Editing Muhammad Ali (section)

==Entertainment career==
{{Further|Muhammad Ali in media and popular culture}}
[[File:The Champ and The Clown.jpg|thumb|Ali with clowns Charlie Frye and [[Skeeter Reece]] in 1980]]

===Acting===
Ali had a cameo role in the 1962 film version of ''[[Requiem for a Heavyweight]]'', and during his exile from boxing, he starred in the short-lived 1969 Broadway musical, ''Buck White''.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Langer |first1=Adam |title=Muhammad Ali in a Broadway Musical? It Happened |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/28/theater/muhammad-ali-broadway-buck-white.html |access-date=December 6, 2020 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=November 28, 2019 |archive-date=July 25, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200725024740/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/28/theater/muhammad-ali-broadway-buck-white.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/buck-white-3305 |title=''Buck White'' |publisher=[[IBDB]] |access-date=May 9, 2022 |archive-date=May 9, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509051557/https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/buck-white-3305 |url-status=live }}</ref> He also appeared in the documentary film ''[[Black Rodeo]]'' (1972) riding both a horse and a bull.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cartwright |first=Keith Ryan |date=February 3, 2020 |title=When black cowboys paraded through Harlem with Muhammad Ali |url=https://andscape.com/features/black-rodeo-cowboys-paraded-through-harlem-with-muhammad-ali/ |access-date=June 2, 2024 |website=Andscape |language=en-US |archive-date=February 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222082345/https://andscape.com/features/black-rodeo-cowboys-paraded-through-harlem-with-muhammad-ali/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

His autobiography ''[[The Greatest: My Own Story]]'', written with [[Richard Durham]], was published in 1975.<ref name=cp>{{cite book |last1=Ali |first1=Muhammad |last2=Durham |first2=Richard |title=The Greatest: My Own Story |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EkfhAAAAMAAJ |year=1975 |publisher=Random House |location=New York |isbn=978-0-394-46268-4 |oclc=1622063 |access-date=July 24, 2023 |archive-date=October 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231031224607/https://books.google.com/books?id=EkfhAAAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1977 the book was adapted into a film called ''[[The Greatest (1977 film)|The Greatest]]'', in which Ali played himself and [[Ernest Borgnine]] played [[Angelo Dundee]].

The film ''[[Freedom Road]]'', made in 1978, features Ali in a rare acting role as Gideon Jackson, a former slave and Union soldier in 1870s Virginia, who gets elected to the U.S. Senate.

===Spoken word poetry===
{{Poem quote
|text=Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
His hands can't hit what his eyes can't see.
Now you see me, now you don't.
George thinks he will, but I know he won't.
|sign=Muhammad Ali<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/boxing/2016/06/03/muhammad-ali-best-quotes-boxing/85370850/ |title=30 of Muhammad Ali's best quotes |website=USA Today |language=en |access-date=April 19, 2019 |archive-date=April 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419002853/https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/boxing/2016/06/03/muhammad-ali-best-quotes-boxing/85370850/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}

