
Max Schmeling
Born
September 28, 1905
Died
February 2, 2005 (99 years old)
Known For
Acting
Place of Birth
Klein Luckow, Germany
Maximilian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling (28 September 1905 – 2 February 2005) was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in 1936 and 1938 were worldwide cultural events because of their national associations. Schmeling is the only boxer to win the world heavyweight championship on a foul.
Starting his professional career in 1924, Schmeling went to the United States in 1928 and, after a ninth-round technical knockout of Johnny Risko, became a sensation. He became the first to win the heavyweight championship (at that time vacant) by disqualification in 1930, after opponent Jack Sharkey knocked him down with a low blow in the fourth round. Schmeling retained his crown successfully in 1931 by a technical knockout victory over Young Stribling. A rematch in 1932 with Sharkey saw the American gaining the title from Schmeling by a controversial fifteen-round split decision. In 1933, Schmeling lost to Max Baer by a tenth-round technical knockout. The loss left people believing that Schmeling was past his prime. Meanwhile, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party took over control in Germany, and Schmeling, although he never joined the NSDAP, came to be viewed as a Nazi puppet. The same year, he married Czech film actress Anny Ondra.
In 1936, in their first fight Schmeling knocked out American rising star Joe Louis, placing him as the number one contender for Jim Braddock's title, but Louis got the fight and knocked Braddock out to win the championship in 1937. Schmeling finally got a chance to regain his title in 1938 in the rematch, but Louis won by technical knockout in the first round. During World War II, Schmeling served with the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) as an elite paratrooper (Fallschirmjäger). After the war, Schmeling mounted a comeback, but retired permanently in 1948. After retiring from boxing, Schmeling worked for The Coca-Cola Company. Schmeling became friends with Louis, and their friendship lasted until the latter's death in 1981. Schmeling died in 2005 aged 99, a sporting hero in his native Germany. Long after the Second World War, it was revealed that Schmeling had risked his life to save the lives of two Jewish children in 1938. At the age of 99, Schmeling was the longest living heavyweight boxing champion in history.
In 2003, Schmeling was ranked 55 on The Ring magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Anny Ondra, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For

Les Champions d'Hitler
Self
2016

Terra X History
Self (archiveFootage) · (1 episode)
2000
Hitler's Forgotten Victims
Self (achive footage)
1997

Heut' abend
Self · (1 episode)
1980
Peter Alexander: Wir gratulieren
Self · (1 episode)
1979

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Self (archive footage)
1975
Der große Preis
Self · (1 episode)
1974

Dalli Dalli
Self - Box-Experte · (1 episode)
1971
V.I.P. Schaukel
Self · (1 episode)
1971

a.k.a. Cassius Clay
Self (archive footage)
1970
Peter Alexander präsentiert Spezialitäten
Self · (1 episode)
1969
Der Sport-Spiegel
Self · (1 episode)
1963

Stars in the Ring
Self · (1 episode)
1959
Zeichen der Zeit
himself · (1 episode)
1957

The Zurich Engagement
Himself
1957

Keine Angst vor großen Tieren
Zuschauer
1953

The Century Is Fifty
Self
1950

Bambi-Verleihung
Self · (1 episode)
1948

Bambi-Verleihung
Self (archive footage) · (1 episode)
1948

The Big Game
1942

Why We Fight: Prelude to War
Self - German paratrooper (archive footage)
1942

The Stars Shine
Gast
1938
Great International Heavyweight Boxing Contest Between Joe Louis and Max Schmeling
Self
1936

Knockout – Ein junges Mädchen, ein junger Mann
Max Breuer
1935

Love in the Ring
Max
1930