavyweight champion from 1930 to 1932, and the only man to beat the great Joe Louis when Louis was near his absolute prime. Max Schmeling was renowned for his tactical approach, his boxing style was methodical, he was all business when he stepped in the ring, he wasted no energy and was totally focused on the task at hand. He fought out of a crouch and was a great counter-puncher. He was a well-rounded fighter with a granite chin and great knockout power in his right hand, The Ring magazine ranks him #55 on their 100 greatest punchers of all-time list.
Let's get something straight right off the bat, Max Schmeling was a fighter, period. That's what he was. That was his livelihood. That was his life. That was what he loved to do. He was born in Germany at the wrong time. He started his career in 1924 when the Nazis weren't even around, when they did come to power he got swept up in all that crap. But the man was a fighter, it's all he ever wanted to be.
Max Schmeling: Hitler’s favourite boxer?
Friday September 13, 2024
By: Laszlo Solymar
As a child in 1930s Budapest, a whole new world opened up for me when I learned to read. In the beginning I read only street advertisements. Later my main interest turned to sports news. In Hungary, sport events took place mainly on Sunday afternoons and were reported in the Sport News that appeared in the late afternoon with its characteristic green colour. This was a Sunday evening entertainment. Most people were interested in only a few sports results and discarded the journal as soon as they had read those. All we children needed to do was to pick them up from the pavement.
The headlines were very often about boxing. The boxer whose photograph I saw most often was Max Schmeling. Anything German was widely praised in the Hungarian press at the time. It was the policy of Admiral Horthy, Hungary’s authoritarian Regent.
Let me say a few words about Max Schmeling, the leading German boxer of the time. He was born in 1905 in Germany. He became interested in boxing when he saw a film with his father on the career of Jack Dempsey, a celebrated heavyweight boxing champion of the world. Still in his teens, the young Schmeling decided to become a professional, a decision that his father accepted with a moderate amount of enthusiasm.
The country where boxing was most popular was the United States. That is where Schmeling went in 1928 in search of glory. He became world heavyweight champion two years later when his opponent was disqualified for a low blow. He defended his title in several matches but lost it to Max Baer in 1933.
Meanwhile the world had changed. In January 1933 Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany and brought with him theories of racial purity. Blacks and Jews became Untermenschen (inferior people). There was something new in boxing as well. A new contender arose in the person of Joe Louis. He was certainly not born with a silver spoon in the mouth. He was the seventh child of a black couple and his mother was a slave’s daughter. Her husband succumbed to a mental disease when the children were still young. Then Joe’s mother married for the second time. She wanted her seventh child to be a musician. But Joe was not interested in music. He used the violin case to carry his boxing gloves out of sight of his mother. In boxing, however, he made a phenomenal debut. Starting his professional career in the middle of 1934, he won all 12 of his matches in that year, a feat he repeated in 1935 when again he won all 10 of his matches. One of those was against the former world champion, Max Baer. It became clear that if Schmeling wanted to regain the world championship, he must fight Louis.
The fight was scheduled for June 1936. Max Schmeling was looked upon in America as a Nazi. Conversely, Louis was regarded in Germany as a member of an inferior race. The controversy was therefore bitter. At the time many white boxers would refuse to fight a black opponent. Joe Louis changed all that. For the first time in history a black man became an all-American hero.
He had even come to the attention of President Roosevelt himself. Feeling Louis’ muscles, FDR said: “These are the muscles we need to beat Germany.” Schmeling could have avoided the hostile reception had he accepted his American friend’s advice to apply for American citizenship. He did not want to take that step (“Once a German, always a German”, he said), but the Gestapo made sure that under no circumstances would he do so by retaining his wife and mother in Germany, effectively as hostages — a practice that had already been widely used in the Soviet Union.
The Schmeling-Louis match was scheduled for June 1936. As it happened, Schmeling won in the 10th round. Germany was celebrating. America was in mourning. Some people actually wept. Goebbels immediately saw the propaganda value of the victory. He sent a telegram to Schmeling: “I know you won it for Germany. We are proud of you. Heil Hitler!” The Führer wrote separately: “Most cordial felicitations on your splendid victory.”
Schmeling returned to Germany in style on the Zeppelin named after Hindenburg. The Führer immediately invited him, his wife and some of his friends for lunch at the Reich Chancellery. But this was not the end of the story. There was to be a rematch two years later. By 1938 the political background affected the match even more than in 1936. The beginning of the Second World War was hardly a year away and the Spanish Civil War was still bitterly fought.
