Enos Stanley "Stan" Kroenke (; born July 29, 1947 in Columbia, Missouri) is an American business entrepreneur. His wife, Ann Walton Kroenke, is the daughter of Wal-Mart cofounder Bud Walton. Kroenke is also the owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, which includes the Denver Nuggets of the NBA, Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer, Colorado Avalanche of the NHL, Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League and St. Louis Rams of the NFL (the Colorado sports properties are in the name of Josh Kroenke, one of his children, to satisfy NFL ownership restrictions that forbid a team owner from owning teams in other markets). He is also the majority shareholder of English football club Arsenal. He currently lives in Columbia, Missouri. Kroenke was estimated to be worth $US2.6 billion by Forbes in 2011.

Business career

Real estate

Kroenke obtained a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Missouri. He founded the Kroenke Group in 1983, a real estate development firm that has constructed numerous shopping centers and apartment buildings. Since his marriage to Walton, he has been in the special position to develop many of the plazas near Wal-Mart stores. He is also the chairman of THF Realty, an independent real estate development company that specializes in suburban development. He founded this corporation in St. Louis in 1991.

Kroenke Sports Enterprises

Kroenke is a well-known sports mogul. As the head and owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, he has owned 40% of the National Football League's St. Louis Rams since their relocation to Missouri in 1995. In 2000, he became full owner of both the National Basketball Association's Denver Nuggets and the National Hockey League's Colorado Avalanche, purchasing the team from Charlie Lyons' ''Ascent Entertainment Group''. In 2002, he partnered with American football legend John Elway and Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen to become co-owner of the Arena Football League's Colorado Crush. He continued to grow his sports empire in 2004, when he purchased the National Lacrosse League's Colorado Mammoth and Major League Soccer's Colorado Rapids from Phil Anschutz.

In 2010, Kroenke exercised his right of first refusal to buy the remaining interest in the St. Louis Rams. On August 25, 2010, he became full owner of the Rams by unanimous consent of the NFL. To gain approval from NFL owners, Kroenke agreed to turn over control of the Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche to his son, Josh, by the end of 2010, and he must give up his majority stake in both teams by December 2014. The NFL does not allow its owners to hold majority control of major league teams in other NFL markets.

Kroenke Sports Enterprise also owns Pepsi Center in Denver, home of the Nuggets and Avalanche, and co-owns Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, home of the Rapids. Both venues were built by his development company. In 2004, Kroenke launched his own competitor to FSN Rocky Mountain (now known as Root Sports Rocky Mountain), Altitude, a new regional sports network which became the official broadcaster for both of Kroenke's teams on launch. Kroenke also established TicketHorse, a ticket company that provides in-house sales for all of his teams.

Kroenke is a somewhat reclusive man who stays out of the limelight. He his popularly known as "Silent Stan" because he almost never gives interviews to the press. He rarely interferes in his teams' day-to-day operations.

Kroenke is the largest shareholder of Premier League football club Arsenal. Arsenal already had a technical link-up with Kroenke's Colorado Rapids when in April 2007 Granada Ventures, a subsidiary of ITV plc, had sold their 9.9% stake in Arsenal Holdings plc to Kroenke's KSE UK inc. Kroenke went on to buy further shares in the club, taking his total stake up to 12.19%. The club's board initially expressed skepticism that a bid would be in its best interests, but gradually warmed to him as part of counteracting Alisher Usmanov's rival bid for the club.

By June 2008 the board had prepared to let Kroenke take over the club, and on 19 September 2008 it was officially announced that Kroenke had joined the Arsenal board of directors. Kroenke has a beneficial interest in, and controls voting rights over, 18,594 Shares, representing 29.9% of the issued Shares meaning he is nearing the 29.99% threshold, beyond which he would be forced to make an offer for all the remaining shares.

On 10th April 2011, it was reported that Kroenke was in advanced talks to complete the takeover of Arsenal. The following day, it was announced that he increased his shareholding in Arsenal to 62.89% by purchasing the stakes of Danny Fiszman and Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith, and agreed to make an offer for the rest of the club at £11,750 per share, valuing the club at £731M.

Other businesses

In 2006, Kroenke, in partnership with the money manager Charles Banks, acquired the Napa Valley winery Screaming Eagle. (In April 2009, Banks stated he was no longer involved with Screaming Eagle).

References

External links

Entry in Forbes’ List of Richest People

Reference to Malibu Times denoting Stan's purchase of the Malibu Colony Shopping Center, which is only 1 of 2 shopping centers in affluent Malibu, CA

Stan Kroenke Speaks about Vincent Jackson

Category:1947 births Category:Living people Category:American billionaires Category:American sports businesspeople Category:American soccer chairmen and investors Category:Arena Football League executives Category:Arsenal F.C. directors and chairmen Category:Colorado Avalanche owners Category:Denver Nuggets owners Category:National Basketball Association executives Category:National Basketball Association owners Category:National Football League owners Category:National Hockey League executives Category:National Hockey League owners Category:People from Columbia, Missouri Category:Stanley Cup champions Category:University of Missouri alumni Category:Walton family

ar:إينوس ستان كروينك de:E. Stanley Kroenke ko:스탠 크랑키 he:סטן קרונקי pl:Stanley Kroenke ru:Кронке, Стэн fi:Stan Kroenke sv:Stanley Kroenke tr:Stan Kroenke

Coordinates

40°37′29″N73°57′8″N

{{infobox nfl coach |name

Jeff Fisher |imageJeff Fisher Coaches Tour MND-B Iraq July 4, 2009.jpg |image_size150 |caption Fisher in July 2009 |Colorgrey |fontcolorblack |birth_date February 25, 1958 |birth_place Culver City, California |positionHead CoachCornerback |collegeUSC |DraftedYear1981 |DraftedRound7 / Pick 177 |Career Highlightsy |DatabaseFootballFISHEJEF01 |playeryes |years1981-1984 |teamsChicago Bears |coachyes |coachingyears19851986-19871988-199019911992-199319941994-2010 |coachingteamsChicago Bears(defensive assistant)Philadelphia Eagles(defensive backs coach)Philadelphia Eagles(defensive coordinator)Los Angeles Rams(defensive coordinator)San Francisco 49ers(defensive backs coach)Houston Oilers(defensive coordinator)Houston/Tennessee Oilers/Titans(head coach) |DatabaseFootballCoachFISHEJEF01 |PFRCoachFishJe0 |NFLFIS435061 |record142-120-0 (Regular season)5-6 (Postseason)147-126-0 (Overall) |championships1999 AFC Championship }}

Jeffrey Michael "Jeff" Fisher (born February 25, 1958) is the former head coach of the Tennessee Titans of the NFL. He has a 146-120 career record as an NFL head coach.

Early life

A native of Southern California, Fisher starred as a high school All-American wide receiver for Taft High School in Woodland Hills.

Playing career

Fisher later went on to star as a USC Trojan under coach John Robinson. During his collegiate career (1977–80), he played alongside such defensive stars as Ronnie Lott, Dennis Smith, and Joey Browner. Fisher's USC teammates also included star offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, whom he would coach years later with the Oilers and Titans. Fisher and the Trojans won a national championship during the 1978 season, and in 1980 he was honored with a Pac-10 All-Academic selection.

Fisher entered the NFL as a 7th round draft pick of the Chicago Bears in 1980 and appeared in 49 games as a defensive back and return specialist in five seasons.

He earned a Super Bowl ring after Chicago’s 1985 Super Bowl season, despite spending the year on injured reserve with an ankle injury that prematurely ended his playing career. In 1983, Fisher had suffered a broken leg on a punt return when he was tackled by then-Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Bill Cowher, the future head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Coincidentally the two became rivals as head coaches beginning in the AFC Central in 1995; Fisher's Oilers/Titans squads came out with an 11-7 record against Cowher's Steelers.

Early coaching career

Realizing his playing days were over, and not content to be idle, Fisher wanted to still be involved with professional football. In 1985, the Bears put him on injured reserve, so during this time he became a defensive assistant to Buddy Ryan, the Bears' defensive coordinator. After the 1985 Bears won Super Bowl XX, Ryan left Chicago to become the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and Fisher went with him. He joined the Eagles as a defensive backs coach and in 1988 was promoted to defensive coordinator at the age of 30, becoming the youngest one in the league at that point. Fisher found great success despite his youth, and the 1989 Eagles defense led the NFL in interceptions (30) and sacks (62). The 1990 squad led the League in rushing defense and was second in sacks.

In 1991, Fisher headed west to be reunited with his college coach John Robinson, serving as the Los Angeles Rams’ defensive coordinator for one season. The next two seasons, he served as the defensive backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers. These years as an assistant to George Seifert placed Fisher in the Bill Walsh coaching tree. On February 9, 1994, Fisher again became a defensive coordinator, this time for the Houston Oilers under Jack Pardee. Fisher succeeded his one-time mentor Ryan, who left the post to become the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.

Head coach

On November 14, 1994, Pardee was fired, and Fisher was promoted to replace him for the last six games of the season. The Oilers retained Fisher as head coach, and the Oilers drafted quarterback Steve McNair in the 1995 NFL Draft. The new coach did not disappoint, leading the team to a 7–9 record in 1995, tied for second place in the division. The following year the Oilers added Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George, and they achieved an 8–8 record. However, an inability to get a new stadium deal in Houston caused owner Bud Adams to relocate the team to Tennessee for the 1997 season.

In the team's first two seasons in Tennessee the Oilers compiled a two-year record of 16-16.

In the 1999 season, which saw the renaming of the team to the Tennessee Titans, the Titans finished with a 13–3 regular season record, going all the way to Super Bowl XXXIV, in part due to the Music City Miracle. There the team fell to the St. Louis Rams, 23–16; wideout Kevin Dyson was tackled one yard short of the end zone with no time remaining, in what became known as "The Tackle". Tennessee achieved the same record the next year, but were defeated in the AFC playoffs by the Baltimore Ravens who would go on to win Super Bowl XXXV.

The 2001 season was a disappointing one for the Titans, as they could only muster a 7–9 showing. The beginning of the next season proved to be even worse, with the franchise starting off with a 1–4 record. Following one home loss, owner Bud Adams made the comment to reporters that perhaps the Titans "were getting outcoached." This provided a spark the team needed, and they finished the season with a 11–5 record and made it to the AFC Championship Game.

The 2003 season saw more success, with yet another trip to the playoffs and McNair winning the League MVP award. Again, they lost to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots, but the team's progress did not go unnoticed. The 2004 season, however, was plagued by injuries from the start, and Fisher's worst record as head coach (4–12) was the result. Following the season, many veteran players (such as Samari Rolle and Derrick Mason) were cut in an effort to comply with the strict salary cap. The relative youth of the team resulted in a disappointing 2005 season as well. Before the 2005 season, Fisher hired Norm Chow out of USC to be his offensive coordinator.

In 2006, the Titans finished a better-than-expected 8–8. Quarterback Steve McNair was released and Vince Young was drafted, but began the season as backup to veteran Kerry Collins. The season began slowly at 0-3 before Collins was replaced by Young. The team ultimately started 2-7, but following a 27-26 loss to the Baltimore Ravens and McNair, the Titans erupted to win six straight games, including a 24-point rally to beat the Giants. With this promising record the Titans exercised their right to extend his contract by a year, keeping him as the head coach through the 2007 NFL season season.

In 2007, he led the Titans to a 10-6 record and made the AFC playoffs as the 6th seed, but lost in the opening round to the San Diego Chargers.

In 2008, Fisher led the Titans to a 10-0 undefeated streak only to be upset by Brett Favre and the New York Jets midway through the 2008 season. Young was benched after the first game due to emotional stress and replaced by Collins. The Titans finished 13-3 and secured the number 1 seed in the AFC, yet lost in the second round of the 2008 NFL Playoffs to the Baltimore Ravens.

In 2009 the Titans lost in overtime to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the season's opening game. The loss began a six-game slide that reached its nadir in a 59-0 slaughter by the New England Patriots. Collins, at the public recommendation of Titans owner Bud Adams, was benched and replaced by Young; the Titans responded by winning eight of their next ten games, highlighted by a dramatic comeback victory over the Arizona Cardinals, a season-ending comeback against the Seattle Seahawks, and a hard-fought overtime win over the Miami Dolphins. Highlighting this season was the play of running back Chris Johnson; in his second year of professional football (he'd been drafted 24th in the 2008 NFL Draft) Johnson broke Marshall Faulk's record of total yards from scrimmage with 2,509, becoming the sixth back in NFL history to rush over 2000 yards.

On January 27, 2011, it was formally announced that Fisher and the Titans had mutually-agreed to parts ways following a buy-out of one remaining season on Fisher's contract. At more than 16 full seasons, Fisher had been the longest-tenured NFL head coach with one team among active head coaches.

Competition committee

Fisher is Co-Chair of the NFL competition committee along with Atlanta Falcons President Rich McKay.

