Richard “Pee Wee” Kirkland shooting a jumper while in incarcerated in federal prison. Photo courtesy ESPN.
Yo, who peeped the ESPN two-part documentary “Black Magic” this past weekend? Wow! That joint blew me away. I’m so not that dude to stay peeled to a TV screen, and especially not two nights in a row, but I found myself waking up Monday morning dying for the second half of the film to come on that night. I’ve seen a lot of interviews with “Pee Wee” Kirkland over the years, and have to give credit to Director Dan Klores for really giving the former Rucker Pro All-Star some proper shine. DK found photos and newspaper clippings that no one has ever seen before, not even “Pee Wee” himself! One thing they left out was that when Kirkland scored 135 points in that prison game, he had subbed himself out with 5 minutes remaining on the clock! Word!
The movie had my mind reeling. I think every NBA athlete, no matter what race or background, should be required to watch “Black Magic” as it explored color issues and how it denied many access during the ’40s, ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s. Things are still not perfect, but the basketball community has come a long way, and is of course reflective of the changes in mainstream society as well.
Other tidbits . . . John Chaney coached at Cheyney St. before Temple, which is where Nike Pro City Tournament Director Ray Diaz played at before going pro in Puerto Rico . . . Cleo Hill coached at Essex Community College where Ramon “Munch” Cruz honed his skills before becoming a Puerto Rican National Team member . . . Joe Hammond was a pro in the Eastern League after snubbing the Lakers’ NBA offer . . . Bob “Butterbean” Love ran in the Pro Rucker during its heyday of the early ’70s right alongside Julius Erving . . . Rucker Hall of Fame coach Butch Purcell played at North Carolina College after John McClendon had left . . .
ESPN, PLEASE PUT OUT “BLACK MAGIC” ON DVD!!! 
March 18th, 2008 at 10:57 pm
Jeremy Ripley says:
Bob-
I loved every bit of it….WOW I was literally GLUED to the screen…
As you mentioned, the exploration into the lives of Pee Wee, Love, McClendon, and Ben Jobe were all excellent. Words cannot describe how happy I was when Jobe rocked Georgia Tech in the NCAA’s, and how gut-wrenchingly sad it was when he mentioned “I never got my t-shirt…”
And what about the discrepancies regarding the South Carolina State bonfire/shootout situation? WOW.
I heard this was coming out on DVD, but ESPN, if you need any more motivation, I’ll be happy to grab a copy.
-Jeremy
March 19th, 2008 at 9:45 am
Drew Peets says:
Agreed this was a crazy fresh series…
Coach Chaney - great man. Temple - Back in the Tourney!!!!
Temple Owls (Football) - Class of ‘96-97!
March 19th, 2008 at 11:06 am
Candice says:
It was a great documentary. Anything that shines light on Big House, Jobe and McLendon is worth investing 4 hours to watch. I just wish there was a part 3 that detailed the struggles of HBCU’s today and the ongoing impact of not only integration, but the big business of college hoops. I would love to know whether or not Jobe, Love, Monroe or even Oakley and Ben Wallace think a top high school recruit who could basically go to any school in the country would go to an HBCU instead of Carolina, Duke, etc.
March 19th, 2008 at 11:08 am
Derrick Canada says:
I didn’t get to catch both nights, but loved what I saw on Sunday. Definitely want to add to the collection, more for my kids than for me.
DC
March 19th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
illest says:
very wonderful. whoever thinks pistol pete is the king of flash they need to watch earl monroe.
March 19th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
Reggie MIH Peters says:
Bob:
What’s crazy is that my Dad used to always tell me about this era of discrimination in basketball. He played for Boys High & Black Pearl in Brooklyn during the 50’s & 60’s. He even gave me the heads up on this show. As a kid I grew up spending a lot of time with Fly Williams, World B Free, & Bernard King in Betsy Head gym in Brownsville. I still see them once a year at old timers day in the Howard Houses. If you think Brooklyn got game today, you should see some footage of Black Pearl. CRAZY!
Peace!
March 19th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Dan the Man says:
The best shooter Wilt Chamberlain ever saw: Hal “King” Lear from Temple University was allegedly a victim of the silent quota. He tore up the Eastern League with prolific scoring. Woody Salsbury former All-C.I.F Compton High School, Harlem Globetrotter, and St. Louis Hawk was also said to be a victim. As was Raymond Lewis, Philadelphia 1st round draft choice in 1973, denied entry into the league (Raymondlewis.com).
March 19th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Jon DeJesus says:
I must say Black Magic was a very intriguing doucumentary, shall we call it. It just shows the struggle these guys had to deal with back in the day. What was crazy is when Pee Wee Kirkland scored 100 and his teammates said “yo you gotta score more”. The next game he has 135. Thats crazy.
March 19th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
chosen623 says:
loved this documentary. the only problem i had is this, the pics at the beginning of the pee wee kirkland section, they showed pics of Joe Hammond. everybody that knows pee wee and joe knows that the pics are of joe. other than that, it was incredible.
March 19th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
Bobbito Garcia a.k.a. Kool Bob Love says:
word, i peeped that the had the wrong pics of pee wee at first too, but other than that i wasn’t mad at all at this joint.
who, or what, was black pearl?
March 24th, 2008 at 11:10 pm
Carlito Roc says:
Cant wait for this to come out on dvd. It was a great Documentary. I watched it with my pops. He said it filled in a lot of blanks about the civil rights movement before he came to this country.
Tck Krew.
June 12th, 2008 at 8:45 pm
kaleem says:
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