The+'36+Olympics

 The 1936 Olympics Interview with Hitler and Jesse Owens Final Draft


 * We went back in time to interview Hitler and Jesse Owens about the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, Germany.**

How did you feel when you were presented with the opportunity to host the 1936 summer Olympic games in Berlin?

How were you using the games as?
 * Hitler**: I felt like it was finally time for me to show the world the Nazi's great power**.**

Were Jewish athletes able to participate in the games?
 * Hitler**: We were using the games to show the world resurgent. We had high hopes for the Germans to dominate in the games and we were in first place in the medal count when it was all said in done.

How many athletes played in the games?
 * Hitler**: No all non- Nazi's were not able to participate in any sport in this time in Germany. Some Jewish people from many countries chose to boycott the 1936 summer Olympics.

Were people calling these Olympics any other names?
 * Hitler**: There were over 300 athletes from Germany. And there were 49 teams from different parts of the world that came to compete in the Olympics.


 * Hitler**: I believe the official name of the games was **The Games of the XI Olympaid .**

You only shook hands with the German winners. What did the Olympic officials tell you to do?

You were mad because America was letting "Negros" win medals for them. What did you state after that?
 * Hitler**: They told me to shake hands with all the winners or not shake any hands at all.

Why did you refuse to place a gold medal around Jesse Owens' neck?
 * Hitler**: I stated that "the Americans should be ashamed of themselves letting Negros win medals for them. I shall not shake hands with a Negro..... do you really think that I will allow myself to be photographed shaking hands with a Negro?"

And why did you exclude Jewish track stars Sammy Stoller and Marty Glickman from competing in the games the last minute?
 * Hitler**: I refused to place that medal around his neck because I did not feel like he had won it. Like I said, I will not shake hands with a Negro.

And lastly, why did you lessen the cruelty to the Jewish citizens while the games were going on?
 * Hitler**: The Americans needed to be respectful to our Nazi hosts. The presence of Jewish athletes offended them.

Thank you for your time.
 * Hitler**: Simple. The tourists needed to be pleased. By doing this, we created a peaceful and harmonic atmosphere for them. They were very pleased by this.


 * Hitler**: You are very welcome. I hope you have a better understanding of my attitude toward the 1936 Olympic games which I so graciously hosted!


 * Next, we went downtown to search for Jesse Owens. We found him right away training in his yard. He agreed to sit down and let us interview him.**

Hello


 * Jesse**: Hello

May I ask? What was your birth name?

And do you have a nickname?
 * Jesse**: James Cleveland Owens.

When were you born?
 * Jesse**: Yes. The Buckeye Bullet.

Where were you born?
 * Jesse**: I was born on September 12, 1931.

Interesting. You look pretty tall. How tall exactly?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I was born in Alabama.

Wow! How much do you weigh?!
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">5' 10"

With your height, you should way a lot more. How do you keep the weight off?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">165 lbs.

Why?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">I run a lot. Running is my passion.

What is your hair color? And what is your eye color?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Because it is something I can do by myself. And under my own power.


 * Jesse**:<span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span style="color: rgb(138,0,255);"> My hair is black and my eyes are brown.

What high school did you go to?

I went to Cleveland East Techinical School.

How did you do in the other 3 events? Jesse: I won each event and set a world record in every event. What college did you end up attending?

What jobs did you have in college?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">Many colleges wanted me. I chose to attend Ohio State.

That is amazing. Why where you doing all of this.
 * Jesse: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);"> **<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I worked as a night elevator <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">operator<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">, a waiter, I pumped gas, I also stacked library books.

**Jesse**: I was not on scholarship at the time so I had to support my wife Ruth. What happened before the 100m in the Big Ten games?

And what happened after that?
 * Jesse:** I was suffering from a back injury because I fell down a flight of stairs.


 * Jesse:** My coach let me race in the 100m.

How did you do in the event?

Just before the games you meet with sponsor. What sponsor was this?
 * Jesse: ** I ran a world record 9.4 sec. in that event.

What was different about being in Berlin then being in America?
 * Jesse**:<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);"> I meet with Adidas. I was the first African American to be sponsored.

In the 1936 Olympics what events did you compete in? How many gold medals did you win?
 * Jesse**:<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);"> I was able to freely ride the public transportation and enter bars. Which would be different for a African American like me to do that in the U.S.

