Has Lebron James had a hair transplant? I guess it depends on who you ask. The four-time MVP has serious hair line problems, and things have been getting worse. It’s been a topic of discussion for years now, but some people think The King has already taken matters into his own hands.
Take a look at this picture from March.
It’s pretty clear #23 has a lot of missing hair follicles, makes you wonder why he isn’t the spokesperson for Rogaine yet?
The original rumors about the Lebron James hair transplant started at the All-Star Game in 2013, check out this picture of his forehead. (I mean sixhead)
Later in the year, James did an interview with CNN, not too long after the All-Star Game, and things were different. Miraculously, it seemed like Lebron’s hair, all of a sudden, wasn’t running away from his face.
That’s when the hair transplant rumors started to roll in. Apparently there are many scalp concealers out there, and Lebron is supposedly using a few of them. He would never admit this or endorse a product though.
The question is, why not? It could be an instant revenue opportunity for him.
It’s probably because tons of memes like this would continue to pop up all over the Internet.
It’s like, one second he has hair and the next he doesn’t. POOF! It’s just gone.
How many times have you seen a picture of Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler with a cigarette in his mouth and wondered where it came from? The term “Smokin’ Jay Cutler” has become synonymous in Chicago with #6 since it’s creation back in 2012, and fans have loved every second of it.
Smokin’ Jay Cutler Tumblr Site
According to the official website, SmokinJayCutler.tumblr.com, the creator of Smokin’ Jay was Brandon Freeburg, the Internet thanks you. Described as a website “dedicated to the most apathetic looking athlete in the history of sports, ” the Tumblr hosted gallery is a dedication to the nonchalant attitude of Cutler, featuring pictures of the quarterback repeatedly accompanied by a butt.
apathetic = having or showing little or no emotion
Like this one.
On September 13th, 2012, Chicago Bears’ quarterback Jay Cutler became the subject of a minor controversy in the NFL blogosphere after the athlete was seen on camera yelling at his teammate and left tackle J’Marcus Webb before walking past him with a cold shoulder bump.
Cutler’s confrontational moment with his teammate quickly prompted criticism of unsportsmanlike behavior from the fans and other professional football players alike.
Smokin’ Jay Cutler was created the very next day.
As you browse through the content, it’s clear that Cutler seems to hate just about everything in this world. Picture after picture illustrate the absence of emotion in Cutler’s personality featuring an uncaring shell of a human on the football field.
About Smokin’ Jay Cutler
There’s pictures of Smokin Jay Cutler on a Black Unicorn, enjoying a rips on the sidelines and a variety of other fantastic memes. The Tumblr creation has been mentioned in USA Today, CBS and Grantland to name a few. It’s clear everyone enjoys watching Chicago’s favorite overpaid athlete continually satisfy himself with nicotine as the Bears franchise suffers.
Even Aaron Rodgers gave Smokin’ Jay Cutler a tribute, it happened during a game against Baltimore last season. Rodgers claimed his signal was a tribute to Smokin’ Jay himself.
Aaron Rodgers uses “dope-smoking fingers” while paying tribute to Smokin’ Jay Cutler.
Confusion Smokin’ Jay Cutler Has Caused
Since the original creation of the website, there’s been a lot of confusion about Cutler’s smoking habits. Fans always seem to question whether he really smokes or just coincidentally looks like he enjoys it, while appearing to care about nothing at the same time.
Believe it or not, it’s the latter.
Best Smokin’ Jay Cutler Memes
Here’s the best Smokin’ Jay Cutler memes that the Tumblr website has to offer. Nice work Brandon.
The second oldest daughter of Scottie Pippen, Sierra Pippen, was arrested this past weekend for pissing on the floor of a hotel lobby. Here are three facts you need to know.
The Arrest
As first reported by The Smoking Gun, Sierra Pippen was arrested on April 26th around 1:30 a.m. for public urination and public intoxication. Basically she was shitfaced and popped a squat on the floor of the Sheraton in Iowa City. You can see the arrest report here.
Not The First Time
This is not the first time Sierra Pippen was arrested, this isn’t even the first time she was arrested at this Sheraton Hotel. She was arrested at the same location on April 10 after getting into a verbal altercation with hotel security while intoxicated. My only thought here is she was really drunk and thought to herself, “I’ll show those hotel security what’s up and pee all over their lobby floor.”
