George Meadow Lemon III was born on the 25th April 1932 in Wilmington, North Carolina and passed away on the 27th December 2015 in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was a professional basketball player, best remembered by the nickname “Clown Prince of Basketball” earned while playing with the Harlem Globetrotters. He was also known for being a Christian minister. Beside that, Lemon was recognized for his television appearances.
Have you ever wondered how rich was Meadowlark Lemon? It was estimated from sources that the Lemon’s net worth was over $2 million, earned through his career in the sports industry. Another source came from the film industry, as he appeared in several television projects.
Meadowlark Lemon Net Worth $2 Million
Meadowlark Lemon was raised in his hometown, where he attended Williston Industrial School, from which he graduated in. Later, he enrolled at Florida A&M University 1952 , but he was drafted into the US Army, where he served two years. Lemon’s basketball career then began in 1955, although he had first applied for the Harlem Globetrotters in 1954. Anyway, he was chosen for the first team, and soon began to perform various basketball stunts, playing in numerous games. This was the main source of his net worth until 1980, when he decided to leave the Harlem Globetrotters, and form his own team called “The Bucketeers”, which were an imitation of the Globetrotters. Three years later, he quit the team and joined the Shooting Stars, which became Lemon’s main source of wealth until 1987, after which he decided to form another basketball squad of his own, “Meadowlark Lemon’s Harlem All Stars”. He also rejoined with Harlem Globetrotters later that year, which also added to his net worth.
During his career, Lemon participated in over 16000 games for Globetrotters, and for that he has won several awards, including the John Bunn Award in 2000, and three years later, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Apart from his successful basketball career, Lemon appeared in several film and TV roles as a Globetrotter, and also as himself. Some of the appearances included the TV series “ The Harlem Globetrotters Popcorn Machine”, “Hello, Larry”, “Meadowlark Lemon Presents The World”, and “The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh”, among others, which also added to his net worth. Additionally, Lemon was also featured in the 1982 video entitled “Fun & Games”, which received a Grammy nomination.
Meadowlark grew up in a Christian family, and in 1986 he became an ordained minister, and two years later he earned a Doctor of Divinity degree from Vision International University in Ramona, California. In his last years, he moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, and continued to work as a minister, which is where his Meadowlark Lemon Ministries, Inc is located.
When it comes to his personal life, Meadowlark Lemon firstly married Willye Maultsby, but their marriage was short after she attacked him with a knife. In 1994 he married Dr. Cynthia Lemon, and they had 10 children. He passed away from natural causes at the age of 83.
