THE ROAR OF THE CROWD: The True Tale of the Rise and Fall of a Champion.

First edition, first printing. Signed by the author. Publisher's original green cloth with gilt titles to the spine and upper board. Illustrated throughout with black and white frontispiece and 15 photographic plates. A very good or better copy, the binding square, with bumping, rubbing and fraying to the spine ends and corners. The contents, with a previous owner's bookplate to the front pastedown, some cracking to the gutter between pages 208 and 209 and a small crack to the front hinge, are a little spotted to the early and late pages and occasionally throughout.

Signed and inscribed by the author in dark blue ink "To / My dear friend / Walter Smith / with warmest regards / from / Jas J Corbett / Bayside, N. Y. / June 11 / 28". The autobiography of American heavyweight boxer James J Corbett, known in the media as 'Gentleman Jim', who became heavyweight champion after beating John L. Sullivan on September 7th 1892 and was considered one of the forerunners of modern boxing. The recipient, Walter 'Red' Smith, having recently graduated in 1927, worked as a reporter for the Milwaukee Sentinel and went on to become one of America's most popular sportswriter's, working for The New York Herald Tribune and The New York Times. In 1976, whilst working for The New York Times, he became the first sportswriter to win the Pultizer Prize for Commentary.