1 00:00:02,337 --> 00:00:03,380 [Tom Brokaw] Magic and Michael. 2 00:00:03,463 --> 00:00:05,549 Four quarters a game, seven games, if necessary, 3 00:00:05,632 --> 00:00:07,008 for the pro basketball title. 4 00:00:08,009 --> 00:00:10,387 [Brokaw] These are two masters of the game, Magic and Michael. 5 00:00:10,470 --> 00:00:12,180 For all the marbles this time. 6 00:00:12,806 --> 00:00:14,307 [Magic] It was him and I. 7 00:00:14,849 --> 00:00:17,978 This is the first time we were gonna face off against each other. 8 00:00:18,061 --> 00:00:19,938 It's a showdown between two legends. 9 00:00:20,021 --> 00:00:23,400 LA's Magic Johnson and Chicago's Michael Jordan. 10 00:00:23,483 --> 00:00:25,235 [Jordan] If you're at the top of the mountain, 11 00:00:25,318 --> 00:00:27,445 there's no way you want someone to push you off that mountain. 12 00:00:28,029 --> 00:00:31,241 You gonna fight, you gonna fight until you get pushed off that mountain. 13 00:00:31,825 --> 00:00:33,201 And that's where Magic was. 14 00:00:33,285 --> 00:00:35,579 He was-- He was top of the mountain for me. 15 00:00:35,662 --> 00:00:37,455 'Cause all your energy has been generated 16 00:00:37,539 --> 00:00:41,960 just to try to beat one guy, beat that one guy. 17 00:00:42,878 --> 00:00:48,842 As a competitor, I wasn't gonna give up… [laughs] …the crown easily. 18 00:01:46,650 --> 00:01:49,694 Listen, I knew in my heart who I was gonna marry. 19 00:01:49,778 --> 00:01:53,281 I wasn't ready to be married, but I knew I would always marry Cookie. 20 00:01:54,950 --> 00:02:01,665 Of course, you know, her mom, father and her friends all, you know, uh, felt 21 00:02:01,748 --> 00:02:06,002 that, um, I wasn't probably the right guy for her. You know? 22 00:02:06,086 --> 00:02:07,963 Because I kept breaking her heart. 23 00:02:08,045 --> 00:02:10,674 But at the end of the day, I loved her so much. 24 00:02:11,466 --> 00:02:16,137 I knew him well enough to know that it wasn't that he didn't love me. 25 00:02:16,972 --> 00:02:18,139 It wasn't that. 26 00:02:18,223 --> 00:02:20,600 In '91, when we played the Bulls, 27 00:02:21,601 --> 00:02:23,061 uh, she said to me, 28 00:02:23,144 --> 00:02:25,897 "Hey, if we're gonna make it, I got to move out to LA." 29 00:02:27,232 --> 00:02:29,234 [Cookie] I said, "I think that the problem is-- 30 00:02:29,317 --> 00:02:30,986 The reason why we can't get married is 31 00:02:31,069 --> 00:02:34,239 'cause we're not even used to living in the same city." 32 00:02:35,282 --> 00:02:37,867 All these years, it was long distance. 33 00:02:37,951 --> 00:02:40,287 I said, "So we need to learn to live in the same city. 34 00:02:40,370 --> 00:02:45,166 I'll only do it if I have a job and I have my own apartment, 35 00:02:45,250 --> 00:02:47,627 you know, so I can still have my independence." 36 00:02:49,671 --> 00:02:54,175 Some of us might have been a little upset that she was going back, 37 00:02:54,259 --> 00:02:57,262 drinking the Kool-Aid again, you know? It's like… 38 00:02:57,971 --> 00:03:00,348 "Don't you remember what happened before?" 39 00:03:02,309 --> 00:03:03,977 [Cookie] That was the first year 40 00:03:04,519 --> 00:03:09,608 that he invited me to go to the playoffs. 41 00:03:10,650 --> 00:03:16,364 In all of the other championships that he played in, I was never there. 42 00:03:16,948 --> 00:03:19,826 So finally, when they were in the championship against Chicago, 43 00:03:20,702 --> 00:03:22,120 he allowed me to go. 44 00:03:22,871 --> 00:03:25,582 I was super excited about the playoffs. 45 00:03:25,665 --> 00:03:29,002 I mean, this was, you know, the Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan. 46 00:03:31,254 --> 00:03:35,675 I don't think we went through a season where we felt we weren't the best team. 47 00:03:35,759 --> 00:03:39,012 I mean, that's just the arrogance and the confidence we had about our team. 48 00:03:39,095 --> 00:03:41,056 And we went into Chicago feeling that way. 49 00:03:41,139 --> 00:03:44,226 [commentator] And the opening tip controlled by the LA Lakers 50 00:03:44,309 --> 00:03:47,354 as Magic Johnson against Michael Jordan. 51 00:03:47,437 --> 00:03:49,564 They were good. I mean, Chicago was good 52 00:03:50,190 --> 00:03:53,318 but they had never been to the finals before. 53 00:03:53,401 --> 00:03:55,612 If you've never been there, you don't know what it's like. 54 00:03:55,695 --> 00:03:57,405 That's-- It's somewhat of a disadvantage. 55 00:03:57,989 --> 00:04:01,076 This is the first time we had the chance to go against a juggernaut. 56 00:04:01,868 --> 00:04:04,788 And we were nervous going into the game. 57 00:04:06,331 --> 00:04:09,793 I was feeling good. We won game one. 58 00:04:09,876 --> 00:04:12,420 [commentator] A.C. Green back on the floor for the Lakers. 59 00:04:12,504 --> 00:04:13,547 Oh, whoa! Magic. 60 00:04:14,172 --> 00:04:16,966 [Green] We expect this. We're back in the finals. 61 00:04:17,050 --> 00:04:18,175 This is what we do. 62 00:04:18,259 --> 00:04:20,554 We win big games. 63 00:04:21,846 --> 00:04:23,890 Game two. Let's go. Let's get it on right now. 64 00:04:25,433 --> 00:04:27,102 And then they won four straight. 65 00:04:28,520 --> 00:04:31,773 [commentator] Final seconds. Magic's three-point attempt blocked. 66 00:04:31,856 --> 00:04:33,233 Pippen comes away with it. 67 00:04:33,817 --> 00:04:39,531 And the Chicago Bulls have won their first-ever NBA championship. 68 00:04:39,614 --> 00:04:41,449 [crowd cheering] 69 00:04:43,034 --> 00:04:44,995 [Jordan] Magic's not gonna go down just to go down. 70 00:04:45,078 --> 00:04:48,623 You have to go take something from him because he's been there many times before. 71 00:04:48,707 --> 00:04:52,294 And, uh… [clears throat] …you know, we went, and we took it. 72 00:04:52,377 --> 00:04:54,921 I tried to get to him on the floor, but I couldn't. 73 00:04:55,005 --> 00:04:56,923 'Cause I wanted to congratulate him. 74 00:04:57,007 --> 00:05:01,177 He came in our locker room, he-- he gave me the biggest hug, you know? 75 00:05:01,261 --> 00:05:04,097 He congratulated me, and he wished me well. 76 00:05:05,056 --> 00:05:07,517 [Magic] When he hugged me, he just started crying. 77 00:05:07,601 --> 00:05:11,688 It was a beautiful moment for both of us to see the joy. 78 00:05:12,564 --> 00:05:15,984 And I wanted to say, "Hey, congratulations on winning your first championship." 79 00:05:16,067 --> 00:05:20,113 He didn't have to do it. You know? From a competitive standpoint. 80 00:05:20,196 --> 00:05:22,407 Uh, but he understood what it meant. 81 00:05:22,490 --> 00:05:23,992 He understood the respect of it, 82 00:05:24,075 --> 00:05:27,787 that, okay, you entered into this club, 83 00:05:27,871 --> 00:05:29,748 this Larry Bird, Magic Johnson club. 84 00:05:30,707 --> 00:05:33,001 That shows the true champion that he really is. 85 00:05:33,084 --> 00:05:36,004 [reporter] Michael Jordan is the unanimous MVP. 86 00:05:36,087 --> 00:05:40,800 Is there a feeling of a passing of the torch, Magic Johnson to you? 87 00:05:40,884 --> 00:05:42,469 It was Michael Jordan saying, 88 00:05:42,552 --> 00:05:45,972 "Hey, man. Why don't you hand over the baton?" 89 00:05:46,056 --> 00:05:48,642 And Magic's like… [straining] …"I don't know. I don't know." 90 00:05:48,725 --> 00:05:51,186 He was trying to hang on to it just a little bit longer. 91 00:05:51,269 --> 00:05:53,772 I-- I do have to admit it was their turn. 92 00:05:54,773 --> 00:05:58,944 But, man, it's painful for me to lose. 93 00:06:00,070 --> 00:06:02,822 I said, "Okay. We're gonna come back next year and win." 94 00:06:03,490 --> 00:06:07,702 Even though we lost, for us it was a good thing. 95 00:06:07,786 --> 00:06:09,120 That was a good experience 96 00:06:09,204 --> 00:06:14,125 for him to understand that now you can invite me into this part of your life. 97 00:06:15,835 --> 00:06:18,380 [smacks lips] And then there was the pool party. 98 00:06:21,758 --> 00:06:24,302 Well, you know, I was known for my parties now. 99 00:06:24,386 --> 00:06:27,764 [laughs] 100 00:06:30,267 --> 00:06:32,227 I had the best parties in Hollywood. 101 00:06:32,310 --> 00:06:35,188 I mean, I had some incredible pool parties. 102 00:06:35,272 --> 00:06:38,108 Everybody wanted to come to the pool parties, you know? 103 00:06:38,191 --> 00:06:39,651 It was fun. It was exciting. 104 00:06:39,734 --> 00:06:44,114 If you're married, you can get in trouble. If you're single, you can get in trouble. 105 00:06:45,448 --> 00:06:48,577 [Cookie] A lot of the wives weren't happy that their husbands were there 106 00:06:48,660 --> 00:06:50,203 and they weren't invited. 107 00:06:50,704 --> 00:06:52,205 You know? You need to grow up. 108 00:06:52,289 --> 00:06:54,374 You can't be-- You shouldn't be doing these things. 109 00:06:54,457 --> 00:06:57,252 And I kept talking to him, going, "I can't believe you're doing it." 110 00:06:57,335 --> 00:07:00,255 He's like, "I can't believe you're making a big deal over nothing." 111 00:07:01,506 --> 00:07:03,550 So we had this huge fight again. 112 00:07:04,092 --> 00:07:06,386 "Well, if you give this party, that's it." 113 00:07:07,345 --> 00:07:09,306 I stood my ground, he stood his ground. 114 00:07:10,140 --> 00:07:12,434 My head goes, "You don't want to be a part of this. 115 00:07:12,517 --> 00:07:14,060 You don't want to go through this. 116 00:07:14,144 --> 00:07:16,229 You know, maybe it's a sign. 117 00:07:16,313 --> 00:07:19,232 He-- He's not-- He's not gonna change." 