Head coaching record

5 !1995 Houston Oilers season 9 !1996 Houston Oilers season 8 !1997 Tennessee Oilers season 8 !1998 Tennessee Oilers season 8 !1999 Tennessee Titans season 3 !2000 Tennessee Titans season 3 !2001 Tennessee Titans season 9 !2002 Tennessee Titans season 5 !2003 Tennessee Titans season 4 !2004 Tennessee Titans season 11 !2005 Tennessee Titans season 12 !2006 Tennessee Titans season 8 !2007 Tennessee Titans season 6 !2008 Tennessee Titans season 3 !2009 Tennessee Titans season 8 !2010 Tennessee Titans season 10 142

rowspan="2"	Team !! rowspan="2"|Year !! colspan="5"|Regular Season !! colspan="4"|Post Season
!Won !!Lost!!Ties!!Win %!!Finish!!Won!!Lost!!Win %!!Result
1994 Houston Oilers season>HOU	1994 NFL season>1994	1	|	0	.167	4th in AFC Central	-	-	-	-
HOU||1995	7	|	0	.438	3rd in AFC Central	-	-	-	-
HOU||1996	8	|	0	.500	4th in AFC Central	-	-	-	-
TEN||1997	8	|	0	.500	3rd in AFC Central	-	-	-	-
TEN||1998	8	|	0	.500	2nd in AFC Central	-	-	-	-
TEN||1999	13	|	0	.813	2nd in AFC Central	3	1	.750	Lost to St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV.
TEN||2000	13	|	0	.813	1st in AFC Central	0	1	.000	Lost to Baltimore Ravens in NFL playoffs, 2000-01>AFC Divisional Game.
TEN||2001	7	|	0	.438	4th in AFC Central	-	-	-	-
TEN||2002	11	|	0	.688	1st in AFC South	1	1	.500	Lost to Oakland Raiders in NFL playoffs, 2002-03>AFC Championship Game.
TEN||2003	12	|	0	.750	2nd in AFC South	1	1	.500	Lost to New England Patriots in NFL playoffs, 2003-04>AFC Divisional Game.
TEN||2004	5	|	0	.313	3rd in AFC South	-	-	-	-
TEN||2005	4	|	0	.250	3rd in AFC South	-	-	-	-
TEN||2006	8	|	0	.500	2nd in AFC South	-	-	-	-
TEN||2007	10	|	0	.625	3rd in AFC South	0	1	.000	Lost to San Diego Chargers in NFL playoffs, 2007-08>AFC Wild-Card Game.
TEN||2008	13	|	0	.813	1st in AFC South	0	1	.000	Lost to Baltimore Ravens in NFL playoffs, 2008-09>AFC Divisional Game.
TEN||2009	8	|	0	.500	3rd in AFC South	-	-	-	-
TEN||2010	6	|	0	.375	4th in AFC South	-	-	-	-
colspan="2"	Total	|	120	0			5	6	.455

Coaching tree

NFL head coaches under whom Jeff Fisher has served:

Mike Ditka, Chicago Bears (1985)

Buddy Ryan, Philadelphia Eagles (1986–1990)

John Robinson, Los Angeles Rams (1991)

George Seifert, San Francisco 49ers (1992–1993)

Jack Pardee, Houston Oilers (1994)

Assistant coaches under Jeff Fisher who have become NFL head coaches:

Gregg Williams, Buffalo Bills (2001–2003)

Jim Schwartz, Detroit Lions (2009–present)

Mike Munchak, Tennessee Titans (2011–present)

Personal

Fisher has three children. His son Brandon played linebacker for the University of Montana and younger son Trent has accepted a walk-on offer from Auburn University for the fall of 2010.

References

External links

Jeff Fisher Profile at USC Legends

Category:1958 births Category:Living people Category:American football cornerbacks Category:American football return specialists Category:Chicago Bears players Category:Houston Oilers coaches Category:Houston Oilers head coaches Category:Los Angeles Rams coaches Category:National Football League head coaches Category:People from the San Fernando Valley Category:Philadelphia Eagles coaches Category:Tennessee Oilers head coaches Category:Tennessee Titans head coaches Category:USC Trojans football players Category:People from Culver City, California

da:Jeff Fisher it:Jeff Fisher fi:Jeff Fisher

Coordinates	40°37′29″N73°57′8″N
playername	Arsène Wenger
dateofbirth	October 22, 1949
cityofbirth	Strasbourg
countryofbirth	France
height
position	Sweeper
currentclub	Arsenal (manager)
youthyears1	–1969
youthyears2	1969–1973
youthclubs1	FC Duttlenheim
youthclubs2	AS Mutzig
years1	1973–1975
years2	1975–1978
years3	1978–1981
clubs1	Mulhouse
clubs2	ASPV Strasbourg
clubs3	RC Strasbourg
caps1	56
goals1	4
caps2	80
goals2	20
caps3	11
goals3	0
totalcaps	147
totalgoals	24
manageryears1	1984–1987
manageryears2	1987–1994
manageryears3	1995–1996
manageryears4	1996–
managerclubs1	Nancy-Lorraine
managerclubs2	Monaco
managerclubs3	Nagoya Grampus Eight
managerclubs4	Arsenal }}

Arsène Wenger, OBE (; born 22 October 1949) is a French association football manager and former player, who has managed English Premier League side Arsenal since 1996. He is currently the club's longest serving manager and most successful, based on trophies won.

After completing a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Electrical engineering and Economics respectively at the University of Strasbourg, Wenger began his short lived playing career, moving to three different French clubs in the space of eight years—the last of which being RC Strasbourg in 1981. He briefly managed top flight club AS Nancy-Lorraine, before entering a highly successful period at AS Monaco, winning the Ligue 1 championship in his first season and later the Coupe de France in 1991, along with developing young talent such as Youri Djorkaeff, George Weah and Thierry Henry. In 1995, he coached Japanese J-League side Nagoya Grampus Eight, winning the prestigious Emperor's Cup and the Japanese Super Cup a year after.

At Arsenal, Wenger became the first non-British manager to win the Double in English football in 1998 and replicated the achievement in 2002. In 2004, he became the only manager in Premier League history to go through the entire season undefeated, a run which ended at 49 games. Wenger's tenure also brought Arsenal a first appearance in a Champions League final in 2006 at Paris; the team however lost to FC Barcelona late on.

Despite a trophy barren spell in recent seasons, Wenger is widely regarded by many as one of the world's best managers. He has been dubbed the "miracle worker" by former Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein for achieving maximum success with little resources and is often credited for revolutionising the state of the game. The nickname ''Le Professeur'' was given to him by former Arsenal players and is still used by fans and the British media today, reflecting his astute and forward thinking approach.

Wenger is also renowned for being multilingual; in addition to speaking fluent French, German and English, he commands some Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese.

Early life and ventures

The son of Alphonse and wife Louise Wenger, Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger was born in Strasbourg and grew up in the nearby village of Duttlenheim with an older sister and brother, Guy. His parents owned an automobile spare-parts business in Strasbourg, as well as a bistro in Duttlenheim called ''La Croix d'Or''. Speaking of his upbringing above ''La Croix d'Or'', he stated in an address to the League Managers Association: }}

Wenger is married to former basketball player Annie Brosterhous, with whom he has one daughter, Léa (born 1997), and currently lives in Totteridge, London. He is also a world brand ambassador for FIFA World Cup sponsor Castrol, and as part of his arrangement has conducted several training camps for international youth teams worldwide, as well as advising and providing input to the Castrol Performance Index, FIFA's official ratings system, used for gauging player ratings at official FIFA tournaments, ever since the system's inception. He has also authored a book on football management exclusively for the Japanese market, , published by Japan Broadcast Publishing (a subsidiary of NHK) in September 1997, in which he highlights his managerial philosophy, ideals and values, as well as his thoughts on Japanese football and the game as a whole.

Early career

Wenger spent much of his youth playing football and organizing matches at the village team, FC Duttlenheim, where he made the first team at 16 and was subsequently recruited to nearby third division club AS Mutzig by the team's manager Max Hild, who would go on to become his mentor, advising Wenger on managerial decisions later in his career, and whose team had been noted for playing the "best amateur football" in Alsace. Wenger's playing career was modest. He played as a defender for various amateur clubs, while studying at the ''faculté des sciences économiques et de gestion'' of University of Strasbourg, where he completed a master's degree in 1971. Wenger turned professional in 1978, making his debut for RC Strasbourg against Monaco. He only made twelve appearances for the team, including two as they won the Ligue 1 title in 1978–79, and played once in the UEFA Cup in the same season. In 1981, he obtained a manager's diploma and was appointed the coach of the club's youth team. After his stint at Strasbourg, Wenger joined AS Cannes as assistant manager in 1983.

Managerial career

Wenger's first senior job was at Nancy-Lorraine, which he joined in 1984, but he enjoyed little success there – during his third and final season in charge, Nancy finished 19th and were relegated to the second tier of French football (now Ligue 2). His managerial career took off when he became the manager of AS Monaco in 1987. He won the league in 1988 (his first season in charge) and the French Cup in 1991, and signed high-calibre players such as Glenn Hoddle, George Weah and Jürgen Klinsmann. He also signed 23-year old Youri Djorkaeff from Strasbourg; the future World Cup winner finished joint top goalscorer in Ligue 1, with 20 goals during Wenger's final season in France. Wenger was shortlisted for the managerial role at Bayern Munich, but could not take the job due to Monaco's board refusing to allow them to talk with Wenger, only to release Wenger several weeks later after the post was filled.

He moved on to a successful 18-month stint with the Japanese J. League team Nagoya Grampus Eight, with whom he won the Emperor's Cup, the national cup competition. He also took the club from the bottom three to runners-up position in the league, its best showing until 2010, when his former protege Dragan Stojković led the club to its first title, citing Wenger's positive influence and continued advice throughout the season. His success at the club led to him winning the J. League Manager of the Year award in 1995, the first foreign manager to do so. At Grampus, he hired former Valenciennes manager Boro Primorac, whom he had met during the 1993 match-fixing scandal involving Olympique de Marseille, as his assistant. Wenger, who'd long held the view that Marseille was acting improperly, fully supported the Bosnian manager when he attempted (ultimately with success) to clear himself from any wrongdoing. Primorac would remain Wenger's "right-hand man" for years to come, and still holds this position.

Wenger had in the meantime become a friend of the then Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein, after the two had met when Wenger attended a match between Arsenal and Queens Park Rangers in 1988. After Bruce Rioch was sacked in August 1996, Gérard Houllier, the then technical director of the French Football Federation, recommended Wenger to David Dein in the summer of 1996. Arsenal confirmed his appointment on 30 September 1996, and he officially took up the reins on 1 October. Wenger was Arsenal's first manager from outside the United Kingdom. Though he had previously been touted as a potential technical director of the Football Association, at the time, Wenger was a relative unknown in England, where ''The Evening Standard'' newspaper greeted his nomination with the headline 'Arsene Who?'.

A month before Wenger formally took charge of the team, Wenger requested that the club sign French midfielders Patrick Vieira and Rémi Garde. His first match was a 2–0 away victory over Blackburn Rovers on 12 October 1996. Arsenal finished third in Wenger's first season, missing out on second place (occupied by Newcastle United), and hence the Champions League qualification, on goal difference.

In his second season (1997–98), Arsenal won both the Premier League and FA Cup, the second Double in the club's history. Arsenal had made up a twelve-point deficit on Manchester United and secured the league title with two games left. Key to the success was the inherited defense of Tony Adams, Steve Bould, Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon and Martin Keown, along with striker Dennis Bergkamp and a blend of Wenger's new signings, Emmanuel Petit as a partner for Patrick Vieira, winger Marc Overmars, and teenage striker Nicolas Anelka.

The following few seasons were comparatively barren with a series of near misses. In 1998–99, they lost the Premier League title to Manchester United by a single point on the final day of the season, and United also eliminated Arsenal in extra time after a goal from Ryan Giggs in an FA Cup semi-final. In 1999–2000, Arsenal lost the UEFA Cup final to Galatasaray on penalties and the 2001 FA Cup Final to Liverpool 2–1. Wenger resolved to bring new players to the squad, with the controversial signing of out-of-contract Tottenham defender and former captain Sol Campbell, as well as first-team players, such as Fredrik Ljungberg, Thierry Henry and Robert Pirès.

The new signings would help Wenger's Arsenal achieve the Double once more in 2001–02. The crowning moment was the second-to-last game of the season, against Manchester United. Arsenal won 1–0 in a game, in which Arsenal were seen to have outplayed Manchester United. Arsenal went the whole season unbeaten away from home and scored in every single Premier League game that season, and completed the Double by beating Chelsea 2–0 in the final of the FA Cup with goals from Ray Parlour and Fredrik Ljungberg.

In the 2002 close season, Wenger publicly spoke of his confidence that Arsenal could go all of the forthcoming league season unbeaten and retain their title. This led to fans of both Arsenal and their rival clubs mocking his beliefs by wearing T-shirts proclaiming ''Comical Wenger says: "We can go the whole season unbeaten"''.