The result of the rematch was entirely unexpected. Schmeling was knocked out in the first round. The German reaction was easy to guess. Schmeling became a non-person. Nobody in Germany had ever taken an interest in the former celebrity. Hitler put him in the paratroopers’ regiment, the most dangerous assignment in any army. I cannot escape the suspicion that Hitler wanted him dead. I think this was analogous to the story of Uriah. King David put Uriah in the first line of battle to die so that he could marry Beer Sheba, Uriah’s wife.
Yet that was not the end of the story either. Schmeling was wounded in the parachute assault on Crete in 1941, but he survived. Many years later, after the war, he visited Louis in Chicago. They became good friends. Schmeling offered financial help when Louis fell on lean times. They remained friends until Louis died at the age of 66. Schmeling was one of his pallbearers.
So what can we say in conclusion? Was Schmeling really Hitler’s favourite boxer? For a while he no doubt was — as long as he was a champion. Was he a Nazi? It must have looked that way from America: “A man who dines with Hitler must be a Nazi.” But if you live in a dictatorship you do not have much choice. If Hitler invites you to the Reich Chancellery you cannot say: “Sorry, tonight I am too busy.” That would mean playing with your life.
I would argue that Schmeling went as far as he could, and maybe even beyond that, to prove that he was not a Nazi. He never joined the NSDAP (German National Socialist Workers’ Party), in spite of being under pressure to do so from Hitler himself. He made it clear to the Sports Minister that he was just a boxer, no more, and he claimed to know nothing about politics. In spite of Goebbels’ exhortations, he refused to get rid of his Jewish manager, Joe Jacobs. It also happened that when Jacobs visited Germany and his hotel booking was cancelled on account of being Jewish, Schmeling confronted the hotel manager and told him in no uncertain terms that he should restore Jacobs’ booking. If he does not do so he will never again receive an American guest. The hotel manager complied.
This gesture required courage. However, Schmeling’s bravest deed became known only fifty years later. During the Kristallnacht outrages in 1938, he offered shelter in his hotel room to two sons of a Jewish friend of his. If this had been found out at the time, his career would surely have been ended immediately. This, far more than any exploits in the boxing ring, was Max Schmeling’s bravest act.
The International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) profile on Max Schmeling.
Max Schmeling
PERHAPS BEST remembered in the ring for his two fights with Joe Louis, heavyweight champion Max Schmeling remains unjustly associated with Nazi Germany and was unfairly depicted as a villain in the United States. His title and image were used as a propaganda tool by Adolf Hitler to demonstrate Aryan supremacy. But by all accounts, Schmeling conducted himself as a gentleman and sportsman.
In fact, many years later, it was revealed that Schmeling risked his own life by hiding Jewish children in his hotel room and helping them escape Germany.
Schmeling turned pro in Germany in 1924 and won the German light heavyweight title in 1926. He'd also win the European 175-pound title and German heavyweight crown before coming to the United States to fight. In New York, in 1929, Schmeling made his mark by defeating a pair of top heavyweights -- Johnny Risko and Paolino Uzcudun. Those victories earned him a number-two ranking and a shot at the heavyweight title.
In 1930, he met Jack Sharkey at Yankee Stadium for the vacant heavyweight title and won the crown via disqualification when Sharkey was DQ'd in the fourth round for hitting Schmeling low. It remains the only time in history that the heavyweight title was won on a foul.
Schmeling fought once in 1931, successfully defending the title against Young Stribling with a 15th-round TKO. In his next defense, he lost a controversial split-decision and the title in a rematch with Sharkey. Two months later he battered former welterweight and middleweight king Mickey Walker into submission in eight rounds. Then, in 1933, Schmeling was knocked out by Max Baer.
Schmeling's next significant bout came in 1936 when he knocked out the unbeaten 22-year-old Joe Louis. The German knocked Louis down in the fourth round and knocked him out in the 12th. When Louis won the title a rematch was scheduled for 1938.
With Hitler's power base widening in Europe, the Louis-Schmeling rematch became more than just a heavyweight title fight. It took on political ramifications as Louis was cast in the role of representing America with Schmeling being projected as the symbol of Nazi Germany. The rematch didn't last long, as Louis scored a devastating first-round knockout.
Schmeling served as a German paratrooper during World War II and resumed his career when the war ended. He fought until 1948 before retiring.
Born: Sept. 28, 1905
Died: Feb. 2, 2005
Bouts: 70
Won: 56
Lost: 10
Drew: 4
KOs: 39
Induction: 1992
Max Schmeling
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One more article about Max Schmeling.
British Vintage Boxing
MAX SCHMELING
Jan 31, 2023
‘I would not like to be remembered as someone who amounted to do so much as an athlete, but who was good for nothing as a person. I couldn't stand that.’