118 00:07:21,484 --> 00:07:23,028 That was it. We were done. 119 00:07:25,113 --> 00:07:27,449 [Magic] I didn't think she would actually leave. 120 00:07:28,658 --> 00:07:30,577 Oh, this stung me so bad. 121 00:07:35,916 --> 00:07:39,461 After the season, I always used to go to the Bahamas 122 00:07:39,544 --> 00:07:41,087 and go to sleep for a week 123 00:07:41,588 --> 00:07:45,425 and let my body heal and my mind rest. 124 00:07:48,678 --> 00:07:51,306 Cookie had been through a lot. No question about it. 125 00:07:51,389 --> 00:07:53,391 But she deserved so much more. 126 00:07:54,226 --> 00:07:59,105 Um, she didn't deserve me asking her to marry me 127 00:07:59,189 --> 00:08:01,900 and then breaking the engagement, what, three times. 128 00:08:02,651 --> 00:08:05,487 She didn't deserve that. She was a better woman than that. 129 00:08:06,238 --> 00:08:08,698 When you talk about soul mates… 130 00:08:14,120 --> 00:08:15,789 She was the perfect woman for me. 131 00:08:20,126 --> 00:08:22,546 And then my father called me up and told me, 132 00:08:22,629 --> 00:08:24,839 he said, "Junior, you better marry that girl. 133 00:08:25,423 --> 00:08:27,467 God blessed you with this woman, man. 134 00:08:27,551 --> 00:08:30,637 You gonna make a mistake. The biggest mistake of your life." 135 00:08:32,889 --> 00:08:35,475 -[sighs] -[Cookie] Then I get a phone call. 136 00:08:35,558 --> 00:08:37,519 He said, "I think I can do this." 137 00:08:37,601 --> 00:08:40,397 I said, "Okay. The only way we can do this, if we-- 138 00:08:40,480 --> 00:08:44,359 When you get back, we fly directly to Vegas, get married, 139 00:08:44,442 --> 00:08:45,944 and just get it over with." 140 00:08:46,027 --> 00:08:48,446 I said, "I don't need a wedding." [chuckles] 141 00:08:48,530 --> 00:08:50,699 At this point, I was just at my wit's end. 142 00:08:51,700 --> 00:08:52,826 I said, "Let's do this." 143 00:08:52,909 --> 00:08:56,037 She said, "I want a sh-- I-- I want a short engagement. 144 00:08:56,121 --> 00:09:00,041 We got to do it now"… [laughs] …"before you change your mind." 145 00:09:00,125 --> 00:09:02,085 I said, "I am not changing my mind." 146 00:09:08,258 --> 00:09:10,927 I remember thinking, "What if he doesn't show up?" 147 00:09:12,137 --> 00:09:16,057 I'm still scared that he's not gonna go through with this 148 00:09:16,683 --> 00:09:19,060 because he's done it so many times. 149 00:09:19,144 --> 00:09:22,647 It's like that movie The Runaway Bride. He was the runaway groom. 150 00:09:24,065 --> 00:09:28,028 My dress was almost two sizes too big for me 151 00:09:28,945 --> 00:09:31,448 because I had lost so much weight from stress. 152 00:09:34,910 --> 00:09:38,413 I was so nervous and, like, all my girlfriends were calming me down. 153 00:09:38,496 --> 00:09:39,623 "He's coming, don't worry." 154 00:09:39,706 --> 00:09:42,125 No laughing, no giggling. 155 00:09:42,208 --> 00:09:45,462 No going "Hallelujah" when he says, "I now pronounce you man and wife." 156 00:09:45,545 --> 00:09:47,172 [Cookie] Every time someone came in, I was like, 157 00:09:47,255 --> 00:09:48,548 "Is he here yet? Is he here yet?" 158 00:09:50,717 --> 00:09:52,427 [chattering] 159 00:09:52,510 --> 00:09:54,721 [Winters-Gary] At that point, we were kinda like, "Okay. 160 00:09:55,472 --> 00:09:58,850 When we-- When we get there, if it's still on, it's still on." 161 00:09:59,434 --> 00:10:03,563 -Right. Right. -[laughs] You know? And then… 162 00:10:04,272 --> 00:10:07,692 -A-And then it was. -[Webster] It was. It was amazing. 163 00:10:08,568 --> 00:10:11,446 [Magic] I kept her waiting for a long time. [chuckles] 164 00:10:11,529 --> 00:10:13,823 And to be at home in Michigan, 165 00:10:13,907 --> 00:10:18,411 to have our family and friends and the whole state watching, 166 00:10:19,663 --> 00:10:21,081 it was going to be great. 167 00:10:22,916 --> 00:10:25,168 [Cookie] I was standing in the back of the church with my father, 168 00:10:25,252 --> 00:10:27,087 and they opened the doors, 169 00:10:28,129 --> 00:10:29,506 and I couldn't move. 170 00:10:30,757 --> 00:10:33,009 'Cause I was still thinking, "What if?" 171 00:10:36,346 --> 00:10:39,432 And my dad goes, "You okay? You gonna do this?" 172 00:10:40,600 --> 00:10:43,144 Took a deep breath and walked down the aisle. 173 00:10:45,730 --> 00:10:47,941 [Magic] When I saw her looking so beautiful, 174 00:10:49,484 --> 00:10:50,986 I just started crying. 175 00:10:52,153 --> 00:10:53,822 It was a beautiful moment. 176 00:10:54,322 --> 00:10:57,117 -[Webster] Cookie looked like a princess. -[Winters-Gary] Yeah, she did. 177 00:10:57,200 --> 00:11:00,328 [Webster] She's just beautiful. And Earvin even. 178 00:11:00,412 --> 00:11:03,957 -You could almost see a… [exhales] -[Easley] Yeah, exhale. 179 00:11:04,040 --> 00:11:05,208 Right. Right. Right. 180 00:11:05,292 --> 00:11:09,379 Like, "I got her. Everything is right. It's all right." 181 00:11:09,462 --> 00:11:14,175 [officiant] I now pronounce you husband and wife. 182 00:11:14,426 --> 00:11:16,469 You may kiss the bride. 183 00:11:16,553 --> 00:11:18,889 [guests cheering, applauding] 184 00:11:25,645 --> 00:11:28,148 [Magic] Knowing that now we are together 185 00:11:28,231 --> 00:11:30,525 and we're going to build something together 186 00:11:31,109 --> 00:11:32,402 was an awesome feeling. 187 00:11:43,580 --> 00:11:46,958 [Magic] Since we were going to Paris with the Lakers 188 00:11:47,042 --> 00:11:49,252 to play some of the French teams, 189 00:11:49,336 --> 00:11:52,047 we just said, "Hey, we might as well make that our honeymoon." 190 00:11:52,130 --> 00:11:54,841 [photographers, fans clamoring] 191 00:11:54,925 --> 00:11:57,135 Last night. All right, I'll get it next time. 192 00:11:57,219 --> 00:12:00,555 [Magic] Cookie and I are doing some honeymooning, uh, some sightseeing. 193 00:12:01,056 --> 00:12:04,851 At night, we get to walk and really enjoy one another. 194 00:12:04,935 --> 00:12:07,395 And it took us really back to, like, our college days. 195 00:12:07,479 --> 00:12:10,857 I had gotten off the pill, you know, months ahead 196 00:12:10,941 --> 00:12:12,901 because we were planning to get married, whatever. 197 00:12:12,984 --> 00:12:16,154 While we were in Paris, I thought I saw some signs. 198 00:12:16,238 --> 00:12:17,948 Maybe let's take a test. 199 00:12:18,031 --> 00:12:20,700 But we couldn't read it 'cause it was in French. 200 00:12:20,784 --> 00:12:23,119 So one of the maids came in to clean the room, 201 00:12:23,203 --> 00:12:24,746 and I showed her the little stick, 202 00:12:24,829 --> 00:12:26,206 and she-- I go… 203 00:12:26,289 --> 00:12:29,084 And she goes, "Oui, oui!" [laughs] 204 00:12:31,670 --> 00:12:35,298 [Magic] I was so happy because this is what we both wanted, 205 00:12:35,382 --> 00:12:38,009 to have a kid together. 206 00:12:38,885 --> 00:12:42,389 I finally got married to Cookie, and she's pregnant now. 207 00:12:42,472 --> 00:12:45,684 And now it's time to start getting ready for the season. 208 00:12:47,310 --> 00:12:50,689 Now the mission is to beat the Bulls. 209 00:12:50,772 --> 00:12:54,442 We felt, "Man, this-- This is-- This team we got right now-- 210 00:12:54,526 --> 00:12:56,111 Yeah, we'll be back in the finals." 211 00:12:57,320 --> 00:13:00,031 [Vitti] So we're six games into an eight-game preseason. 212 00:13:01,741 --> 00:13:06,162 We fly to Salt Lake. Go to the hotel. 213 00:13:06,246 --> 00:13:08,582 I have these messages to call the office. 214 00:13:09,791 --> 00:13:12,335 And I get on with Jerry, and it's, "Send Magic home." 215 00:13:13,003 --> 00:13:14,004 "Why?" 216 00:13:14,504 --> 00:13:16,464 "I can't tell you that, but we need him home." 217 00:13:17,966 --> 00:13:18,967 "Now." 218 00:13:20,844 --> 00:13:24,973 Jerry's never really, like, spoken to me that way. 219 00:13:25,557 --> 00:13:27,851 Like "I know something that I want you to know." 220 00:13:28,351 --> 00:13:30,604 So I say, "Okay." I call him. 221 00:13:30,687 --> 00:13:32,564 I said, "Listen, you're going home." 222 00:13:32,647 --> 00:13:35,567 And I say, "Well, okay. For what?" 223 00:13:35,650 --> 00:13:38,778 And he said, "Well, I don't know. He just said you got to come home." 224 00:13:38,862 --> 00:13:41,364 I said, "We're going home right after the game, 225 00:13:41,448 --> 00:13:42,991 so why don't I see him tomorrow?" 226 00:13:43,074 --> 00:13:44,826 He said, "No, you got to come home now." 227 00:13:44,910 --> 00:13:47,871 I get a call from Dr. Mellman. He goes, 228 00:13:47,954 --> 00:13:50,874 "He's got to come back from Utah." I go, "Why?" He goes, "I can't tell you." 229 00:13:51,958 --> 00:13:54,711 "Earvin has to come home." "Can he play?" "Nope, can't play. 230 00:13:56,171 --> 00:13:59,049 He's gotta come home. Can't participate. 231 00:13:59,633 --> 00:14:01,593 I'll see him in my office when he gets here." 232 00:14:01,676 --> 00:14:03,720 [Worthy] We're in Utah, and Magic's supposed to play. 233 00:14:03,803 --> 00:14:08,016 And then we get to the arena, and Magic's not there. 234 00:14:08,099 --> 00:14:09,309 They say he went back to LA. 235 00:14:09,392 --> 00:14:11,102 Had the flu, had a cold. Something like that. 236 00:14:11,186 --> 00:14:14,147 We already did his preseason physical exam. 237 00:14:14,231 --> 00:14:16,524 Anything that would have come up 238 00:14:16,608 --> 00:14:20,278 would have-- would have come up on his preseason physical exam. 239 00:14:20,362 --> 00:14:22,614 [stammers] Cancer? I mean, what-- What's he got? 240 00:14:26,076 --> 00:14:29,329 [Magic] I went straight to Dr. Mellman's office. 