Magic Johnson, the basketball superstar whose skill and joy have charmed the world, shocked the nation with his announcement that he has the virus that causes AIDS and is retiring.
People shed tears, his former coach gathered his new team in prayer, and Los Angeles Lakers teammates expressed their shock and sadness.But there were no tears from Johnson as he announced his condition Thursday at a news conference at the Forum, where the Lakers play.
Speaking calmly and flashing the incandescent, ear-to-ear grin that has charmed millions, he called his condition "another challenge."
"I'm going to beat it. And I'm going to have fun, OK?" he said.
He and his physician, Dr. Michael Mellman, said Johnson is infected with the HIV but has not developed AIDS.
Johnson, who married his college sweetheart, the former Cookie Kelly, two months ago, said his wife tested negative. He has a son, Andre, who lives in his hometown of Lansing, Mich.
The Orange County Register reported Friday that Cookie Johnson is seven weeks pregnant, and the fetus tested negative for the virus.
Neither Johnson nor Mellman said how he was infected. The virus is most commonly transmitted through sex or intravenous drug use.
"I don't believe we know at this point, specifically," Mellman said.
"I think sometimes we think, well, only gay people can get it, only - it's not going to happen to me. And here I am saying that it can happen to anybody. Even me, Magic Johnson, it could happen to."
Johnson said he would become a spokesman for the fight against AIDS, especially warning people to practice safe sex.
"He wasn't cautious. His luck ran out on him," Johnson's former teammate, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, told reporters without elaborating.
Johnson said he took an AIDS test for a life insurance policy and learned the result Wednesday.
He missed the Lakers' first three games this season because of the flu but had been cleared to resume practice.
"This is not like my life is over, because it's not, I'll live on. I'll work out, I'll be like one of the old-timers in a sense. My strength is fine. I have to take medication and go on from there. I can't be down, I never have been."Mellman said Johnson has no symptoms of AIDS, but he recommended that Johnson not play professional basketball, nor participate in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, because of the intense level of physical activity both require.
Johnson, whose given name is Earvin, joined the NBA in 1979 as the No. 1 draft pick out of Michigan State University.
When he came to the NBA the league was struggling, but his charisma, skill and irrepressible enthusiasm helped turn it into a worldwide entertainment, marketing and sports success.
"No one has contributed more to the success of the NBA than Earvin `Magic' Johnson, and I know his fans around the world, myself included, will miss the thrill of watching him compete," NBA commissioner David Stern said.
Named the league's most valuable player three times, Johnson has been called the consumate player, and he holds the NBA career record for assists with 9,921.
In his first year, he led the Lakers to the league championship and became the first rookie to be named most valuable player of the championship finals. He cemented the honor with a legendary performance in the sixth and final game against the 76ers in Philadelphia.
Abdul-Jabbar, the team's center, stayed home because of injury, and Johnson, a 6-foot-9-inch point guard, played all five positions during the course of the game. He had 42 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists and the Lakers won 123-107.
The Lakers went on to win four more championships and make the finals eight more times in his 12-year career.
Johnson's nickname was bestowed by Fred Stabley Jr., a sportswriter for the Lansing State Journal, who saw Johnson as a high school sophomore score 36 points, get 18 rebounds, 16 assists and 20 steals in a game.