On Friday, March 3, at 4:00 pm., Celebrate Wilmington! Inc. will dedicate a star on the Walk of Fame to Dr. Meadowlark Lemon, the legendary hoop master from the Harlem Globetrotters.  All are invited to attend the ceremony at the Walk of Fame plaza, Water Street entrance of The Cotton Exchange.  In addition to the induction, Meadowlark will be honored by his hometown through these public events:

Meadowlark Lemon exhibit at Cape Fear Museum, opens March 3 through July 30. Cost: Museum Admission. Objects featured in the lobby display include a Harlem Globetrotters basketball, c.1971, signed by 16 members of the Harlem Globetrottersbasketball team and Meadowlark’s Harlem Globetrotters basketball uniform. For more information, call 910-341-4350.

Celebrate Wilmington! Inc. and UNC Wilmington Charity Benefit Luncheon on Friday, March 3, from 11:30 am. – 1:00 pm at the UNCW Warwick Center Ballroom. Cost: $40 per person; $75 per couple.  Corporate sponsorships available.

All proceeds raised from this fundraising luncheon provide scholarships to underprivileged children to attend educational enrichment programs and summer camps. Register by calling 910-962-3195.

Walk of Fame Induction of Dr. Meadowlark Lemon on Friday March 3, at 4:00 pm at the Walk of Fame plaza, Water Street entrance of The Cotton Exchange. It is free and open to the public.

Celebrate Wilmington! unveils the new star on Wilmington’s Walk of Fame dedicated to the "Clown Prince of Basketball," Dr. Meadowlark Lemon. The ceremony will include an official welcome from the city by Mayor Spence Broadhurst and a special performance by the world dance class from the DREAMS Center for Arts Education. For information, call 910-342-2415.

Meadow George Lemon, III moved to Wilmington in 1938, when he was around 6 years old.  He grew up in the city’s "Brooklyn" neighborhood. At age 11, Lemon decided he wanted to become a member of the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team.  He saw a newsreel at the Ritz movie theater and was so struck by the team’s skill, humor, and camaraderie, that he rushed home, set up his own makeshift net and began to teach himself how to play.

Meadow’s game developed after the Community Boys Club opened in the old USO club on Nixon Street in 1947.  He practiced everyday, using a real basketball and hoops, and developed his right and left hook shots with the help of Earl "Papa Jack" Jackson. Meadow tried to emulate his idol, Goose Tatum, the lead clown of the Harlem Globetrotters, as he worked on his moves. His skills earned him a spot on the 13-member Boys’ Club basketball team in 8th grade. As a freshman at Williston High School, he was chosen to play for both the varsity basketball and football teams. He became an all-state player for both sports and received scholarship offers from several colleges and universities. Meadow’s 1952 senior yearbook listed him as "Most Popular" and "Greediest" in the Senior Who’s Who; the Senior Class Prophecy predicted he would become a star of the Harlem Globetrotters.

Although he still dreamed of being a Globetrotter, Meadow briefly attended Florida A&M University on a basketball scholarship, but left after a few weeks when he was drafted into the army. As fate would have it, while he was home preparing to join the army, the Harlem Globetrotters were scheduled to play a game in Raleigh.  His high school assistant coach E. A. "Spike" Corbin got in touch with Abe Saperstein, the Globetrotters’ owner, and he tried out for the team. When he was serving in the army in Austria, Meadow played for the Globetrotters in Europe. After he got out of the army, Meadow joined the Kansas City All-Stars, one of the opposition teams that traveled with the Globetrotters.  Next he played for the Southern Unit, one of the four Globetrotters teams that were traveling the country simultaneously because of the team’s overall popularity.

In 1958, after playing in a benefit game at 65,000-seat capacity Yankee Stadium, Meadow finally earned a permanent place on the most prestigious Eastern Unit team.  He became the Clown Prince and gained his nickname when a fellow player added "lark" to his name.  Meadowlark played with the Globetrotters for almost twenty years, until 1979. During that time he traveled to around 100 different countries, appeared in television programs, endorsements and commercials in the U.S., and proved himself a great athlete and entertainer.  Since leaving the Globetrotters, Meadowlark has appeared in movies and on television, recorded an album, and formed his own comedic basketball teams. In the 1980s he became an ordained minister. He currently travels the country, performing youth outreach, and raising money for his charities.

Celebrate Wilmington!  Created in 1994, is a collaborative effort between the community, the University of North Carolina Wilmington, and Wilmington Rotary Club. The Walk of Fame honors Wilmington’s "own," who have attained national acclaim in their respective fields of endeavor, with a personal star in the sidewalk at The Cotton Exchange. Celebrate Wilmington!

Also recognizes those who enrich our cultural community via the Lifetime Achievement Award.

See article: http://www.topsail-island.info/wordpress/index.php/just-who-is-meadowlark-lemon/ for additional information on this basketball great!

Comments:  editor@topsailpublishing.com.