Philadelphia was essentially the birthplace of boxing in America, the city where matches first took shape in the back of bars. Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight champ, fought more times in Philly than any other city besides his hometown; Sugar Ray Robinson, perhaps the best boxer ever, fought under his first promotional contract in Philadelphia, appearing there twenty times; and Joe Louis, one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, was trained by a Philadelphia fighter. In Boxing in Philadelphia,Gabe Oppenheim examines the rise and fall of boxing in Philadelphia, and how it often mirrored the city’s own narrative arc. Originating from the tales told to Oppenheim by a retired Philadelphia trainer, this history of boxing is drawn from personal interviews with current and former fighters and managers, from attending the fights in local arenas, and from watching the boxers train in their gyms. In this book, Oppenheim opens a window into the lives of such fighters as Jimmy Young, Meldrick “The Kid” Taylor, Teon Kennedy, and Mike Jones, telling with remarkable detail their struggles, triumphs, and defeats. Throughout, Oppenheim weaves together cultural history, urban studies, and biographical sketches of past boxers to create this comprehensive account of Philadelphia and its fighters. Featuring an array of photographs and exclusive interviews, this book captures the unique history of Philadelphia boxing. It will interest boxing fans, those who enjoy sports and cultural histories, and of course, native Philadelphians who want to discover more about their city and their fighters.

The 1970s and early 1980s were truly a golden era of boxing in Philadelphia. Fighters from the city and the surrounding area were remarkably well represented in the world ratings. The fists and personalities of legends like Smokin' Joe Frazier and Randy "Tex" Cobb brought an atmosphere of genuine excitement to Philadelphia fans. It was a grand time for the sport of boxing overall and especially for the City of Brotherly Love. This book tells the story of that golden era. Larry Holmes of Easton, Pennsylvania, ruled the heavyweight ranks. South Philadelphia's Jeff Chandler was about to become the bantamweight champion. And there was a tough, wily group of middleweight contenders-from Bennie Briscoe to Cyclone Hart to Bobby Watts to Willie Monroe and Curtis Parker-all of them Philadel-phians. Then Frank Fletcher came along. Matthew Saad Muhammad, a man whose matches always seemed to carry the dramatic punch of a Eugene O'Neill play, owned a piece of the light-heavyweight crown. So did New Jersey's Mike Rossman. Then Michael Spinks, the Olympic gold medalist from St. Louis, won a piece of the title and practically became a fixture at the casinos in Atlantic City. Dwight Braxton - soon to be Dwight Muhammad Qawi-rose up from South Jersey and captured the light-heavyweight prize. These men may have been the greatest group of light-heavyweights to battle at the same time. Although the gyms all remained in Philadelphia, boxers, trainers, managers and legendary promoters like J. Russell Peltz made the 60-mile trek to Atlantic City during the '70s and early '80s. More than 30 years have gone by, and picking up the story of many of the fighters of that era became a special part of this book. But sadnesses were revealed as well. Some fighters had passed away, and others had fallen on hard times. Yet many of the old contenders and champions have gone on with life, and they still savor their glory years. Book jacket.

During the early years of Atlantic City (AC) boxing, the fight game was bustling. An array of ring talent, from club fighters to champions, came to the shore to compete at thriving venues like the Northside's Waltz Dream Arena and Convention Hall on the boardwalk. Although ring action was plentiful, the biggest fights were still happening elsewhere, and boxing was just one of many entertainment options in AC. However, everything changed once gambling came to town. As casinos popped up along the boardwalk, Atlantic City fights got bigger and bigger. By the late 1970s, boxing was on the rise, and within a few years, business was booming. Heavyweight champion Mike Tyson ushered in the city's peak era in the late 1980s, a time when more than just fight fans turned their attention to Atlantic City for some of the biggest sporting events ever. Although AC never again topped the impact of those days, boxing action at the shore remained vital for decades to come.

