His family then moved to Edwardsville, Illinois, where his father worked in automobile plants and his mother cleaned houses.
[9] Mannie's father, Emmett, worked for the A. O. Smith Co. in Granite City, Illinois, which made large auto frames for General Motors.
Here's this guy who came out of the military after the war, had three kids, worked two jobs, went to college, and he did all this in the most racist part of the world you can be in.
It provided programs that actually encouraged the interaction of all citizens of Edwardsville, when most of our other institutions at the time routinely excluded black people.
"[10] Jackson attended Edwardsville High school where he began to demonstrate his superior skills in basketball.
At Edwardsville High School, Jackson made first team All-State and received a full scholarship to play at the University of Illinois.
[14] Jackson, along with team member Govoner Vaughn, were the first African Americans to start at the University of Illinois.
Instead, he was invited to try out for the Harlem Globetrotters, a team that toured the United States and Europe, performing basketball tricks.
His career as a Globetrotter was short-lived, as he left the team in 1964 to study economics and work with General Motors in Detroit.
In order to regain the team's fans, Jackson replaced many of the older players for younger ones, and placed a new focus on skilled showmanship.
This move proved successful, helping the Harlem Globetrotters to regain its status as one of America's favorite teams.
Under Jackson's watch, the Globetrotters experienced an average annual revenue growth rate of 14 percent over 14 years.