241 00:14:30,872 --> 00:14:32,958 [Rosen] So, I think his office was on the third floor. 242 00:14:34,292 --> 00:14:36,378 It was like 5:30 at this point. 243 00:14:36,461 --> 00:14:37,796 Nobody's in the waiting room. 244 00:14:39,548 --> 00:14:41,841 And then Dr. Mellman opens up the door 245 00:14:41,925 --> 00:14:43,677 and goes, "Hey, uh, Earvin, why don't you come in?" 246 00:14:43,760 --> 00:14:45,595 [door opens] 247 00:14:45,679 --> 00:14:50,016 Oh, I can close my eyes and recreate what my office looked like 248 00:14:50,100 --> 00:14:52,519 and where he and Lon sat. 249 00:14:53,186 --> 00:14:55,939 Sat down and, uh, you know, 250 00:14:56,022 --> 00:14:59,109 I could tell something was wrong, 'cause he had a look on his face. 251 00:14:59,192 --> 00:15:01,570 And he kind of opens up his desk drawer 252 00:15:01,653 --> 00:15:05,615 and pulls out a FedEx envelope and pulls out the document. 253 00:15:06,533 --> 00:15:07,867 And he, um… 254 00:15:12,831 --> 00:15:15,041 [breathes shakily, exhales heavily] 255 00:15:15,125 --> 00:15:20,422 And he said, "I got some unfortunate news that you have HIV." 256 00:15:31,224 --> 00:15:32,893 [Magic] I just sat there quiet. 257 00:15:34,728 --> 00:15:36,187 I was in disbelief… 258 00:15:38,523 --> 00:15:39,649 just stunned. 259 00:15:43,278 --> 00:15:44,654 I said, "Are you sure?" 260 00:15:48,116 --> 00:15:49,868 Once I got myself together, it was like, 261 00:15:49,951 --> 00:15:51,953 "Okay, well-- So what does this mean? 262 00:15:53,038 --> 00:15:54,414 Am I gonna die?" 263 00:16:00,420 --> 00:16:05,550 And he said, "Well, we don't quite know yet." 264 00:16:06,134 --> 00:16:09,179 "And, um, you know, these are my concerns. 265 00:16:09,262 --> 00:16:11,014 I've got a wife. She's pregnant. 266 00:16:11,097 --> 00:16:12,265 What do I tell her?" 267 00:16:14,142 --> 00:16:17,604 We were gonna have this fairy-tale life, 268 00:16:17,687 --> 00:16:21,316 and, uh, now I get this devastating news. 269 00:16:21,399 --> 00:16:24,194 So I'm sitting here in this chair like, "Oh, my goodness. 270 00:16:24,694 --> 00:16:26,571 How am I gonna go home and tell her this?" 271 00:16:30,951 --> 00:16:34,371 I knew that this was going to destroy her, just hurt her. 272 00:16:43,046 --> 00:16:46,091 [Cookie] I was home preparing to watch the game, 273 00:16:46,174 --> 00:16:47,175 and the phone rang. 274 00:16:47,842 --> 00:16:48,843 And it was Earvin. 275 00:16:49,427 --> 00:16:56,101 He said, "I'm on my way home, and I'll tell you why when I get there." 276 00:16:57,561 --> 00:17:00,939 I knew it had to be serious if he wasn't playing in that game. 277 00:17:02,357 --> 00:17:04,191 It was an agonizing wait. 278 00:17:07,779 --> 00:17:10,782 [Magic] Probably the most difficult thing I've ever done in my life. 279 00:17:11,866 --> 00:17:16,997 You know, to tell somebody that you love 280 00:17:17,706 --> 00:17:21,501 and somebody who loves you… 281 00:17:24,462 --> 00:17:27,424 When he walked in the door, he looked at me, 282 00:17:27,507 --> 00:17:30,385 and he said, "We need to talk." 283 00:17:32,220 --> 00:17:35,473 And he said, "I don't know any other way to say it but to say it. 284 00:17:36,683 --> 00:17:42,272 I tested positive for the HIV virus, the virus that causes AIDS." 285 00:17:44,482 --> 00:17:48,445 She just started crying and-- and, uh… [sighs] 286 00:17:49,404 --> 00:17:51,072 …that just broke my heart. 287 00:17:51,156 --> 00:17:52,574 You know? Just broke my heart. 288 00:17:55,619 --> 00:17:57,871 [Cookie] "Oh, my God. Are you going to die?" 289 00:18:00,457 --> 00:18:03,585 Everyone we've ever heard about died. 290 00:18:05,921 --> 00:18:07,923 [Magic] Then she, "Well, what does that mean for me? 291 00:18:08,006 --> 00:18:10,550 What does that mean for the baby?" And I can't answer that. 292 00:18:11,843 --> 00:18:13,637 [Cookie] Oh, my God. My baby. 293 00:18:16,932 --> 00:18:18,475 What about my baby? 294 00:18:21,853 --> 00:18:24,064 What's gonna happen to my baby? 295 00:18:27,025 --> 00:18:29,778 I said, "Oh, no. Mm-mmm. No." 296 00:18:30,820 --> 00:18:32,530 I said, "You gotta be kidding." 297 00:18:34,324 --> 00:18:35,909 [Larry] At that time, didn't nobody know. 298 00:18:36,868 --> 00:18:38,245 All they knew, it was death. 299 00:18:38,328 --> 00:18:39,996 We was getting ready to have dinner, 300 00:18:40,080 --> 00:18:43,541 and I got my purse and got in my car. 301 00:18:43,625 --> 00:18:45,293 And I just cried. 302 00:18:45,377 --> 00:18:48,046 And I just prayed, and I cried, and I prayed. 303 00:18:48,880 --> 00:18:51,883 It's like somebody hit me in the stomach with a rod. 304 00:18:52,425 --> 00:18:57,305 We were all devastated, but to see my mom and my dad just hurt 305 00:18:58,014 --> 00:19:01,726 was beyond anything that I could take. 306 00:19:01,810 --> 00:19:04,688 And I said, "Lord, don't take my child. 307 00:19:04,771 --> 00:19:06,856 Don't take my child, Lord. Please don't take him." 308 00:19:09,109 --> 00:19:12,654 I cried. I just had to have a moment, you know, um, to myself. 309 00:19:12,737 --> 00:19:14,739 And, um-- Whew. 310 00:19:14,823 --> 00:19:17,033 The phone rang. My mom was on the phone for a while. 311 00:19:17,534 --> 00:19:20,245 And then she said, "Your dad wants to talk to you." 312 00:19:21,288 --> 00:19:24,082 And I remember him just trying to explain it. 313 00:19:24,165 --> 00:19:27,127 Like, "You know, I've contracted this HIV. 314 00:19:27,210 --> 00:19:28,795 Doctors don't know a lot about it. 315 00:19:29,296 --> 00:19:30,630 I'm gonna be okay." 316 00:19:30,714 --> 00:19:34,968 Then talking to my mom. Just trying to figure it out, what it is. 317 00:19:35,051 --> 00:19:39,764 You talk to doctors. Doctors are saying, "Spend as much time with him as you can 318 00:19:39,848 --> 00:19:44,936 because he's not-- probably not gonna live more than a few years." 319 00:19:49,441 --> 00:19:53,778 We got up the next morning, went to the doctor's office. 320 00:19:54,446 --> 00:19:55,822 And he tested me. 321 00:19:56,698 --> 00:19:58,783 It took days to get your results back. 322 00:20:00,452 --> 00:20:03,622 That was agonizing, not knowing. 323 00:20:04,289 --> 00:20:06,291 [Magic] That was the worst time in my life, 324 00:20:06,374 --> 00:20:08,919 just waiting and waiting and thinking… 325 00:20:10,712 --> 00:20:14,216 about my parents, my brothers and sisters, my son Andre. 326 00:20:14,799 --> 00:20:17,135 Do I have to get my affairs in order? 327 00:20:17,886 --> 00:20:20,096 I thought I was facing death. 328 00:20:21,056 --> 00:20:23,183 I didn't sleep. I was just thinking about… 329 00:20:25,185 --> 00:20:28,647 "Is this the last time that she gonna be in my arms?" 330 00:20:32,609 --> 00:20:34,569 [Rosen] Him and Cookie drove over. 331 00:20:35,237 --> 00:20:37,322 They pull up, and the door opens. 332 00:20:39,741 --> 00:20:40,825 Nothing but tears. 333 00:20:40,909 --> 00:20:43,453 Um, I mean, what do you say? What do you do? 334 00:20:44,162 --> 00:20:46,289 And Earvin goes, "Okay, let's you and I go. 335 00:20:46,831 --> 00:20:48,750 We'll go for a walk to the beach." 336 00:20:49,334 --> 00:20:53,588 We just start walking, and he just starts talking. 337 00:20:55,507 --> 00:20:57,968 [Magic] And I was telling him, "If anything happens, 338 00:20:58,051 --> 00:21:00,303 you know, you make sure you take care of my family." 339 00:21:01,263 --> 00:21:03,682 "I guess I-- I gotta stop playing basketball." 340 00:21:03,765 --> 00:21:08,103 And… [stammers] …at one point, he said, "I-- I don't know if I want to live. 341 00:21:08,186 --> 00:21:10,355 I might just end it. I might just--" 342 00:21:19,948 --> 00:21:22,617 [Rosen] His blood was sent to a doctor, Dr. David Ho 343 00:21:22,701 --> 00:21:24,619 at the Aaron Diamond AIDS Institute. 344 00:21:25,120 --> 00:21:29,416 [Ho] I got involved with HIV/AIDS way back in 1980. 345 00:21:29,499 --> 00:21:31,501 I grew up in Los Angeles, 346 00:21:31,585 --> 00:21:36,131 and ever since I was a teenager, I've been a Los Angeles Laker fan. 347 00:21:36,214 --> 00:21:39,175 And so, who wouldn't know who-- who Magic was? 348 00:21:40,927 --> 00:21:43,763 [Rosen] He called, and he said, "Earvin's very ill. 349 00:21:43,847 --> 00:21:45,765 His T cell count is 203." 350 00:21:46,391 --> 00:21:50,687 At that point, you're on what's called "the line." 351 00:21:50,770 --> 00:21:52,188 At 200, you're AIDS. 352 00:21:52,272 --> 00:21:54,107 It was of great concern. 353 00:21:54,190 --> 00:21:57,485 Obviously, that is near the limit 354 00:21:57,569 --> 00:22:01,281 below which he would be prone to a number of infections. 355 00:22:01,364 --> 00:22:04,117 [Rosen] And talked about life expectancy. 356 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:06,453 Two, three years at the most. 357 00:22:06,536 --> 00:22:07,746 [Ho] I wasn't optimistic 358 00:22:07,829 --> 00:22:12,834 that a T cell count in the 200s would sustain him for another five years. 359 00:22:12,918 --> 00:22:18,506 T cells help the immune system to respond to certain infections, 360 00:22:18,590 --> 00:22:22,844 to make antibodies, to make other killer T cell responses. 