June 2 2005 3:51 PM Fight Snub By David Fellerath Max Baer (left) vs. James J. Braddock heavyweight championship fight, Long Island City, New York, June 13, 1935 Attentive viewers of the climactic fight of Cinderella Man, Ron Howard's Depression-era crowd-pleaser, will notice a Star of David on the red trunks of Max Baer, the lethal opponent of Jim "Cinderella Man" Braddock. The star is significantly less prominent than the one that the real Baer wore in the 1935 fight. It's no surprise that Howard would obscure this detail, as it would complicate his film's Rocky-meets-Seabiscuit narrative. What's funny, and ironic, is that by downplaying Baer's Star of David, Howard may be making an accurate historical comment: Baer was the only self-proclaimed Jew to ever claim the heavyweight crown. But was he really even Jewish? To be sure, Cinderella Man's fleeting portrait of Baer as a skirt-chasing playboy, notorious for clowning in the ring, is consistent with published accounts .

Baer was also a ferocious hitter—a "larruping thumper," in the Times' gloriously redundant formulation. In his early career, he secured a fearsome reputation on the West Coast, killing a boxer named Frankie Campbell during a 1930 bout. The tragedy so rattled Baer that he lost four of his next six fights. In the film, the death of Campbell is used to build up Baer as a remorseless killer. One movie's terrifying thug, however, is another man's father. "It was after he killed Campbell that he started clowning," Maxie Baer Jr. said in a recent telephone conversation from Las Vegas. "He started smoking cigarettes and he had nightmares for years." Advertisement After Campbell's death, Baer decided to move east and train under the tutelage of Jack Dempsey. It was in 1933, when Baer was 24, that he came out as a Jew and wore the Star of David on his trunks for the first time. His opponent was Max Schmeling, the "Black Uhlan of the Rhine" and a reluctant standard-bearer for Hitler's Third Reich.

"That one's for Hitler," Baer snarled between blows to the stumbling Schmeling. He knocked him out in the 10th round . It was his finest hour in the ring. In the post-fight coverage, however, Baer's new "racial" identity raised eyebrows. As reported in the New York Times: Get Slate in your inbox. [Baer] explained yesterday, however, that he wore this insignia for the first time, because he is partly Jewish. "My father is Jewish and my mother is Scotch-Irish," said Baer. "I wore the insignia because I thought I should, and I intend to wear it in every bout hereafter." Over the years, the significance of Baer's gesture has been dismissed as a publicity stunt in a sport that thrives on racial and ethnic conflict. Jeremy Schaap, the author of Cinderella Man: James J. Braddock, Max Baer, and the Greatest Upset in Boxing History, takes a more nuanced view. Schaap establishes that Baer's father was at least half-Jewish before arguing that Baer's manager, Ancil Hoffman, stoked his boxer's ethnic consciousness as a motivating tool. Baer Jr. confirms this view.

"My dad didn't know who Hitler was. He only read the sports pages, but Hoffman kept drilling it into his head, 'You're fighting for the Jews.' " Advertisement Baer's prominent display of the Star of David came at a time of continuous bad tidings from Germany. Anti-Jewish boycotts were under way, Jews were being expelled from official positions, and Dachau had opened for the internment of communists. A day after the Schmeling fight, a Times dispatch from Berlin reported that the German papers were reticent about their countryman's defeat. "All papers ignore the fact that Schmeling was beaten by a man who in Germany would be classified as a Jew," the unnamed Times correspondent wrote. One can only imagine the propaganda uses Joseph Goebbels would have found had Schmeling defeated Baer. By disposing of Schmeling, Baer earned his title shot against another unfortunate show horse for European political fashion, Primo "the Ambling Alp" Carnera, a 6-foot-6-inch, 263-pound former circus strongman and a mobbed-up mascot for Benito Mussolini.

This 1934 fight—briefly but vividly re-enacted in Cinderella Man—was a frightful affair in which Baer knocked down the clumsy giant 11 (or 12) times, despite being outweighed by 53 pounds. The heavyweight title now belonged to Baer, who would hold it for 364 days of nightclub carousing and adoring magazine articles. In a 1934 Vanity Fair profile, Baer is described by a bemused Westbrook Pegler in strikingly Gatsby-like terms, a striver taking "dago-singing" lessons and "long-wording people into a daze" from a pocket dictionary. More presciently, Pegler also wrote, "Baer is a fast swinger and he probably will keep the title until frivolity, late hours and cigars abate his speed by the fraction of an instant. Then, presumably, a scientific boxer will beat him.

…" That studiously determined upstart turned out to be gritty Jimmy Braddock from the Jersey docks, known by the more fitting "Plain Jim" before Damon Runyon tagged him "Cinderella Man." Braddock's tale is indeed inspiring: He had a family to feed while Baer's expenses ran mostly to his wardrobe and his mistresses. Baer Jr. cheerfully admits that his father was woefully unprepared. "He didn't take Braddock seriously, he didn't train, and he got a b.j. before the fight," he says, apparently listing the offenses in ascending order of gravity. Despite the star on his trunks that night, Baer was never a practicing Jew. His tenuous claim, however, seems to have been good enough for Jewish fight fans. Schaap writes that, on the night of the Braddock fight, "Of the 30,000 people in the Bowl, virtually everyone except the Jews was cheering for Braddock." Stepping back, Baer's "Jewishness" was only one aspect of his elaborate self-invention.

In 1933 he starred with Myrna Loy and his upcoming opponent Primo Carnera in The Prizefighter and the Lady, in which he played an all-American underdog who challenges Carnera for the championship. The film was a success and Baer received good reviews for a role that included singing and dancing. It played for a while in Germany, until Goebbels banned the film because Baer was in the cast. But his most enduring film is the 1956 anti-boxing exposé The Harder They Fall, adapted from a Budd Schulberg novel. The film is a virtually undisguised scandal-mongering account of events leading up to the Baer-Carnera fight of 1934. While the justifiably aggrieved Carnera sued Columbia Pictures and Schulberg, Baer gamely played a vicious caricature of himself, a portrait not unlike the Baer we see in Cinderella Man.

Schulberg slammed The Harder They Fall as naively sensationalistic, singling out the film's use of Baer: "Maxie Baer, who queens through this incredible part, may have been a tamed tiger but he wasn't a monster." Even though Baer underachieved as a boxing talent, he still has the distinction of being a feared fighter who wore a conspicuous Star of David on his trunks in the dangerous years of the 1930s. He died of a massive heart attack at the age of 50 in 1959. (Among other things, he didn't live to see his son achieve television celebrity as Jethro Bodine on The Beverly Hillbillies.) Cinderella Man may reduce Baer to a crude and simplistic villain, but Baer probably would have enjoyed the movie anyway—he despised boxing. "He thought it was horseshit," says his son.