Aftermath
Cops found Sierra after her bathroom break near the hotel with “bloodshot, watery eyes” and “impaired speech and balance, ” according to the police report.
She also refused to participate in field sobriety tests and a post-arrest preliminary breath test, while accusing an officer of “being racist, ” the report said.
Sierra was released on a $500 bond.
Sierra Pippen is a University of Iowa student who is underage. When she was found she also had two wristbands from bars in the area, so she was definitely trying to get turnt up.
In all seriousness, she will probably get some sort of community service and fine, but I highly doubt Sierra will see any jail time. Hopefully this is the last time she has a pissing incident at the Sheraton.
The Honey Bears worked as NFL cheerleaders in Chicago for about 10 years before the group was shutdown permanently due to an interesting incident with Playboy. After a racy incident involving one of it’s members, Virginia McCaskey severed all ties between the Chicago Bears and it’s cheer squad. Here’s the story.
Dancing Girls On The Sideline
In 1976, George “Papa Bear” Halas was interested in hiring “dancing girls” to excite the crowd after seeing success from other franchises like the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins.
Halas would eventually hire Cathy Core to run The Honey Bears and choreograph their routines.
Halas stated that “As long as I’m alive, we will have dancing girls on the sidelines.”
Halas was true to his word, as the Honey Bears were around for the rest of his life until his death in 1983.
However, back in the 70’s / 80’s the notion of “dancing girls” to entertain football fans didn’t sit well with many people. There were several discussions about the cheerleaders and the image they portrayed for the team.
The Playboy Incident
In 1978, Honey Bear Jackie Rohr posed for the December issue of Playboy. The Bears had warned its cheering squad not to pose nude, so Rohrs modeled for a very short spread for Playboy called “Pro Football’s Main Attractions” that only featured cleavage. Even though she tried to follow the guidelines set forth by the Bears, the criticism rolled in.
“What`s wrong with cleavage anyway?` she asked. “I show cleavage on the Honey Bears` poster. What San Diego did is unfair, horrible. How can they punish the whole team for what one girl did?“
The San Diego Chargers fired its entire squad, back in the 70’s, when management learned that one member had bared it all for a photographer.
Rohrs was also fired by the Bears before the photos appeared in the December, 1978, issue of Playboy. This started a chain of events that lead to the group’s demise.
George Halas’ Death
Even though the Honey Bears were a hit before and seemingly after the Playboy incident, when Halas’ died (’83) his daughter Virginia attempted to immediately sever all ties with the group but she couldn’t just fire them. The Halas family was reportedly interested in football and football ONLY in Chicago, that change in philosophy prompted Virginia to take the necessary steps to disband the group in any way she could.
The Chicago Honey Bears had their final performance in Super Bowl XX in the Superdome in New Orleans, performing at halftime to Prince’s song Baby I’m a Star. The Chicago Bears won the game 46-10 over the New England Patriots and that marked the end of “dancing girls” on the sidelines.
Curse of the Honey Bears
Many Bears fans claim that their team lingers under a “Honey Bear Curse”, as the team still has yet to win a Super Bowl after the group’s termination. Others might refer to Chicago’s inability to bring in a franchise quarterback for 30 years but “dancing girls” on the sideline could have only helped that on-going situation.
I think I speak for all Chicago Bears fans when I say “bring them back!”
It’s not the 1980’s anymore Virginia and Chicago football fans could use the entertainment.
The Chicago Blackhawks have had their share of “off-the-ice” issues this season, including the suicide of assistant equipment manager Clint Reif and an incident with Corey Crawford “falling” at a concert while allegedly drunk. The latest controversy has centered around an alleged fistfight that took place in the locker room as a result of some questionable actions by fan favorite Patrick Sharp.
670 the Score
There have been rumors floating around since last season, which involved Sharp’s apparent infidelity and increased conflict with his wife because of it. 670 the Score’s Dan Bernstein has also hinted, on countless occasions, that he has a source indicating the latest controversy in the Blackhawks’ locker room is indeed due to Sharp and that he should be traded immediately. Bernstein would not reveal exactly what the source said though.
Sports Mockery Investigation
Yesterday, Sports Mockery released our first article about the Sharp allegations informing our fans of the situation and what Bernstein alleged. Keep in mind, this is nothing new to anyone closely following the team. Upon releasing said article, our inbox has been flooded with information from various people and even more rumors. After investigating, and vetting our sources, we have more information to share with you.