Maximilian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling, better known as Max or Maxey, was Germany’s first ever European and world heavyweight champion.
Born on 28 September 1905 in the Prussian province of Brandenburg to parents Max Sr and mother Amanda, 16-year-old Max grew a strong interest in boxing after watching a film of Jack Dempsey against Georges Carpentier with his father. Taken in by Dempsey’s style Schmeling modelled himself on The Manassa Mauler and soon started to compete as an amateur. Shortly after winning the light heavyweight division in the German National Championships, Maxey turned pro.
Eighteen-year-old Schmeling made his professional debut on 2 August 1924, in Tonhalle, Duesseldorf, knocking out Hans Czapp early doors and weighed a little under 170lbs (a touch over modern day super middleweight). By the end of the year he had notched up nine wins, eight by knockout, one points decision and one retirement loss against debutant Max Diekmann due an ear injury.
1925 hardly showed the form of a future world champion as Schmeling won six, drew two and lost two, which included a knockout stoppage from The Toronto Terror, Larry Gains. None of this mattered though because Germany’s favourite fighting son embarked on a 21-fight streak (20 wins, one draw), picking up those all important stepping stone straps along the way to world title contention. Perhaps one memorable milestone for Maxey in 1925 was sparring his idol Jack Dempsey, who was in preparations for defending his world title and was by all accounts impressed with the 19-year-old.
Schemeling’s first fight of 1926 was at the Kaiserdamm Arena on 12 February against old foe Max Diekmann. Eager to avenge his loss, Schmeling was only able to produce a lacklustre draw. However, as the stakes rose, the crowds started to see the best of Schmeling. After two first round knockout victories, they met for the third and final instalment of their trilogy at Luna Park, Halensee, but this time the German light heavyweight title was on the line. On 24 August, weighing in a touch over 173lbs, Schmeling disposed of Diekmann in 30 seconds, which not only stated his claim as the best 175lbs fighter in his homeland, but also announced him on the European stage.
Over the next nine months, Schmeling won nine fights on the bounce, with only one going the distance, but it was his next fight which elevated the 21-year-old into the limelight. On 19 June 1927, Max took on Belgian Fernand Delarge for his European light heavyweight strap. Despite weighing only a touch over 171lbs, Schmeling disposed of Delarge in the 14th of 15 scheduled rounds at the Westfalenhalle in Dortmund.
Schmeling finished the year with six further victories, including a title defence of his European and German light heavyweight straps against Hein Domgoergen, who was 79-3-6 at the time, and a well respected points victory over British and Commonwealth light heavyweight Gipsy Daniels. Unfortunately for Schmeling, after a very impressive first round knockout victory, retaining his European title against Michele Bonaglia (21-1-1 at the time), he was knocked out in the first round by Welshman Gipsy Daniels in the first round of a non-sanctioned contest.
By now, Schmeling was struggling to get below 180lbs and started to progress in the heavyweight ranks – albeit, as a small heavyweight. Six weeks after the Daniels loss, he took on the reigning German heavyweight champion, Franz Diener. The Berlin resident had been in with good company, including a loss to Larry Gains and a draw with Paulino Uzcudun. Later on he would also fight Primo Carnera twice, gaining victory on one occasion. However, on 4 April 1928, despite outweighing Schmeling by 12lbs, Diener lost his title on points over 15 rounds. The newly crowned champion now decided to head Stateside for those career defining fights which would ultimately give him that all essential traction towards a world title shot.
Schmeling made his debut at Madison Square Garden on 23 November 1928 against Joe Monte, stopping the Brockton resident in eight rounds. His arrival in America was polar opposite to his exit a decade later. He was an up and coming European fighter with no connections in the fight trade, but that all changed when he met esteemed boxing manager Joe Jacobs, who would become a close friend and confidant through a colourful decade.
After a points victory over durable Pennsylvanian Joe Sekrya on 4 January 1929 and a one round demolition against Pietro Corri, Schmeling locked horns with Slovakian born Johnny Risko, AKA ‘Cleveland Rubber Man,’ on account of his ability to absorb blows.
On 1 February 1929, Risko and Schmeling fought at Madison Square Garden in a barnburner of a contest. In the ninth round the referee stopped Risko from further punishment after a gruelling encounter for both fighters. It was the first time Risko had ever been stopped and the contest unsurprisingly won 1929 Fight of The Year for Ring Magazine.
Four months later Schmeling took on former European heavyweight champion, teak tough Spaniard Paulino Uzcudun, outpointing him over 15 rounds at Yankee Stadium. The German was now considered to be the No.1 contender for the world heavyweight title, but with Gene Tunney having recently retired, the title was now up for grabs.