361 00:22:23,511 --> 00:22:26,806 So by depleting this cell population, 362 00:22:26,890 --> 00:22:31,311 HIV sort of zeroes in on the orchestrator of the immune response. 363 00:22:31,394 --> 00:22:35,899 And therefore, a person cannot control the assault 364 00:22:35,982 --> 00:22:39,861 from the various, uh, pathogens that we have in our environment. 365 00:22:39,945 --> 00:22:44,616 I have been involved in the response to this pandemic 366 00:22:44,699 --> 00:22:49,287 literally since the first few weeks that we knew it was a new disease. 367 00:22:49,913 --> 00:22:53,750 [Fauci] The advances over the last ten years in molecular biology 368 00:22:53,833 --> 00:22:56,253 have allowed scientists here at the NIH 369 00:22:56,336 --> 00:22:59,381 and in NIH-supported universities throughout the country 370 00:22:59,923 --> 00:23:04,928 to be able to, as we call it, map the genome of the AIDS virus. 371 00:23:05,011 --> 00:23:07,806 That was a critical time, 1991, 372 00:23:07,889 --> 00:23:10,684 because we didn't have the optimal drugs then. 373 00:23:10,767 --> 00:23:15,146 If you were diagnosed early, you could get lucky. 374 00:23:15,230 --> 00:23:20,360 My advice was, let's use the current drugs to slow things down 375 00:23:20,443 --> 00:23:23,363 to preserve your immune system as much as possible. 376 00:23:23,446 --> 00:23:27,617 And a little bit down the line, there would be better drugs available. 377 00:23:27,701 --> 00:23:30,537 [Magic] We only had one drug at that time, AZT. 378 00:23:30,620 --> 00:23:36,334 And you had to take five, uh, three times a day. 379 00:23:36,418 --> 00:23:38,753 So, it was taking its toll. 380 00:23:38,837 --> 00:23:43,425 AZT caused a lot of nausea, vomiting, anemia. 381 00:23:43,508 --> 00:23:47,804 What we didn't know was whether extreme physical exertion 382 00:23:47,888 --> 00:23:50,390 that would take place in a professional athlete 383 00:23:50,473 --> 00:23:52,267 would be harmful to his health. 384 00:23:53,268 --> 00:23:56,354 Dr. Ho said, "He can't play basketball anymore. 385 00:23:57,272 --> 00:23:58,732 You're done with basketball." 386 00:24:00,108 --> 00:24:02,152 He didn't even tell his teammates. 387 00:24:02,235 --> 00:24:03,904 So, Earvin, Cookie, and I spoke. 388 00:24:03,987 --> 00:24:05,655 And first, Cookie was, 389 00:24:05,739 --> 00:24:07,866 "We-- We-- We're not gonna go public with this. 390 00:24:07,949 --> 00:24:10,035 We're just gonna say he's retiring from basketball." 391 00:24:10,118 --> 00:24:12,829 I can handle, you know, fighting this thing one day at a time, 392 00:24:12,913 --> 00:24:14,372 you know, with you privately, 393 00:24:14,456 --> 00:24:17,918 but I was not okay with telling the entire world. 394 00:24:19,294 --> 00:24:22,589 If you tell people, then people are gonna start treating us differently. 395 00:24:23,590 --> 00:24:26,092 They're not gonna, you know, want us around. 396 00:24:26,176 --> 00:24:29,971 They're gonna be scared to touch us. You know… You know, things like that. 397 00:24:30,055 --> 00:24:32,307 You're supposed to be forthcoming with the press 398 00:24:32,390 --> 00:24:34,809 and keep them apprised of what's going on. 399 00:24:34,893 --> 00:24:36,978 You don't have to tell them everything that's going on. 400 00:24:37,062 --> 00:24:41,650 But this was gonna be a national story, world story. 401 00:24:42,192 --> 00:24:43,652 "What are we gonna say?" 402 00:24:44,402 --> 00:24:46,112 Because everybody's asking me. 403 00:24:46,696 --> 00:24:48,615 "We're gonna tell 'em that we have the flu." 404 00:24:48,698 --> 00:24:51,576 In sports, it's opening night for the NBA. 405 00:24:51,660 --> 00:24:53,870 The regular season tips off with 12 games. 406 00:24:53,954 --> 00:24:57,290 And the big question is, can Air Jordan keep Chicago soaring? 407 00:24:57,374 --> 00:24:59,709 [reporter] Johnson appeared at practice two days ago 408 00:24:59,793 --> 00:25:02,754 after missing the Lakers' first three games due to the flu. 409 00:25:02,837 --> 00:25:06,091 He spoke to the press, saying he expects to be back in play soon. 410 00:25:06,174 --> 00:25:09,553 You don't wanna pull something or-- or hurt yourself 411 00:25:09,636 --> 00:25:11,388 because you haven't been practicing. 412 00:25:11,471 --> 00:25:15,058 So, since I haven't been practicing, I had to get some practice time in. 413 00:25:15,141 --> 00:25:17,352 Make sure that, uh, I get in some kind of shape. 414 00:25:17,435 --> 00:25:18,853 Looking around, I already-- 415 00:25:18,937 --> 00:25:20,897 -You feel better, man? -I feel better. I feel better. 416 00:25:20,981 --> 00:25:22,566 -You playing tonight? -I gotta miss you tonight. 417 00:25:22,649 --> 00:25:24,234 -You gonna miss me? -I'm gonna miss you tonight. 418 00:25:24,317 --> 00:25:26,570 -Well, I see you Christmas. -…for tonight, man. 419 00:25:26,653 --> 00:25:28,446 You got it. Man, how you doing, baby? 420 00:25:29,823 --> 00:25:32,284 I mean, there was questions every day. 421 00:25:32,367 --> 00:25:35,954 And as each day passed, 422 00:25:36,037 --> 00:25:41,293 there were greater doubts about the flu story. 423 00:25:41,376 --> 00:25:43,587 [Roberts] Eyebrows were raised among the media. 424 00:25:44,629 --> 00:25:46,172 Wanting to be respectful 425 00:25:46,256 --> 00:25:49,467 and wanting to believe everything that we were being told, 426 00:25:49,551 --> 00:25:51,970 but also realizing, "Wait a minute." 427 00:25:52,846 --> 00:25:55,348 We don't track down every single thing. 428 00:25:55,432 --> 00:25:59,019 If somebody bruises a fingernail or something like that 429 00:25:59,102 --> 00:26:03,732 or-- or has a bad stomachache, we don't really think it's something else. 430 00:26:03,815 --> 00:26:07,068 But there was more to this than met the eye. 431 00:26:07,152 --> 00:26:09,112 People would kind of-- [whispers indistinctly] 432 00:26:09,195 --> 00:26:12,866 Just kind of whisper, and go, "No, no, no. I'm sure it's-- I'm sure it's nothing." 433 00:26:12,949 --> 00:26:14,409 I have to lie to my family. 434 00:26:14,910 --> 00:26:18,580 I have to lie to my team, my head coach. 435 00:26:18,663 --> 00:26:20,332 I had to lie to the world. Okay? 436 00:26:20,415 --> 00:26:23,043 We li-- We lied to the entire world. 437 00:26:23,126 --> 00:26:26,171 Every day I remember waking up with this fear, like, 438 00:26:26,671 --> 00:26:30,550 "Oh, my God. Today, it's still here." 439 00:26:31,092 --> 00:26:34,221 Every day, going, "Okay, but we gonna make it through this day. 440 00:26:34,304 --> 00:26:36,806 With the Lord, we gonna make it through this day. 441 00:26:36,890 --> 00:26:38,892 We got to have faith, and we can do this." 442 00:26:41,645 --> 00:26:43,813 [Cookie] So we went back in to get the results. 443 00:26:44,981 --> 00:26:46,816 I thought I was gonna pass out. 444 00:26:48,443 --> 00:26:51,655 They said, "The good news is, you don't have it. 445 00:26:51,738 --> 00:26:53,823 If you don't have it, the baby won't have it." 446 00:26:53,907 --> 00:26:57,452 [sighs] Man, I got those results back. 447 00:26:58,578 --> 00:26:59,829 We both hugged each other. 448 00:26:59,913 --> 00:27:01,248 And I went in the back… 449 00:27:02,916 --> 00:27:04,542 and I cried like a baby, man. 450 00:27:06,503 --> 00:27:09,589 I felt that I had something to live for. 451 00:27:12,133 --> 00:27:16,721 Then I had to find somebody who-who's living with the disease 452 00:27:16,805 --> 00:27:23,395 that could help me understand what my journey is gonna be now. 453 00:27:23,478 --> 00:27:26,565 What is-- What is my everyday life going to be? 454 00:27:26,648 --> 00:27:28,191 [crowd chattering] 455 00:27:28,275 --> 00:27:29,568 [Bob Hattoy] I am honored to introduce 456 00:27:29,651 --> 00:27:31,820 a woman who has been an inspiration to millions, 457 00:27:32,320 --> 00:27:34,698 who has been living with HIV for 11 years, 458 00:27:35,365 --> 00:27:39,703 the cofounder of the Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Elizabeth Glaser. Thank you. 459 00:27:39,786 --> 00:27:41,746 [audience cheering, applauding] 460 00:27:43,164 --> 00:27:46,418 I reached out to Elizabeth Glaser. I had read an article about her. 461 00:27:47,043 --> 00:27:49,254 And I, uh-- [stammers] I wanted Earvin to meet her. 462 00:27:50,005 --> 00:27:51,423 Eleven years ago… 463 00:27:51,506 --> 00:27:52,924 [cheering, applauding continue] 464 00:27:53,008 --> 00:27:56,094 …while giving birth to my first child, 465 00:27:56,803 --> 00:28:02,183 I hemorrhaged and was transfused with seven pints of blood. 466 00:28:03,226 --> 00:28:08,523 Four years later, I found out that I had been infected with the AIDS virus 467 00:28:09,149 --> 00:28:13,194 and had unknowingly passed it to my daughter, Ariel, 468 00:28:13,278 --> 00:28:14,946 through my breast milk, 469 00:28:15,030 --> 00:28:17,574 and my son, Jake, in utero. 470 00:28:17,657 --> 00:28:19,618 [Magic] I was having a conversation with Lon, 471 00:28:20,118 --> 00:28:23,747 really trying to decide what I was going to do, 472 00:28:23,830 --> 00:28:29,127 discussing the pros and cons of coming out, not coming out… 473 00:28:30,670 --> 00:28:31,838 telling the world. 474 00:28:33,131 --> 00:28:35,800 I asked her. I said, "What should I do?" You know. 475 00:28:35,884 --> 00:28:39,930 And she wanted-- She didn't even hesitate. "You should go public with it." 476 00:28:40,931 --> 00:28:43,808 "I want you to become the face of the disease. 