By Jack Hirsch
By now we should know that fiction in its own bizarre way usually crosses over to reality because in our own mind we want it to. The book by George Thomas Clark has a chilling title to it “Death in the Ring.” Hardly the ideal name for a book which does not tear down the sweet science, but to the contrary celebrates it.
If you enjoy lighthearted humor that is thought provoking, rush to get this book. Where else can you read about Rocky Marciano and Jack Dempsey having a sit down and discussing how they would fare against the Klitschko brothers. Dempsey has no desire to prove himself anymore, but Marciano tells him that’s the only way they would let us stay. The Rock admits that he has to take advantage of modern technology to put on an extra 20 pounds if he hopes to chop the giants down.
We have Jim Jeffries reminiscing at the bar about his fight with Jack Johnson, claiming he was poisoned. To make a case of why Johnson could never have beaten him legitimately, Jeffries points to their common opponents in which he enjoyed the greater success.
Bobby Chacon and Alexis Arguello speak candidly about their downfalls in a way they might have actually done if given the chance. And we see how much different Sonny Liston could have turned out to be had the circumstances in his life been different when he was a youth.
Wrestler Cowboy Luttrell claims to have gotten his revenge over Jack Dempsey by driving to his New York restaurant and giving him a thrashing. The Manassa Mauler has a much different take on what occurred.
Stanley Ketchel survives the assassination attempt by one Walter Dipley then goes on to exchange blows with the greatest middleweights in history. See how he fares. And so on, and so on, and so on.
I had a lot of fun reading this book and I am sure you will to.
To find out how to purchase this most enjoyable read, go to webmaster@GeorgeThomas Clark.com
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
