Times Square Gym
Photographs by John Goodman
Essay by Pete Hamill

Enter a world of boxing that has not been seen since 'Raging Bull.' All the legends have trained at the Times Square Gym -- Ali, Foreman, Marciano, La Motta -- and their presence could be felt in its intense, gritty atmosphere. To open this book is to step back in time, to sense the hopes and dreams of young men dancing their solitary dances under the appraising eyes of seasoned veterans. In December 1993, the gym closed, swallowed by the Times Square revitalization project. John Goodman photographed this extraordinary microcosm in its last year and a half of existence. Pete Hamill's text invokes the passion boxing arouses among its fans and shows why, with the gym's closing, the sport has lost a bench for its emerging athletes.

Hardcover, 96 pages
Distributed Art Pub Inc, 1996

 

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