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aloe er Max" traces the dramatic real-life rivalry and unlikely lifelong

friendship between the greatest heavyweight boxing champions of their time.

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3/8

2002

74

JEWISH NEWS
CLASSIFIEDS
1 240 1 539-3001

GERRI MILLER
Special to the Jewish News

inal movie Joe and Max, premiering on
Starz! 8 p.m. Saturday, March 9.

Shooting In Germany
ven those not old enough to
"These were two men who wanted the
remember have probably
same thing: to be [world heavyweight]
heard of the boxing matches
champion. But they didn't bargain for all
pitting American heavy-
that happened to them and the burdens
weight Joe Louis against German chal-
lenger Max Schmeling in the late 1930s.
that were placed on their shoulders in
the course of doing that," says James,
Set against the escalating tensions
who was fascinated by "the idea of doing
between the United States and
Germany at the time, the momentous
a film about two guys whose lives were -
puppets to the history of the time."
sporting events took on a greater
Joe and Max was shot entirely in -
worldwide significance.
Berlin last spring at Studio Babelsberg
Louis, who grew up in Detroit,
and at such locations as Templehof
began his boxing career here and went
Airfield, where original plans to hang
on to become one of the greatest
prizefighters of all time,
was seemingly invincible,
• .
:441,1RE
• -•7
rz
until his first meeting with
•
Schmeling on June 19,
O
1936. Schmeling knocked
Louis out in the 12th
round, the "Brown
Bomber's" first loss in 28
professional matches.
Schmeling's victory was
deemed a triumph for
Adolf Hitler and his gov-
ernment.
At their June 22, 1938,
rematch at Yankee Stadium,
Louis knocked down
Schmeling in the first
round, repudiating Hitler's
claims of "Aryan superiori-
ty" and making his oppo-
nent, who repeatedly dis-
swastika flags were changed at the
avowed any ties to the Nazi Party, a Ell-
request of German production part-
en hero in his own country.
ners sensitive to the feelings of those
But the most surprising, little-
using the still-active landing strip.
known aspect of the story is that the
There was additional concern, James
two boxers formed an unlikely but
notes, over the portrayal of Adolf
lifelong friendship that transcended
Hitler. "They did not want Hitler por-
ring rivalry and the best propaganda
trayed as a screaming, crazy cartoon
efforts of their countries.
figure, the kind of image we have from
Director Steve James (Hoop Dreams)
dramatizes the parallel and intersecting [films of] the [Nazi] rallies. But at the
same time they didn't want him to
lives of Louis (Leonard Roberts) and
come off as a nice guy, either. I'm
Schmeling (Til Schweiger) in the orig-
happy with the way We showed Hitler.
It's a side that's not that familiar —
Gerri Miller is a Los Angeles-based
but just as intimidating."
freelance writer

10

Scenes depicting the anti-Jewish ter-
rorism of Kristallnacht in November
1938, in which Schmeling and his
wife hide a Jewish neighbor and his
family, were shot at Babelsberg, which
was decorated with swastika banners
and other Nazi trappings for verisimil-
itude. Ironically, Leni Reifenstahl
made propaganda movies for Hitler on
the same studio lot.

The Jewish Connection

It was all too real for David Paymer,
who plays Schmeling's Jewish manag-
er, Joe Jacobs, the son of Hungarian
Jews who had immigrated to New

•

„

• •. • •

York's Lower East Side before his
birth.
Paymer, whose mother managed to
escape Belgium but whose great-aunt
died in the Holocaust, found it "ironic
for me to shoot in Berlin and be in
this place where my ancestors were
-trying to get out. I was a little para-
noid.
"It is strange to be there. You can
feel the ghosts everywhere."
Paymer's character plays a pivotal role
in the story. "Joe Jacobs was pretty
much responsible for Schmeling's
American boxing career," says the actor.