Prologue…
A young man is attempting to commit suicide until the arrival of a very special person.
A young man on the edge
Office block, fire escape, nine floors up
Los Angeles, January, 1981
The city of angels
The young man is Joe
Joe in flared jeans, Joe in a hoodie
He is twenty-one
He is black
He has been there hours
Threatening to jump
Chaplains have talked to him, police have pleaded with him
What’s in his head?
He’s in hell
Vietnam
The Viet Cong are coming for him
They just keep coming
‘I’m no good,’ he says
‘I’m no good!’
He is too young for Vietnam but voices tell him he has been there
A crowd gathers below
‘Jump!’ they yell
LA at its finest
Time passes, Joe hesitates
‘Jump!’ the crowd yells
Below, something happens
A Rolls Royce slides up
Pushes its way through the traffic
Lights are full on
It’s on the wrong side of the road
Nobody cares
The car stops
The crowd goes quiet
They sense something unusual
A door opens
Out steps the most famous man on the planet
Muhammad Ali
He’s dressed in a dark suit and tie
Shoes polished
All smart like he’s going for a TV interview
The legend steps into the building
A man responsible for blistering nights of glory
The Thriller in Manila
The Rumble in the Jungle
The conqueror of Liston, Foreman and Frazier
Now there is Joe to conquer
On a mundane day
On a mundane street
In a mundane building
The LA Times photographer Boris Yaro arrives
Yaro wants to record it all
He captures Ali on the ninth floor looking at Joe
He captures Joe looking at Ali
No words, then…
‘You’re my brother,’ says the champ
‘I love you, I wouldn’t lie to you,’ he says
Joe hesitates
Ali is driving away the enemy
The Viet Cong are no longer coming for Joe
They are leaving his head
Retreating
Joe steps back
Ali grabs him
Pulls him inside
They hug
Arms around each other
Brothers
They hug
Both are crying
Brothers
No words
It’s a special moment
Joe is safe
Ali, a man of peace
Never wanted to fight the Viet Cong
He has fought them now
And beaten them
They have retreated in Joe’s head
Surrendered
Below, the traffic moves on
The crowd disperses
The drama is over
Just another day in LA
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