Jordan, Michael

Jordan, Michael (1963– ), athlete, celebrity.Jordan is widely considered a basketball player without equal. To his trademark leaping ability that seemed to defy gravity, Jordan added an astonishing creativity around (and often above) the basket and a daunting competitive spirit. As he matured, Jordan developed outstanding skills as an outside shooter, passer, defensive player, and team leader, establishing a reputation for performing best at critical moments. His accomplishments included a national collegiate championship with the University of North Carolina (1982), two Olympic gold medals (1984, 1992), six professional championships with the Chicago Bulls (1991–1993, 1996–1998), ten individual scoring titles, and multiple Most Valuable Player awards.

Though his athletic feats were always at the core of his fame, Jordan became a major figure in the evolution of late twentieth‐century popular commercial culture. His charisma heightened public interest in basketball and in sports generally and, as a result, helped generate unprecedented revenues for teams and players, including himself. Contributing to Jordan's immense following and very positive public image were his appearances in such mass‐entertainment forms as television, music videos, and films and, far more extensively, in the advertising of an array of consumer goods. Some manufacturers and marketers based entire product lines on his endorsements. This incessant public exposure made Jordan one of the most famous people in the world, in a class with Babe Ruth as a great athlete and cultural icon.
See also Popular Culture; Sports: Professional Sports.

Bibliography

Sam Smith , The Jordan Rules, 1992.
David Halberstam , Playing For Keeps: Michael Jordan and the World He Made, 1999.

Carl Smith