 
Tponetom
Member
Username: Tponetom
Post Number: 294
Registered: 06-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, April 13, 2008 - 12:22 am: |    |
The Brown Bomber, Tponetom
1937. The Rebirth of Detroit.
My remarks, and the opinions expressed, have been gathered over a number of years from family, older friends and neighbors, and especially, many small business owners who tried to make a living during that awful decade called, the Thirties.
My only personal contribution is the simple fact that I was there and I was old enough to interpret and understand the difference between happiness and despair. The mood of the people was always an obvious bellwether.
.
The advent of the year, 1937, promised only a continuation of poverty that had paralyzed most of the nation.
In the waning months of 1936, a cataclysmic movement of the automobile workers to unionize began and if that movement failed, it promised to fulfill Thoreau's philosophical utterance, "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the desperate country,"
Happily, the movement did not fail and a very faint glimmer of light and hope peeked through the black horizon of the future days to come.
The Red Wings won the Stanley cup in the Spring of 1937.
In the Fall, Charley Gehringer won the American League Batting Championship. Charley was, and still is, without exception, the classiest ball player and gentleman, nonpareil.
There were other national and international happenings that were very sad. The Hindenburg explosion was one.
The one that devastated the whole country was the loss of Amelia Earhart.
There was, however, a catalyst that would grip the City of Detroit, like nothing else ever could.
In early summer, 1937, there was another ‘sporting' event. A boxing match. Joe Louis won the world's Heavyweight Boxing Title. Though he was born in Alabama, he has always been considered as being a Detroiter.
When Joe won the fight, he electrified the City of Detroit with prominence. It did not seem to matter very much that he was a ‘brown' man who won, but rather, he was a DETROITER! He was THE BROWN BOMBER!
New York had Madison Square Garden. So what? We had the CHAMP!
His winning did not convert any of the racists in the city, but I think it served to muzzle many of them. It did have the effect of neutralizing their emotions. You just did not ‘bad mouth' Joe, and certainly, not his great accomplishments.
Joe was a gentleman and a gentle man. He was never obtrusive. He was in the spotlight but I do not believe he hungered for it. Most of those who ‘managed' his affairs had their own motives. Of the millions of dollars that he earned, we don't know where it all went but we could guess.
The euphoria that enveloped the city did not subside. Joe did not become a flash in the pan of celebrity. We followed his career, we rooted for him and when he won another boxing match, it re-enforced our belief in him and his abilities.
With every defense of his title, the hoopla was uncontrollable. My neighborhood was mostly Italian. When Joe fought Two Ton Tony Galento, the good natured arguments about who was going to win the fight were just hilarious.
I remember one neighbor saying, "Tony is going to be slowed down with all that beer sloshing around in his belly."
Another gem was, "If Joe hits Tony in the belly, he'll never find his fist again."
Maybe it was not just the man himself that we supported. Sure, part of it was the glory of having a Detroiter as the World's Champion. Perhaps we were basking in the aura he cast where ever he went.
When Joe joined the Army, he conducted himself in an exemplary manner. The way a lot of other celebrities should have done.
So, did Joe change the economics or the politics of Detroit in 1937, ‘38, ‘39? No, he did not. Did he change the state of poverty and degradation that most of the African American communities were in? No, he did not. So what did his accomplishments do?
The combination of all of the events that I had mentioned, above, and especially, his, helped to restore resolve and courage and some small amount of optimism to the rank and file Detroiter's. That glimmer of light got a little brighter.
I will follow this post (if it gets any attention) with an analogy of conditions the way they are today. Not just in Detroit, but all over the country/
I will, once again, present my credentials to expound on the subject at hand:
LMP: ret.
(That means: Licensed Master Plumber, retired.)
What more can I offer for authenticity to speak my mind. |
Bigb23
Member
Username: Bigb23
Post Number: 1167
Registered: 11-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, April 13, 2008 - 11:32 am: | |
It's nice to remember the times when we pulled together as a community and nation, instead of politically fighting each other, friend against friend, brother against brother.
Keep them coming, Tponetom LMP(ret). |
Eriedearie
Member
Username: Eriedearie
Post Number: 1285
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, April 13, 2008 - 11:12 pm: | |
Tp - good to see you back in form! I've missed you the past couple of weeks and missed the stories you give us.
I was waiting 2 or 3 more days for you to show and then I was gonna start paging you! Hope you and yours have been well.
We await your next writing.  |
Jman
Member
Username: Jman
Post Number: 152
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Monday, April 14, 2008 - 7:13 am: | |
Sorry Tp but I disagree with your sentence "The way a lot of other celebrities should have done". In reality, celebrities came out in droves during WWII to serve in many capacities.
(Message edited by Jman on April 14, 2008) |
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