Magic Johnson Group To Buy Los Angeles Dodgers For $2 Billion

A group that includes former Lakers star Magic Johnson and longtime baseball executive Stan Kasten agreed Tuesday night to buy the Dodgers from Frank McCourt for a record $2 billion.

Magic Johnson: 20th Anniversary Of HIV Announcement

Image via Wikipedia

By: Nsenga Burton

Today marks the 20th anniversary of an announcement that literally rocked the sports community -- the announcement that legendary basketball player Earvin "Magic" Johnson was retiring, having contracted the H.I.V. virus. Little was known about the virus at the time, so much so that Johnson had to be reminded that he had HIV., not full-blown AIDS before making the announcement. On November 7, 1991, the world stopped for a moment when learning that the man with the magic touch and infectious smile was now facing what was believed at the time to have been a certain death.

The announcement came just after Johnson had married his longtime girlfriend Earleatha "Cookie" Kelly in September of that same year. After a routine physical examination, the seemingly invincible point guard tested positive for HIV. CONTINUE....

Related articles

• Video: 20 Years Ago Today, Magic Johnson Announced He Has HIV and Is Retiring (laist.com)
• The Magic Effect: 20 Years After Magic Johnson's HIV Announcement (hellobeautiful.com)
• Magic Johnson, 20 Years with HIV (socyberty.com)

Magic Johnson outraged by 'faked AIDS' comment

By Reid Cherner & Tom Weir

Magic Johnson has lashed back at a Minneapolis radio program whose hosts asserted that the former Lakers star has faked having AIDS.

"I am extremely disappointed in KTLK in Minneapolis," Johnson told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "I am outraged that Chris Baker and Langdon Perry would minimize such a serious and deadly issue. Millions are dying from HIV/AIDS and the fact that they would make jokes about my status is unbelievable."

Magic Johnson outraged by 'faked AIDS' comment....

COOKIE JOHNSON'S 'I STAND WITH MAGIC

In conjunction with World AIDS Day, Cookie Johnson, the wife of Earvin "Magic" Johnson, and Abbott brought the "I Stand With Magic" program to Los Angeles to educate the African-American community, specifically women, on HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.

The program aims to reduce new HIV infections among African Americans by half over five years.

Cookie joins the "I Stand With Magic" program, which has a new emphasis: to urge women to get informed, tested and treated for HIV/AIDS and provide tools for prevention and testing.

Los Angeles is part of a three-city tour of "I Stand With Magic" events around World AIDS Day. HIV testing and celebrity concerts also are being held in Chicago and New York City to highlight the first-year results of the campaign and renewed efforts to reach African-American and other minority women.

African Americans account for approximately half of the nearly 500,000 Americans estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS and have represented nearly 40 percent of all deaths among people with AIDS in the United States.