Thread: Jack Johnson Book,Unforgivable Blackness.Great read.

Its 1 of the best boxing books I have read that showes how badly that Johnson was treated by the American press and public even if he did not always make things easy for himself.

The raceisem is unbeleavbly blatent.

Any one eles read it or got any comments about Johnson in general?

I've been planning to buy the book. Jack Johnson is one of my favourite all time fighters, sadly forgotten by most fans who rate Ali and Joe Louis but who seem to have never heard of Jack Johnson.

In my opinion he is the second greatest heavyweight of all time after Ali.

His slick defensive style was at least 20 years ahead of his time and he remains the only boxer who could carry most of his opponents for 10, 20 or more rounds so that the film studios would have enough footage to want to screen the fights.

I loved the way when fighting Tommy Burns he can be seen smiling at the crowd and chatting to people ringside, with Burns not able to lay a glove on him at all.

He also had a great temprement in the ring as witnessed against 'Fireman' Jym Flynn. Flyn was outrageously headbutting Johnson, leaping into the air and cracking Johnsons jaw, but he never responded in kind, just content to give Flyn a boxing lesson.

Have you ever watched the Unforgiveable Blackness documentary by Ken Burns about Johnson?

It's one of my favourite boxing doc's, Samuel Jackson narrates the voice of Johnson, James Earl Jones is interviewed and it's replete with rare fight footage, and photo's of Johnson. A brilliant doc if you havn't seen it, nearly 4 hours long too.

Originally Posted by bilbo

I've been planning to buy the book. Jack Johnson is one of my favourite all time fighters, sadly forgotten by most fans who rate Ali and Joe Louis but who seem to have never heard of Jack Johnson.

In my opinion he is the second greatest heavyweight of all time after Ali.

His slick defensive style was at least 20 years ahead of his time and he remains the only boxer who could carry most of his opponents for 10, 20 or more rounds so that the film studios would have enough footage to want to screen the fights.

I loved the way when fighting Tommy Burns he can be seen smiling at the crowd and chatting to people ringside, with Burns not able to lay a glove on him at all.

He also had a great temprement in the ring as witnessed against 'Fireman' Jym Flynn. Flyn was outrageously headbutting Johnson, leaping into the air and cracking Johnsons jaw, but he never responded in kind, just content to give Flyn a boxing lesson.

Have you ever watched the Unforgiveable Blackness documentary by Ken Burns about Johnson?

It's one of my favourite boxing doc's, Samuel Jackson narrates the voice of Johnson, James Earl Jones is interviewed and it's replete with rare fight footage, and photo's of Johnson. A brilliant doc if you havn't seen it, nearly 4 hours long too.

Never watched that documentary,where did you see it?

funny enough i am watching the documentry right now on the Crime and Punishment channel.

Originally Posted by bilbo

I've been planning to buy the book. Jack Johnson is one of my favourite all time fighters, sadly forgotten by most fans who rate Ali and Joe Louis but who seem to have never heard of Jack Johnson.

In my opinion he is the second greatest heavyweight of all time after Ali.

His slick defensive style was at least 20 years ahead of his time and he remains the only boxer who could carry most of his opponents for 10, 20 or more rounds so that the film studios would have enough footage to want to screen the fights.

I loved the way when fighting Tommy Burns he can be seen smiling at the crowd and chatting to people ringside, with Burns not able to lay a glove on him at all.

He also had a great temprement in the ring as witnessed against 'Fireman' Jym Flynn. Flyn was outrageously headbutting Johnson, leaping into the air and cracking Johnsons jaw, but he never responded in kind, just content to give Flyn a boxing lesson.

Have you ever watched the Unforgiveable Blackness documentary by Ken Burns about Johnson?

It's one of my favourite boxing doc's, Samuel Jackson narrates the voice of Johnson, James Earl Jones is interviewed and it's replete with rare fight footage, and photo's of Johnson. A brilliant doc if you havn't seen it, nearly 4 hours long too.

As good as Baseball was, Unforgivable Blackness is far ad away the best work Ken Burns has ever done imo. People think Jim Crowe and they automatically brand the South as being the main perpetrators, but ALL of the United States was racist. Jack London, one of the most celebrated writers in American history, called Jack Johnson a "dreadful nigger" and was the main reason Jess Willard came out of retirement. That was in a New York newspaper. I thought that was the most interesting thing about the film.

The book was really good aswell and really expands on the documentary. Read it last summer, tremendous book. Right down to the minute he died he was treated absolutely terribly by white America. Jack Johnson should be one of the most iconic figures in American history, instead he's considered a mere afterthought. I hope he gets that pardon sometime soon. I think if O'bama becomes president he'll be more willing to give him one.

Originally Posted by porkypara

Originally Posted by bilbo

I've been planning to buy the book. Jack Johnson is one of my favourite all time fighters, sadly forgotten by most fans who rate Ali and Joe Louis but who seem to have never heard of Jack Johnson.

In my opinion he is the second greatest heavyweight of all time after Ali.

His slick defensive style was at least 20 years ahead of his time and he remains the only boxer who could carry most of his opponents for 10, 20 or more rounds so that the film studios would have enough footage to want to screen the fights.

I loved the way when fighting Tommy Burns he can be seen smiling at the crowd and chatting to people ringside, with Burns not able to lay a glove on him at all.

He also had a great temprement in the ring as witnessed against 'Fireman' Jym Flynn. Flyn was outrageously headbutting Johnson, leaping into the air and cracking Johnsons jaw, but he never responded in kind, just content to give Flyn a boxing lesson.

Have you ever watched the Unforgiveable Blackness documentary by Ken Burns about Johnson?

It's one of my favourite boxing doc's, Samuel Jackson narrates the voice of Johnson, James Earl Jones is interviewed and it's replete with rare fight footage, and photo's of Johnson. A brilliant doc if you havn't seen it, nearly 4 hours long too.

Never watched that documentary,where did you see it?

If you pm your address I'll send you out a copy.

i don't know if this is the same documentry but i saw one on PBS back in 2005 that was really good.

Originally Posted by 'The Boxer'

i don't know if this is the same documentry but i saw one on PBS back in 2005 that was really good.

If it was nearly 4 hours long and had Samuel Jackson narrating Johnson's voice then it was, if not no

i was like 4hrs long but i can't remember if sam jackson did the voice or not.

4 hours? I thought it was half that? I saw it as I was falling asleep but was it really 4 hrs?

Great Documentary..... Love watching it.....

I first saw it on the tele. then purchased it.

Going slightly off topic....i was watchin eurosport last night and somehting was on about Jack Johnson and it said this one time he got fined $25 for speeding and he paid the cops $50 because he wanted to travel back at the same speed. Funnily enough they let him. If only things were so simple these days

Caught the Documentary on PBS...amazing but a bit sad. Not only was he one tough S.O.B in the ring, but moreover, with all the racial animus, I can't fathom how he was capable of dealing with it all.

Originally Posted by The Shadow

Caught the Documentary on PBS...amazing but a bit sad. Not only was he one tough S.O.B in the ring, but moreover, with all the racial animus, I can't fathom how he was capable of dealing with it all.

Greatness always finds a way of dealing with adversity.

Originally Posted by ono

Going slightly off topic....i was watchin eurosport last night and somehting was on about Jack Johnson and it said this one time he got fined $25 for speeding and he paid the cops $50 because he wanted to travel back at the same speed. Funnily enough they let him. If only things were so simple these days

What makes me grin is the fact that 'white' women loved him and wanted to be with him. Eventhough the women knew if they would be caught they'de probably be killed or something.... That always gets me...