"He really wanted to be an actor." Max Baer - Biography - IMDb Biography Jump to: Overview (5) | Mini Bio (2) | Spouse (2) | Trade Mark (3) | Trivia (14) Overview (5) 6' 4" (1.93 m) Mini Bio (2) Max Baer is arguably best known today for siring Max Baer Jr. , the actor who played Jethro Bodine on the classic TV series The Beverly Hillbillies (1962). However, old-timers, followers of the sweet science and viewers of the film Cinderella Man (2005) all know that Max Sr. was boxing's heavyweight champion of the world for all of 364 days, from the time he knocked out Primo Carnera on June 14, 1934, to the day he lost his title to Jimmy Braddock on June 13, 1935.

Cinephiles also will remember the colorful Max from his numerous bit roles in films, including Bud Abbott and Lou Costello 's Africa Screams (1949) to his near-autobiographical turn in the Budd Schulberg boxing expose The Harder They Fall (1956) starring Humphrey Bogart . Ironically, it was his acting in the latter film that likely led to his misrepresentation in "Cinderella Man" as being something akin to a monster, when actually, according to his family and those who knew him, he was an amiable man. Some fight fans thought that it was his good nature, which they attributed to his clowning, that eventually did him in, as he would not bear down on his opponents in the latter part of his career. Max Jr. says that his father wanted to be an actor, an insight that explains the flashy persona he displayed in and outside the ring as he wisecracked and clowned his way through careers as a boxer and performer in movies and nightclubs.

Blessed with what "The Boxing Register: International Boxing Hall of Fame Official Record Book" terms the most powerful right hand in heavyweight history, Baer used that right to gain a fearsome reputation as a California prizefighter before moving to New York and taking on the top ranks of the heavyweight division. Max Baer was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on February 11, 1909, to a Jewish father and a mother of Scots-Irish descent. The family moved first to Colorado and then to California, where he dropped out of school after the eighth grade to work with his father on a cattle ranch. Baer developed tremendous physical strength as a ranch hand, and when he turned to boxing, he trained in a most dedicated fashion, a regimen he did not keep to when he reached the zenith of his craft. In 1929 he turned professional and racked up 22 wins in his first 24 fights, nine via first-round knockouts. He was a very dangerous fighter, and in 1930 he was suspended from the ring in California for a year after the death of one of his opponents, Frankie Campbell (the brother of pro baseball player Dolph Camilli ).

Campbell had died after being KO'ed by Baer, and criminal charges were filed against him. Though the manslaughter charges ultimately were dropped, Baer had to deal with the psychological burden of having taken another man's life. He quit the ring for several months after Campbell's death, and Max Jr. claims that this is when the Max the Clown (one of his nicknames was "Madcap Maxie") emerged, as a way of dealing with his torment. Plagued by nightmares for many years, he also took up smoking, which was not very wise for a fighter who depended on his wind in the ring. When Baer returned to boxing after the layoff, he was a different fighter, shy to go on the offense against his opponents. He lost four of his next six fights; according to one opponent who had beaten him in that period, Tommy Loughran, Baer was telegraphing his punches with a looping attack. Baer's career was revitalized when former heavyweight champ Jack Dempsey took a financial interest in the boxer and taught him to shorten his punches. The "monster" of the ring was back.

Baer knocked out Ernie Schaaf, rendering him unconscious, in the tenth round of their August 31, 1932, fight. When Schaaf died after fighting future heavyweight champ Primo Carnera in a Februry 14, 1933, bout, many attributed his death to the beating he had taken at the hands of Baer. This chain of events has long been considered part of boxing lore, which Baer helped perpetuate. In the 1956 movie "The Harder They Fall," the fictionalized story of Carnera's rise and fall through the heavyweight ranks, the Max Baer character, who was played by none other than Baer himself, says: "You know I'm the guy who nailed Gus [Ernie Schaaf], murdered him for 15 rounds. Don't know what held him up, but when Gus left the ring that night he was a dead man. All your joker did was tap him. I did all the work and they gave your guy all the glory." The "your guy" being referred to was the fictionalized Carnera (in actuality, it is most unlikely that Baer caused Schaaf's death.

Schaaf likely was suffering from a form of meningitis caused by influenza when he fought Carnera six months after the Baer beating). Baer moved to New York to be near Dempsey and the boxing powers-that-be. In 1933 Baer publicly identified himself as a Jew and began wearing a Star of David on his trunks. This was when he was scheduled to meet the German Max Schmeling in the ring, just at the beginning of Adolf Hitler 's Third Reich. Baer also wore a Star of David on his trunks during his title defense against Jim "Cinderella Man" Braddock, which was the centerpiece of Howard's film. In the movie, the Star of David is significantly less prominent than the real one Baer wore in the 1935 fight. Boxing in America has always capitalized at the box office on racial and ethnic conflicts, real and imagined, since at least the days of Jack Johnson and "The Great White Hope." Some thought Baer's self-identification as a Jew was opportunistic, as it appealed to the very large contingent of Jewish fight fans in the New York City metropolitan area.

Baer's father was a non-practicing Jew, and his parents raised their son a Catholic, which fueled the charges of opportunism. However, writer Jeremy Schaap , whose book "Cinderella Man: James J. Braddock, Max Baer, and the Greatest Upset in Boxing History" served as the basis of Ron Howard 's film, believes that Baer's manager, Ancil Hoffman , used Baer's ethnic consciousness to motivate him against Schmeling in the ring. Hitler had already launched his anti-Semitic campaign in Germany, and a Jew against a "Nazi" (though Schmeling would always be reluctant about his manipulation as a showpiece of the Nazi state) made good economic sense at the gate--and if it motivated Baer and his fans, so much the better. As it turned out, Baer beat Schmeling so badly at Yankee Stadium before 60,000 fans that the fight had to be stopped in the tenth round due to the ferocity of Baer's attack and the amount of punishment absorbed by Schmeling, himself a future heavyweight champ.

Baer won the lead in the 1933 flick The Prizefighter and the Lady (1933) in which he starred with Myrna Loy and future opponent Primo Carnera, then the world's heavyweight boxing champ. In a foreshadowing of what was to come in his career (his first title shot and first defense, though it would be Jimmy Braddock who was the underdog then), Baer was cast as an all-American underdog who challenges Carnera -- playing himself -- for the championship (Carnera only agreed to adhere to the script and retain his crown through a draw with Baer in the final reel for an additional fee of $10,000). The thespian Baer garnered good reviews and the film was a success at the box office, though Joseph Goebbels banned it in Germany, as the "Jew" Baer was in the cast. By defeating Schmeling, Baer had earned a title shot against the Italian Carnera, who at 6'6" and 263 pounds was two inches taller than Baer and outweighed him by 53 pounds.

