Max Baer

Clown Prince of Boxing

John Jarrett

They called Max Baer the "Clown Prince of Boxing," but trainer Ray Arcel remembered a night in 1933 when he worked Baer's corner in what was probably Max's greatest triumph, the night he smashed Max Schmeling to defeat in 10 brutal rounds. That was no clown. A year later, Baer was heavyweight champion of the world. From a $4 a day foundry worker, Baer's rise was rapid. He bought so many suits he couldn't keep track of them; wore a new hat every week; bought a house like a hotel. Arcel cried like a baby when he read in the New York Times that Max had died from a heart attack in November 1959, at just 50 years old. This is the fascinating story of an iconic boxing figure who achieved so much in a life too short.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Preface
• 1. A Baer Cub Grows Up
• 2. This Kid Can Punch!
• 3. It Beats Working
• 4. Death Stalks the Ring
• 5. New York, New York
• 6. Loughran and Dempsey Teach the Baer
• 7. Climbing the Ladder
• 8. The Baer Catches the Kingfish
• 9. The Contender
• 10. Max Versus Max
• 11. ‘A Whale of a Fight’
• 12. Beauty and the Beast
• 13. Baer’s Reel Life Drama
• 14. Who’s Going to Beat Him?
• 15. There’s Gonna Be a Fight!
• 16. Bringing the Title Back Home
• 17. Who Needs Boxing?
• 18. The Cinderella Man
• 19. Looking For Answers
• 20. Mary Ellen and Joe Louis
• 21. The Million Dollar Fight
• 22. Max Baer – Everyman
• 23. Max Baer’s Brother Bud
• 24. Baers Seen in London
• 25. ‘The Best Night He Ever Had’
• 26. Death … and Defeat
• 27. Max’s Final Bow
• Epilogue
• Bibliography
• Index
• Photographs