During the medal presentation Hitler never shook your hand. How did this make you feel?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I competed in the 100m, the 200m, the long jump, and the 4*100m relay. I was the the first African American athlete to win 4 gold medals in the Olympics.

After the games, were you invited to compete anywhere else?
 * Jesse**:<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);"> I wasn't mad at Hitler I was mad at FDR the president at the time after the game he did not invite me to the white house and I never received a telegram after that.

Did anything besides that happen that was special to you after the games?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Yes. Me, along with the rest of the team were invited to play in Sweden.

So, tell us, what DID happen to you after the 1936 summer Olympics?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Yes. I was acknowledged by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and named "Ambassador of Sports."


 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Well, after the games, I faced a major decision: should I go back to Ohio State University and get a bachelor's degree or pursue opportunities created by my new found fame. Just days after my last event at the Olympics, for instance, I received a telegram from a California orchestra offering $25,000 for a two-week appearance. It was the first of many questionable financial schemes presented to me over the years.

Wow. Your parents must have been so proud. What are their names?

<span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);">Well, thank you for your time and I'm sure you had a great life.
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Henry and Emma Alexander Owens. I am their SEVENTH child. We moved to Cleveland, Ohio when I was just nine.


 * Jesse:** No problem. Thank you for your time as well.
 * Thank you for enjoying this interview.**

The 36' Olympics.


 * We went back in time to interview Hitler and Jesse Owens about their experince in the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, Germany.**

How did you feel when you were presented with the opportunity to host the 1936 summer Olympic games in Berlin?

How were you using the games as?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I felt like it was finally time for me to show the world the Nazi's great power.

Were Jewish athletes able to participate in the games?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">We were using the games to show the world resurgent. We had high hopes for the Germans to dominate in the games and we were in first place in the medal count when it was all said in done.


 * Hitler**: No all non- Nazi's were not able to participate in any sport in this time in Germany. Some Jewish people from many countries chose to boycott the 1936 summer Olympics.

How many athletes played in the games?

Were people calling these Olympics any other names?
 * Hitler**: T<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">here were over 300 athletes from Germany. And there were 49 teams from different parts of the world that came to compete in the Olympics.

You only shook hands with the German winners. What did the Olympic officials tell you to do?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I believe the official name of the games was **The Games of the XI Olympaid.**

You were mad because America was letting "Negros" win medals for them. What did you state after that?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">They told me to shake hands with all the winners or not shake any hands at all.

Why did you refuse to place a gold medal around Jesse Owens' neck?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">I stated that "the Americans should be ashamed of themselves letting Negros win medals for them. I shall not shake hands with a Negro..... do you really think that I will allow myself to be photographed shaking hands with a Negro?"

And why did you exclude Jewish track stars Sammy Stoller and Marty Glickman from competing in the games the last minute?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">I refused to place that medal around his neck because I did not feel like he had won it. Like I said, I will not shake hands with a Negro.

And lastly, why did you lessen the cruelty to the Jewish citizens while the games were going on?
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">The Americans needed to be respectful to our Nazi hosts. The presence of Jewish athletes offended them.

Thank you for your time.
 * Hitler**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Simple. The tourists needed to be pleased. By doing this, we created a peaceful and harmonic atmosphere for them. They were very pleased by this.


 * Hitler**: You are very welcome. I hope you have a better understanding of my attitude toward the 1936 Olympic games which I so graciously hosted!


 * Next, we went downtown to search for Jesse Owens. We found him right away training in his yard. He agreed to sit down and let us interview him.**

Hello


 * Jesse**: Hello

May I ask? What was your birth name?

And do you have a nickname?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">James Cleveland Owens.

When were you born?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Yes. The Buckeye Bullet.


 * Jesse**: I was born on September 12, 193.

Where were you born?


 * Jesse**: I was born in

Interesting. You look pretty tall. How tall exactly?

Wow! How much do you weigh?!
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">5' 10"

With your height, you should way a lot more. How do you keep the weight off?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">165 lbs.

Why?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">I run a lot. Running is my passion.

What is your hair color? And what is your eye color?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Because it is something I can do by myself. And under my own power.

