HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS — Meadowlark Lemon, who starred for the Harlem Globetrotters for more than two decades, died Sunday at 83, his wife Cynthia Lemon confirmed to The New York Times.
Known affectionately as the “Clown Prince of Basketball,” Lemon spent 26 years as the ringmaster for the Globetrotters, dazzling crowds with his trick shots and comedic antics for the barnstorming road show that captivated and entertained audiences worldwide.
Lemon’s website says he played in a staggering 16,000 games and in 100 countries with the Globetrotters, making him an international star and an American institution. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003.
“Meadowlark was the most sensational, awesome, incredible basketball player I’ve ever seen,” NBA great and Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain said in a television interview before he died in 1999. “People would say it would be Dr. J or even Jordan. For me, it would be Meadowlark Lemon.”
A world-class athlete and entertainer, Lemon was also a motivational speaker, author and ordained minister. Both his name and his patented hook shot became signature trademarks for the Globetrotters. He joined them in 1954 and became an international ambassador for the game of basketball, playing up to 10 games per week and before 2 million paying customers around the world a year.
“To my fans across the globe, thank you for the memories,” Lemon wrote on his website. “I cherish the memories as much as you do! I continue to travel the globe to stay actively connected with you, my fans, through various events, personal appearances, speaking engagements and more. It’s the joy that counts in life, and the times spent with my fans are the memories that will live forever. I want you to always remember that life’s most meaningless statistic is the halftime score, and as far as I’m concerned it’s always half-time. I wish you joy, my friends. In the great game of life, Trust Your Next Shot.”
