A Savage Business: The Comeback and Comedown of Mike Tyson [Hardcover]

Richard Hoffer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1998

An account of the rise and fall of Mike Tyson, including his prison sentence for rape and his disqualification for biting Evander Holyfield in a world title fight. The book examines the personalities, shady dealings and vast profits that are the dubious trademarks of the boxing world.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The strange saga of Mike Tyson is placed in stark relief by seasoned Sports Illustrated writer Richard Hoffer. Since his release from prison, Tyson has been at the center of a bizarre struggle to reclaim the heavyweight title without a noteworthy sporting moment--except for the infamous ear-biting episode. With wit and insight, Hoffer delineates the self-serving antics of the many handlers glomming on to the fighter, the insidious machinations of promoter Don King, and the confused behavior of Tyson himself.

From Library Journal

This lively account by Sports Illustrated writer Hoffer of Mike Tyson's second act?the $135 million made from the time of his 1994 prison release through his public self-destruction against Evander Holyfield last June?is that rare thing in celebrity-driven publishing: the thoughtful, readable quickie book. Hoffer may have turned this out in a hurry, but he's ruminated on Tyson for years and covered the large-scale cons perpetrated by his promoter, Don King. Whether you see Tyson as King's sad but wealthy pawn or a cynical co-conspirator, Hoffer's book gives an excellent picture of high-stakes dealmaking in Las Vegas, where casino owners would put up with anything from King for the prize attraction of Tyson, who remained TV's biggest pay-per-view draw even while menacing a series of comeback stiffs. By the time he met the prayerful, unshakable Holyfield, it was too late to realize the gamblers who still overwhelmingly backed Tyson had been wrong. A fine coda to Jack Newfield's Only in America: The Life and Crimes of Don King (Morrow, 1995).?Nathan Ward, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1St Edition edition (January 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684809087
• ISBN-13: 978-0684809083
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,843,867 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Book Best Served With Bad Intentions, July 18, 2004

By 

Buster Paris (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Savage Business: The Comeback and Comedown of Mike Tyson (Hardcover)

Interesting Book Best Served With Bad Intentions

Interesting Book - I recommend reading it in addition to reading Bad Intentions: The Mike Tyson Story by Peter Heller - this book picks up pretty much where Heller's book leaves off - it picks up at Tyson's release from the Indiana Prison and ends at the Holyfield ear biting.

The beginning and end are very clear in it's dealing with Tyson and notably charismatic and captivating - I especially liked the perception and analysis of Tyson's career.

The middle came up a bit short, but was readable and mostly dealt with the business side of things - the business side of Las Vegas, hotels, Don King and the business of boxing - Tyson is in there - just not as much as in Heller's book.

A necessary book for the Tyson fan - and it's an interesting read -

On it's own - I'd give A Savage Business: The Comeback and Comedown of Mike Tyson 3.5 stars (out of 5) - however - as a companion to Bad Intentions: The Mike Tyson Story - I'd give it a 4.

Also (just so you know) - Iron Mike: A Mike Tyson Reader (by Daniel O'Conner) is another awesome book!

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A clouded affair., October 3, 2001

By 

Richie Garner "Angeleyes" (South Wales) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Savage Business: The Comeback and Comedown of Mike Tyson (Hardcover)

I would like to say that I tore through this book at a rate of knots and left fully satisfied. I hate to discover that halfway through a book it is becoming a chore to read but that is exactly how I found this book. Although it does have moments that will no doubt allow you leave to pause for thought, generally it is a tough read that the author has obviously tried hard to complicate regarding issues where motives were actually very simple. Maybe he was looking to read between the lines for deeper issues but I don't believe that they existed. If this were a school report card it would have "could do better" written all over it. Frustrating.

4.0 out of 5 stars A Savage Business by Richard Hoffer, September 28, 2006

By 

Cwn_Annwn (Copenhagen, Denmark) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Savage Business: The Comeback and Comedown of Mike Tyson (Hardcover)

This is a behind the scenes look at mid 90's era of boxings heavyweight division mainly concentrating on Mike Tyson and his comeback after he got of prison after serving three years on a rape conviction in Indiana.

Its a decent book if your into boxing. In a sense it reads like a celebrity gossip column for mid 90's heavyweights though. One funny thing about this book is the author goes out of his way to show what unsavory characters many fighters, managers, and promoters that he talked about in this were but held up Riddick Bowe, Bruce Seldon and Tommy Morrison as being "nice guys" when all three of them later did stretches of prison time a few years after this book was published