I Am Joe Frazier (2025)

[bunniefuu]

Hey, Joe?

What's the highlight

of your career?

There's a lot of things in

in my life that

the whole world

just they don't know

'cause I never sit

down and tell 'em.

Mom and Dad had probably

15 (kids) together.

Out of all of them, I

was the youngest one.

I knocked my arm out of place

when I was a little boy.

My Mom said, "Listen, you

go down to the pen..."

"Feed the hog, do

not tease him."

"Yes, ma'am."

When I went down to feed the hog

I started teasing him.

He was a big old bull,

man, he was that high

and he jumped on the fence.

He couldn't run

no faster than me

I took away from him, but

when I tripped and hit the brick

the brick took the

arm out of place.

And back in them days

Mom and Dad didn't have the

finance.

My Dad didn't have the love.

You know how you

spell love, right?

M-O-N-E-Y

I grew up with a bad arm,

but that never stopped me.

Come home in the evening

I had 30 minutes

to punch the bag.

It was like a daily recitation.

So I decided I'd

find a better way

for Mom and Dad.

I tell them, "One of these days, I'm

gonna build y'all whatever you want."

"I'm gonna be champion

of the world."

I couldn't understand why

we had different schools.

I couldn't ride the bus.

I had to get out of town. at

certain times during the day.

We had problems, you know

racial problems, you know

with my white brothers.

I never could understand why

because we all had the same arm

the same leg

some of them

shorter than others.

I was borrowing cars

that wasn't mine

and didn't bring it back.

I had to leave

because that wasn't gonna work

being a thief.

I lived with an aunt

she was like a maid

and my uncle, who was here

his name was Cadillac.

Mr. Yank Durham, God bless him.

I didn't go anywhere

without him.

I had all knockouts before I

went to the (Olympic) tryout.

I'm telling my

family and my friends

"Hey, I'm gonna beat 'em all."

I didn't think

Mathis won the fight

but he got it anyway, so

I came back with a little

tear dripping down.

Tokyo was like a whole

different world altogether.

The second to last guy

he was 231 pounds

of nothing but muscle and bone.

I said come on with it.

I dropped him two times

third time they didn't

let him come back out

and that's where I

bust up the thumb then.

Put some hot water

some salt

and sugar

an old remedy that Mom used

to give me and Dad, you know.

Nobody won the

gold medal but me.

It was a great thrill

to know that

I saved America.

Time was real bad

I didn't have a job.

I was working at

the slaughterhouse

and then I got laid off.

Well I was going blind in '64

when I came back from the Games.

Blind and broke wasn't no fun.

That one particular fight

I didn't like the

way I performed.

He could punch.

He was trying to get

that third knockdown

with a push and a shove.

Because he knew if he

pushed me down a third time

they were gonna stop the fight.

He said he was the greatest.

Nobody could beat him.

I came outta Mama like this.

I wanna shut him down!

I hit him with everything and

he just wouldn't fall, man.

He was a tough guy.

He said, "You got my title."

I said, "I ain't

got your title."

I didn't take it away from you.

You know what happened.

You didn't fulfill

your responsibility.

"That's why you lost the title."

He said, "Joe Frazier, I

need to go to New York."

I said, "Alright. I'll

take you to New York."

I put him in my car.

I took him to New York.

We got to start talking.

He said he didn't

have enough money.

I can't remember what it was

five hundred dollars

two hundred dollars

three hundred dollars

but I gave him some money.

We go into New York

he got out of the car

"Joe Frazier

got my title.

"I want my title!"

Man, come on man.

Give me a break, I brought you.

"That's Joe Frazier!"

Take it easy, man.

We'll get the contract together.

Just chill out, you

know what I mean?

I helped him with a

lot of things that

most people, they wouldn't do.

We went to the President

of the United States.

President Nixon.

"Mr, President, for me, would

you give Muhammad his license?"

He says, "Joe, do you

think you can take him?"

"I believe I can take him."

He was the champion

of the world.

But, therefore

if you ain't got something

right to say to me

then you better

keep being quiet.

'Cause I'm gonna

peel off and hit you.

Joe Frazier, you's a Tom!

Tom?

I ain't no Peepin' Tom,

what you talking about?

I ain't peeped in

nobody's window.

I was there to get the job done.

I can't let the people down.

Some of the shots

that I hit him with

they would knock down buildings.

I went back to the corner.

I said, "Yank?"

"What's wrong with this guy, man,

I'm hitting him with all I've got?"

"Just go right back where

you left off from...

Them body shots, he will

fall after a while."

I caught him coming

out of the corner.

He was going to my left.

I caught him with a

hook, on a ricochet.

Boom!

If the ropes wasn't there, he

would fall out of the ring.

I throw two left hooks at him.

Second one was on the chin.

Bang!

If I didn't dust him off, he

might have got the decision.

But he got hurt

in the third round

eleventh round

and every round.

Every round he got

hurt, trust me.

I feel like I did, let's

say, a blessing to the world.

I know what the people

would like to know

Why I went to the hospital.

I used to go to the doctor

every day after training

make sure that the

blood pressure is right.

I'd take a handful of

pills, you know what I mean?

Hey, babe, what's happening?

What's happening?

My dad was a hard working man.

He drove the farm bus

to pick up the

workers in the fields

where they were all ladies.

So Dad had control

of all the females.

Wich Mom didn't like

that, you know, but

that was my daddy.

I keep getting up every time he

knocked me down. He got mad one time

"Joe, why don't you stay down?"

"Why don't you stay down there, man?

I'm tired of knocking you down."

It wasn't no fight.

The guy just came

and took me out.

He was much too powerful for me.

The problem was that we were trying to

find a referee to break up that mugging

around my neck

with his left hand.

I thought George was gonna

catch him a little earlier.

The guys that fought Muhammad

they let him have his way.

Let him move when he wanted

throw punched when he wanted.

No.

No.

Muhammad stayed at the palace

and I stayed at the hotel.

I wasn't into politics, no.

I was into sports

being a champion and

getting the job done.

My right eye got closed

the left eye I

couldn't see out of.

He said, "Now let's call

it." "I told him, "No."

He said, "No, wait

a minute now."

"Don't do my job."

I said, "All right."

I heard that Muhammad wasn't

going to get up off the stool

but that's not my corner

and I wasn't over

there to see that.

I'm not mad about it

because I can see

I can walk, I can talk,

I can have a good time.

My working is always forward.

I don't know how to back up. That's

the only way I know how to fight.

I was blind in this eye here.

I wear two contact lenses now.

I tried to move for a while

but then he knocked

the lens out.

The only thing I did wrong was

sign that contract two times.

That was the wrong

thing I did, okay?

I sit down and teach these guys.

I'm not gonna be afraid to go and

tell them what's wrong with it.

'Cause I've been there.

But that's the name of the game

win.

Yeah, well, he knows I

wasn't going to back down.

Yeah, that's for sure.

I'm not gonna start fighting.

I'll just go over and say

"Hello, man." You know.

He's handicapped, I'll

help him cross the street.

I'll stop the trucks.

I want the guy to

enjoy life like me.

Enjoy some of the

things that he missed.

I've learned to put

a cover over my mouth

by saying things

that I shouldn't say.

A few of them slip out.

I'm here talking to you.

My mind's all together

my eyes all together

my brain's all together.

The fight game,

nothing but the best.

The fight game has

been good to me.

I've met a lot of people

I've been a lot of places

I've done a lot of things, and

where would I be if

I wasn't a champion?

Fightin' is...

Fightin' is my love.