The Washington times., 1938-02-10

hOOd. He is
proud papa - ~
true enough. Bill Corum
but it takes more than a proud
papa to "poppa those other
guys on the potato" (heavenly
days, Corum).
Baer might have been a great
fighter except for one thing
fighting wasn't meant for him.
He's a friendly guy at heart,
the flannel.mouthed fiji b er t
from the West. and he isn't look.
ing for trouble. Indeed. he'll
walk 20 blocks out of his way
to avoid it. and the ring racket
wasn't meant for gentlemen OF
that temperament.
MAKE UPSET
Probably most of you have
forgotten Tuffy Griffiths, a one
SYLLABLE. surly-seeming kid from
Chicago. who could punch
pretty good. Well, Tuffy wasn't
one of those fall-into-a-clinch,
patti h Observation-Disclosures
fellows. and when Max met
him at the scales with a big
Hello, and how're you been,
old pal" greeting, Tuffy replied
with a characteristic grunt.
That practically wrecked our
Make. He went back to ms
hotel and twisted and squlrmeo
and couldn't go to sleep dur
ing what was supposed to be
his afternoon siesta. and fought
a terrible fight as a result
REVERSE ENGLISH
When Max won the cham
pionship from poor old Primo
Carnera, the same gag worked
in reverse English. Not so many
months before their meeting
Primo and Max had made a box
ing picture together called The
Prizefighter and the Lady" =,
The minute Baer glimpsed
Carnera in the office Of the box
ing commission, he rushed over
threw his arm across his shoul-
der, gave him a bear hug (no
nun intended, and said: "Gee,
Primo, it sure will seem funny
fighting my old picture pal on
the level"
yeah, yeah, my goodspal'
Max" agreed Da Preem, 1T GER
tainly will seem stranRe for us
pals to be trying to knock each
other out"
1T certainly will, Primo" re-
piled Max.
So then he went out and prac-
tically scrambled poor Prlmo's
brains.
DEAREST WISH
Even when his brother, Buddy,
is fighting, it is Makes dearest
wish that there won't be any
trouble. The night Buddy bat
ted Jock Whitney's Abe Simon
practically into Jocks family
tree, that was Max who was
standing up in the fourth row
yelling "Stop it! Stop it,"
Not after Buddy started bat
ting, let me hasten to say. But
when Abe was splitting rails on
the Baer chin in the early
rounds.
Buddy is cut of a different
kidney in the Baer family
butcher shop. He just sticks his
chin out there and let's the other
guy fire his Fourth of July
punch at it to see if anything
will happen. Nothing does.
That's Buddy. not Make.
Max clowned right up to the
bell in the Louis fight. Then
all of a sudden everything
turned seriouS-and black!
FALLEN IDOL
So long as live I'll never for.
get the expression on Buddy
Baer's face as he sat huddled
UP in his bathrobe, watching
his idol, Max, do funny falls
in that fight. 1t was a look
of combined incredulity, horror
and pain. But not once did
Buddy scream: stop it!'
The other side bluffed Baer
at the weighing for that one,
the Louis fight, too. 1t came
at the same time that the story
of Louis engagement leaked
out. AS things developed, Joe
got married the afternoon of
the fighting to keep Baer from
standing up with him.
From Speculator. where he
had been giving one of the most
perfect demonstrations of whis-
Ting past the graveyard in pu-
gilistic history, Baer had sent
word that he would have a few
pertinent questions to ask Louis
at the scales.
LOUIS REPLY
To which Louis sent back this
reply: Gust tell Mistah Baer to
say anything he wants but not
to say nothing bout my private
affairs, else they won't be no
fight in the stadium.
When it came to the show
down, Max continued to clown
gently.
In fewer words and the Ian
ruaRe Of Mike Gonzales, Cuban
coach Of the st. Louis Cardinals,
this is the capsule story OF Max
Baer as a ring man:
Mice guy, good hit, no fight.
And they say the leopard
never changes the spots before
afS ewes.