Joe Louis signature

	THE JOE LOUIS I REMEMBER Joe Louis was Jimmy Cannon's favorite fighter. Jimmy Cannon was Joe Louis' favorite writer.
	The truths of our youth often become falsehoods in our middle years. It is the fee we pay for being alive. We tolerate leniently the rotting of the flesh and the defeat of beauty, but it is harder to accept the decay of ideals. So I am grateful I am still able to admire Joe Louis for what he was. We were young together and he has survived in my estimation. It is because he was a symbol and a force for good, and because he is a decent man. We have a tendency in this country to praise athletes beyond their worth. It is natural because we are essentially a lighthearted people and this is an age of turbulence. It is a tribute to us that we were able to appreciate Louis. He is a simple man with little education, but the truths he uttered gave him a special radiance. Perhaps his observations were ungrammatical. But often they seemed profoundly witty because they were told with a candor that was unblemished by cleverness. I've never known him to seek the sanctuary of a lie. And I was there from the beginning.
	Jimmy Cannon-The Book Of Boxing