Tommy Farr W12 Max Baer Max Baer W15 Tommy Farr Does anyone know if these fights exist on film ? Anyone seen them or know much about them ? I've read Baer was impressive in the second fight. Also, he fought South African Ben Foord in London a few weeks after losing that first one to Farr, and apparently Baer was all business against Foord, boxed well too. Anyone know if that was filmed ? Tommy Farr has impressed me on film in other fights. I think he was one of the very best heavyweights of the 30s, and definitely among the top 4 or 5 British heavyweights ever.
Funny you should ask about Baer films. Since I got involved in that Baer-Carnera debate a few days ago, I've been downloading Baer fights off YouTube. The ones that are available there are Baer-Carnera, Louis-Baer, Braddock-Baer, Baer-Galento (highlights) and both Lou Nova fights. Of course, this doesn't mean that there are not Farr films available, just not on this source. I try to see whatever Baer fights I can, and I can't recall ever seeing the Farr fights on the internet, ESPN or elsewhere. Doesn't mean they don't exist, but if they do, I haven't run across 'em, and I'm - obviously - a big fan.
Yeah, I'm hoping they are out there somewhere. Some of the fights filmed in England at the time might end up in different archives. Baer-Comiskey is on film, that's a good one. 1st round KO. I swear I've seen other Baer KOs somewhere on a documentary some time ago, but my memory isn't reliable. A guy who fought so many fights and exhibitions and who was so "Hollywood" and theatrical is an age of film cameras, I wouldn't be surprised if there's a lot of odd footage in different places. I'm starting to think perhaps I've been underrating Baer. His strength and power, granite chin and heavy-handedness make him a formidable force to reckon with. Nevermind his contempt for ordinary boxing skills, he's not the only champ who that's true of. His lack of hunger in some fights is a problem though, but he looks like a warrior elsewhere (against Nova, for example). I'd definitely rate him as the second-best of the 1930s.
This has been my opinion for a long time. When I was first reading about the pre-Louis era, years ago, writers tended to disparage the guys of that period greatly. Now outside of Baer and Schmeling, I don't think any of them were really THAT good - but Baer and Schmeling, imo, would have been competitive in any era. Baer, particularly, if he had dedicated himself to the sport. Baer is an intriguing figure, in part because of his quirkly personality, but also because he is, imo, the biggest waste of potential in the history of the HW division, imo. Not only do I think that Baer was the second best HW of the 30s, I think that if he had dedicated himself to the sport, I think he would have clearly emerged as Joe Louis' clear rival for supremacy, and we might be talking about a classic series of Louis-Baer fights, where Baer may have had a victory, or even to. Of course, this is all speculation - I agree with you that, even as things are, he's the second-best of the era, and that's the way I think he was regarded at the time. We look at the Louis-Baer fight as a blowout, but, going in, that's not the way it was perceived at the time. ---------------- BTW, I think You tube has the Comiskey KO on a reel entitled "Max Baer's Greatest Hits."
In a recent edition of THE RING they have a 1938 issue featured in that section they do looking back on previous issues. Max Baer is on the cover, and its about him looking on form again to fight Louis and perhaps regain the title, this came after he had beaten Farr impressivelty. So, even after Louis-Baer of 1935, the writers of the time weren't writing Baer off as "no threat". Of course, it could be said that boxing writers are not always realistic, and often build guys up as something they're not, but I can partially see the reasoning in this case. Since Louis had KO'd Baer he had been KO'd' by Schmeling, and it is commonly accepted that Baer hit harder than Schmeling. Also, it was generally thought that Baer under-performed and quit against Louis, and a more mature Maxie might put up a better fight. Plus the fact that Max always looked like RAW potential and could improve if he bothered to box a bit. Still, this was a few months before Louis destroyed Max Schmeling in 1 round which I think might have put things into perspective a bit more readily. And then Baer's career went south again with untidy fights and the first loss to Nova. Baer AND Schmeling have been underrated, IMO. I dont know about Baer's potential to rival Joe Louis had he applied himself. But I'm fairly sure Schmeling (and esp.) Baer would have been stand-out fighters from 1935-40 if not for the presence of Joe Louis. Baer would have been favoured to regain the title from Braddock, that's for sure.