After a strong start to the 2002–03 season, Arsenal had looked as though they were going to retain the Premier League crown for the first time in their history. Arsenal were leading eventual winners Manchester United by eight points at one point, but their form collapsed late on in the season. Manchester United overhauled the Gunners in the latter stage of the season to win the title, as Arsenal threw away a two-goal lead against Bolton Wanderers to draw 2–2 and then lost at home 2–3 to Leeds United.

Arsenal were compensated with an FA Cup win in 2003, a 1–0 win over Southampton, and the following season made history by winning the 2003–04 Premier League title without a single loss, the first top-flight team to manage this feat since Preston North End in 1888–89, a feat that only Milan, Perugia, Genoa, Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid, and Ajax had formerly achieved in elite European football. A year earlier, Wenger had been derided for saying it was possible Arsenal could go unbeaten in an entire season.

Wenger later reflected on his comments that Arsenal could go through the 2002-03 season unbeaten by remarking that he was "a season too early".

Arsenal's run of 49 league games unbeaten under Wenger came to an end with a 2–0 defeat at Manchester United on 24 October 2004. Arsenal enjoyed another relatively strong league campaign, but were beaten to the title by Chelsea. Consolation again came in the FA Cup in 2005, Arsenal defeating Manchester United on penalties after a scoreless final.

Arsenal endured two comparatively poor seasons in 2005–06 and 2006–07, finishing fourth in the Premier League on both occasions. Arsenal in a resurgent form threatened to take the Premier League by storm in 2007–08, leading the league for much of the season, but were overhauled by both Chelsea and winners Manchester United after a shocking open ankle fracture to their forward Eduardo unsettled Arsenal's relatively young squad for a few weeks.

In all, Arsenal have won three Premier League titles and four FA Cups under Wenger, making him Arsenal's most successful manager in terms of trophies. However, the UEFA Champions League title still eludes him, the closest Arsenal have come was when they reached the final in 2005–06, the first time in club history, which they lost 2–1 to Barcelona.

In October 2004, he signed a contract extension that would keep him at Arsenal through the 2007–08 season. The then Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein stated that Wenger has a "job for life" at Arsenal, and planned to offer Wenger a role on the Arsenal board once he retires as a manager. Wenger's future at Arsenal was thrust into question when David Dein left the Arsenal board on 18 April 2007, and rumours kept circulating that Wenger might leave to become a manager at Real Madrid. However, on 6 September 2007, Wenger agreed to sign a new three-year contract at Arsenal. Just a few months earlier Wenger led his side to the 2007 Football League Cup Final, where Arsenal lost 2–1 to Chelsea, despite taking the lead.

In August 2010, he signed a three-year contract to continue management of Arsenal until June 2014. His side were on course for a quadruple trophy haul in 2010–11 before a collapse to Birmingham City in the League Cup Final following a mix-up in the Arsenal defence. This was followed by a run of just two wins in eleven Premier League games to take them from title contenders to a fourth place finish, as well as exits in FA Cup and Champions League at the hands of Manchester United and Barcelona respectively.

At the start of 2011–12, Wenger was forced to sell star talents Cesc Fàbregas and Samir Nasri. Suspensions and injuries left an understrength team to face Manchester United at Old Trafford on 29 August, and the result was a 8–2 defeat, Arsenal's worst defeat for 115 years. After the game Alex Ferguson defended Wenger from increasing criticism, as some lambasted the Frenchman for refusing to pay big money to bring established stars to the club.

Approach and philosophy

Wenger has been described as a coach who "has spent his career building teams that combine the accumulation of silverware with a desire to entertain and attack", and as "a purist, dedicated to individual and collective technical quality". ''The Times'' notes that since 2003–04 Wenger's approach to the game has been an emphasis on attack. His style of play has been contrasted with the pragmatic approach of his rivals, but has also been criticised for lacking a "killer touch". Although Wenger for a number of years employed a 4–4–2 formation, since 2005, he has often relied on 4–5–1 with a lone striker and packed midfield, especially since the move to the wider pitch at Emirates Stadium, and in Champions League games. Beginning with the 2009–10 season, largely due to the development of Cesc Fàbregas, Wenger has instituted a fluid 4–3–3 formation at Arsenal, with the front five attackers changing positions freely during the match.

Wenger has a strong reputation for unearthing young talent. At Monaco, he brought Liberian George Weah, who later became FIFA World Player of the Year with Milan from Cameroonian side Tonnerre Yaoundé, and Nigerian Victor Ikpeba, who later became African Player of the Year from R.F.C. de Liège. At Arsenal, Wenger signed young, relatively unknown players such as Patrick Vieira, Francesc Fàbregas, Robin van Persie and Kolo Touré, and helped their transition to become world-class players. Notably, the defence, which set a new record after going 10 consecutive games without conceding a goal on the way to the UEFA Champions League final against Barcelona in 2005–06, cost Arsenal less than £5 million to assemble.

Although Wenger has made some big-money signings for Arsenal, his net spending record is far superior to other leading Premier League clubs. A survey in 2007 found he was the only Premier League manager to have made a profit on transfers, and between 2004 and 2009, Wenger made an average profit of £4.4 million per season on transfers, far more than any other club. A notable example was the purchase of Nicolas Anelka from Paris Saint-Germain for only £500,000 and his subsequent sale to Real Madrid just two years later for £23.5 million. This enabled Wenger to buy three players, Thierry Henry, Robert Pirès, and Sylvain Wiltord, who all played a significant role in the Double in 2001–02 and the league title win in 2003–04.

Wenger opposes greater regulation in English football and stated that: ″I do not want to go too much to a centralised, computerised society. I'm more of a liberal, but I'm also in favour of common sense and good management.″

As well as bringing in younger and relatively unknown talents to the club, Wenger has also seen a few of his veterans rejuvenate their careers at Arsenal. Dennis Bergkamp, who had been signed by Arsenal a year before Wenger joined, reached his peak under Wenger. Wenger also helped his former protégé at Monaco, Thierry Henry, develop into a world class player, and saw him become Arsenal's all-time top scorer and captain.

Wenger also reformed the training and dietary regimes, ridding the club of drinking and junk-food culture. Wenger stood by captain Tony Adams after Adams had admitted to alcoholism in 1996. Wenger supported Adams during rehabilitation, and the player returned to form and likely extended his career by several years. Wenger's training and dietary regime may have also prolonged the careers of the other members of Arsenal's back four, defenders Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon and Martin Keown. Wenger initially was planning to replace them, but later realised that he did not need to.

Wenger had a direct input into the design of the new Emirates Stadium, which opened in 2006, and the move to a new training ground at London Colney.

Plaudits and awards

Wenger enjoys a great deal of support from Arsenal's fans, who demonstrated tremendous faith in the manager and his long-term vision. Supporters regularly display banners claiming "Arsène knows" and "In Arsène we trust" during matches at Emirates Stadium. At the Arsenal's valedictory campaign at Highbury in 2005–06, supporters showed appreciation by deciding to have "Wenger Day" as one of various "themed matchdays". The Wenger Day was held on his 56th birthday on 22 October 2005, during a match against Manchester City.

David Dein, former vice-chairman of Arsenal, described Wenger as the most important manager in the club's history: "Arsene's a miracle worker. He's revolutionized the club. He's turned players into world-class players. Since he has been here, we have seen football from another planet." On 18 October 2007, a commissioned bronze bust of Wenger, similar to the earlier version of Herbert Chapman, was unveiled as a tribute to him, by the board of directors of Arsenal, at the club's Annual General Meeting.

Wenger was awarded France's highest decoration, the Légion d'Honneur, in 2002. He was awarded an honorary OBE for services to British football in the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 2003, along with fellow Frenchman and then Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier. In 2006, Wenger was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his achievements as a manager in the English game. He was the second foreign manager to be inducted to the Hall of Fame, after Italian-born Dario Gradi of Crewe Alexandra.

In 2007, Wenger had an asteroid, 33179 Arsènewenger, named after him by the astronomer Ian P. Griffin, who states Arsenal is his favourite football club.

On 11 January 2011, it was announced that Wenger was named "World Coach of the Decade" by International Federation of Football History & Statistics. The organization aggregated the results from each year of the decade, and he narrowly beat Sir Alex Ferguson and José Mourinho for the honor.

Controversies

Wenger's sides were often criticised for their indiscipline, receiving 73 red cards between 1996 and 2008. However, in both 2004 and 2005, Wenger's Arsenal won the Premier League's Fair Play League tables for sporting behaviour and almost repeated the feat in 2006, finishing second. Their record as one of the most sporting clubs in the division continued up to 2009 with the club always a feature in top four of the Fair Play table. Wenger's team again topped the fair play table for the 2009–10 season.

In 1999, Wenger offered Sheffield United a replay of their FA Cup fifth round match immediately after the match had finished, due to the controversial circumstances in which it was won. Arsenal's winning goal, scored by Marc Overmars, had resulted from Kanu failing to return the ball to the opposition after it had been kicked into touch to allow Sheffield United's Lee Morris receive treatment for an injury. Arsenal went on to win the replayed match 2–1.

He is also well known for his rivalry with Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. This rivalry reached its culmination in the infamous "Pizzagate" incident at Old Trafford in October 2004 after a controversial penalty resulted in a 2–0 defeat and ended Arsenal's 49 game unbeaten Premier League run. After the match, a member of the Arsenal side allegedly threw food at the opposition in the tunnel. Wenger was fined £15,000 for calling United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy "a cheat" in a post-match television interview. He was later fined for again calling van Nistelrooy a cheat, demonstrating that he firmly believed his claim. Both managers have since agreed to tone down their words in an attempt to defuse the rivalry.

During October and November 2005, Wenger became embroiled in a war of words with then Chelsea manager José Mourinho. Mourinho accused Wenger of having an "unprofessional obsession" with Chelsea, labeling Wenger a "rat" and "voyeur". Mourinho was quoted as saying, "He's worried about us, he's always talking about us – it's Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea". Wenger responded by pointing out he was only answering journalists' questions about Chelsea, and described Mourinho's attitude as "disrespectful". Mourinho has since been quoted as saying that he regrets the "voyeur" comment, and Wenger has accepted his apology.

Wenger has often been criticised by other Premier League managers for not fielding many English players, particularly in the Champions League. West Ham United's former manager Alan Pardew said that Arsenal's Champions League success was "not necessarily a triumph for British football". Wenger saw the issue of nationality as irrelevant and said, "When you represent a club, it's about values and qualities, not about passports", also implying that there was a racial aspect to what Pardew had said. In response, Pardew said that, "A manager who is married to a Swede and has signed players from all over the world cannot be called racist." Other pundits, including Trevor Brooking, the director of football development at the The Football Association, defended Wenger. Brooking noted that a lack of English players in one of England's most successful clubs was more of a reflection of the talent pool in England rather than Wenger himself. Several English players started their careers at Arsenal under Wenger, including David Bentley, Steve Sidwell, Jermaine Pennant, Matthew Upson, and perhaps most notably Ashley Cole, and young English talents such as Theo Walcott, Kieran Gibbs and Jack Wilshere are currently building careers at Arsenal.

Wenger made controversial statements on referees after decisions did not go his team's way. Following the Carling Cup final in 2007, he called a linesman 'a liar', leading to an investigation by The Football Association, a fine of £2500, and a warning. Wenger has often tried to defend his players when involved in controversial incidents on the field by saying that he has not seen the incident; this is an option Wenger says he resorts to when there is no "rational explanation" to defend him, and that he has the player's best interests in mind.

Statistics

Player

|- |1978–79 |rowspan="3"|Strasbourg |rowspan="3"|Division 1 |2||0|| || || || ||1||0|| || |- |1979–80 |1||0|| || || || ||colspan="2"|–|| || |- |1980–81 |8||0|| || || || ||colspan="2"|–|| || 11||0|| || || || ||1||0|| || 11||0|| || || || ||1||0|| ||

Manager

.

