Joe Louis

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“A 1950s Era Black-Market Pack Of Prophylactics”

January 7, 2015 in Excerpts, Sports, Urban Studies | Permalink

There’s currently an online auction for a lot of three unopened boxes of sports-themed Champ prophylactics from 1950. The baseball figure is clearly supposed to be Ted Williams and the boxer Joe Louis, though neither was apparently a spokesperson for the condom company nor gave their permission for the cover design bearing their likenesses. Oddly, it was after his death when Williams’ head needed protection the most. Now I’m going to hell. A description of the Teddy Ballgame art from Baseball Reliquary:

This curiosity demonstrates the weird and wacky confluence of popular culture, business entrepreneurship, and baseball hero worship — a 1950s era unopened black-market pack of prophylactics whose colorful image bears an extraordinary likeness to that of the Splendid Splinter himself, Ted Williams.•

 

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“I Woulda Been A Bum Compared To You?”

September 8, 2013 in Sports, Videos | Permalink

Muhammad Ali and Joe Louis seldom had a good word for each other–“Slow Joe Louis” was one of the nicer things Ali called his predecessor—and it wasn’t just joking. Louis picked Sonny Liston to win both Ali-Liston fights, and Ali never really forgave him. Louis seemed to be jealous of the brash younger fighter who was set to eclipse him.

This 1966 clip captures the two heavyweight egos when the men were actually working together briefly, with Louis acting in an adviser capacity. But Ali’s stance on the Vietnam war, among other issues, soon led to a bitter falling out.

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