Baer did get his act together late in his career and put together some solid wins gaining the No1 ranking again before Nova stopped him. There was no clowning in these fights and a lot more boxing ability displayed. It is almost as if he grew wise too late.
Hey a thread with all my favorite-est forum dudes participating !! On my site (viewable only in Firefox sorry, anybody know java ?) I have: "Highlights" of Baer-Foord. Grainy as f&ck and more slapstick than anything, especially Max's hugs and kisses of Ben on the canvas ! "Highlights" of Baer-Farr II. http://www.maxbaer.org/clips.html Also, Sonny, while they wrote of it with a grain of salt, the press absolutely did not write Baer off. He was #1 contender for Louis' title on 2 occasions. I write about his "#1" years in detail about midway down at: http://www.maxbaer.org/theman.html Finally, I thought you'd all get a kick out of this 1937 article about the 1st Baer-Farr bout. Lots of laughs !! 04.16.1937 Oakland Tribune Art Cohn THAT BRITISH BROADCAHST Tardy development of television robbed the American public of seeing the Baer-Farr "struggle." There was some compensation, however; for the radio enabled us to hear it and a brisk wind across the Atlantic Ocean allowed us to smell it. "There Baer stands like a lighthouse !" shouted the British announcer twice. The Englishman ended the remark there. An American announcer would have added, "Yeh, like a lighthouse...on the rocks and in the fog !" Exactly eleven times the announcer reported, "Baer is hitching up his trousers again." They must have been up around his ears at the finish. It would have been far better broadcast if Baer had been at the microphone...and a far better fight if the British announcer had been in the ring. Every few minutes, weary of the still-life tableaux before him the British announcer lapsed into a soliloquy. Once he spouted, "Baer cannot seem to rekindle the fires that were once his." Apparently referring to the candles Max used to burn at both ends. In the most exciting exchange of the terrific "slaughter" the announcer, obviously under great emotional stress, exclaimed, "Heah we go...Baer leads with his nose...There go three lovely lefts—Flicker ! Flicker ! Flicker ! Baer has a load of mischief on his nose." As I left the radio, weak and wan, a fellow remarked, "Are you going to write about this broadcast?" . . . "Perhaps." I said . . . "Do you mean to say your column will be written in English tomorrow?" that heckler gagged. English Last to See Joke At least, Baer beat someone. The King of England. George must wait a few weeks for his Coronation; Max was crowned yesterday. Personally, I thought there was more fight in the last broadcast I heard from Lunnon. That's when King Edward abdicated. It had Max's abdication skinned a mile. Yet, yesterday's broadcast should serve as a model for America's hysterical fight announcers. It ended, appropriately, with Farr's followers from Wales lifting their voices in Welsh folk songs. My constituents will recall that I warned 'em of this outburst Monday . There are a few phrase's that should be preserved for posterity. Such as: "Baer is behaving admirably...Baer flickers with a distance feelah...Baer is still handsome, pensive...Not the truculent battler of old he looks with reproof as Farr attempts to strangle him...Baer's eye is bleeding nicely, now...Farr is fighting a lovely fight. He is winning by pure English boxing, a left hand and dancing away . . . Farr is saying to himself, 'Baer is just a man and I can defeat any mere man.' ... It is a sort of a ping-pong .. Baer is menacing with his right. It's a lovely fight." That's the story. Baer, as ever, was just "menacing." Now everyone knows why Baer took a powder on Bob Pastor. What does that make of Bill Brown and Arthur Donovan? Both of whom owe the public an apology. For minimizing Baer's worth. There ought to be a law preventing fellers like Bill and Arthur going around making molehills out of mountains. Such as calling one man two bums. So it's back to the "white-faced" cattle for Max. The British, as ever, were the last to see the Joke.
