A Letter From The Publisher, Feb. 27, 1978

“This is the story about a man/ With iron fists and a beauItiful tan./ He talks a lot and boasts indeed/ Of a powerful punch and blinding speed.” So wrote Muhammad Ali in his autobiographical verse. But when San Francisco Correspondent James Wilde went to see Ali for our cover story, the fighter did not want to elaborate on his career. Ali told Wilde:

“Let me stay a mystery. I just don’t want to talk about fights any more.”

Wilde began to finger a set of Middle Eastern worry beads that he has carried as a good-luck charm ever since he covered the region in 1961. Ali quickly noticed the beads—and talked for two hours, giving Wilde one of the few exclusive fight interviews.

A veteran correspondent who covered Ho Chi Minh, Charles de Gaulle and Mao, Wilde had never before seen a world heavyweight title bout. Reports Wilde: “Being with Ali is like being in a cage with a Bengal tiger. You never know what he is going to say or do.” While Wilde was working in Las Vegas, Reporter Peter Ainslie was gathering information on Ali from boxing figures in the East.

When Ali lost, Wilde was reminded of another defeat he had witnessed: “It brought back memories of the Foreign Legion leaving Viet Nam in 1954 in tanks and the conquering Viet Minh coming in on foot.” Adds Wilde: “Ali was too old. He bled, but he left with honor. He’s got that quality of the immortals that fought in Troy. He’s an Ajax.”

Sadat’s initiative created a deep division in the Arab world and resulted in his breaking diplomatic relations with all but one of these countries (choose one): A) Syria; B) Iraq; C) Libya; and D) Morocco. This is one of 100 questions that constitute the 44th annual TIME Current Affairs Test, which has been distributed during the past month to schools across the U.S., Canada and Europe. (The correct answer: D.)

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