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
G	W	D	L	Win %
align=left
align=left
align=left
align=left
Total

;Note

Honours

Player

Strasbourg

Ligue 1: 1978–79

Manager

Monaco

;Winner

Ligue 1 (1): 1987–88

Coupe de France (1): 1990–91

;Runner-up

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup (1): 1991–92

Ligue 1 (3): 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93

Nagoya Grampus

Emperor's Cup (1): 1995

J-League Super Cup (1): 1996

Arsenal

FA Premier League (3): 1997–98, 2001–02, 2003–04

FA Cup (4): 1997–98, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05

FA Community Shield (4): 1998, 1999, 2002, 2004

Individual

French Manager of the Year: 1988, 2008

J. League Manager of the Year: 1995

Officer of the British Empire: 2003

Onze d'Or Coach of The Year: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004

FA Premier League Manager of the Year: 1998, 2002, 2004 LMA Manager of the Year: 2001–02, 2003–04 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award: 2002, 2004 Freedom of Islington: 2004 FWA Tribute Award: 2005 English Football Hall of Fame: 2006 Premier League Manager of the Month (11): (March 1998, April 1998, October 2000, April 2002, September 2002, August 2003, February 2004, August 2004, September 2007, December 2007, February 2011) World Coach of the Decade

References

External links

Arsène Wenger profile at Arsenal.com

Arsène Wenger profile at BBC Sport

}}

Category:1949 births Category:Living people Category:People from Strasbourg Category:FC Mulhouse players Category:Association football sweepers Category:RC Strasbourg players Category:ASPV Strasbourg players Category:Ligue 1 players Category:French footballers Category:French football managers Category:AS Nancy managers Category:AS Monaco FC managers Category:Ligue 1 managers Category:Premier League managers Category:Expatriate football managers in England Category:Arsenal F.C. managers Category:Honorary Officers of the Order of the British Empire Category:Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Category:Nagoya Grampus managers Category:Expatriate football managers in Japan Category:English Football Hall of Fame inductees Category:University of Strasbourg alumni Category:UEFA Pro Licence holders

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Coordinates	40°37′29″N73°57′8″N
Name	Vince McMahon
Birth name	Vincent Kennedy McMahon
Birth date	August 24, 1945
Birth place	Pinehurst, North Carolina, United States
Occupation	Chairman and CEO, WWE
Net worth	US$1.1 billion (2000)$700 million (2001)
Alma mater	East Carolina University
Other names	Vince McMahon, Jr.
Website	WWE Corporate Bio
Parents	Vincent James McMahonVicky Askew
Spouse
Children	Shane McMahon (born 1970)Stephanie McMahon-Levesque (born 1976)
Salary	$1.1 million
Height
Weight	}}

Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon (born August 24, 1945) is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE. Upon acquiring World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), McMahon's WWE became the sole remaining major American professional wrestling promotion (until the national expansion of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and Ring of Honor).

As an on-camera character, he can appear on all WWE brands (though the majority of the time, he appears on ''Raw''). McMahon plays a character known by the ring name Mr. McMahon, based on his real life persona. In the world of WWE, he is a two-time world champion, having won the WWF Championship and ECW World Championship. He was also the winner of the 1999 Royal Rumble.

Vince is the husband of Linda McMahon, with whom he ran WWE from its establishment in 1980 until she resigned as the CEO in September 2009.

Business career

World Wide Wrestling Federation: 1971–79

McMahon first met the promoter for Capitol Wrestling Corporation, his father Vincent J. McMahon's company, at the age of 12. At that point, McMahon became interested in following his father's professional wrestling footsteps and often accompanied him on trips to Madison Square Garden. McMahon also wanted to be a wrestler but his father would not let him, explaining that promoters did not appear on the show and should stay apart from their wrestlers.

In 1968, McMahon graduated from East Carolina University with a business degree and after a nondescript career as a traveling salesman, he was eager to assume a managerial role in his father’s World Wide Wrestling Federation promotion (although the elder McMahon was not thrilled with the idea of his son entering the business). In 1969, McMahon made his debut as an in-ring announcer for the WWWF's ''All-Star Wrestling''. In 1971, he was assigned to a small territory in Maine, where he promoted his first card. He later became the play-by-play announcer for television matches after he replaced Ray Morgan in 1971, a role he would regularly maintain until November 1997.

Throughout the 1970s, McMahon became the prominent force in his father's company, and over the next decade, Vince assisted his father in tripling TV syndication. He pushed for the renaming of the company to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). The young McMahon was also behind the Muhammad Ali versus Antonio Inoki match of 1976. In 1979, Vince purchased the Cape Cod Coliseum, where he promoted hockey games and concerts in addition to pro wrestling, as he began to prove that he was capable of running the WWF after his father’s retirement. By 1980, McMahon had become chairman of the company, and Titan Sports was incorporated; in 1982, a 37-year old McMahon led Titan’s acquisition of the Capitol Wrestling Co. from his ailing father (who died in May 1984), as he and his wife Linda took control of the World Wrestling Federation.

World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment: 1982–present

1980s wrestling boom

At the time of his purchase of the WWF, professional wrestling was a business run by regional offices. The various promoters shared an understanding that they would not invade each other’s territories, as this practice had gone on undeterred for decades. McMahon had a different vision of what the industry could become. In 1963, the WWF split from the National Wrestling Alliance, which was the governing body for all the regional territories across the country and as far away as Japan.

He began expanding the company nationally by promoting in areas outside of the company's Northeast U.S. stomping grounds and by signing talent from other companies, such as the American Wrestling Association (AWA). In 1984, he recruited Hulk Hogan to be the WWF’s charismatic new megastar, and the two quickly drew the ire of industry peers as the promotion began traveling and broadcasting into rival territories. Nevertheless, McMahon (who still also fronted as the WWF’s squeaky clean babyface announcer) created ''The Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection'' by incorporating pop music stars into wrestling storylines. As a result, the WWF was able to expand its fanbase into a national mainstream audience as the promotion was featured heavily on MTV programming. On March 31, 1985, he promoted the first WrestleMania to be held at Madison Square Garden while airing on closed circuit TV throughout the U.S. WrestleMania was an undisputed success. As a result, the WWF thus stood head and shoulders above all its competition, and Hulk Hogan soon became a full-fledged pop-culture icon and child role model.

During the late 1980s, McMahon shaped the WWF into a unique sports entertainment brand that reached out to family audiences while attracting fans who had never before paid attention to pro wrestling. By directing his storylines towards highly-publicized supercards, McMahon initiated a brand-new revenue stream by promoting these events live on PPV television, a concept that would completely revolutionize event programming for all sports while catapulting the WWF into a multi-million dollar empire. In 1987, McMahon reportedly drew 93,173 fans to the Pontiac Silverdome (which was called the "biggest crowd in Sports entertainment history") for WrestleMania III, which featured the main event of Hulk Hogan versus André the Giant.

1990s Attitude Era

After several years struggling behind Ted Turner's World Championship Wrestling (WCW), McMahon cemented his place as the industry’s preeminent promoter in the late 1990s, when he initiated an entirely new brand strategy that would eventually return the WWF to prominence. Sensing a public shift towards a more hardened and cynical fan base, McMahon redirected storylines towards a more adult-oriented model. The concept became known as "WWF Attitude", and McMahon personally commenced the new era when he manipulated the WWF Championship away from Bret Hart at Survivor Series in what is now known as the "Montreal Screwjob." From then on, McMahon, who for years had downplayed his ownership of the WWF and was thus better known as merely an affable announcer and foil to heel color commentators, immersed himself into WWF storylines as the evil “Mr. McMahon,” who later began a feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin, who challenged the boss’s authority. As a result, the WWF suddenly found itself back in the midst of national pop-culture, drawing millions of viewers for its weekly ''Monday Night Raw'' broadcasts, which ranked among the highest-rated shows on cable television.

Other business dealings

In the early 1980s, McMahon briefly promoted ice hockey in South Yarmouth, Massachusetts. His Cape Cod Buccaneers played at the Cape Cod Coliseum and were founding members of the Atlantic Coast Hockey League, an AA circuit. Historically, the ACHL is considered a forgotten link between the rough and tumble loops of the 1970s like the NAHL, lampooned in the classic movie ''Slap Shot'', and today's more credible East Coast Hockey League. In October 1999, McMahon led the WWF in an initial public offering of company stock. On March 23, 2001, he purchased the fading WCW for $5 million. Three days later, his “victory speech” was simulcast on both WWF ''Raw'' and ''WCW Nitro''.

In 2000, McMahon again ventured outside the world of professional wrestling by launching the XFL. The league eventually began in February 2001 with McMahon making an appearance at the first game. The league, however, quickly folded after lack of publicity. In the summer of 2003, McMahon acquired Extreme Championship Wrestling in bankruptcy court, leaving McMahon and the WWF as the only major wrestling promotion left in North America.

In 2010, McMahon announced plans to launch a brand new cable network by summer 2011.

Professional wrestling

Mr. McMahon is the on-screen character of Vince McMahon, with the gimmick of being an often egotistical evil boss. The character was spawned from the real-life hatred many wrestling fans had for McMahon following the Montreal Screwjob, at the 1997 Survivor Series.

Several other gimmicks have become integral parts of McMahon's on-camera persona, such as his throaty exclamation of "You're fired!", and his "power walk"—an over-exaggerated strut toward the ring, swinging his arms and bobbing his head from side to side in a cocky manner. According to Jim Cornette, the power walk was inspired by one of McMahon's favorite wrestlers as a child, Dr. Jerry Graham. The Fabulous Moolah, however, claims in her autobiography that "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers was the inspiration for the walk. McMahon has occasionally dropped his character performance upon real-life events affecting WWE, such as the death of Owen Hart at Over the Edge in 1999, the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the death of Chris Benoit.

United States Wrestling Association: 1993

While the Mr. McMahon character marked the first time that McMahon had been portrayed as a villain in WWF, in 1993, McMahon was engaged in a feud with Jerry Lawler as part of a cross-promotion between the WWF and the United States Wrestling Association (USWA). As part of the angle, McMahon sent various WWF wrestlers to Memphis in order to dethrone Lawler as the "king of professional wrestling." This angle also proved to be the first time that McMahon would physically interject himself into matches, as he would occasionally trip Lawler or throw punches at him while seated at ringside. During the angle, McMahon was never directly acknowledged as the owner of the WWF (back in 1993, McMahon was only portrayed as the head announcer on television) and the feud between Lawler and McMahon was not acknowledged on WWF television, as the two continued to provide commentary together (along with Savage) for the television show ''Superstars''. The feud between Lawler and McMahon would also help build towards Lawler's match against Hart at SummerSlam in 1993. The peak of the angle came with Tatanka defeating Lawler to win the Unified World Championship with McMahon gloating at Lawler while wearing the championship belt. This storyline came to an abrupt end when Lawler was accused of raping a young girl in Memphis, and he was dropped from the WWF. He returned shortly afterward, however, as the girl later stated that the rape accusations were lies.

Montreal (1997)

At Survivor Series in 1997, Bret Hart defended his WWF Championship against long-time rival Shawn Michaels in the main event. McMahon had previously opted to be a play-by-play announcer instead of acting as the owner on-screen. In the weeks heading into Survivor Series, McMahon had entered into a rivalry with Hart. During the match, Michaels applied Hart's own signature submission maneuver The Sharpshooter on Hart. Hart refused to submit. McMahon, however, got up and ordered the referee to ring the bell thus screwing Hart out of the title and making Michaels the champion. This incident was subsequently dubbed the "Montreal Screwjob".

Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Mr. McMahon: 1997–1999

In December 1997 on ''Raw is War'', the night after D-Generation X: In Your House, McMahon talked about the behavior and attitude of Stone Cold Steve Austin, such as Austin having assaulted WWF Official Commissioner Slaughter, and how he has attacked WWF announcers such as Jim Ross and McMahon himself. Mr. McMahon demanded that Austin defend his Intercontinental championship against The Rock in a rematch. As in the previous match, Stone Cold used his pickup truck as a weapon against The Rock and the Nation of Domination gang. Austin decided to forfeit the title to The Rock but, instead, Austin gave The Rock a Stone Cold Stunner and knocked McMahon off the ring ropes.

On the March 30 episode of ''Raw is War'', the night after Austin won the WWF Title at WrestleMania XIV, McMahon presented him with a new title belt and warned Austin that he did not approve of his rebellious nature. In April 1998, it appeared Austin and McMahon were going to battle out their differences in an actual match, but the match was declared a no contest when Dude Love made an appearance. This led to a match between Love and Austin at Unforgiven, where Mr. McMahon would sit at ringside during the title match. Dude Love won the match by disqualification when Austin hit McMahon with a chair. In a rematch at In Your House: Over The Edge for the WWF Championship, Austin managed to retain the title despite McMahon acting as the referee and his "Corporate Stooges" (Gerald Brisco and Pat Patterson) as timekeeper and ring announcer, respectively.

McMahon ordered the WWF Championship to be defended in a 14-man tournament named Deadly Games at Survivor Series in 1998. McMahon made sure that Mankind reached the finals because Mankind had visited McMahon in hospital after McMahon was sent to the hospital by the Undertaker and Kane. He also awarded Mankind the WWF Hardcore Championship due to his status as a hardcore wrestling legend. Originally, McMahon was acting as he if he was helping out Mankind during the match. At one point, The Rock turned his attention to McMahon. McMahon turned on Mankind after a screwjob, however, as The Rock had caught Mankind in the Sharpshooter. Mankind had not submitted but McMahon ordered the referee to ring the bell, thus giving The Rock the WWF Championship. This was an homage to the "Montreal Screwjob" that occurred one year earlier. McMahon referred to The Rock as the "Corporate Champion" thus forming the Corporation with his son Shane and The Rock. At Rock Bottom: In Your House, Mankind defeated The Rock to win the WWF Championship after The Rock passed out to the Mandible Claw. McMahon, however, screwed Mankind once again by reversing the decision and returning the belt to his chosen champion, The Rock. McMahon went on to participate in a "Corporate Rumble" on the January 11, 1999 edition of ''Raw'' as an unscheduled participant, but he was eliminated by Chyna.