Our sources number one request was to remain anonymous; therefore, specific details and names were purposely left out. There is no video or photographs of Sharp having sex with anyone; however, there are a lot of people very familiar with Sharp’s personal life and exactly what is going on. The kind of information that your ‘average Joe’ would have no possible way of knowing. The sources that will be referenced in this article have close, personal relationships with the team; therefore, revealing them so everyone can have a name to attach to this is impossible.
All the rumors involve the personal life of one Patrick Sharp and the subsequent turmoil that his actions have caused the team.
Initial Rumors
Here’s a list of rumors currently being circulated, which appear to be mostly untrue:
Sharp had sex with Patrick Kane’s girlfriend.
Sharp had sex with multiple ice girls.
Sharp had sex with Duncan Keith’s wife.
Sharp was kicked out of his house this summer by his wife.
Sharp’s wife is pregnant with their third child.
Sharp has been having sex with Cheryl Scott from ABC7.
Sharp got a woman pregnant along the way.
There was a fistfight in the locker room at some point due to Sharp’s sex life.
The Chicago Blackhawks are pursuing a trade for Sharp in order to help rectify the ongoing locker room issues.
Modern Family Reference
Now, before we get into what our sources have shared with us, we want to turn your attention to something else real quick. Did any of you read our article on the recent Modern Family episode?
On arguably the most popular sitcom on television, a former alcoholic was impregnated by a member of the Chicago Blackhawks. After finding out he was married, he wanted nothing to do with her and she was left on her own with the baby. You can see the video here.
The director of said episode happens to be from Chicago as well. Isn’t that a BIZARRE coincidence? There are all these rumors flying around about Patrick Sharp, and all of a sudden, with no rhyme or reason, a super popular television show decides to include this rather sexual innuendo in their script. Tongue in cheek perhaps? The show is based in West LA, why would this happen? Why now?
Rumors
A recent investigation by Sports Mockery has revealed some interesting information. With over 100, 000 fans on social media and countless relationships with people involved with the Blackhawks, some of these rumors have been discussed by multiple sources.
This is what we now believe. This information came from FOUR different independent sources, each vetted and having direct personal ties with the Chicago Blackhawks. None of the sources are aware of the other, yet they all had matching stories.
Each source indicated that Patrick Sharp indeed had sex with Duncan Keith’s wife.
Each source also indicated that Patrick Sharp has had an affair with Cheryl Scott from ABC7 news, which may or may not be ongoing.
Finally, the Chicago Blackhawks organization wants him gone as soon as possible.
Again, there is no “proof” in the form of videos, pictures or names of sources, but we can assure you that we wouldn’t be writing this if we didn’t feel very confident about the information presented. Our sources seemingly match what Dan Bernstein is saying, even though he hasn’t revealed any specific details — yet.
Facts
There will be a lot of people that say this is bullshit, that’s expected when discussing a player of Sharp’s apparent stature, and that due to lack of “proof” they refuse to believe it.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion; however, there are four FACTS to keep in mind.
An ABC television show recently insinuated a married Blackhawks player got a random woman pregnant. The Blackhawks have been mentioned on the show before, so the writers seem to be very familiar with the team. Their timing is impeccable for such a reference.
All these “rumors” started last season, for the people close to the organization these rumors are not new.
Dan Bernstein, a well-known radio personality with deep ties to Chicago, has been reporting problems with Sharp for a while now. Most recently, he indirectly referenced the rumors floating around. Why now?
The Chicago Blackhawks are currently pursuing a trade for Sharp, an attempt to ship him off to Washington was reported as recent as yesterday. Sharp has seen his ice time plummet this season, playing a season low 12 minutes last night.
At this point, we can say that we are fully convinced the rumors referenced by our sources are true. It’s up to you to take this information and gather your own opinion.
One more thing, Sports Mockery is not reporting anything that isn’t already well-known by the people inside of Chicago’s organization. From what we have gathered, the Blackhawks, Sharp, his wife and everyone else seems to know this information already. The only ones that don’t know are you.
#TBT – On November 14, 1998, Dennis Rodman and Carmen Electra did something that simultaneously shocked the world yet didn’t surprise anyone at all: They got married after a reported late-night bender in Las Vegas. This was just before Rodman was released by the Bulls (January 21, 1999) and just after Electra became every man’s fantasy of the 90’s.
