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Kareem Abdul-Jabaar

Highest Rated: 97% Airplane! (1980)

Lowest Rated: John Bronco (2020)

Birthday: Apr 16, 1947

Birthplace: New York, New York, USA

Born in New York City in 1947, Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor (Lew Alcindor) was always tall. He was 6 feet 8 inches tall before entering high school, where his team finished with a 79-2 record including a 71-game winning streak. Although NCAA rules prevented freshman from playing during the season, the Alcindor-led freshman team at UCLA beat the varsity team that went on to win the National Championship, beginning a renowned college career that resulted in an unprecedented three consecutive National Championships of his own and an 88-2 record, as well as earning his BA in History. In 1968, Alcindor converted to Islam and in 1969 was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks with the first pick in the NBA draft. In his second year in the league, Alcindor won fist first NBA MVP award, and led the Bucks to their first NBA Championship, where he was named the finals MVP. The day after winning the finals, Alcindor began publicly using his Arabic name, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The same year, he made his first appearance as an actor, on the private eye show "Mannix" (CBS, 1967-1975). In 1975, Abdul-Jabbar was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, where he was joined, in 1979, by Magic Johnson. The pair ushered in the Lakers basketball dynasty, appearing in the NBA finals 8 times, winning 5. Abdul-Jabbar earned his record sixth NBA MVP award in 1980. Abdul-Jabbar continued to appear occasionally in film and TV; most notably he had a memorable cameo in the classic slapstick comedy "Airplane" (1980). When he retired in 1989 after 20 years in basketball, Abdul-Jabbar was considered the greatest player of all time. After his basketball career, Abdul-Jabbar was a frequent writer and activist for racial equality. In 1986, he published his first novel of History, Black Profiles in Courage: A Legacy of African-American Achievement. He has also co-written a pair books, Mycroft Holmes and Mycroft and Sherlock Holmes, which take the famous character on new adventures. Abdul-Jabbar also produced and directed "On the Shoulders of Giants" (2011) about a legendary but overlooked basketball team from 1930s Harlem. In 2018 it was announced that he would add screenwriter to his resume, as he was named as one of the writers on the series reboot of "Veronica Mars" (The CW, 2004-07).

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Highest rated movies

97% 89% Airplane! Watchlist
93% 100% Be Water
Watchlist
88% 41% A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks Watchlist 91% John Bronco Watchlist
67% 1 Love
Watchlist
Black Patriots: Heroes of the Civil War
Watchlist
The Iceman
Watchlist
31% Slam Dunk Ernest
Watchlist
79% On the Shoulders of Giants
Watchlist
91% Bruce Lee - A Warrior's Journey
Watchlist

Filmography

Movies

Credit
No Score Yet No Score Yet Black Patriots: Heroes of the Civil War Narrator,
Executive Producer
- 2022
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Iceman Self - 2022
88% 41% A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks Self - 2021
No Score Yet 91% John Bronco Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Character) - 2020
93% 100% Be Water Self - 2020
No Score Yet 79% On the Shoulders of Giants Narrator,
Writer,
Executive Producer
- 2010
No Score Yet 67% 1 Love Unknown (Character) - 2003
No Score Yet 91% Bruce Lee - A Warrior's Journey Unknown (Character) - 2000
No Score Yet 31% Slam Dunk Ernest The Archangel of Basketball (Character) - 1995
97% 89% Airplane! Roger Murdoch (Character) - 1980

TV

Credit
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Jennifer Hudson Show Guest 2023
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Daily Show Guest 2004 2023
82% 95% Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers Self 2022
No Score Yet 44% The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Guest 2020 2022
100% 85% Dear... Self 2022
100% 75% Muhammad Ali Self 2021
No Score Yet 61% Late Night With Seth Meyers Guest 2021
No Score Yet No Score Yet Sesame Street Guest 1992 2013 2020
No Score Yet No Score Yet To Tell the Truth Guest 2019
92% 79% Veronica Mars Writer 2019
No Score Yet No Score Yet What's My Name: Muhammad Ali Unknown (Character) 2019
92% 69% iZombie Zed (Guest Star) 2019
81% 84% The Big Bang Theory Himself (Guest Star) 2019
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Talk Guest 2018
94% 79% Fresh Off the Boat Self (Guest Star) 2018
No Score Yet No Score Yet Beat Shazam Guest 2018
No Score Yet No Score Yet Dancing With the Stars Contestant 2018
No Score Yet No Score Yet Last Call With Carson Daly Guest 2017
No Score Yet No Score Yet Celebrity Family Feud Guest 2017
No Score Yet No Score Yet Tavis Smiley Guest 2016-2017
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Chew Guest 2017
No Score Yet 12% The View Guest 2015
No Score Yet No Score Yet Real Time With Bill Maher Guest 2014
54% 67% The Crazy Ones Himself (Guest Star) 2014
No Score Yet No Score Yet My Generation Guest 2013
No Score Yet No Score Yet Splash Contestant 2013
No Score Yet No Score Yet Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen Guest 2013
No Score Yet No Score Yet Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Guest 2012
95% 85% New Girl Himself (Guest Star) 2012
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Wendy Williams Show Guest 2012
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Colbert Report Unknown (Character),
Guest
2008 2011
85% 76% The Simpsons Himself (Guest Voice) 1995 2011
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Apprentice Unknown (Guest Star) 2007
83% 86% Scrubs Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Guest Star) 2006
No Score Yet No Score Yet The War Next Door Unknown (Guest Star) 2000
93% No Score Yet The Gregory Hines Show Unknown (Guest Star) 1998
33% No Score Yet Boston Common Unknown (Guest Star) 1997
No Score Yet No Score Yet Living Single Unknown (Guest Star) 1997
No Score Yet 86% Everybody Loves Raymond Himself (Guest Star) 1996
No Score Yet 93% Martin Unknown (Guest Star) 1996
85% 83% The Critic Unknown (Guest Voice) 1994-1995
No Score Yet 80% Full House Self 1995
No Score Yet 91% The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Unknown (Guest Star) 1994
No Score Yet No Score Yet 21 Jump Street Wesley Williams (Guest Star) 1990
No Score Yet No Score Yet Diff'rent Strokes Unknown (Guest Star) 1982 1985
No Score Yet No Score Yet Mannix Jeff (Guest Star) 1971
No Score Yet No Score Yet Buddies Self