Knock Out!: The True Story of Emile Griffith

An intoxicating illustrated portrait of boxer Emile Griffith, an Afro-Caribbean-American bisexual athlete and one of the world’s greatest fighters

The American boxing champion Emile Griffith gained notoriety in 1962 when he brutally defeated the Cuban fighter Benny Paret. Ten days after the fight, Paret, who had directed a homophobic slur at Griffith during the weigh-in, died from his injuries.

In Knock Out!, award-winning graphic novelist Reinhard Kleist draws a powerful, emotive portrait of a bisexual Afro-Caribbean-American athlete who, facing racism and homophobia in 1960s America, found success in the world of boxing. It’s the story of a fierce and ambitious fighter, and of a knockout blow that ended one life and changed a second forever.

Reinhard Kleist lives and works as a freelance comics artist and illustrator in Berlin. His graphic novel Johnny Cash: I See a Darkness was nominated for both the Eisner and Harvey Awards. With The Boxer, Kleist became the first cartoonist to receive the German Youth Literature Prize.