Some interesting notes on the wedding:
They decided to tie the knot at 7 a.m. at Las Vegas’s Little Chapel of the Flowers.
The only music, according to People, was “Here Comes The Bride” and the video camera was turned off as the two exchanged vows.
People Magazine pointed out their shared love of dresses and partying at Rodman’s club in Chicago which eventually led to the marriage.
Immediately, Rodman’s agent, Dwight Manley, questioned his client’s mental state at the time of the wedding – which was probably predictable considering it was at 7 a.m. with no prenuptial agreement.
Electra’s foster parents, Pat and James Rich were thrilled when they heard of the nuptials and say that Electra could be a good influence on Rodman’s life.
Married life, however, wasn’t as blissful as the two of them planned and Electra filed for divorce in late March.
Wow, if that isn’t the weirdest fuggin’ thing you read all day I don’t know what is. Rodman married a girl because they both loved dresses, but was too damn drunk to sign a prenup, idiot.
Along with mocking the whole concept of marriage and morally pissing on the church, the wedding was a frenzy for the media. Pictures, videos and comments started rolling in from everywhere. People were quite intrigued with this freak-show couple and wondered if it was really true or not.
Here are some of the best photos of Electra and Rodman’s creepy time together, along with a few to prove why Electra was every man’s fantasy of the 90’s:
Yellow hair, purple boxers, ok…
That dress is clearly too small, no complaints here.
Carmen liked girls too…
The famous skirt pic …. but you can see her naked by simply asking Google.
Boob on boob, why did she marry the freak show?
Rodman went on to marry himself…
Maybe she liked his hat… she looks shit-faced.
Legs for days…
This guy is fuggin’ gross…. last pic of him.
Fairy princess…
Yowzers…
How drunk did she get in Vegas to marry that weirdo?
Remember we said dream girl of the 90’s, this is why.
Have you ever wondered why Michael Jordan never appeared in any popular videos games when you were a kid? There’s a very interesting, yet perplexing reason for this. The easiest way to explain this is to take you through a series of events. Let’s begin.
Michael Jordan’s First Video Game Appearance (1987)
“Jordan vs. Bird: One-on-One” (NES, 1987)
The first video game featuring Jordan was a classic, featuring both a 3-point shootout (Bird only) and a slam dunk contest (Jordan only). I was always hoping to find a code to help Bird kiss the rim, but it never happened.
Michael Jordan and Larry Bird dominated NES back in the late 80’s early 90’s. Jordan vs. Bird was a classic.
Other Video Game Appearances Before 2K Series
NBA All-Star Challenge (SNES, 1992) There was only one selectable player from each team. That player on the Bulls was Michael Jordan. Bulls vs Blazers and the NBA Playoffs (SNES, 1992) Finally, real Michael in real team basketball! This game was the very early predecessor to the EA’s NBA Live series, which stretched from NBA Live 95 to NBA Live 10.
NBA Showdown (SNES, 1993) This was basically Bulls vs. Blazers, but with all the officially licensed teams and players. So there was that.
Michael Jordan Chaos in the Windy City (SNES, 1994) As NBA games started to evolve, with changing camera angles, different modes and improved controls (like the revolutionary turbo button, which eventually became standard), Jordan was absent from most of them. Instead, his likeness graced the cover of this title, a side-scrolling action platformer. You control Jordan, and you attack by throwing basketballs at enemies.
NBA Live series (SNES, Playstation, PS2, XBox360) Jordan was in NBA Live 2000 in the one-on-one mode and he was also on the 90’s all-decade team in NBA Live 2004. And yes, he was selectable as a player on the Wizards during his last, ill-fated final comeback, but we never speak of the Wizards years.
Jordan appeared in several video games leading up to the year 2000, and 90’s kids loved them.
National Basketball Players Association’s Shared Licensing Agreement
“Jordan dropped out of the virtual scene when he opted out of the National Basketball Players Association’s shared licensing agreement after ushering in sports gaming on the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo in the early ’90s.