477 00:28:43,892 --> 00:28:47,229 I want you to become a face of AIDS. We need a face." 478 00:28:47,312 --> 00:28:50,190 When we were told our medical situation-- 479 00:28:50,273 --> 00:28:56,571 our family had three members who had AIDS or were infected with the HIV virus-- 480 00:28:56,655 --> 00:29:01,826 our doctor said, "Don't tell anyone. The world is not ready for your family." 481 00:29:01,910 --> 00:29:05,163 She goes, "Magic Johnson's gonna save my son's life. 482 00:29:05,247 --> 00:29:07,165 I'm not gonna live. My daughter's dead. 483 00:29:08,124 --> 00:29:09,542 He's gonna save Jake's life. 484 00:29:10,085 --> 00:29:12,420 He's gonna put a name and a face to this." 485 00:29:12,504 --> 00:29:15,131 [Cookie] When we met her, she just gave us so much hope 486 00:29:15,966 --> 00:29:17,634 just by being in her presence. 487 00:29:17,717 --> 00:29:19,427 Because she was mad, and she was just like, 488 00:29:19,511 --> 00:29:21,429 "Get involved as much as you can. 489 00:29:21,513 --> 00:29:24,641 Get involved with them, you know, trying to find a cure. 490 00:29:24,724 --> 00:29:27,185 Get involved with supporting people who have it. 491 00:29:27,269 --> 00:29:31,022 You know, just, you know, get involved. You know, care." 492 00:29:32,148 --> 00:29:36,444 I realized that God puts people in a position for a purpose. 493 00:29:37,445 --> 00:29:40,156 And I believe his purpose was 494 00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:43,034 to be the face of this thing and to be out there 495 00:29:43,118 --> 00:29:46,204 and try to support and-- and save as many people as possible. 496 00:29:46,288 --> 00:29:48,248 So that night in my house on November 6th, we said, 497 00:29:48,331 --> 00:29:50,875 "We're gonna do a press conference on Friday, November 8th. 498 00:29:50,959 --> 00:29:52,460 We need a day to put it together." 499 00:29:53,044 --> 00:29:55,255 Great. Done. 500 00:29:56,381 --> 00:29:59,968 Gives Earvin time, gives us all time to properly plan this. 501 00:30:04,389 --> 00:30:05,849 [Rosen] Normal day, right? 502 00:30:05,932 --> 00:30:09,227 Get ready for a press conference the next day. I go to my office early. 503 00:30:09,311 --> 00:30:14,733 And about 9:00 in the morning, I get a call from a local radio reporter, 504 00:30:14,816 --> 00:30:19,446 and he says to me, "Lon, I have a report that Earvin has AIDS." 505 00:30:20,030 --> 00:30:22,324 I got called into the News Director's office. 506 00:30:22,407 --> 00:30:27,579 And the News Director says, "Okay, we have a tip. 507 00:30:28,163 --> 00:30:32,918 Magic has HIV, and he's gonna retire." 508 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:35,337 Immediately I got on the phone. 509 00:30:35,420 --> 00:30:40,634 I said, "Randy, please do not release this information. 510 00:30:40,717 --> 00:30:42,177 I will call you back, 511 00:30:42,260 --> 00:30:44,804 but please do not release this information." 512 00:30:45,305 --> 00:30:47,307 "Tell me if there's anything to this." 513 00:30:48,892 --> 00:30:50,310 And he didn't say no. 514 00:30:51,186 --> 00:30:54,689 When that tip came in and it sounded so solid, 515 00:30:55,357 --> 00:30:57,025 that explained a lot of things. 516 00:30:57,108 --> 00:31:00,362 That explained why we aren't hearing anything about it. 517 00:31:00,445 --> 00:31:03,031 Why everything is shrouded in mystery. 518 00:31:03,615 --> 00:31:06,284 While I was in the car, we broke the story. 519 00:31:06,368 --> 00:31:09,913 I felt like my world was coming to an end. 520 00:31:10,705 --> 00:31:14,709 My friend is now gonna be public with this. 521 00:31:14,793 --> 00:31:16,294 We're at Loyola, practicing, 522 00:31:17,337 --> 00:31:21,216 and I get a call from Jerry West. 523 00:31:21,883 --> 00:31:24,469 And Jerry says, "There's been a leak. 524 00:31:25,595 --> 00:31:31,476 And there's been a radio personality reporting that Magic's HIV positive. 525 00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:33,770 Get everybody out of the gym." 526 00:31:33,853 --> 00:31:37,232 So Gary Vitti comes out in the middle of practice and says, "Look… 527 00:31:38,984 --> 00:31:43,280 You guys get in your car and go straight to the Forum. 528 00:31:43,363 --> 00:31:45,907 Don't stop. Don't talk to anybody." 529 00:31:45,991 --> 00:31:47,617 [players speaking, indistinct] 530 00:31:47,701 --> 00:31:50,161 [Vitti] I said, "Listen, cancel everything. 531 00:31:50,912 --> 00:31:52,414 Meet back at the Forum. 532 00:31:53,873 --> 00:31:57,252 What you hear today will change your life." 533 00:31:58,879 --> 00:32:00,672 I go straight to the Forum. 534 00:32:01,423 --> 00:32:04,968 They said, "Earvin's having a press conference. He'd like you to be there." 535 00:32:05,051 --> 00:32:07,053 "Think you can come? It's really important." 536 00:32:07,137 --> 00:32:08,138 They wouldn't tell me. 537 00:32:08,221 --> 00:32:11,182 Eventually, everybody gets there, 538 00:32:11,266 --> 00:32:12,893 and we go into the locker room. 539 00:32:18,189 --> 00:32:19,858 [Magic] I wasn't ready to retire. 540 00:32:22,027 --> 00:32:23,945 I wasn't ready to say goodbye to them. 541 00:32:25,906 --> 00:32:29,284 Probably the hardest part of all of this is knowing 542 00:32:29,367 --> 00:32:31,828 that I wasn't gonna go to war with them no more. 543 00:32:31,912 --> 00:32:33,288 He went around the room, 544 00:32:34,748 --> 00:32:39,252 and he gave each guy a hug and whispered something in their ear. 545 00:32:39,336 --> 00:32:43,173 You know, from his mouth to our ears, he told us everything that was happening. 546 00:32:43,256 --> 00:32:44,591 There wasn't a dry eye in there. 547 00:32:45,425 --> 00:32:47,260 [Abdul-Jabbar] It was stupefying, you know? 548 00:32:47,344 --> 00:32:48,929 But I wanted to be there for him. 549 00:32:49,429 --> 00:32:51,389 You know, he was always there for me. 550 00:32:51,473 --> 00:32:54,059 We just could not believe what we were hearing. 551 00:32:55,644 --> 00:32:58,772 We just sat there. Numb. 552 00:32:59,856 --> 00:33:01,441 [Green] This is your brother. 553 00:33:01,524 --> 00:33:04,861 You spent years and years with this person. 554 00:33:04,945 --> 00:33:10,450 And you hear these words come out of someone in your family's mouth, 555 00:33:10,533 --> 00:33:12,869 and it's devastating. 556 00:33:12,953 --> 00:33:16,331 I started crying. I said, "Hey, how'd this happen?" 557 00:33:18,375 --> 00:33:21,795 [Worthy] Most of us were thinking, "Death is coming." 558 00:33:23,964 --> 00:33:26,383 It was just a numb feeling. 559 00:33:26,466 --> 00:33:27,884 You hear about it on the news, 560 00:33:29,135 --> 00:33:31,012 but you just don't expect it to be somebody 561 00:33:31,096 --> 00:33:34,224 that you spend most of your time with, who's your family. 562 00:33:34,307 --> 00:33:35,308 And, um… 563 00:33:36,893 --> 00:33:43,108 then he went upstairs and told the world. 564 00:33:44,693 --> 00:33:47,529 [chattering] 565 00:33:53,493 --> 00:33:55,203 Okay, he's gonna come over here. 566 00:33:58,623 --> 00:33:59,541 [steady tone] 567 00:34:06,798 --> 00:34:07,799 We are still waiting. 568 00:34:07,883 --> 00:34:11,553 And obviously, the anticipation is, uh, get-- getting worse and worse. 569 00:34:11,635 --> 00:34:13,972 We would like to get an answer sooner or later. 570 00:34:14,055 --> 00:34:16,224 Quickly tell us what is going on here. 571 00:34:16,307 --> 00:34:18,309 It is a very tense place. 572 00:34:20,103 --> 00:34:23,940 Laker front office. Jerry Buss, owner of the Lakers. 573 00:34:24,024 --> 00:34:26,108 And here comes Magic Johnson toward the podium. 574 00:34:26,192 --> 00:34:27,402 Let's go to Magic. 575 00:35:05,232 --> 00:35:08,235 First of all, let me say good a-- good after-- late afternoon. 576 00:35:09,236 --> 00:35:11,321 Um, because of, um… 577 00:35:13,698 --> 00:35:16,910 the HIV virus that I have attained, um, 578 00:35:17,869 --> 00:35:21,957 I will have to retire from the Lakers, uh, today. 579 00:35:23,083 --> 00:35:25,919 Um, I just want to make clear, first of all, 580 00:35:26,002 --> 00:35:28,964 that I do not have the AIDS disease. 581 00:35:29,047 --> 00:35:32,050 'Cause I know a lot of you are conce-- want to know that. 582 00:35:32,133 --> 00:35:33,885 But the HIV virus… 583 00:35:33,969 --> 00:35:36,638 I just want to say that, uh, I'm gonna miss playing. 584 00:35:37,430 --> 00:35:38,848 [smacks lips] And, uh, 585 00:35:39,641 --> 00:35:43,562 I will now become a-a spokesman for the HIV virus. 586 00:35:43,645 --> 00:35:46,523 It's another challenge, another chapter in my life that-- 587 00:35:46,606 --> 00:35:49,609 It's like being-- Your-- Your back is against the wall. 588 00:35:50,110 --> 00:35:52,320 And I think that you just have to come out swinging, 589 00:35:52,404 --> 00:35:53,989 and I'm swinging. 590 00:35:54,072 --> 00:35:56,866 We begin tonight with the fate of a single individual. 591 00:35:56,950 --> 00:36:00,370 The basketball star Magic Johnson confirmed a short while ago… 592 00:36:00,453 --> 00:36:02,414 The news is so shocking and so unexpected, 593 00:36:02,497 --> 00:36:05,375 it is difficult to absorb it even as we report it. 594 00:36:05,458 --> 00:36:09,254 [speaks French] 595 00:36:09,337 --> 00:36:11,464 [reporter] The official word came moments ago. 596 00:36:11,548 --> 00:36:16,094 The dazzling career of one of the world's best-known athletes is over. 597 00:36:16,595 --> 00:36:18,013 He is only 32 years old. 598 00:36:18,096 --> 00:36:20,599 People everywhere have been talking of little else 599 00:36:20,682 --> 00:36:23,768 than basketball superstar Magic Johnson. 