On 12 June 1930, Schmeling took on Jack Sharkey for the vacant title at Yankee Stadium, however, the fight finished in a manner which neither fighter was happy with. In the fourth round, Sharkey let loose with a low blow to Schmeling’s groin, which rendered him incapable of continuing. Angered by the manner in which he acquired the world heavyweight strap and the negative media which followed him in the days and weeks after, Schmeling, now given the moniker of ‘Low blow champion,’ set about proving his worth.
SCHMELING V SHARKEY 2 1932
Three weeks later he stopped Young Stribling in the 15th round at Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, before allowing ‘The Boston Gob’ a second chance on 21 June 1932 at Madison Square Garden Bowl, Long Island City, Queens. Unfortunately for Schmeling, he was on the bad end of a hometown split decision. One judge had it 10-5 for the German, with the other two giving Sharkey a marginal advantage on the scorecards. Straight after the fight the New York State Athletic Commission barred most of the individuals involved with the scoring skulduggery from ever being involved in a boxing contest again. On a positive note, Schmeling married movie star Anny Ondra and they remained wed until Ondra passed away in 1989.
In the meantime, Hitler’s ideology and anti-Semitic mindset was festering at rapid speed. As Max became a recognised name in the U.S., the world’s most repugnant dictator started to design moves for his unknowing political pawn
Three months after the Sharkey loss, Schmeling stopped the ‘Toy Bulldog,’ Mickey Walker in eight rounds, however, the next three fights proved to be hard work. On 8 June 1933 Schmeling lost to Max Baer on Jack Dempsey’s first promotional card, in front of over 53,000 people at Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, the fight had already started to get overshadowed by political bias. Baer, a non-practising Jew, wore the star of David on his shorts as he went toe to with the German, who was already in Hitler’s vile slipstream as a reluctant Nazi mouthpiece. Despite the tenth-round stoppage, Schmeling gave a great account of himself and in what was a very competitive fight. The contest was Ring Magazine’s 1933 Fight of The Year and in his next fight, Baer stopped Primo Carnera to become world champion.
Eight months later Schemling lost a points decision to New Jersey tough man, Steve Hamas, then drew against old foe Paulino Uzcudun. Despite only fighting twice in 1935, Schmeling reappeared with a new found gusto, avenging his loss to Hamas with a ninth round stoppage and beating Uzcudun convincingly on points four months later. The German only fought once in 1936, but it was said fight which engrained him in boxing folklore for eternity.
On 19 June 1936, Schmeling took a huge risk taking on unbeaten Joe Louis who was taller, heavier, younger and had stopped 20 of his 24 opponents by this stage. In essence, Schmeling, a 10-1 underdog was out-of-date cannon fodder for the young gun, however, contrary to the majority, he had other plans.
At the weigh-in, Schmeling was very relaxed and wished Louis good luck. When asked by the media why he was so confident, Schmeling replied, ‘I see something,’ without divulging any information. The German had noticed that every time Louis threw a jab, his hand would drop and leave him open to an overhand right.
From the opening bell at Yankee Stadium, Schmeling worked out of a crouch with his chin tucked tightly into his left shoulder, thus making it difficult for Louis to land. However, the younger fighter’s jab did connect and caused a decent swelling of the German’s left eye in the opening stanza. Second round saw Louis unload his destructive left hook, however, Schmeling was comfortably moving with the motion, then countering with his right hand. Louis recalled the blow at a later date and said, ‘I thought I’d swallowed my mouthpiece.’
Entering the fourth round, Schmeling was down 3-0 on all of the scorecards, was cut under his right eye and was working with a partially closed left eye. Then came ‘that’ moment. As Louis flicked out a jab, Schmeling, who had patiently waited for his moment, saw the left hand drop and threw his trademark overhand right. The moment it connected, Louis hit the canvas for the first time in his career. Despite making a powerful onslaught in the tenth round, Louis was knocked out in the twelfth in front of 40,000 roaring fans. They had just been treated to Ring Magazine’s 1936 Fight of The Year. The winner of the fight had already been pencilled in to fight the reigning champion, James Braddock, but it never materialised, which forced Max back home.
SCHMELING V LOUIS 1 1936
Following the victory over Louis, Schmeling returned to Germany on board the famous Hindenburg Zeppelin. The vessel would perish in one of aviation’s most famous blazing disasters in 1937, which was perhaps a sign of things to come for the victorious German. On returning to his homeland, the fight was shown throughout the country and Schmeling was honoured with a number of parades organised by Adolf Hitler, who maximised the value of the boxer in his propaganda campaigns. Americans branded Max a Nazi, which saddened him deeply, even though he refused Hitler’s countless invites to be part of the Nazi party. In addition, against the instructions of Hitler who was making him out to be a Nazi hero with the Louis victory, Max publicly associated with German Jews and refused to sack his manager, Joe Jacobs who was an American Jew.