This caused video game companies to get resourceful, and through various codes, create-a-player features and special individual licenses, MJ appeared sporadically in pixels and polygons, until finally signing with 2K Sports for a series of games that lived up to his legacy.” (ESPN)
All players in the NBA typically fall under the group licensing agreement shared between the players’ union and the league, but in 1992 “His Airness” negotiated his own separate agreement. This prevented him from appearing in video games that featured NBA players, instead of just him. (Jordan vs. Bird)
NBA 2K Series
2K Sports signed Jordan to an exclusive licensing deal, then went all out, creating what is arguably the greatest replication of an athlete in video game history. The only thing missing is his gold hoop earring.
The first game Jordan appeared in for 2K sports was “NBA 2K11.” He appeared on the cover of 2K11 and 2K12.
“It’s a long way from the first game I was in, but it just shows you the technology that’s evolved over the years, ” Jordan said.
So Why Wasn’t He In Games
The surface reason is money. Jordan declined to join the NBA in the early 90’s because he was arguably bigger than the league. Therefore, he chose to sign his own personal licensing agreement. However, when Jordan was asked about this, it was more then money:
“I didn’t want them to put me in there if it didn’t look like myself, and I didn’t want them to put stats that weren’t my stats. The guys at 2K are very smart, so they know a lot of things about the game of basketball, and obviously, the things that I’ve done to the game and the way that I played. I wanted my character to be as close to the way I played as possible, so that it’s not something that’s false-promoted. I wanted something real.” – Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan wanted something “real.” He didn’t want to be just another roster player for NBA games, he wanted games designed specifically around his likeness and talents. This selfish way of thinking is the real reason why Jordan never appeared in any video games. He always thought of himself as bigger than the league, this is a prime example.
But, when you’re the G.O.A.T you can do as you please.
The only people who really missed out were the kids of the late 90’s and early 2000’s.
These days, tattoos are pretty much synonymous with professional athletes. Watch a sport, any sport, and how many bodies do you see adorned with ink? The answer is obvious, A TON.
You would think, with an athlete’s job being performed in front of an audience, many times a national one at that, they would have a little more discretion when it comes to what they choose to display on themselves.
On the other hand, why should they care? People should be entitled to put whatever the hell they want on their body without being judged. Unfortunately, with every other facet of an athlete’s life falling under the media microscope, it’s inevitable that personal choices in the form of body art are too, (un)fair game.
For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, or always thought it was the grim reaper (like me). “Poohdini” is the name above a magician, wizard (or grim reaper) looking tat on his left shoulder.
‘Poohdini’
In his own words, the former MVP described the tattoo as–
A wizard holding a ball, ‘Poohdini’ my nickname going across there like magic. So the great Houdini, I put Poohdini. I put the ‘dini’ in the back of Pooh so it would sound like Poohdini, like the great. My Grandma just came up with the name ‘Pooh’ it’s like Winnie the Pooh bear, so it just stuck with me my whole life.
Well, according to Bleacher Report the ‘Great Poohdini’ is not so great at all; as they ranked it one of the 25 worst tattoos in NBA HISTORY! Ouch. Here’s what BR had to say about poor Poohdini.
The story behind the idea is quite genuine, but the portrait of the wizard—or whatever he is supposed to be—on his shoulder is downright creepy.
There had to be a million other directions he could have taken this idea. Any concept other than this one probably would have been good enough.
What’s surprising is this came when Rose was still the reigning NBA MVP, not after the injuries, letdowns, misleading ad campaigns, and failed returns. Meaning there were still a lot more Rose lovers than haters. Apparently there’s no room for apologists in the tattoo rating game.
Ironically, when explaining his tattoos, Rose speaks about his “only God can judge me” tattoo immediately after detailing “Poohdini.”
Honestly (not that anyone cares about my opinion) finding out it was a wizard and not the grim reaper actually made me like the tattoo more. But that’s coming from a nerd for Arthurian legend, Merlin, and all that other lame sh*t.
The Others
As for eight of the other nine tattoos, Rose talks about the inspiration behind each one in this video done by Mouthpiece Sports. Rose has had the majority of his work done by South Side custom tattoo parlor, Shred’s Inferno.
His latest tattoo, a portrait of Dr. Martin Luther King praying, was not done until earlier this year; after the video was made.
In case you don’t want to sit through a six minute video, here’s a full gallery featuring all of Derrick’s tattoos and his reasons behind having them done.
View Gallery–>
Sweet Home Chicago
He got this tattoo because, duh, he’s from Chicago.
Trivia question- Who wrote the original rendition of the famous city anthem “Sweet Home Chicago”?
