Close Menu
    Advertise With Us
    Religion

    Fred ‘Curly’ Neal, known for his dribbling and joy with the Harlem Globetrotters, dies at 77

    6 Mins Read2 Views
    In this 2010 photo, Harlem Globetrotters player Fred “Curly” Neal spins a ball on his head. Neal, the dribbling wizard who entertained millions with the Globetrotters for parts of three decades, died at 77. (Richard Drew/AP)
    Advertisement

    (Source Washington Post)

     By Katie Shepherd

    During a 1978 basketball game in Sierra Vista, Ariz., Fred “Curly” Neal tossed the ball hot-potato-style to the referee before chucking it to a teammate to set up a layup. After sinking a three-pointer from just past half-court, he strutted past the opposing team’s bench with a huge smile across his face. The other team laughed along with him, and the stadium, filled with awestruck children, erupted in cheers.

    This was Curly Neal, No. 22, at the height of his career with the Harlem Globetrotters. For decades, Neal amazed crowds with his nimble dribbling skills, keeping the ball bouncing even as he dropped to his knees, spun around in circles and sprang back to his feet. Audiences roared as his bald head bobbed up and down the court, a playful grin spread across his face while he sank shot after shot.

    That was how the legend was remembered for decades. Neal, the longtime Harlem Globetrotters point guard, died Thursday at age 77 at his home outside Houston. The official cause of death was not immediately announced.

    Soon after the announcement, basketball fans recalled their favorite memories of Neal in online tributes featuring footage of his ballhandling skills and humorous antics on the court. Some recalled the impact that the team, led by Neal from 1963 to 1985, had on the sport and black communities in America.

    “Before the Internet and cable television really existed, it was Curly Neal and the Harlem Globetrotters who first introduced the sport of basketball to millions of people around the world for the first time,” the team said in a statement announcing the death. “One of the truly magical dribblers and shooters in basketball history, Neal fittingly played for 22 seasons in the red, white and blue, wearing No. 22.”

    During the Jim Crow era and long afterward, the Harlem Globetrotters sought to prove themselves to a sometimes skeptical public.

    “The players of the Harlem Globetrotters were similar to a lot of Black men in that generation — people with enormous talent who couldn’t always show their talent and had to suffer great indignity just to keep food on the table,” President Barack Obama said in a 2009 interview shared by the team. “And the strength and determination of that generation just to survive, laid the groundwork for people like myself.”

    Born on May 19, 1942, in Greensboro, N.C., Neal played high school ball and was a star in college at Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte. But he didn’t join the NBA after college, despite having offers from several teams. Instead, he tried out for the Harlem Globetrotters and made the team.

    Neal earned his Globetrotters nickname, Curly, because of his signature shaved head. When Neal began playing for the Globetrotters, he said, Coach Bobby Milton called him “Curly” as a joke, in reference to Three Stooges member Curly Howard. The name stuck, and so did the hairstyle.

    Once Neal joined the team in the early ’60s, it didn’t take long for him to recognize the role his team played in helping Black Americans gain rights and respect by traveling all over the world to showcase their skills, humor and humanity. He once recalled being told about the sour reception the team faced before he joined them, when they played a 1957 game in Jacksonville, Fla., but were turned away by restaurants and hotels that refused to serve black customers. Meanwhile, a performing chimp visiting the city at the same time was allowed to stay in a ritzy hotel suite.

    “Here they were, the Harlem Globetrotters, America’s most famous basketball team, unable to eat a meal or stay in a hotel room in Jacksonville,” Neal wrote in a 2016 op-ed for USA Today. “It’s a memory that is always at the forefront of my mind. We have come so far since then. Yet, even with so much further to go, it’s amazing to me that we were a part of the push for change.”

    The team won over hearts and minds with its showy style and in-game antics. Donning his No. 22, Neal was a star of the Globetrotters for more than two decades, and their popularity landed them story lines on TV shows such as “Scooby-Doo” and “Gilligan’s Island,” where Neal and his teammates outplayed a bunch of robots. The team was a regular fixture on ABC’s “Wide World of Sports” for much of Neal’s career.