After three victories against nondescript opponents, Schmeling was set for the rematch against Louis on 22 June 1938 at Yankee Stadium. The American on the other hand had beaten 11 opponents, knocked out nine, become world heavyweight champion by knocking out James Braddock exactly one year to the day prior on 22 June 1937, not to mention defending the title three times.
With 70,000 fans in attendance this time, the fight had almost been marketed as good versus evil, with Louis being the golden boy. As Schmeling walked to the ring he was subject to a tirade of verbal abuse, Nazi salutes and a number of objects, including lit cigarettes, bottles and banana skins.
From the opening bell, Louis unloaded on Schmeling, hurting him with the first two punches. It was a one sided beating with no return from Schmeling which saw the contest halted after two minutes and four seconds. The German suffered a multitude of injuries including fractured vertebrae in his back and was put in an ambulance shortly after the final bell. In Hitler’s eyes, losing against Louis was tantamount to losing for The Third Reich. Schmeling had gone from being in every newspaper and publication in Germany to disappearing from the public eye, which suited him down to the ground.
SCHMELING V LOUIS 2 1938
Louis said after the fight, ‘I had nothing personally against Max, but in my mind, I wasn't champion until I beat him. The rest of it, black against white, was somebody's talk. I had nothing against the man, except I had to beat him for myself.’ Schmeling was also purely about the boxing and expressed that in an interview in 1975. ‘Looking back, I’m almost happy I lost the fight. Just imagine if I would have come back to Germany with a victory. I had nothing to do with the Nazis, but they would have given me a medal. After the war I might have been considered a war criminal.’
Later that year, as Hitler’s war on the Jews reached new spiteful heights, Schmeling hid two teenage sons of a friend of his, David Lewin at his apartment in the Excelsior Hotel in Berlin, telling reception that he was very ill and for nobody to come up and see him. Brothers Henry and Werner Lewin survived, with Henry moving to the US and becoming a big success in the hotel industry.
Two months before the start of World War II, on 2 July 1939 at the Adolf-Hitler-Kampfbahn in Stuttgart, Schmeling stopped Adolf Heuser in the first round to win the German and European heavyweight titles again. Unfortunately, as opposed to Louis who fought 15 times during the war, Schmeling didn’t fight again until 1947. Hitler in the meantime held a bitter grudge over Max and decided to have him drafted in the paratroopers and swiftly sent him on numerous suicide missions. Despite being wounded with shrapnel on the first day of the 1941 invasion of Crete, he received an Iron Cross for bravery and saw out his duty of service until 1943, where he was deemed unfit for service.
Appalled by Hitler’s dictatorship, Max visited a number of prisoner of war camps in Germany and did his utmost to help ease the conditions for American and Jewish captives. Once the war came to an end, British authorities cleared him of any Nazi war crimes which had been falsely connected to his name.
When Schmeling did return to the square ring after the war, it was purely for financial reasons. The 42-year-old was a mere shadow of his former self and despite winning three fights and losing two, Max hung up the gloves after a points loss to Richard Vogt on 31 October 1948. He retired with a very respectable 56 victories, which included 39 KO’s, 10 losses and four draws, not to mention being a two-weight German and European champion and also reaching the heights of world heavyweight king.
Post war and retirement, Schmeling and his wife Anny did everything they could to scrape by. Tobacco, mink and chicken farming provided a modest income, however, it was an approach from the soft drink giant Coca Cola in the 1950’s which proved to be pivotal in Schmeling’s fortunes.
By now, a former New York boxing commissioner had become a big wig in Coca Cola and was looking for a fresh face to re-introduce the brand back into Germany, post Nazi rule. Schmeling fitted the bill perfectly and after many meetings and he not only jumped on board as brand ambassador, but by 1957 Coca Cola had granted him control of operations in Hamburg. He went on to become president of Coca Cola in Germany and became possibly the most influential character of the company, right up to he stepped away, shortly before his passing.
Years after their epic fights, Schmeling tracked Louis in Chicago and visited him at his home. In an interview with the LA Times in 1988, Max recalled saying to his old foe, ‘‘Joe, you didn’t believe all those bad things they wrote about me, did you?’ He said he knew that it was all bull, and so we struck up a warm friendship.’ They remained close friends until Louis death in 1981. It was no secret that Louis retired broke and stayed penniless until he perished, and it was his old friend Max who paid for the majority of the funeral, in addition to being a pallbearer for his friend and foe.