As was fictionalized in "The Harder They Fall" a generation later, there was a certain dubious quality about Carnera's career. Many thought that his career had been manipulated by the Mafia, and that he had been unfairly steered into the heavyweight title through a series of unworthy opponents and via outright corruption. As in the film, where the fictionalized Carnera got his comeuppance at the hands of Max Baer, the real Carnera was about to face his own Götterdämmerung in the ring. At the Madison Square Garden Bowl, 50,000 fans of the fistic arts witnessed a ferocious Baer knock down Carnera (who along with Baer later would unsuccessfully take on the eponymous giant ape in Mighty Joe Young (1949) in a New York nightery) ten to 12 times during the 11-round bout (records differ as to the number of times Carnera went down). During the fight Baer constantly taunted and grimaced at Carnera, who kept his dignity despite Baer's shenanigans, which included playing to the ladies in the crowd and non-stop merciless mugging.

After the last knockdown in the 11th, the referee stopped the fight, giving Baer the decision on a technical knockout. Max Baer was now the heavyweight champion of the world. He would hold the title for exactly 364 days. That his first order of business after the title fight was repairing to a nightclub where he served as master-of-ceremonies at a fee of $10,000 did not bode well for the length of his future reign as Heavyweight Champ. Baer's nemesis turned out to be New Jersey longshoreman James "Plain Jim" Braddock, a former top contender who had dropped out of the ranks after an injury. He was soon renamed "Cinderella Man" by Damon Runyon . According to Max Baer Jr., his father didn't prepare for the fight with a boxer many considered a "has been" or a "never will be," whose best days in the ring already were eclipsed. Bradock was a 20:1 underdog before the fight, but he wore the heavyweight championship belt after their match-up at the Madison Square Bowl.

Lacking motivation, Baer's disdain for training left him at the losing end of one of the greatest upsets in sports history. Braddock won a unanimous decision after 15 rounds in the ring with Baer, the monster tamed through his own malfeasance. Baer had all the talent and the hardest right in the world, enough to make him a longer-reigning champ than just shy of one year, but he squandered. During his fight with Braddock, Baer clowned around while Braddock built up points. Baer thought he could knock out Braddock at will, but he could not find it in himself to do so. The emergence of the potentially great boxer that lurked inside him essentially was denied by Baer's overt persona, the good-natured clown. How much of this is rooted in his desire not to kill again in the ring is pure speculation. Something seemingly went out of Baer after losing the title. Future heavyweight champ Joe Louis , one of the all-time greats, administered a terrible beating to the former champ during Baer's next fight, in which he was counted out on one knee in the fourth round.

Many aficionados of the sweet scene thought that Baer was through, and to keep his dignity, he should retire. Baer did quit the ring for a spell, but came back, knocking out "Two-Ton" Tony Galento , a top-ranked contender. He retired for good in 1941 after being whipped soundly by a young Lou Nova , departing professional pugilism with a career record of 72 wins (52 KOs) and 12 losses. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1995. Max Baer died of a massive heart attack on November 21, 1959, in a Hollywood hotel. He was 50 years old. While he lay dying in his room, the hotel operator asked him if he needed the "house doctor." "No," he replied. "I need a people doctor!" A clown to the end. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Bill Takacs and Jon C. Hopwood Max Baer was boxing's most colorful World Heavyweight Champion until Muhammad Ali arrived on the scene some 30 years later.

A 6' 4" mountain of muscle and movie-star handsome, he could have been a movie-star instead of a boxer. But "Mad Cap" Maxie just loved to fight. And fight he did, racking up an impressive knockout streak in California. Baer had one of the hardest punches in heavyweight history. Early in his career, Frankie Campbell died following his knockout loss to Baer. Years later, Ernie Schaef died following his defeat to Primo Carnera, but most people say it was Ernie's savage beating at the hands of Max Baer only a few months before which resulted in his death. As much as Baer loved to fight, he loved the night-life more. He was famous for dancing and drinking the night away with a host of beautiful women, instead of training. However, Max got serious enough to deliver a brutal beating to Primo Carnera and win the World's Heavyweight Title. However, his total disdain for training caused him to lose his title to 20-1 underdog James Braddock less than a year later. His next fight was a controversial knockout loss to future heavyweight great Joe Louis. Louis gave Baer a horrible beating, and Baer was counted out on one knee.

Many experts felt that he could have gotten up but quit. A short-time later he retired. However as is the case with most fighters, Baer launched a comeback and shocked the experts with an upset knockout victory over top contender Tony Galento. Sadly, Baer met his Waterloo at the hands of young Lou Nova and retired from the ring. He died at the age of 50, suffering a massive heart attack in a hotel room. - IMDb Mini Biography By: angelsunchained Spouse (2) World heavyweight boxing champion, 1934-1935. Inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, 1995. Inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame, 1984. Biography in: "American National Biography". Supplement 1, pp. 24-25. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002. Inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. Was so plagued with guilt by the death of Frankie Campbell that he financially supported Campbell's widow. Became a national Hero when he fought Max Schleming with a star of David on his trunks.

Upon his death, his remains were interred at St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum in Sacramento, California. James J Braddock - Cinderella Man Boxer - World Heavyweight Boxing Champion 1935 On this day in 1933, Braddock fought Hans Birkie in a 10 round Loss James J. Braddock James J Braddock earned his nickname "Cinderella Man" from his seemingly fairytale like rise from a poor local fighter to the heavyweight boxing champion of the world. Braddock, born in New York City, had a powerful right hand and a successful amateur career. He turned pro in 1926. Braddock had victories over fighters like Jimmy Slattery and Pete Latzo. Braddock fought light heavyweight champ Tommy Loughran in 1929 for the title, but was defeated in a heartbreaking 15-round decision. Following the Loughran fight and the stock market crash of 1929, Jim Braddock was down on his luck. He had a hard time struggling to win fights and put food on the table for his young family. Eventually Jim's luck began to change.

In 1934 he had upset wins against Corn Griffin and John Henry Lewis. With these two wins, Braddock set himself up for a shot for the title against heavyweight champion Max Baer. On June 13th, 1935, in Long Island City, N.Y., Braddock, as a 10 to 1 underdog, won the heavyweight championship of the world from Max Baer. The general reaction in most quarters was described as, "the greatest fistic upset since the defeat of John L. Sullivan by Jim Corbett". Braddock would lose his heavyweight title two years later in an 8 round KO to "The Brown Bomber", Joe Louis. He retired after a final win over Tommy Farr in 1938. Jim was inducted into the Ring Boxing Hall of Fame in 1964, the Hudson County Hall of Fame in 1991 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2001. © Estate of James J.

Braddock, All Rights Reserved Site created and maintained by Swirling Max Baer the Jewish Fighter in Cinderella Man - InterfaithFamily Max Baer, the Jewish Fighter in Cinderella Man By Tom Tugend Reprinted with permission of the JTA. Visit jta.org . LOS ANGELES, June 5 (JTA)--Cinderella Man chronicles the fall and rise of Depression-era heavyweight champion James Braddock, but the movie also revives the memory of another title holder, Max Baer. In the climactic scene, the movie depicts the 15-round fight between Braddock (Russell Crowe), the victorious underdog, and a menacing, beady-eyed Baer (Craig Bierko). But Baer's greatest fight was in June 1933, when he faced a heavily favored German, Max Schmeling. Hitler had come to power a few months earlier and the Nazis were busy smearing Stars of David on Jewish-owned stores. When Baer strutted into the Yankee Stadium ring, his trunks sported a prominent Star of David , and he then proceeded to demolish Schmeling, knocking him out in the 10th round.

