What I have been watching lately #6-- a better documentary about Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali

Ali Frazier I: One Nation Divisible is all about the first Ali-Frazier fight in March of 1971. It's much better than Thrilla in Manila.

What I have been watching lately #5- Thrilla in Manila

 This weekend I watched the 2008 HBO documentary Thrilla in Manila. The story of the third Muhammad Ali - Joe Frazier fight from the Philippines in 1975 is so compelling that it would almost be impossible to make an unwatchable documentary about the subject. Director John Dower comes close, however-- Thrilla in Manila is little more than an 86 minute hatchet job on Ali that I found incredibly difficult to watch.

As a kid, I started following boxing in the mid-1970s, and I remember not liking Muhammad Ali-- too young to understand the social and political context in which he boxed, I saw him as a loudmouth and a bragger. I knew nothing about Ali's outspoken resistance to racism and white supremacy, his conversion to Islam, or his refusal to take part in the US war against the people of Vietnam. I almost always rooted for Ali's opponents-- especially Leon Spinks (who had the added appeal of being from my hometown of St. Louis). The only thing that gave me pause in my anti-Ali feelings was the fact that my mother, who otherwise never showed much of an interest in or opinion about professional sports, sometimes expressed admiration for Ali.

 

 I was looking forward to watching this documentary, but almost from the first minute, it became obvious that Thrilla in Manila was going to be nothing but a hate-letter to Muhammad Ali. It rehashes a bizarre set of new and old accusations in an attempt to belittle Ali-- Ali as a puppet of the Nation of Islam; Ali as a supporter of the KKK; Ali as a chronic womanizer; Ali as a supporter of Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos; and, above all, Ali as a hateful bully towards Joe Frazier. Frazier is interviewed throughout the film and clearly was bitter and angry towards Ali many years later, not just for being called an "Uncle Tom" and a "gorilla" back in the seventies, but also for the wealth and prestige that Ali has continued to enjoy in his retirement. (Frazier, in contrast, lived the last years of his life in a small apartment in the same building as the gym he ran in Philadelphia.)

The movie, however, does little to put the trash-talking by Ali against Frazier in any kind of real perspective-- to some degree it was just part of the long tradition of boxers promoting up-coming fights by pretending to hate each other, and Frazier certainly participated in that along with Ali (for more on this, see videos at the end). There's no denying, however, that the war of words between the two fighters went well beyond the usual bounds in boxing, but this film doesn't tell the whole story-- for example, that Frazier continued (like many in the US who sought to belittle Ali) to refer to his opponent as Cassius Clay even almost a decade after Ali had changed his name.

The most ugly and disturbing part of the movie actually comes early on when Joe Frazier claims that Ali's current health problems with Parkinsons are some sort of divine retribution for his name calling against Frazier. After that, it was hard to take any of it seriously, which is a genuine shame. The great Ali-Frazier rivalry desperately needs a great documentary to put it in its full context-- Thrilla in Manila is absolutely not that movie.

 

 Trailer for the film

1974 appearance by Ali and Frazier on Wide World of Sports that ends in a brawl
 

What appears to be a staged phone call between Frazier and Ali
 

Ali and Frazier on the Mike Douglas Show
 

What I have been watching lately #4 -- is Eddie LeBaron the smartest person who ever lived or merely the smartest professional athlete who ever lived?

This summer I have been watching re-runs of the 1970s television sports quiz show Sports Challenge on ESPN Classic. Sports Challenge was a game show hosted by Dick Enberg (pictured above) that featured current and former players from various professional sports teams competing against each other in a test of sports knowledge. For example, yesterday's episode featured stars of the Cleveland Indians versus stars of the Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboys were represented by two former quarterbacks -- Eddie LeBaron and Don Meredith -- and one wide receiver -- Frank Clarke. (See photo above - LeBaron is on the left) It is clear from watching the show that Eddie LeBaron is either the smartest person who ever lived or else the smartest professional athlete who ever lived. He knew almost all the answers and often answered before even hearing the entire question. His teammates, especially Don Meredith, seemed constantly amazed by his abilities.

Below: The Cowboys team has a chance to talk to special mystery guest Billy Jean King.

Eddie LeBaron played for both the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys during his career. In addition to being a football player, he also served in the military in the Korean War (see photo below) and became an attorney after retiring from the NFL. Frank Clarke also led an interesting life after football, becoming part of several alternative spiritual movements before settling down for a long career in the childcare field. Don Meredith, of course, is known by most Americans as one of the most beloved hosts of ABC's Monday Night Football.

What I have been watching lately #3

I just finished watching the movie Kelly's Heroes for the first time since I was a little kid. It features many of the most important twentieth-century American actors, including Telly Savalas, Stuart Margolin, Don Rickles, Gavin MacLeod, and Donald Sutherland. I do have the following questions, however:

• If they needed the combat engineers to build a bridge across the river, how did Kelly and his men get across the river before the engineers built the bridge?
• Why was the town completely deserted before and during the battle, but then afterwards all the people came out as if from nowhere?
• When the American soldier was ringing the church bell over and over again, why didn't any of the Germans go investigate?
• Has there ever been a movie that had so many tanks and other vehicles crashing through walls so many times?
• How did Kelly and his men get the stolen gold back to Allied lines, especially since they were driving in captured German vehicles?

Below-- the main soundtrack theme as performed by the Mike Curb Congregation.

Some people may wonder where we get our name from - now everyone will know!

I just wish this video was longer.

What I've been watching lately #2

In no particular order:

Deadliest Catch

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

The Office (both UK and US versions)

Baseball Tonight (ESPN)

Doctor Who

Star Trek: Next Generation

All of them, with the exception of The Office, are basically boring, and I should stop wasting my time.

What I've been watching lately #1

In alphabetical order:

Baseball Tonight (on ESPN)

Doctor Who

Pass Time (A game show on Speed Channel where contestants try to guess how fast various cars can go on a quarter-mile track)

Pinks (People racing to win each other's vehicles. Also on Speed Channel)

Pinks: All Out (A spin off of Pinks where they have a tournament to pick the fastest vehicle)

Premier League Fan Zone (They re-show a match from the previous weekend, but this time instead of real announcers they have the commentary done by a fan from each team)

That Premier League Review Show they show on Sunday after the matches are over. It has lots of highlights and excerpts and they always interview the managers in front of those same cardboard backgrounds. I'm not sure what it's really called.

The Sarah Jane Adventures (I apologize...)

Sportscenter (On ESPN also)