McMahon restarted a long-running feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin in 1999 when, in December 1998, he made Austin face the Undertaker in a buried alive match with the Royal Rumble qualification on the line. Austin defeated the Undertaker with help from Kane. He had put up $100,000 to anyone who was able to eliminate Austin in the Royal Rumble match. At Royal Rumble, with help from the Rock, McMahon won the match and earned a title match at WrestleMania XV against the WWF Champion The Rock. He turned down his spot, however, and WWF Commissioner Shawn Michaels awarded it to Austin. Austin decided to put his title shot on the line against McMahon so he could get a chance to fight Vince at In Your House: St. Valentine's Day Massacre in a steel cage match. During the match, Big Show—a future member of the Corporation—interrupted, making his WWF debut. He threw Austin through the side of the cage thus giving him the victory.

The Corporation started a feud with The Undertaker's new faction the "Ministry of Darkness," which led to a storyline introducing McMahon's daughter Stephanie. Stephanie played an "innocent sweet girl" who was kidnapped by The Ministry twice. The first time she was kidnapped, she was found by Ken Shamrock on behalf of McMahon in a basement of the stadium. The second time she was kidnapped, The Undertaker attempted to marry her whilst she was forcefully tied to the Ministry's crucifix, but she was saved by Stone Cold Steve Austin. This angle saw a brief friendship develop between McMahon and Austin, cooling their long running feud. A previously unknown character was developed as a result called the "Higher Power", invented by Shane McMahon and The Undertaker. McMahon, however, was later revealed as the "Higher Power" on the June 7 edition of ''Raw'', reigniting his feud with WWF Champion Austin. McMahon's son Shane merged the Corporation with Undertaker's Ministry of Darkness to form the Corporate Ministry. McMahon would become a member of the stable The Union which existed for a brief time, during May 1999. As a result of McMahon being the "Higher Power", Austin was given 50% shares of the WWF by Linda and Stephanie McMahon out of their kayfabe disgust at him.

At King of the Ring, Vince and Shane defeated Austin in a handicap ladder match to regain control of the WWF. While CEO, Austin had scheduled a WWF Title match, to be shown on ''Raw'' after King Of The Ring. During the match, Austin defeated the Undertaker once again to become the WWF Champion. At Fully Loaded, Austin was again scheduled for a match against The Undertaker. If Austin lost, he would be banned from wrestling for the WWF Championship again; if he won, Vince McMahon would be banned from appearing on WWF TV. Austin defeated The Undertaker, and McMahon was banned from WWF TV.

McMahon returned as a face in the fall of 1999 and won the WWF Championship in a match against Triple H, thanks to outside interference from Austin on the September 16 episode of ''SmackDown!''. However He decided had to vacated the title during the following Monday's ''Raw is War'' because he is not allowed on WWF TV because of the stipulations of the Fully loaded 1999 contract he signed. However Steve Austin reinstated him in return for a WWF title shot. Over the next few months McMahon and Triple H feuded, with the linchpin of the feud being Triple H's storyline marriage to Stephanie McMahon. The feud culminated at Armageddon in 1999; McMahon faced Triple H in a No Holds Barred match which McMahon lost. Afterward, Stephanie turned on him.

McMahon-Helmsley Era: 2000–01

McMahon returned to WWF television on the March 13, 2000 edition of ''Raw is War'' helping The Rock win his WWF title shot back from the Big Show, He also attacked Shane McMahon and Triple H. Two weeks later, McMahon and The Rock defeated Shane McMahon and The Big Show in a tag team match with help from special guest referee Mankind. At WrestleMania 2000, Triple H defended the WWF Championship in a Fatal Four-Way Elimination match in which each competitor had a McMahon in his corner. Triple H had his wife Stephanie McMahon who was also the WWF Women's Champion in his corner, The Rock had Vince McMahon in his corner, Mick Foley had Linda McMahon in his corner, and Big Show had Shane in his corner. After Big Show and Foley were eliminated, Triple H and The Rock were left. Although Vince was in The Rock's corner, he turned on The Rock after hitting him with a chair turning heel for the first time since his feud with Steve Austin, which helped Triple H win the match and retain his title. This would officially begin the McMahon-Helmsley Era.

At King of the Ring, McMahon, Shane, and WWF Champion Triple H took on the Brothers of Destruction (Undertaker and Kane) and The Rock in a six-man tag team match for the WWF Championship. The stipulation of this match was that whoever made the scoring pinfall would become the WWF Champion. McMahon was pinned by The Rock which gave Rock the WWF Championship and his team, the victory. On the December 18 edition of ''Raw'', McMahon faced Kurt Angle in a non-title match which was fought to no contest when Mick Foley interfered and attacked both men. After the match, both men beat Foley and McMahon fired him. McMahon and Stephanie then aligned together against Shane. At WrestleMania X-Seven, McMahon lost to Shane after Linda—who had been emotionally abused to the point of a nervous breakdown; the breakdown left her helpless as Vince began a public extramarital affair with Trish Stratus; finally, she was heavily sedated, in the storyline—hit Vince with a low blow. On the same night, McMahon formed an alliance with Stone Cold Steve Austin, helping him defeat The Rock to gain another WWF Championship. It also marked the second time he would screw the Rock over at WrestleMania. The two, along with Triple H, formed an alliance which saw Austin and Triple H and they put the Rock out of action after a kayfabe brutal assault and kayfabe suspension(this was done so the Rock could go and film ''The Scorpion King''), Austin and Triple H held all three major WWF titles (Austin's WWF Championship, the Intercontinental Championship which Triple H won, and the Tag Team Championship) at the same time. The alliance was short lived, due to an injury to Triple H and a business venture by McMahon.

The Invasion: 2001–2005

McMahon purchased long-time rival promotion World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in March 2001 from AOL Time Warner and signed many wrestlers from the organization. This marked the beginning of the Invasion storyline, in which the former WCW wrestlers regularly fought matches against the WWF wrestlers. On the July 9, 2001 edition of ''Raw'', some extremists as well as several former ECW wrestlers on the WWF roster, joined with the WCW wrestlers to form The Alliance. Stone Cold Steve Austin joined the Alliance, along with Shane and Stephanie McMahon. Vince McMahon led Team WWF. At Survivor Series, Team WWF defeated Team Alliance in a Survivor Series elimination match to pick up the victory for WWF and end the Invasion storyline. Following the collapse of The Alliance, McMahon created the "Vince McMahon Kiss My Ass Club", also known as the "Mr. McMahon Kiss My Ass Club", which consisted of various WWE individuals being ordered to kiss his ass in the middle of the ring, usually with the threat of suspension or firing if they refused. The club was originally proclaimed closed by The Rock after McMahon was forced to kiss Rikishi's ass on an episode of ''SmackDown!''; however, the club segment has resurfaced several times over the years. The gimmick has also spawned its own Internet based cartoon entitled "Mr. McMahon's Kiss My Ass Club – The WWE's Most Valuable Asset." The cartoon series, produced by Animax Entertainment, debuted on WWE.com on November 22, 2006. The cartoon was later canceled as part of a settlement between WWE and Cartoon Network due to the show's similarities with Cartoon Network's show ''Assy McGee''. To date there have been 6 members and 5 who have escaped membership and they are: Stone Cold Steve Austin(saved himself), Trish Stratus(saved by The Rock), Zach Gowen(saved himself), Triple H(saved himself), & Marty Jannetty(saved by Shawn Michaels).

Kiss My Ass Club Members

{| class="wikitable sortable" width=98% style="text-align:center;" !style="background:#e3e3e3" width=0%| # !style="background:#e3e3e3" width=18%|Members !style="background:#e3e3e3" width=15%|Date Joined !style="background:#e3e3e3" width=18%|Location !style="background:#e3e3e3" width=15%|Event !style="background:#e3e3e3" width=40% class="unsortable"|Notes |- | | | | |'''' |Made Regal join to be rehired after he had previously joined The Alliance. |- | | | | |'''' |Was forced to join the club by The Undertaker after laughing at McMahon who Stone Cold Steve Austin just beat up after saving himself from membership. |- | | | | |'''' |Was forced to join the club by Shane McMahon after Shane knocked him unconscious with a chair after Michaels saved Marty Jannetty from membership. |- | | | | |'''' |Was forced to join the club by Shawn Michaels after he over powered Shane who was trying to make Michaels rejoin the club. Due to their status as co-owners, McMahon became the owner of ''SmackDown!'' while Flair became the owner of ''Raw''. However, on the June 10, 2002 edition of ''Raw'', McMahon defeated Flair to end the rivalry and become the sole owner of WWE.

On the February 13, 2003 edition of ''SmackDown!'', McMahon tried to derail the return of Hulk Hogan after a five-month hiatus but was knocked out by Hogan and received an Atomic Legdrop. At No Way Out, McMahon interfered in Hogan's match with The Rock. Hogan had originally won the match as he hit The Rock with an Atomic Legdrop but the lights went out. When the lights came back on, McMahon came to the ringside to distract Hogan. Sylvain Grenier, the referee, gave The Rock a chair, which he then hit Hogan with. He ended the match with a Rock Bottom to defeat Hogan. This led to McMahon facing Hogan in a match at WrestleMania XIX, which McMahon lost in a Street Fight. McMahon then banned Hogan from the ring but Hogan returned under the gimmick of "Mr. America". McMahon tried to prove that Mr. America was Hogan under a mask but failed at these attempts. Hogan later quit WWE and at which point McMahon claimed that he had discovered Mr. America was Hulk Hogan and "fired" him.

McMahon asked his daughter Stephanie to resign as SmackDown! General Manager on the October 2, 2003 edition of ''SmackDown!''. Stephanie, however, refused to resign and this set up an "I Quit" match between the two. At No Mercy, McMahon defeated Stephanie in an "I Quit" match when Linda threw in the towel. Later that night, he helped Brock Lesnar retain the WWE Championship against The Undertaker in a Biker Chain match. This started a rivalry between McMahon and Undertaker. At Survivor Series, McMahon defeated Undertaker in a Buried Alive match with help from Kane.

McMahon began a feud with Eric Bischoff in late 2005, when he decided that Bischoff was not doing a good job as General Manager of ''Raw''. He started "The Trial of Eric Bischoff" where McMahon served as the judge. Bischoff ended up losing the trial; McMahon "fired" him, and put him in a garbage truck before it drove away. Bischoff stayed gone for months. Almost a year later on ''Raw'' in late 2006, Bischoff was brought out by McMahon's executive assistant Jonathan Coachman so that he could announce the completion of his book ''Controversy Creates Cash''. Bischoff began blasting remarks at McMahon, saying that he was fired "unceremoniously" as the ''Raw'' General Manager, that there would be no McMahon if not for Bischoff's over-the-top rebellious ideas, and that D-Generation X was nothing but a rip off of the New World Order.

Feuds with D-Generation X and Donald Trump: 2005–07

On the December 26, 2005 edition of ''Raw'', Vince personally reviewed Bret Hart's DVD. Shawn Michaels came out and he also started talking about Hart. McMahon replied, "I screwed Bret Hart. Shawn, don't make me screw you". At the 2006 Royal Rumble, when Michaels was among the final six remaining participants after eliminating Shelton Benjamin, McMahon's entrance theme music distracted Michaels, allowing Shane McMahon to eliminate him. On the February 27, 2006 edition of ''Raw'', Michaels was knocked unconscious by Shane. When Michaels' former Rockers tag team partner Marty Jannetty came to the rescue of Michaels, he was forced to join McMahon's "Kiss My Ass Club". On the March 18 edition of ''Saturday Night's Main Event'', Michaels faced Shane in a Street Fight. McMahon screwed Michaels while Shane had Michaels in the Sharpshooter. Michaels had not submitted, but McMahon ordered the referee to ring the bell, giving Shane the victory (another Montreal Screwjob reference). At WrestleMania 22, Vince McMahon faced Michaels in a No Holds Barred match. Despite interference from the Spirit Squad and Shane, McMahon was unable to beat Michaels. At Backlash, Vince McMahon and his son Shane defeated Michaels and "God" (characterized by a spotlight) in a No Holds Barred match.

On the May 15, 2006 edition of ''Raw'', Triple H hit Shane with a sledgehammer meant for Michaels. The next week on ''Raw'', Triple H had another chance to hit Michaels with the object but he instead whacked the Spirit Squad. For a few weeks, McMahon ignored Michaels and began a rivalry with Triple H by forcing him to join "Kiss My Ass Club" (Triple H hit McMahon with a Pedigree instead of joining the club) and pitting him in a gauntlet handicap match against the Spirit Squad. Michaels, however, saved Triple H and the two reformed D-Generation X (DX). This led to a feud between the McMahons and DX, throughout the following summer. At SummerSlam in 2006, the McMahons lost to DX in a tag team match despite interference by Umaga, Big Show, Finlay, Mr. Kennedy, and William Regal. The McMahons also allied themselves with the ECW World Champion Big Show. At Unforgiven, the McMahons teamed up with The Big Show in a Hell in a Cell match to take on DX. Despite their 3-on-2 advantage, the McMahons lost again to DX thus ending the rivalry.