This pugilistic victory, coming in the depth of the Great Depression and amid rising anti-Semitism in Europe and the United States, lifted the spirits of Jews throughout the world, regardless of Baer's actual Jewishness. Under Ron Howard's direction and in the screenplay by Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman, Baer is portrayed as the designated bad guy to deepen the contrast to the gutsy, family-loving, Irish-American Braddock. Though the realistically staged boxing scenes in Cinderella Man--which opened nationally last Friday--carry the action, the movie essentially is the story of a man overcoming defeat and poverty through his own courage and the devotion of a loving wife. Except for ardent fans of the sport, the most wrenching scenes are of Depression-ridden America, with men clawing for a few hours of work and cops demolishing the Hooverville shantytown in New York's Central Park. Despite intensive training and great cinematography, the 41-year-old Crowe is not fully convincing as the younger Braddock.

But the actor, complete with New Jersey accent, is at his best as a poor, hungry down-but-not-outer, whose comeback made him the idol of working class and jobless Americans and earned him the "Cinderella Man" sobriquet from writer Damon Runyon. As Braddock's wife, Mae, Renee Zellweger has little to do but look noble and supportive as she tries to raise three kids while her husband is reduced to asking for handouts from the government and old pals. The most impressive performance is delivered by Paul Giamatti (Sideways) as Braddock's loyal Jewish manager, Joe Gould. Bierko has the muscle and face to play Baer, but the character comes across as a playboy and a clown, which Baer frequently was, and as mean-spirited, which he wasn't.

Baer, who always carried the burden of having caused the deaths of two opponents with his lethal straight right, is depicted telling Mae Braddock, just before the fight with her husband, "You're too pretty to be a widow." When Mae shows her shock and indignation, the screen Baer follows up leeringly with, "Maybe I can comfort you afterwards." According to sports historians and Baer's son, this kind of cruelty was not characteristic of the champion. Except for fleeting glimpses of the Star of David on Baer's trunks, which the boxer displayed in every fight after the victory over Schmeling, the movie does not touch on his ethnic background. His genealogy has been frequently debated and misconstrued, but was clarified by the fighter's son, Max Baer Jr., better known to 1960s TV audiences as Jethro in "The Beverly Hillbillies." Speaking from Las Vegas, the younger Baer said the champ's father, Jacob Baer, was a German Jewish immigrant, who worked as a butcher, cattle dealer and rancher in Colorado and California. Jacob Baer married a Catholic woman and their children were raised in her faith, though the household wasn't particularly religious.

"When I was around 10 and living in a Jewish neighborhood in Sacramento, I came across a boy wearing a yarmulke ," Baer recalled. "So I went home and asked my mother why that kid was wearing a beanie without a propeller." The idea of wearing a Star of David for the Schmeling fight, said Baer, "came from my father's Jewish manager. At that time, the great boxers were Italian, Irish or Jewish, and there was a lot of ethnic pride and rivalry among the fans, especially in New York. I think it all started as a publicity ploy, but over time my father might have convinced himself that he was defending the Jewish people." The younger Baer described his late father as cocky, "sort of like Muhammad Ali," who liked to clown around and would rather party than train. But Baer trained hard for the Schmeling match. After watching that fight, the legendary Jack Dempsey observed that Baer was so good that night he could have beaten anybody in the world. Whatever could be said against Baer, he was never petty or mean-spirited, contrary to the movie depiction, said his son.

"My father hardly ever bore a grudge, and after he and another fighter would beat each other to a pulp, my father would go to the other guy's dressing room and invite him to a party," said the junior Baer. "After he lost the world championship to Braddock, my father said he was glad that the title went to a guy who had to support a large family.'' Known in Hebrew as "magen David" (literally," shield of David"), it is more commonly recognized as the star of David, a six-point star. The symbol has origins in the Torah, and has been used as a symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism in Europe since the Middle Ages. Yiddish for "skullcap," also known in Hebrew as a "kippah," the small, circular headcovering worn by male Jews in most synagogues, and female Jews in more liberal congregations. Traditional Jews were kippot (plural of kippah) all the time. Tom Tugend is a contributing editor to the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. Max Baer Possessing perhaps the most powerful right hand in heavyweight history, Max Baer was a flashy performer who wise-cracked and clowned his way through his career.

Although he never fully realized his tremendous potential, Baer won the heavyweight title, and his showmanship entertained an America rocked by the Great Depression. Born in Omaha, Baer moved with his family to Colorado and then to California. He dropped out of school after eighth grade to work with his father on a cattle ranch, where he built his great physical strength doing range work. Early in his career, Baer trained with a zeal he did not demonstrate later. He turned pro in 1929 and won 22 of his first 24 fights, nine with first-round knockouts. Baer was in supreme condition and dangerous in the ring. In 1930, he was charged with manslaughter when Frankie Campbell, brother of baseball player Dolph Camilli, died as a result of a Baer knockout. Ultimately cleared of criminal charges, Baer was suspended from fighting in California for a year. Baer quit boxing for several months after Campbell's death, then lost four of his next six fights, partly because of his reluctance to go on the attack. One victor, Hall of Famer Tommy Loughran, told Baer that he was looping and telegraphing his punches.

Jack Dempsey helped Baer shorten his punches and took an interest in him for the rest of his career. In 1932, Baer knocked Ernie Schaaf unconscious in the tenth round of what had been a fairly even fight. Not long after, Schaaf died following a bout with Primo Carnera. The death was attributed in part to the beating administered by Baer. In 1933, in the best fight of his career, Baer beat Max Schmeling at Yankee Stadium before 60,000 fans. Baer hammered Schmeling so thoroughly, referee Arthur Donovan stopped the fight in the tenth round. Now in line for the world heavyweight title, Baer fought Primo Carnera in 1934. At the Madison Square Garden Bowl, before a throng of 50,000, Baer knocked the giant Carnera down eleven times in eleven rounds. Baer was now at the height of his fame. He starred in a movie, The Prizefighter and the Lady (banned in Germany because Baer's grandfather was Jewish), and lived the high life.

He was romantically linked to innumerable starlets, socialites, chorus girls, and Broadway actresses before marrying in 1935. Baer frittered away the title to James J. Braddock in his first defense. He fought with an injured right hand, and his half-hearted, joking effort lost him the fifteen-round decision. He had been champion for a year. Three months later, Joe Louis demolished Baer in four rounds. Baer continued to fight for another six years, compiling a record of 30-4 in that time. In retirement, Baer acted, had a successful nightclub act both individually and with "Slapsie" Maxie Rosenbloom, and refereed boxing and wrestling matches. Baer's son, Max Jr., became famous in his own right for playing the role of Jethro Bodine in the long-running television comedy series, The Beverly Hillbillies. * * * Excerpted with permission from 'The Boxing Register' by James B. Roberts and Alexander G. Skutt, copyright © 1999 by McBooks Press. All rights reserved. Born: Feb.

