Sometimes, the best stories don’t start in the newsroom — they start in the archives. While researching nominees for the St. Louis Jewish Sports Hall of Fame at the Jewish Community Center, I was scrolling through our digital archives when a letter from Jan. 26, 1962 caught my eye. It was signed by Isi Newborn.
In St. Louis, “Isi” as he was known nationwide, may not have been a household name. “Isi” was a Cleveland Press sportswriter and nationally respected horse racing handicapper, who built a reputation on sharp instincts and fearless opinions. Isi’s predictions were legendary — twice correctly picking long-shot Kentucky Derby winners.
And Isi’s letter? It wasn’t gentle. He was calling us out.
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A month earlier, in the Dec. 29, 1961, edition of the St. Louis Light, as we were known then, syndicated columnist Harold U. Ribalow had written about Jewish fighters in the Boxing Hall of Fame. Among the names he listed were heavyweight champion Max Baer and his younger brother Buddy.
Isi disagreed — loudly.
“The column mentions the names of Max and Buddy Baer and indicates that they were Jewish. The only thing wrong with this is that neither Max nor his brother Buddy were Jews,” Isi wrote. “If the St. Louis Light is going to make all fighters Jewish regardless of their heritage, there is probably not much I can do about it. But I insist this was a mistake and would like to go on record as saying so.”
For 63 years, Isi’s letter has sat quietly in our archives. Today, Isi, this is our reply.
Setting the record straight on Max Baer Jewish heritage
Here’s what the historical record now tells us: Max Baer was Jewish. His father, Jacob, was Jewish, and while Max wasn’t religious, he didn’t hide his heritage. Most famously, during his 1934 heavyweight title fight against Primo Carnera — promoted by Mussolini’s Fascist Italy — Max walked into the ring wearing a Star of David on his trunks. That wasn’t a fashion statement; it was a quiet act of defiance.
Buddy Baer, Max’s towering younger brother, shared the same Jewish heritage. While Buddy didn’t make his identity part of his public persona, the Baer family’s roots are well documented.
So, Harold Ribalow had it right.
Rediscovering Isi Newborn
Isi even wrote three books on racing strategy, and after his death in 1972, Thistledown Racetrack honored him with the annual Isi Newborn Memorial Handicap.
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