What college did you attend?
 * Jesse**:<span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);"> My hair is black and my eyes are brown.

What jobs did you have in college?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">Many colleges wanted me. But I decided to attend Ohio State.

In the 1936 Olympics what events did you particapate in? How many gold medals did you win?
 * Jesse:** I worked as a night elevator operater, a waiter, I pumped gas,

Just before the compitition you meet with sponser. What sponser was this?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I particapated in the 100m, the 200m, the long jump, and the 4*100m relay. I was the the first African American athlete to win 4 gold medals in the Olympics.

During the medal presintation Hitler never shook your hand. How did this make you feel.
 * Jesse**:<span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);"> I meet with Adidas. I was the first African American to be sponsered.

What was different in Berlin then when you were in America.
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I wasn't mad at Hitler I was mad at FDR the president at the time after the game he did not invite me to the white house and I never recieved a telegram after that.

After the games, were you invited to compete anywhere else?
 * Jesse**: <span style="color: rgb(0,0,255);">I was able to freely ride the public transportation and enter bars. Which would be different for a African American like me to do that in the U.S.

Did anything besides that happen that was special to you after the games?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Yes. Me, along with the rest of the team were invited to play in Sweden.

So, tell us, what DID happen to you after the 1936 summer Olympics?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Yes. I was acknowledged by President [|Dwight D. Eisenhower] and named "Ambassador of Sports."


 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Well, after the games, I faced a major decision: should I go back to Ohio State University and get a bachelor's degree or pursue opportunities created by my new found fame. Just days after my last event at the Olympics, for instance, I received a telegram from a California orchestra offering $25,000 for a two-week appearance. It was the first of many questionable financial schemes presented to me over the years.

Wow. Your parents must have been so proud. What are their names?

Well, enough about after the games, let's talk more about the games.
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Henry and Emma Alexander Owens. I am their SEVENTH child. We moved to Cleveland, Ohio when I was just nine.


 * Jesse:**<span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"> Yes

Who was the official torchbearer?

How many gold, silver and bronze medals overall did Germany win throughout the Olympics?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Fritz Schilz<span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">en.

Tell us some more about other players that participated.
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">Germany won 33 gold medals, 26 silver medals and 30 bronze medals with a total of 89 medals overall.

What did he participate in?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">There was a player named Cornelius Cooper Johnson, or just Corny Johnson.

Did he win any awards?
 * Jesse:** <span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);">He participated in the high jump.


 * Jesse:**<span style="color: rgb(90,32,151);"> He won the gold, with a height of 2.03 meters, which was an Olympic record. He tried for the world record but was unsuccessful.



Notes **"The Americans should be ashamed of themselves, letting Negroes win their medals for them. I shall not shake hands with this Negro.......do you really think that I will allow myself to be photographed shaking hands with a Negro?"** Two years later, Nazi party leader Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Germany and quickly turned the nation's fragile democracy into a one-party dictatorship that persecuted Jews, Roma (Gypsies), all political opponents, and others.
 * The 1936 summer Olympics had been handed to Berlin before the Nazis came into power. But this was the perfect opportunity for Hitler to demonstrate to the world how efficient the Nazi Germany was.
 * Hitler was upset at the Americans for letting the Negros win medals for them. He stated that he would not shake hands with any Negro.
 * Hitler refused to place a gold medal around Jesse Owens' neck
 * <span class="Article_Text">

Individual Jewish athletes from a number of countries also chose to boycott the Berlin Olympics. In the United States, some Jewish athletes and Jewish organizations such as the [|American Jewish Congress] and the Jewish Labor Committee supported a boycott. However, once the Amateur Athletic Union of the United States voted for participation in December 1935, other countries fell in line and the boycott movement failed. Forty-nine athletic teams from around the world competed in the Berlin Olympics, more than in any previous Olympics. Germany fielded the largest team with 348 athletes. The U.S. team was the second largest, with 312 members, including 18 African Americans. American Olympic Committee President Avery Brundage led the delegation. The Soviet Union did not participate in the Berlin Games. The 1936 Berlin Olympics may be best remembered for Hitler's refusal to acknowledge the gold medals won by track star Jesse Owens, and for the last-minute exclusion of Jewish track stars Sammy Stoller and Marty Glickman from the American Olympic track team, lest the presence of Jewish athletes offend their Nazi hosts. Large notes that despite the fact that the vast majority of visitors to the Olympics saw little evidence of Nazi persecution of the Jews as the government tempered public expression of racial bigotry and open violence, it nevertheless existed, albeit more subtly. For example, days before the games opened, the regime ordered Jewish doctors to stop treating "Aryan" patients, and without letup continued the "aryanization" of Jewish businesses. In other areas, Nazi authorities actually increased measures of repression in order to preempt any possible disruption of the games. Thus the atmosphere of peace and harmony praised by so many visitors was a product of draconian measures enforced by the Nazis that were invisible to the average visitor.
 * <span class="Article_Text">All of these non-Nazi's were excluded from any sports during this time in Germany.
 * <span class="Article_Text">

