The story of the rise of boxer Joe Thomas, which paralleled the life of Joe Louis.

A cowboy is wrongfully accused of murder. He winds up in Harlem, where he assumes the identity of a preacher-turned-gangster who looks like him. He infiltrates the gang to catch the men who framed him.

The husband of Sally Weston dies, and she decides to move to New York City where she feels her two young sons, Bob and Henry, can get a better education. Bob grows up to be a brilliant lawyer, while Henry decides that a life of crime is the best path to easy riches. Gangster "Bull" Connors frames Henry, now known as Monte, on a murder charge, and it is up to Bob to clear his brother.