    With the death of @Globies legend Curly Neal, we should all remember the most important moment of his life/the history of the earth: With Chick Hearn calling the game and life in the balance, Globetrotters 101, Robots 100. Gilligan’s Island saved. #curlyneal

    Honoring the passing of the Harlem Globetrotters’ Curly Neal. Thank you Curly, for a legacy of entertainment and joy on the court, screen and Gilligan’s Island, that will last as long as the confetti bucket gag. Which is to say, eternally.

    After he retired in 1985, Neal continued to work with the team as an ambassador. His jersey number was retired in 2008, and he received the Harlem Globetrotters’s “Legends” ring for his contributions to the team.

    As news of Neal’s death spread on Thursday, tributes to the beloved player abounded on social media. His admirers called him the “best dribbler ever,” “as fun to be around as he was to watch” and a “joy on the court.”

    NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas praised Neal on Thursday for teaching him how to dribble.

    “For those who say the game has evolved? I say what’s old is new again!” tweeted the Detroit Pistons legend. “Distance Shot making and dribbling is back!! #CurlyNeal and #MarcusHaynes taught me how to dribble.”

    Although he had been retired for decades, Neal maintained a close relationship with his former team and remains one of the most admired Globetrotters to ever play.

    “We have lost one of the most genuine human beings the world has ever known,” Globetrotters General Manager Jeff Munn said in a statement. “His basketball skill was unrivaled by most, and his warm heart and huge smile brought joy to families worldwide. He always made time for his many fans and inspired millions.”

    Alongside his incredible dribbling and far-flung shots, Neal was known for his humorous bits on the court. In one common skit, he egged on an argument with a teammate asking for a sip of water, only to throw the water in the other player’s face. Then, his dripping foe would grab a bucket of water and chase Neal down, aiming to drench him, but miss and launch the bucket’s contents at the fans sitting courtside.

    Luckily, the bucket was filled with confetti, not water, inspiring rings of laughter throughout the stadium.

    Reflecting on his career in 2016, Neal said the joy he shared with his fans was something he cherished the most during his time as a Globetrotter.

    “That’s why when I look at what has changed in this country, I don’t lament what is still wrong,” he wrote. “I think about how much has been accomplished and how a basketball team, its only mission to brighten the days of others, was a part of that.”

     

    Share.

    Carma Lynn Henry Westside Gazette Newspaper 545 N.W. 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33311 Office: (954) 525-1489 Fax: (954) 525-1861

