Max Schmeling

Max Schmeling
Max Schmeling in 1938
Statistics
Real name	Maximillian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling
Nickname(s)	Black Uhlan of the Rhine
Rated at	Heavyweight
Nationality	German
Birth date	September 28, 1905(1905-09-28)
Birth place	Klein Luckow, German Empire
Death date	February 2, 2005(2005-02-02) (aged 99)
Death place	Wenzendorf, Germany
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	70
Wins	56
Wins by KO	40
Losses	10
Draws	4
No contests	0

Maximillian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling (September 28, 1905 – February 2, 2005) was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in the late 1930s transcended boxing, and became worldwide social events because of their national associations. He was ranked 55 on Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.

While Schmeling was never a supporter of the Nazi regime in Germany, he cooperated with the government's efforts to play down the increasingly negative international world view of its domestic policies during the 1930s. However, it became known long after the Second World War that Schmeling had risked his own life to save the lives of two Jewish children in 1938.^[1]

During World War II Schmeling served with the German (Luftwaffe) as an elite paratrooper (Fallschirmjäger).^[2]

1 Biography
2 Career
3 Cultural references
4 Residencies
5 Honorary Residencies
6 Professional Record
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

Biography

Early years and Jack Sharkey

Schmeling was born in Klein Luckow in the Province of Pomerania. He debuted as a professional boxer in 1924, and he built a record of 42 wins, 4 losses and 3 draws, before fighting Jack Sharkey for the vacant World Heavyweight Title in 15 rounds in Yankee Stadium, and in 1932 he and Sharkey met for a rematch. After 15 rounds, Sharkey outboxed Schmeling, and Schmeling lost his title. This decision led his manager Joe Jacobs to shout in protest a line that since has become famous: "We was robbed!" Despite efforts to make a third fight happen, the rubber match between Schmeling and Sharkey never took place.

Two months after he lost the title, Max Schmeling knocked out overweight middleweight Mickey Walker. Then in June 1933 Schmeling lost by TKO to future champion Max Baer.

Joe Louis

In 1936, the situation in Germany had changed. Schmeling traveled to New York to face up-and-coming boxer Joe Louis, who was undefeated and considered unbeatable. Upon his arrival, Schmeling claimed that he had found a flaw in Louis' style, observing the way in which he dropped his guard after throwing a punch. He surprised the boxing world by handing Louis his first defeat, dropping him in round four and knocking him out in the 12th. Schmeling returned to Germany on the Hindenburg as a hero.[1]

The German Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels proclaimed Schmeling's victory a triumph for Germany and Nazism. The SS weekly journal Das Schwarze Korps (The Black Corps) commented: "Schmeling's victory was not only sport. It was a question of prestige for our race."

Louis and his supporters were devastated by the defeat. Schmeling himself was also affected; when Louis finally won the world Heavyweight crown in 1937, he said he would not consider himself a champion until he beat Schmeling in a rematch.

The rematch came, at Yankee Stadium, on June 22, 1938, with Louis defending his crown. By then, a second world war was clearly looming on the horizon, and the fight was viewed worldwide as symbolic battle for superiority between two likely adversaries . In American pre-fight publicity, Schmeling was cast as the Nazi warrior, while Louis was portrayed as a defender of American ideals.

The fight was broadcast by radio all over the United States (on NBC with Clem McCarthy) and Europe. In 2005 it was selected for permanent preservation in the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress. German sports writer with the Associated Press, Roy Kammerer , based in Berlin wrote in 2005: "The fight was a huge event worldwide and left a lasting impression on his era of Germans, who followed blow-by-blow on radio." Kammerer's account is supported by a 1988 letter to the Sport Editor of the New York Times^[3].

