Max Baer

Max Baer (February 11, 1909 - November 21, 1959) former heavyweight boxing champion of the world, original vintage, oversized hand-illustrated honorable citizen award presented to Baer from the City of Sacramento, California.  Dated October 27, 1941, the award is inscribed, in part: "Inimitable and invaluable, Sacramento has taken him to her heart and tonight is proud to testify to her pride in this, her friendly and valorous citizen.”

Following his boxing career, Max Baer hosted two successful radio programs on Sacramento stations, “The Max Baer Show” and a “Sunday Breakfast” show, both broadcast live from various popular restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area. In the 1950s he also worked for rodeo star Robert “Larry” Cameron as a spokeman and celebrity “salesman” for Cameron’s Sacramento auto dealership. Fun-loving and considerate, Max once stated that “I never harmed anyone outside the ring. I love people.” Baer’s funeral was one of the largest ever attended in Sacramento, where he had made his home for almost 30 years. “A crowd of more than 1,500, many with scarred eyebrows and smashed noses bade farewell… Among his mourners were four former world champions, politicians, people in wheel chairs and Cub Scouts” (Los Angeles Times).

Approximately 12.5 x 16 inches in size. Mounted. Fine condition.