11, 1909 SAN FRANCISCO / Death in the ring / 75 years ago, renowned boxer Max Baer landed fatal punch - SFGate SAN FRANCISCO / Death in the ring / 75 years ago, renowned boxer Max Baer landed fatal punch Jim Herron Zamora, Chronicle Staff Writer Published 4:00 am, Thursday, August 25, 2005 Image 1of/3 Close Image 1 of 3 Frank Campbell (left) fought Max Baer (right) at Recreation Park in 1930. Campbell is dangerously hurt in the infamous fight. Frank Campbell (left) fought Max Baer (right) at Recreation Park in 1930. Campbell is dangerously hurt in the infamous fight. Image 2 of 3 Max Baer, former heavyweight champion. 1939 on 8/24/05 in . / HO Max Baer, former heavyweight champion. 1939 on 8/24/05 in . / HO Image 3 of 3 Max Baer, former heavyweight champion who died in Hollywood CA.

Max is shown with his sons, Max Jr., 21, and Jimmy, 16, in the backyard of their home. on 8/24/05 in . / HO Max Baer, former heavyweight champion who died in Hollywood CA. Max is shown with his sons, Max Jr., 21, and Jimmy, 16, in the backyard of their home. on 8/24/05 in . / HO SAN FRANCISCO / Death in the ring / 75 years ago, renowned boxer Max Baer landed fatal punch 1 / 3 Back to Gallery On a foggy night in the Mission District on this day 75 years ago, 15,000 people cheered one of San Francisco's most famous killings. It wasn't meant to be a homicide, just a boxing match featuring local fighters Max Baer and Frankie Campbell . But it ended with a right hook that left Campbell dead and Baer in jail for a time. The fatal bout came at a time when boxing was second only to baseball as the nation's most popular sport. Millions of Americans would sit by their radio to catch the major fights.

But Campbell's death -- just 10 days after another young boxer died in the ring -- also came as boxing in California fell under increasing scrutiny. All of that aside, a San Francisco Examiner editorial called it a "five- round execution," and it nearly ended the boxing career of Baer, who was cleared by a grand jury and vowed to quit boxing and return to butchering hogs at his parents' ranch in Livermore. He didn't, but Campbell's death cemented the reputation of the "Livermore Larruper" as a crazy showboat whose powerful right hand could kill a man. Even now, that fight and the reputation of a fighter who became world champion before dying in 1959 remain controversial. The recent film "Cinderella Man" reopened the controversy by portraying Baer as a loathsome, womanizing thug who boasted about killing Campbell and deserved the defeat handed to him by the film's hero, James Braddock, played by Russell Crowe . "I almost wanted to cry when I saw that movie," said Dorothy Tarte of Livermore.

"That was not my uncle Maxie." There is no question Baer was a bit of a scoundrel, but his family and historians said he was more complex than film director Ron Howard portrayed him. He was, they said, a playful rogue who schmoozed with Hollywood stars and, though he might have been a little odd, was a good man. Baer had a Livermore park and a Sacramento charity named in his honor. "All these people under age 50 are going to think my dad, Max Baer, is a total pig," said Max Baer Jr., 67, who played Jethro Bodine in the "Beverly Hillbillies" TV series. "My dad was scatterbrained. He was a bizarre guy, a wonderful guy with kind heart, a great sense of humor and a weakness for the ladies. It's OK to say my dad was a party animal of his era. But he was not the rude, cold-hearted ogre in the movie." Baer's family finds some comfort in two books -- each with Braddock's nickname "Cinderella Man" in the title -- published this year that gave more nuanced portrayals of Baer.

Both note that Baer was controversial but wildly popular in his day. Baer, whose father was Jewish, became a national hero in 1933 when he soundly thrashed German boxer Max Schmeling before 60,000 spectators at Yankee Stadium a few months after Hitler rose to power. Jews especially hailed Baer for wearing the Star of David on his trunks, even though he did not practice the faith. Part of Baer's appeal was his stature and demeanor, Jeremy Schaap writes in "Cinderella Man: James J. Braddock , Max Baer and the Greatest Upset in Boxing History," which notes that Baer had the "physique of a Greek god and the mentality of a circus clown." "Baer stood out," Schaap wrote. "Men and women gravitated to him, not simply because he was good-looking but he exuded warmth." Michael DeLisa , whose book "Cinderella Man: The James J. Braddock Story " is based upon his research for the film, notes that Baer helped Campbell's widow while he was champion by donating his earnings from an exhibition match in San Francisco four months before the Braddock fight.

DeLisa, in an interview with The Chronicle, defended the movie's approach, saying it was an accurate portrayal of Baer at that time, when the boxer was cultivating a scandalous image while he dated movie stars. "That movie deals with a four-month period in his life. It by no means tells the whole complicated story of Max Baer," DeLisa said. "My book has more of his story. But really there is a lot more there. I would love to do a book on Max Baer. He is a fascinating person." Max Baer was born in Omaha, Neb. His father, who worked as a butcher, moved the family to Colorado for a time before buying a ranch in Livermore. Baer avoided fights as a boy but realized the strength of his right arm one night when he and his friends took a jug of wine from a car outside a Stockton roadhouse. The large, angry owner of the jug confronted Baer, who knocked him flat. Baer moved to East Oakland where he got a job at the Lorimer Diesel Engine factory and trained at a gym not far from where 2004 Olympic gold medalist Andre Ward honed his skills.

His boss, hoping Baer would quit boxing after a loss, arranged his first fight on May 16, 1929. Baer knocked out that fighter in the second round and then defeated a succession of others. Baer's reputation grew, and he landed a fight against Campbell at Recreation Park, at the time home to the San Francisco Seals baseball team. Campbell was an up-and-coming heavyweight who, though smaller than Baer, was quicker. The men pummeled each other for four rounds, with Baer having an edge. In the fifth round, Baer slipped after Campbell landed a punch. Thinking it was a knockdown, Campbell approached a neutral corner. Baer quickly jumped to his feet and pursued Campbell, landing a right hook just as Campbell turned to face him. Campbell went down. He never got back up. Baer later wrote that he had endured nightmares about that fight for the rest of his life. "I've made a lot of mistakes," he wrote in 1951 after he settled in Sacramento. "But that is the one I wish I could take back.

