Don King (born December 3, 1932), is a flamboyant American boxing promoter who has worked with some of the most famous boxers in the 20th century. Known for his unique hairstyle, he is allegedly a self-made man and the best known, most successful promoter in boxing. Contents [hide] 1 Early life 2 Career as a boxing promoter 3 Lawsuits filed against King 3.1 Muhammad Ali 3.2 Tim Witherspoon 3.3 Mike Tyson 3.4 Lennox Lewis 3.5 Lloyd's of London 3.6 Terry Norris 3.7 Chris Byrd 4 Connections to organized crime 5 Eccentric behavior and style 6 Popular culture 7 External links [edit] Early life Prior to entering the world of boxing, King was a con man and numbers racketeer in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1954, King shot and killed a man attempting to rob one of his gambling houses; the death was ruled a "justifiable homicide," despite the fact that King had shot him in the back. In 1966, King was convicted of stomping to death an employee who owed him $600. Although he then embarked on a campaign of hush money payments and witness intimidation, he was convicted of second degree murder and given a life sentence. The judge reduced the conviction to nonnegligent manslaughter. Some found this ruling suspicious, as it was made during an ex parte meeting with King's attorney in the judge's chambers, without the presence of the prosecutor or a court stenographer. King served four years in prison for the murder. [edit] Career as a boxing promoter Don King first entered the boxing world in his hometown of Cleveland. After convincing Muhammad Ali to box a charity exhibition for a local hospital, with the help of singer, Lloyd Price, King set out to become the most successful boxing promoter the world had ever seen. Don had access to investors, whose money he would need to cover expenses, but he was inexperienced in the fight game. Don Elbaum, who already had a stable of fighters in Cleveland and years of experience in boxing, agreed to form a partnership with King. In 1974, King negotiated to promote a Heavyweight championship fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in Zaire, popularly known as "The Rumble in the Jungle." The fight between Ali and Foreman was a much-anticipated event. King's rivals all sought to promote the bought, but King was able to secure the then-record $10 million purse through an arrangement with the Zaire government. Legend has it that King secured Ali and Foreman's signitures on the contract with the promise that the other fighter was making $1 million less, when in actuality the two fighters split the purse evenly. With the help of Lloyd Price, King was able to put together an all-star featuring James Brown and B.B. King among many others to open the closed circuit telecast of the legendary battle. King solidified his position as one of Boxing's preeminent promoters the following year with the third fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, which King deemed the "Thrilla In Manila." Aside from promoting the premier Heavyweight fights of the 1970's, King was also busy expanding his boxing empire. Throughout the decade, he compiled an impressive roster of fighters, many of whom would finish their career with Hall of Fame credentials. Fighters like Larry Holmes, Wilfred Benitez, Roberto Duran, Salvador Sanchez, Wilfredo Gomez, and Alexis Arguello would all fight under Don King Productions promotional banner in the 1970's. For the next two decades, Don King would continue to be among Boxing's most successful promoters. Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Julio Cesar Chavez, Aaron Pryor, Bernard Hopkins, Ricardo Lopez, Felix Trinidad, Terry Norris, Carlos Zarate, Azumah Nelson, Mike McCallum, and Meldrick Taylor are just a few legendary boxers who chose Don King to promote many of their biggest fights. [edit] Lawsuits filed against King Please expand this article. Further information might be found in a section of the talk page or at Requests for expansion. [edit] Muhammad Ali In 1980, Muhammad Ali sued King for underpaying him $1.2 million for a fight with Larry Holmes. Ali settled for $50,000. [edit] Tim Witherspoon Tim Witherspoon sued King and won $900,000. [edit] Mike Tyson Mike Tyson sued King for $100 million. It was settled out of court for around 10-14 million. [edit] Lennox Lewis In May 2003, King was sued by Lennox Lewis, who wants $385 million from the promoter, claiming King used threats to pull Tyson away from a rematch with Lewis. [edit] Lloyd's of London Insurance company Lloyd's of London sued King for $350,000, claiming insurance fraud in a Julio Cesar Chavez fight that was cancelled. King was acquitted. He later took jury members on an all-expense paid trip to the Bahamas. [edit] Terry Norris Terry Norris settled a lawsuit out of court against Don King for breach of contract for 7.5 million dollars. [edit] Chris Byrd In early 2006, Chris Byrd sued Don King for breach of contract and the two eventually settled out of court under the condition that Byrd would be released from his contract with King. [edit] Connections to organized crime King has been investigated for possible connections with organized crime. During a 1992 Senate investigation King took the Fifth Amendment when questioned about his connection to mobster John Gotti. In public, however, he has responded to mob allegations by calling them racist. [edit] Eccentric behavior and style Don King is well-known for his eccentric behavior and outlandish style. His catchphrase is "Only in America!" He has a rather unusual hairstyle, and is fond of wearing loud, brightly colored clothing and lots of jewelry. King is famous for his grandiloquence and malapropisms, a trait captured well on The Simpsons where a King doppelganger protested the IRS's "egregious miscarriagement of taxitude." [edit] Popular culture Despite his criminal past, Don King has become a prominent figure in the media. He frequently appears on talks shows like Jimmy Kimmel and Howard Stern to promote fights. Recently, he was portrayed by Dave Chappelle in a skit about a "Gay America," promoting a boxing match between two homosexual boxers. A 1996 episode of The Simpsons featured a boxing promoter by the name of Lucius Sweet, whom Homer Simpson describes as being "exactly as rich and as famous as Don King and he looks just like him too!" The character of flashy boxing promoter George Washington Duke, played by Richard Gant in the film Rocky V, is based on King, even using King's famous catchphrase "Only in America!" In 1997, actor Ving Rhames played King in the critically acclaimed made for TV movie, Don King: Only in America which aired on HBO. Rhames won a Golden Globe award for his portrayal of King. However, at the ceremony, Rhames gave up his award and presented it to Jack Lemmon who was also nominated for his starring role in a remake of the movie Twelve Angry Men. He is politically active, having done media appearances promoting George W. Bush during the U.S. 2004 Presidential Election, which included attending the Republican National Convention in New York. [edit] External links Don King Promotions mug shots Legal History Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_King" Categories: NPOV disputes | Wikipedia articles needing factual verification | Articles to be expanded | 1932 births | American murderers | Living people | People from Cleveland | Boxing promoters | African American sportspeople | Knight Rider actors | Miami Vice actors | Scary Movie actors