Imperial Valley press., 1939-03-13
BUDDY BAER
Hoffman Choice
next CHAMPION
BY HENRY McLEMORE

Ell PASO, Texas, March 10.
CUP)- With all the things there
are in the world to talk about, you
never could guess what Ancil Hoft-
man chose the other day.
He completely ignored Hitlers
rumored designs on the Ukraine,
Hedy Lamarr's marriage, and the
situation in Spain to talk about,
Of all things. Buddy Baer. You
wouldn't believe that a fellow
could talk about Buddy Baer for
an hour. but Hoffman did, and be-
fore he was finished he was max
ing estimates on how much Buddy
would bank as heavyweight boxing
champion OF the world.
When Ancil's conversation scared
into this high realm 1 pinched him
to see if he were talking i'll his
sleep. He wasn't. because he pinch
ed me back and said, "Lissen, I'm
serious. If Make doesn't win the
title back from Louis sometime
this year, Buddy is bound to-
At this point, Hoffman, who
manages both the brothers Baer,
waved toward what 1 thought to
be an entire end Of the gymnasium
i'll which we were talking, and said
Take a look at him"
What I thought to be the side OF
wall turned out to be Buddy. He
is that big Honestly, given an es-
calator and two clerks, Buddy Baer
could pass for a department store. l
hadn't seen him In nearly two
years, and in that time he has set
all sorts of records for growing. He
has become taller and wider and
thicker and broader And according
to Hoffman, who may be bit bias
ed, Buddy has grown wiser,
shrewder, meaner, and better in all
the other virtues that go to make
up a topnotch fighter
MY conversation with Holman
and my peek at Buddy took place
a day or so before the younger
Baer was to fight a fellow named
CroWell at the American Legion
stadium in Hollywood. Out Of cur
iosity 1 went to see this fight. To
tell you the truth, for "a seconds
Buddy was the most destructive
thing since the invention of gun
powder. a..
He rushed from his corner, fangs
barred, and with his gigantic arms
failing in all directions, he knock
ed poor Mr.. CroWell so completely
unconscious that it took fully fiji
teen minutes to revive him. Dur
ing MI Crowells disqualification
SO to speak, Buddy paced around
and around the ring. Suddenly
motivated py a feeling known only
to himself, he rushed toward Mr..
Crowell, parting the group of peo-
pie who had surrounded him, pick
ed Mr.. Crowell up as if he were a
baby and carried him to his corner.
Then, with final pat on his vic
TINS head, Buddy leaped triumph
antly over the ropes and stalked
from the arena with the air of q
man who has washed his hand OF
te entire affair.
AS Buddy left, Mr.. Hoffman came
across the ring and, with a sort of
Clyde Beatty Frank Buck look in
his eyes, said: What did I tell
you?"
Being quick on the uptake l
mentioned a name-Gunnar Bar
lund that being the last man to
knock out Buddy.
Forget that fight" Hoffman
said. Buddy went into that fight
without a lick Of training. Never
worked a day for it because he had
bad eye and couldn't risk getting
it opened. He's a different man
now and a great fighter perhaps
the greatest. So big and strong
he can ruin anybody. Who can
beat him, 1 ask you? Who can
beat him?"
AS I backed down the aisle,
clutching the remains of my pea
nuts and pop, 1 mumbled some
thing that sounded suspiciously
like Joe Louis"
I started running then. Because
those are horrid words in the Baer
group.