Louis retained the title by a technical knockout late in the first round. There is controversy up to this day about the fight, as Schmeling's side complained strongly that the German boxer had repeatedly received illegal kidney punches. Some pictures seem to confirm this claim. If referee Arthur Donovan had stopped the match because of this, Schmeling could have won the world title on a disqualification for the second time. Donovan, however, as well as the New York boxing authorities, validated Louis's victory.^[4]

Schmeling was branded as a Nazi by many boxing fans, but the reality was much more ambiguous. In 1928, he hired Joe Jacobs, a Jew, to be his manager, and he would point to this fact for the rest of his life in defending himself against charges of Nazi sympathy. And in 1938, during the Kristallnacht, Schmeling hid two teenage sons of a Jewish friend in his Berlin hotel room, protecting them at great risk to himself. (The two boys, Henry and Werner Lewin, were eventually smuggled out of Germany with Schmeling's help.) But while Schmeling was by no means a Nazi, as he was sometimes portrayed during the era of the Third Reich, neither was he an opponent of the regime, as he has often been described in recent years.^[5]

One year after that defeat against Louis, Max Schmeling came back, winning the European heavyweight title.

World War II Activity

When World War II broke out in 1939, Schmeling was drafted into the German Luftwaffe and served as an elite Fallschirmjäger (paratrooper). He was a participant in the Battle of Crete against Greek and British Commonwealth forces in 1941, but he was considered far too valuable as a boxing star for him to remain in front line combat. By the end of the war (early 1945) he was serving at the large German Army military hospital in Ulm. He worked with the seriously wounded in the hospital's rehabilitation unit until May 1945. Following the war's end he was interned briefly, still recovering from injuries sustained during his service. Afterwards, he frequently visited American troops, giving away signed photos and taking pictures with the American soldiers.

Business and retirement

The postwar years were initially financially difficult for Schmeling. However, the situation improved dramatically when a former New York boxing commissioner who had become a Coca-Cola executive offered him the postwar soft drink franchise in Germany. He then became a successful businessman and one of Germany's most respected philanthropists. At his death, he was still one of the owners of Coca-Cola's German branch.

After 1948, Schmeling retired from boxing. He and Joe Louis became friends following a 1954 meeting on the U.S. television program This Is Your Life. Schmeling and Louis met twelve times afterwards as friends, and he helped to pay the impoverished Louis' medical bills. In 1981 Schmeling served as a pallbearer at Louis's funeral, for which he helped pay.^[6] Until shortly before his death, he made several trips a year around the world to attend activities related to his boxing career. He has been the object of several books, including a biography, and in 2001, Starz produced a movie about him and Louis named Joe and Max.

He is a member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame, and he compiled a record of 56 wins, 10 losses and 4 draws with 40 wins by knockout. Among his other wins, he had a knockout in eight rounds over former world Welterweight champion, Middleweight champion and fellow Hall of Famer Mickey Walker.

After celebrating his 99th birthday in 2004, Schmeling vowed to live on to celebrate his 100th birthday. However, that Christmas, he came down with a bad cold, and his health never recovered. He slipped into a coma on January 31, 2005 and died two days later at 3:55 pm in Hamburg. At 99 years, 125 days, Schmeling is the longest-lived world heavyweight boxing champion. He was buried next to his wife, film actress Anny Ondra (Anna Sophie Ondráková), to whom he was married for 54 years. They had no children.

Career

German Lightheavyweight Champion 1926 - 1928
European Lightheavyweight Champion 1927 - 1928
German Heavyweight Champion 1928
World Heavyweight Champion 1930 - 1932
European Heavyweight Champion 1939 - 1943

Cultural references

German stamp, 2005

As Max lived in Stettin, Germany (now Szczecin, Poland), a band from this city, The Analogs recorded the song "Max Schmeling" on their album Hlaskover rock.

In the book The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, Joe Kavalier is beaten up by someone who may or may not have been Max Schmeling. The author hints that it probably wasn't, as Max should have been fighting in Poland at the time.

The basketball arena in Berlin that the basketball team Alba Berlin used (Max-Schmeling-Halle) is named in honor of the legendary fighter.

The song "Ambling Alp" by Yeasayer mentions Max Schmelling as a "formidable foe." The nicknake 'Ambling Alp' does not refer to Schmelling but refers to another contemporary boxer Primo Carnera. Carnera and Schmeling never faced each other in the ring, but both had high-profile bouts with Joe Louis.

Schmeling also appears as a character in the opera, Shadowboxer, based on the life of Joe Louis.^[7]

Residencies

Max lived for many years in a mansion on Schweinfurth Strasse in the leafy green suburb of Dahlem in Berlin. The house currently houses the Libyan embassy.