[]

The seventh child of Henry and Emma Alexander Owens was named James Cleveland when he was born in Alabama on September 12, 1913. J.C.", as he was called, was nine when the family moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where his new schoolteacher gave him the name that was to become known around the world. The teacher was told "J.C." when she asked his name to enter in her roll book, but she thought he said "Jesse". The name stuck and he would be known as Jesse Owens for the rest of his life. His promising athletic career began in 1928 in Cleveland, Ohio where he set Junior High School records by clearing 6 feet in the high jump, and leaping 22 feet 11 3/4 inches in the board jump. During his high school days, he won all of the major track events, including the Ohio state championship three consecutive years. At the National Interscholastic meet in Chicago, during his senior year, he set a new high school world record by running the 100 yard dash in 9.4 seconds to tie the accepted world record, and he created a new high school world record in the 220 yard dash by running the distance in 20.7 seconds. A week earlier he had set a new world record in the broad jump by jumping 24 feet 11 3/4 inches. Owens' sensational high school track career resulted in him being recruited by dozens of colleges. Owens chose the Ohio State University, even though OSU could not offer a track scholarship at the time.He worked a number of jobs to support himself and his young wife, Ruth. He worked as a night elevator operator, a waiter, he pumped gas, worked in the library stacks, and served a stint as a page in the Ohio Statehouse, all of this in between practice and record setting on the field in intercollegiate competition.Jesse gave the world a preview of things to come in Berlin, while at the Big Ten Championships in Ann Arbor on May 25, 1935, he set three world records and tied a fourth, all in a span of about 45 minutes. Jesse was uncertain as to whether he would be able to participate at all, he was suffering from a sore back as a result from a fall down a flight of stairs.He convinced his coach to allow him to run the 100-yard dash as a test for his back, and amazingly Jesse recorded an official time of 9.4 seconds, once again tying the world record he then went on to participate in three other events, setting a world record in each event. Jesse entered the 1936 Olympics, which were held in Nazi Germany amidst the belief by Hitler that the Games would support his belief that the German "Aryan" people were the dominant race. Jesse had different plans, as he became the first American track & field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Olympiad. he remains the best remembered Olympic athlete because he achieved what no Olympian before or since has accomplished. During a time of deep-rooted segregation, he not only discredited Hitler's master race theory, but also affirmed that individual excellence, rather than race or national origin, distinguishes one man from another.

Buried in Oak Woods Cemetery, Chicago, IL
 * Birth name:** James Cleveland Owens
 * Name change:** Jesse Owens
 * Nickname:** The Buckeye Bullet
 * Born:** September 12, 1913 in Oakville, Alabama
 * Died:** March 31, 1980 in Tucson, Arizona


 * Height:** 5'10"
 * Weight:** 165 lbs.
 * Hair color:** Black
 * Eye color:** Brown


 * High school:** Cleveland East Technical High School
 * College:** Ohio State University


 * Parents:** Henry and Emma Owens
 * Siblings:** Six brothers and sisters
 * Spouse:** Ruth
 * Children:** Gloria, Beverly and Marlene