In January 2007, McMahon started a feud with Donald Trump, which was featured on major media outlets. Originally Trump wanted to fight McMahon himself but they came to a deal: both men would pick a representative who would fight at WrestleMania 23 in a Hair vs. Hair match. The man whose representative lost the match would have his head shaved bald. After the contract signing on ''Raw'', Trump pushed McMahon over the table in the ring onto his head after McMahon provoked Trump with several finger pokes to the shoulders. Later at a press conference, McMahon, during a photo opportunity, offered a shake of hands with Trump but retracted his hand as Trump put out his. McMahon went on to fiddle with Trump's tie and flick Trump's nose. This angered Trump as he then slapped McMahon across the face. McMahon was then restrained from retaliating by Trump's bodyguards and Bobby Lashley, Trump's representative. At WrestleMania 23, McMahon's representative (Umaga) lost the match. As a result, McMahon's hair was shaved bald by Trump and Lashley with the help of Stone Cold Steve Austin, who was the special guest referee of the "Battle of the Billionaires" match.

McMahon then began a rivalry with Lashley over his ECW Championship. At Backlash, McMahon pinned Lashley in a 3-on-1 handicap match teaming up with his son Shane and Umaga to win the ECW Championship. At Judgment Day, McMahon defended his ECW Championship against Lashley again in a 3-on-1 handicap match. Lashley won the match as he pinned Shane after a Dominator but McMahon said that he was still the champion because Lashley could only be champion if he could beat him. McMahon finally lost the ECW Championship to Lashley at One Night Stand in a Street Fight despite interference by Shane and Umaga.

Numerous incidents: 2007–09

On June 11, 2007, WWE aired a segment at the end of ''Raw'' that featured McMahon entering a limousine moments before it exploded. The show went off-air shortly after, and WWE.com reported the angle within minutes as though it were a legitimate occurrence, proclaiming that McMahon was "presumed dead". Although this was the fate of the fictional "Mr. McMahon" character, no harm came to the actual person, the "presumed death" of McMahon was part of a storyline. WWE later acknowledged to CNBC that he was not truly dead.

The June 25, 2007 edition of ''Raw'' was scheduled to be a three-hour memorial to "Mr. McMahon". However, due to the actual death of Chris Benoit, the show opened with McMahon standing in an empty arena, acknowledging that his reported death was only of his character as part of a storyline. This was followed by a tribute to Benoit that filled the three-hour timeslot. His last appearance on WWE television until August 6, 2007 was the next night on ''ECW on Sci Fi'' in which after acknowledging that a tribute to Benoit had aired the previous night, he announced that there would be no further mention of Benoit due to the circumstances becoming apparent, and that the ECW show would be dedicated to those that had been affected by the Benoit murders. On the August 6 show, McMahon said that he faked his death to see what people really thought of him, with Stephanie accused of faking mourning while checking her father's last will and testament to see how it would benefit her.

The "Mr. McMahon" character officially returned on the August 6 episode of ''Monday Night Raw''. He talked about many subjects, including an investigation by the United States Congress and owing money to the IRS. McMahon also declared a battle royal to determine a new ''Raw'' General Manager, which was won by William Regal. At the end of ''Raw'', Jonathan Coachman informed McMahon of a (storyline) paternity suit regarding an illegitimate long-lost child, who was revealed in the following weeks as being a male member of the WWE roster. On the September 3 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon appeared and was confronted by his family. They were interrupted by Mr. Kennedy who claimed to be McMahon's "illegitimate son", but he was also interrupted by a lawyer claiming Kennedy was not McMahon's son and that the real son would be revealed the following week on ''Raw''. His illegitimate son was finally revealed on September 10 on ''Raw'' to be Hornswoggle. In February 2008, after months of "tough love" antics towards Hornswoggle, John "Bradshaw" Layfield revealed that Hornswoggle was not McMahon's son and that he was actually Finlay's son. It turned out that the scam was thought up by Shane, Stephanie and Linda McMahon, along with Finlay.

On the June 2 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon announced that starting the following week, he would give away US$1,000,000 live on ''Raw''. Fans were able to register online, and each week, randomly selected fans would receive a part of the $1,000,000. McMahon's Million Dollar Mania lasted just three weeks and was suspended after the 3-hour Draft episode of ''Raw'' on June 23. After giving away $500,000, explosions tore apart the ''Raw'' stage, which fell and collapsed on top of McMahon. On June 30, Shane addressed the WWE audience before ''Raw'', informing the fans that his family had chosen to keep his father’s condition private. In addition, he also urged the WWE to stand together during what he described as a "turbulent time". The McMahons made several requests to the wrestlers for solidarity, before finally appointing Mike Adamle as the new general manager of ''Raw'' in order to restore order to the brand.

Return, feuds with Randy Orton and Bret Hart (2009–10)

On the January 5, 2009, episode of ''Raw'', Chris Jericho would tell Stephanie McMahon that McMahon would be returning to ''Raw'' soon. The following week, Jericho was (kayfabe) fired from WWE by Stephanie. On January 19, 2009, episode of ''Raw'', McMahon returned, as a face, and supported his daughter's decision on Jericho, but Stephanie would rehire him. Randy Orton would then come out and assault McMahon after harassing Stephanie. McMahon would return on the March 30 ''Raw'' with his son, Shane, and son-in-law Triple H to confront Orton. The night following WrestleMania XXV, McMahon appeared on ''Raw'' to announce that Orton would not be receive another championship opportunity at Backlash but would compete in a 6-man tag team match with his Legacy stablemates to face the team of Triple H, Shane McMahon and himself. ''Raw'' General Manager Vickie Guerrero would make the match for the WWE Championship. Orton then challenge McMahon to a match that night, which saw Legacy assault him, with Orton also hitting the RKO. After being assisted by Triple H, Shane and a returning Batista, McMahon announced that Batista would replace him in match at Backlash.

On the June 15 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon announced that he had sold the ''Raw'' brand to businessman Donald Trump, though the following week, during the ''Trump is Raw'' show, McMahon would buy the brand back from Trump. On the June 29 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon would announce that every week, a celebrity guest host would control ''Raw'' for the night. McMahon would then make appearances on the ''SmackDown'' brand, putting Theodore Long in probation for his actions.

On August 24, episode of ''Raw'', McMahon had a birthday bash which was later interrupted by The Legacy, and competed in a 6-man tag team match with his long-time rival team DX, in which they won after the interference of John Cena. He continued to appear on ''SmackDown'', making occasional matches and reminding Long that he is still on probation. On the November 16 episode of ''Raw'' McMahon was called out by guest host Roddy Piper, who wanted a match with McMahon that night in Madison Square Garden. McMahon would decline the challenge announce his "retirement" from in ring competition.

On the January 4, 2010 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon confronted special guest host Bret "The Hitman" Hart for the (televised) first time since the Montreal Screwjob at Survivor Series 1997, with the intention of burying the hatchet from the above mentioned Montreal Screwjob. The two appeared to finally bury the hatchet, but after shaking hands, Vince kicked Hart in the groin and left the arena to a loud chorus of boos and the crowd chanting "You screwed Bret! You screwed Bret!". A match was then booked between the two at Wrestlemania XXVI, which saw Hart defeat McMahon in a No Holds Barred Lumberjack match. After WrestleMania it was announced that McMahon would no longer appear on WWE television as his character Mr. McMahon, making official his retirement from in-ring competition. On the May 31 edition of ''Raw'', McMahon returned to congratulate Hart on becoming the new Raw General Manager. On the June 22 edition of ''Raw'', McMahon fired Hart for not dealing with ''NXT'' season one rookies, known as The Nexus. That same night he announced the new General Manager would be anonymous and make decisions via email, which would be read out by Michael Cole. The General Manager's first decision was McMahon to be the guest referee for a WWE Championship match that night between John Cena and Sheamus. The match was interrupted by The Nexus who then attacked McMahon.

Part-time appearances (2010–2011)

McMahon made an appearance on the November 1 edition of ''Raw'', where it was revealed that he had fallen into a coma because of the attack by The Nexus. During the segment, McMahon woke up from his coma and his doctor (played by Freddie Prinze, Jr.) told him what had happened since he had been in a coma. The segment ended with Stephanie McMahon waking up, dreaming the whole thing.

McMahon would return to the WWE on the February 7, 2011, episode of ''Raw'', were he announced that the guest host for WrestleMania XXVII would be revealed the following week, with the person being The Rock. On the May 2 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon appeared on a birthday celebration themed ''Raw'' to wish The Rock a happy birthday. On the June 6 edition of WWE Tough Enough, McMahon would announce the winner of the show with Stone Cold Steve Austin. McMahon would also make an appearance on the June 6 episode of ''Raw'', being interrupted by R-Truth, The Miz, Alex Riley and John Cena. McMahon would make the main event of the night to be Cena and Riley going against Truth and Miz in a tag team match with Steve Austin as the guest referee.

McMahon returned on the July 4 episode of ''Raw'' as a heel, addressing the suspension of CM Punk following comments made by Punk the week before. Cena would convince McMahon to reinstate Punk and make the WWE Championship match at Money in the Bank official again. However, McMahon would tell Cena that if he were to lose the title at the pay-per-view, he would personally go to the ring and fire Cena. The following week on ''Raw'', McMahon would try and get Punk to sign a new contract with the WWE, but Punk would tear the contract up, saying he is still leaving after his match at the pay-per-view.

At the Money in the Bank pay-per-view, McMahon told John Laurinaitis to end the match while Cena had Punk in the ''STF'', trying to duplicate the Montreal Screwjob (otherwise known as the Chicago Screwjob), but Cena knocked out Laurinaitis before he could get to the bell. After Punk had defeated Cena, McMahon then ordered Alberto Del Rio, ''Raw's'' Money in the Bank ladder match winner to cash in and challenge Punk for the title. Del Rio got attacked by Punk before he could cash in. Punk then fled through the crowd with the WWE Championship.

At the end of the July 18, 2011 broadcast of ''Raw'', Triple H returned on behalf of WWE's board of directors to relieve Mr. McMahon of his duties as WWE Chairman. This was followed by the announcement that he had been assigned to take over as Chief Operating Officer of WWE.

Personal life

McMahon was born on August 24, 1945 in Pinehurst, North Carolina. McMahon's father, Vincent James McMahon, had left the family while McMahon was still a baby. McMahon did not meet his father until age 12. Vince spent the majority of his childhood living with his mother and a string of stepfathers. According to an interview with ''Playboy'', he attended and graduated, in 1964, from Fishburne Military School in Waynesboro, Virginia. McMahon claimed that one of his stepfathers, Leo Lupton, used to beat his mother and would attack him as well when he tried to protect her. He said, "It is unfortunate that he died before I could kill him. I would have enjoyed that." In his early life, McMahon also overcame dyslexia.

McMahon married Linda McMahon on August 26, 1966 in New Bern, North Carolina. The two met in church when Linda was 13 and Vince was 16. At that time McMahon was known as Vince Lupton, using his stepfather's surname. They were introduced by Vince's mother, Vicky Lupton (now Vicky Askew). They have two children, Shane and Stephanie, both of whom have spent time in the WWF/E both onscreen and behind the scenes. Shane left the company as of January 1, 2010; while Stephanie continues to be active in a backstage role.

McMahon has a $12 million penthouse in Manhattan, a $40 million mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut, a $20 million vacation home, and a 47-foot sports yacht named ''Sexy Bitch''. ''Forbes'' has noted McMahon's wealth at 1.1 billion dollars, backing up the WWE's claim he is a billionaire for the year of 2001, though he is reported to have since dropped off the list.

McMahon has six grandchildren: Declan James and Kenyon Jesse McMahon and a grandson born in 2010, sons of Shane and his wife Marissa; and Aurora Rose, Murphy Claire & Vaughn Evelyn Levesque, daughters of Stephanie and her husband Paul "Triple H" Levesque.

Harassment allegations

Rita Chatterton (ring name: "Rita Marie") was a former referee who is noted for her stint in the WWF in the 1980s. She is known for being the first ever female referee in the WWF, possibly in pro wrestling history. Her times there, however, were shrouded in controversy, due to sexual harassment charges against owner McMahon. On April 3, 1992, Chatterton made an appearance on Geraldo Rivera's television show ''Now It Can Be Told'' alleging that on July 16, 1986 McMahon tried to force her to perform oral sex on him in his limousine and, after her rebuttal, subjected her to rape.

On February 1, 2006, McMahon was accused of sexual harassment by a worker at a Boca Raton, Florida tanning bar. At first, the charge appeared to be discredited because McMahon was in Miami for the 2006 Royal Rumble at the time. It was soon clarified that the alleged incident was reported to police on the day of the Rumble, but actually took place the day before. On March 27, a Florida television station reported that no charges would be filed against McMahon as a result of the investigation.