Honorary Residencies

Honorary Resident of the City of Los Angeles
Honorary Resident of Las Vegas
Honorary Resident of Klein-Luckow (his hometown)
Honorary Member of the Austrian Boxing Federation

Professional Record

56 Wins (40 knockouts), 10 Losses (5 knockouts), 4 Draws
Res.	Opponent	Type	Rd., Time	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	Richard Vogt	PTS	10 (10)	1948-10-31	Berlin, Germany
Win	Hans Joachim Draegestein	TKO	9 (10), ?:??	1948-10-02	Kiel, Germany	Rematch. Draegestein suffered broken jaw from the fight.
Loss	Walter Neusel	PTS	10 (10)	1948-05-23	Hamburg, Germany	Rematch. The first fight between Schmeling and Neusel was nearly fourteen years earlier in 1934.
Win	Hans Joachim Draegestein	PTS	10 (10)	1947-12-07	Hamburg, Germany
Win	Werner Vollmer	KO	7 (10), ?:??	1947-09-28	Frankfurt, Germany	This was Schmeling's first fight in over eight years.
Win	Adolf Heuser	KO	1 (15), ?:??	1939-07-02	Stuttgart, Germany	The fight was for the EBU (European) heavyweight and German BDB heavyweight titles. The fight has the largest boxing audience in German boxing history of 70,000 people.
Loss	Joe Louis	TKO	1 (15), 2:04	1938-06-22	Bronx, New York, United States	The fight was for the NYSAC World heavyweight and NBA World heavyweight titles. Schmeling was down twice before the fight was stopped. It was proclaimed the "Fight of the Decade" by The Ring magazine.
Win	Steve Dudas	KO	5 (?), ?:??	1938-04-16	Hamburg, Germany
Win	Ben Foord	PTS	12 (12)	1938-01-30	Hamburg, Germany
Win	Harry Thomas	TKO	8 (15), ?:??	1937-12-13	New York, New York, United States
Win	Joe Louis	KO	12 (15), 2:29	1936-06-19	Bronx, New York, United States	The bout was delayed a day because of rain. Louis was down in the 4th and 12th rounds. The odds were 10-to-1 Louis would win, 4-to-1 he would win by KO, and 2-to-1 Schmeling wouldn't be on his feet in the seventh round. Tom O'Rourke died of a heart attack in Schmeling´s dressing room just before this bout.
Win	Paulino Uzcudun	PTS	12 (12)	1935-07-07	Berlin, Germany	This was Schmeling's third fight against Uzcudun.
Win	Steve Hamas	KO	9 (12), ?:??	1935-03-10	Hamburg, Germany	Rematch.
Win	Walter Neusel	KO	9 (15), ?:??	1934-08-26	Hamburg, Germany	This fight has the largest European boxing attendance of 102,000 people.
Draw	Paulino Uzcudun	PTS	12 (12)	1934-05-13	Barcelona, Spain	Rematch.
Loss	Steve Hamas	PTS	12 (12)	1934-02-13	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Loss	Max Baer	TKO	10 (15), 1:51	1933-06-08	Bronx, New York, United States	The fight was in front of a crowd of 53,000 (with another 3,300 with passes). Including Jack Sharkey and Primo Carnera, paid $239,676.07 to assure a fair profit for Jack Dempsey in his first big promotional venture. This was Ring Magazine's 1933 Fight of the Year.
Win	Mickey Walker	TKO	8 (15), ?:??	1932-09-26	Long Island City, Queens, New York, United States	Schmeling scored a knockdown late in the first round. He then allowed Walker to lead for several rounds, while he counter punched. Schmeling scored two more knockdowns in the eighth round.
Loss	Jack Sharkey	SD	15 (15)	1932-06-21	Long Island City, Queens, New York, United States	Rematch. This was Schmeling's second defense of his NBA World heavyweight championship. As a result of the controversial decision of this bout, the NYSAC barred all but "boxing experts" (sports writers, referees, judges) from broadcasting descriptions of future matches.
Win	Young Stribling	TKO	15 (15), ?:??	1931-07-03	Cleveland, Ohio, United States	The fight was Schmeling's first defense of his newly awarded NBA World heavyweight championship. In January 1931 the NYSAC striped Schmeling of his title for failing to sign rematch with Sharkey.
Win	Jack Sharkey	DQ	4 (15), 2:55	1930-06-12	Bronx, New York, United States	The fight was for the vacant NYSAC World heavyweight and vacant NBA World heavyweight titles. Sharkey was disqualified because of a low blow. The fight had an attendance of 79,222. Notable personalities in attendance of the fight included Jimmy Walker, Walter Percy Chrysler, Ernst Lubitsch, Josef von Sternberg, Marlene Dietrich, Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney, Paolino Uzcudun, and Johnny Risko.
