In 1936 and 1938, there were two memorable prizefights between Joe Louis, an African American from Detroit, and Max Schmeling, a German lionized by the Nazis. These fights and their historical context are chronicled in the absorbing book “Beyond Glory” by David Margolick, a former reporter for the New York Times and currently a contributing editor at Vanity Fair.
The Louis-Schmeling fights were set against a backdrop of the Great Depression, the run-up to World War II and the beginning of the American civil rights movement. “Beyond Glory” begins with Schmeling winning the Heavyweight crown in 1930 from Jack Sharkey in a controversial fight that ended when Sharkey was said to have fouled Schmeling.
The claim of foul was loudly made by Joe Jacobs, Schmeling’s Jewish manager, whose peculiar antics and attitudes figure prominently in the story.
In any case, Sharkey reclaimed the title in 1932 and a year later Max Baer, wearing a Star of David on his trunks (although he wasn’t Jewish), beat Schmeling and went on to become the champion. Other title-holders followed him as Joe Louis emerged as the prime challenger. In 1936, he lost to Schmeling in the first of their two fights. Margolick explores the attitudes toward African Americans, Nazis and Jews as the context for this match.
Despite his loss, Louis won the heavyweight title a year later, setting up a return match with Schmeling. It had taken 12 rounds for Schmeling to dispose of Louis in 1936. Two years later, Louis knocked Schmeling out in the first round.
Margolick’s book tackles many themes in great detail. One is the attention which boxing received at that time, in contrast to the general lack of interest in boxing today. The personal lives of Louis and Schmeling, as well as the unusual support for Louis among Jews, are examined. More prominently featured are the racial prejudices, anti-Semitism and the inexorable movement to World War II.
“Beyond Glory” is far more than a sports story about boxing in its heyday. It is social history at its best, deftly using the description of two prizefights to paint an informative and ominous picture of the pre-World War II era.
“Beyond Glory” by David Margolick (424 pages, A.A. Knopf, $26.95).