Legal trial and acquittal

In 1993, he was indicted after a steroid controversy engulfed the promotion. McMahon was put on trial in 1994, accused of distributing steroids to his wrestlers. One former wrestler, Nailz, was called by the prosecution to testify against McMahon, stating that Vince encouraged him to start using steroids. His wife Linda became CEO of the WWF during the trial. He was acquitted of all charges though he admitted to taking steroids himself in the 1980s. The prosecution made Hulk Hogan its star witness, however, when called to testify, Hogan stated that at no time did Vince McMahon ever sell steroids.

Other media

In 2001, McMahon was interviewed by ''Playboy'' and performed an interview with his son Shane for the second issue of the magazine that year. In March 2006, (at age 60) McMahon was featured on the cover of ''Muscle & Fitness'' magazine. On August 22, 2006, a two-disc DVD set showcasing McMahon's career was released. The DVD is simply titled ''McMahon''. The box art symbolizes the blurred reality between Vince McMahon the person and Mr. McMahon the character. ''McMahon'' features a profiling of the Mr. McMahon character, such as the rivalries with wrestlers, on-screen firings, and antics. In addition, the DVD features the profiling of Vince's business life, such as acquiring WCW and ECW and the demise of the XFL. McMahon's top nine matches of his professional wrestling career are also included in ''McMahon''.

In wrestling

Finishing moves

*''Pedigree'' (Double underhook facebuster) – adopted from Triple H

*''People's Elbow / Corporate Elbow'' (Feint leg drop transitioned into a high impact elbow drop to the opponent's chest, with theatrics) – adopted from The Rock

*Running jumping guillotine leg drop – parodied from Hulk Hogan

*''McStunner/Mr. McMahon Stunner'' (Three-quarter facelock jawbreaker) – adopted from Stone Cold Steve Austin

Nicknames

*"The Boss"

*"The Chairman"

*"The Genetic Jackhammer"

*"The Higher Power"

*"Vinnie Mac"

Wrestlers Managed

*Stephanie McMahon

*Shane McMahon

*Triple H

*Umaga

*The Corporation

*Corporate Ministry

Entrance themes

*WWF/E

**"No Chance in Hell" by Peter Bursuker (1998–present; ''WWF The Music, Vol. 4'', ''WWE Anthology'', ''Raw Greatest Hits: The Music'')

Championships and accomplishments

Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum

(Class of 2011)

World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment

ECW World Championship (1 time)

WWF Championship (1 time)

Royal Rumble (1999)

*WWE Chairman and CEO

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

PWI Feud of the Year (1996) vs. Eric Bischoff

PWI Feud of the Year (1998, 1999) vs. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin

PWI Feud of the Year (2001) vs. Shane McMahon

PWI Match of the Year (2006) vs. Shawn Michaels in a No Holds Barred match at WrestleMania 22

Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

*Best Booker (1987, 1998, 1999)

*Best Non-Wrestler (1999, 2000)

*Best Promoter (1988, 1998–2000)

*Feud of the Year (1998, 1999) vs. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin

*Worst Feud of the Year (2006) with Shane McMahon vs. D-Generation X (Shawn Michaels and Triple H)

*Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)

Other accomplishments and honors

*Madison Square Garden Walk of Fame

*Sport's Illustrated 'Sportsman of the Year' 2006 Nominee

*Created WrestleMania

*The cover of "Muscle & Fitness" (2006)

On May 13, 2007, Vince McMahon served as the commencement speaker at Sacred Heart University, receiving the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; he is the first person to hold a professional wrestling title to receive one

Notes

References

External links

WWE Profile

WWE Corporate Bio

Category:1945 births Category:American businesspeople Category:American chief executives Category:American Roman Catholics Category:East Carolina University alumni Category:American people of Irish descent Category:Living people Category:People from Greenwich, Connecticut Category:People from Boca Raton, Florida Category:People from Manhattan Category:People from Pinehurst, North Carolina Category:Professional wrestling announcers Category:Professional wrestling executives Category:Professional wrestling trainers Category:WWE

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Coordinates	40°37′29″N73°57′8″N
Name	Earvin "Magic" Johnson
Width	200
Position	Point guard / Forward
Number	32
Birth date	August 14, 1959
Birth place	Lansing, Michigan
Height ft	6
Height in	9
Height footnote
Weight lbs	255
Weight footnote
Career start	1979
Career end	1996
Draftyear	1979
Draftround	1
Draftpick	1
Draftteam	Los Angeles Lakers
High school	Everett (Lansing, Michigan)
College	Michigan State (1977–1979)
Years1	–, |team1 Los Angeles Lakers
Stat1label	Points
Stat1value	17,707 (19.5 ppg)
Stat2label	Rebounds
Stat2value	6,559 (7.2 rpg)
Stat3label	Assists
Stat3value	10,141 (11.2 apg)
Bbr	johnsma02
Letter	j
Highlights	5× NBA Champion (, , , –) 3× NBA Most Valuable Player (, –) 12× NBA All-Star (, –) 3× NBA Finals MVP (, , ) 9× All-NBA First Team (–) All-NBA Second Team () NBA All-Rookie First Team () 2× NBA All-Star Game MVP (, ) NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team NCAA Champion (1979) #32 Retired by Los Angeles Lakers
Hof player	earvin-magic-johnson }}

Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers. He won a championship and an NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award in his rookie season, and won four more championships with the Lakers during the 1980s. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had contracted HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996, at age 37, to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time.

Johnson's career achievements include three NBA MVP Awards, nine NBA Finals appearances, twelve All-Star games, and ten All-NBA First and Second Team nominations. He led the league in regular-season assists four times, and is the NBA's all-time leader in assists per game, with an average of 11.2. Johnson was a member of the "Dream Team", the U.S. basketball team that won the Olympic gold medal in 1992.

Johnson was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996, and enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. He was rated the greatest NBA point guard of all time by ESPN in 2007. His friendship and rivalry with Boston Celtics star Larry Bird, whom he faced in the 1979 NCAA finals and three NBA championship series, were well documented. Since his retirement, Johnson has been an advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention and safe sex, as well as an entrepreneur, philanthropist and motivational speaker.

Amateur career

Early years

Earvin Johnson Jr. was born to Earvin Sr., a General Motors assembly worker, and Christine, a school custodian. Johnson grew up in Lansing, Michigan, and came to love basketball as a youngster, idolizing players such as Earl Monroe and Marques Haynes, and practicing "all day".

Johnson was first dubbed "Magic" as a 15-year-old sophomore playing for Lansing's Everett High School, when he recorded a triple-double of 36 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists. After the game, Fred Stabley Jr., a sports writer for the ''Lansing State Journal'', gave him the moniker despite the belief of Johnson's mother, a Christian, that the name was sacrilegious. In his final high school season, Johnson led Lansing Everett to a 27–1 win–loss record while averaging 28.8 points and 16.8 rebounds per game, and took his team to an overtime victory in the state championship game.

Michigan State University

Although Johnson was recruited by several top-ranked colleges such as Indiana and UCLA, he decided to play close to home. His college decision came down to the University of Michigan and Michigan State University in East Lansing. He ultimately decided to attend Michigan State when their coach Jud Heathcote told him he could play the point guard position. The talent already on Michigan State's roster also drew him to the program.

Johnson did not initially aspire to play professionally, focusing instead on his communication studies major and on his desire to become a television commentator. Playing with future NBA draftees Greg Kelser, Jay Vincent and Mike Brkovich, Johnson averaged 17.0 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game as a freshman, and led the Spartans to a 25–5 record, the Big Ten Conference title, and a berth in the 1978 NCAA Tournament. The Spartans reached the Elite Eight, but lost narrowly to eventual national champion Kentucky.

During the 1978–79 season, Michigan State again qualified for the NCAA Tournament, where they advanced to the championship game and faced Indiana State University, which was led by senior Larry Bird. In what was the most-watched college basketball game ever, Michigan State defeated Indiana State 75–64, and Johnson was voted Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. After two years in college, during which he averaged 17.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game, Johnson was drafted in the 1979 NBA Draft.

Professional career

Rookie season in the NBA (1979–80)

Johnson was drafted first overall in 1979 by the Los Angeles Lakers. Johnson said that what was "most amazing" about joining the Lakers was the chance to play alongside Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the team's 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) center who became the leading scorer in NBA history. Despite Abdul-Jabbar's dominance, he had failed to win a championship with the Lakers, and Johnson was expected to help them achieve that goal. Johnson averaged 18.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game for the season, was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Team, and was named an NBA All-Star Game starter.

The Lakers compiled a 60–22 record in the regular season and reached the 1980 NBA Finals, in which they faced the Philadelphia 76ers, who were led by forward Julius Erving. The Lakers took a 3–2 lead in the series, but Abdul-Jabbar, who averaged 33 points a game in the series, sprained his ankle in Game 5 and could not play in Game 6. Paul Westhead decided to start Johnson at center in Game 6; Johnson recorded 42 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, and three steals in a 123–107 win, while playing guard, forward, and center at different times during the game. Johnson became the only rookie to win the NBA Finals MVP award, and his clutch performance is still regarded as one of the finest in NBA history. He also became one of four players to win NCAA and NBA championships in consecutive years.

Ups and downs (1980–83)

Early in the 1980–81 season, Johnson was sidelined after he suffered torn cartilage in his left knee. He missed 45 games, and said that his rehabilitation was the "most down" he had ever felt. Johnson returned before the start of the 1981 playoffs, but the Lakers' then-assistant and future head coach Pat Riley later said Johnson's much-anticipated return made the Lakers a "divided team". The 54-win Lakers faced the 40–42 Houston Rockets in the first round of playoffs, where Houston upset the Lakers 2–1 after Johnson airballed a last-second shot in Game 3.

During the off-season, Johnson signed a 25-year, $25 million contract with the Lakers, which was the highest-paying contract in sports history up to that point. At the beginning of the 1981–82 season, Johnson had a heated dispute with Westhead, who Johnson said made the Lakers "slow" and "predictable". After Johnson demanded to be traded, Lakers owner Jerry Buss fired Westhead and replaced him with Riley. Although Johnson denied responsibility for Westhead's firing, he was booed across the league, even by Lakers' fans. Despite his off-court troubles, Johnson averaged 18.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, 9.5 assists, and a league-high 2.7 steals per game, and was voted a member of the All-NBA Second Team. He also joined Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson as the only NBA players to tally at least 700 points, 700 rebounds, and 700 assists in the same season. The Lakers advanced through the 1982 playoffs and faced Philadelphia for the second time in three years in the 1982 NBA Finals. After a triple-double from Johnson in Game 6, the Lakers defeated the Sixers 4–2, as Johnson won his second NBA Finals MVP award. During the championship series against the Sixers, Johnson averaged 16.2 points on .533 shooting, 10.8 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 2.5 steals per game. Johnson later said that his third season was when the Lakers first became a great team, and he credited their success to Riley.

During the 1982–83 NBA season, Johnson averaged 16.8 points, 10.5 assists, and 8.6 rebounds per game and earned his first All-NBA First Team nomination. The Lakers again reached the Finals, and for a third time faced the Sixers, who featured center Moses Malone as well as Erving. With Johnson's teammates Norm Nixon, James Worthy and Bob McAdoo all hobbled by injuries, the Lakers were swept by the Sixers, and Malone was crowned the Finals MVP. In a losing effort against Philadelphia, Johnson averaged 19.0 points on .403 shooting, 12.5 assists, and 7.8 rebounds per game.

Battles against the Celtics (1983–87)

In Johnson's fifth season, he averaged a double-double of 17.6 points and 13.1 assists, as well as 7.3 rebounds per game. The Lakers reached the Finals for the third year in a row, where Johnson's Lakers and Bird's Celtics met for the first time in the post-season. The Lakers won the first game, and led by two points in Game 2 with 18 seconds to go, but after a layup by Gerald Henderson, Johnson failed to get a shot off before the final buzzer sounded, and the Lakers lost 124–121 in overtime. In Game 3, Johnson responded with 21 assists in a 137–104 win, but in Game 4, he again made several crucial errors late in the contest. In the final minute of the game, Johnson had the ball stolen by Celtics center Robert Parish, and then missed two free throws that could have won the game. The Celtics won Game 4 in overtime, and the teams split the next two games. In the decisive Game 7 in Boston, as the Lakers trailed by three points in the final minute, opposing point guard Dennis Johnson stole the ball from Johnson, a play that effectively ended the series. Friends Isiah Thomas and Mark Aguirre consoled him that night, talking until the morning in his Boston hotel room amidst fan celebrations on the street. During the Finals, Johnson averaged 18.0 points on .560 shooting, 13.6 assists, and 7.7 rebounds per game. Johnson later described the series as "the one championship we should have had but didn't get".