Win	Paulino Uzcudun	PTS	15 (15)	1929-06-27	Bronx, New York, United States	The fight had 40,000 people in attendance. Schmeling injured his right hand in the 5th round.
Win	Johnny Risko	TKO	9 (15), ?:??	1929-02-01	New York, New York, United States	This was Ring Magazine's 1929 Fight of the Year. Schmeling dropped Risko in rounds 1, 7, 8, and 9, each time with a right hand.
Win	Pietro Corri	KO	1 (10), ?:??	1929-01-21	Newark, New Jersey, United States
Win	Joe Sekyra	PTS	10 (10)	1929-01-04	New York, New York, United States
Win	Joe Monte	KO	8 (10), ?:??	1928-11-23	New York, New York, United States
Win	Franz Diener	PTS	15 (15)	1928-04-04	Berlin, Germany	The fight was a defense of the German BDB heavyweight title.
Win	Ted Moore	PTS	10 (10)	1928-03-11	Dortmund, Germany
Loss	Gipsy Daniels	KO	1 (10), ?:??	1928-02-25	Frankfurt, Germany	Rematch.
Win	Michele Bonaglia	KO	1 (15), 2:31	1928-01-06	Berlin, Germany	This was a title defense of the EBU light heavyweight title.
Win	Gipsy Daniels	PTS	10 (10)	1927-12-02	Berlin, Germany
Win	Hein Domgorgen	KO	7 (15), ?:??	1927-11-06	Leipzig, Germany	The fight was for the EBU (European) light heavyweight and German BDB light heavyweight titles.
Win	Louis Clement	KO	6 (?), ?:??	1927-10-02	Dortmund, Germany
Win	Robert Larsen	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1927-09-02	Berlin, Germany	Rematch.
Win	Willem Westbroek	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1927-08-07	Essen, Germany
Win	Jack Taylor	PTS	10 (10)	1927-07-13	Hamburg, Germany	Rematch.
Win	Fernand Delarge	KO	14 (15), ?:??	1927-06-19	Dortmund, Germany
Win	Raoul Paillaux	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1927-05-17	Frankfurt, Germany
Win	Robert Larsen	PTS	10 (10)	1927-05-07	Frankfurt, Germany
Win	Stanley Glen	KO	1 (?), ?:??	1927-04-26	Hamburg, Germany
Win	Francois Charles	KO	8 (?), ?:??	1927-04-08	Berlin, Germany
Win	Leon Sebilo	KO	2 (?), ?:??	1927-03-12	Dortmund, Germany
Win	Joe Mehling	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1927-02-04	Dresden, Germany
Win	Louis Wilms	TKO	8 (?), ?:??	1927-01-23	Wrocław, Poland
Win	Jack Stanley	KO	8 (?), ?:??	1927-01-07	Berlin, Germany
Win	Herman van't Hof	DQ	8 (?), ?:??	1926-10-01	Berlin, Germany	Van't Hof was disqualified for kidney-punching.
Win	Max Diekmann	TKO	1 (12), 0:30	1926-08-24	Berlin, Germany	The fight was for the German BDB light heavyweight title. This was Schmeling's third fight with Diekmann.
Win	August Vongehr	TKO	1 (4), ?:??	1926-07-13	Berlin, Germany
Win	Willy Louis	KO	1 (?), ?:??	1926-03-19	Cologne, Germany	Rematch.
Draw	Max Diekmann	PTS	8 (8)	1926-02-12	Berlin, Germany	Rematch.
Win	Rene Compere	PTS	8 (8)	1925-11-08	Cologne, Germany
Loss	Larry Gains	TKO	2 (?), ?:??	1925-09-01	Cologne, Germany
Draw	Leon Randol	PTS	10 (10)	1925-06-13	Brussels, Belgium	Rematch.
Loss	Jack Taylor	PTS	10 (10)	1925-05-09	Cologne, Germany
Win	Fred Hammer	PTS	8 (8)	1925-04-28	Bonn, Germany	Rematch.
Draw	Jimmy Lyggett	PTS	8 (8)	1925-04-03	Berlin, Germany	Rematch.
Win	Alfred Baker	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1925-03-15	Cologne, Germany
Win	Leon Randol	KO	4 (?), ?:??	1925-03-01	Cologne, Germany
Win	Joe Mehling	PTS	6 (6)	1925-01-20	Berlin, Germany
Win	Johnny Cludts	KO	2 (?), ?:??	1925-01-18	Cologne, Germany
Win	Jimmy Lyggett	TKO	4 (?), ?:??	1924-12-26	Cologne, Germany
Win	Helmuth Hartig	KO	1 (?), ?:??	1924-12-17	Berlin, Germany
Win	Battling Mathar	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1924-12-07	Düsseldorf, Germany	Mathar was from Martinique, an overseas department of France.
Win	Hans Breuer	KO	2 (?), ?:??	1924-12-04	Cologne, Germany
Win	Fred Hammer	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1924-10-31	Cologne, Germany
Loss	Max Diekmann	TKO	4 (?), ?:??	1924-10-10	Berlin, Germany
Win	Rocky Knight	PTS	8 (8)	1924-10-04	Cologne, Germany
Win	Henri van der Vyver	KO	3 (?), ?:??	1924-09-22	Düsseldorf, Germany
Win	Willy Louis	KO	1 (?), ?:??	1924-09-20	Duisburg, Germany
Win	Hans Czapp	KO	6 (?), ?:??	1924-08-02	Düsseldorf, Germany	Schmeling's professional debut.

