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Review
"One doesn't have to be a fan of boxing to be enthralled by this story of a nice guy who didn't finish last."--The New Yorker
"An intoxicating panoply of legends and heroes, surely one of the most solid and delightful sporting histories of recent times."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"An intoxicating panoply of legends and heroes, surely one of the most solid and delightful sporting histories of recent times."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Product Description
From 1919 to 1927, Jack Dempsey was the heavyweight champion of the world. With his fierce good looks and matchless dedication to the kill, he was a fighter perfectly suited to the Roaring '20s. In A Flame of Pure Fire, award-winning and renowned sports writer Roger Kahn, a personal friend of Dempsey's, tells the extraordinary story of a man and a country growing to maturity in a blaze of strength and exuberance. With passion and precision, Kahn not only chronicles the thrilling, brutal bouts of the "Manassa Mauler" but also illustrates how the wild and raucous 1920s shaped Dempsey, and how the champ, in turn, left an indelible mark on sports and American history. An accomplished and insightful observation on how sports can measure a society's evolution, Roger Kahn finds the heart of America in the story of the most famous athlete of his time, the man John Lardner once called "a flame of pure fire, at last a hero."
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First Sentence
A YOUNG WRITER WHO HAD RECENTLY DISCOVERED William Harrison Dempsey surely was a seductive idea. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
A YOUNG WRITER WHO HAD RECENTLY DISCOVERED William Harrison Dempsey surely was a seductive idea. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
When Jack Dempsey climbed into the ring to box Jess Willard for the world heavyweight crown, this excellent book shows a photograph of Jack's left hand wrapped in bandages.
Maybe you think - so what? Well, after Jack had demolished Willard, the Kansas said Jack had come into the ring with his gloves on and his hands encased in plaster of Paris. This one photograph puts everything straight. Jack needed only his fists to win.
This book gives you an accurate view of Jack's life and the times he lived in. It is beautifully written and is a pleasure to read. If you are a Jack Dempsey fan then this publication is for you.
Maybe you think - so what? Well, after Jack had demolished Willard, the Kansas said Jack had come into the ring with his gloves on and his hands encased in plaster of Paris. This one photograph puts everything straight. Jack needed only his fists to win.
This book gives you an accurate view of Jack's life and the times he lived in. It is beautifully written and is a pleasure to read. If you are a Jack Dempsey fan then this publication is for you.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Jack Dempsey is one of the legendary figures of boxing. A man whose myth grows and grows and whose life is crying out to be turned into a hollywood film. His destruction of Jess Willard, his million dollar fights with Georges Carpentier and Gene Tunney and his 4 minute war with Luis Angel Firpo have turned him into a twentieth century icon. This book tells you all of the details of these stories and also catalogues some of the less well known aspects of his life. Dempsey comes across as a complex figure, a ferocious in ring warrior who would do whatever it took to win a fight, but also a gentle and generous man outside of the ring whose easy going nature made him a target for less charitable people. He lived a hard life before he became World Champion and even though he became immensely successful and popular in his later years he never forgot who he was or where he came from. If you are interested in Dempsey and the history of boxing in the early twentieth century, this is the only book you will ever need to read.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I'm a big boxing fan and also an avid reader, so it was a great joy to find a book which shed so much light on one of the great heavyweight champions and was also so well written. Kahn spends quite some time giving background on the '20s, he describes the (sometimes hypocritical) attitudes towards the First World War and Prohibition, this serves to "flesh out" the character of Dempsey and give some appreciation of some of the choices he made. The contrasts between the irresponsible jingoism and scare-mongering of America at this time with the personal struggle of Dempsey against his harsh poverty is very effective.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A Comprehensive and Illuminating account of the Life of Jack Dempsey
Well researched, detailed and authorative - but I did find the style a little meandering at times which caused me to lose interest and put the book down (perhaps because it was so... Read more
Published on 25 July 2009 by Asmodeous
a vivid account of the career of boxing's hardest hitter.
In this time, the champion heavyweight Jack Dempsey is little known.This is surprising as not only was he the first international superstar in any sport , but a man of exceptional... Read more
Published on 7 Nov 2000
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