600 00:36:23,852 --> 00:36:26,313 Uh, Magic called me and-- and told me of the news. 601 00:36:26,396 --> 00:36:29,649 And, uh, I was just like most people in America. 602 00:36:29,733 --> 00:36:33,069 I was very shocked, um, devast-- devastated about it. 603 00:36:33,153 --> 00:36:36,615 You know, just out the blue something like that happening. It just-- 604 00:36:36,698 --> 00:36:39,868 Yesterday was just-- just a sad day. 605 00:36:39,951 --> 00:36:43,955 I know he's not dead, but it's kinda like somewhat of a-a death of a brother, 606 00:36:44,039 --> 00:36:45,206 a death in the family. 607 00:36:45,290 --> 00:36:47,375 I remember just sitting in my office crying. 608 00:36:47,459 --> 00:36:50,170 Bewildered. I remember bursting into tears, you know? 609 00:36:50,253 --> 00:36:53,506 Just 'cause we all thought it was a death sentence. 610 00:36:53,590 --> 00:36:56,134 He is alive but not very well right now. 611 00:36:56,218 --> 00:37:01,806 And, you know, we do not, you know, want to eulogize him. 612 00:37:01,890 --> 00:37:03,016 [Obama] It was heartbreaking. 613 00:37:03,099 --> 00:37:04,809 Uh, not just because of 614 00:37:05,435 --> 00:37:08,230 his extraordinary basketball career, 615 00:37:08,313 --> 00:37:13,360 but also because of the joy and infectious sort of smile, 616 00:37:13,443 --> 00:37:17,864 uh, had become a staple of, uh, our culture. 617 00:37:17,948 --> 00:37:19,658 There are a lot of people who want to be your friend 618 00:37:19,741 --> 00:37:23,703 when you're standing underneath the basket making assists and throwing sweet passes. 619 00:37:23,787 --> 00:37:26,915 But, uh, this when you find out who your true friends are. 620 00:37:26,998 --> 00:37:30,835 If he truly wants to be an educator, it will be appropriate for him, 621 00:37:30,919 --> 00:37:35,590 not in some tabloid sense, not in some inappropriately prying sense, 622 00:37:35,674 --> 00:37:40,053 but in some way, it will be appropriate for him to discuss his sexual history 623 00:37:40,136 --> 00:37:42,556 and to address how he may have contracted AIDS. 624 00:37:42,639 --> 00:37:44,224 How did he get it? 625 00:37:44,307 --> 00:37:47,435 Why is that so important? What does it matter how anyone got it? 626 00:37:47,519 --> 00:37:51,273 We judge people with HIV based on how they got it. 627 00:37:51,356 --> 00:37:53,984 Up till now, it's always been thought of in this country 628 00:37:54,067 --> 00:37:57,195 as a gay or intravenous drug user disease. 629 00:37:57,779 --> 00:37:59,948 [reporter] Curiosity about people with AIDS 630 00:38:00,031 --> 00:38:02,701 has often been limited to one hostile question: 631 00:38:02,784 --> 00:38:03,785 How did they get it? 632 00:38:03,868 --> 00:38:05,954 Johnson talks about his lifestyle and says, 633 00:38:06,037 --> 00:38:09,374 "I did my best to accommodate as many women as I could, 634 00:38:09,457 --> 00:38:11,918 most of them through unprotected sex." 635 00:38:12,961 --> 00:38:14,671 [caller] Isn't there a moral message, 636 00:38:14,754 --> 00:38:18,174 and isn't that the prevention message that he should be carrying? 637 00:38:18,258 --> 00:38:20,427 When I find out he got AIDS, 638 00:38:20,510 --> 00:38:22,637 I guess I ain't gonna be wearing that shirt no more. 639 00:38:25,724 --> 00:38:29,436 [Magic] I had to come to grips with saying, "Hey, this is a part of it." 640 00:38:30,103 --> 00:38:34,691 I-- I can't… uh, be upset, 641 00:38:34,774 --> 00:38:35,984 even though I was. 642 00:38:36,693 --> 00:38:40,947 [Cookie] It was like, "What do I do with myself sitting around on this couch?" 643 00:38:41,031 --> 00:38:43,658 And I remember thinking, "This isn't you." 644 00:38:43,742 --> 00:38:44,743 [crowd cheering] 645 00:38:44,826 --> 00:38:47,329 [commentator] Three of eight shooting for Larry. Three-- 646 00:38:47,412 --> 00:38:50,957 This is not the same basketball team, you know, when Magic was running the show. 647 00:38:51,041 --> 00:38:52,167 There's no question about it. 648 00:38:52,250 --> 00:38:54,794 [Magic] I'm sitting here having this pity party. 649 00:38:54,878 --> 00:38:56,838 And then I needed to feel the love too. 650 00:38:56,922 --> 00:39:02,135 You know, you-- you needed something to also make you feel better 651 00:39:02,219 --> 00:39:06,389 about your new status of living with HIV. 652 00:39:06,473 --> 00:39:09,726 No one is saying exactly how Magic was infected with the virus, 653 00:39:09,809 --> 00:39:12,437 but the point now is that he intends to do something about it 654 00:39:12,520 --> 00:39:16,107 by becoming a spokesman for AIDS research and the safe sex movement. 655 00:39:16,191 --> 00:39:17,359 And that begins tonight, 656 00:39:17,442 --> 00:39:19,778 when he'll appear on The Arsenio Hall Show. 657 00:39:19,861 --> 00:39:22,530 -[crowd applauding, cheering] -[upbeat music playing] 658 00:39:26,743 --> 00:39:28,870 [applauding, cheering continues] 659 00:39:36,169 --> 00:39:39,923 [Hall] Phone rings, I pick it up, and it's Magic. 660 00:39:41,341 --> 00:39:44,761 So he said, "I should come on the show tonight and talk to America." 661 00:39:45,428 --> 00:39:48,723 I said, "Yo, shouldn't we do this at Larry King?" 662 00:39:49,808 --> 00:39:51,893 And he said, "No. You gotta do this. 663 00:39:52,477 --> 00:39:53,853 We gotta do this." 664 00:39:54,437 --> 00:39:57,607 "You gotta help me live forever." I never forgot that sentence. 665 00:39:57,691 --> 00:39:59,025 "You gotta help me live forever." 666 00:39:59,109 --> 00:40:00,360 [applauding, cheering continues] 667 00:40:00,443 --> 00:40:01,528 And he came out. 668 00:40:02,279 --> 00:40:05,156 I just remember how long the ovation was. 669 00:40:05,240 --> 00:40:06,741 Oh, man. 670 00:40:09,828 --> 00:40:11,496 [applauding, cheering continues] 671 00:40:17,085 --> 00:40:20,672 [Magic] I needed to hear the roar of the crowd one more time. 672 00:40:22,549 --> 00:40:23,717 And I heard it. 673 00:40:23,800 --> 00:40:25,552 [applauding, cheering continues] 674 00:40:28,722 --> 00:40:33,184 I needed something to make me feel better about my new status, 675 00:40:33,268 --> 00:40:35,103 living with HIV. 676 00:40:35,186 --> 00:40:37,147 And Arsenio gave that to me. 677 00:40:38,315 --> 00:40:40,275 Man, it made me feel so much better. 678 00:40:41,276 --> 00:40:42,944 That I was gonna be okay. 679 00:40:46,865 --> 00:40:48,241 [Hall] I didn't wanna do it 680 00:40:48,325 --> 00:40:52,746 because I knew there were questions that I was supposed to ask Earvin. 681 00:40:53,330 --> 00:40:55,081 And as a friend, I didn't wanna ask him. 682 00:40:55,165 --> 00:40:56,958 But he told me, 683 00:40:57,042 --> 00:40:58,877 "Don't hold anything back. 684 00:40:58,960 --> 00:41:03,798 Ask every question that you would ask if it was someone else other than me." 685 00:41:03,882 --> 00:41:07,177 Obviously, there are people who, in the back of their mind, 686 00:41:07,260 --> 00:41:12,933 think that this might be a homosexual relationship disease. 687 00:41:13,016 --> 00:41:15,310 He looked me right in the eyes, and he said, 688 00:41:15,393 --> 00:41:19,898 "I have to tell as many people as possible 689 00:41:19,981 --> 00:41:22,984 because people think that this is just a gay disease. 690 00:41:23,068 --> 00:41:26,780 They don't think anybody else can catch this disease or get this disease." 691 00:41:26,863 --> 00:41:31,368 President Bush has invited Magic to join the National Commission on AIDS. 692 00:41:31,451 --> 00:41:35,247 Johnson is mulling over the offer and has yet to make up his mind. 693 00:41:35,330 --> 00:41:40,210 I wrote him a letter, a personal letter, uh, some time ago 694 00:41:40,293 --> 00:41:41,878 and said that I recognize 695 00:41:41,962 --> 00:41:46,216 there are all kinds of, uh, opportunities now to serve mankind 696 00:41:46,299 --> 00:41:48,176 and I'd love to have him on this commission. 697 00:41:49,803 --> 00:41:52,931 [Magic] So, I flew out to DC and met with President Bush, 698 00:41:53,014 --> 00:41:54,641 and I decided to join. 699 00:41:54,724 --> 00:41:59,896 Well, there's money, funding here, prevention, research, uh, care. 700 00:41:59,980 --> 00:42:02,524 Uh, so I'ma come at him with figures and numbers 701 00:42:02,607 --> 00:42:04,317 that, uh, will probably blow his mind. 702 00:42:05,443 --> 00:42:08,738 The first thing I wanted to do was to educate myself more 703 00:42:08,822 --> 00:42:11,366 about not only the disease 704 00:42:11,449 --> 00:42:15,954 but also how has it been affecting the Black community. 705 00:42:16,037 --> 00:42:19,583 [reporter] It was a new mantle Earvin "Magic" Johnson wore into this hall. 706 00:42:19,666 --> 00:42:22,002 Not of the LA Laker megastar he was, 707 00:42:22,085 --> 00:42:24,671 but of the National Aids Commissioner he now is. 708 00:42:24,754 --> 00:42:26,923 We don't have a voice, Magic. 709 00:42:27,007 --> 00:42:32,012 We don't have anybody to stand up for us and speak about things in our lives. 710 00:42:32,095 --> 00:42:33,179 We need you. 711 00:42:33,263 --> 00:42:35,891 [Rosen] It was a much different time, 1991. 712 00:42:35,974 --> 00:42:38,977 There were people who wouldn't shake Earvin's hand, wouldn't give him a hug. 713 00:42:39,060 --> 00:42:42,105 I now hear you can get it from, uh, toilet seats. 