Heroes Without a Country: America's Betrayal of Joe Louis and Jesse Owens - Hardcover

McRae, Donald

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 006000228X ISBN 13: 9780060002282

Publisher: Ecco, 2003

Synopsis

"Black men look like they rule sport in America today. It was nothing like that in the 1930s. America was white and that was that. It didn't do you no good to dream of making it to the big time. It was impossible. And then, y'know, along came Jesse and along came Joe."

-- Ruth Owens, Jesse's late wife

n the summer of 1935, within weeks of each other, Joe Louis and Jesse Owens emerged as the first black superstars of world sport, and their subsequent political and social impact on America was nothing short of sensational. To fans (and even critics) the world over, they seemed larger than life, and yet in their endeavors they were unfailingly human: as vulnerable as they were courageous; as troubled as they were brilliant; as unsettled in themselves as they are now fixed in history.

Scrupulously researched and written in spare, eloquent prose, Heroes Without a Country vividly re-creates some of the most dramatic sporting events of the past century. In August 1936, in front of Hitler and an imposing phalanx of Nazi commanders, Jesse Owens, "the fastest man on earth," won an unprecedented four medals at the Olympic Games in Berlin. Two years later, in "the fight of the century," his great friend Joe Louis crushed Germany's Max Schmeling to signal the end of white supremacy in boxing. Like Jesse, Joe had been born to black sharecropping parents in a country demeaned by racism; together their victories became a rallying point for the disenfranchised black population of America. Idolized across the world, they were two young men at the pinnacle of their careers who overcame prejudice and fear to achieve their goals. Yet for both of them, success brought its own perils. In 1938, two years after winning his gold medals in Berlin, Owens was hounded out of amateur sports by the infamously tyrannical Olympic boss "Slavery Avery" Brundage and, facing financial ruin, he was reduced to running for money against dogs, horses, and even his friend Joe Louis. Later the two would be subjected to FBI investigations, harassed by the IRS, and beleaguered by debt and despair. Jesse watched Joe slip into drug addiction and mental illness.

In Heroes Without a Country, award-winning writer Donald McRae captures the uncanny coincidences and intertwined events that bound these men together -- through both triumph and tragedy -- and provides an intimate and thought-provoking dual portrait of two of the most important athletes of the twentieth century.

About this title

About the Author:

Donald McRae is the acclaimed author of five nonfiction books, including Every Second Counts: The Race to Transplant the First Human Heart and Heroes Without a Country: America's Betrayal of Joe Louis and Jesse Owens. He is the only writer to have won the William Hill UK Sports Book of the Year Award twice. In 2005 he was named Feature Writer of the Year for his work in The Guardian. McRae lives near London with his family.

From Publishers Weekly:

After learning that the Olympic track star Jesse Owens once raced against the legendary heavyweight champion Joe Louis, McRae, a freelance writer living in London, set out to find what prompted such an unlikely pairing and to trace the arc of the two men's lives. The result of McRae's research is a powerful and moving story that documents how these two black stars struggled to reconcile their fame and success in the sporting arena to the discrimination faced by black Americans across most parts of the country. The answer to why Owens raced Louis is simple-Owens needed the money and Louis was more than willing to help out his friend. After refusing to continue a barnstorming tour following the 1936 Olympics, Owens was banned from continuing his track-and-field career as an amateur and turned to other ways to cash in on his notoriety. Following the collapse of several promising ventures, Owens took to racing horses and working at other odd jobs. Louis had no problem earning money as a professional fighter, but he had trouble keeping it. He spent freely, paid large sums to his promoters and handlers, and ended up owing the IRS millions in back taxes. Despite their money woes (Owens's financial situation improved over the years), the men slowly worked to break down racial barriers, and for that they held a special place in the hearts of most black Americans. McRae evinces a deep appreciation for the burdens fame bestowed on Owens and Louis and shines a well-deserved spotlight on two of the most prominent Americans of the 20th century.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Ecco
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 006000228X
• ISBN 13: 9780060002282
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 400