    Related Posts

    This College Chaplain Fills The Pews By Teaching, Not Preaching Lawrence Lockett Jr., Morgan State University chaplain. Credit: Lawrence Lockett Jr. via LinkedIn By REV. DOROTHY S. BOULWARE (Source: Amsterdam News) It’s understandable for parents of strong faith to worry about the spiritual lives of their children who’ve gone away to college. After all, it’s easy for a young person, perhaps on their own for the first time, to suc-cumb to the temptations of partying late on Saturday night and sleeping in on Sunday morning. But Minister Lawrence Lockett Jr., chaplain at Morgan State University in Baltimore, is packing them into the pews most Sundays. He is engaging them in lively ways during the week. And students are joining the choir, accompanying worship on various instruments, and serving as readers and leaders throughout the service. It is by the grace of God for sure, but also by the loving service of Lockett, who’s beginning his second year as the school’s director of chapel. He has grown his flock from the 25 or so students who showed up at his first services to more than 200 each Sunday. Sometimes, it’s standing room only. “We’ve been trying to figure out what to do next because on Easter Sunday we had 342 people, and some were standing in the back,” he said. Word In Black talked to Lockett about the secrets of his success: how his adjustment of Sunday ser-vices got people into the pews, why his philosophy for guiding students on their spiritual journey centers on independent thought, and how his “Spin the Block” initiative is shaking things up on campus. The in-terview has been edited for length and clarity. Word in Black: The first thing we want to know is, how do you get so many young people to chapel every Sunday?. Lawrence Lockett: Well, first of all, I changed the time of service from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. I realized a lot of the students like to sleep in late. It gives them time to do whatever they need to do. I’m sure many of them still like to party hearty over the weekend. So they have a good chance just to kind of refocus, recali-brate, get themselves lunch, and then come over to the chapel for service. When I started in November, maybe 20-25 students came, but now it’s over 200 that come every Sun-day, and it’s pretty cool. So now we’re repositioning ourselves to go after the freshman class this year. If we have the same success as last year, there’s definitely not going to be any room. Word in Black: Tell me about pastoring on a college campus. Lawrence Lockett: Morgan actually started as a biblical institute, so the Christian traditions have al-ways been here. As a pastor or shepherd, I’m walking students through their questions, not always just trying to preach answers to them. It’s about being vulnerable. I tell them I was in their same position, just trying to figure it out. And it’s not me just trying to give them answers. Having been there helps me really walk with them and anchor them in the storm of life that’s going to come. I want them to understand that their soul really matters. A lot of students focus on mental health, but they really need to focus on spiritual health as well. It should be one and the same. So I’ve been trying to preach that, if anything, spiritual health is just as important as your mental health. But we do encour-age the use of the counseling center, for sure, if there is a mental health crisis. WIB: What does Monday through Friday look like for you? LL: Mondays, we are usually off because of Sundays. On Tuesdays, we have Bible studies, so I’ll host a Bible study at noon along with my colleagues that work in the chapel. And then, I’m teaching a class called Hip-hop and the Gospel on Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m., dealing with mixing culture and religion. On Wednesdays, we do something called “breath and balance,” which is just a meditative type of pro-gram with breathing exercises as stress relievers. We work with the School of Nutrition Science and the food resource center so that the students get a nice free meal and practice breathing exercises and meth-ods to feel good about the day. For Thursdays, we started something called the mosaic, in which we have different campus ministers gather in small groups, just like a mosaic painting. So the students who come on Sundays then get plugged into small groups on Thursdays. And on Fridays at 1 p.m., we do prayer for Muslims.. We have an imam lecture and then lead in corporate prayer. It’s a good mix. WIB: What is “Spend a Block?” Didn’t you receive an award for it? LL: That started last year. We just basically do services outside: outside the residence halls, in the quad, wherever it may be. Honestly, worship on a college campus looks different than it did 20 or 30 years ago. Students want something real and authentic, something they can gravitate to, and something that’s convenient. So when we’re outside, people are like, “What’s all the noise outside? What’s all the music?” Then they come outside, and there are chairs, so they grab one and sit and enjoy the service. We come to them. They don’t have to come to us. At the very beginning of the semester, we do services outside the four resi-dence halls. And that kind of gives us a steamroll into homecoming week. And we’ve seen a lot of success because of that. WIB: What should I expect when I arrive for Sunday service? LL: You’re gonna see a lot of involvement with students. I’ve learned that students like to feel invested, and they want to participate in what’s going on. They don’t want to be told by adults what they should and shouldn’t do. So when you go to the service, you’ll see our praise team full of students. You’ll see a choir full of students. You’ll see students reading scripture. You’ll see students giving testimonies. And then I’ll come in and give a sermon, or I’ll have a guest friend or a guest preacher come in to do the sermon. But you’re gonna see a lot of student involvement, and I think that also assisted with a lot of the growth be-cause when they see fellow students, they understand they’re just like me, and if they can do it, I can do it. WIB: What about musicians and choir? LL: The musicians are also students. They say, “Hey, I love to play. I wanna use my gifts in some way, shape, or form.” And they’ll ask whether or not there’s a spot for them. And we say absolutely. And there is a chapel choir. Some of the members are also members of the university choir. WIB: What is the “next” you see for the chapel? LL: I want the students to know God, find freedom, discover purpose, and make a difference. The chapel really is the heartbeat of the campus, and I want students to know more about where faith, hope, and belonging really stem from. I also want the chapel to become more interfaith and involve as many students and beliefs as possible.