RING OF HATE

The Brown Bomber and Hitler's Hero - Joe Loius v. Max Schmeling and the Bitter Propaganda War

More than the world heavyweight championship was at stake when Joe 'Brown Bomber' Louis fought Max Schmeling on 22 June 1938. In a world on the brink of war, the contest was projected as a test of nationalistic, racial and political ideals. It was America v. Germany, black man against white man, a showdown between democracy and totalitarianism. While Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels was boasting that Schmeling would prove that a true Aryan would always beat an inferior black opponent, President Roosevelt was telling Louis, his White House guest, 'America needs muscles like yours to beat Germany.' No single event in the history of boxing generated as much excitement or such bitterness and extremes of emotions. It was the night Louis hit a peak of fistic perfection. He hardly missed a punch as he destroyed the challenger inside three brutal minutes. When the Second World War broke out, Louis spent his army service giving exhibitions and boosting troop morale, while Schmeling, disowned by Hitler, was forced to serve as a paratrooper and was injured in the invasion of Crete. Subsequently, the two boxers' lives took contrasting turns. Louis drifted into a hazy world of drugs, paranoia and ill health, eventually dying in 1981. Schmeling, meanwhile, became a highly successful businessman and died only months from his 100th birhday. Ring of Hate is a compulsive story of two decent human beings, drawn together by their chosen profession and divided by the cruel demands of warring nations. Ultimately, they put the legacy of hate behing them to form a lifelong friendship.