In the regular season, Johnson averaged 18.3 points, 12.6 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game and led the Lakers into the 1985 NBA Finals, where they faced the Celtics again. The series started poorly for the Lakers when they allowed an NBA Finals record 148 points to the Celtics in a 34-point loss in Game 1. However, Abdul-Jabbar, who was now 38 years old, scored 30 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in Game 2, and his 36 points in a Game 5 win were instrumental in establishing a 3–2 lead for Los Angeles. After the Lakers defeated the Celtics in six games, Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson, who averaged 18.3 points on .494 shooting, 14.0 assists, and 6.8 rebounds per game in the championship series, said the Finals win was the highlight of their careers.

Johnson again averaged a double-double in the 1985–86 NBA season, with 18.8 points, 12.6 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per game. The Lakers advanced to the Western Conference Finals, but were unable to defeat the Houston Rockets, who advanced to the Finals in five games. In the next season, Johnson averaged a career-high of 23.9 points, as well as 12.2 assists and 6.3 rebounds per game, and earned his first regular season MVP award. The Lakers met the Celtics for the third time in the NBA Finals, and in Game 4 Johnson hit a last-second hook shot over Celtics big men Parish and Kevin McHale to win the game 107–106. The game-winning shot, which Johnson dubbed his "junior, junior, junior sky-hook", helped Los Angeles defeat Boston in six games. Johnson was awarded his third Finals MVP title after averaging 26.2 points on .541 shooting, 13.0 assists, 8.0 rebounds, and 2.33 steals per game.

Repeat and falling short (1987–91)

Before the 1987–88 NBA season, Lakers coach Pat Riley publicly promised that they would defend the NBA title, even though no team had won consecutive titles since the Celtics did so in the 1969 NBA Finals. Johnson had another productive season with averages of 19.6 points, 11.9 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game. In the 1988 playoffs, the Lakers survived two 4–3 series against the Utah Jazz and the Dallas Mavericks to reach the Finals and face Thomas and the Detroit Pistons, known as the "Bad Boys" for their physical style of play. Johnson and Thomas greeted each other with a kiss on the cheek before the opening tip of Game 1, which they called a display of brotherly love. After the teams split the first six games, Lakers forward and Finals MVP James Worthy had his first career triple-double of 36 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists, and led his team to a 108–105 win. Despite not being named MVP, Johnson had a strong championship series, averaging 21.1 points on .550 shooting, 13.0 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game.

In the 1988–89 NBA season, Johnson's 22.5 points, 12.8 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game earned him his second MVP award, and the Lakers reached the 1989 NBA Finals, in which they again faced the Pistons. However, after Johnson went down with a hamstring injury in Game 2, the Lakers were no match for the Pistons, who swept them 4–0.

Playing without the retired Abdul-Jabbar for the first time, Johnson won his third MVP award after a strong 1989–90 NBA season in which he averaged 22.3 points, 11.5 assists, and 6.6 rebounds per game. However, the Lakers bowed out to the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference semifinals, which was the Lakers' earliest playoffs elimination in nine years. Johnson performed well during the 1990–91 NBA season, with averages of 19.4 points, 12.5 assists, and 7.0 rebounds per game, and the Lakers reached the 1991 NBA Finals. There they faced the Chicago Bulls, led by shooting guard Michael Jordan, a five-time scoring champion regarded as the finest player of his era. Although the series was portrayed as a matchup between Johnson and Jordan, Bulls forward Scottie Pippen defended effectively against Johnson. Despite two triple-doubles from Johnson during the series, finals MVP Jordan led his team to a 4–1 win. In the last championship series of his career, Johnson averaged 18.6 points on .431 shooting, 12.4 assists, and 8.0 rebounds per game.

HIV announcement and Olympics (1991–92)

After a physical before the 1991–92 NBA season, Johnson discovered that he had tested positive for HIV. In a press conference held on November 7, 1991, Johnson made a public announcement that he would retire immediately. He stated that his wife Cookie and their unborn child did not have HIV, and that he would dedicate his life to "battle this deadly disease". Johnson initially said that he did not know how he contracted the disease, but later acknowledged that it was through having multiple sexual partners during his playing career. At the time, only a small percentage of HIV-positive people had contracted it from heterosexual sex, and it was initially rumored that Johnson was gay or bisexual, although he denied both. Johnson later accused Isiah Thomas of spreading the rumors, a claim Thomas denied. Johnson's HIV announcement became a major news story in the United States, and in 2004 was named as ESPN's seventh most memorable moment of the past 25 years. Many articles praised Johnson as a hero, and former U.S. President George H. W. Bush said, "For me, Magic is a hero, a hero for anyone who loves sports."

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Despite his retirement, Johnson was voted by fans as a starter for the 1992 NBA All-Star Game at Orlando Arena, although his former teammates Byron Scott and A. C. Green said that Johnson should not play, and several NBA players, including Utah Jazz forward Karl Malone, argued that they would be at risk of contamination if Johnson suffered an open wound while on court. Johnson led the West to a 153–113 win and was crowned All-Star MVP after recording 25 points, 9 assists, and 5 rebounds. The game ended after he made a last-minute three-pointer, and players from both teams ran onto the court to congratulate Johnson.

Johnson was chosen to compete in the 1992 Summer Olympics for the US basketball team, dubbed the "Dream Team" because of the NBA stars on the roster. During the tournament, which the USA won, Johnson played infrequently because of knee problems, but he received standing ovations from the crowd, and used the opportunity to inspire HIV-positive people.

Post-Olympics and later life

Before the 1992–93 NBA season, Johnson announced his intention to stage an NBA comeback. After practicing and playing in several pre-season games, he returned to retirement before the start of the regular season, citing controversy over his return sparked by opposition from several active players. During his retirement, Johnson has written a book on safer sex, run several businesses, worked for NBC as a commentator, and toured Asia and Australia with a basketball team that comprised former college and NBA players.

He returned to the NBA as coach of the Lakers near the end of the 1993–94 NBA season, replacing Randy Pfund. After losing five of six games, Johnson announced he would resign after the season, choosing instead to purchase a 5% share of the team in June 1994. In the following season, at the age of 36, Johnson attempted another comeback as a player. Playing power forward, he averaged 14.6 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game in the last 32 games of the season. After the Lakers lost to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, Johnson retired permanently, saying, "I am going out on my terms, something I couldn't say when I aborted a comeback in 1992."

Off the court

Personal life

Johnson first fathered a son in 1981, when Andre Johnson was born to Melissa Mitchell. Although Andre was raised by his mother, he visited Johnson each summer, and as of October 2005 was working for Magic Johnson Enterprises as a marketing director. In 1991, Johnson married Earlitha "Cookie" Kelly in a small wedding in Lansing which included guests Thomas, Aguirre, and Herb Williams. Johnson and Cookie had one son, Earvin III; the couple adopted a daughter, Elisa, in 1995.

Media figure and business interests

In 1998, Johnson hosted a late night talk show on the Fox network called ''The Magic Hour'', but the show was canceled after two months because of low ratings. He runs Magic Johnson Enterprises, a company that has a net worth of $700 million; its subsidiaries include Magic Johnson Productions, a promotional company; Magic Johnson Theaters, a nationwide chain of movie theaters; and Magic Johnson Entertainment, a movie studio. Johnson has also worked as a motivational speaker. Johnson was an NBA commentator for Turner Network Television for seven years, before becoming a studio analyst for ESPN's ''NBA Countdown'' in 2008. In 1994, Johnson became a minority owner of the Lakers, having reportedly paid more than $10 million for part ownership. He also held the title of team vice president. Johnson sold his ownership stake in the Lakers in October 2010. In 2006 Johnson created a contract food service with Sodexo USA called Sodexo-Magic.

Politics

Johnson is a supporter of the Democratic Party—in 2006, he publicly endorsed Phil Angelides for governor of California, and in 2007 he supported Hillary Clinton for president of the United States. In 2010 Johnson endorsed Barbara Boxer in her race for re-election.

HIV activism

After announcing his infection in November 1991, Johnson created the Magic Johnson Foundation to help combat HIV, although he later diversified the foundation to include other charitable goals. In 1992, he joined the National Commission on AIDS, but left after eight months, saying that the commission was not doing enough to combat the disease. He was also the main speaker for the United Nations (UN) World AIDS Day Conference in 1999, and has served as a United Nations Messenger of Peace.

HIV had been associated with drug addicts and homosexuals, but Johnson's campaigns sought to show that the risk of infection was not limited to those groups. Johnson stated that his aim was to "help educate all people about what [HIV] is about" and teach others not to "discriminate against people who have HIV and AIDS". Johnson was later criticized by the AIDS community for his decreased involvement in publicizing the spread of the disease.

To prevent his HIV infection from progressing to AIDS, Johnson takes a daily combination of drugs. He has advertised GlaxoSmithKline's drugs, and partnered with Abbott Laboratories to publicize the fight against AIDS in African American communities.

Career achievements

In 905 NBA games, Johnson scored 17,707 points, 6,559 rebounds, and 10,141 assists, translating to career averages of 19.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 11.2 assists per game, the highest assists per game average in NBA history. Johnson shares the single-game playoff record for assists (24), holds the Finals record for assists in a game (21), and has the most playoff assists (2,346). He holds the All-Star Game single-game record for assists (22), and the All-Star Game record for career assists (127). Johnson introduced a fast-paced style of basketball called "Showtime", described as a mix of "no-look passes off the fastbreak, pin-point alley-oops from halfcourt, spinning feeds and overhand bullets under the basket through triple teams." Fellow Lakers guard Michael Cooper said, "There have been times when [Johnson] has thrown passes and I wasn't sure where he was going. Then one of our guys catches the ball and scores, and I run back up the floor convinced that he must've thrown it through somebody." Johnson was exceptional because he played point guard despite being 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), a size reserved normally for frontcourt players. He combined the size of a power forward, the one-on-one skills of a swingman, and the ball handling talent of a guard, making him one of the most dangerous triple-double threats of all time; his 138 triple-double games are second only to Oscar Robertson's 181.

For his feats, Johnson was voted as one of the 50 Greatest Players of All Time by the NBA in 1996, and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. ESPN's ''SportsCentury'' ranked Johnson #17 in their "50 Greatest Athletes of the 20th Century" In 2006, ESPN.com rated Johnson the greatest point guard of all time, stating, "It could be argued that he's the one player in NBA history who was better than Michael Jordan." Several of his achievements in individual games have also been named among the top moments in the NBA.

Rivalry with Larry Bird

Johnson and Larry Bird were first linked as rivals after Johnson's Michigan State squad defeated Bird's Indiana State team in the 1979 NCAA finals. The rivalry continued in the NBA, and reached its climax when Boston and Los Angeles met in three out of four NBA Finals from 1984 to 1987. Johnson asserted that for him, the 82-game regular season was composed of 80 normal games, and two Lakers–Celtics games. Similarly, Bird admitted that Johnson's daily box score was the first thing he checked in the morning.

Several journalists hypothesized that the Johnson–Bird rivalry was so appealing because it represented many other contrasts, such as the clash between the Lakers and Celtics, between Hollywood flashiness ("Showtime") and Boston/Indiana blue collar grit ("Celtic Pride"), and between blacks and whites. The rivalry was also significant because it drew national attention to the faltering NBA. Prior to Johnson and Bird's arrival, the NBA had gone through a decade of declining interest and low TV ratings. With the two future Hall of Famers, the league won a whole generation of new fans, drawing both traditionalist adherents of Bird's dirt court Indiana game and those appreciative of Johnson's public park flair. Sports journalist Larry Schwartz of ESPN asserted that Johnson and Bird saved the NBA from bankruptcy.

Despite their on-court rivalry, Johnson and Bird became close friends during the filming of a 1984 Converse shoe advertisement that depicted them as enemies. Johnson appeared at Bird's retirement ceremony in 1992, and described Bird as a "friend forever"; during Johnson's Hall of Fame ceremony, Bird formally inducted his old rival.

Works

Biographies

Johnson's autobiography is Other biographies include: (German) (German) (In ''ESPN SportsCentury'')

Instructional

Updated version of

See also

List of National Basketball Association career assists leaders

List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders

List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders

List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff assists leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association players with most assists in a game

List of National Basketball Association players with most steals in a game

References

External links

Magic Johnson Bio, NBA Encyclopedia, Playoff Edition

Magic Johnson Foundation

Magic Johnson Official Website

Category:1959 births Category:Living people Category:African American basketball coaches Category:African American basketball players Category:African American sports executives Category:AIDS activists Category:American health activists Category:American motivational speakers Category:Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Category:Basketball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics Category:Basketball players from Michigan Category:California Democrats Category:People with HIV/AIDS Category:Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Category:Los Angeles Lakers players Category:Los Angeles Lakers head coaches Category:McDonald's High School All-Americans Category:Michigan State Spartans men's basketball players Category:National Basketball Association players with retired numbers Category:National Basketball Association executives Category:National Basketball Association head coaches Category:National Basketball Association owners Category:National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Category:NBA Finals MVP Award winners Category:Olympic basketball players of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Category:People from Lansing, Michigan Category:Point guards Category:United States men's national basketball team members Category:Olympic medalists in basketball

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