References

↑ "Max Schmeling - Auschwitz.dk". http://www.auschwitz.dk/schmeling.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-11.
↑ "Max Schmeling - NNDB.com". http://www.nndb.com/people/245/000027164/. Retrieved 2008-06-11.
↑ July 3, 1988 - No Knockout Of Broadcast LEAD: To the Sports Editor: The Title Fight That Was Bigger Than Boxing (The Times, June 19) was of great interest to me. You write, Part of the postfight lore . . . is that the German broadcast of the bout was cut off before the fight ended. It was not. As 13-year-old students at the Jewish boarding school Internat Hirsch at Coburg, Germany, and interested in heavyweight boxing, we asked to be awakened at 1 A.M. that day to hear the fight. Some of the kids missed it because it was over before they got to the radio. I have never forgotten the German announcer's plea: Get up, get up Maxie, please get up - oh no, oh no - stay down - it's over! Weeks before, the German newspapers showed pictures of Louis's right thumb as being overly long as well as other statistics to imply unfair advantage over Schmeling. We applauded Louis's victory as a ray of hope for us. We had grown up among Nazi pomp and muscle flexing, witnessing repeated accommodations of the West to Hitler and almost believing that they were unbeatable and that all others - including ourselves -were as inferior and weak as they wanted us to believe. LUDWIG (LARRY) STEIN Chappaqua, N.Y.
↑ Sam Andre and Nat Fleischer, A Pictorial History of Boxing, Hamlyn, 1975
↑ Margolick, David (2005-10-02). "In Germany, Selective Memories of Schmeling". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/02/sports/othersports/02schmeling.htm. Retrieved 2010-04-05.
↑ http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/fight/peopleevents/p_schmeling.html
↑ Midegette, Anne, "Inspired by Joe Louis, opera 'Shadowboxer' scores one for reality", Washington Post, 17 April 2010

External links

East Side Boxing article on Max Schmeling
'The Mirror and Max Schmeling,' obituary (American Spectator)
Professional boxing record for Max Schmeling from BoxRec
PBS biography of Max Schmeling
BBC obituary for Max Schmeling
NPR memorial (with audio)
The Fight of the Century NPR special on the selection of the radio broadcast to the 2005 National Recording Registry
Max Schmeling on the Hindenburg

Sporting positions
Preceded by Vacated by Gene Tunney	World Heavyweight Champion 1930–1932	Succeeded by Jack Sharkey

Persondata
Name	Schmeling, Max
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1905-09-28
Place of birth	Klein Luckow, German Empire
Date of death	2005-02-02
Place of death	Wenzendorf, Germany