Last on his feet : Jack Johnson and the battle of the century

Author

Adrian Matejka

Call Number

• GRAPHIC NOVEL 921 J6735M (CEN, OSH)

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Edition

First edition.

Publication Information

New York, N.Y. : Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, [2023]

Physical Description

318 pages : chiefly illustrations (some color) ; 25 cm

Summary

A groundbreaking graphic portrait of boxing legend Jack Johnson, Last On His Feet offers a front-row seat to the Battle of the Century. On the morning of July 4, 1910, thousands of boxing fans stormed a newly built stadium in Reno, Nevada, to witness an epic showdown. Jack Johnson, the world's first Black heavyweight champion--and most infamous athlete in the world because of his race--was paired against Jim Jeffries, a former heavyweight champion then heralded as the "great white hope." It was the height of the Jim Crow era, and spectators were eager for Jeffries to restore the racial hierarchy that Johnson had pummeled with his quick fists. Transporting readers directly into the ring, artist Youssef Daoudi and poet Adrian Matejka intersperse dramatic boxing action with vivid flashbacks to reveal how Johnson, the self-educated son of formerly enslaved parents, reached the pinnacle of sport--all while facing down a racist justice system.

Notes

"Author's note: While this graphic novel is based on real events and includes interpretations of documented incidents and conversations, as well as other archival materials, please note that some minor changes to locations and dates have been made for narrative continuity. It is not our intention to disrespect the histories in these pages. Rather, we wanted to make this vital American story more available to twenty-first-century audiences."--Prefatory matter.