I'll regret it as long I live." Latest from the SFGATE homepage: Click below for the top news from around the Bay Area and beyond. Sign up for our newsletters to be the first to learn about breaking news and more. Go to 'Sign In' and 'Manage Profile' at the top of the page. Max Baer | Jewish Virtual Library Tweet Maximillion Adelbert Baer, better known as Max Baer, was born on February 11, 1909, in Omaha Nebraska. Nicknamed “Madcap Maxie,” and the “Livermore Larupper,” Baer held the title of World Heavyweight Champion from 1934-35. The Boxing Register: International Boxing Hall of Fame Official Record Book said that Max possessed perhaps “the most powerful right hand in heavyweight history.” Baer dropped out of school in the 8th grade to help his father on their cattle ranch; this labor is alleged to be the reason for Baer’s strength. Baer turned professional in 1929, and won 22 of his first 24 fights, 9 with first-round knockouts. His conditioning, combined with his tremendous power, made him a formidable foe.

In 1930, he was charged with manslaughter when Frankie Campbell died as a result of a Baer knockout. He was cleared of all charges, but was banned from boxing in California for a year. Baer was so frightened by this incident that he chose to quit boxing altogether for several months. When he returned to the ring, Baer was reluctant to attack his opponents. Hall of Famer Tommy Loughran told him he was telegraphing his punches, and Jack Dempsey worked with Baer to shorten his punches. In 1932, Baer knocked Ernie Schaaf unconscious in the tenth round of their match. Schaaf died shortly after a later fight with Primo Carnera; however, his death was partially due to the damage inflicted by the blow he received from Baer. In June 1933, in the best fight of his career, Baer defeated the German, Max Schmeling, in front of 60,000 spectators at Yankee Stadium. During this match, Baer wore the Star of David on his shorts, in a demonstration of pride for the Jewish people at a time when Nazi persecution of German Jews was just beginning.

Baer received his title shot the following year. After knocking the champ Primo Carnera down 11 times, the fight was stopped in the 11th-round and Baer became the title holder. At the height of his fame, Baer starred in a movie and lived the social high life. He was constantly romantically linked to movie stars, chorus girls, and Broadway starlets. Max Baer had two wives, actress Dorothy Dunbar (married July 8, 1931, divorced 1933) and Marry Ellen Sullivan whom he married on June 29, 1935, and remained with until his death. In June 1935, in his first title defense, Max lost the title in a 15-round decision to James J. Braddock in a huge upset. His next fight was a loss to Joe Louis. During the fight, Baer returned to his corner (Jack Dempsey was in his corner), and said he could not breath.

Dempsey said: “I conned him into the ring...I told him I'd kill him with the water bottle if he didn't go back out there and get knocked out.” Baer was knocked out by Louis in the fourth round. He retired from boxing in 1941 with a career record of 72 wins (52 knockouts), and 12 losses. Max Baer died in 1959. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1995. There continues to be some debate over whether Max Baer was Jewish. His father was a non-practicing Jew and his mother was a Catholic of Scot-Irish descent. Max was raised Catholic; however, he proclaimed himself a Jew. Baer said he wore a Magen David on his trunks to show his pride, but some people believed this was done for publicity alone. In the movie Cinderella Man (2005), James J. Braddock is the hero and fights Max Baer in the ultimate match. Critics took issue with director Ron Howard’s portrayal of Baer as cruel and snobbish, when he is remembered as audacious and amiable.

The final climatic scenes between Baer and Braddock have people hating the moneyed, snobbish Baer; while cheering on the beloved, average-Joe Braddock. The film portrays Baer as a womanizer and jokester, which he was, but also as malicious, which is not how he is remembered. Before the match, Baer is heard commenting to Braddock’s wife “You’re too pretty to be a widow”; however, according to Baer’s family and historians this malice was atypical of the boxer. Baby-boomers were not born when Baer was fighting, but many grew up watching his son, Max Baer, Jr., who played Jethro Bodine on the popular television show, The Beverly Hillbillies.

Max Baer - BoxRec Max Baer Hall of Fame bio: click World Boxing Hall of Fame Inductee Name: Max Baer Birth Name: Maximillian Adelbert Baer Born: 1909-02-11 Height: 6′ 2½″ / 189cm Reach: 81″ / 206cm 3.1 Sources Career Overview Fun-loving, entertaining, hard-hitting, and charismatic, Max Baer was the fighter most responsible for maintaining the public's interest in the heavyweight division during the early years of the Great Depression. Realizing that character and image were as important to creating boxing spectacles as was fighting prowess, Baer was a character unlike any other for his time. He substituted his contagious smile and clown-like ring antics for his lack of true boxing technique. Combined with his lethal punching power, Baer's personality made him perhaps the most popular heavyweight boxer in the era between the retirement of Jack Dempsey and the rise of Joe Louis .

Because of the false portrayal of him as a "villain" in the 2005 Ron Howard-directed motion picture Cinderella Man , Baer today is unfairly perceived by some as an arrogant, bloodthirsty brat. But those who knew him in life describe him as a happy-go-lucky man, always looking for the lighter side of a brutal sport. It was precisely this perspective and behavior that made him so likable for those suffering the misery of the Great Depression. Early Years Born in Omaha, Nebraska, on February 11, 1909, Baer moved to Livermore, California, with his family as a child. He often worked in his father's cattle slaughterhouse, a job he later claimed was responsible for his well-muscled frame, broad shoulders, and feared right hand punch (an article in the January 1939 edition of Family Circle magazine reported that Baer also took the Charles Atlas exercise course) By the age of eighteen, he was already six feet tall and weighed 190 pounds. Encouraged by friends to train as a boxer, he set up his own gym on his father's ranch and set to building up his punching power.

He eventually moved to Oakland, California, in pursuit of finding a manager, taking a job at a local factory to support himself. There he met the factory owner's son, J. Hamilton Lorimer, who became his first manager. With Lorimer backing him, Max fought his first professional match in Stockton, California, on May 16, 1929, knocking out the otherwise forgotten Chief Caribou in two rounds. He fought sixteen more times before the close of the year, losing just once, disqualified for picking up and throwing an opponent to the floor. He was again disqualified in his first match of 1930, this time for "stalling." He went on to win his next seven fights, however, six by knockout, securing a match with his most talented opponent yet, Les Kennedy , one of the best fighters in California. Still raw and unschooled, Max was unable to solve the puzzle of Kennedy's professional, experienced style and lost a ten-round decision. Despite the loss, Baer's aggressive style and knockout punch continued to make him a big draw on the West Coast. Thus, he was still able to garner another major fight, against Frankie Campbell , who had recently defeated Kennedy.

On August 25, 1930, Max dominated his fight with Campbell, repeatedly raking him across the ropes until the referee stopped the slaughter in the fifth. By the time Baer relented, Campbell was completely unconscious and doctors failed to revive him after hours of trying. The death of the promising Campbell created an outrage among anti-boxing forces, prompting the California Commission to suspend the referee and several others involved. Though Max himself was not suspended, he was badly shaken by the tragedy and did not fight for another four months, his longest period of inactivity yet. In his next match, he lost a ten-round decision to clever Ernie Schaaf. Though Baer had himself considered retirement after Frankie Campbell's death, that fight made headlines that had many people clamoring to witness the fabled punching power of the young Californian. Thus, he was given a match against his first internationally known opponent, Tom Heeney , a New Zealand fighter who had once done battle with Gene Tunney for the world heavyweight championship. Heeney was by this time well beyond his prime, however, and Baer had an easy time annihilating him inside of three rounds.