[|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_OwensIn 1936 Owens arrived in Berlin to compete for the United States in the][|Summer Olympics]. [|Adolf Hitler] was using the games to show the world a resurgent [|Nazi] Germany. He and other government officials had high hopes German athletes would dominate the games with victories (the German athletes did indeed achieve a top of the table medal haul) Meanwhile, Nazi [|propaganda] promoted concepts of "[|Aryan] racial superiority" and depicted [|ethnic Africans] as inferior.[|[][|4][|]][|[][|5][|]] Owens surprised many[|[][|4][|]] by winning four gold medals: On [|August 3], [|1936] he won the [|100m] sprint, defeating [|Ralph Metcalfe]; on [|August 4], the [|long jump] (later crediting friendly and helpful advice which led him to triumph over German competitor [|Luz Long][|[][|6][|]]); on [|August 5], the [|200m] sprint; and, after he was added to the 4 x 100 m relay team, his fourth on [|August 9] (a performance not equaled until [|Carl Lewis] won gold medals in the same events at the [|1984 Summer Olympics]). Just before the competitions Owens was visited in the Olympic village by [|Adi Dassler], the founder of [|Adidas]. He persuaded Owens to use Adidas shoes and it was the first sponsorship for a male African-American athlete. On the first day, Hitler shook hands only with the German victors and then left the stadium. Olympic committee officials then insisted Hitler greet each and every medalist or none at all. Hitler opted for the latter and skipped all further medal presentations.[|[][|8][|]][|[][|9][|]] On reports that Hitler had deliberately avoided acknowledging his victories, and had refused to shake his hand, Owens recounted: He also stated: [|[][|11][|]] "Hitler didn't snub me—it was FDR who snubbed me. The president didn't even send me a telegram." Jesse Owens was never invited to the White House nor bestowed any honors by Presidents [|Franklin D. Roosevelt] (FDR) or [|Harry S. Truman] during their terms. In 1955, President [|Dwight D. Eisenhower] acknowledged Owens' accomplishments, naming him an "Ambassador of Sports." After the games had finished, Owens was invited, along with the rest of the team, to compete in [|Sweden]. However he decided to capitalize on his success by returning to the United States to take up some of the lucrative commercial offers he was receiving. American athletic officials were furious and withdrew his amateur status, ending his career immediately. Owens was livid: "A fellow desires something for himself," he said.

[|1936 Summer Olympics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]
he **1936 Summer Olympics**, officially known as the **Games of the XI Olympiad**, an [|international] [|multi-sport event] which was held in 1936 in [|Berlin], [|Germany]. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over [|Barcelona], Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th [|IOC Session] in Barcelona (two years before the Nazis came to power). It marked the second and final time that the [|International Olympic Committee] would gather to vote in a city which was bidding to host those Games. The only other time this occurred was at the inaugural IOC Session in [|Paris], France, on April 24, 1894. Then, [|Athens], [|Greece], and Paris were chosen to host the [|1896] and [|1900 Games], respectively. The bidding for these Olympic Games was the first to be contested by IOC members casting their votes for their favorite host city.Here was the result of that inaugural voting. Nazi officials ordered that foreign visitors should not be subjected to the criminal strictures of anti-homosexual laws. Total ticket revenues were 7.5 million [|Reichsmarks], generating a profit of over one million marks. The official budget did not include outlays by the city of Berlin (which issued an itemized report detailing its costs of 16.5 million marks) [|Jesse Owens]'s participation in the Olympics was controversial because of his race, at a time when segregation and discrimination against blacks were the norm in much of the United States. However, once in Berlin, Owens was able to freely use public transportation and enter bars and other public facilities without the difficulty he would face as a black man in the United States. On reports that Hitler had deliberately avoided acknowledging his victories, and had refused to shake his hand, Owens recounted "When I passed the Chancellor he arose, waved his hand at me, and I waved back at him. I think the writers showed bad taste in criticizing the man of the hour in Germany.” He also stated "Hitler didn't snub me—it was FDR who snubbed me. The president didn't even send me a telegram." While Hitler did not personally congratulate Owens, he did not in fact congratulate any athlete (including those competing for Germany) after the first day, in accordance with IOC guidelines that he should maintain Olympic neutrality. Hitler did, however, leave the Olympic Stadium just before another African-American athlete, [|Cornelius Johnson], was set to receive his medal. However, Hitler's contempt for Owens and for those races he deemed 'inferior' arose in private, away from maintaining Olympic neutrality. As [|Albert Speer], Hitler's architect and later war armaments minister recollected in his memoirs