Answer- Blues artist Robert Johnson circa 1937.
>
Brenda Rose (Right Hand)
It’s somewhat difficult to see, but on his right hand there is a rose with the name Brenda inscribed over it.
Brenda Rose, his mother.
Rose says she teared up after driving out to her house to show her the tattoo for the first time. Then proceeded to show it off to her friend, who was also present, out of joy and appreciation.
Only God Can Judge Me
Rose’s first tattoo he got as a Junior in high school.
He and his family are very religious, given that, this one is self explanatory on the surface. More specifically, given Chicago’s rich basketball history, Rose got it knowing that good or bad, the city’s residents would always have their own two cents regarding his performance. So in essence the tattoo is to remind him not to read into what anyone else has to say because at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter.
Baby in Angel’s Hands
This tattoo is unfinished because in his own words, the pain Rose experienced was “the worst pain a person could ever go through.” He claims he could barely stand up for two days after getting this original outline on his stomach.
Eventually he would like words and clouds added to it.
God’s Child
Rose cites his family’s humble nature and respect for life in choosing this tattoo on his back.
Family First
Die-hard Chicago fans should know how important Derrick’s family is to him. His inner circle is notoriously close.
And we all love hearing from Reggie!
Dr. King
Englewood All Star
Rose says he got these during his college days at Memphis to commemorate the south side Chicago neighborhood he hails from, Englewood. With the catalyst being the home sick feeling he experienced away from the Windy City.
According to Deadspin, this grotesque act of ass-eating was caught on camera near Nemo’s bar which is a tailgate spot for people attending the Detroit Lions game.
The reader who sent this photo along says he saw this butthole eating in the parking lot of Nemo’s, a bar near Ford Field. Kickoff’s at 4:25, so these fans have plenty of time.
It’s hard to tell exactly what is going on here, but it looks like two Lions fans are happy to see each other. Sit on my face and eat my shit happy.
[icon name=icon-star] BEST – Golden State Warriors head coach, Steve Kerr, will bring his first place team to the United Center to face off with the Chicago Bulls on Saturday. It will mark the first time Kerr coaches against his old team which he won three championships as a sharp-shooting guard. What you might not have known about Kerr is the sad story about his father, Dr. Malcolm Kerr.
A Life Devoted To Teaching
Dr. Malcolm Kerr was a professor who spent the bulk of his life teaching about the Middle-East and the Arab world. He spent his life traveling back and forth from the United States and Lebanon, where his parents taught at the American University of Beirut, and where he would later teach and become president.
Dr. Kerr spent most of his life at some the most prestigious schools in the world. He received his undergrad from Princeton University, his doctorate from John Hopkins University, and then returned to the American University of Beirut for three years to teach. He then completed his post-doctorate work at Oxford University. For the better part of his career, Dr. Kerr spent the next 20 years of his life honing his craft at UCLA. Not a bad resume.
Dr. Kerr spent his life teaching and he loved it. His long time associate, Kamal Salabi said,
“Malcolm Kerr was a friend of Lebanon, a friend of the Arabs, and a friend of Islam.”
In addition to teaching, he also published books about Islam. He wrote Lebanon in the Last Years of Feudalism, Islamic Reform, and The Arab Cold War.
The Return to AUB
In 1982, Dr. Kerr was offered the job to become president of the American University of Beirut, despite Lebanon being in an Islamic holy civil war and his predecessor, David S. Dodge being kidnapped by Iranian gunmen. This was not a cake walk job by any stretch of the imagination. Dr. Kerr was even given a body guard when he accepted the job, but he dismissed him after saying that it wasn’t right for the president of the university to have a body guard; he did, however, have a chauffeur.
Despite how rough this job was, this was Dr. Kerr’s dream job. He grew up with this school. His parents taught at AUB for forty years. Studying at prestigious universities, writing books, it all lead to his dream job of becoming president of AUB.
”Since he was a little boy, all Malcolm ever really wanted was to be president of A.U.B., ” said one of his oldest friends, Prof. Edwin T. Prothro, head of the Center for Behavioral Research at the university. ”When the time came, he knew his life could be in danger – he talked about it to me several times – but he took the job anyways because he loved this place and he wanted to build it into something special.”
