Jacobs Beach
The Mob, the Garden, and the Golden Age of Boxing
Published on 7. July 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-0-224-07509-1 (ISBN)
Description
Gangsters have been around boxing for ever. When boxing took hold in Madison Square Garden just after the First World War, a new wave of criminals moved in: the Mob. It was then that Prohibition gave street legitimacy to organised crime right across America; and by the time Joe Louis arrived to breathe excitement through a country ravaged by the Great Depression, the wise guys were firmly entrenched at ringside. Mike Jacobs, the grizzled boss of boxing at the Garden for nearly twenty years, made the Brown Bomber the biggest sports star in the world, and a string of romantic writers ensured this would be remembered as the fight game's golden age. They mingled with underworld heavies along a strip of New York pavement near the Garden known only as Jacobs Beach.
Kevin Mitchell's gripping book is the unsanitised story of those times and that place, of Rat Pack cool and the fading of the Mob's peculiar glamour, brilliantly told through the eyes of the men who were there.
Kevin Mitchell's gripping book is the unsanitised story of those times and that place, of Rat Pack cool and the fading of the Mob's peculiar glamour, brilliantly told through the eyes of the men who were there.
Reviews / Votes
As punchy as the matches. Wonderfully evocative * Sunday Telegraph * A tour de force of reportage and research by an author who really knows his stuff * Independent on Sunday * Mitchell tells a vivid, gripping and very different fairytale of New York with verve and skill * Observer * This is Mitchell's natural territory ... he is the connoisseur of both the dark and glorious sides of the ring game * Daily Telegraph * A cigar-chomping read * Wall Street Journal * Despite not being a particular fan of the sport of boxing, Kevin Mitchell's compelling knowledge of the personalities involved in the fight game in the 20th century, coupled with a staccato writing style got my attention quickly and kept it to the very last page... Overall a really high recommendation as one of my favourite sports books for some time' * thebookbag.com * 'It's an enthralling, eye-opening read, even for those with no interest in the sport' * Timeout.com * Lurid and fascinating tale of the powers behind the scenes in New York, then capital of the boxing world. * The Review *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Vintage Publishing
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
383 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-224-07509-1 (9780224075091)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
11/2011
1st Edition
Vintage Digital
€12.99
Available for download
Person
Kevin Mitchell is the boxing and tennis correspondent for the Observer and Guardian. He is the author of War, Baby, which was shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year, and the co-author of Frank Bruno's autobiography Frank, which won the Best Autobiography category of the British Sports Book Awards.