Schmeling was Inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992 and died on 2 February 2005, six months shy of his 100th birthday. He remains the oldest lived heavyweight boxing champion in history.
In an interview with The LA times in the 1980’s, rising tennis star Steffi Graf asked how he maintained his popularity. Schmeling replied, ‘I told her that a smile doesn’t cost anything and your fans won’t forget it. And, most important, to keep both feet on the ground.’ That sums up the legend, Max Schmeling.
I'll start off the Max Schmeling photos with this little gem, the photo that was used for his appearance on the cover of TIME magazine on June 24th, 1929.
This is a photo of Max Schmeling before his fight with Johnny Risko.
Max Schmeling and "The Cleveland Rubberman" Johnny Risko facing off before their fight on February 1st, 1929, at Madison Square Garden. Schmeling stopped Risko in the 9th round in an exciting battle named Fight Of The Year by Ring Magazine.
Some articles about the Schmeling-Risko fight in newspapers of the era.
Some photos of Max Schmeling before his first fight against "The Basque Woodchopper" Paolino Uzcudun in 1929. Much like Johnny Risko, Uzcudun was a tough SOB with a granite chin, a difficult opponent to fight against due to his cross-arm defense and awkward style. This is a photo of Schmeling and Uzcudun at their contract signing.
Max Schmeling looks on as Paolino Uzcudun is weighed before their fight.
Max Schmeling and Paolino Uzcudun stand in the ring before the start of their first fight.
Max Schmeling helping Paolino Uzcudun back to his corner at the end of their fight in 1929. Schmeling won a 15-round decision and really wore Uzcudun out, notice the marks on Uzcudun's body from the body shots he took from Schmeling throughout the fight.
Cool ticket from the first Schmeling-Uzcudun fight.
On June 12, 1930 at Yankee Stadium in New York, Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey fought for the vacant heavyweight title. Schmeling was awarded the win and the title on a foul by Sharkey in the fourth round. Sharkey had won the first three rounds, but lost his title bid on a low blow. With that, Max Schmeling became the only fighter in boxing history to win the heavyweight title due to a foul and remains so to this day. Here are a couple of photos of Max Schmeling training for Sharkey in 1930.
Max Schmeling at his training camp in Endicott, New York, before his fight with Jack Sharkey in 1930.
Another shot of Max Schmeling before his fight with Sharkey.
Max Schmeling and his manager Joe Jacobs arriving in New York from Germany in May of 1930 for the Jack Sharkey fight.
A few more photos of Max Schmeling training for Sharkey in 1930.
Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey on a publicity photo before their fight.
Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey in the ring at Yankee Stadium before their fight on June 12th, 1930.
Photos from the Schmeling-Sharkey fight.
These are photos taken after the low blow from Sharkey, you can see Max Schmeling down and holding his groin. Check out the bottom photo of Max Schmeling being literally carried back to his corner.
In this photo, in the top left hand corner, you can actually see the low blow from Sharkey.
And with that, Max Schmeling was the heavyweight champion of the world, damnest thing.
Max Schmeling posing with the heavyweight title belt. The bottom photo shows Max Schmeling with the belt around his chest, he is pictured with The Ring magazine founder Nat Fleischer and famous fight promotor Joe Jacobs.
Max Schmeling vs "The King of the Canebrakes" William "Young" Stribling in 1931. Stribling was a great pound-for-pound fighter, he was moving up from light heavy to challenge Schmeling. I love a good yarn, and there's a good story behind this fight. Stribling was a daredevil, and he almost got himself killed before the fight.
By: Chris Lillstrung
Cleveland Stadium hosted an arsenal of stars throughout its history.
Bob Feller. Jim Brown. Even the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.
But it was another occasion that rocked the Stadium on its first day of operation July 3, 1931.
Cleveland Stadium was christened by a world heavyweight boxing title bout, the first of 64 years of events in that grand venue.
Max Schmeling‘s 1931 did not get off to a roaring start as world heavyweight champion.
After Gene Tunney had retired as champion, Schmeling won the vacated title June 12, 1930. Jack Sharkey had hit Schmeling with a low blow, after which the referee stopped the fight and awarded the title to Schmeling. The New York State Athletic Commission reviewed and confirmed the decision.
Jan. 6, 1931, the NYSAC stripped Schmeling of title recognition because he wouldn’t agree to a rematch with Sharkey. The NYSAC wanted to crown the winner of a Sharkey-Young Stribling fight as new champion.
Schmeling’s camp balked, and Pa Stribling, his son’s manager, stated he was not interested in facing Sharkey.
