The life and career of Heavyweight Champion Joe Louis, who held the title for 12 years--longer than any other boxer in history--and who had to not only battle opponents inside the ring and r... Read allThe life and career of Heavyweight Champion Joe Louis, who held the title for 12 years--longer than any other boxer in history--and who had to not only battle opponents inside the ring and racism outside it.The life and career of Heavyweight Champion Joe Louis, who held the title for 12 years--longer than any other boxer in history--and who had to not only battle opponents inside the ring and racism outside it.
- Julian Black
- (as Dotts Johnson)
- Arthur Pine
- (as Carl 'Rocky' Latimer)
- Johnny Kingston
- (as Isaac Jones)
- Newspaperman
- (as Herb Ratner)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaRocky Marciano lost four times in amateur boxing. In addition to losing to Coley Wallace, he also lost to Henry Lester, Joe De Angeles and Bob Girard.
- GoofsWhen Joe is sending a telegram to Marva in Chicago, the address he gives the Western Union is 5220 Congress Street, but when she receives the telegram, the address reads 60 East 47th Street.
- Quotes
Arthur Pine: Johnson says he'll make us a million dollars.
'Chappie' Blackburn: And what else?
Arthur Pine: Something one of the boys said - that we gotta remember Joe's a colored fighter. And as a colored fighter, he's got two strikes against him already.
'Chappie' Blackburn: What did Jacobs say?
Julian Black: Jacobs says he'll make Joe champion.
'Chappie' Blackburn: Can he do it without the Garden? Well, which one do we go with, Chappie?
Joe Louis: We'll go with the man who will make us champion... Chappie.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Sports on the Silver Screen (1997)
Coley Wallace stars as Joe Louis. This was an interesting choice, as Wallace was an amateur boxer--and so he could convincingly play a boxer. In addition, he physically looked reasonably like Louis. As for Wallace, I was surprised to see on IMDb that he was the ONLY person to have ever beaten Rocky Marciano, was one of TWO who beat Marciano AND is one of FOUR who beat Marciano! The only consistent thing the trivia got right on this is that this occurred when Marciano was an amateur.
The film also features the very familiar face of character actor Paul Stewart--an excellent actor that lent the movie a professional look. As for the rest of the cast, they were pretty much unknowns of varying capabilities as actors. A few (such as the one playing his wife, Marva) were rather limp and some of the others were very good.
As far as a biography of Louis goes, this one does have two handicaps. First, it came out just after Louis retired--and his post-boxing life isn't covered. This is a shame, as this period is quite interesting...though a bit depressing. A brief career in pro wrestling, failed marriages and bankruptcy are not especially fun to watch but they all occurred to Louis. Second, biopics of the 40s and 50s tended to be VERY sanitized and must be taken with a grain of salt. There are many examples but the best was "The Babe Ruth Story"--a film that made Ruth look like a combination of a priest and Will Rogers! So, if you want the inside scoop on the real life Louis, this probably isn't your best bet, as it glosses over his mistakes and portrays him mostly in a heroic manner. It did allude to Louis' mismanagement of his money and cockiness before the first Schmeling fight, however--so it wasn't all positive and gloss. However, his personal life is pretty much sanitized--such as why he and his first wife divorced and not even a hint is mentioned of racism--something that MUST have been an issue for the first black heavyweight champ since Jack Johnson.
By the way, the old blind boxer, Sam Langford, who gives Joe a pep talk in the film was a real boxer. He fought over 500 fights and lost only 17--so no wonder he lost his eyesight! It was not him playing himself, however.
- planktonrules
- Jun 28, 2011
Details
- Runtime1 hour 28 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1