- "One man falls out of bed and is killed. Another falls from a 50-foot scaffold and lives. One man gets shot in the leg and is killed. Another gets a bullet in his brain and lives. ... I always take a chance."
- Jack Johnson on uncertainties
- "We eat cold eels and think distant thoughts."
- Jack Johnson on why white women are attracted to black men
Boxing: A gentleman's sport. Jack Johnson: A gentleman... and a black man with a fondness for white woman. White men couldn't stand this combination.