Download The Magnificent Max Baer The Life of the Heavyweight Champion and Film Star Colleen Aycock David W Wallace Books

Product details Paperback 320 pages Publisher McFarland & Company (August 2, 2018) Language English ISBN-10 1476671613

The Magnificent Max Baer The Life of the Heavyweight Champion and Film Star Colleen Aycock David W Wallace Books Reviews

• This book does a great job of painting Max Baer as a caring, loving, quick-witted and good-natured man...completely different than how he was portrayed in the 2005 movie Cinderella Man. The author does a solid job of highlighting Max's flaws inside and outside the ring, and I get the impression that Max might be more fondly recalled by the general public had he not lost his killer instinct after an opponent died after the beating Baer delivered, or if his brittle hands could have held up longer. As it is, he never successfully defended his Heavyweight title and was easily beaten by the great Joe Louis, but still beat several notable fighters of the era.
  
  What appealed to me more was the promise to delve into Max's outside-the-ring activities, such as his stage, radio, TV and movie appearances. He truly was the most popular fighter on the planet at one point in time, and the book summarizes these activities nicely. The only drawback I have, and it's why I didn't rate the book 5-stars, is that Max's endorsement deals aren't mentioned. Baer had his own razor blade company/product, endorsed Quaker Crackels, promoted the Heart Fund, etc., yet none of these topics is explored. His ring record is also different than many online sources, but I'm accepting the one in the book as gospel.
  
  Overall, any boxing fan will enjoy The Magnificent Max Baer The Life of the Heavyweight Champion and Film Star.
• This book tells the other side of the Max Baer story, quite different from how he was portrayed in Cinderella Man. A must read for boxing enthusiasts.
• A meticulously researched, richly detailed and absorbing biography of one of the most colorful and extraordinary boxers of the 20th century. Back in the day when boxing rivaled baseball in popularity Max Baer, the “California Adonis” became an international celebrity even before he won the heavyweight championship in 1934. The hugely popular boxer not only hosted his own radio show but also starred in a major Hollywood musical with actress Myrna Loy. As the authors so accurately point out, Baer’s outsized and charismatic personality made him “a bright light on the drab face of the Great Depression in the 1930s.” The book includes over 70 photos.