It's So Hard To Be A Saint In The City
This piece was originally published in the January 1989 issue of the long-defunct PhillySport Magazine. It is reprinted here with permission of the author.
The Greatest Writing About The Greatest
Muhammad Ali, the greatest athlete of the 20th century, was to writers of his time what the Madonna and Child were to painters of the Renaissance. Everyone took a crack at Ali. Here at The Stacks, we’re been honored to curate Ali stories that previously weren’t available online. Our collection makes up but a small…
The Only Book You’ll Ever Need to Read About The Rolling Stones
Rich Cohen writes books that are hard to put down. From Tough Jews and The Record Men to his hilarious memoir, Sweet and Low: A Family Story, to the boss appreciation of the 1985 Chicago Bears, Cohen is smart, funny, and above all, entertaining. His latest combines memoir, critical and social analysis and good,…
The Time Hunter S. Thompson Passed Out In A Pool And Missed The Rumble In The Jungle
The classic 1974 Ali-Foreman fight in Zaire attracted, among other things, famous writers like Norman Mailer and George Plimpton and even ol’ Hunter Thompson. But while Mailer and Plimpton and the rest of the world marveled at Ali’s command performance, Thompson, well, he experienced the fight as only he could.…
How Rocky Graziano Became Boxing's Greatest Muse
In the late 1940s, a young Nebraskan actor named Marlon Brando had been starring for several months in A Streetcar Named Desire on Broadway when he was contracted to play a fighter in a TV pilot, Come Out Fighting! For the role, Brando decided to secretly study the famous New York tough guy with the hoodlum backstory,…
If You Never Liked Once Upon A Time In America, Give The Director's Cut A Chance
Michael Sragow’s review of the director’s cut of Once Upon a Time in America appeared in the March 5, 1985 edition of The Boston Phoenix and appears here with the author’s permission.
My Quest To Fight Muhammad Ali, The Man Who Saved Me
Excerpted from Davis Miller’s new book Approaching Ali: A Reclamation in Three Acts (W.W. Norton). Be sure to read Miller’s other famous story about his relationship with Ali right here.
The First Three Rocky Movies Were Nothing But White Wish Fulfillment
This piece originally appeared in the August, 1982 issue of Film Comment. It is reprinted here with permission.
The Legend of Swee' Pea
Benjamin May’s documentary about Llyod Daniels—executive produced by Carmelo Anthony—will play tomorrow night at DOC: NYC tomorrow night, November 19th.
College Football Is My Terrible Boyfriend
Excerpted from Diane Roberts’s new book, Tribal: College Football and the Secret Heart of America, now on sale.
A Q&A With One Of The Best Sports Photographers To Ever Do It
The good people at Taschen have decided to show us more of sports photographer Neil Leifer’s work, and this is a very good thing. We’re in the thick of football season now, and I can think of no finer accompaniment than Leifer’s collection, Guts & Glory: The Golden Age of American Football, which tracks the NFL’s rise…
New York State of Mind
Mugged, mugging. I remember hearing those words all the time growing up. Always aware that it could happen, that it would happen. When it did, getting mugged didn’t mean you’d be killed, just that someone would take your shit, probably beat you up, too.
Lucky Strike: On The Road With Vic Ziegel
Vic Ziegel got around. His career in journalism spanned more than 40 years. Vic worked at the New York Post, New York Daily News and New York Magazine. He also contributed to Rolling Stone and Inside Sports and co-wrote a funny book with Lew Grossberger called The Non-Runner’s Book. He was, at various times, a…
Dusty Baker Once Smoked A Joint With Jimi Hendrix
Dusty Baker, who you probably best know (somewhat unfairly) as the author of many befuddling managerial decisions, wasn’t necessarily destined for a career in baseball. His first love was actually music, and now he’s written a memoir of attending the infamous 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, which featured a disgustingly…
The Story Behind Bob Beamon's Miracle Jump And The Only Photo That Mattered
The man who took one of the most famous photos in Olympic history wasn’t a professional photographer. Tony Duffy was on vacation at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, and with nothing more than an amateur’s bravado, he casually wandered into the Athletes’ Village—which should have been off limits to him—and first heard…
The Storm Inside Reggie Jackson
This piece was first published in the July, 1977 issue of Esquire. It is reprinted here with permission. Also be sure to check out the other Jackson profile, written the same year, that we republished in March.
The Elmore Leonard Starter Kit
One of the coolest things about Elmore Leonard’s crime fiction is that he didn’t get to it until he was close to 50 years old and had been a professional writer for more than 20. His books pared away anything unnecessary with the ruthless good cheer of a steely veteran with little patience for wasting time.
Walter Matthau Was Addicted To Losing
A Siegel Film, Don Siegel’s account of his life as a film director is an entertaining and instructive guide to making movies. I especially like the section about Siegel’s experience working with Walter Matthau on Charley Varrick.