This led to a fight with Tommy Loughran , the lightning-quick future hall of famer and former light heavyweight champion of the world. The February 6, 1931, proved to be one of the most important bouts of Max's career. Though Loughran's talent and experience combined to give Baer a humiliating boxing lesson over ten rounds, he took the time to give Baer some pointers after the fight. Tommy told Max that he would go a long way if he would learn to quit looping his punches and straighten them out to provide a quicker route to the target. Meanwhile, Jack Dempsey , the former world heavyweight champion who refereed the bout between Loughran and Baer, took notice of the youngster from California. He and Max became great friends and would remain so for the rest of Max's lives. Dempsey often acted as a mentor to Max and even promoted several of his fights. Contender & Champion Though Max lost his next two big-name fights, against contenders, Johnny Risko and Paolino Uzcudun , he showed more patience in the ring and better boxing technique, proving that he was listening to the advice given him by Loughran and Dempsey.

The hard work paid dividends as Max won ten consecutive fights within an ten-month period. Included among the wins were rematches with Risko, Kennedy, and Heeney, as well as two decisions over contender King Levinsky . By the Summer of 1932, Max was finally a legitimate contender for the heavyweight championship of the world. On August 31, 1932, he fought a rematch with slick boxing Ernie Schaaf . Though he fell slightly behind on points in the early going, Baer had paced himself for a long fight and turned slugger in the ninth. For two rounds, he belted Ernie around the ring and, with two seconds to go in the fight, landed a devastating right that put his opponent flat on his face, completely unconscious. Because the bell rang before the referee could complete his count, Baer was robbed of the official knockout, but he did walk away with the ten-round decision. When Schaaf suffered mortal injuries early in his fight with Primo Carnera just months later, many speculated that it was the leftover effects of his fight with Baer that truly did the fatal damage.

After knocking out veteran contender Tuffy Griffiths in seven rounds, Baer was matched with former world heavyweight champion Max Schmeling . A skilled boxer with a solid right hand punch, Schmeling was considered the outstanding contender for reigning world heavyweight champion Jack Sharkey . The German Schmeling had recently become a controversial figure in boxing because of his association with Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, who was despised by many Americans because of the Nazi persecution of Jews. Baer, though he was not raised Jewish, had Jewish blood in his family. Thus, mainly for publicity purposes, he sported the Star of David on his boxing trunks for the fight with Schmeling. This act made him immensely popular with America's Jewish population and he would keep the symbol on his trunks for the remainder of his career. On June 8, 1933, Baer fought the fight of his life. At the fight's opening, he charged out aggressively and took immediate control of the fight. Lucky to survive Baer's early onslaught, Schmeling used his superior boxing technique and employed a strong body assault to gain a slight lead on the score cards in the middle rounds.

In the ninth round, though, Baer seemed to get a second wind and lashed out once more. He stunned Schmeling into desperately defending himself, taking the round clearly. The tenth featured more of the same until Baer landed a huge right hand that sent Schmeling careening into the ropes. Another right moments later dropped the former champion. Barely able to rise at the count of nine, Schmeling was essentially finished. He could do little else but attempt to block Baer's storm of bombs. When more punishment sent the German fumbling once more against the ropes and a hard rabbit punch from Baer cracked the disorient Schmeling on the back of the head, referee Arthur Donovan stopped the fight. Now there was no dispute that Max Baer was the leading heavyweight contender. Shortly after the Schmeling fight, Sharkey lost the title by knockout to Italy's gigantic Primo Carnera. Carnera's great size (6'5½ and 260 pounds) made him a freak show sensation, but Max Baer was likely the most famous active fighter in the world at the time.

Both he and Primo appeared together in the film The Prizefighter and the Lady , with Max playing the lead role opposite love interest Myrna Loy. The climax of the film was a fictional showdown between Baer and Carnera, the fight most fight fans were desperately calling for in real life. The fight finally took place on June 14, 1934, at Madison Square Garden . At the weigh-in before the bout, Max's zany behavior puzzled the champion but certainly satisfied the newspaper writers. He plucked hairs from Primo's well-muscled chest, musing as he did so, "He loves me; he loves me not." He then reached out and tickled Carnera, goofily shouting, "Boo, you big palooka!" Carnera could only manage a perplexed smile. The scales confirmed what everybody already knew: Baer would be at a rare size disadvantage, giving up more than fifty pounds in weight and at least three inches in height to the hulk from Italy. Because of his advantages, Carnera was the betting favorite. Uncharacteristically, Baer came out cautiously in the first round, keeping his distance as Primo tried to chase him down.

When a wild right hand caught the champion flush, the tables seemed to instantly turn. Carnera crashed to the floor and appeared desperately groggy when he rose. Sensing a first-round knockout imminent, Baer pressed forward for the first time, putting together a ruthless series of punches that sent Primo down twice more. Carnera showed tremendous heart in surviving the round but was clearly unaware of his surroundings when the bell rang, and he wandered into the wrong corner. Exhausted by his futile efforts to put the giant away, Baer tried desperately to finish the still groggy champion off in the second, but to no avail. The pair ended up clinching and wrestling for the next several rounds, with both men frequently tripping and falling to the canvas. During one of these tumbles, Baer got laughs from the crowd by looking over at Carnera and joking, "Last one up's a sissy!" Eventually Carnera, having steadied himself, began to use his size and reach against the challenger. The Italian was never known as a quality boxer, but, against the crude and exhausted challenger, he had had enough skills to gain a lead on the score cards as the fight entered the tenth round.

Toward the end of that round, a roundhouse right from Baer turned the tide once again, sending Primo fumbling across the ring. A follow-up fusillade of blows sent the champion down. The brave but battered Carnera made it to his feet just in time to hear the bell clang to signal the conclusion of the round. The minute rest did little to revive Carnera's senses. He came out for the eleventh, but proved to be little more than a gigantic target, going down twice more before the referee stopped the contest. Including the wrestling falls in the middle of the fight, Primo hit the deck eleven times in eleven rounds. Max Baer was the new heavyweight champion of the world. Max was a popular champion, charismatic and exciting to watch in the ring. As mentioned before, his clowning antics in and out of the ring were a breath of fresh air for fight fans suffering the tumultuous struggles of the Great Depression. But Max's carefree personality reflected an increasingly carefree lifestyle. Baer neglected serious training after winning the title. While he gave several popular boxing exhibitions, he stayed away from professional boxing for the period of a year and dissipated his talent.

