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The Mailer Review/Volume 13, 2019/When We Were Kings: Review and Commentary: Difference between revisions
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In re-watching Foreman dismantle Norton and Frazier, I see exactly why Foreman felt the way he did. I’ve watched hundreds, perhaps over a thou- sand fights over the years and have never seen anyone punch harder than Foreman. In winning the championship against Joe Frazier in Kingston, Ja- maica, on January , (after Frazier had defeated Ali) one of George’s uppercuts in the second round lifted Smokin’ Joe entirely off the canvas. In- credibly, Frazier got up, only to be knocked down again, for the sixth and final time, before the fight was stopped.{{sfn|Cosell}} Coincidentally, the match was refereed by Arthur Mercante, who afterward may have revised his opin- ion about the hardest a man can be hit. | In re-watching Foreman dismantle Norton and Frazier, I see exactly why Foreman felt the way he did. I’ve watched hundreds, perhaps over a thou- sand fights over the years and have never seen anyone punch harder than Foreman. In winning the championship against Joe Frazier in Kingston, Ja- maica, on January , (after Frazier had defeated Ali) one of George’s uppercuts in the second round lifted Smokin’ Joe entirely off the canvas. In- credibly, Frazier got up, only to be knocked down again, for the sixth and final time, before the fight was stopped.{{sfn|Cosell}} Coincidentally, the match was refereed by Arthur Mercante, who afterward may have revised his opin- ion about the hardest a man can be hit. | ||
During the run-up to the fight in Zaire, while Foreman healed, brooded, and trained without gusto, Ali threw his one-man public relations machine into high gear. During a reception given in his honor at the presidential palace, Ali said, “Mr. President, I’ve been a citizen of the United States for years and was never invited to the White House. It sure gives me pleasure to be invited to the Black House”.{{sfn|Goldstein|p=110}} Meanwhile, he privately con- fessed to Howard Bingham, his personal photographer, “I’d give anything to be training in the United States. They got ice cream there, and pretty girls and miniskirts”.{{sfn|Hauser|p=270}} | During the run-up to the fight in Zaire, while Foreman healed, brooded, and trained without gusto, Ali threw his one-man public relations machine into high gear. During a reception given in his honor at the presidential palace, Ali said, “Mr. President, I’ve been a citizen of the United States for years and was never invited to the White House. It sure gives me pleasure to be invited to the Black House”.{{sfn|Goldstein|p=110}} Meanwhile, he privately con- fessed to Howard Bingham, his personal photographer, “I’d give anything to be training in the United States. They got ice cream there, and pretty girls and miniskirts”.{{sfn|Hauser|p=270}} | ||
When We Were Kings refers to the subject of women distracting boxers from their training regimens by way of George Plimpton’s comments. Ali, he reports, visited president Mobutu’s fortune teller, who predicted that a mys- tical woman with shaky hands would somehow get to Foreman. Plimpton refers to the woman as a succubus—a female demon believed to have sex- ual intercourse with sleeping men. “And that impressed me enormously,” Plimpton says with gravitas | When We Were Kings refers to the subject of women distracting boxers from their training regimens by way of George Plimpton’s comments. Ali, he reports, visited president Mobutu’s fortune teller, who predicted that a mys- tical woman with shaky hands would somehow get to Foreman. Plimpton refers to the woman as a succubus—a female demon believed to have sex- ual intercourse with sleeping men. “And that impressed me enormously,” Plimpton says with gravitas.{{sfn|Gast}} | ||
This arguably led to the decision by Leon Gast and his editors to open the movie with a brief clip from the music festival, showing an extreme | This arguably led to the decision by Leon Gast and his editors to open the movie with a brief clip from the music festival, showing an extreme | ||
close-up of South African performer Miriam Makeba spotlighted onstage against a dark background. She’s posed as if about to unleash a spell and emits a sound from her throat not unlike a death rattle. Later in the film, when Foreman gets KO’d, more of Makeba’s performance is cut in, symbol- izing the supposedly invincible boxer’s vital powers having been drained by a succubus. | close-up of South African performer Miriam Makeba spotlighted onstage against a dark background. She’s posed as if about to unleash a spell and emits a sound from her throat not unlike a death rattle. Later in the film, when Foreman gets KO’d, more of Makeba’s performance is cut in, symbol- izing the supposedly invincible boxer’s vital powers having been drained by a succubus. | ||
