Booking Harlem Globetrotters

Harlem Globetrotters Biography

The Harlem Globetrotters was actually not formed in New York, but formed in the in Chicago, Illinois in the 1920’s. Since Harlem was considered the epicenter of African-American culture, the team chose to make New York its home base; from here the Harlem Globetrotters began a nearly century-long career of entertaining through the sport of basketball.

The Harlem Globetrotters rose to prominence in 1940 when the team won the World Professional Basketball Tournament. In the 1940’s the Globetrotters were one of the best basketball teams in the United States, but with the rise of the National Basketball Association, the team’s popularity began to wane. To distinguish themselves from their rising competitors, the Harlem Globetrotters began incorporating comic routines into their playing, and it wasn’t long before the team became known more for its entertainment than for its competitive edge, although the team’s members ranked among some of the most talented in basketball.

A number of basketball legends have played with the Harlem Globetrotters, including Wilt Chamberlain, Nat Clifton, Hubert Ausbie, Reece Tatum, and Connie Hawkins. The team has played more than 20,000 exhibition games in over one hundred countries, and has grown to become an American icon. In film and television, the Harlem Globetrotters has appeared as a Saturday morning cartoon and on the classic television shows Gilligan’s Island and The Love Boat.

Most recently, the Harlem Globetrotters were the subject of a 2005 documentary exploring the team’s impact on basketball. Two members also participated in the Amazing Race: Season 15 in 2009, and five members appeared on Are You Smarter Than a 5^th Grader? In 2013, three members of the Harlem Globetrotters joined Dennis Rodman on his infamous visit to North Korea, captured on the HBO documentary series, Vice.