About Joe Fulks
Joseph Franklin "Jumping Joe" Fulks (October 26, 1921 – March 21, 1976) was an American professional basketball player. The NBA's first scoring champion, he was sometimes called "the first of the high-scoring forwards". He was posthumously enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978. == Early life == Fulks was born on a farm outside of Birmingham, Kentucky, a small town in the state's far-western Purchase region. Due to his family's low income, Fulks did not own a real basketball in his youth, instead practicing with a tin can or a stuffed sock until a local high school coach gifted him a used ball. Fulks began his high school career for Birmingham High School, becoming a star player for the team. Following his junior season, he moved with his family to Kuttawa, Kentucky. This move preempted the Tennessee Valley Authority's damming of the Tennessee River, which flooded Birmingham under Kentucky Lake. Kuttawa was accused of recruiting Fulks to their basketball team by securing his father a job at the local prison, but an investigation by the Kentucky High School Association Board of Control did not find enough evidence to punish the school. == College career == He played college ball at Murray State University (then known as Murray State Teachers College) for two years before leaving school to join the Marines in May 1942.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.