In 1963, Ali released an album of [[spoken word]] music on Columbia Records titled, ''[[I Am the Greatest (Cassius Clay album)|I Am the Greatest]]'', and in 1964, he recorded a [[cover version]] of the [[rhythm and blues]] song "[[Stand by Me (Ben E. King song)|Stand by Me]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTlN6pU01K0 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022125127/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTlN6pU01K0| archive-date=October 22, 2013 |title=Song ''Stand By Me'', recorded in 1964 by Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay |publisher=YouTube |date=December 13, 2008 |access-date=February 20, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.secondhandsongs.com/performance/80810 |title=Different versions of 'Stand By Me' |publisher=Secondhandsongs.com |access-date=February 20, 2013 |archive-date=November 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104015634/http://www.secondhandsongs.com/performance/80810 |url-status=live }}</ref> ''I Am the Greatest'' sold 500,000 copies, and has been identified as an early example of [[rap music]] and a precursor to [[hip hop]].<ref name="tinsley">{{cite news |last=Tinsley |first=Justin |title=The Grammy-nominated Cassius Clay |url=https://andscape.com/features/muhammad-ali-i-am-the-greatest-album/ |work=[[Andscape]] |date=June 8, 2016 |access-date=July 16, 2022 |archive-date=August 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810041030/https://andscape.com/features/muhammad-ali-i-am-the-greatest-album/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="rollingstone">{{cite magazine |title=Muhammad Ali: Famed Pugilist Was Also Hip-Hop Pioneer |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/muhammad-ali-worlds-greatest-boxer-was-also-hip-hop-pioneer-20160604 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=June 4, 2016 |access-date=August 22, 2017 |archive-date=May 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180515184644/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/muhammad-ali-worlds-greatest-boxer-was-also-hip-hop-pioneer-20160604 }}</ref><ref name="nytimes2" /><ref name="rollingstone1" /><ref name="rollingstone2" /> It reached number 61 on the album chart and was nominated for the [[Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album]] at the [[6th Annual Grammy Awards]] in 1964.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Grammy Award Nominees 1964 – Grammy Award Winners 1964 |work=Awards & Shows |url=http://www.awardsandshows.com/features/grammy-awards-1964-216.html |access-date=January 24, 2023 |archive-date=December 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111213121946/http://www.awardsandshows.com/features/grammy-awards-1964-216.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="rollingstone2" /> He later received a second Grammy nomination, for "Best Recording for Children", with his 1976 spoken word novelty record, ''[[The Adventures of Ali and His Gang vs. Mr. Tooth Decay]]''.<ref name="rollingstone2" />

===Professional wrestling===
Ali was involved with [[professional wrestling]] at different times in his career.

On June 1, 1976, as Ali was preparing for his bout with Inoki, he attended a match featuring [[Gorilla Monsoon]]. After the match was over, Ali removed his shirt and jacket and confronted [[professional wrestler]] [[Gorilla Monsoon]] in the ring after his match at a [[World Wide Wrestling Federation]] show in [[Philadelphia Arena]]. After dodging a few punches, Monsoon put Ali in an [[airplane spin]] and dumped him to the mat. Ali stumbled to the corner, where his associate [[Butch Lewis]] convinced him to walk away.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://boxinghalloffame.com/muhammad-ali-boxing-a-monsoon/ |title=Muhammad Ali Boxing a Monsoon – Boxing Hall of Fame |date=December 29, 2012 |publisher=boxinghalloffame.com |access-date=June 9, 2016 |archive-date=September 16, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916221053/http://boxinghalloffame.com/muhammad-ali-boxing-a-monsoon/ }}</ref>

[[File:Pat Patterson and Muhammad Ali Wrestlemania.png|thumb|Ali (right) as a special guest referee along with [[Pat Patterson]] (middle) at [[WrestleMania I]], with [[Liberace]] (left) as timekeeper]]
On March 31, 1985, Ali was the special guest referee for the main event of the [[WrestleMania I|inaugural WrestleMania]] event.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> | title=Historical Cards: WrestleMania I (03-31-1985) | magazine=PWI 2007 Wrestling Almanac & Book of facts | location= Blue Bell, Pennsylvania | publisher= [[London Publishing]] | date=2007 | editor-first=Harry | editor-last=Burkett | page=84 | isbn=978-25274-00389}}</ref>

In 1995, Ali led a group of Japanese and American professional wrestlers, including his 1976 opponent Antonio Inoki and [[Ric Flair]], on a sports diplomacy mission to [[North Korea]]. Ali was guest of honor at the record-breaking [[Collision in Korea]], a wrestling event with the largest attendance of all time.<ref name="NK"/>