Jan. 13, some clarity was brought to a chaotic title picture. Schemling and Stribling signed for a fight, which would have to be held outside of New York, with Primo Carnera also on board as challenger for the winner in September.
Cleveland matchmaker Tommy McGinty announced March 3 he was informed by promoter Damon Runyon on a call from Miami that Runyon would come to town. Runyon wanted to assess the city and its new stadium, expected to be completed by summer, as a possible fight host.
“Cleveland has a great chance to land the bout,” McGinty said.
In April, Schmeling’s manager Joe Jacobs was enamored with selecting Cleveland after negotiations with stadium manager George Bender.
“Your new stadium is the greatest place in the country for that fight,” Jacobs said.
In his syndicated newspaper column, Runyon stated April 6 that Cleveland would host the bout and Chicago, which had reportedly put in a $500,000 bid for the fight to be at Soldier Field, had lost out due to “petty jealousy.”
“The fight will go to Cleveland,” Runyon wrote. “The date will be July 3, and I venture the prediction that the bout will draw a gate that will astound the critics.”
The announcement came officially April 15, when Jacobs informed Schmeling that Cleveland had been chosen.
The 15-round fight was hopeful to gross $1.5 million if the stadium’s 110,000-seat boxing capacity could be sold. Tickets would be sold for $5.49, $12.50 and $25 at ringside.
Schmeling attended the Kentucky Derby on May 16 and came in shortly thereafter to start training camp at a site chosen by Jacobs.
May 5, with Schmeling and Jacobs in Cleveland to tour the stadium, it was revealed the finalists for the training site would be Conneaut Lake Park, Pa., or Cedar Point.
Conneaut Lake Park was chosen, with Stribling electing to head to Geauga Lake Park.
Schmeling arrived at Conneaut Lake Park on May 19, and Stribling departed his native Atlanta in a four-car party to drive to Geauga Lake Park. He was expected to get in May 21.
Tickets went on sale June 1, with the Public Hall box office set to be open 24 hours a day. Both boxers took that as a rest day, each getting in 27 holes of golf.
“There is some talk about how the old fighters trained and how the modern ones play golf and take it a bit easy,” Pa Stribling said. “They must remember that the old fighters always broke training and had a time getting in shape. The modern fighters are rarely out of condition. Golf and a few days of boxing each week is all they need.”
June 7, former middleweight champion Billy Papke watched Schmeling knock out sparring partner Pedro Lopez.
“You can put me down on record right now that Schmeling will whip Stribling July 3 at Cleveland and whip him plenty,” Papke said. “Those short right-hand blows and those beautiful left hooks of Max’s will have Stribling legging it after the third round.”
The Cleveland Boxing Commission, after consulting with Jacobs and Pa Stribling, announced June 18 the fight could not be won or lost by low blow, and a boxer forfeited his purse if he refused to continue after being hit with a low blow if the referee demanded he do so.
Being the heavyweight champion of the world was a far cry for Schmeling from his introduction to the sport.
“I was working with a well drilling gang that went from place to place drilling wells for factories and factory sites,” Schmeling wrote in his syndicated column. “So I was in a strange city for six months, the small town of (Muhlheim). And you know how it is when a boy is lonesome and work is over. He does not want to sit home alone.
“So I go out for a walk through the dark streets, and I pass what we call a turnhalle. I guess it is the same thing as your amateur gymnasiums. So I looked in, and there is amateur boxing going on and a director stands there, and pretty soon he asks me if I am a boxer. So I tell him no, I have never done this, but it looks interesting. Well, he says, if you like, come back next Friday, and maybe you will like it. We will try you.”
His opponent was rounding into form June 22 at Geauga Lake Park.
“The boy’s about ready, and we’ll have to keep him from working too hard,” Pa Stribling said.
The official tale of the tape was unveiled June 27, and there wasn’t much separation. Schmeling was one pound larger, three-quarters of an inch taller and had a one-inch reach advantage, 75-74.
Schmeling’s handlers charged fans daily to watch camp, 50 cents at first, then $1 apiece. June 28, 4,317 fans showed up to watch the champion do four rounds of sparring, bag work and calisthenics. Stribling drew 1,900 as the heaviest portion of his training concluded the same night.
“Unless old Kid Jinx comes along between now and fight night,” Stribling wrote in his syndicated column, “I’ll go into action with Schmeling in the greatest condition of my career.”
George Blake, a Los Angeles-based official, was selected June 29 as the referee.
Schmeling was feeling confident – and not just because of his training. On a rest day, Schmeling notched his best-ever golf score with a 41 for nine holes.
“On one hole, I drive 270 yards,” Schmeling said. “That felt good, boy, I say to myself. If I can hit that Stribling on the chin with the same timing that I hit that ball, the fight is over.”
