Is anyone else watching the Ken Burns film about Jack Johnson on PBS? The first half aired Monday and the second half is on tonight.
All I knew about Jackson was from the Great White Hope movie, with James Earl Jones and Jane Alexander, so I don’t know if Burns is getting it right or not. (If presenting a person’s flaws foibles as well as his strengths is getting it right, then Burns is doing a good job.)
I was stunned by the reaction to Johnson’s win over Jeffries. The L.A. Times editorial – I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything so ugly and hateful. What an eye-opener.
I’m watching it. I knew a bit about Jack Johnson before this.
What I’ve enjoyed from it most, as a fight fan, is the history of the boxing. How he came up through the ranks, the kind of dough he made, when, where and how he got the championship. If you asked me before last night, I always thought that he won the title from Sullivan.
As far as personal life, I at least knew that he enjoyed fast cars, nice threads, and white women at a time when it was still real easy to get lynched for that. That’s basically the “soundbite” on Johnson. . .he was the original Ali, Tyson, Jackie Robinson, OJ Simpson, and Deion Sanders rolled into one. AND he was doing it at the turn of the century. The doc has really put it all together though.
I’ve never seen so much video, and stills of him or his fights. The fight footage has been spectacular. I can’t believe those shorts some of them wear with their ass hanging out.
I was really thinking of similarities between his fight in Australia and the OJ case, at least in terms of how a “race” celebrated a victory and another took it as a slap in the face. Then, it all bubbled up again for Johnson when he beat Jeffries.
Very interesting so far. Basically, my knowledge of his behavior and his fighting was covered last night, so I’m interested in seeing where it goes.
So far so good. Johnson was an excellent fighter. I am friends with an Irish author who wrote a fantastic book about him. That said, I am a little concerned that Burns has glossed over some of the less desirable facts about Johnson (unless he covers them later). He did appear to beat women and was at the very least a misogynist. It also seems apparent that he was involved, to some degree, with a prostitution ring as either an investor or an active “pimp”. Basically, he was a bit of a wanker.
Just as an aside, during the Great War of 1914-18, the explosive shells from German 15 cm artillery guns were known to British troops as “Jack Johnsons,” as they arrived suddenly, created a black gout of smoke, and packed quite a punch.
I don’t find northern racism, violent or not, to be very surprising, but the response to the Johnson-Jeffries fight was news to me. I’m not exactly ignorant of American history, either.
As to the show, I think a little tighter editing could have been done. The stuff leading up to the Jeffries fight dragged rather badly, I thought. But the first hour was fascinating.
I also agree that Burns tended to gloss over the fact that Johnson was kind of an asshole, especially when it came to women.
I agree that Burns is soft-pedalling Johnson’s assholery towards women, but I suspect that was as much a part of his era as racism.
The interesting part is that Johnson was being an asshole towards white racists on purpose, just to show that he could. Although I suspect no one but Step’n’Fetchit could have been popular with some folks.
I know a bit about boxing history, and it is interesting to contrast how Johnson behaved with how Joe Louis behaved, the next black heavyweight champion. One of the absolute cardinal rules that was set up for Joe by his (black) handlers was, “Never allow yourself to be photographed with a white woman.” I understand this was largely because Johnson was so hated for doing it.
Joe Louis was a man of dignity, and even he had to wade thru a lot of that racist shit. And he was not trying to piss people off.
I really don’t know if it could have been better for Johnson. One of the interesting things about Unforgiveable Blackness is it made it clear how Booker Washington could be seen as an Uncle Tom - trying to appease white racists by keeping your head down. I am not saying he was or he wasn’t - just that Washington could have been seen that way.
I don’t think it was any better in boxing until the second Louis-Schmeling fight. There, for the first time, a black fighter went into a fight with a white fighter as the hero. Joe was Our Guy - not because he was black, but because he was an American fighting someone seen as a symbol of Nazism. I don’t think there was anyone like that for Jack Johnson.
All the major points being made (I could have written the OP myself) I will say as some minor points scattershot fashion:
I was surprised Jeffries said “I couldn’t have beat him in my prime” what an admission – I disliked Jefferies up until that point after that, well I thought it was an admirable thing to admit… It would have been easy to go with: “the lay off hurt me” or “Why 10 years ago I’d’ve” or even “the sun was in my eyes”. To say “he whipped me fairnsquare and he always would’ve” was kind of classy [for an undeniably bigoted man who became THE symbol of bigotry] to admit IMO.
I was really sorry to hear that Jackson’s polish jailmate (forgot his name) helped train Jeffires.
Jim Corbett was no Gentleman
Even though Burns is making a stark black vs. white distinction: in the film of Reno there were “Johnson clubs” and Johnson’s Restaurants for his supporters and in the film there are almost always white folks gathering around him smiling and waving. That there was a level of white sympathy for his athletic prowess (He was a 4-7 underdog in the Jeffries fight so there were people who believed in him). Not saying Burns is exaggerating – sadly he is probably not – but there must have been some white fan sympathy for Jackson
Just want to point out again that “The Great White Hope,” while based on the life of Jack Johnson was not intended to be a biography. They emphasize that point by giving him the name “Jack Jefferson.”
Since I haven’t seen the documentary, I don’t know whether or not they covered this, but one legend about Johnson is that in his fight against Stan Ketchel, he can be seen “wiping Ketchel’s teeth out of his glove.” Not true. I don’t remember exactly, but the glove he is wiping off is not the same one that cold-cocked Ketchel.
This was in the film. Johnson wiped one glove off with another, but you couldn’t tell (and the narration didn’t say) which glove had teeth in it.
The writers seemed to try and separate fact from possible fiction in other parts of the story, and the shot was so powerful, it’s easy to imagine teeth stuck to a glove. Whichever one it was.
Why would Johnson agree to a **45-round fight]/b] with an opponent who was bigger, younger, and in better shape? Looked to me like Johnson kicked Willard’s butt for the first 15 rounds or so.
I’ve watched the first half, and part of the second (I don’t have cable, but I bought the DVD) and have found it fascinating so far.
I am an old fight fan, so I knew a lot about Johnson’s life, but the film has taught me even more: his prowess was amazing, and the racism he waded into was incredible.
One of the high points for me was seeing film of the knockout punch he delivered to Ketchel. I had read about it extensively – it’s been called the hardest punch ever thrown. Ketchel’s bloodthirstiness was legendary, but he was as indestructible as he was vicious on offense. (To wit: Ketchel was killed at a young age (by a jealous husband, IIRC). Upon hearing that Ketchel had been shot to death, humorist Wilson Mizner replied, “Start counting over him, he’ll get up”).
Seeing this guy knocked cold with a single punch was truly a sight.
I also didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at the governent’s (and the white populace’s) reaction to the riots following the fight: instead facing the omni-present, grotesque racism, they decided the problem was… boxing. And so, moved to ban it. It’s amazing how blinding prejudice can be. (Without getting into a political hijack, I find an odd similarity to modern calls to tighten up gun control when some psycho goes crazy with a firearm).