Ali was inducted into the [[WWE Hall of Fame]] by [[The Undertaker]] at the [[WWE Hall of Fame (2024)|2024 ceremony]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wwe.com/article/muhammad-ali-to-be-inducted-into-wwe-hall-of-fame-class-of-2024|title=Muhammed Ali to be inducted into WWE Hall of fame class of 2024|work=wwe.com|access-date=March 11, 2024|archive-date=March 11, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240311144539/https://www.wwe.com/article/muhammad-ali-to-be-inducted-into-wwe-hall-of-fame-class-of-2024|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Colin |first1=Tessier |title=The Undertaker Inducts Muhammad Ali Into WWE Hall Of Fame Class Of 2024 |url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/undertaker-inducts-muhammad-ali-wwe-041142029.html |work=[[WrestleZone]] |publisher=[[Y! Entertainment]] |access-date=June 5, 2024 |date=April 6, 2024 |archive-date=April 6, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406222952/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/undertaker-inducts-muhammad-ali-wwe-041142029.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Television appearances===
{{Further|Boxing career of Muhammad Ali#Television viewership}}

Muhammad Ali's fights were some of the world's [[List of most-watched television broadcasts|most-watched television broadcasts]], setting television viewership records. His most-watched fights drew an estimated 1{{ndash}}2&nbsp;billion viewers worldwide between 1974 and 1980, and were the world's most-watched live television broadcasts at the time.<ref name="briefly"/> Outside of fights, he made many other television appearances. The following table lists known viewership figures of his non-fight television appearances. For television viewership figures of his fights, see ''[[Boxing career of Muhammad Ali#Television viewership|Boxing career of Muhammad Ali: Television viewership]]''.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center; font-size:95%"
|+
! Date !! Broadcast !! Region(s) !! Viewers !! Source
|-
| {{dts|1971|October|17|format=mdy}}
| ''[[Parkinson (TV series)|Parkinson]]'' (series 1, episode 14)
| United Kingdom
| 12,000,000
| {{citation needed|date=October 2020}}
|-
| {{dts|1974|January|25|format=mdy}}
| ''[[Parkinson (TV series)|Parkinson]]'' (series 3, episode 18)
| United Kingdom
| 12,000,000
| {{citation needed|date=October 2020}}
|-
| {{dts|1974|December|7|format=mdy}}
| ''[[Parkinson (TV series)|Parkinson]]''
| United Kingdom
| 12,000,000
| {{citation needed|date=October 2020}}
|-
| {{dts|1977|March|28|format=mdy}}
| [[49th Academy Awards]]
| United States
| 39,719,000
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Academy Awards Show Ratings |url=https://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/reference/academy-awards-show-ratings/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161008211435/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/reference/academy-awards-show-ratings/ |archive-date=October 8, 2016 |website=[[TV by the Numbers]] |date=February 18, 2009}}</ref>
|-
| {{dts|1978|December|25|format=mdy}}
| ''[[This Is Your Life (American franchise)|This Is Your Life]]'' ("Muhammad Ali")
| United States
| 60,000,000
| <ref>{{cite book |last=Hauser |first=Thomas |title=Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times |date=2012 |publisher=[[Anova Books]] |isbn=978-1-907554-90-2 |page=431 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7K6-AgAAQBAJ&pg=PT431 |access-date=July 24, 2023 |archive-date=October 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231031224607/https://books.google.com/books?id=7K6-AgAAQBAJ&pg=PT431#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{dts|1979|October|24|format=mdy}}
| ''[[Diff'rent Strokes]]'' ("[[List of Diff'rent Strokes episodes|Arnold's Hero]]")
| United States
| 41,000,000
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Diff'rent Strokes – The Complete Second Season DVD Review |url=http://www.sitcomsonline.com/diffrentstrokesseason2dvdreview.html |website=Sitcoms Online |access-date=September 1, 2018 |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224192558/https://www.sitcomsonline.com/diffrentstrokesseason2dvdreview.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{dts|1981|January|17|format=mdy}}
| ''[[Parkinson (TV series)|Parkinson]]'' (series 10, episode 32)
| United Kingdom
| 12,000,000
| {{citation needed|date=October 2020}}
|-
| rowspan="2" | {{dts|1996|July|19|format=mdy}}
| rowspan="2" | [[1996 Summer Olympics opening ceremony|Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics opening ceremony]]
| Worldwide
| 3,500,000,000
| <ref name="Hajeski">{{cite book |last=Hajeski |first=Nancy J. |title=Ali: The Official Portrait of "The Greatest" of All Time |date=2013 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-60710-983-9 |page=293 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6ClZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA293 |access-date=July 24, 2023 |archive-date=October 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231031224610/https://books.google.com/books?id=6ClZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA293#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| United States
| 209,000,000
| <ref>{{cite news |last1=Toff |first1=Benjamin |title=Olympics Ratings Set Record |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/26/arts/26arts-OLYMPICSRATI_BRF.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=August 25, 2008 |access-date=September 4, 2018 |archive-date=September 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180904120949/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/26/arts/26arts-OLYMPICSRATI_BRF.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{dts|2001|September|21|format=mdy}}
| ''[[America: A Tribute to Heroes]]''
| United States
| 60,000,000
| <ref>{{cite web |title='Heroes' Telethon Raises $150 Million |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/78313/heroes-telethon-raises-150-million/ |website=billboard.com |date=September 25, 2001 |access-date=March 29, 2021 |archive-date=January 27, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127224333/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/78313/heroes-telethon-raises-150-million |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{dts|2007|January|4|format=mdy}}
| ''[[Michael Parkinson|Michael Parkinson's Greatest Entertainers]]''
| United Kingdom
| 3,630,000
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Weekly top 30 programmes |url=https://www.barb.co.uk/viewing-data/weekly-top-30/ |publisher=[[Broadcasters' Audience Research Board]] |date=January 7, 2007 |access-date=September 1, 2018 |archive-date=February 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150211081646/http://www.barb.co.uk/whats-new/weekly-top-30 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{dts|2016|June|9|format=mdy}}
| [[#Memorial|Muhammad Ali memorial service]]
| Worldwide
| 1,000,000,000
| <ref name="alicenter">{{cite web |title=Annual Report 2016 |url=https://alicenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/2016-Annual-Report-FINAL_spreads.pdf |publisher=[[Muhammad Ali Center]] |date=January 2017 |access-date=August 19, 2018 |archive-date=December 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203175252/https://alicenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/2016-Annual-Report-FINAL_spreads.pdf }}</ref>
|-
!
! Total viewership
! Worldwide
! 4,692,349,000
!
|}