A Tragic End
On January 18th 1984, it started out as a normal morning for Dr. Kerr. His chauffeur picked him up to go to his bank in West Beirut, he then made it to campus and made a stop at the office of one of his fellow colleagues. After a short visit, he proceeded to walk through the courtyard towards his office at College Hall. The courtyard was extremely busy because of all the students rushing to get signed up for the spring semester, but Dr. Kerr was easy to recognize because of his tall, lanky frame.
Once at College Hall, he got on the elevator to go up to his office. At approximately 9:10 a.m., Dr. Kerr stepped off the elevator and started to walk down the hallway. That’s when two men, either stepped off the elevator with him, or from the stairwell directly next to the elevator (still unknown) and one of the men put two bullets into the back of Dr. Kerr’s head with a silenced revolver.
Dr. Kerr’s secretary was in the hallway at the time and one minute she saw him get off the elevator, and the next minute she looked up to see the two gunmen running away. Abdul Hallab, who had an office between Dr. Kerr’s office and the elevator, heard a noise and ran out to see the president on the ground in a pool of blood and to the sound of men running away.
Within minutes, word spread throughout the university, the police and Lebanese Army soldiers sealed off all the exits of the school to try and catch the gunman, but it was too late, they had escaped.
Who Was Responsible
Shortly after the assassination of Dr. Kerr, a man called the Beirut office of Agence France-Presse and said the shooting was done by a pro-Iranian underground group. This same group claimed responsibility for an attack on the American Embassy and a Marine compound earlier that year.
”We are responsible for the assassination of the president of the American University of Beirut, who was a victim of the American military presence in Lebanon. We also vow that not a single American or Frenchman will remain on this soil.”
It was later discovered that the two gunman were Hezbollah gunmen, following Iranian orders.
The Son of Dr. Malcolm Kerr
Besides the obvious basketball talent Steve Kerr exuded, one of the main reasons Kerr received a scholarship from Arizona was due to a phone call his father made. Steve didn’t get many scholarship offers out of high school, but Cal State-Fullerton and Arizona showed interest. Dr. Kerr learned that Arizona was his son’s first choice, so he called head coach Lute Olson and asked if there was an offer for his son. Olson then offered the final scholarship.
Two days after his father was killed, Steve joined his team against rival Arizona State, as this was his only escape from the harsh reality of his father’s assassination. Steve drained his first jumper from 25 feet away and went five of seven from the floor in an upset win. Head coach Lute Olson had this to say about his guard after the game.
“It would be something that would keep a young man from doing anything for a while afterwards, but I don’t know, he’s just always had maturity beyond his years.”
The Classless Fans of Arizona State
Two years later, you wouldn’t think his father would be brought up by opposing fans, but, you would be wrong. During his fifth year, Arizona played their rival Arizona State, and State chanted some of the most disgusting chants you will ever hear at a college basketball game.
“PLO! PLO!” “Where’s your dad?” “Your father’s history.” And, “Why don’t you join the Marines and go back to Beirut?”
But, Steve got the last laugh. After almost being brought to tears, visibly shaken by the chants and having to sit down on the bench, Steve came back in the game and hit six straight three pointers in a blow out win over their rival. Steve later called those chanting fans, “the scum of the earth.”
On to the Pros
Kerr went on to be drafted in the second round of the 1988 NBA Draft and had the opportunity of playing for two of the best dynasties in NBA history, the Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs. Steve collected five championship rings and many friends around the NBA along the way.
Steve is one of two players in NBA history to have won two championships with two different teams in consecutive seasons.
After stints as a TNT Analyst, and a three year stretch being the general manager of the Phoenix Suns, Steve is now head coach of the 16-2 Warriors.
During a 2004 commencement speech, Steve talked about his parents, and added a funny antidote, only he would know how.
“My parents literally showed me a whole world that existed beyond typical American culture, ” Kerr said during a 2004 commencement speech at Arizona. “They gave me an education in understanding people, in being compassionate and respectful. They taught me that though people may speak or dress differently, or have customs or beliefs that were foreign to me, it was important to take the time to not only understand those differences, but to embrace them as well.
“That came in handy years later when Dennis Rodman became my teammate with the Bulls.”
Next month, it will be thirty-one years since the assassination of Steve Kerr’s father, Dr. Malcolm Kerr. Thirty-one years since Kerr was a freshman at Arizona and got the 3 a.m. phone call that changed his life forever.
