DETROIT -- His fondest memories were of watching his kid brother fight in New York City. Later, when his brother was famous worldwide, he relished golfing trips to Florida and joint outings.

On Wednesday, DeLeon Barrow, brother of boxing champ Joe Louis, died of heart failure at age 91. He was the last surviving brother of the Brown Bomber, who died at age 67 in 1981.

Barrow's daughter, Delores, said her father looked so much like Joe Louis that he would get asked for his autograph. The brothers were good friends, she said.

"Whenever Joe came to town, they would share good times," Delores told The Detroit News for a story Sunday. "They were very close."

Joe Louis dropped the last name Barrow when he started boxing professionally in 1934. Four years later, he won the world heavyweight championship and successfully defended his title 25 times, scoring 20 knockouts, holding the title longer than anyone in history.

Barrow moved from Lafayette, Ala., to Michigan in 1926 for a job in the steel division of Ford Motor Co.'s Rouge plant in Dearborn. He worked at the plant until he retired in 1973.

He is survived by six sons, six daughters, one sister, 39 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.