=== Art ===
Ali was also an amateur artist and made dozens of drawings and paintings in the 1970s. In 1977, Rodney Hilton Brown, who owned an art gallery in NYC, asked Ali if he was interested in painting. Ali took him up on the offer and produced several paintings for him to sell. Brown is the author of ''Muhammad Ali: The Untold Story: Painter, Poet and Prophet''.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Art by Muhammad Ali, boxing icon, sells for close to $1 million in New York auction|language=en-US|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/10/06/muhammad-ali-art-auction-sells-boxing/|access-date=October 7, 2021|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=November 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128214923/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/10/06/muhammad-ali-art-auction-sells-boxing/|url-status=live}}</ref> In October 2021, 26 of his drawings and arts were placed on auction and sold for close to US$1 Million.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Villa|first=Angelica|date=October 6, 2021|title=Muhammad Ali's Little-Known Art Becomes a Hit at Auction|url=https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/muhammad-ali-bonhams-sale-1234605878/|access-date=October 7, 2021|website=ARTnews.com|language=en-US|archive-date=October 6, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211006222506/https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/muhammad-ali-bonhams-sale-1234605878/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Calfas|first=Jennifer|date=October 6, 2021|title=Boxing Legend Muhammad Ali's Art Sells for Nearly $1 Million in Auction|language=en-US|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/boxing-legend-muhammad-alis-art-sells-for-nearly-1-million-in-auction-11633532646|access-date=October 7, 2021|issn=0099-9660|archive-date=October 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211007031641/https://www.wsj.com/articles/boxing-legend-muhammad-alis-art-sells-for-nearly-1-million-in-auction-11633532646|url-status=live}}</ref>