Stribling averted disaster that day. In a borrowed airplane he was piloting, Stribling took a nearly three-hour ride. He passed over Schmeling’s camp at Conneaut Lake Park – then nearly crash-landed at Cleveland Air Service Field coming back.
He dodged telephone wires and trees by a few feet, unable to see due to a tall barn. Then, trying to land, the plane wasn’t straight and bounced back into the air with a stalled engine.
Stribling nailed the second attempt to land, much to the delight of his handlers and the boxing world.
Fight promoters expected a crowd of 60,000 for the seven-match card – which nearly included Al Capone. The Chicago mafia boss was reported to be attending the fight until Cleveland’s safety director sternly warned Capone he would be jailed if he entered the city limits.
Cleveland Stadium took 370 days to complete after groundbreaking June 24, 1930, at a cost of around $3 million.
For the title fight, 3,500 ushers and ticket takers, along with 300 policemen in the stadium and hundreds more outside, trained for two weeks for the big day.
After all the hype, the actual fight finally commenced deep into the night July 3, 1931.
Stribling had his moments early, with a pair of left hooks to Schmeling’s head in Round 2 and a straight left to the head in Round 3. A left-right combination made Schmeling’s eye swell in Round 4.
The champion began to take control in the middle rounds. A hard right that connected on Stribling’s chin in Round 9 left him wobbly, and Stribling was battered toward the end of Round 10. By Round 13, The Associated Press’ Edward J. Neil reported, “All Stribling could do was shoot occasional punches, hold when he could, and take his beating like a man when he could not.”
With 14 seconds left in the 15th and final round, Stribling was knocked down but rose at a count of nine. Schmeling turned to Blake, who after inspection ruled the fight over, with the champion successfully defending by technical knockout.
The initial crowd estimates, at the height of the Great Depression, were wildly inaccurate. Promoter Bill Carey stated attendance was 36,936 for a gate of $349,416 and loss of around $25,000. Schmeling got $106,138 for his title defense, while Stribling earned $33,168.
The fight was declared as Ring Magazine’s Fight of the Year for 1931.
Stribling fought 253 times, with 224 wins, 129 by knockout. The only time he was knocked out was by Schmeling.
He died Oct. 3, 1933, after a motorcycle crash in Georgia at the age of 28.
Schmeling went 57-10-4 in his career, with 41 wins by knockout. After losing the title to Sharkey in 1932, he never regained the crown but had two famous fights with a young Joe Louis.
The 1992 International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee died Feb. 2, 2005, at the age of 99.
Cleveland Stadium played host to quite a few stars in its time – and the first was a world heavyweight champion, in a landmark clash for him and for Northeast Ohio.
A Schmeling vs Stribling poster in German.
Max Schmeling and Young Stribling on the cover of The Ring magazine in July of 1931 before their fight.
Max Schmeling at his training camp at Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania, before the Stribling fight.
Epic shot of Max Schmeling before the Stribling fight.
Max Schmeling and Young Stribling together before their fight.
This is a photo of Max Schmeling and Young Stribling with the chief of the Seminole Native Americans, Corey "Chief" Osceola, the chief's wife and child. These photos were taken in Florida in 1931 a few months prior to their fight. Notice that Chief Osceola is missing his left arm, he lost it in an alligator attack or a train accident, depending on which story is true. Considering how notorious Florida is for alligators, I wouldn't be surprised if it was an alligator attack.
Max Schmeling and Young Stribling at the weigh-in before their bout.
Photos from the Max Schmeling vs Young Stribling fight on July 3rd, 1931, at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. Max Schmeling won by TKO in the 15th, the fight was notable as the very first sporting event held at the new Cleveland Municipal. Max Schmeling was the only fighter to ever knock Stribling out.
A little music break, another absolute classic from the 80s.
The headlines after Max Schmeling knocked out Young Stribling.
The second fight between Max Schmeling and Jack Sharkey took place on June 21st, 1932, at Madison Square Garden. I really don't know what else to say about this fight except that it was a blatant robbery, Sharkey was awarded the fight and the heavyweight title via 15-round split decision. Watching this fight, it's clear Schmeling won it, he was the aggressor throughout and won the majority of the rounds. After the decision was announced, Schmeling's manager Joe Jacobs shouted into the radio microphone, "We wuz robbed!"
This is a photo of Max Schmeling arriving in New York in 1932 for his fight against Mickey Walker.
A poster, program, and full ticket for the Max Schmeling vs Mickey Walker fight.
Max Schmeling and Mickey Walker weigh-in before their fight.
Max Schmeling leaving after the weigh-in with Mickey Walker.