A gripping, all-access biography of Joe Frazier, whose rivalry with Muhammad Ali riveted boxing fans and whose complex legacy as a figure in American sports and society endures History will remember the rivalry of Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali as one for the ages, a trilogy of extraordinary fights that transcended the world of sports and crossed into a sociocultural drama that divided the country. Joe Frazier was a much more complex figure than his rivalry with Ali would suggest. In this riveting and nuanced portrayal, acclaimed sports writer Mark Kram, Jr., unlinks Frazier from Ali and for the first time gives a full-bodied account of Frazier's life, a journey that began with the youngest of thirteen children packed in a small farmhouse, encountering the bigotry and oppression of the Jim Crow South, and continued with his voyage north at age fifteen to develop as a fighter in Philadelphia. Tracing Frazier's life through his momentous bouts with the likes of Ali and George Foreman and the developing perception of him as the anti-Ali in the eyes of blue-collar America, Kram follows the boxer up to his retirement in 1981 and beyond, exploring his relationship with his son, the would-be heavyweight champion Marvis, and his fragmented home life as well as the uneasy place that Ali continued to occupy in his thoughts. A propulsive and richly textured narrative that is also a powerful story about race and class in America, Smokin' Joe is unparalleled in its scope, depth, and access and promises to be the definitive biography of a towering American figure whose life was galvanized by conflict and whose mark has proven to be lasting.

"This is a surprising book, a terrific book. It's not about boxing, but about an odd, demanding world in which boxing is the thread, the key to existence. Wiley deftly broadens the delineation of this world and its people. Perceptive reporting is the foundation and perceptive reporting is rare enough. Wiley enhances it with clear, quick writing laced with humor and with a sensitivity that lends brilliance to this impressive work."-Robert W. Creamer, author of Baseball and Other Matters in 1941. "Ralph Wiley, with Serenity, has produced an original book about the ring. . . . He can dig beneath the surface and show us what really happened in a bout: why Thomas Hearns, with too much faith in his powerful right hand, lost to Sugar Ray Leonard in their first match. . . . Or why Roberto Durn was acting out of prudence, not cowardice, when he quit in his second fight against Leonard. . . . Yet the book is not really about boxing. Boxing in Serenity is what T. S. Eliot, speaking of plot, called the meat a burglar brings to distract the watchdog. The book is really about growing up in a world where you had to defend yourself physically to survive."-New York Times. "Wiley's rapport with boxers is profound."-Publisher's Weekly. "Wiley is one writer who really knows his way around a boxing ring. . . . [He writes] with passion and understanding about complex, violent men and their oddly redemptive sport."-Booklist. Ralph Wiley is the author or coauthor of several works, most recently Born to Play: The Eric Davis Story.

Originally intended as an examination of the rise and fall of the state hospital system, Matthew Christopher's Abandoned America rapidly grew to encompass derelict factories and industrial sites, schools, churches, power plants, hospitals, prisons, military installations, hotels, resorts, homes, and more.

More than any other sport, boxing has a history of being easy to rig. There are only two athletes and one or both may be induced to accept a bribe; if not the fighters, then the judges or referee might be swayed. In such inviting circumstances, the mob moved into boxing in the 1930s and profited by corrupting a sport ripe for exploitation. In Boxing and the Mob: The Notorious History of the Sweet Science, Jeffrey Sussman tells the story of the coercive and criminal underside of boxing, covering nearly the entire twentieth century. He profiles some of its most infamous characters, such as Owney Madden, Frankie Carbo, and Frank Palermo, and details many of the fixed matches in boxing’s storied history. In addition, Sussman examines the influence of the mob on legendary boxers—including Primo Carnera, Sugar Ray Robinson, Max Baer, Carmen Basilio, Sonny Liston, and Jake LaMotta—and whether they caved to the mobsters’ threats or refused to throw their fights. Boxing and the Mob is the first book to cover a century of fixed fights, paid-off referees, greedy managers, misused boxers, and the mobsters who controlled it all. True crime and the world of boxing are intertwined with absorbing detail in this notorious piece of American history.

For more than sixty years—from the 1890s to the 1950s—boxing was an integral part of American popular culture and a major spectator sport rivaling baseball in popularity. More Jewish athletes have competed as boxers than all other professional sports combined; in the period from 1901 to 1939, 29 Jewish boxers were recognized as world champions and more than 160 Jewish boxers ranked among the top contenders in their respective weight divisions. Stars in the Ring,by renowned boxing historian Mike Silver, presents this vibrant social history in the first illustrated encyclopedic compendium of its kind.