In the annals of sports boxing has produced more black champions than in any other field and yet, in the realm of fiction, where there are numerous stories of white fighters —champions or otherwise. That is, for reasons unbeknownst to me, Tarzan remains King of a jungle he never inhabited. Hence, On The Ropes, in some small way hopes to help rectify this oversight; as well as bring to the story of the ’60’s all the excitement of being up front at ringside.

I dare say, On The Ropes is singular, much as in the same way the Iceberg Slim ghetto stories are, as Raging Bull, Requiem For A Heavyweight, Body & Soul, The Fighter, and the first film in the Rocky series, steeped in the ethos of the “ring,” are singular, and will attract readers who thrilled to these movies and stories; especially those wishing to take a backward view of the counter culture of the ’60’s, which produced the music that changed the era, and gave it a beat, from Bob Dylan’s, “Like A Rolling Stone,” and Jazz giant, John Coltrane’s, “A Love Supreme,” along with protest, Civil Dis-obedience, alternative life styles, and the now legendary ’69 Woodstock Music Festival. Moreover, those who found “Native Son,” “Mama black Widow,” “The Grapes of Wrath,” “Loose Change,” “The Man Who Cried I Am,” etc., memorable in that they help define the American character will especially appreciate “On The Ropes.” In short, “On The Ropes,” is multi-factorial, takes the ’60’s to task and explodes some of the more popular myths of the day. It also reveals a nobility of spirit that was characteristic of the Black Panthers that is little told and needs be recognized no less than our “Minutemen.” Indeed, the Panthers may rightly be compared to the knights of the Round Table legend. Their successes and failures are relatively similar. The stuff of heraldry surely!