In a tribute to the champ stands a statue of the great Joe Louis chiseled from Carrara marble in Ceasar's Palace. It is the same stone Michelangelo used to carve his famous “Pieta.” The alabaster likeness of boxing’s Brown Bomber is one of the biggest conversation pieces on the property, and it moves around the property. You never where you will find it!
It stands 7 1/2-feet tall, about a foot and a half taller than the man himself. But then, that is as it should be — Joe Louis, larger than life. Louis, considered one of the greatest, if not the greatest, heavyweight champion of all time. Louis was the son of an Alabama sharecropper; rose to stardom in a segregated America more than a decade before Jackie Robinson would break baseball’s color barrier.
Louis enlisted in the Army at the prime of his career and the height of his popularity. He spent nearly five years fighting exhibitions, entertaining the troops and becoming Uncle Sam’s biggest ambassador. He even donated entire purses from two of his championship defenses to the war effort. Incredibly, after being honorably discharged from the Army, Louis was relentlessly pursued by the Internal Revenue Service for back taxes. He was forced to fight well beyond his prime and even launch a pride-swallowing career as a professional wrestler in an effort to pay off his debt. His life became a downward spiral that included drug abuse and sporadic episodes of paranoia. Ironically, it would be Las Vegas that would come to his rescue.
Ash Resnick, a rogue character from Las Vegas’ colorful past who had met Louis while the two were standing in line for their Army physicals in 1942, was a Caesars vice president when he put his old pal on the payroll as a casino host in the early 1970s.“Mr. Louis’ job was to be adored by sports fans until his death in 1981. Thanks to Las Vegas, Louis always had a little walking-around money in his pocket, a roof over his head and that familiar cowboy hat he liked to wear on top of it. Vegas loved him, and it was he had many special times there.
Joe Louis: America’s Hero ... Betrayed by some...the grandson of slaves became one of the greatest heavyweight champions of all time, served as an iconic figure during World War II, and carried himself with dignity and class through numerous setbacks. “Joe Louis had an astonishing career. Retaining numerous knockout records to this day, he was a pillar of democracy and strength in a tumultuous period.”
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