714 00:42:42,188 --> 00:42:45,442 -[interviewer] Do you ever worry about it? -I just think it's not gonna happen to me. 715 00:42:45,525 --> 00:42:48,445 We have to put aside prejudice for people who are infected. 716 00:42:48,528 --> 00:42:50,113 We have to look at it for what it is. 717 00:42:51,448 --> 00:42:53,617 It's an infection that can be transmitted 718 00:42:53,700 --> 00:42:56,536 in certain ways that we're absolutely certain 719 00:42:56,620 --> 00:42:59,998 and certain ways it cannot be transmitted that we're absolutely certain. 720 00:43:00,081 --> 00:43:03,043 And we have to keep drilling that home to the people of this country. 721 00:43:03,126 --> 00:43:04,753 You know, I was getting smarter. 722 00:43:05,337 --> 00:43:06,546 I was getting better. 723 00:43:07,172 --> 00:43:09,883 I felt I needed to get out. 724 00:43:09,966 --> 00:43:11,509 [Magic, on news report] People wanna help. 725 00:43:11,593 --> 00:43:13,970 And they've said, "We're gonna raise a lot of money, 726 00:43:14,054 --> 00:43:16,890 and we want you to help educate people about HIV and AIDS 727 00:43:16,973 --> 00:43:19,267 as well as raise the awareness level." 728 00:43:19,351 --> 00:43:22,145 I was always a person who was out anyway, 729 00:43:22,229 --> 00:43:27,943 so I wasn't gonna let HIV stop me from being a person out in the public. 730 00:43:28,568 --> 00:43:33,281 He's always been aware of who Earvin was and also who Magic was. 731 00:43:34,115 --> 00:43:37,327 So he's always been aware that this was a unique opportunity 732 00:43:37,410 --> 00:43:39,871 for him to take advantage of-- of his status 733 00:43:39,955 --> 00:43:42,791 and also to live up to some responsibilities, 734 00:43:42,874 --> 00:43:45,752 uh, being Magic Johnson as opposed to Earvin. 735 00:43:45,835 --> 00:43:48,338 There were people who wanted-- who wanted more, 736 00:43:48,421 --> 00:43:51,383 who wanted to-- who wanted the story. 737 00:43:51,466 --> 00:43:54,594 And he owned up to his lifestyle. 738 00:43:54,678 --> 00:43:58,974 Women have different fantasies. Some want to be with two, three at a time. 739 00:43:59,057 --> 00:44:01,434 You know, one time I had six at one time. That's just-- 740 00:44:01,518 --> 00:44:03,270 -[interviewer] Six women? -Six women. 741 00:44:03,353 --> 00:44:05,772 If you ask me if I had fun, yes, I had fun. 742 00:44:06,856 --> 00:44:10,193 But… you pay for it. 743 00:44:11,027 --> 00:44:12,904 Did you know about all these other women? 744 00:44:12,988 --> 00:44:15,323 Not really. I mean, it was one of those things where-- 745 00:44:15,407 --> 00:44:16,992 We had a long-distance relationship 746 00:44:17,075 --> 00:44:18,493 -for a long time. -[Oprah] 'Cause you were in-- 747 00:44:18,577 --> 00:44:21,329 So it was one of those things where you really couldn't expect… 748 00:44:21,413 --> 00:44:22,581 -[Oprah] Him to… -Yeah. 749 00:44:22,664 --> 00:44:26,084 Um, and being in LA and being, you know, who he is. 750 00:44:26,167 --> 00:44:28,587 I never really did get angry. 751 00:44:29,588 --> 00:44:34,551 I guess 'cause my emotions went from fear of dying 752 00:44:34,634 --> 00:44:38,013 to, "Okay, we can breathe a little bit." 753 00:44:38,597 --> 00:44:41,558 But just day by day, figuring this thing out. 754 00:44:41,641 --> 00:44:44,978 When they told us about how we need to keep Earvin healthy, 755 00:44:45,061 --> 00:44:48,023 you know, it has a lot to do with your immune system. 756 00:44:48,106 --> 00:44:52,027 And so he made sure he kept his workout regimen. 757 00:44:52,110 --> 00:44:54,779 I'm running and lifting in the morning. 758 00:44:54,863 --> 00:44:57,240 I'm finding gyms to rent out, 759 00:44:57,324 --> 00:45:02,412 UCLA, Sports Club/LA, on the weekends, late at night. 760 00:45:02,495 --> 00:45:03,914 [chuckles] So, I'm like-- 761 00:45:03,997 --> 00:45:06,875 I'm playing, like, almost seven days a week. 762 00:45:06,958 --> 00:45:07,959 Whoa, oh, oh! Wait-- 763 00:45:08,043 --> 00:45:12,214 [Magic] And still, you wanted to do anything and everything to educate people. 764 00:45:12,297 --> 00:45:14,925 Most people are scared to really talk about AIDS. 765 00:45:15,508 --> 00:45:18,595 And that's what's keeping the ignorance alive. 766 00:45:18,678 --> 00:45:21,514 Magic Johnson, I think, did more than anybody else 767 00:45:21,598 --> 00:45:24,267 to finally break the stigma. 768 00:45:24,351 --> 00:45:27,312 'Cause the country loved him and respected him. 769 00:45:28,355 --> 00:45:30,899 And because they could see that he was still fighting. 770 00:45:30,982 --> 00:45:33,568 What kind of charisma does Earvin "Magic" Johnson have 771 00:45:33,652 --> 00:45:35,278 on the American basketball public? 772 00:45:35,362 --> 00:45:36,363 Consider this. 773 00:45:36,446 --> 00:45:40,492 He retires last November 7th, when he tested positive for the HIV virus. 774 00:45:40,575 --> 00:45:43,286 And yet, when the All-Star fan balloting is announced today, 775 00:45:43,370 --> 00:45:45,997 he comes in second amongst Western Conference guards. 776 00:45:47,332 --> 00:45:49,459 [Rosen] The All-Star game was coming up. 777 00:45:49,542 --> 00:45:50,794 Earvin was leading the vote 778 00:45:50,877 --> 00:45:53,964 but he wasn't sure if the NBA would let him play. 779 00:45:54,047 --> 00:45:56,925 Some players were skittish 780 00:45:57,008 --> 00:45:59,052 about playing against him 781 00:45:59,135 --> 00:46:02,347 because they were afraid, if there was a cut or something, 782 00:46:02,430 --> 00:46:04,182 that they might get infected. 783 00:46:04,266 --> 00:46:07,060 There is fear, anxiety and questions from all corners, 784 00:46:07,143 --> 00:46:09,980 including those athletes who participate on the professional level. 785 00:46:10,063 --> 00:46:12,899 There was some swirl around this of potential boycotts 786 00:46:12,983 --> 00:46:14,234 and lawsuits and other things. 787 00:46:15,235 --> 00:46:19,114 I think the stakes were even higher than I understood at the time. 788 00:46:19,197 --> 00:46:22,659 A basketball game is incredibly violent. The collisions, the contact, the bl-- 789 00:46:22,742 --> 00:46:23,994 There's blood everywhere. 790 00:46:24,077 --> 00:46:28,290 And I wouldn't wanna be out there playing against someone who was HIV positive. 791 00:46:28,373 --> 00:46:29,708 Look at every NBA player's hands. 792 00:46:29,791 --> 00:46:32,794 They're full of nicks, scars and cuts from fingernails 793 00:46:32,878 --> 00:46:36,923 and, uh, all the times that you've slammed into somebody's mouth with your elbow. 794 00:46:37,007 --> 00:46:38,383 And you're bleeding, he's bleeding. 795 00:46:38,466 --> 00:46:41,720 Things can happen to you even if it's-- the possibilities are small. 796 00:46:41,803 --> 00:46:44,389 It was a concern that a lot of players had. 797 00:46:44,472 --> 00:46:48,810 But he was a friend to me, and I wanted to play against him. 798 00:46:48,894 --> 00:46:50,353 You know, I-I've always welcomed 799 00:46:50,437 --> 00:46:52,689 the-- the opportunity to play against Magic Johnson. 800 00:46:54,232 --> 00:46:57,027 [Rosen] He did a Nickelodeon special with children. 801 00:46:57,110 --> 00:46:58,111 I remember things started, 802 00:46:58,194 --> 00:47:00,363 and there was a number of kids there that had AIDS. 803 00:47:01,406 --> 00:47:03,950 My message to them, that it can happen to you. 804 00:47:04,034 --> 00:47:06,036 And I'm a prime example of that. 805 00:47:06,578 --> 00:47:09,456 And it's happened because I had unprotected sex. 806 00:47:09,539 --> 00:47:11,082 You wanted to say something? 807 00:47:11,583 --> 00:47:17,130 That I want people to know that we're just normal people. 808 00:47:17,214 --> 00:47:18,590 [Magic] Mm-hmm. 809 00:47:18,673 --> 00:47:21,635 Aw. Uh-uh, you don't have to cry. 810 00:47:21,718 --> 00:47:24,054 -[crying] -You don't have to cry. 811 00:47:27,515 --> 00:47:29,768 [gasping, sobbing] 812 00:47:31,645 --> 00:47:34,940 [Magic] 'Cause we are normal people. We are. 813 00:47:37,359 --> 00:47:40,278 And you just wanna be treated like that, right? 814 00:47:40,362 --> 00:47:42,572 You just want your friends to play with you 815 00:47:43,323 --> 00:47:45,659 and call you up and come by 816 00:47:46,201 --> 00:47:48,620 and still have sleepovers and things like that? 817 00:47:49,371 --> 00:47:51,081 Right? Yeah. 818 00:47:51,581 --> 00:47:54,292 And it's okay to cry. It's okay to cry. 819 00:47:55,835 --> 00:47:59,422 I didn't know it was as bad for him as it was for everybody else. 820 00:47:59,506 --> 00:48:02,133 He had people who didn't wanna be his friend 821 00:48:02,217 --> 00:48:06,012 and didn't wanna have anything to do with him. And I was just like, 822 00:48:06,096 --> 00:48:07,389 "That's Magic Johnson." 823 00:48:07,472 --> 00:48:10,892 Like, how can you be that mean to somebody? 824 00:48:10,976 --> 00:48:14,396 [Silver] When Magic was diagnosed with HIV, 825 00:48:14,479 --> 00:48:17,065 I think David took it on as a cause. 826 00:48:17,148 --> 00:48:21,611 This is a very courageous, heroic person and a heroic act. 827 00:48:21,695 --> 00:48:24,990 And, uh, we all pledged our support to him. 828 00:48:25,073 --> 00:48:27,784 In addition to wanting to be there for Magic, 829 00:48:27,867 --> 00:48:31,871 he saw this for the larger societal implications it represented 830 00:48:31,955 --> 00:48:35,292 in terms of what was then enormous prejudice. 831 00:48:35,375 --> 00:48:36,751 It's about our game. 832 00:48:37,502 --> 00:48:41,006 But it's also about our humanity, and it's about our Magic. 