Johnny Kline obit

Johnny Kline, Globetrotter Turned Advocate, Is Dead at 86

 

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Dr. Johnny Kline, initially known for his athletic feats but throughout his later years much more for extolling the values of education and history, died July 26 in Lebanon at 86.

Kline had become well known in Nashville and throughout the Mid-South  for his lectures on basketball history, as well as the importance of athletes also getting their education.

Though a historic figure as a member of the Globetrotters in the ‘50s, he preferred to stress his later exploits as an educator and a curator of early Black basketball heroics.

The six-foot-three Kline earned the nickname “Jumpin’ Johnny” while at then Wayne University (now Wayne State) in the early ‘50s. A world class high jumper as well as an outstanding basketball player, Kline dropped out of Wayne State to join the Globetrotters in 1953.

He eventually had two stints with them, a tryout with the Pistons sandwiched around them in 1957. He left the Globetrotters in 1959, frustrated over what he saw as unending racism and mistreatment.

But Kline’s latter life became even more noteworthy. He overcame drug addiction and returned to Wayne State, eventually earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and finally a Ph.D in education.

He worked extensively in the field of drug rehabilitation, while also forming the Black Legends of Professional Basketball Foundation. This organization was and remains dedicated to getting recognition and fiscal support for the pioneers of pro basketball, many of whom are not recognized by the NBA because they didn’t play in the league.

During his lectures, Kline would spend minimal time talking about himself and the Globetrotter days, and maximum time about the importance of education, and the lack of recognition and respect given the Black pioneers of basketball.

In his eyes those two causes were far more important than his playing exploits, but those who saw him remember a gifted athlete, as well as someone whose determination to help others resulted in major accomplishments and notable exploits decades after he put away his basketball shoes.

Kline is survived by five daughters; Sharon Hill, Britt Thomas, Cheryl Thomas, Terry Dennis and Kelly Mack; four sons; Benjamin Daniels, John Kline III, Michael Kline and Alan Daniels; his brother, Ronald Colvard; 22 grandchildren; and 28 great-grandchildren.

Kline was a high-leaping 6-foot-3 star nicknamed Jumpin’ Johnny at Wayne University (now Wayne State University) in Detroit, because of his poor grades he dropped out of Wayne State to join the Globetrotters in 1953. During the six years with the Globetrotters, he had helped the team to win the "World Series of Basketball" against the College All-Americans, and in 1959 achieved their first undefeated season with 441 wins.

In 1959 he left the Globetrotters and for the season 1960–61 he played in Pennsylvania for the Sunbury Mercuries of the Eastern Professional Basketball League, a rung below the N.B.A. The 60's was a lost decade for Kline as he struggled with a drug addiction for almost eight years.

He resumed his education at the Wayne State, where he received bachelor's and master's degrees before earning a Ph.D. in education. In the early 1970s, he began a new career as director of a methadone program. In 1986 he was named the director of education and substance abuse for the City of Detroit's health department, the Times reports and soon after was appointed to Michigan's nursing board.

Kline founded the Black Legends of Professional Basketball Foundation with the aim to bring recognize and establish retirement plans for the game's early players, many of whom are not recognized by the NBA because they didn't play in the league. Kline was inducted into the African-American Hall of Fame, Wayne State's sports hall of fame and the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.

Kline died on July 26, 2018, at his home in Lebanon, Tennessee, at the age of 86. He is survived by five daughters; Sharon Hill, Britt Thomas, Cheryl Thomas, Terry Dennis and Kelly Mack; four sons; Benjamin Daniels, John Kline III, Michael Kline and Alan Daniels; his brother, Ronald Colvard; 22 grandchildren; and 28 great-grandchildren.