Champion (1949 film)
Champion is a 1949 American drama film noir sport film directed by Mark Robson with a screenplay written by Carl Foreman based on a short story by Ring Lardner, and starring Kirk Douglas, Marilyn Maxwell and Arthur Kennedy. The picture recounts the struggles of boxer "Midge" Kelly fighting his own demons while working to achieve success in the boxing ring. Cinematography by Franz Planer. The supporting cast features Paul Stewart, Ruth Roman and Lola Albright. The film won an Academy Award for Best Film Editing and gained five other nominations as well, including a Best Actor for Douglas. Several clips from the film were used in Douglas' 1999 film Diamonds to illustrate his character's career as a boxer. Plot The drama charts the story of Michael "Midge" Kelly (Kirk Douglas), a boxer who pushes himself to the top of his game by knocking out opponents and back-stabbing his friends. He has no qualms about deceiving the various females he encounters and he eventually double-crosses Tommy Haley (Paul Stewart), the manager who found him and helped pave his road to fame. Midge and his brother Connie (Arthur Kennedy) are crossing America by thumb and freight cars from Chicago to California, where