Ironically, one of the open secrets of Ali’s legacy was his penchant for women. Larry Holmes, who accompanied Ali to Africa as a sparring partner, had boxed hundreds of rounds with him at his Deer Lake, Pennsylvania training camp. He talked openly about his experiences in the book, Facing Ali, and in a documentary of the same title. In those interviews, the plain- spoken Holmes let it all hang out. “The women that came to that camp! He had his pick, you know what I’m saying? I know how he lived. I knew what he did. I seen the people come into camp and leaving camp. I know he walked around with a stiff dick every day. He would fuck a snake if you hold its head. You don’t even have to hold the motherfucker’s head. Just give him the snake” | Ironically, one of the open secrets of Ali’s legacy was his penchant for women. Larry Holmes, who accompanied Ali to Africa as a sparring partner, had boxed hundreds of rounds with him at his Deer Lake, Pennsylvania training camp. He talked openly about his experiences in the book, Facing Ali, and in a documentary of the same title. In those interviews, the plain- spoken Holmes let it all hang out. “The women that came to that camp! He had his pick, you know what I’m saying? I know how he lived. I knew what he did. I seen the people come into camp and leaving camp. I know he walked around with a stiff dick every day. He would fuck a snake if you hold its head. You don’t even have to hold the motherfucker’s head. Just give him the snake”.{{sfn|Brunt|p=286}} | ||
Holmes even attempted to caution Ali, telling him, “You better be care- ful. You want to be prepared . . . and that’s when he told me, ‘Shut the hell up. I know boxing. You don’t tell me what to do.’ So I shut up and went about my business. Like he said, he knew what he was doing. He won the fight” | Holmes even attempted to caution Ali, telling him, “You better be care- ful. You want to be prepared . . . and that’s when he told me, ‘Shut the hell up. I know boxing. You don’t tell me what to do.’ So I shut up and went about my business. Like he said, he knew what he was doing. He won the fight”.{{sfn|Brunt|p=287}} | ||
Following his apprenticeship with Ali, Holmes would go on to become one of the longest-reigning heavyweight champions and in defeated his mentor in a sad, one-sided affair that, toward the end, had Holmes wav- ing the referee in to protect a proud-but-defenseless Ali. | Following his apprenticeship with Ali, Holmes would go on to become one of the longest-reigning heavyweight champions and in defeated his mentor in a sad, one-sided affair that, toward the end, had Holmes wav- ing the referee in to protect a proud-but-defenseless Ali. | ||
Two other individuals featured in the film—promoter Don King and President Sese Seke Mobutu—are essential to understanding the context of the fight. Like Ali and Foreman and Mailer and Plimpton, they each pos- sessed a huge ego and led complex and controversial lives. | Two other individuals featured in the film—promoter Don King and President Sese Seke Mobutu—are essential to understanding the context of the fight. Like Ali and Foreman and Mailer and Plimpton, they each pos- sessed a huge ego and led complex and controversial lives. | ||
Mailer comments in the film, “This fight came into existence because of Don King’s desire to be famous . . . if it failed, he was destined to go back into obscurity” | Mailer comments in the film, “This fight came into existence because of Don King’s desire to be famous . . . if it failed, he was destined to go back into obscurity”.{{sfn|Gast}} Consider the fact that just three and a half years earlier, King had listened to reports of the Ali-Frazier fight in his prison cell in Mar- ion, Ohio, where he was serving time for a manslaughter conviction.{{sfn|Hauser|p=261}} He had been convicted in for stomping Sam Garrett, an ex-em- ployee in his numbers racket, to death on the street in Cleveland. It was the | ||
BILL LOWENBURG • 213 | BILL LOWENBURG • 213 | ||
214 • THE MAILER REVIEW | 214 • THE MAILER REVIEW | ||
