George L. Lee was an extraordinarily talented and sensitive artist whose career began in the newspaper business in Chicago decades ago. He was there when Joe Louis captured the heavyweight title (and the dreams of black America). He drew the black athletes who broke into major league baseball for the first time. This collection has seven sections of ink sketches and cameo biographies: Boxers--American and World; The Story of Joe Louis; Boxing Events of the '50s; Baseball Players; Football Players; Basketball Players; and Runners, Jockeys, Golfers and Other Sports Figures. It repeats nothing from the highly successful Interesting People.

Selected from his newspaper feature which appeared in most major black newspapers between 1945 and 1986, this fourth installment of George L. Lee's fascinating pen and ink portraits brings together black achievers from around the globe. Arranged chronologically (from Piankhi, an Ethiopian ruler of ancient Egypt, to Andre Watts, contemporary piano virtuoso), each drawing includes a cameo biography.

Cameo biographies along with Lee's famous pen-and-ink portraits make this an inviting and inspiring browser for students and a useful reference to teachers, writers, librarians, and black community leaders.