In the meantime, an unlikely contender by the name of Jim Braddock established himself as a credible challenger for Max's laurels. A down-and-out part-time fighter who also worked on the New Jersey docks, Braddock was thought to be washed up when he won three consecutive fights against some of the biggest names in the division, the press dubbing him the "Cinderella Man" because of his rags-to-riches story. When leading contender Max Schmeling's ties to the Nazis left promoters afraid to schedule the German a rematch with Baer, organizers instead picked up Braddock as an easy mark for Baer's first title defense. Braddock & Louis Fights On June 13, 1935, at Madison Square Garden, the heavily favored champion faced Braddock. Overconfident and under-trained, Baer found himself having an unexpected tough time against his smaller opponent. Braddock, meanwhile, fought the fight of his life. The challenger used constant movement and a stiff left jab to keep Max unsettled. Baer tried to throw his haymaker right hand, but Braddock knew to look out for it and the champion usually missed by a long distance.

Unable to compete with Braddock's conditioning and technical precision, Baer could do little else but gasp for breath and make faces at his opponent. The champion fouled on occasion and, when warned by the referee, made theatrical gestures of apology to the crowd and Braddock. The result was a unanimous decision for Braddock in one of the great upsets in ring history. Baer, claiming injured hands, asked for a rematch, which he was never given. In interviews after the Braddock fight, Max admitted that he had failed to train properly for the fight and that he knew he needed to regain his focus on his boxing career. He promised fans to discipline himself better for his next scheduled match, against an undefeated sensation from Detroit by the name of Joe Louis . At this early stage of his career, Louis had beaten some credible opponents, including former champion Carnera, but had yet to face a fighter as dangerous as Baer. 88,150 people paid $1,000,832, the largest gate in nearly a decade and a considerable achievement in the midst of the Depression, to see the two power punchers clash at Yankee Stadium on September 24, 1935.

Going into this bout, Baer was hampered by hand injuries. Jeremy Schaap discussed in his book, Cinderella Man: James Braddock, Max Baer, and the Greatest Upset in Boxing History , that Baer was having trouble with pain in his hands, which forced him to take an injection before the fight. However, the fight was delayed by a thunderstorm and the novocaine started to wear off before the bout started. Though both men threw bombs as expected, Louis' punches were shorter, faster, and more accurate. If Baer kept his promise to train diligently for this fight, he never showed it. His punches were looping and amateurish and at no point did Louis show the effects of Baer's fabled power. Both men traded punches for three rounds, Joe clearly getting the better of the action. In the fourth round, looking exhausted and resigned to defeat after taking a hurricane of punishment from Louis, Baer dropped voluntarily to his knees. It was the first time Max had gone down in forty-eight professional fights. He rose to fight on but was quickly flattened to the floor by a left-right combination. Though Max made it up to his knee, he could not rise in time and suffered his first knockout defeat.

"I could have struggled up once more," he told reporters after the fight, "but when I get executed, people are going to have to pay more than twenty-five dollars a seat to watch it." He subsequently announced his retirement from boxing. Comeback & Later Years As is the case with many fighters, Baer's initial retirement did not last long. He was back in less than a year (weighing in at an all-time high of 226 pounds), winning a six-round decision against overmatched Tony Souza . The Souza fight was the first in a series of eighteen bouts fought inside of three months, as Max toured the U.S. fighting local boys from Salt Lake City, Boise, San Antonio, Tulsa, Vancouver, Twin Falls, and other cities. He knocked out Soldier Eddie Franks in three rounds on September 3 1936, in Provo, Utah, and he defeated Andy "Kid" Miller by a six-round decision on September 21, 1936, in Sheldon, Iowa. Earl Jinkinson of the Sheldon Mail wrote the following: "Max Baer, the clowning ex-heavyweight champion amused the large crowd by playfully toying with Andy Miller of Sioux City. .

. . As was expected the Sioux City lad was no match. . . . Someone asked him to hit Miller and Max replied 'do you want me to commit murder?' . . . The bout was more of a clowning exhibition on the part of Max but the bout was well received by the large crowd. It seems to this correspondent that even after the Louis beating, which Max explained was due to his injured hands, and one look at his hands at this date is sufficient evidence to prove his contention, that Max is still a first class heavyweight contender." On April 15, 1937, he faced his first ranked contender since the shellacking at the hands of Louis. His opponent was England's heavyweight champion, Tommy Farr , who defeated the former world champion over twelve rounds. It was Max's first loss in twenty-three outings. Less than a year later, he avenged the loss, flooring Tommy two times en route to a fifteen-round decision, followed by a first-round knockout of Ohio's Hank Hankinson .

On June 1, 1939, Baer, having regained his status as one of the leading fighters in the division, fought up-and-comer Lou Nova at Yankee Stadium before 16,778 fans. In an exciting battle, Max suffered horrible facial swellings and cuts that forced the referee to stop the fight in the eleventh round. Though many subsequently wrote that Baer was finished as a world-class fighter, he strung off four consecutive knockout wins inside of year, including a seventh-round stoppage of hard-hitting contender Tony Galento . Thus, he was given a second chance against Nova. On April 4, 1941, Max briefly showed shades of his old fighting prowess when flooring Nova with a right hand in the fourth round. As the fight went on, however, Nova took increasing control. After Baer went down twice in the eighth round, the referee stopped the fight. Max never fought professionally again. During World War II, the still popular Madcap Maxie served as a physical conditioning instructor for the U.S. Air Force. Later, he starred in a popular nightclub act with former light heavyweight champ Maxie Rosenbloom .

Sometimes working as a referee in boxing and wrestling matches, he also enjoyed an acting career in movies. Baer died of a heart attack on November 21, 1959, at age 50. In 1995, he won posthumous induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame . Notes Brother of fellow boxer Buddy Baer , who unsuccessfully challenged Joe Louis for the world heavyweight championship in 1941 and 1942. Father of actor Max Baer Jr., who portrayed the character Jethro Bodine on the television series The Beverly Hillbillies. Baer's title bout with challenger Jim Braddock was the climax to the 2005 Braddock biopic Cinderella Man . The movie demonized Baer as the killer of two men in the ring and claimed he committed such notorious acts as bragging to Braddock's wife, Mae, that he would kill her husband and then sleep with her. In reality, there was no such encounter with Mae Braddock, and many have insisted that Baer was haunted for the rest of his life by Campbell's death. Max Baer Jr. said his father had nightmares about it and raised a considerable amount of money for Campbell's family.

Jeremy Schaap, who wrote the book Cinderella Man: James Braddock, Max Baer, and the Greatest Upset in Boxing History , said Baer went into an emotional "tailspin" after killing Campbell and lost a couple of fights because he refused to finish off opponents out of fear of another fatality. As for the scene with Mae Braddock, Schaap said, "It is totally made up." According to an "Oddities of the Ring" article, as reported in the January 3, 1931, edition of the Bellingham Evening News, Baer fought 110 rounds and scored 110 knockdowns.

Question: James Braddock won the title from which boxer whose son was in The Beverly Hillbillies?
Answer: Max Baer