second time he had killed a man. In , he shot Hillary Brown in the back and the killing was ruled justifiable homicide. Paroled in , King was even- tually granted a full pardon by Ohio Governor James Rhodes in . Rhodes justified the pardon by saying he relied heavily on letters of support sub- mitted by Reverend Jesse Jackson, Coretta Scott King, Steve Davis, executive director of the National Publishers Association, Cleveland Mayor George Voinovich, Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell, and Cleveland Indians president Gabe Paul, among others | second time he had killed a man. In , he shot Hillary Brown in the back and the killing was ruled justifiable homicide. Paroled in , King was even- tually granted a full pardon by Ohio Governor James Rhodes in . Rhodes justified the pardon by saying he relied heavily on letters of support sub- mitted by Reverend Jesse Jackson, Coretta Scott King, Steve Davis, executive director of the National Publishers Association, Cleveland Mayor George Voinovich, Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell, and Cleveland Indians president Gabe Paul, among others.{{sfn|Cengage}} | ||
Thomas Hauser, Ali’s biographer, said, “Don King is one of the brightest, most charismatic, hardest working people in the world . . . he’s also totally amoral and I can’t think of a man who has done more to demoralize fight- ers, take from fighters, and exploit fighters and ruin their careers. But you have to give him his due for what he did to make Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in Zaire” | Thomas Hauser, Ali’s biographer, said, “Don King is one of the brightest, most charismatic, hardest working people in the world . . . he’s also totally amoral and I can’t think of a man who has done more to demoralize fight- ers, take from fighters, and exploit fighters and ruin their careers. But you have to give him his due for what he did to make Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in Zaire”.{{sfn|Gast}} Since , King has been sued by Muham- mad Ali, Larry Holmes, Tim Witherspoon, Mike Tyson, Terry Norris, Lennox Lewis, and ESPN, to name but a few (“Don King,” Wikipedia). | ||
According to the popular legend of how the fight was put together, King more or less willed it into existence through a combination of guile and gumption. As the story goes, King first went to George Foreman, told him he could get him five million dollars for fighting Ali, and got him to sign a contract. Then he went to Ali and did the same. However, at that point, Don King had not a penny to actually promote the fight | According to the popular legend of how the fight was put together, King more or less willed it into existence through a combination of guile and gumption. As the story goes, King first went to George Foreman, told him he could get him five million dollars for fighting Ali, and got him to sign a contract. Then he went to Ali and did the same. However, at that point, Don King had not a penny to actually promote the fight.{{sfn|Gast}} | ||
Madison Square Garden matchmaker Teddy Brenner, who knew a thing or two about such matters, said, “Actually, King didn’t promote the fight, al- though he did his best to make it seem that way. Video Techniques put it to- gether, with up front money from a British corporation and the rest from the government of Zaire. King was helpful in lining up the fighters, but the deal could have been made without him. For ten million dollars, which is what Foreman and Ali split, anyone could have done the job” (Hauser ). The five million dollars each fighter was paid in is worth a total of roughly $,, now in (CPI). | Madison Square Garden matchmaker Teddy Brenner, who knew a thing or two about such matters, said, “Actually, King didn’t promote the fight, al- though he did his best to make it seem that way. Video Techniques put it to- gether, with up front money from a British corporation and the rest from the government of Zaire. King was helpful in lining up the fighters, but the deal could have been made without him. For ten million dollars, which is what Foreman and Ali split, anyone could have done the job” (Hauser ). The five million dollars each fighter was paid in is worth a total of roughly $,, now in (CPI). | ||
Brenner’s explanation makes sense. The big money was going to come in through worldwide television coverage and the fight ended up being broad- cast live to an estimated one billion viewers, a record at that time. We’ll never know for sure, but chances are President Mobutu may have put up far less than the ten million he has been credited with. Like Don King, though, he did his best to make it seem that way. | Brenner’s explanation makes sense. The big money was going to come in through worldwide television coverage and the fight ended up being broad- cast live to an estimated one billion viewers, a record at that time. We’ll never know for sure, but chances are President Mobutu may have put up far less than the ten million he has been credited with. Like Don King, though, he did his best to make it seem that way. | ||