FILE – In this Feb. 18, 1978, file photo, Meadowlark Lemon, of the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, offers a pretzel to a referee during a game at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Lemon, known as the Globetrotters’ “clown prince” of basketball, died Sunday, Dec. 27, 2015, in Scottsdale, Ariz. He was 83. (AP Photo/Suzanne Vlamis, File)

NOTE:

On August 21, 2018 Classic Homey and Harlem Globetrotter Meadowlark Lemon was resurrected and then re-killed on Social Media, but I wonder how much of a big kick he’d have gotten out of that if he were still here.

Moment of Truth

He made us laugh.
And laugh.
And laugh.
And he played the game, and played it well.

Meadowlark Lemon was tall, thin, lanky and skilled. There was nothing he couldn’t do with the ball and nothing he couldn’t make that ball do.

I am privileged to say I got see him live once at the Columbus Municipal Auditorium. My mother was going to see him no matter what, and she happily dragged us downtown with her.

From the moment he appeared to a rousing standing ovation until the “game” was over — the Globetrotters won, of course — we were in hysterics.

He would play, spin the ball on the tip of one finger, hoop, hook, jump, jerk, twist, play dodge ball, baseball, football, and make a pure butt out of referees, other players, competition, and even wow audiences with his basketball. The basketball wasn’t just a thing to throw in a hoop and score points to Meadowlark Lemon, it was a thing that he used to make people smile.

And laugh.

The spirit of clown basketball caught on so well that long after Lemon retired, the team carried on and still entertains live audiences to this very day. At one time, the competition was thick and hot and heavy to get on that world-famous sports entertainment team.

He was a player and a joker, and that’s why they called him “The Clown Prince” of Basketball. He was also a Civil Rights Activist who ran all over the racist clowns of his day and “shot” them down without laying a hand on a gun.

He lived his life well, and virtually scandal-free. He stayed here with us all the way to the age of 83 and then he tipped his last ball and checked out on us.

rest in peace, Meadow “meadowlark” Lemon … thanks for being the special you.

For whatever reason someone decided to bring you back to life and then re-announce you were dead all over again nearly three years later, we won’t know – but it did bring back some awesome good memories!

I think you had that kind of a sense of humor.

Meadowlark’s given name is Meadow Lemon III. Meadowlark’s dad, known as “Peanut”, was Meadow Lemon, Jr. and his grandfather was the first Meadow Lemon — none of them were given a middle name. In the late 1950’s, he legally changed his name to “Meadowlark”, although many of his friends and family still call him Meadow. He is the one and only Meadowlark Lemon! The name has always suited him! Meadowlark says, “The birds named meadowlark are known for their sweet and happy songs. I always tried to put a song in the hearts of my fans.” Meadowlark is now an international “brand” name and he’s one of only a few who are known around the world by their first name.

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