833 00:48:41,089 --> 00:48:47,053 And so, without, uh, asking for too many opinions, 834 00:48:47,137 --> 00:48:49,681 'cause I was afraid that I might get too many, 835 00:48:49,764 --> 00:48:51,182 I said, "That's it. He's in." 836 00:48:51,266 --> 00:48:54,102 Magic Johnson retired from the Lakers because of the AIDS virus, 837 00:48:54,185 --> 00:48:57,230 but he now says he'll play in the NBA All-Star game next month. 838 00:48:57,314 --> 00:49:00,734 [reporter 2] There is little doubting what this game means to any player, 839 00:49:00,817 --> 00:49:03,653 especially the first-timers and rookies. 840 00:49:03,737 --> 00:49:05,989 But the magic of this moment is Earvin's, 841 00:49:06,072 --> 00:49:07,449 a great of the game 842 00:49:07,532 --> 00:49:10,869 who fans feel they can just reach out and touch. 843 00:49:10,952 --> 00:49:14,122 Sunday can't come soon enough for number 32. 844 00:49:14,205 --> 00:49:15,540 [Magic] Once I get out there, 845 00:49:15,624 --> 00:49:18,710 things will take care of themselves, though, once you hit the court. 846 00:49:18,793 --> 00:49:21,796 You know, basketball will never leave me. 847 00:49:21,880 --> 00:49:25,884 I called the commissioner, and I said, "Commissioner Stern," 848 00:49:25,967 --> 00:49:29,304 I said, "Listen, you got all these activities going on 849 00:49:29,387 --> 00:49:30,931 in the Orlando arena, 850 00:49:32,015 --> 00:49:34,100 but I need to go in there and shoot." 851 00:49:35,185 --> 00:49:37,354 He said, "Earvin, the arena won't even be free 852 00:49:37,437 --> 00:49:39,231 until, like, 11:00 or 12:00 at night." 853 00:49:39,314 --> 00:49:42,651 I said, "I'm going at 11:00 or 12:00 at night then." 854 00:49:42,734 --> 00:49:45,320 So I went in there, and I shot for hours. 855 00:49:50,200 --> 00:49:53,161 Then when we got, uh, to Orlando… 856 00:49:53,245 --> 00:49:55,580 [chattering] 857 00:49:55,664 --> 00:49:59,542 …there was a large sector of players saying that they were gonna boycott. 858 00:50:01,294 --> 00:50:03,255 And they wasn't gonna play in the game. 859 00:50:06,550 --> 00:50:10,720 I called a meeting, and I stood up in front of the other 23 players, 860 00:50:12,347 --> 00:50:15,058 and I said, "This is not gonna be a vote… 861 00:50:17,060 --> 00:50:19,229 but Magic's gonna play in this game. 862 00:50:21,273 --> 00:50:22,899 And we're going to embrace him. 863 00:50:25,402 --> 00:50:29,364 And not only are we gonna embrace him, but we're gonna welcome him." 864 00:50:32,867 --> 00:50:34,369 I thought it was a big moment. 865 00:50:34,995 --> 00:50:39,624 And I wanted all the players to not only shake his hand 866 00:50:40,208 --> 00:50:41,376 but to hug him. 867 00:50:42,127 --> 00:50:44,588 [announcer] Making his 12th All-Star game appearance, 868 00:50:44,671 --> 00:50:51,344 Earvin "Magic" Johnson! 869 00:50:51,428 --> 00:50:54,347 [crowd cheering] 870 00:50:55,849 --> 00:50:58,768 [commentator] Number 42 on the way, and Magic touches it first. 871 00:51:00,270 --> 00:51:01,313 Magic! 872 00:51:01,813 --> 00:51:04,566 [Magic] We just started off playing easy, you know. 873 00:51:05,150 --> 00:51:08,320 And Dennis Rodman bodychecked me so much, 874 00:51:09,237 --> 00:51:11,656 it actually helped the other guys say, 875 00:51:11,740 --> 00:51:16,745 "Oh, okay. Dennis is playing him hard. We going at it." 876 00:51:16,828 --> 00:51:19,080 All the stuff went away. 877 00:51:19,706 --> 00:51:22,709 And now, I'm in my element. 878 00:51:23,293 --> 00:51:25,128 I got the no-look passes going. 879 00:51:25,212 --> 00:51:26,671 [commentator] Another great pass. 880 00:51:26,755 --> 00:51:29,507 [Magic] I got that hook going. I got the drives going. 881 00:51:31,801 --> 00:51:34,804 You put that ball in my hand, I know what to do with it. 882 00:51:34,888 --> 00:51:36,431 [laughs] 883 00:51:37,098 --> 00:51:40,769 And I'm into my game, and it was just fun. 884 00:51:40,852 --> 00:51:44,231 I said, "Wow, I miss this." 885 00:51:44,314 --> 00:51:45,690 [commentator] Magic Johnson. 886 00:51:45,774 --> 00:51:47,901 [Magic] It didn't matter who was in front of me. 887 00:51:47,984 --> 00:51:49,819 I just had a feeling that I couldn't miss. 888 00:51:49,903 --> 00:51:53,031 [commentator] And Johnson! Two in a row for Magic. 889 00:51:53,114 --> 00:51:54,741 He's going for the MVP. 890 00:51:54,824 --> 00:51:56,576 [Magic] I'll never forget the ending. 891 00:51:56,660 --> 00:52:00,038 [commentator] Three-pointer. Is it? It is! All right! 892 00:52:00,121 --> 00:52:01,873 [crowd cheering] 893 00:52:03,917 --> 00:52:08,296 [Magic] There was still time on the clock, and all the players just ran on the court. 894 00:52:09,381 --> 00:52:11,800 Man, that was the greatest feeling in the world. 895 00:52:11,883 --> 00:52:14,594 I mean, they were saying, "That's it. The game is over. 896 00:52:14,678 --> 00:52:17,347 The show has ended." [laughs] 897 00:52:17,430 --> 00:52:18,723 [crowd cheering] 898 00:52:18,807 --> 00:52:21,226 Magic, you're the most valuable player. 899 00:52:21,309 --> 00:52:23,853 You're a most courageous person. 900 00:52:23,937 --> 00:52:26,523 The moment is yours. Congratulations. 901 00:52:26,606 --> 00:52:29,442 [crowd cheering] 902 00:52:29,526 --> 00:52:33,363 [Magic] Commissioner David Stern and I, with that game, 903 00:52:33,446 --> 00:52:36,992 changed the conversation 904 00:52:37,075 --> 00:52:40,328 about HIV and AIDS around the world. 905 00:52:41,079 --> 00:52:44,332 That one game changed everything for HIV and AIDS. 906 00:52:44,416 --> 00:52:50,463 Magic gave confidence to those who were also afflicted with the disease 907 00:52:50,547 --> 00:52:52,716 that, uh, this wasn't a death sentence, 908 00:52:52,799 --> 00:52:55,427 that they should put pressure on government 909 00:52:55,510 --> 00:53:00,932 and on, uh, the medical establishment to take this disease seriously. 910 00:53:02,142 --> 00:53:05,228 [Magic] Putting the commission together was really good. 911 00:53:05,312 --> 00:53:09,065 But there wasn't enough resources behind the commission. 912 00:53:09,149 --> 00:53:12,903 Uh, people who were running the commission, heart wasn't in it. 913 00:53:12,986 --> 00:53:16,907 They were really focused in on the white community 914 00:53:16,990 --> 00:53:19,200 and not the Black and brown community. 915 00:53:19,284 --> 00:53:22,954 The AIDS rate in America is growing fastest among minorities. 916 00:53:23,038 --> 00:53:26,291 The reason why people in our community are suffering from this 917 00:53:26,374 --> 00:53:28,710 is because there is a lack of health care services. 918 00:53:28,793 --> 00:53:32,047 The government feels like, "These people can be pushed off to the side 919 00:53:32,130 --> 00:53:33,590 'cause we don't need them anyway". 920 00:53:33,673 --> 00:53:36,843 [Fauci] He reached a point where he felt things were not going quickly enough. 921 00:53:36,927 --> 00:53:40,055 They weren't having as much influence as they should. 922 00:53:40,138 --> 00:53:43,099 [Magic] I had this battle with the White House. 923 00:53:43,183 --> 00:53:46,144 I said, "If I'm going to really make a difference, 924 00:53:46,228 --> 00:53:50,273 I gotta jump off of this commission and really get on the ground." 925 00:53:50,357 --> 00:53:54,653 Magic Johnson said today he is quitting the Presidential Commission on AIDS, 926 00:53:54,736 --> 00:53:58,657 and he accuses the Bush administration of utterly ignoring its work. 927 00:53:58,740 --> 00:54:01,910 Finally, I just said, "You know what? I'm just gonna be Earvin Johnson. 928 00:54:02,577 --> 00:54:04,996 I'm just gonna do me and do my thing." 929 00:54:05,080 --> 00:54:09,084 He started his own foundation, the Magic Johnson Foundation. 930 00:54:09,668 --> 00:54:14,047 Our mission statement was to bring about awareness for HIV and AIDS 931 00:54:14,130 --> 00:54:19,177 and to also support HIV clinics and things like that. 932 00:54:19,261 --> 00:54:21,221 [Magic] Sir, you got the Laker hat on and everything. 933 00:54:21,304 --> 00:54:22,138 Yeah. Yeah. 934 00:54:22,222 --> 00:54:24,808 The stars turned out in Inglewood, California, today 935 00:54:24,891 --> 00:54:28,812 to honor Magic Johnson and raise money for AIDS education and research. 936 00:54:28,895 --> 00:54:30,480 I'm playing basketball. 937 00:54:30,564 --> 00:54:33,400 Uh, I'm not in the NBA. I could if I wanted to play. 938 00:54:33,483 --> 00:54:36,361 But, uh, right now, I'm happy traveling around the world, 939 00:54:36,444 --> 00:54:37,696 not only playing basketball, 940 00:54:37,779 --> 00:54:40,448 but I'm also educating people about HIV and AIDS. 941 00:54:41,324 --> 00:54:44,494 [reporter] Everyone is wondering, will he or won't he play again? 942 00:54:45,287 --> 00:54:47,789 [reporter 4] The Lakers retiring his number 32. 943 00:54:47,872 --> 00:54:51,877 Now, the operative words here being "number 32" and not his body. 944 00:54:51,960 --> 00:54:54,296 Magic, again, refusing to slam the door shut 945 00:54:54,379 --> 00:54:56,131 on his playing days in the NBA. 946 00:54:56,214 --> 00:54:58,383 [crowd cheering] 947 00:55:09,728 --> 00:55:12,522 I hope that if I do decide to come back, 948 00:55:12,606 --> 00:55:15,483 you won't be upset if we did this all over again. 949 00:55:16,443 --> 00:55:19,362 And then the greatest thing happened, 950 00:55:19,446 --> 00:55:21,907 which was the Dream Team.